Tony@Brighton

Hi 'Rambling', I keep coming back to Brighton Marina as a real 'home from home'. I've had steel and GRP boats without problem: but you've obviously got to keep on top of maintenance. To point out the obvious, you would soon feel 'trapped' without a sea-going boat because there's nowhere to go! And if you're paying by the foot for moorings, you would want the width of a broad-beam boat to have the living space. There is a great community here; and the Premier team are brilliant. T o n y

... she's currently clinging to an island mooring at Henley, having weathered the floods.

Getting back 'on topic', I have seen 'Ferrous' in the flesh at Brighton and at Newhaven and rather like it. I was never lucky enough to see inside, but heard from those who did that the craftsmanship was exceptional. And I wasn't the only one who admired its unpretentious and utilitarian lines: it really stood out - for all the right reasons - in a Marina for the most part full of white plastic yachts. T o n y

You can't use the urinal at work without swaying from side to side to balance the floor; You rarely get colds; You can't pass a toilet without stopping to make a contribution; Having passed to the Dark Side you become more a rebel day by day by day ...

Hi, I've crossed the Channel in unexpectedly poor conditions in an extremely well-equipped trawler yacht. It was not just exciting, but terrifying. With a deep, double-chine, stability was excellent; with plenty of freeboard and very strong scantlings there was no risk of the boat foundering. I cannot imagine how a narrowboat could be made sufficiently seaworthy: to consider a voyage in anything less would by definition by foolhardy. T o n y

I too went to great lengths to get on the electoral roll, in an attempt to improve my credit rating as well as to be able to vote. This resulted in the local Valutation Office registering the boat as a residence and trying for three-years backdated Council Tax. I won the battle eventually, but lost plenty of sleep over it. T o n y

I've had the hot-water version of the Eberspacher, the blown-air version and a blown-air Mikuni. The hydronic was a nightmare: its control system seemed overcomplicated and needed resetting with the special adapter from time to time. The blown-air version has been stable this winter thank goodness but frustratingly unreliable for the previous two. As for the Mikuni, it just ate glow-plugs for breakfast! The best boat heater I ever had was the Morso solid-fuel one: 100% reliable and warm as toast. T o n y

Hi, I would recommend Lewmar hatches: not 'retro' but functional and totally leakproof. T o n y

I would recommend a dehumidifier without hesitation: it has solved entirely all dampness issues on three boats now: a wooden wheelhouse that used to have mildew issues; then a poorly-sprayfoamed steel trawler yacht; now a GRP cruiser. T o n y