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There have been some fantastic technical solutions here, having considered similar ideas we decided to keep it simple. We have a short day cruising, then moor up in an isolated spot and keep the engine running ( idling ) to do a wash. This means the batteries are fully charged, and the water and engine are hot. The washing machine is plumbed in for a cold fill but we guesstimated the water for a wash cycle. Once a wash is ready to start we fill a 1 litre milk carton from the hot tap and add it via the soap powder drawer during filling. The heater does come on but for a reduced time, see the graph below :-

Anyone attempting a DIY solar project could do a lot worse than download the MMPT controller excel spreadsheet below :- http://www.victronenergy.com/support-and-downloads/software#mppt-calculator-excel-sheet You can use it for generic products, not just those of the stated manufacturer - provided similar panels are used, note datasheet difference if necessary ! It deals with cable sizes and lengths, temperature ranges, MPPT output, etc etc - hours of fun !

All that seems to have been done here is to replace the old acid with a new one. The battery still remains a lead acid ( Not alkaline ), although the acid has changed, therefore so must the battery characteristics. Since it is still an acid, depending on its' strength, it must still be corrosive. If this really was magic the manufacturers would already be doing it surely ?

Well, I can offer the following information :- I fitted 3 X 100w ( rigid ) panels to our roof in February, on brackets that swivel 360 DEG and tilt 30 DEG. I tested the output for horizontal panels ( in line with the boat ) vs swivelled & tilted panels and there was a 40% increase so it is worth tilting. ( Late morning, blue sky, Sun off to the side of the boat ). However I did wonder if the roof mounted flexible panels would be more convenient, just fit more than you need to compensate for the inefficiency. My concerns were the temperature, damage to roof / paint, and possibly drilling into the roof to fix them into position. I guess the best bet would be to talk to someone who has had flexible panels for years to see the damage they might do ? Output wise, my theoretical max is 20A ( approx ), obviously I don't see that very often, but I have been up at 18A / 19A a few times. ( blue sky, sun perfectly aligned ). On a warm summer day with cloud cover I get 4A as a minimum. Most of the time it is somewhere in between ( obviously ! ). Given a typical sunny summer's day I would expect approx 10A, but to be honest the limiting factors are : (1) The cloud cover / British weather !, (2) Many canals are either tree lined, have a mud bank, or both. (3) Shading on any panel ( caused by (1) & (2) ). So much depends on external factors such as the weather and where you choose to moor, in addition as the sun comes and goes through the clouds the output varies accordingly so you cannot quote a fixed output. In the marina they work a treat, but we are on hookup anyway ! All I tend to do is swivel & tilt them when we moor, usually for the remainder of the afternoon / evening, then tilt them back the other way just before bed time so they can catch the early morning sun...since I don't usually get up at 430am ! If we stay put for a day then I re-position them am / pm. All I wanted was to compensate for the fridge and freezer, possibly for afternoon TV, or laptop charging if possible. In that respect they are fine. A generator would be more effective but the panels are silent and run even when you are sitting in the pub garden ! I hope this helps...

Hi Mrs B We were on our boat for about a month at Droitwich during March, and I really liked it. It was windy and you can hear the traffic continually when outside, but it didn't bother me when we were on the boat (although we didn't have the doors open). The facilities were still new and clean, and there is even a bath. There are about 3 showers, and a free hairdryer and tongs in the ladies toilet. However there is only one washing machine and one tumble dryer so during busy periods that may be a problem. The cost of the tumble dryer was £2 for 40 minutes which seemed a bit steep, although I discovered that I could dry a load of washing in that time.There is plenty of parking, and the entry system to the marina is a gate which is operated by your phone, so you don't need to get out of the car. Nick (the manager) is very friendly and is fairly easy going. He is happy to let dogs walk off the lead in the marina as long as you clean up after them. The only thing he wasn't keen on was letting me have my shopping delivered. Droitwich has a Waitrose, Morrisons and Homebase but not much else, although I didn't explore too much. There are no shops within walking distance but there is a pub that over looks the canal, and the food is ok. I always felt safe there and we only moved because of work. Sandra

We bought our black price boat last August. They asked us to put down a deposit of £5000 and told us they would require the balance before the end of the financially year. We wanted some changes made to the boat, mainly 240V, a stove and changes to the galley, and Dave Howdle at BP was really helpful. They did the galley work for us, and advised us on who could do the other work for us.They started the work before we had paid the balance, and couldn't have been more helpful. The boat was blackened, had a new safety certificate and everything that is on a hire boat came with the boat, so all the furniture etc, including a new mattress. They went through all the systems on the boat with us to make sure that we understood everything, provided us with bits and bobs free of charge and were in no hurry for us to move the boat after it had been paid for. We had a problem with the pump out toilet after we picked the boat up, and they came to where the boat was moored and put in a new motor free of charge. The boat was built in 2006, but she in in very good condition considering. We have been living on her since March and so far only the toilet has given us any problems. She may not look as pretty as the other boats on the marina, but we are really pleased with her.

We are looking to buy a boat, and we have been thinking about looking at a black prince boat as the layout is basically what we need. We know they are a bit sparse but we can live with that for a bit. The thing i can't live with is the size of the galley. The layout we are looking at has an extra toilet located next to the galley. My question is firstly what sort of cost would we be looking at to have 240v installed? Then if we bought some kitchen units from B & Q for example, how much would it cost for someone to take out the spare toilet and extend the galley for us. I really only need a ball park figure just to help us decide if we are going to have enough money. Hubby has suggested that we have a go ourselves, but we can't afford a divorce and i would like to get some use out of the boat before I retire in 10 yrs time! Thanks