canals are us?

When I bought my boat 8 years ago it had a diesel bubble stove fitted. When used for the first time it was leaking diesel out the lever thing on the right and smoking out the boat from the hot stove body. Was going to install a solid fuel stove anyway as wanted a stove. Waited 2 months for a Woodwarm fireview 4.5kw. Have a back boiler in it too, that heats bathroom and bedroom. Best thing I bought for the boat. Not replaced any parts on the stove yet. Vermiculite fire boards are cracked and thinning and took baffle plate out the other day to clean and still has 6-8mm of steel thickness left. Grate bars, door seal ropes, door glass all original. Best £769.00 for fire plus £135.00 for back boiler I spent. Looks very dusty in picture and not as clear image and black as just re-painted it 3 months ago. Old Lumia phone camera.

Sorry, It was this one: All fixed! C262-CWE - Plastic Bowl | Thetford (thetford-europe.com) I decided to have a look at Youtube and saw a post of the flap not fully opening, so found the part that turns the cassette twist knob underneath the loo and it was loose., The mechanism works by ratchet to the lever on the side. Undid the screw. Lever now nice and free moving. Re-positioned plastic cog that engages with the plastic ratchet and re tightened. Flap now works on one of my cassettes! Then looked at other cassette and there was a piece of plastic loose inside the cassette. Fished it out and had several attempts to re fit. Needs to alight over flap mechanism with 2 bolts to pass through the holes in the plastic. It's a push fit. Fixed in place by the twist knob, that opens/closes the flap. All fixed and gave hands a good wash!! Thanks. James.

Around 2 years I replaced my Thetford C200 loo and replaced it with another Thetford product a 365 I believe. It's never been a good product. Full light never worked and emailed Thetford and never got a reply! Bought spare cassettes and enlarged the hole as cassettes wider! Supposedly improvement! The best is Just! Went to change the cassettes and one that was full and was very tight to remove, for some reason. Had to lift locking tab and really pull to get out! Now when you need a number 2 too! Anyway put spare cassette in and turned to open the loo hole and it wouldn't budge! The lever at the side only slides one inch and no further. This usually slides the black disk to empty the loo contents into the cassette. Wont move. Turned the slotted button on cassette itself and it does not open manually. Seems broken. Put full cassette in which slotted shaped knob does turn the disk and re fitted cassette but lever the same as above not opening to let the waste into the cassette. Basically loo wont let me slide the lever to empty the loo, so unusable. Any ideas as to what is preventing the loo from opening and emptying into the cassette? Anyone know of a good Thetford agent near Burton On Trent? Certainly not paying another £500 for the rubbish above. If unrepairable I'll buy a Porta Potti! James.?

Glad they are sorting it out. James.

My Sister has one. Good boat and thankfully overplated already. From memory around 4k in 2017! My sisters is also diesel. We paid £8,500 for it around 2 years ago. Spent around £12 in total with buying/doing jobs on it. The water bug is not flat bottomed. It has a curved V hull, so steel needs bending to shape. Not all boat yards have the facilities to black them either, so bear in mind they cost more to maintain.

A GRP would be the best bet. There is a highbridge GRP at Streethay wharf that the owner was thinking of selling around a year ago. Was still there a few days ago. Have occasionally unblocked the deck drain holes of leaves to allow the water out, as he said it goes under the rear door and enters the boat. Looks like a good space to live on and looks solid. You could spend 10k on steel work easily. My Sister has a 23foot Springer Water bug. My Sister visits for weekends. It's quite a good layout. Inboard 2 cylinder Diesel. Added solid fuel stove. Already been overplated in 4mm steel. Had to raise the gas locker floor and drain to bring above water line, due to extra weight. Quite characterful. Not sure that I would want to live on full time after living on my 50ft trad! Good weekend boat. I had also thought of a sailaway and discounted it, due to not enough funds and the RCD side of fitting it out. I refitted my present boat kitchen and bathroom while living on it and it was a nightmare with lack of space to put everything and try and work in a tight space. Even worse if winter. The one good thing with a sailaway is everything is new. If you want a boat now look at GRP, if not save up more. My costs on living on a 50 ft narrow boat for 8 years is much cheaper than renting a house. Just myself, 41, no kids. Self employed, non smoker/drinker. I have a residential mooring in the midlands. £765 quarterly. Boat insurance £170 a year. BSC every 4 years £150 Boat Licence. £886.00. Paid in full, get a bit of discount. Price based on a 50ft boat Last blacked around a year ago. £450 At the boat yard. Water included in mooring fees. Electric 19ppkw If memory serves! Card top up. I always have a buffer of 10k in reserve to cover the cost of over plating. Last year had a new gearbox, blacking, 8 anodes and the bill was £2,400 Plus general living/winter heating costs. I look at it that I could be paying £600 per month on a house rental plus bills, so better off on the boat, plus I actually like it! It suits my current situation as just me and no partner/kids. I doubt I could ever afford a house on an income of between 6-8k a year. James.

Happy Christmas everyone. Thanks to the mods and forum owner. James.?

Can you access the pipes? Presume boxed in at floor level? Sounds as if there may be a restriction/ blockage in the pipework or an isolation valve to heat just rads or calorifier circuit. If this valve wasn't fitted in the circuit teed off the main pipework it would reduce the flow to the rest of the rads. I would expect all 5 rads to get hot even on 15mm, so sounds to me like a flow problem. Make sure any valves in the pipework for isolating the calorifier or rads are open. Drain down and refill mixing to 20-25% volume in system and see if the heat reaches all the rads. Also raise header tank. Refill with all numbered TRV valves open or ideally remove them for manual/lockshield valves. I mix it in a bucket and pour it into header tank with jug. Sounds like max 2 days work once all pipework exposed. It shouldn't be too bad a job to refit it in 22mm speedfit once main run exposed. Are your rads single/ doubles? Your rads do have thermostatic valves! Not advised on a Webasto heater. James.

Keep them separate I say. I have an old Indesit WD 12X washer Dryer and have to remove half or more out to dry! Takes ages. Like hours. Not tried running from the 3kw Victron Inverter but runs on mains as Marina Based. My Nan has a new BOSCH washer Dryer and loves it. Cost £630 I finish the drying by leaving in Salon to dry overnight/ finish damp washing. Stove/room heat dries them well. James.

Not had anyone yet walk in-front of my Auris Hybrid, but I do look out for all hazards. James.

Solid Fuel backed up with a diesel boiler and rads. This is what I have except solid fuel stove has a back boiler on a gravity system, this heats bathroom and bedroom. James?

Thank goodness for that! I thought "Delhi Belly had caught up" James.

I used the same in my solid fuel gravity system. I mixed it beforehand to 25% mix. Poured it into header tank with a jug. So far 7 years later all ok. Your drain off could be on the radiator valve itself or in the pipework. I bleed my rads again a few weeks after refilling. James.

Shocking turn of events. Just so lucky, as an accident waiting to happen. My Sisters boat's engine vent is on the stern level with the top of the cruiser deck, so well above water line. James.

My Sister has a 23ft waterbug with inboard diesel 2 cylinder engine. It was originally 3mm steel but previous owner had it fully overplated in 4mm steel. I have to say I quite like it! Recently had it out for blacking and anodes and raising gas locker vent/floor as on water line due to extra weight. Removed ballast to stern. James.

I'm a single male living aboard in a Residential Marina in the Midlands. My basic costs for my 50ft trad are: Mooring Fees. £622 a quarter Licence fee £850 a year. BSC every 4 years. £130 Gas, one bottle a year. £34.50 Use electric mini oven and LPG hob. Saves bending down and lighting the oven! Heating Solid fuel stove with back-boiler. £20-30 a week depending how cold. 2-3 25kg bags. Also have a Webasto diesel boiler. Use around £50 of diesel. 3 mobile Wifi. £7 per month. 15gb Electric 18pkw, no other charge. Boat insurance. £150.00 My post is delivered to Marina Office and driving licence address is registered here at the Marina. 380 watts of solar. 12 volt under counter fridge and freezer. Washer dryer and slimline dishwasher. 1KW immersion heater on timer. Webasto also heats the water as well as back boiler and engine. I do most maintenance like engine service, boat painting etc. Had my boat blacked last year with 6 anodes, and a new gearbox. Cost £2,500 Normally blacking £9 per foot. Before you commit to buying a boat hire a narrow boat and do a deal to stay in the Marina to see how you like it for a month. You need to empty the loo, either cassette to empty or move boat to services for pump out. Drag coal/gas bottle to your boat or if diesel refill tank. At all times making sure your ok if Marina freezes over and cant get water, move boat to pump out etc. James.

When I bought mica, for the below stove I just cut it to size with scissors and drilled a hole through the centre for the bolt hole in the middle. An old stove my Dad used to own. An old Atayco D. I still have it. Bought it off him for £30 in 1998! Re- fire bricked it, new mica and new ashpan made. It was cream originally but enamel damaged, so painted it black! Now would re paint it cream with black top as original. James.

Certainly was hot. I was working today painting kitchen tiles for a client and doing other things and I called it a day at 15.30. Boat was hot inside even with all curtains closed and windows open. Had a nice cool shower and then went out in my non work car. The joy of working AC. Popped to shop and chippy! Still warm but just chilling with fan on and some cold pop! James?

My sister has a 23 foot waterbug with enclosed front deck with escape window. I have seen them as 23ft with open well deck and enclosed. It is also fitted with a 2 cylinder inboard diesel. I quite like it as a boat and a good layout although used one of the dinette seating areas for a solid fuel stove. Need to clean the engine bay and paint it! James.

When I fitted my relatives new kitchen last Year I just used a jigsaw to cut out the curve. This is a laminated worktop. James.

Interesting thread. I wired my battery bank and tidied it up and added inverter and battery monitor and busbars as not enough room for the add ons on the main battery posts. Still need to fit a cover over the positive take off! Has a plywood lid to stop anything falling onto it. James.

Thanks. I had a look last night and all are A+ rated. Ideally want a A++ one. A+ are very cheap compared to a 12 volt one. Most 12 volts cabinets look the same as the cheapest of mains fridges! Indeed, from yourself! The funny thing is this morning the fridge had reached temperature and switched it's self off. On again, so see how long it runs for. 3.4A on monitor when it fired up, so see how it goes. Don't think its getting too hot, but compressor was hot and cleaned the fins which were very dust free. It seems to like having a hissy fit every now and again! Thanks. James.

I needed to buy a bath as my window and door layout excluded the room for a free standing shower. There was a shower cubicle originally but I ripped it and the dividing wall to make a walk through bathroom. Shower tray originally 700x700 Someone was removing an old "bette" 4ft bath and it was just what I needed to fit the space. It was free, so even better. I use it as a shower tray, but useful to sit on the built in seat to clean my feet. If the layout had suited I would of fitted a shower cubicle. I have since raised the woodwork on the loo wall. James

My very old 12 volt Inlander under counter fridge with icebox has been running constant. I fully defrosted it and switched it back on at 7pm. by 9pm not switched off and thinking a supply issue swapped the wiring over to the 12 volt freezer that has thicker wiring at 10mm2 direct from the batteries. Its still constantly running. Dial at 2.5. There is a big Gap between fridge and worktop so think air flow is ok. The 12 volt under counter freezer works perfect next to it. The ice box is falling apart with gaps to fridge space and as it's probably 20 years old think its probably fit to scrap? Don't really want to buy 12 volt due to cost. As I'm Marina based, thinking a 240 Volt unit. Any suggestions? Must be 50cm wide. When out, I'll run it off my Victron 3KVA Multiplus inverter that's 2 years old. Many thanks. James.