canals are us?

Not done any battery maintenance, but when I installed the 2 new ones I topped up all the batteries. Must be a year ago! Normally try to do it twice a year but been very busy. certainly the old pairs level had gone down, new hardly need topping up even though must be a year. The acid looks ok. I will check with a refractometer, then if low carry out a EQ charge and take it from there. James

Hi Dave, Thanks for your reply. How can you tell when batteries are reaching the end of their life? Getting warm, going flat quickly, using lots of water? The plates were about 3mm above the acid and looking at the new, the old plates have distortion in like wavy. The new nice and straight. When I did an equalisation charge over several days took SQ readings and got them up to around 12.7 volts. Might take further readings and see if they need an EQ charge as it must of been a year since I did any battery maintenance! New have never had one yet. Buying 2 isn't as bad as buying 4! 2 cost around £320 James

My Sisters springer water bug has UPVC cladding in the toilet compartment but it does sweat when the fire is first lit especially below the water line when it has been unheated while away. I like wood. I replaced the water stained/rotten ply ceiling with a new one and like it. Thought Pine T&Q but ply quicker and doesn't really move/shrink. I decided to paint it as walls and old ceiling already painted. Stove I installed where dinette/seating was. James.

Thanks for the reminder. All this talk of batteries made me check the electrolyte level of mine. Unfortunately 2 of my older Trojan T105'S level was slightly below the plates! These are the 5 year old ones. The 2 on the far right. 2 new added around 1-2 years ago, on far left, as recovered the old by doing several days of equalisation charges and installed a new Victron combi. I must look after them better though with regards to topping them up! The price has rocketed in the last few years. At least with a cheapo set not such a disaster if you ruin them. I'm a live-aboard but marina based with mains, so batteries don't get such a workout, except separate 12 volt under counter fridge and 12 volt under counter freezer, plus other boat 12 volt items. James

That's the one! A dog box" The one I would have. James

Very nice. Love the glazed side hatches. Why not have the extra light. James

I would have that design but with full length glass and double glazed and bolt on for cheaper DIY fitting. I have the above design as photo above my bed. I Installed a removable sheet of laminated safety glass below to fit in over the ceiling lining to stop the drips of condensation landing on me, but removable for summer breeze. James.

The other issue I see is unseen issues when the strip out above has been carried out. With a new boat everything is new, engine gearbox and hull. I have been thinking of selling my 1999 50ft trad narrowboat and buying a sailaway to fit out. I may get around 30k for my boat, not had valued yet and may be able to buy a budget 40-50ft trad replacement. I'm handy and can do most jobs. I would allow a year for the fit out. Working and working on the boat and living on the boat, do put me off though as trying to live on a boat your working on is far harder and time consuming. Building materials in the way, constantly needing to move them, no outside dry storage etc. I have been working on my Sisters 23ft springer water bug with inboard diesel and have to say it has a certain charm. It may be small but the space is well laid out. Took out one dinette for solid fuel stove. New ceiling and repaint inside. Mains landline added and fitted battery charger. Summer, full outside repaint. If I was in the financial position of having to decide used or new, I would go for new as at least you end up with a boat that is new and hopefully worth something if done to a good standard. Paying top money for materials and labour at a boat yard would be much better spent on a new hull. James

You only have one life apparently, so glad you have gone for it! All the best in your new liveaboard adventure. James

I have used supatherm ovoids and found it good when I used it on a boiler stove. can't remember how much ash it left but it burned very hot. Do regulate it well. James.

I bet you had to dust yourself down when you got out! James.

Oxbow red for me last year. Quite a good all rounder and reasonable cost. 25KG for £10.50 Sometimes buy the odd seasoned log or the wood briquettes. James.

Hi thanks, the mini cube looks nice. Not had any luck finding a small 3kw stove. Thinking if too powerful could make firebox smaller, so I an burn hotter an keep a good fire going and keep flue warm and deposits to a minimum. James

Thanks everyone for the very useful replies. It seems its a lot easier to buy an ordinary stove due to the odd flue size and rear flue. Would of been costly to weld up the bends needed to bring the flue away from the cabin walls. Going to go for a hamlet hardy 4kw as has a 4 inch top outlet flue. At least only one door, so Sister cant leave ashpan open and forget about it! I may even add extra fire bricks if needed. Want a proper cast iron roof collar and I'll buy a standard 4 inch boat flue. Plan to line it out in fireboard with an air gap and tile it. Need it very well installed as Sister has never had a stove, so I'll show her how to use it. Many Thanks. James.

I am shortly completing on a small 23ft steel narrowboat and am wanting to install a small multifuel stove. I like the look of the pipsqueak stove and wonder how owners find it? Does it stay in overnight? Any parts cracked? Any good small steel stoves? Budget £350 My sister is going to use the boat for weekends so heating essential. The boat has a Kabota 2 cylinder diesel inboard. it runs and sounds fine. Any timing belt to worry about etc? Many thanks.

The tree looks hollow/ quite rotten in the Central News report. Glad they are ok. Thank goodness they weren't in a GRP boat! James

Where does the black heater hose that's connected to a drain off valve go to? Is it a feed/vent pipe to fill/vent the radiator/stove system or a crude connection for a diesel boiler? In both cases needs a less restrictive tee. I would keep the pipework and refit after as a gravity system is great. I have a gravity stove system and a webasto diesel boiler. I use the stove as main form of heating. The more ways to heat water the better. I have 240 volt 1.1kw immersion on timer for mains landline. Webasto 5kw boiler. Back boiler stove. Boat engine. James

I have the now discontinued woodwarm fireview 4.5kw stove for 5 years and its brilliant but cost £950 with the optional boiler. I haven't replaced any parts yet, the only things that have worn/cracked is the vermiculite fire boards. I like the double glazed glass and stays 90% clean and stays in very well. The door ropes fit into a cast channel with no glue. Good airwash. Heavy build and very thick 8mm baffle plate. Riddling grate can be set flat for wood or open for coal. Used on ebay seem to go for £250 when available. Like the foxfire rated at 4kw. Or the new firewren. Not cheap though. James

Around 3 years ago I was Unemployed and got £71.40 a week JSA. I applied for HB for residential mooring and Boat licence and after 5 months of hassle got awarded £45 a week. £40 was the mooring fee cost. It didn't cover the £740 licence fee or the £150 for boat insurance. Thankfully my Nan paid the mooring fees and license fees and I used the back pay from HB to pay the license fee from then on and 18 months later after applying for dozens of jobs and several interviews found work at £7.40 an hour doing Property Maintenane. 3 years later I'm self employed and earn anything from 8-10,000 a year, much less than working for others, but I manage to pay the bills and am contented and like the variety of work. I get working tax credits of £36.82 a week so use that for food. There is just myself and I have no children. I felt great when I went into the job centre and signed off. James.

Decided to give the above boat a miss and buy one more finished and preferably Midlands based. The one thing that was good, is we all agreed a fully GRP cabin of 25ft is an ample length if no rear canopy. (30-32ft with rear canopy) Looking for a boat now for up to 5K with working engine, either inboard or outboard, reasonable interior with a few interior jobs like multifuel stove adding or repaint or update galley. Anyone know of anything? Thanks for all of your advise. James

Indeed. These supply period gutters. https://www.rainwaterdirect.co.uk/cast-iron-overview/cast-iron-guttering-1 James.

I don't know. Think yard just want it gone. See what it's like Thursday. Suspect total shell and strip out needed. Insulate, pine T&G lining. Just need 240v landline with garage consumer Unit, small calorifier with 1.1kw immersion for hot water. Later add gas hob, small oven. Possibly a electric mini oven with hot plates to simplify things . Find outboard eventually as main use a weekend escape for my Sister to stay over the weekend when her neighbours are driving her mad. Small multifuel stove like a pipsqueak for heating. James

If I do buy it I'll phone CRT anyway in order to see if they know of the boat and I an get legal transfer of ownership Indeed. It is a condition of sale. They want it disposed of. I'll find out the full facts of the circumstances of sale and why it can't be cruised away. James Thanks. I'll ask Streethay when they phone me. James.

I have asked about a mooring at Streethay and am awaiting a call back to see if they have availability. It would be a good base for my Sister and to work on the boat. I'll ask about boat transport. Unfortunately the condition of sale is it's a seized boat (Presume section 8) but will ask and has to be transported by road as a condition. It is cheap and floating so a good start! I have emailed tony the tug boat to see transport costs and take it from there. We'll see what happens between now and Thursday! Thanks. James