nebulae

Depends on the age of the boat .I have had to remove plywood floors from several boats because wet from showers and kitchens has rotted the ply. The rot then spreads quickly along the laminates of the plywood. As has been suggested if the floor is sound and true,you should have no problems.I would suggest some ventilation under the floor if possible,particularly if you fit a membrane.Also leave a small hatch at the lowest part of the boat in case any water gets in the bilge.(The engine space bulkhead is probably watertite)

We have a 12volt fridge.It is the same size as an average domestic unit and has the same storage and freezer compartment.Have had gas fridges in the past and would not recomend them.The three way fridges found in caravans are not approved for use in boats.The boats previous owner had a mains fridge run through the Sterling 3000 watt inverter running off 4x 110amp battery domesic supply.It was not satisfactory,hence the 12volt fridge which is entirely satisfactory.

If purchasing secondhand,Three things to consider.1)Does the boat sell itself to you.If you look at a lot of boats,the right boat will often sell itself to you.2)Obviously,any secondhand boat should be surveyd. out of the water.Be there when the surveyor attends.3)Is the boat the unencumbered property of the person selling it.Ask for lots of paperwork.Small Ship Register helps.Dont do anything about buying a boat untill you have sorted a mooring.If you cant get a mooring on the Thames,you might have to settle for a narrow boat even if this is not your first choice.

Unbelievable that anybody would be without a lifejacket in the Bristol channel.Even if the helmsman is competant,recovering a M.O.B.is not easy.Even suposing that the helmsman has sufficient skill to get the M.O.B.alongside,getting him out of the water would be no mean feat,by which time the vessel could be heading into danger.Some people have no sence of self preservation.

Went past the entrance lock into the Dee yesterday.It looks in worse condition than Welsh Frampton before restoration. It does silt up quickly below the bottom gates. Perhaps a classic case of needing a campaign rally?.

Stand inside the hatch with a brolly. Get the wife to work the locks.Foolproof method.

I have now gone to all chain on my anchor. Not much good having a heavy anchor and 6ft chain with an inadequate warp.Needs to be easy to deploy on rivers without placing yourself in danger.Some boats have an anchor stowed on the stern.Quick to deploy. Any disadvantages?

Lymm fine,but often moorings full(most popular mooring on the Bridgewater).Dunham Massey fine,pub 5min walk..By the Watch House should be O.K .Moore is a peacefull mooring.Give you an easy day,pub 10mins across field.

Depends on whether you plan for any river cruising. Theoretical power requirement for canal cruising is very low.Some allowance for power required for alternator load. I was advised to go for 42hp for a 50ft for river work.This has proved to be about right,especialy with river flows as they are at the moment.Sometimes the extra 1/2 mph can be very useful.Extra fuel used will be marginal,unless you are using the engines full power.

Moor at Rose of Lancaster pub,or above Slattocks locks(traffic noise)B.W.man will unlock the locks as you come to them.No lock passage without escort.As said,book a day ahead.Not sure why you would want to do this trip.The summit down to tuel lane is the best bit.

Looks like a Ford 4D with a Hurth gearbox.

Plenty of pubs in old Runcorn,including the Waterloo,at Top Locks.Plenty of room to wind at Top Locks.Interesting walk down the old line of locks,short walk around blockage.Moor at Preston Brook or Top Locks.Suggest looking at Top Locks on Google Earth if you can,to orientate yourself.Where the two flight joined below the railway bridge is now a grassy area,but the origional cottages remain.Small housing estate built on the site of the new flight.Bridgewater house is still standing at the bottom of the old flight.The entrance to the dock complex and the old flight can still be seen.Apart from this and the old fight stonework there is not much left.You might be lucky and catch somebody from the Bridgewater Motor Boat Club at Sprinch yard,to see if you can moor on one of their moorings overnight?

As has been proved,sadly,yesterday on Windermere,the use of a generator on a boat can be lethal.I have seen countless cases of generators run on boats where fumes can enter the accomodation.Last year,people may recall,several members of a family were killed by the fumes from a barbeque in a tent!The danger of carbon monoxide poisoning can not be overstated!As said in other posts,bore glazing is not the issue it used to be with modern japanese engines.You should get 10,000 hours without any problems.Use oil up to API-CC.Dont run your engine in gear while moored.The rules quite specificaly prohibit it.

If you are dealing with an agent of a private landlord,they are ripping you off if they are taking a deposit before entering into a tenancy agreement.Any private landlord will require a credit check,a reference and posibly an interview with the landlord himself.A key deposit will be payable,together with the first months rent.It is illegal for landlords to hold this key deposit.It has to be held in one of the approved schemes.Remember,the landlord is giving you the use of many thousands of pounds of their money.Having said that, private landlords can be more flexible than social housing landlords.If you can convince them you will look after the property and pay the rent and preferably be a long term tenant,there is no reason why you cant find somewhere.I hope you are lucky in your search.

Big problem with buying a boat is how to confirm ownership.Registration on the small ship register(only costs £25)old invoices,reciept from previous owners all good.If buying from a broker,they should establish ownership.Make sure there are no outstanding issues such as pending action for non payment of licence/moorings.Even a cheap boat means handing over money on trust.Good job most people are honest.If not paying for a surveyor,try to get a second opinion from a friend with some knowledge of boats.A few simple checks wil save you grief in the long run.

Is the pipe with the tap the fuel feed and the other the spill pipe?No tap on spill line as only needed for servicing the tank?Strange to have flexible fuel pipe next to the tank.Job to see what is going on without a wider angle shot.By electric swith,do you meen the bige pump float switch?

Bought some gloves from Pencridge Market.Rubber grips,chain clogging backs(as in chain saw) and lined.Brilliant for working locks.£10.00 for 5 pairs.

I was told,no official dvd of The Bargee was available,only video.Is there now a cosher dvd?

For charging batteries and heating,surely VAT at 5% is chargeable,same as domestic fuels.If you claim 100% use of red diesel for heating/battery charging 5% WILL be added to the bill.If you are a VAT registered trader(ie a trading boat),you will reclaim 100% of your VAT payments.There are other elements of tax involved in propulsion fuel,which is why,in some circumstances,you can be charged more for red diesel than derv(road fuel).Bearing in mind that this whole nonsence was forced on U.K. by the EEC and was not supported even by HMRC,it is easier to understand why they dont realy get stressed about the whole issue.Perhaps we should be gratefull for the status quo.If boatyards had to fund stocking derv,this would have a serious effect on their cash flow.A lot probably would not bother.One other unrelated issue.Fuel thefts are apparently a problem in some areas.Immagine the average narrow boat having £350 of diesel in the tank?The scallywags would have a field day.

Problem with the Bridgewater is the value of the Bridgewater Department property holdings.Look up Runcorn Docks on Google.Very fanciful housing development proposed by one architect.Castlefields Basin property?Preston Brook Marina?Would the Bridgewater Trust continue to contribute to maintenance?Would the ownership of the old flight of locks be transferable?Cant honestly see CaRT coming out of negotiations with Peel Holdings and still owning a shirt on their backs.

Personaly,I hate the large windows in most narrow boats.I am stuck with them on my boat,but if I had the opportunity to replace the boat it would be portholes.I Hate light and airy.Warm and snug much more important.(Houdini hatches interesting,never had a boat with them.What do other people think?)

Was the oil pressure light still on when the engine was running(or oil pressure register on the gauge)If the engine has oil pressure its probably not big ends.Agree with above points.Check last things worked on first.Check for obvious.Drive plate is a good place to start as it should be cheaper to split the engine and gearbox than start stripping the engine.Stick with B.M.C.and stick with your old engine if possible(unless it was a dog before your present problem)Hope the problem turns out to be a simple one.

Moored at Castleford opposite B.W.yard.Staff arived at 8.00.Sat around waiting for instructions.I Left mooring at 11.30.Nothing happening.No sign of any sort of management.Staff cost say £15 hour.31/2 hoursx4menx£15=£210 wasted.I hope this was an isolated incident.

My propellor in the River Soar.Much to my amazement found it and refitted it through the weedhatch.Even more amazing,found a spare key and nut in my toolkit.Moral,remember to refit the split pin next time.

Used Midland Chandlers Black and White gloss.Seemed as good as the International I usualy use.1 litre tin as opposed to 750ml International.I used the recomended Grey undercoat for black.Big mistake.I need to find Back undercoat in future,but not the fault of the top coat.