ROBDEN

Thanks Catweasel. I've been changing the oil at 250 hour intervals but I am a cc’er so the engine does get run at varying speeds. 100 hours still seems a bit low to me even if only used for battery charging. Vetus are only the maranisers. As you probably know the 4.14 and 4.17 are Mitsubishi ( SL4(?) ) units used in generators, air con plants and the like. I can't see them getting their oil changed every 100 hours if ever at all. I seem to remember reading somewhere that using a fully synthetic oil, the time between oil changes can be extended without any harmful effects. Now I’m waiting to be shot down. Rob...

Good morning everyone. Thinking of changing my oil....or should I say type of oil? There seems to be some good deals around at the moment on oil. My engine is a Vetus 4.17. I've been using 10w 40 mineral or part synthetic oil and even a mixture of the two. Now thinking of changing to 5w 30 full synthetic oil. Any advice/opinions? Thanks in advance. Rob....

Hi all. I'm going to be moving two boats tied together through a lock flight. On boat is 57 feet, the other is 42 feet. Should they be tied level, at the bow, the stern or somewhere inbetween. Many thanks for any advice given. Rob....

Hi. We moved onto the boat seven years ago and brought JO our cat with us....our choice not his. Thankfully he seems to like it. He knows if he likes somewhere as soon as we stop. If he likes it he's off as soon as we stop, but never goes very far. If not he'll just sit in the bow and look out. He has never been encouraged to go out at night ( if he fell in we wouldn't know ) and usually settles down on the bed once it gets dark. He has been "swimming" many times and thankfully we've been around to get him out with the use of a towel to grab hold of, a fishing landing net we keep on the roof for just that purpose or if he's close enough we just grab hold of him. BUT where ever we moor, especially if the canal has piling both sides of the cut, we ALWAYS leave a rope fender down either side of the bow. Several times we haven't heard a splash but we have heard him screaming while clinging to the fender. Although we have a dog as well - they are the best of friends - we try not to moor to close to other boats with dogs especially greyhounds or lurchers. Would we have another cat? At the moment I would say no but that's only because we worry too much about him and sometimes travel further than we wanted to, to find ( in our opinion ) a safe mooring.

About 14 months ago I fitted a new Jabsco electric toilet to the boat. On Sunday evening, while in use, one side of the seat broke clean in half. Neither SWMBO or myself are big people. Monday morning I phoned Jabsco and told them what happened. They said that the toilet seat and lid are not covered under the warranty, which has run out anyway. New seat and lid cost £42.50 plus vat plus carriage. But agreed that it shouldn't have broken and could I send them an email so that they have something in writing. This I did, together with (a friends details just in case) and a photo of said broken seat. So......Sunday evening seat breaks. Phone Monday morning. Tuesday morning my friend receives a new seat, lid and hinges F.O.C. How good is that. Nice to see that there are still companies about, that care about their customers. Well done Jabsco. Rob....

Thanks Tony. I think that from what you're saying, it should be ok. My smartgauge is usualy showing 64%-68% when I start charging the batteries. At 1000 revs, 14.4 volts the alternator is putting out 55 amps. 10 minutes later the amps drop to 36 amps. Another 10 mins and they are down to 24 amps. After an hour it's only putting out 8 amps. All the volt readings were 14.4 volts. The soc goes from 68% to 82%. I'll give the charger a go and see what happens. Thanks again. Rob....

Thanks for that. I did wonder about running both together but wasn't sure if I should. Would it still be ok when cruising for 5-6 hours? Rob....

Hello again. 4 x 110 Ah sealed batteries. Running for around 2-3 hours a day. Which would be more beneficial? Charge the batteries from the 110 amp alternator or from a 30 amp battery charger via a Travel Power unit? Thanks for any thoughts or input. Rob....

Yeah! Friend of mine......his a single hander.

It doesn't have to be intentionally, I've opened a tin of soup before that was labeled Tomato soup, only to find chicken soup inside...I hate chicken soup. As for the size, my friend's 110 Ah batteries are 2 inches taller than mine but the same length and width.

So. We have to take the word of the retailer that the label on the battery is the correct one for that battery and not swapped for a more expensive one. i.e.: 125 Ah label on a 110 Ah battery......cynical or what.

Good morning. When buying new batteries, is there a test you can do on them ( in the shop ) to make sure "they do what they say on the tin"? eg: 110 amp battery, there are 110 amps available. If there is, could the same test be used on batteries that are a couple of years old, to determine how much power is available then? Thanks Rob....

Yeah! Won in the end thanks to Cat. But did try at first to hold the filter and spin the boat round but the boat is 57 feet long and the cut was only 40 feet wide. Couldn't use the winding hole as there were share boaters parked there.

What an idiot. Been using the filter wrench wrongly. I've been putting the rubber band of the wrench, round the filter, instead of round my trousers and using my belt on the filter. Now I know...... it works a treat. Thanks Cat.

Morning all. Vetus 4.17. Spin on fuel filter. Should read "Stuck" on fuel filter. Tried a filter wrench but it's just distorting the case. Tried tightening first as well and tried jarring it........but still stuck. Any ideas to loosen it please, before I ram a couple of screwdrivers in it and hope I don't tear the case right off? P.S I'm assuming the're not left handed threads. Thanks in advance. Rob....

Have I missed something? Where is Gibbo? Well I hope.

Can't. The basin is inboard ie. not on the external wall. The basin is inboard. The waste pipe runs under the floor (below the water line) then up, to exit out of the hull, above the water line. This leaves a loop - like a water trap- and sometimes takes a while to empty. Rob....

'Evening all. I have a Whale Gulper that empties the shower tray. If I use a "T" or a "Y" piece to join the basin waste pipe into the shower waste pipe will the Gulper still empty the shower or basin, when one or the other pipe is empty? Thanks in advance for your advice/comments. Rob....

Thanks again. May buy the extra pipe and fittings needed and give it ago.

Thanks for your reply Bottle. As it is, I can run for several hours with the heating pump on and the rads are still cold. I was wondering if they would still be cold, after I swapped the pipes over. Rob....

G'morning all. I have a vertical calorifier. The top two fittings go to the engine and the bottom two go to the gas central heating boiler. After running for an hour or so the top fittings are very hot and the lower ones are lukewarm. My question is: Will swapping the top and bottom fittings over not only give me a bit more hot water but would there be enough heat in the water to warm up the central heating rads if I put the pump on? Thanks in advance for any help/advice. Rob....

Thanks for that Cat.

Hi All. I recently posted alternative oil filters I have used successfully for my Vetus 4.17. Does anyone know of an alternative, to the STM 3690 fuel filter for the above engine? Thanks Rob....

WOW!! Average fuel consumption 1 litre an hour. 4 hours a day plus 1 day of 8 hours = 32 hours a week. 52 weeks a year. Fuel approx' £1 per litre = £1664. That's a lot of battery money. IMO. With that regime, you would be better off trashing your batteries every few months, buy new ones and probably still come out on top. ROB.....

How big is your battery bank?