notaminga

Two border terrorists, a collie and a lurcher - we must be mad!

We often pick up waste oil that others have (naughtily) left at waste points, it gets added to the waste oil that we collect from a garage owning friend and it provides all of our heating in an oil burning stove. In the summer it gets mixed with diesel and runs the engine too.

Just don't go sniffing the chimney!

The only anglers I have found to be grumpy are the human ones - most kingfishers and herons are quite amiable, if a little shy. For that matter it seems to be only the human boaters that can be grumpy - boat dogs and cats and birds are usually fine. Hmm, perhaps it's just something about some humans, whatever activity they engage in? There seem to be plenty of boaters who seek out a solitary lifestyle because they struggle to get on with other people. Maybe some anglers like to sit for hours on the bank for the same reason.

I don't think you could be accused of being a Paul Lillie sock puppet!

This might also be relevant: Company Directors Disqualification Act (CDDA) 1986A liquidator, administrator or administrative receiver is required to investigate and report on the conduct of all persons who were directors or shadow directors of the insolvent company during the 3 years prior to the date of insolvency. The report may include some, all or none of the areas of misconduct detailed above. The investigation will also include, but not be limited to, director’s remuneration, compliance with company legislation including keeping proper accounts and cooperation with the insolvency practitioner in pursuit of his duties. The report is submitted to the Disqualification Unit of the Insolvency Service, an agency of the Department of Trade and Industry where the decision whether to pursue an action for disqualification is made. A successful action by the DTI will result in a person being disqualified from acting as a company director or being involved in the formation, promotion or management of a company for such period as the court decides.

This makes interesting reading! Not saying anyone might be guilty of anything though, oh no! Wrongful Trading (Section 214 Insolvency Act 1986) You continue to trade when you knew or ought to have known that your company was insolvent and had little chance of recovery. If found guilty a director will be required by the court to contribute to the assets of the company as compensation to those creditors who have suffered due to the wrongful trading. The level of contribution is generally assessed on the extent to which the company’s financial position deteriorated since it was known or should have been known that it was insolvent with no reasonable prospects of avoiding insolvent liquidation. A successful prosecution may also lead to action under the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, seeking to prohibit you from acting as a company director for a period of between 1 and 15 years. Defence against such an action would take the form of proving that every step was taken to avoid worsening the position of the creditors or indeed mitigating their loss. Fraudulent Trading You continue to trade with the intention of defrauding your creditors. If found guilty penalties are the same as those incurred in wrongful trading. In addition however being found guilty of fraudulent trading may result in a limitless fine and / or imprisonment for up to 7 years.

A few weeks ago I tried to moor outside Tesco's at Kidderminster, only to find a number of trolleys lining the edge of the canal. I reported them to the service desk who seemed particularly unconcerned. A friend of mine passed the same way recently and confirmed they are still there.

I realise this is not a nice thing to post about, but there is a drowned dog in the canal below Whittington Lock on the Staffs Worcs canal. Someone somewhere will be looking for their beloved pet. I've searched on here and on a number of missing dog websites without any success. Maybe someone will know something. The dog appears to be a short haired spaniel of some sort, with brown and white markings. I have tried to get it out of the water, but with no success, it's quite large and starting to decompose. It appears to have been in the water for two or three days. I'll be ringing local vets tomorrow, but I can't think of anything else to do. Are CRT likely to take an interest?

Hi all. Yes, I did of course report it, but doubt very much if it will be dealt with quickly as they are all on their hols at the local office. I dare say there will be a bit of a backlog (sic)! Anyway, there's another biggy down across the towpath at Cookley. Yes we have a chainsaw, but these are too big to tackle with a small saw, and mostly in the water. They'll be needing a big Tirfor as well I guess. I was posting on here as I don't think CART will get around to posting a stoppage notice in the circumstances.

A tree has fallen across the canal and blocked it completely.

So, you are advising the OP to actively subvert the BSS and invalidate his insurance in the process - really responsible! You might not like aspects of the BSS, and you might be the kind of person who actively seeks to not comply with it, but advising someone else to do so is just irresponsible. Let's hope the OP sees your advice for what it is and ignores it.

Just a quick update. I managed to get the fuel injection pump out without too much trouble. I didn't even drop anything into the darkened depth of the engine. Washing the pump in petrol removed a big ugly lump of silicon debris from the pump inlet. I put the pump back in and it runs perfectly. I have had to go back through literally every connection and clean out the last of the silicon, replacing it with diesel sealant. Thanks for all the help, and thanks again Dave for the manual.

Hi Dave, that's great - I'll send you a PM with email address. Thanks very much.

Thanks, Old Goat, I have been in touch with Neil at Beta, but for whatever reason he has not yet been able to get back to me. However, I do have to agree, they are usually very helpful with advice and their customer service is excellent.