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sassan

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Everything posted by sassan

  1. Why not moor next to the pub the night before, have a couple of drinks and ask the landlord "if some guy comes in tomorrow to collect a parcel, could you please send him out to my boat?"
  2. Depends on where you want to go, big locks will require long ropes. Other than that, get it slightly shorter than your boat, so the line at the front can't catch in the propeller if it falls in!
  3. I've always thought those vents/exhausts through the hull are madness. How much does a chimney/air intake pipe cost?
  4. Had the same thing with a swan at Swineford lock on the river Avon. Every time you opened the bottom gates, it would go in, lock up, leave through the top and then swim over the weir to get back down and then do it again!
  5. I'd say a cruiser stern for a holiday boat, but always a trad stern for living in. It's basically a shed, the space in the boat where I can leave tools everywhere and not get in trouble with the missus. Extra space in the engine room to hang bikes in the winter Heat from the engine warms the front of your body Some protection from rain Can sit on the roof to save legs on long journeys I tend to prefer being alone when steering anyway, if we have guests, socialisation is done at the bow end, with trips along the gunwhales if people want to try driving, or bring me a cup of tea. If I need to work on my engine, it's in a nice warm dry room, not a pit filled with dirty water that I have to lie on my front, on a dirty deck, outside, to get at.
  6. Bookmarked this thread, for when there's another cassette vs pumpout discussion.
  7. sassan

    Kindling

    I find that the wooden boxes that restaurants get veg delivered in are the best kindling. I'm in Bristol for the winter, so I know 5 or 6 places that often have a few outside for me to nab on my way home from work!
  8. This may well be true. I last bought a cylinder back in March.
  9. I don't know the situation in London, but here is what I understand. There's plenty enough length of waterways and public transport is sufficiently good for you to manage this (without breaking either the rules, or some folks' interpretation thereof). However, the problem will be in finding available spaces. My advice is, if you can, start doing it, but don't give up your mooring for a couple of months, until you've decided if it's practical or not.
  10. It was £25 for a 13KG propane (I think, the orange bottles). I don't know how that compares to other fuel boats, but I've had them from caravan parks much cheaper.
  11. Sounds like you've blown either a fuse or some wiring between battery and fuse box. You're going to have to trace the route, checking with a voltmeter at each connection. In future, if you're charging batteries in this way, do it directly to the batteries. Also, beware of batteries overheating!
  12. Met them on Sunday. They were indeed very nice. This was on the river at Saltford. Didn't realise they also served the river, which is excellent since as far as I know that area was not served by anyone previously. Topped up with diesel as I wasn't sure how much I had left and didn't want to run out on the river (turns out I had half a tank left, but oh well). Very nice couple, good diesel price. Gas bottles were a little pricey.
  13. *applies best four yorkshireman voice*: You're lucky to have a cable, I just have to persuade the engine into stalling.
  14. After moving for the first time in a while (from our winter mooring), be sure to remember which side the bank is on the next morning and don't just automatically climb out the usual side. I caught myself a few inches from falling right in. If you make the bold decision to "just jump in and swim ashore with the rope", remove your clothes (particularly huge thick jacket) first. Be careful mooring in the rain, my mallet slipped right out of my hand as I was banging a peg in, flew between my legs and ended up in the canal never to be seen again!
  15. I got 23 in the living room of my 62ft narrowboat once. Could probably have made it to 50 if people had used the bathroom, bedroom and engine room. 500 would have been a stretch, but I suppose I have a roof.
  16. Go to Will (The coal boat), his prices are excellent and he's well liked and trusted by the community! I believe he does Semmington to Bath. *glowers suspiciously at the newcomer*. I haven't met the new one, just seen their boat go by, I'm sure they're perfectly nice, but I'll still be going to WIll. They've got the income from the boat yard. Edit: Link to his website: http://thecoalboat.co.uk/
  17. Personally, my procedure for brushing teeth is not "fill sink with water, wash toothbrush in it, drain, brush teeth, fill sink, wash toothbrush, drain. My toothbrush makes no contact with the sink at all. I've been pissing in the sink for longer than I've been living on a boat (saves on wasting such a huge amount of water each time (I wasn't being tight or anything, I wasn't even on a meter, I'm just green like that ).
  18. I'd still have to empty it sometime, and I'd have to pay for it. I have a long-standing personal rule against paying for my bodily functions (I go to great lengths at stations, etc). Also, that would deny me the option of carrying the cassette by foot/trolley/bike/car/bus. Basically, all the usual reasons, let's not turn this thread into another one of those! All we need now is for the ACC to issue official advice on pumpout vs cassette and we'd never talk of anything else!
  19. For me, it's much cheaper than renting a flat. I don't have a mooring, which would make the difference less, but it would still be cheaper for me. Sure, there are costs that you don't really realise until you start, but for me, it's very financially beneficial. When I compare the kind of flat I could afford to buy (If I could even find one at all) to what I have now (wonderful boat, beautiful locations), there's no comparison. To clarify, money is not why I live here, and doesn't sounds like it would be for you, either, it's just something that affects the viability. As to your other point, I'd personally choose the canal, canals are easier than rivers. That being said, I don't know the Thames.
  20. Could well be inadequate wiring. If the voltage at your batteries is ok, then consider running new wires from the battery to the pump (and nothing else).
  21. Several pieces of advice: Buy a second cassette Buy a second cassette Don't piss in the cassette, do it in the sink, in a container emptied out a window (your choice), or off the bow/stern (outdoor pissing is the greatest pleasure a man can have). Note that when emptying the cassette, it will now contain a higher ratio of solids, so empty a small amount, top up with water and swish around before continuing. Always shit at work or the pub whenever possible. Some people find this easier than others, some have a "first thing in the morning, every morning" habit and some don't. This saves on toilet roll, too (and who doesn't get a kick out of being paid to shit?). Buy a second cassette In this way, the two of us never fill a cassette during the two weeks between moves, and if our move doesn't take us past a disposal point one week, we have the spare cassette to fall back on.
  22. There's a difference between being observed by human beings (who in this case subsequently enter the data into computers) and being watch constantly by an automated system. In the same way I am pleased to see a local policeman in the street, but unhappy about CCTV. The line is one critical to human dignity.
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