bpboat
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Posts posted by bpboat
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Our boat has a Continuous Cruiser licence, so we continually cruise, but we're not liveaboards. We're a consortium who share the boat.
We received the invitation from the CRT to redeem a voucher for the Energy Support Scheme. We're not going to redeem this as it's for liveaboards only so is not for us (although the email doesn't say this). In my mind it would be fraudulent to claim the money. How many CC boats are there that are not liveaboards I wonder, and how many of these are redeeming the vouchers?
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Well the canal is indeed open at Cropredy so the map and info on stoppages page is just wrong! As someone suggested, they've combined two separate stoppages onto one big long one. I've contacted CRT about it.
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3 minutes ago, Captain Pegg said:
That explains it.
The canal may be open presently south of Cropredy but it won't be from 28/11 until 16/12.
Yes I think that's right. I'll find out tomorrow and will post the answer on here. I'll also contact CRT to ask them to change the map! Many thanks everyone!
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We just want to go south from Cropredy.
I think there must be a mistake on the map and the closures are just at Claydon lock and Broadmore Lock, but open south of that. I hope so anyway...
I'll get in touch with CRT and tell them to revise the map!
1 minute ago, MtB said:Does it particularly matter if it's the whole stretch closed or just a single lock?
Yes it matters a lot as we're at Cropredy and if it's all closed then we can't move till Dec 16th!
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https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/notices/22236-bridge-147-claydon-broadmoor
This is the link to the notice, but I can't believe the whole of this stretch is really closed and wonder if CRT have made a mistake....
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https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/notices/22236-bridge-147-claydon-broadmoor
This is the link to the notice, but I can't believe the whole of this stretch is really closed and wonder if CRT have made a mistake....
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Can someone help please? I'm looking at CRT stoppages page and it says the whole stretch from Claydon lock south to beyond Hardwick Lock is closed now from 7th Nov to 16th Dec. Surely this isn't right?
Does anyone know please? Many thanks
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Does anyone know of a gas engineer who can do LPG gas near Derby? We have a Cal50 cooker which had a blocked burner. We now have a new part but need it fitted.
Thanks very much.
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Thanks for your replies everyone!
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Hi, me again
Can someone give us some advice about mooring on the River Soar between Trent Lock and Loughborough please?
Are there floating pontoons to moor on? Or is there overnight mooring on the banks in places?
Thanks!
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On 30/03/2022 at 08:03, nicknorman said:
Minworth marks the border between Birmingham grot and the countryside. So north of Minworth it is vey pleasant. The Curdworth locks are lovely save for M42 noise. From Curdworth bottom lock to Fazeley is rural if rather straight. All “safe”.
After Fazeley it’s a pleasant run to Fradley, rural with a few villages. Turning right at Fradley takes you through the pretty village of Alrewas (good place to moor) and a short river section, which can flood so check the signs (at Fradley, then at the river lock at Alrewas). After the river section there a tedious long straight right beside a noisy dual carriageway but once that is cleared it’s pleasant again until the edge of Burton. Like any large town or city one has to be a bit sensible about where to moor for the night so best to moor at Branston or after the town. Mooring overnight in Burton at the park is probably fine but one is occasionally troubled by bored kids.
After Burton it’s all very pleasant until the Trent, just be aware that the wide locks can be powerful but since you are going downhill it won’t be an issue. Trent is big and wide and normally pretty currentless, but of course in times of flood it can be dangerous. The Soar is lovely but of course going uphill in wide locks requires a bit of care. On rivers you need to think more about where to stop as there is no convenient towpath piling to tie up to - except on the canal bits of course.
Leicester is a shit hole, best passed through as quickly as possible with eyes closed. Then there is a long and rather tedious succession of wide locks climbing out of Leicester, which are very hard work. Best to pair up with another boat if poss. After Kilby things improve and Foxton is reached. Be aware that opening times are limited and there can be delays. The summit pound is lovely, probably the best on this route, if a bit shallow. Watford locks same as Foxton, then you are down onto the Grand Union main line.
Hi Nicknorman,
Thanks very much for your reply - this is really useful!
On 30/03/2022 at 08:03, nicknorman said:Minworth marks the border between Birmingham grot and the countryside. So north of Minworth it is vey pleasant. The Curdworth locks are lovely save for M42 noise. From Curdworth bottom lock to Fazeley is rural if rather straight. All “safe”.
After Fazeley it’s a pleasant run to Fradley, rural with a few villages. Turning right at Fradley takes you through the pretty village of Alrewas (good place to moor) and a short river section, which can flood so check the signs (at Fradley, then at the river lock at Alrewas). After the river section there a tedious long straight right beside a noisy dual carriageway but once that is cleared it’s pleasant again until the edge of Burton. Like any large town or city one has to be a bit sensible about where to moor for the night so best to moor at Branston or after the town. Mooring overnight in Burton at the park is probably fine but one is occasionally troubled by bored kids.
After Burton it’s all very pleasant until the Trent, just be aware that the wide locks can be powerful but since you are going downhill it won’t be an issue. Trent is big and wide and normally pretty currentless, but of course in times of flood it can be dangerous. The Soar is lovely but of course going uphill in wide locks requires a bit of care. On rivers you need to think more about where to stop as there is no convenient towpath piling to tie up to - except on the canal bits of course.
Leicester is a shit hole, best passed through as quickly as possible with eyes closed. Then there is a long and rather tedious succession of wide locks climbing out of Leicester, which are very hard work. Best to pair up with another boat if poss. After Kilby things improve and Foxton is reached. Be aware that opening times are limited and there can be delays. The summit pound is lovely, probably the best on this route, if a bit shallow. Watford locks same as Foxton, then you are down onto the Grand Union main line.
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What are the canals like in these canals/areas? Nice/horrible/interesting/safe?
Any particular bits to avoid / or to visit and spend time in?
Firstly the canal between Minworth & Fazeley -
Then up to Fradley, right past Burton on Trent towards Nottingham
Then right onto River Soar down to Leicester
Then back down to Grand Union.
I look forward to your thoughts - thanks!
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Hi All
Many thanks for all the replies.
Yes we tried unblocking it straight away, and then the gas guy tried that too.
In fact now he says he's able to get a new part for it after all (new control valve? £55) so we'll go for that option, and hopefully that'll get it fixed.
But yes, it is frustrating there are so few 50x50cm cookers now.
MtB - oops yes, you're quite right - I meant useLESS rather than useFULL oven!
Thanks again everyone!
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Hi,
We're looking for a new LPG ready cooker that's 50cm wide and ideally only 50cm deep.
in 2017 we bought the Cal-50 because it was the only one we could find that fitted the space.
It was fairly cheap but a really useful oven (burnt things near the bottom, very difficult to cook a roast) and now one of the burners has blocked up and won't work.
This wouldn't matter to us as we only need 3 burners, but we fail the Boat Safety Examination because of it. Apparently it can't be fixed as we can't get parts for it - really annoying - DO NOT BUY A CAL-50 cooker!
So, does anyone have any suggestions for a decent LPG ready cooker that's 50cm width AND 50cm depth please? Ideally with separate grill and oven, but we'll consider single cavity.
In the end we might consider going for the deeper one, it'll just stick out a bit, so recommendations for this would be good too, thank you!
(I've read a thread on this subject from 2016: https://canalworld.net/forums/index.php?/topic/83449-cookers/
and this was useful but it's probably rather out of date now)
Thanks in advance for your help!
BP
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Thanks for all your replies, it does indeed all seems to be incredibly complicated!
As MartynG pointed out the price isn't quite so cheap once you add VAT and delivery, also I got the price wrong as it's £25 per 20L not £20.
I've now found somewhere I can collect it from at £39.95 for 20L, so I may go there instead in the end.
One more question: what do people think about mixing pink and blue? (we have some of each left over). I've heard that you should definitely NOT mix them as it can coagulate but I've also been told that we CAN mix them nowadays. In fact I notice from our records that an engineer added some blue antifreeze to our pink a couple of years ago on a service, and he said it was fine, and we had no problems. Probably not a good idea, but I just wondered.
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9 hours ago, Tracy D'arth said:
You could ask them.................................
I top up the anticorrosion with central heating stuff from Screwfix occasionally, not very scientific but there is no rust in the coolant so far.
Hi Tracy, good idea, I've contacted them to ask how long it's supposed to last. And thanks for comment about topping up the anticorrosion as I think I've read somewhere that the antifreeze aspect doesn't stop working, but the anticorrosion does. Which product do you use? Thanks.
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8 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:
You could ask them.................................
I top up the anticorrosion with central heating stuff from Screwfix occasionally, not very scientific but there is no rust in the coolant so far.
Hi Tracy, good idea, I've contacted them to ask how long it's supposed to last. And thanks for comment about topping up the anticorrosion as I think I've read somewhere that the antifreeze aspect doesn't stop working, but the anticorrosion does. Which product do you use? Thanks.
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It's concentrate, not diluted, I've copied the description below. The thing it doesn't mention is how long life it is, doesn't say how long it will last.
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About Smith & Allan Cooltech 53 Anti-Freeze Antifreeze
- Cooltech 53 is a premium quality antifreeze coolant concentrate. This ethylene glycol-based coolant contains an Organic Acid Technology (OAT) inhibitor package and is Nitrate, Amine, Phosphate, borate and silicate free. The product provides all year-round frost and corrosion protection and is formulated for use in all engines, including those constructed from aluminium alloys. The exceptional thermal stability eliminates the risk of deposits particularly near the cylinder head, engine block, radiator, water pump and heat exchanger. The product may be used neat as supplied for extreme use or diluted for economic use.
- Performance Features
- Outstanding protection from overheating and frost
- Protects against corrosion
- Exceptional thermal stability
- From of Nitrate, Amine, Phosphate (NAP Free), borate & Silicates
- Eliminates risk of deposits
- Contains a bittering agent
- Can be diluted or used neat
- Performance Levels
- BS:6580
- Protection Levels
- Extreme (Use Neat) -53°C
- Winter (CT 53 66% / Water 33%) -28°C
- Normal (CT 53 50% / Water 50%) -20°C
- Typical information, Not part of a specification
- Water quality should not exceed the following limits:
- Water Hardness: 0 – 20° dH (0 – 3.6mmol/l)
- Chloride Content: 100ppm max
- Sulphur Content: 100ppm max
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Hi Tony
Thanks for your reply. Our cooling system has a huge skin tank, and we apparently need 40 litres and are advised to dilute to 50%, though we could probably dilute to 30%. But we still need a lot of concentrate, hence my question. I just want to check this is the right stuff to use and there's not something wrong with it as it's a lot cheaper than others I've found (which are more like £35 per 20 litres).
Would be grateful for people's thoughts, thanks.
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Hi,
We've flushed out our header tank and skin tank and need to refill with water and antifreeze. We need 40Litres so I've been looking for large quantity containers that aren't too expensive. For many years we've had pink (OAT I believe?) which appears to be cheaper AND longer lasting than blue (IAT I believe?) so we're happy to use pink again. I've found a few products online but the best price is this one: Smith & Allan Cooltech 53 Anti-Freeze Antifreeze, at £20 for 20 litres it's a lot cheaper than others I've found, details here:
Is this OK do you think? Or is there a reason is cheaper than others.....?
I'd appreciate your thoughts, many thanks.
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Ah, I wondered if that would be a problem. The other one was in the For Sale forum (Boats for sale), is there any way I can get the post into that forum?
I wonder which forum's best for advertising a boat share....? Perhaps I should have posted it in there first?
Thanks.
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Hi All
There is a one fifth share, or perhaps more, available on our lovely character-full Springer narrowboat., 43 foot long, built in 1988. Though her 32 years of age are beginning to show on the edges, the boat has been well maintained, including having been lifted for hull blacking every 2 years. Several years of maintenance details and costs are available for you to see.
We're a small friendly group and very flexible with dates etc. We have no home mooring - we're continuous cruisers, but we usually take a 3 month winter mooring, often around the Lower Heyford area.
If you’d like to share in the fun and pleasure of owning your own boat, but share the cost and commitment, see the advert online for more details:
https://www.boatshare.co.uk/shared-narrow-boat-grainne-mhaol.html
Or please pass this information on to someone who might be interested.
Thanks.
BP
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Thanks, all useful info.
Last question: what are moorings like at Gayton Junction? OK to leave boat unattended for a few days?
Thanks.
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Hi and thanks to all three of you for your advice. Especially useful was Loddon's suggestion about the AWCC clubs as I didn't know about them at all and this has given us two extra marina's.
I've now looked up and have phoned all the marinas to find out availability and costs. A few marinas don't have visitor moorings and lots of the Imray info is out of date so it's been very important to call to find out. In case anyone else finds this info useful I've listed these at the bottom of this message.
A couple of other questions: will we be able to turn round in many places on the Nene (we're 43foot)?
Are there any 14 day or 48 hour moorings between Gayton Junction and Northampton, and how safe do people think these are? Or perhaps it's better to moor in Northampton Marina?
Many thanks,
BP
MARINAS and MOORINGS in order from Northampton to P’Borough then to Ely
(ABC Leisure, Gayton Junction (Northampton Arm) 01604 858685 Hire, repairs, pumpout, diesel, chandlery )
Northampton Marina 01604 604344 (Mon to Fri). No reply 07867 580129 (Sat & Sun)
Billing Aquadrome Marina, Northampton. 01604 408181/5. No reply. Probably £10 per night.
White Mills Marina, Imray p.24, near Earls Barton. 01604 812057.
£12 per night. 8 spaces and they would fit us in somewhere if those were full. Very friendly guy on phone.
[20M and 15 locks=35LM/3=12 hours between W.Mills Marina and Middle Nene Cruising Club
[25M and 16locks = 41/3 = 14 hours between W.Mills Marina and Lilford Marina]
Willy Watt & Blackthorn Marina, Imray p.34 BOTH FULL, unlikely to have free space
Woodfood Riverside Marina, Imray p.38, not marked on map. 07740 169403 no visitor moorings.
Middle Nene Cruising Club, Titchmarsh Lock http://www.middle-nene-cc.co.uk/
Harbourmaster. Tony Rollings Tel: 07795 124020. Very friendly and obliging on phone, yes we can stay for one or a few nights, no charge but a donation please – perhaps £5 per night.
[3M and 2 locks from Middle Nene CC at Titchmarsh Lock to Lilford Marina]
Lilford Marina, Imray p.46, 01832 272230. http://www.lilfordmarina.co.uk/ Will probably have spaces (see email from Dolf), need to book in advance, £10 per night or £50 pw.
Oundle Marina, Imray p.46 01832 272762
Availability changes day by day, need to book in in advance with Jacky, the manageress, £12 per night or £42 for a week.
(Peterborough Boating and Stanground do not have moorings)
Peterborough Yacht Club. Harbour Master: 07787 777 519, Rick Loach. Yes visitor moorings, give them a few days notice. Donation instead of a fee. * NB will need to give them £50 cheque as deposit for key to marina, they’ll rip it up once we’ve returned the key.
Middle Levels
(Floods Ferry Marina, Middle Levels 4 miles SW of March, 01354 677302. NO VISITOR MOORINGS)
Fox Narrowboats in March (Middle Levels) 01354 652770/3 (Tracy). Yes no problem, call them 24 hours in advance. £10 a night or £41.28 for a week.
Popes Corner Marina/Fish & Duck Marina, 3m S of Ely (R.Cam) 01353 648081. https://www.fishandduck.co.uk/. Yes, give them a couple of days notice. £15 a night or £50 for a week.
And see this page for marinas near Cambridge: https://www.eastcambs.gov.uk/content/marinas
Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding
in Living Afloat
Posted
You say "only those who live aboard can justifiably claim to be CCers", presumably you mean for the purposes of this Energy Support Grant? Lots of boats will be CCers but not live aboard so can't justifiably claim this grant.