BlueStringPudding

I was honest. I told them I was buying a boat to do up. And that's all I told them.

Hi Degobah (System, that's where my brain goes as soon as I read your name 😄) That is correct regarding credit scores so as I said above, do everything you can to maximise your credit score *before* you start applying for a loan, would be my advice. Take your time. I had banked with the same bank for years so that's why I went with them for my personal loan (HSBC). This was just at the start of the financial crash, so lenders were starting to get more cautious than they had been but deals still seemed more generous then than they are now. If you've had your salary paid into the same bank account for years, whichever the bank, perhaps look at their personal loan rates first. But also check out Martin Lewis" reviewed best lending deals as they change frequently. But like I said, spend time on your credit score for a few weeks or months first. I found errors in mine when I investigated the three different credit score agencies (which I corrected), and I also registered to vote in the area where I was renting a house, because it helped my credit score. Here are a few links you might find helpful: How to check your Credit Scores https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/check-free-credit-report/ Ways to improve your credit score https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/credit-rating-credit-score/ MSE Loans eligibility calculator https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/ MSE latest loan deals https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/cheap-personal-loans/ Disclaimer: Clearly I don't have any financial know-how, I'm just a person who bought their boat using credit and advice from the MSE website. If in doubt, please get proper financial advice from a qualified person.

I bought my boat with an unsecured Personal Loan from my bank, plus opening a new credit card account with the same bank to top up the amount available to me. The personal loan was ideal for me because it didn't need to be secured against anything like a property (which I didn't have) or require anyone else as a guarantor, and the bank didn't really care what it was spent on. But it did limit the amount borrowable to a maximum of £25k. The credit card added £8k to my budget plus I had a £1k or so overdraught available on my current account. I used the Martin Lewis Money Saving Expert "card tart" reminder alert to shift the debts from one 0% interest deal to another over a few years till the full amount was paid off. If you're money savvy and very organised, it can work well as a way to purchase a boat. However it *might* affect one's appeal to a lender if by moving aboard a boat it makes you "Of No Fixed Abode". So perhaps think about being registered at a land address for the period of the loan, if you decide to go down that borrowing route. And ensure your credit ratings are as good as they can be before you start applying for loans. Again, the MSE website has good advice about how to go about that. .

Thanks everyone. I was given the Nikkia inverter for free so probably worth a try, I would only need to buy the red/black cables to connect it to the battery bank. Yeah, I would have thought that there would be a standard 12v-24v inverter charger for mobility scooters or wheelchairs for people with campervans and cars, but I've only seen 12v-24v trickle chargers which would mean running the engine forever. Plus the scooter destructions say to only use a recommended charger which does a full charging cycle 🤔

Hiya. Electrickery question, please: I've been given a Nikkai N66AU 12v inverter (soft start 600w, surge allegedly up to 1500w) Will it be able to power a Numax Mobility Battery Charger 24V 7A (230v input) to in turn charge a mobility scooter? https://www.tayna.co.uk/battery-chargers/numax/mobility-24v-7a/ The charger runs for 2 and a half hours minimum to full charge the scooter.

Is Alvecote having the boat rally this year? If so, who's going?

Sorry to hear that, Carl. It's good to have you back. We'll be well behaved so as to not stress you out too much. Well, when I say "well behaved'... 🤔

I've got a few different types of CCTV on my boat. Some are from free CCTV apps and use old Android devices as cameras (so they easily charge from 12v too) And others are outdoor cameras with batteries/solar. So my whole mooring and boat can be seen on CCTV from different viewpoints, the footage is saved to the cloud and SD cards, and the app(s) ping my phone when someone is detected. There's relatively little footfall at my mooring, but it means when the neighbours (or me) are away, there are still eyes on the boat. 👀 At the other end of the moorings, one of the boaters there has rigged up proper pole-mounted cameras and security lights that look like they cover a wide area around the entry gate and up the offside towpath. I'm not sure how they power all those, though. 🤔

The above photo is from the app. Mine is a Blue Solar with a Bluetooth dongle added. That's how I ended up with the above settings, which I'm hoping are right 😊

I can't see the rotary switch on mine so I've set it via the app. I think this means the same as yours @Rob-M

Is Equalisation recommended for Sealed Wet batteries? At the moment Equalisation is set to Manual only. I've used settings 2 which I think means the Equalisation voltage is 16.1v. Should I change it to automatic equalisation rather than manual? And is that voltage okay for my type of batteries?

Thanks, Tony. This is where the battery data is: https://www.tayna.co.uk/leisure-batteries/numax/xv31mf/

I've got new batteries which are 4 × Numax Sealed Wet Leisure Batteries 12v 105Ah (CXV31MF) My Victron MPPT solar controller gives me the following seven battery options for setting up the controller (see photos) - none of which are to me an obvious match for my batteries, but you guys and gals may know better. Please can you tell me which of these are a suitable setting for my batteries? Thanks

Okay. Thanks. So if I go back to the Advanced Battery supplies website, how can I tell if they've quoted their Ah at c20 or c100 or c-anything else?

It sounded so simple. 😟 But I can't find reference to c20 (most online shops don't seem to state it) + good Ah (eg 110 ish not merely 80 ) + unsealed (almost all are sealed) + correct terminal configuration + correct max size + it can be delivered. Nearly everything is sealed or just doesn't state the info I need. The Advanced Batteries website search function doesn't work and trawling through by category seems to show just sealed batteries. Tayna also lacks the info I need. This is too confusing. Please can anyone recommend a specific online retailer of Unsealed, 110Ah ish (at c20) leisure batteries? Then I can trawl through the terminal configurations and dimensions myself to find the right ones? Thanks