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Laurie St Lyon

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Everything posted by Laurie St Lyon

  1. Sorry Smelly but, it is if you do not have the skip owners permission. Section1 1968 Act "Appropriating property belonging to another with the intention to permanently deprive..." The case law is clear that even in a skip the owner has not given up his rights. Only when the skip is taken away is it no longer his and then ownership passes to the skip company. Always ask. Most of the time you get a yes. Better safe than sorry. To really get the most out of your fuel get a rocket stove heater. Uses 1/3 to 1/2 less fuel. Allows the fire to put out 75% of the fuels calorific value.
  2. This is a great link. Thanks Tony. They have helped me settle this which was actually puzzling me.
  3. While I am not quite in the "Veg is what you feed TO your food" party That SOUNDS Horrible! Soory it seems ....just wrong!
  4. Did look at it. Was actually after a 60x10. Half them dont come back to you about specifics and there not enough in it by the time I did the math! Kind of looking for circa 25k as my top line figure keeps reducing! Once again I am working on a shoestring! I have penchant for old things and kind of like the idea of a boat with some history. I also prefer the older steel and as she has worked this long without falling apart I think she is probably sounder than some of the new ones where they seem to buy in the hulls. It has been suggested to gut and completely refurb. But I like the aged wood and my idea is more to move things around layout wise. I want the lounge at the stern, then Kitchen, bathroom, toilet, Single cabin, double bunks, then fixed double at bow. Toss up between taking the cabinright to the bow or simply enclosing it in triplewall to make a conservatory on my bedroom. In my mind if I want an outdoor party then that is what towpaths are for! Besides the great british weather means I will probably be inside more than out. Global warming or not! lol! But will get a hull survey. Have found a full boat survey is £500 but a hull only is £300.So will get that. Oh by the way JDR ...Do you pay more insurance wise for an older boat?
  5. Snugged down away from the rain. Rather be snug on a boat!

  6. I plan to build a "Rocket heater Stove" with oven & a back boiler. I am seriously thinking of doing away with gas altogether. (see Discussion "All Electric" on here) Any boat I get will need work not just because of my price but because I am creating my home for the next 20+years. But I can chippy, plumb and wire. Have renovated two houses before. Most in this range that I have seen all have something that make me go "err maybe not". Age is less important that upkeep if properly made. Defo want to negotiate but am not unreasonable. The fact they say they are happy to operate this boat for a group says they have faith in it. Trying hard to be logical but "I'm all excited Tommy!" Thanks my thinking exactly. Aha. That was my thought! Have you reseated/sealed you window frames to cure that? Will ask Norbury about the hull when I get there. (Out of curiousity did yours have a shoreline connection? That appears to have a significant effect on the hull) Would rather put £450 into the fit out than a survey if poss. Cash is tight. But may haave to bite the bullet and get one if only to save the prospect of a big cost later. What do you pay in insurance for your boat? Is there a premium due to age/ex-hire?
  7. I am no expert but my immedediate thought (from having had campers/caravans) is the alternator. As already said above get a meter and see if it charges when you get the starter back. I also think you need to check the wiring. Not only for bad conections but also for whether there is a diode or other device fitted that stops you drawing power from the starter battery for the Domestic side and vice versa. Better you have a flat domestic bank than a flat starter battery IMHO.
  8. I also keep bees. The only reason I know of for honey to firment is it is taken from the bees before its capped. (they evaporate the water from the "nector" they make that turns into honey. In the pyramids in Egypt they found honey circa 3000 years old and still good. Use a mix of honey and beeswax as a seal on jam jars. The cappings are good for that. Although I like to eat them on toast. Gave up making ordinary bread in my machine I just did not like the taste. However, it makes wonderful teabreads, (Sultanas, Mixed fruit, peanut butter-very moist just add jam no need to butter, Bannana, etc) Just that bit of sweet with a cuppa!
  9. Slow cookers are marvelous. I roast pork in mine on a sunday. To stop the meat being soggy I have a re-usable oven chip grid (that you just pop your chips on and they come up crisp so you dont have to cremate them-buy from Poundland) that is folded in 4 and put on the bottom of the pot. It lifts the meat off the bottom and leaves juices for gravy. I use mine for curry. (chicken thighs x4, diced onion, curry paste to taste, tin of chopped tomatoes. Small amount of added water if leaving to cook unnnatended or if you are about dont add water but 10 mins before serving add cream (no sooner or it curdles). Alternatively use coconut milk instead which can be put in at the start because cocnuts don't go MOOO ! Oh, and I found a 12v Slow cooker here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Roadpro-12V-Slow-Cooker-Black/dp/B0013IR88A and Here: http://www.the12voltshop.co.uk/Shop/slow-cooker-rpr-c1417-.html I wonder if anyone has used one?
  10. Laurie St Lyon

    Wrongbow

    I too enjoyed the blog. been thinking of making my own cider. I have a couple of apple trees on my allotment that should be capable of producing a proper crop if I move them. Unfortuately once I move onto the boat I lose the allotment because I will no longer be a council tax payer! Still, I can practice aquaponics with unlimited water! YAY! Did so remind me of my 21st Birthday (Loongg ago!) when I had the raging flu so hunkered down with a roaring fire (think Scotland, mid january, horizontal snow!) and bottle of my Mum's homemade wine! (I come from a long line of home brewers- Dads beer was [in]famous) Not sure Mum cured the flu but I was feeling no pain! lol! Thanks for the chuckle and trip down memory lane.
  11. As the time draws closer for my ex to sell the house and let me have some dosh comes closer I have gone from purposeful browsing and and info gathering to "Could I live on this boat?". Am seriously looking at an ex hire boat called Sphynx http://www.norburywharfltd.co.uk/boats-for-sale/ I would hav to move the inside about a bit to get it as I want it but can do that in stages. My immediate concern is that it says "Insulation: Unknown" in the brochure. I am only mildly concerned about the hull as it appears to have been very well cared for by the company. Does anyone know anything about this boat or Dartline boats in general? I want to go an have a look at her at some point soon. But she is the first Narrow boat where I could actually "see" myself owning her. That's why I am being cautious. My "professional" instincts are normally spot on. Otherwise....well...I married the ex!!! lol! Info, Thoughts, Opinion and the normal abuse welcome! lol!
  12. Thats one way to keep vandals at bay! LOL!
  13. Excuse me Chum! I use a freezer on shore and will have one in my boat if at all possible. Not because I use ready meals (foul things) or because as you claim I am a "greedy pigs and love gloating over and stocking up masses of food" but because it is cost effective. I can buy four steaks and freeze them seperately. I like to buy my meat from the butchers whenever possible and discounts on say chicken thighs means I can often get 3 0r 4 meals for the price of 1. With food prices continuing to rise while incomes either remain flat or decline You need to be canny on these matters rather than knee jerk! Apart from which this site is for sharing INFORMATION of Canal living rather than IDEOLOGICAL OPINION and insults! So wind it in!!
  14. Did wonder about 12v Din Sockets. I thought most folk used the two pin plugs. But I agree that they provide a solid connection. Came across this place for all things 12v. Prices appear competative abd at any rate it has a broad range of 12v kit. http://www.the12voltshop.co.uk/Shop/ Just looked through their cooking section. They have a 12v Slow cooker! Now I use my mains one 225W (plus inverter overhead, hmm?!) all the time so this goes on my wish list!
  15. Firstly ley me thank everyone who has contributed to this topic. Not merely for the trenchant opinions But for all the useful information. Not for the first time the great British weather settles the matter! So, it seems to me, I CAN go all electric BUT I need a genset for use in winter months along with a decent sized solar setup and reasonable battery bank that is divided between Propulsion and Domestic use with a differentiated charging regimes to prolong the life of the batteries in addition a decent inverter. With a proper stove and back boiler for heating (Planning to build a Rocket stove) and hot water. Well, reality has bit and I will probably buy a narrowboat and adapt rather than a broadbeam fit out which was my original intention. So will start with sorting out the domestic side electrically and then think about propulsion as a next step. Simply put MONEY talks and what I will have is whispering rather than shouting! lol! As a token of appreciation and to give back I will start a blog on this when I get the boat. Detailing all the nitty gritty, pitfalls and pratfalls! So feel free to look it up and remember " I don't have to come here and be abused....there are lots other places that will do just as good a job!"
  16. Just because you are paranoid DOES NOT mean they are not out to get you! Given the influence that money and position give big corporations It is probably more accurate to say they DO run things. But what people consider a conspiracy is merely the effects of corporate greed upon the rest of us. Perhaps if there was a little more emphasis on ethics and less on bonus provisions we would all be better off. However, this is firmly
  17. Have to agree with Tree you need to get a feel for the situation. Of course I have years of experience, HM Forces, Private security then in Law assessing people and situations. But the point is to always have a fall back plan. Do not put yourself in a situation where you cannot get out of it. Engage in conversation but do it before you are on top of them and have a mobile ready. Of course by all means take pictures if you think they are not kids who can be talked round. However, be prepared to duck inside to avoid a cracked skull! If you get a "real red alert" feeling then call the police. But also askyourself can I stop the boat? Can I reverse while the police come? Always think Defensively. If you train yourself to do so and think "What would I do if...?" You condition your mind to automatically analyse situations and you will learn to react automatically to a dangerous situation. Both faster than conscious thought. This is the development of "instincts" that can save you in all sorts of places and situations. You learn to trust that instinct. It saved my neck more than once and not heading it got me hurt! Of course there are more good kids than bad but it never hurts to be careful.
  18. Thank you everyone for pitching into this. It seems to me that you can meet your "household" needs with solar or your propulsive needs but probably not both. Seems clear that the idea of an electric shower is out. The idea of cooking also not neccesarily to be advised, Need to get my head further round the math. I have a big button calculator on my desk for a reason! But then, as I always maintain, !If I could add up properly I would be an accountant and rule the world, instead of a lawyer who tells then how it should be run!" As Julynian says A large number of patents have been bought to keep oil co's in profit. However,I doubt it is part of a worldwide conspiracy. Merely the effect of collective selfish greed. I find that there is more "cock up" than conspiracy. So the figures appear to be more theoretical than actual? Pity. I agree the outside ID ugly. Real Bauhause might have been modular but it has more style and panache.
  19. "Nothing wrong with covering Wales in solar panels." Except Wales is always wet & Cloudy! Besides, they would probably be broken by all the sheep! Granted their are things that raise eyebrows. I assumed he meant some sort of reflective cloth. Though I could not work out how in the blazes you would fix one on a canalboat. Mind you if I could sail across the Solar system...!
  20. I think this contributor meant on a normal boat.. However I agree the tropical and desert climate zones could generat huge ammounts of power. Pity about the ugly pylons to transmit it. Still better than smog or nuclear waste. However the only thing that would make it happen will be money.
  21. Thank you and yes I do. There seems to be more than a bit of bias against continuous cruisers. Perhaps a little jealousy that we dont pay the mooring costs they do. Au contrair to the gentleman above (with whom I am not getting into an argument with. Its not worth the energy!) I came here knowing I was in new territory and expected merely to see if people had done some of the things I was thinking of. I did not expect anyone to have done the whole thing. On a site like this you are bound get trenchant opinion and some people, who as said, have a kne jerk reaction. In addition a lot of helpful and useful advice. I always figure on these forums to take what I can use, give what I can and ignore the rest! I have been studying various tech site and blogs of people who as I say have successfully done bits of the idea. Perhaps I am being a bit optimistic and need to go as far as I can and await a further jump in technology. Thanks for posting. If I may I would like to contact you privately and pick your brains at some point. Re-read the page on they show various figures dependenat on a scale of discharge of 30-70%. Do have a look at the page (especially those of a critical eye) all is grist to the mill.
  22. Thanks for the info on fridges. The CRT "requirements" to comply with cc are that you move "neighbourhoods" every 14 days. Its on their faq. The definition of neighbourhood" is rather imprecise but they seem to use a defined geographic area, I suspect that more people do this than actually are on one long meander through the canal/river system. (I did go into it clearly.-I'm a (currently non-practicing) Solicitor). They also seem to interprete it reasonably. However, that may well change. We will see. I may well wind up locuming up and down the thames valley! Or at least Reading to Bristol! That company have ceased to supply full systems themselves but now provide information on their websites. I think that 100 miles was on just the battery bank. You then need to recharge. the point is how many people actually do thats sort of mileage actually it is 5 hours a day. so start at 1 after lunch you have had a morning to recharge. stop for tea and you get another couple of hours. Plus you are getting a trickle all days. Seems not unreasonable. If they add charging points (which I would access in an emergency) then the prospect really becomes viable.
  23. In what way? I am open to correction on the fridges. That is what I have read. I did have a 12v in the caravan but it never worked right so I ripped out. An electric shower off an inverter. Lots of boats seem to have them or perhaps I misread, I intend it for days when I dont put the stove on. Mind you a Rocket stove heats up so fast, and gives out such heat, that I may not need it more than an hour in the morning. It depends on the efficiency of my design. Still tweaking that. The thermo couple is mosly for the novelty of trying the technology. I do not intend to rely on it! LOL! The reason for this area of travel is that I want live aboard and cruise a stretch of water where I know the area and can get help if I need it until I know everything works. A few months shake down over winter as it were. I do have friends who live on the cut and basically do the same as they are mobile tradesmen and known in the W,London area. I would be able to work in London for a bit then move further afield when ready. Thank you...An encouraging word! Hurrah! LOL! Reading through the linked site thanks! I quote from the site kindly supplied by "Julynian" which says: Our latest project, a 55 foot narrowboat, is silently cruising the waterways. High efficiency solar panels cover most of the cabin roof. Two horse power of solar power and a one ton battery drive a ten horse power motor. The boat is capable of one hundred miles a week without a drop of fuel," A tadge MORE than 3 inches.
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