BEngo

It looks like a Lucas A127 type alternator, right handed brackets, Euro connector. Easiest thing to do is take it to a motor factor and get an exchange replacement. A higher output version will have different cable connections and your existing wiring may or may not be up to it. N

My bold above. It is not permitted to fit a multi-point water heater in a bathroom under either the GSIUR regulations for houses or under the BSS. Too many people were killed by Ascot type water heaters because the air they needed caused cold draughts and so the ventilation was stopped up by the users. A Morco is still your best bet for summer hot water. N

Nearly all boat LPG fittings are imperial. 10mm is very close to 3/8. 8 mm is near enough 5/16. All the threads are imperial because the European and International Standards for gas and water pipe threads adopted the old BSP, but gave it new designators like G,(gas) R (external taper), Rc (internal taper), Rs ( external parallel) and Rp (external parallel) followed by the imperial size. Pipe fittings are specified by the pipe diameter(s) and/or by thread depending on what the fitting does. So, to connect a 3/8 in pipe to another 3/8 pipe it would be a 3/8x3/8 coupler. For a T the first two sizes are the main run and the last is the branch - a 3/8 x3/8x 1/4 T enables you to take a 1/4 branch off a main run of 3/8 pipe. Fittings with a pipe at one end and a thread at the other are specified by the pipe size, thread size and whether the thread is Male or Female. So to connect a 3/8 pipe to 1/2 BSP male thread is a 3/8 by 1/2BSP F coupler. If you wanted to connect to a female on the appliance then you would need a 3/8x 1/2 BSPM coupler. Some male fittings have a taper thread. These will be described as BSPT or R. The installation manuals for the appliance should tell you what size their connections are. These manuals are likely to be available on the web. Given that you are unable to identify the inlet connections and don't know what sort of fittings you need are you sure that you would not be safer getting a qualified person to do the work? A professional will almost certainly have all the necessary fittings. N

As fitted in HM war canoes' 27ft Motor Whaler and the 32 ft Cutter in the early 70's. Noisy, hard to start when cold, reliable once you get them going. No real provision for attaching ducting to take out the cooling air IIRC. No idea what bits are like to get hold of. N

Have a look at the various model engineering suppliers- Model Engineer , Model Engineers Workshop, Engineering in Miniature (all on the shelf in WH Smith) has lists of them who will cut to size. Depending on where you are Mallard Metals or College Engineering Supply (google) may be able to help. That much brass will be expensive- you would probably be OK with 1/16 or even 2mm. N

Corrosion of the surface will occur even if there is no condensation-the absolute humidity (not relative) would have to be at desert levels for this not to happen. Some primers claim to be able to cope with a certain amount of 'gingering' as it is called, but in my experience (mainly ships) there is significant difference in the performance of coatings which are put on within 4 hours and those which are put over steel which has been exposed overnight and is gingered. N

This is a voluntary liquidation so AIUI the IP is required to be funded by the Directors who will be liable for the Company until is removed from the Register. N

I think the legality issue is explained in the press release, if you read between the lines. "Legal issues which raised doubts about the practical implications of implementing the scheme" says to me- CART have realised "we can legally sell the permits, but if someone simply stays put in one of the locations we cannot enforce movement". The revised legal team have already admitted to user groups that they do not have the power to impose penalty charges for overstaying, so one sanction to enforce movement is gone. If CART have sold a mooring permit to someone who then remains moored at a permitted location CART are not going to convince any court that they should then be allowed to remove the boat under Sect 8 using the 'bona fide for navigation ' section ( 1995 Act Sect 17??) on the grounds that the boat doesn't have a permitted mooring and is not bona fide navigating! Ergo, if they had gone ahead they would have effectively sold a set of low-cost permanent mooring permits and contravened their policy of reducing moorings on-line. They have looked at something new, realised that in the end it wouldn't work and given it up. That's better than BW would have done. At least they can start again without having made their problem worse. N

I am in some ways quite pleased to see this. RMP should have at least regularised the impossible situation in some parts, and did have the promise that it was to be restricted to existing CMers with no transfers and no new ones, the intention being that RMP would "wash out" in due course. That would have been OK, but I and others are old enough to remember the moorings moratorium (better described as a no-moorings enforcement moratorium) introduced in the SE some years ago, which also had good intentions and was supposed to have prevented the current situation developing. Only BW thought it would work, though it was supported by those who were advantaged by it, as you would expect. I know where the road that is paved with good intentions leads, I see that the current CART team is much the same as the BW team and I see that there are still many many people who hope the canal will provide them with cheap housing. I don't think CART would have been any better at enforcing the rules with RMP than without, but they might have had a fig-leaf to hide behind. At least someone has decided that another fudge is not what is needed, because sooner rather than later fudge is only going to lead to an irresolvable problem. I feel sorry for those who were conned by BW and their non-enforcement staff, but that's life. Hopefully whatever comes next will alleviate their situation, but I'm still of the opinion that sooner or later there will have to be a proper definition and enforcement of the rules, and those who don't comply will have to fall back on the local authorities if they need housing in a particular town. N

Get a survey before you pay money. The survey in 2011 is not worth anything at all to you. Apart from being nearly three years ago during which time much corrosion can happen, it was paid for by someone else and there is no contract between you and whoever surveyed the boat, so you can't rely on it. Since then the current owner has done several things that sound to many on here as though there is no sense to them. What has / might he have also done to the hull? What makes you think he has maintained the underwater parts well enough for you to risk serious money with no supporting evidence? Caveat Emptor! N

Hire a pro. Even if you could hire the right sort of kit, selecting the grit, the pressure and the nozzle is a skilled art. Using it is not easy either and it's quite simple to cause serious injury with grit that can be travelling at over 400mph. Do you know what the various grades of blasted steel look like- you will need to achieve at least SA 21/2 to keep the paint makers happy and get full value out of it. As well as a blasting pot, nozzle and protective gear you will need a serious compressor- something with a 70-80HP engine is about right if you want to do a 50- 60ft boat in one day ( blast and first coat). N

Balancing is not a term which can be used with much accuracy if the subject is a 360 twin! Can anyone imagine the vibration levels of a Kelvin K2 as a 360 twin? N

Keeping the batteries close to the alternator is a Good Thing, but it is a much Better Thing to keep them well away from the exhaust, and so cooler. An extra 2m of cable between the alternator and the battery can easily be compensated for with slightly bigger cable, or a battery sensing alternator set-up, whereas hot batteries do not last as long as cool batteries. Think also of how you will get water into them, and check the electrolyte levels. Remember too that batteries are quite heavy and will affect the lateral trim. If you are going for 240V system as well (now or later) it will be as well to think where you are going to put the DC negative connection to the hull, so it can be adjacent to a (future) 240V earth/CPC connection to the hull. Unless you have a dedicated control post/binnacle thingy, with the cables routed inside it, the best way to put Morse cables through the deck is to route them through a dedicated steel plate welded to the boat, using proper cable glands where each cable goes through. This is difficult to do, mucho fiddly, awkward when you have a cable failure and quite pricey. Most people just pass them through a hole with an upstand round it so that water can't run in. Unfortunately the water still can run down the cables. Filling the hole with a sealant goo will stop this, but the seal has to be wrecked and renewed if there is a cable failure. An alternative solution is to install traditional controls in the roof of the cabin entrance. N

And a Petter 'S' for an auxiliary engine ( which may or may not now be working) N

Re-plate. It saves all sorts of problems with the increased mass, corrosion continuing behind and getting into the new plate and since you are upside down on the bank replating will be little more work than overplating. N

Don't force it lad: Get a bigger 'ammer. MN

Following on from Tim's information, if it's 1/2 BSP or G 1/2 as todays description goes, a local plumbers merchant will have a 1/2 Male by 3/8 Female bush on the shelf, probably with a choice of material. Damn, beaten to it by Tim himself. N

Good idea. N

Thermo syphon happens OK through a centrifugal pump, provided the pump is a decent size. The pump does not turn though, and you don't want it to as that will wear out the motor bearings and brushes. N

To answer the original question: The First Step in mooring provision has to be to establish what the real demand is- not what CRT would like it to be nor, except in a few places like Dudley, how much room there is. That means counting boats and comparing numbers/length with the current provision Counting (without identifying) the number of boats once a day in the early evening at a visitor mooring is an ideal job for a volunteer. When the count shows that the site regularly exceeds say 80% occupancy more moorings are needed. if it's regularly less than say 10% less moorings are needed. A good example was the work done to produce stats at Stoke Bruerne moorings by IIRC Leo No2. The numbers could be segregated into 24 hour/48 hour/7day/14 day moorings if there appears to be a partial problem. Involvement of boaters- Talk to and listen to (the hard part for CRT) the user groups. I know they won't all have the same view, but nor will any ad-hoc grouping of boaters formed for any purpose. At least with user groups there will be a consistent answer nationally and they do try to find out what their members think. N

PM me your address. I can knock one up at the weekend if mild steel is OK? Both threads will be parallel threads. What is going on the 3/8 BSP M end? What size through hole would you like? Any restrictions on overall length? N

Allow: £1.5k for mooring (6months, good quality marina) £1 k for licence £1k for maintenance (Will vary annually but blacking needed every 2-3 years, repaint every 10, routine wear and tear replacements and engine servicing two or three times in a year) Will increase if you buy a boat with lots of fancy electronics and other gizmos that don't like sitting in the damp for 6 months a year. Winter doesn't do them much good either. £ 300 insurance ( liveaboard for 6 months) £ 1k for diesel (ball park figure, depending on where you buy it, how much you cruise, what percentage you claim low duty on etc..) £200 for gas if you are a heavy user- cooking and water heating. All up say £5k a year- allow a bit for contingencies so say £5.5k. N

I wonder if CRT are empowered to demand a premium for a new NAA? Premiums are not uncommon in commercial agreements. If available a premium of say £185000 from the new lessees of the marina, accompanied by a partial charge over the mooring fees might be an entirely sensible way forward to the satisfaction of all ( or some at least). N

If you extend the thermo loop it might go, it might not. There are arcane calculations you can do if you know how hot the water is, how long the pipes are, bend radiuses etc, what the falls/rises are and can estimate the price of cod in Grimsby next Bank Holiday Thursday. Suck-it and see is easier. If it doesn't go then you will still have the existing loop working and you can try adding a pump somewhere. It's easy to let one in, or take it out and replace it with a bit of hose until you get a working set-up. You will need to re-balance the new bit against the existing rads and against the calorifier, or if it does thermo siphon the calorifier won't get hot. That pump looks very clever, but the data sheet doesn't give much info about what sort of head you get for what sort of power input. I would guess that 0.25 A is running at minimum head on 24 V . Minimum head may not move enough water through the new bit. It also has only 1/2 bsp inlets which will restrict the thermo-flow a lot. Bigger would be better because then I'm sure ( from experience) that a pump in-line with the existing thermo lop would not stop it working. I have a 20mm Johnson pump in line with a 22 mm thermosiphon Squirrel. The pump cuts in when the pipe temperature exceeds 60 C, ish. Most of the time it thermo siphons happily but if the fire runs up because it's got windy the pump kicks in. If you put either a thermostat, or a humidistat, under the bed then that would control the pump to warm the space when it needs it. A manual override would be good for when you wanted to air the bed, or warm it up some more. A temperature sensor on the outlet pipe works OK (it's what I have) but I don't see how that is linked to the need for under-bed heat. You may have the fire going well because it's cold, or you want a lot of hot water but not need a heated bed-space at the same time. In that event you will be wasting heat under the bed when it could be warming you, or your water. N

This is a case where it is hard to win. If you put the pump in the new 22mm flow it will 'suck' all the water out of the thermo siphon loop so the rear rads etc. won't get hot If you put it in the new 22mm return then it's equally likely to hamper the flow round the rear rads etc. A swing flap non-return valve might help, but they still introduce a flow restriction to the thermo loop. If you throttle the pump output to the point where it doesn't interfere with the rads then there will be little flow through the finrads. However, provided the pump you choose is a centrifugal one ( it looks to be) , if you put it in the existing 28mm pipe between the 22mm return and the squirrel then it will work, provided you balance the two circuits carefully. When the pump is on it will assist the thermo syphon as well as driving the 22mm loop. When it is off the existing thermo syphon will work normally. How were you thinking of controlling the pump? I would say you don't want that pump on continuously. 30, 000 hours is not that long a life ( say 5-6 years depending on how long winter heating is needed, and a consumption of about 1A will use quite a lot of Ah over a whole day- not a consideration if on mains, but significant if spending extended periods off the grid I winter. The noise may be annoying- our Johnson can be. N