Tony Brooks

Or a simple upright clear level pipe between tank and pump inlet - shown here many times before. It will probably need a cap on the pipe to ensure the pump can't suck air down the upright.

The aqueduct over the Black Valley relief road (nr Aldershot) on the Basingstoke canal, if that sort of thing is what you are after.

But not showing the detail I would need in sufficient clarity. It seems there might be a roof vent in the rough area of that damage, but no sign of it inside the boat.

Is there a roof vent out of shot a little further forward. if so, I would be thinking water damage from a leaking vent to roof seal - that is assuming an all metal cabin. If the cabin sides & roof are timber or GRP then I would start walking. I think I can see probable water discolouration running from that point towards the sides. We need a photo of the roof in that area

If you do, remember something like black 6mm perspex will be easier to work that steel and be durable.

I know this is not what you asked, but I would make my own where I can choose readily available warning lamps, buzzers and switches. Often the engine mariniser can supply them, but at a price.

Me too, but I don't see one can condemn all over plating as being unsafe. If it was a GRP cruiser with lift-up floorboards then it is far easier to check for minor leaks, but on narrowboats any leak into the bilge could come from windows, vents, condensation, and plumbing etc., and with all the ballast it is far more difficult to trace. I suppose the question is how badly does someone wants to get afloat and how much can they afford to spend on buying a boat. An over plated boat could be a sensible buy, at the right price and with an apparently dry bilge, if someone who just wnats to try boating for a couple of years or who suspects they might not like it. I am less sure that trapped water will cause corrosion once some initial corrosion has taken place because the act of rusting removes the oxygen needed for rust to form from the trapped water. I would like comments from someone with experience in this area.

If done properly, it won't threaten lives, but that will in many cases involve lifting floor boards that have furniture and bulkheads built on top of the to allow the removal of sufficient ballast to compensate for the extra steel weight. It also needs all welds to be totally waterproof and the new baseplate drilled and plug welded to the original. If all this is done, you still have (say) a 6mm baseplate hiding a very much thinned or actually perforated original and which is now impossible to inspect. I very much doubt it creates a loss of structural strength that threatens the boat, as cut and shut does to cars. I think that we have long-standing members with over plated boats who are perfectly happy with them, but they are likely to have chosen the over plater with care and felt that was the most economical way of staying boating.

FWIW, I have used Kurust from Halfords etc. and it looks, smells and behaves like vacant. Possibly not much good for large areas, but local rust killing the small pack size helps because it gets used up before it separates or goes off.

Having portrayed yourself as something of an expert in things canals and narrowboats, apparently on the basis of YouTube "experts", and got pretty rude to those trying to help you understand, you now expect us to take your claims at face value. Sorry, but the world does not work like that, especially when you can't seem to help yourself nitpicking and throwing insults at people, as shown by your comment in the final paragraph above. You have been asked for proof over your claim that you have received emails from forum members supporting your conduct, but so far have failed to provide any. That, in itself, calls the veracity of your various claims into question, let alone your early assertion that narrowboats are built with stud wall bulkheads. Some, may be, and many probably have hidden cavities in which to run services, but not on the scale you were asserting. You have been asked for photos of your boat and some of the problems etc. that you have had to deal with. Again, no response from you. This again calls your veracity into question. Now you apparently display your accrued warning points, from an unknown source as a badge of honour, suggests you have problems, with your apaprent lack of veracity being a pretty minor one. Sailing experince is not directly relatable to inland waterways, esecially canals, although resolving engien and domestic system problems probably is, but you don't seem to use your such experence to help others here, I wonder why that is.

I was thinking of writing similar to this in respect of any bulging or possibly lose areas. If he used a hole saw with no central drill bit, he could probably withdraw a neat core and see if water had penetrated the foam

Proof please, you might get private messages from forum members, but I very much doubt anyone is going to go to the extra trouble of getting your email address and emailing you. I could just as well claim that I have PMs complaining about your behaviour, especially the way you like to attack certain people and nitpick, but it would not be true.

If these moorings are where I think they are, I think they are provided by the pub, so although it is a stupid design/build there is no compulsion to use them. If they are not charged for, then be thankful for small mercies. One could also moor on the town side and walk round over the bridge. Once more an unhelpful contentless reply from Mr Ho, and again having a pop at other members.

It is supposed to be a closed cell foam so in theory water can't get through it, but it might be able to creep down from the top or up from the bottom if the foam, but again in theory the foam should be firmly adhering to the steel and the steel was probably primed before foaming, so hat should give some protection. I suspect it would be reasonable risk to leave it in place unless areas were bulging or hanging free with a gap behind.

To try to give a bit of background. Any inland yard/marina that offers the facilities for surveys will use one of the following. Dry dock, trolley on some type of slipway, crane, or whatever you what to call the device that straddles the boat. When using a slipway, the gap under the boat will be limited by trolley design and depth of water over the trolley when it is fully submerged. In a dry dock, the gap under the boat will be limited by the depth of the dry dock, the design of whatever is used to support the boat, and in many cases the difference between canal level and whatever waterway they drain the dock into. Some canal dry docks may be pump drained. In both trolleys and dry docks, the operator may or may not be willing to lift the boat using jacks to fit packing pieces under the boat, but if they are willing it is likely to be at extra cost to you. Cranes and other forms of lift have the potential to set the boat onto higher supports, but, as you seem to have found, not all yards have such facilities. This is why I suggested you tell us the rough locality for the boat because a knowledgeable local boater may well know a close by yard that uses crane or straddle lift. I think PK near Watford have a crane and I get the impression that Botany Bay may also, but those will not be the only ones. Be aware that the surveyor can't check the baseplate under whatever is used to support it unless the yard moves the boat or supports a little, but they are unlikely to be very willing to do that. A half decent surveyor should be able to work around that and give you a good idea of the hull condition, but that will not be 100% certain, although it should satisfy the insurance company. I think this is why the surveyors us their get out of jail free terms. You would have to be dead unlucky for the hull to be badly corroded in just one place though.

I suspect Collage boat club "barges", used for spectating rowing on the river. Now the place is taken by the boat houses below Foley Bridge, but there was just one left there a few yaers ago and I think another moored somewhere else on the river. From Google images; Baliol College barge.

I think that you need to talk to CaRT - if you can find out who you need to. I think that I have heard of dispensation being given in similar circumstances, but distance may be a factor. There might also be the possibility of CaRT trade plates, bot at a cost no doubt.

Are you 100% sure of that in relation to Calcutt? Knowing how they tended to operate in respect of the plant they need, I think there is every chance they bought a second hand straddle carrier from somewhere dealing with containers. In fact, I doubt theirs can do much carrying because it seems just to be used for lifting on and off transport. If you have never heard and understood the generic term straddle carrier - something that straddles its load and can carry it, I would suggest that you are in no position to nitpick.

so would I. If it were mine, I think I would be trying to make one. I doubt a drill would get low enough, so possibly something like a die grinder/Dremel, but it would take a while.

Remember, Thames cruisers usually use great big fenders, even the hire boats, that would hold them clear of those stubs. For narrowboats even some EA lock lay-bys are so high cruiser stern narrowboats can drift under them. I don't think narrowboat needs feature in Thames facilities in too many cases.