Bewildered
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Posts posted by Bewildered
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Most of the conversion kits I have seen come with their own gas regulator to connect direct to the bottle. If however you wanted to T off of the boats existing gas supply (via a shut off valve) would the boats original regulator be up to the job? I.e. Does the boats regulator supply gas at the same pressure as the one supplied with the kit?
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Don't ruin a good conspiracy theory with logic and evidence or I may have to throw out my anorak
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Ok regulator then. Something like this https://www.amazon.com/Step-up-Regulator-Vehicle-Supply-Converter/dp/B00S0UFR14
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3 hours ago, Detling said:
Not all TV's with a power brick run on 12 volts some, maily newer ones are 19 volts don't know why but it seems to be coming more common.
If you take a look around Currys at all the TV's you will now struggle to find a12v model, the are all 18v or some other odd voltage. A conspiracy therorist may conclude this is so those requiring 12v travel TV's can continue to be ripped off, this is Britain after all.
you can always buy an 18v and get a step up 12-18v transformer.
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2 hours ago, Dave Payne said:
the cello should come with two bricks, one for 240v that will just step down to 12v, the other for 12v iwith a ciggie lighter socket on the end, this will just regulate the incoming volts...
The cello tv's sold specifically for 12v use do come with both adapters; however all cello TV's are 12v but the larger TV's only come with 240-12v transformer. Not a problem though as it has a standard 12v socket and cig lighter leads are readily available
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It really depends on what you want your boat for. Living on a boat usually requires the maximum space, holiday boats just the bare essentials. Shorter boats may not have a permanent fixed bed, converting the dinette table every night can be a pain in the arse for a live aboard. If you live aboard are you going to be marina based or continual cruising? If live aboard do you need a washing machine? Do you need a freezer? Do you need space to dry washing on a clothes horse? How much wardrobe space do you require?
The list is endless, there are plenty of posts on here started by people considering getting a boat and plenty of replies, just don't ask which is the best type of toilet
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Unless of course you were to take a cruise in the 1970's on a ship named Posiden and Gene Hackman is on board dressed as a priest, then it would be perfectly normal
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With any boat the downside goes in the water and the upside sits above the water.
Longer boat more living and storage space, shorter boat more cruising range. Take a look at lock dimensions to see what is likely to be your cruising area http://www.jim-shead.com/waterways/mwp.php?wpage=CraftSize.htm then decide if you are likely to want to travel on the few canals a full length boat can't do.
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For Christs sake don't leave the porridge, next thing you know they will be sleeping in your bed!
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7 minutes ago, mross said:
Perhaps we will follow US practice soon; in some apartment complexes you can keep a dog but you must get its poo DNA analysed. Dog owners pay for this and then offending turds can be traced to the dog's owner. It's probably not expensive now that it is widespread!
Would that be widespread DNA testing or widespread turds?
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It sounds like you have finally got what you were being told.
Your starter battery is full, you use a surg of power to start the engine, the alternator kicks in to provide power, your ammeter measures the current flowing into your starter battery at 20amps, the bulk of the surg taken out of the battery is quickly replenished, the battery says hang on I'm feeling pretty full up and starts to push back, your ammeter then reads 2 or 3 amps trickle charging the starter battery; meanwhile your alternator is probably still pumping out 70amps but it is all going into your domestic bank unmonitored by your ammeter. At least, from the way I interpret it, this is what most of the posters have suspected is the problem based on information given.
As previously stated fitting a battery monitor is not difficult.
The shunt goes in the negative feed from your domestic bank, it comes (or should come) with a strap. Mount the shunt on a bulkhead near the battery bank, disconnect all negative leads and connect them to one side of the shunt, connect the strap to the other side of the shunt and the other end to the negative post on your battery bank. You fit the monitor in the boat and run the cable to the shunt, it will have several coloured wires to connect as per the instruction and you then have a real time read out of amps in and out.
note however the strap supplied with my BM2 was only about 8inches long and way to short for the job, you may find you need to pop into a car spares supplier for a longer battery lead
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4 hours ago, rgreg said:
As this is a planned winter closure CRT could argue that you should have checked before making your journey.
Of course the counter argument could be that CRT, when issuing a licence, don't at the time inform you that it is your obligation to check for closures. There isn't any legal obligation to own a computer, tablet or smartphone on which to check for closures or even to go to a public library to access one.
Try parking in London these days; unless you own a credit card and a mobile phone you simply cannot park your car even though these items were not issued with your driving licence.
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2 hours ago, mrsmelly said:
This is a very pertinent point and a very good question. I like sensible questions relating to one of lifes most important subjects
Being honest I have to say that NO the wages don't realy allow for it.
Just as well I only want the work for beer tokens, should hopefully get by if wages aren't wasted on food and stuff
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I have just started heading south down the GU and once again running along side Watling Street (aka the A5) I was thinking that surely this road must cross various canals more times than any other, it must cross the GU 20 or more times. So my trivia question is, which single road crosses canals the most and how many times? I don't have the answer I was just wondering if anyone knew.
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On 20 August 2014 at 08:14, Naughty Cal said:
These are dead easy to make and cheap as well.
Take wholemeal pitta breads and spread tomato puree on them. Add a sprinkling of mixed herbs and some grated cheese. Finally top with chopped cooked chicken, we used some left overs from Monday nights roast chicken and add a handful of sweet corn.
Bake in the oven at 200 degrees for 15 minutes.
You can of course use pretty much whatever topping you like on these.
The same can be achieved with a nice garlic and coriander naan bread
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I wish I had spotted this on Friday before going through the, now closed, Braunston locks. I discussed this with Tim when he posted it earlier this year. I will have to have a chat with the Better half in the morning because I am definitely interested.
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On 30 October 2017 at 13:36, Sea Dog said:
And if you're frozen in between emptying points?
This is a genuine question by the way. As I said above, I've been frozen in for 10 days nowhere near a sanitary station. It's being frozen in which is often flagged as the big advantage of the cassette over the pump out, but no-one has chosen to answer this particular query.
A long walk pushing a wheelbarrow or pulling a trolley with a couple of cassettes on. Or if near friends who drive ask them to take you and your cassettes to the Elsan.
I have met boater, who moved very slowly along the cut, he told me that he just pops into a field and digs a hole to empty the cassette in; rather disgusting and environmentally a big no, no. Or perhaps that should be a big do, do?
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21 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:
For Your Love... amazing soulful and underrated singer, that Mr Marriot...
Sadly died smoking in bed; I've often wondered though exactly what it was he was smoking at the time?
There is a Small Faces tribute band called Small Fakers http://smallfakers.co.uk/ if you ever get the chance to see them it is a really show and well worth going.
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4 hours ago, Bargebuilder said:
If the diesel you buy is to be used for propulsion then there will be an additional bit of 'road duty' to pay
I never realised the propulsion tax was for road duty, well that settles it, from now on I will declare 0% for propulsion until such time as I use my boat on a road
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I pad double posted for some reason
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Earlier this year we had to call RCR when the engine suddenly started knocking. The initial call out response was very quick but the diagnosis was new engine required. We were then transferred to Canal Contracting the sister company of RCR who handle all their major works. We got a phone call asking if we could move the boat down to a boat yard a couple of miles away where the engine would be lifted out; I pointed out that we haven't yet had a quote. If it is a new engine then I would drive the boat down not caring if I did more damage, however if my engine was to be rebuilt I would need to have it towed so no more damaged would be done.
An estimate was sent through with just a cost for an engine on it. I then got a call to say that was not correct as it hadn't been finalised and was sent in error. A couple of days later I got various estimates and the best option seemed to have my engine rebuilt. The cost of the replacement engine had gone up considerably, obviously the error was I was sent their price prior to mark up.
We got towed to the boat yard and the engine lifted out. Weeks passed without any info on when my engine would be returned, eventually I called them and was told that the crank was so badly worn that it needed replacing which would cost more than the original estimate.
A new estimate was sent but some of the prices had changed, they had missed out delivery charges and the lift in/out cost had changed from £175 to £400 so obviously I queried this. It took a couple of days to get a response from them, during which time I spoke to the boat yard. The owner of the boat yard told me that he had told them the cost before I even got the boat there, £250 for the lift out and £150 for the lift in. The reason for the higher charge for the lift out was because he charged £150 for the lift out, £50 labour to clear a load of wood out of the way to accommodate us and £50 to strap the engine up on a pallet; I thought this was fair enough. It did however differ with Canal Contracting's explanation which was that the £175 was a standard price to lift out and in on the same day, they had no idea it would be different and because the lift out and lift in were being done on different days it would cost double.
I then pointed out that we originally agreed to have our engine sent off for repair so obviously the lift out and in would be on different days. Eventually they had to admit their mistake and split the cost.
However now my engine was going to cost a lot more to have repaired, I was then offered a reconditioned industrial block with my top end fitted to it and it would be cheaper than the price originally agreed on for mine to be rebuilt and also quicker to turn around. At this point I had been waiting 6 weeks to have this job done, not fun when living aboard and it is a 3 mile walk across muddy fields to get petrol for the genny. I had had so many estimate that had mistakes on or the prices kept changing that I insisted on a fixed quotation for the complete job.
You think this has been a long winded post just getting to agreeing on the job, the installation comes next and that is where the fun begins, please bear with me.A week later the engine still hadn't arrived, I was told that it was a bit smokey on start up and the engineer wanted to leave it on the test bed to bed in. So a bit ominous to start with. They finally arranged the fitting of the engine but the guy who removed it wasn't available so another engineer turned up. The guy who removed the engine had trouble getting some of the wires out so he cut the plugs and intended to fit new ones. The guy fitting the engine spent 8 hours fitting it and trying to work the wiring out. He got it running ok but had problems with the fuel stop solenoid, this is what took up most of his time. Eventually he decided it was working backwards and he needed to fit a relay to make it work in reverse. I lost confidence in his electrical knowledge when he got a 5 pin relay out of the van instead of the 4 pin he thought he had picked up and I had to explain how it worked. I also wasn't happy with the idea of reversing the solenoid as this would mean it would be permanently energised when the ignition it on and takes power away to shut off the fuel. Even this he couldn't make work and eventually had to admit defeat.
Next we get a phone call to say they are sending a retired Lister expert to sort it out as we seem to have too many wires on our (standard Lister) wiring loom and he would be the best guy to sort it out. They then went on to explain his charges, which we disputed and asked if they were going to cover them, they said they would cover two hours. We didn't really care at this point as we had a quote that clearly stated fit engine, wire up and test. We didn't care what they did to achieve their quoted price as long as they got it done. I then asked if he was going to finish the installation as the last guy only put water in and no antifreeze, no he is only going to sort the wiring.So the expert turns up spends 3 maybe 4 hours working out that yes the lever needs pulling from the bottom not the top and it needs a different part on the end of the shaft. He then rewired the relay with a lashed up button so I could hold the button in on start up to get the engine running. He tells me that RCR have the necessary part as he sold them all his stock when he retired and he would send them a detailed report. During this visit I noticed that there was water leaking from the exhaust gasket and the oil pressure gauge and temperature gauge were not working. On this block was an oil pressure switch instead of a sender unit.
The next guy out sorted the leaking gasket, fitted the oil pressure sender and put antifreeze in the system and purged it. He fitted the stop solenoid which was a waste of time as Canal Contracting had sent him out with exactly the same part.
But with the lashed up switch and antifreeze in the block I could at least get underway after 8 weeks stuck in one spot.The saga doesn't end there, oh no it goes on, and on.
The temp gauge still doesn't work, the boat only starts with a lashed up button and is still smokey on start up.
I receive an email saying that as my loom has so many spare wires they recommend sending out a replacement unit with the guy who is coming to fit the new shaft on the solenoid. I replied to this email telling them that this is ludicrous as if the temperature gauge is on the wrong wire fitting a new one to it will have the same fault. It was proved by their expert to not have wiring problems but an engineering difference in the layout of the block and they still seem to think a standard lister loom has too many wires. I then fixed the temperature gauge myself by using the advance engineering principal of looking at the back of the gauge and then looking in the engine hole for a wire of a corresponding colour.
Next they sent out the guy who built the engine up in their workshop, with the correct part. Oh deep joy at last it is all going to work, or not as it turned out. 4 hours later he admitted defeat. He had removed the unnecessary relay and button and fitted the new plunger but had trouble aligning it to make it work. He decided to phone the expert and return. A few days later he was back after reading the report that was sent in and talking to the man who wrote it. At last it worked I could start and stop the engine normally.
A month later the bill came in with an additional charge for the experts time. I paid them the amount quoted only, explaining again that it clearly stated instal, wire and commission the engine for the agreed price.Two days later the stop solenoid fell apart.
So I got down the engine hole to take a look. I'm no mechanic but I have spent my life doing electrical installation work. It took me 10-15 mins to figure out what the problem was and why he had problems setting it up and it took a further 10 mins to fix it properly.
Not only did the solenoid need to be angled slightly downwards (the bracket accommodates this) so it connected to the bottom of the stop lever instead of the top, but it needed aligning along the direction of the plunger. The problem was that because it didn't line up the only way to make it work was to leave the connecting bolts loose so there was some play in it or the magnets wouldn't have the strength to pull the plunger in; this is why the vibration of the engine eventually undid the bolts.
Now for the really advanced engineering bit, the solution was to take out the M6 bolts holding the solenoid in place and change them for longer bolts with washers in between and then tightening up all the bolts.
4 engineers 5 visits and nearly 20 hours and it takes a non mechanic with two bolts and 6 washers 25mins to sort the problem out.
So RCR breakdown seems ok but I'll never use Canal Contracting again. -
23 minutes ago, haza said:
if that for contents also .i would have thought thats the norm ...i pay about 270 with contents ...but im not the one to say thats good or bad ,,
Yes, I forgot to mention it covers contents and also marine legal cover
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With your budget I would be inclined to go for a sail away lined plus. All first fix electrics pre wired, all plumbing in place, including colarifier, tanks etc. walls lined and bulkheads in position, Windows fitted. painted on the outside, nothing worse than a sail away being fitted out whilst rusting for want of a paint job. This then leaves the kitchen to fit, bathroom to fit, radiators to fit and whatever heating system, woodwork required for bedroom and living room. You can if you want move on board with a mattress, cassette bog and camping stove. Cost more but most of the hard tedious work is done.
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With all the miles of canal and river bank that boats can't moor on I just can't understand why they want to fish on designated moorings, is it near the pub or something?
Being honest I have to say that NO the wages don't realy allow for it.
Marina Dog Ban
in General Boating
Posted
Dogs can be very useful. Get yourself a small tennis ball obsessed dog with a bushy, sticking up tail. Dip his tail in bitumen, throw tennis ball underneath your boat in dry dock, when the dog brings the ball back repeat as necessary until the bottom of the boat is adequately blacked.
just trying to bring the topic full circle