pagan witch
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Posts posted by pagan witch
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I am trying to find nb Cahoon - Tom & Margaret Booth. Tom as appx 5' 10" grey hair and a quiet lilting voice, Margaret can reasonably be described as a fiery Scot ! Last seen in the Stone area appx 6 months ago but I've lost touch and his mobile is no longer working.
Can't remember much about the boat other than mainly green with a coat of arms on the side panels. He'd not be offended if I said it wasn't the shiniest of boats
If anyone can help me find them I'd be obliged.
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I thought I read a thread here a few months ago that gave then dfinitive from an oil company (can't remember which) saying that there is often no difference between fuels sold as 'road' and 'red' other than the dye that is added (sometimes by the wholesaler to avoid having to have multiple storage tanks).
Now I appreciate that there may well by more than one 'standard' of fuel but it seems to me that often the difference is 'has the red dye been added or not ?'
If this is the case is the dye causing a problem - and if this is the case why isn't it affecting everything else that runs on it - often for many more hours than our heaters - tractors spring to mind - so I guess the dye is not at fault.
After all of this though I stay with the view that I have run an Eber for over 3 years now using whatever fuel I can get. I am residential so it gets some use - normally set to run for 1 1/4 hours at a time but I have run it for over 4 at a time without any problem.
I service it a couple of times a year - takes appx 1 hour from end to end including the struggle to get it out from under the back deck and back. Biggest problem is getting spares at a sensible cost but it is still cheaper to look after it yourself if you feel competent.
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Its pobably doubtful that the detector vans will catch CC'ers but you never know, and as we all know, ignorance of the law is not a defence
They haven't used detector vans for decades - quite simply when you buy a TV the shop will insist on you giving them your address and this is passed on to the licensing bods. When I was in the TV trade we were exempted from a licence of our own (so we could look at the TVs we were repairing and show customers etc.) so long as we promised to report who we had sold TVs to.
Of course, the shop doesn't actually care if the address you give is valid - just make sure you pay with cash
else you will have defeated the whole object.We are resi, were told by the licencing bods that we must have a licence because it is our main residence.
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Problem with walking in front of a train is it'll probably be late and if you don't get it right it'll be ages before another one comes along. At least with the TV method you know there will be a repeatI'll add it to the list. I was thinking walk in front of a train but you have to go outdoors for that the tv option sounds dead easy.
As has been pointed out - TVs have a CRT which is to all effects and purposes a very big capacitor that does store a lot of elctricity for a long time. Keep clear of the leads around it.Many TVs have problems with 'dry joints' where the wires are still connected but no longer soldered - end up being a kind of push fit. If you study closely you can often see a slightly darker ring around the component where the joint has 'fizzed' for a while.As for big boards - the whole idea is that you CAN replace individual components quite easily - assuming of course you know which ones.As for the de-gauss, it is normally a small cube, often white / light grey appx 1 cm cube. If you remove it from circuit and it rattles when youshake it it has blown - replacements are only a few £However as pointed out TVs can kill and simply turning it off or unplugging it doesn't make it safe.We have an 8 year old Thomson 12 volt television which we are having problems with the picture.The best way I can describe the fault is that when there is a football match on the pitch is RED and not green.Is it time to get a new one or can it be repaired?Steve -
Our local discount bedding emporium 'Silly Sids Saves You Quids' in Derby can get most multiples of 3 inches within a few days - we just got a 6ft 3 X 2 ft for £80 including delivery and taking the old one away.
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Seems there are several of us on here who fancy a go just because it can be done and all of us say chuck it unless you feel competant at repairing it and don't mind the dissapointment if it goes bang after you've 'fixed' it.
Word of caution not yet specifically mentioned here so far - beware of capacitors. They can hold charge for a considerable time - many a satelite repair bod had 'Dracula marks' on their fingers in the 90's as a result of a power supply fault in one of Amstrads early offerings that made the power supply appear dead but left one of the caps fully charged.
So to sum it all up then . . . . IF you know what you are doing and can get the parts it is worth a try. If not then don't risk killing yourself and throw it.
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Maybe just my preference but I'd definately look at getting it fixed.
I'm old enough to have been taught to fix things down to component level and as far as I am aware there isn't too much in an inverter that is complicated so a fix is a definate possibility.
Usual problems of labour cost if you have it done for you or parts availability (and safety) if you do it yourself.
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Just a thoughgt but if there is space how about srpat foaming the tank ? A couple of tins should do the trick and although it will be a pretty horrible job - it gets everywhere and sticks to everything it would only need doing once.
That said - keep the slats - humans give of a surprising amount of water vapour so keeping some under mattress ventilation space is pretty essential in our experience.
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Any opinions on our proposed electrical system for a 65 ft full time live aboard
here is what we have been advised:
Beta 43 engine
12volt DC 45 amp alternator for starter battery and bow thruster batteries
24 volt DC 75 amp alternator for battery pack(660AH) plus 3Kw/70amp/24v Victron inverter/charger
Fischer Panda 4000i 7.0 kva AC generator
Will be running at 230 volts AC, washing machine, small tumble dryer, micro-wave, iron (not all at once)
Would appreciate any suggestions or alterations
Seems to me like a whole lot of electrical power there - are you sure it is a boat you are planning ?
Unless you are going all electric and forgot to mention it why the 7 kva gen set ? That equates to over 30 amps at 240 volts - enough to run most domestic sized electric ovens.
We are normally connected to shore line granted, but even so with the exception of the washing machine we can run everything else off of the 2kw inverter and a 440 ah battery bank. If we want the washing macine we run a diesel 2.5 kva gen set that lives under the back deck.
PS what is 'an iron' ? see similar thread
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Sounds like a good idea but probably isn't for all the reasons already stated.
If the friendship breaking down leads to the sale of the boat because you have relied on that person providing financil support you are REALLY going to hate each other.
What are you going to do if you want to go cruising for a few months and friend can't due to work / life commitments ?
What are you going to do if friend brings on friends you don't like ?
By all means buy one yourself and invite friends to share the space when it suits you. After all if you end up finding a regular partner a friend not far away will really kill any intimacy - you may be used to living in such confines but your new partner may not - and if the friend doesn't like the partner . . . . .
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Leicester's a great place!
Paranoia and a few incidents that could happen anywhere don't turn it into Banditland.
Have to agree - though last time I went through there was water in the rubbish rather than the other way around - still it was some 10 years ago now.
If you look around hard enough you can find bad stuff everywhere. If you look around hard enough you can find good stuff everywhere. Problem is the bad stuff gets remembered and spread about - the good stuff doesn't make the news.
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But please remember that unless specifically stated otherwise, self pumping out at most BW elsan points is not permitted because they were not designed to take large volumes of waste and can easily become blocked or damaged.
Very good point. We are lucky that both of our nearest are OK to self pump - have checked this with BWB. The main concern isn't the blockage (given that anything that has been through a macerator, squeezed through a pump then sent via a 1 1/2 inch pipe is most unlikely to block a 4 inch sewer pipe) but the sheer volume.
A lot of BWB elsan points are in rural locations and not on mains sewer systems so it wouldn't take too many of my kind of 200 gallon pump outs to fill up their cess pit. A cess pit is literally just a sealed tank - no outlet. A septic tank on the other hand does a half decent job of keeping the waste in the tank and letting the liquid go to land drain.
The reason BWB have cess pits rather that septic tanks is simply the amount of blue that they have to cope with - it would seriously damage the local environment. When I was emptying tanks for a living caravan site waste had to go to a main - and I do mean main sewage plant to ensure the blue was adequately diluted else it killed the bacteria in the works.
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Years ago had a job emptying septic tanks - fantastic things if let to their own devices and not killed with bleach. So can I strongly advise against using bleach in any kind of boat toilet system.
Given the comparitvely small volumes of waste a boat system has the average home owner with 'bleach squirters arm' will kill all of the bacteria in the system and it is the bacteria that are largely responsible for breaking down the waste and thus reducing the smell.
A far kinder product for toilet bowl cleaning is vinegar malted will do but clear is better - gets rid of limescale and has no bad side effects.
It always puzzles me why people put bleach down their toilets and get in my view somewhat paranoid about it all being germ free. Firstly they are all your germs, secondly unless you either have a very long 'member' shall we say that could 'dip into the bowl' or you intend to stick your head in it how are you expecting to 'catch' anything ?
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Used to 'rig' aerials many years ago and yes, if you happen to stumble upon wavelength multiples you can certainly get problems.
Whilst I agree that moving them away from each other is almost certainly a better solution if it isn't practical you may find moving them closer effects a reasonable result too.
As has been said - the aerial doesn't know whether the signal is a 'digital' or 'analogue'. Aerials sold as 'digital' are meant to be better quality to make sure the signal to noise ratio is better. Like sat reception a small drop in signal can result in a 'freeze' rather than just a slight fuzziness.
Just a thought - as you say your neighbour has put her aerial on your pole surely you have the right to ask her to remove it if it is causing a problem ?
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Not necessarily so.
I bow to anyone else's knowledge of dump throughs and accept that things may well have changed since may last experiences which I admit were some years ago.
As a 'fresh water with macerator' user I know I get no smells but I can't see how a dump through (as I understand and have described) can't help but let some of the wiff out because at 'moment of 'flush' the tank is open to the air ?
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The answer is :-
Yes it can be done - it is one of only 2 real options, the other being a cassette unit.
If you have a holding tank it is normally built into the boat at time of construction and as such it is normally steel. Can be added after but will involve a fair bit of work.
You then have a choice of :-
'dump through' where the toilet sits on top of the holding tank and when you 'flush' a valve opens and your 'jobbies' fall down into the tank by gravity. This is sinplicity itself and is much favoured by hire companies as it is largely fool proof. However you always end up with a smell coming up from the tank every time you 'flush'.
or
'remote' where some sort of pump, either a liquid pump with macerator which pushes the jobbies or sometimes a vacuum pump that sucks them into the holding tank that can be some distance away (under a fixed double is common as it gives you a big holding tanks space).
The remote tank option is much nicer - fresh water flush, no smell but of course dearer and more likely to go wrong.
Where as a dump through would work just by dropping a few cups of water in then opening the valve the remotes need power.
Which ever option you go for self pump out kits are easily available and it isn't a terrible job - we empty our 200 gallon holding tank appx every 3 weeks and it takes about 10 minutes using a manual pump - electric ones are available but of course cost more and need a decent power supply to run the pump.
As for chemicals we have a remote and therefore do not use any, there simply isn't any need and we let nature do the job of breaking things down (plus of course everything gets macerated as it goes into the tank.
Dump through users often use either 'blue' or the more environmentally friendly 'green'. Blue is toxic in every way imaginable, by touch, inhalation of fumes, dangerous to all life and cumalitive to boot. It is nasty stuff.
There are now quite a few people using brewers yeast in tanks as yeast really loves the environment in a poo tank and does a great and natural job of breaking waste down.
Hope you haven't fallen aslepp after all of that . . .
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Thanks for the link.
So the intent to avoid payment is what makes it illegal.
What I did was to look up the IP address of the router I had hooked up to and sent an email to the ISP asking them to ask the owner of that connection to contact me.
No intent to avoid payment, no crime.
It's not my fault they've not got back to me is it?
Hmmmm . . . .
Rather like saying 'I asked DVLA if it was OK to borrow the blokes car but they never came back to me so off I went'
However . . . I was on the Radio 2 Jeremy Vine show when he aired this last year and asked the question 'If I smell the flowers in someone else's garden have I committed an offence ?' After all they paid for the flowers and I am benefitting from the smell that 'leaks' outside of their property boundary without making financial contribution.
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Thanks for the help folks. I can put the 'earth' clamp inches away from the job so no problem there, Will of course disconnect batteries (they don't like it up 'em Pike).
My main concern was whether there was any safety issue that made it more or less desireable to connect to the shore line via the boat or just go for the shore line.
Seems not - will let you know how I go on - I am not a 'pretty' welder - what I weld sticks but I don't do enough to be 'good' and certainly wouldn't trust myslef with anything structural.
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We changed the name of our boat when we got it without any trouble at all from BWB - just put the new name on the licence.
We certainly haven't had any bad luck since we did it either. Now that the last of the locusts have flown, the floods seem to be subsiding and the nasty boil on my nose is shrivelling nicely
it is all plain sailing.Boat names are often changed - even ships sometimes get a re-name when they are re-registered to a differetn owner.
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I need to do a small welding job on the good ship Wych Way - a bit of a repair to a split welding seam on the handrail.
I have a small stick welder that is up to the job so that isn't an issue.
However - we are connected to a shore supply leaving me the question which supply should I use to power the welder ?
Shore line (using one of the sockets on the boat) or connect direct to shore line (which means disconnecting the shore line - and thus its' earth - from the boat)
Or - as they are all connected anyway does it actaully make a hoot of difference ?
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2 things here . . . .
1) Without wishing to sound unhelpful if you are not sure about wiring one of these up then don't. You are almost certainly connectiong up to a bank of at least 3 batteries at 110 Ah each with enough raw power to do some serious damage - remember you can easily weld with 40A and if you manage to short these out accidentaly that's what you'll be doing. Burns are a real danger here.
2) If despite this you wish to proceed then please make sure the neg connection goes through a battery isolator - not doing so is a pretty quick way to fail your BSS. This can be either a seperate isolator to the boats' other systems or can share the same one but remember to check the current rating of the isolator. A 2kw inverter at full whack is around the 200A mark.
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Done the 4 counties in a week several times now from several differing start places and I have always worked out which way to go based on getting to the tunnel at Harecastle.
At the time of year you are planning to travel there will still be many hours of daylight after the tunnel closes so to get there and find that you are 'stuck' for 5 or more hours isn't much fun. Even if the tunnel is still open and you miss the convoy going in by a few minutes you will be held up for at least 2 hours whilst they get through and those at the other end make their journey.
The moorings Stoke side are reliable and safe enough but there is absolutlely nothing to do there except water up. Everyone I have ever spoken to (tunnel keepers included) says don't moor overnight the other side.
So my strong suggestion is go whichever way gets you to the tunnel earliest, that way you have the largest potential hold-up taken care of early on and if you do need to turn around because you are not making the progress you thought you were going to then getting back in time should be easily achievable.
Look out for the skeleton about 400m in
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Know the feeling - we managed to get living afloat despite a whole collection of touch and go problems a little over 3 years ago now and the odds of us going back to dry land out of chouce are about nil.
Winter is like any other season - prepare for it - enjoy it. We've had ice here for the last 3 days and folk are moaning. Daresay the same folk will be moaning when it rains instead of freezes and when it is too hot
None of our families support us in our choice - but we don't live for them we live for oureselves. We aim to harm none and help all and have by and large had similar treatment from those around us.
Best wishes
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People normally laugh at me when I talk about canals having uphill and downhill. - Then again people normally just laugh at me
Things like this are always noticeable on river sections but the LLangollen is a really good example too.
else you will have defeated the whole object.
Boat stolen from Sawley
in General Boating
Posted
I hear it has been found. I wasn't in at the time but it seems it was on its' way back 'home' a few days ago complete with new paint job - bitumastic black all over.