Theo

If it's anything like the Mikuni then it could be a coked up flame detector. I quick wipe over sorts out the Mikuni. I need to do that now. Nick

If there's no rain forecast then the wall below Sileby Mill lock is good.

I can't stress enough how important it is on a river to have your anchor rigged and ready to deploy in an emergency. This means having enough chain and warp for the depth of water. If you are on a narrow river and it would not be possible to turn the boat to head upstream then consider rigging the anchor at the back of the boat. It's a good idea to make the warp fast to two places in case the first one fails. T studs have been known to break. Nick

So. Is the shiny mirror finish something that you have to work on to achieve? Is it different from a normal gloss paint finish?

How is it lasting? Is the undercoat reasonably weatherproof? I suppose that what is required is a finish that you can't see your face in. N

SWMBO says that I have not been sufficiently explicit. I imagine that immediately after painting it will be dead shiny. I suppose that it will gradually dull down and after a bit you won't be able to see your face in it? N

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Just booked the boat in for a paint job. We are keen to keep the non shiny look. Advice welcomed. Nick

One thing has just occurred to me is the request for a separate ash pan access door. The danger of these is that they can be left open with the main door closed. This opens a HUGE access for air and the danger of over firing. I fiend of mine did that and set his chimmley on fire (house not nb) N

To shorten the link choose the text in your post that you want to make the link like this (click) then click on the icon that looks like three little chain links and paste the url into the field. Easy!

I wonder if the cracking of the top plate was to do with the way the flue pipe passed through the ceiling. You need to use flexible sealer here or the expansion and contraction of the flue will apply huge forces to the top of the stove. N

Sright. Since CRT want them cut off I am sure that we could assist. N

With the anti smoke laws the latest pair of log burners that we bought don't shut down properly so they won't stay in overnight. The old Charnwood that we have on the boat is very tight, so tight that you can put out the fire by closing it down completely. The top draught is very stiff to work, though. It has a rather thin rod with a little brass finial. When we first got the log burner we thought that it would loosed with wear. Not a bit of it! It was useful that it is steel because we were able to have plates welded inside the angle of the legs so that we could bolt it down. N

I was thinking cut it off rather than drill it out... ...but I think that I might have missed Bizzard's point.🤔

Battery powered angle grinder? It would only take a minute or two.