oldboater66

Quote from local farm owner in the Liverpool Echo The 58-year-old told the ECHO: "We've reported a fault with the canal and a persistent damp patch, even in dry weather, for some time now. "We have reported it consistently and not been believed."

Thanks for the recommendations on this. The size of extension to the front locker works out at around 9ft. I have spoken to Martin @Kedian (really friendly guy btw) who has indicated that it would be a bit less than half the price of a full stretch which according to his website would work out at around £350 per foot. This is only a rough estimate though and I'm in the process of getting him all the details and exact sizes. He mentioned September 2018 as a possible date to do the work. Also spoke to Industry Narrowboats at Stretton Wharf who would have been my preferred choice as they are closer than Kedian but unfortunately they are well out of my price range with an estimate of £4500. Going to have another look at the boat this weekend to get some proper measurements and photos. Thanks again for the recommendations This is the boat btw to give an idea of what I'm talking about.

Unfortunately my budget wouldn't extend to a stretch, no pun intended :) On previous boats I've owned, those days are very few and far between and the rest of the time just seems to be spent clearing leaves, cobwebs and rat chewed rubbish bags away. The cratch covers on the front of this boat are a bit worse for wear and would either need repairs or replacing if keeping the long bow. Thanks for the other suggestions Ditchcrawler and Neil2 Any other recommendations appreciated

Sorry I should have been clearer yes it is just the cabin top extension I'm looking for. I've seen a few bad jobs myself but these are normally when someone has used wood to extend a steel top. Not looking for a work of art and wouldn't mind a bit of a weld line where the two cabins meet. Like I say any advice or recommendations appreciated as I really like the hull design and the beta engine has very low hours with upto date stamped service history from the original installer.

Had a look round a boat earlier this week at Venetian Marina. It's a 30ft dayboat with a small cabin and a long open bow. Happy with the quality of the hull (RW Davis) and condition of the engine. Just wondering if anybody could recommend a boat builder around Cheshire/Staffordshire who might be willing to extend the cabin top all the way to the front locker, and also what might be a reasonable price to pay for this work. Ideally a builder on the Venetian side of the middlewich breach. Length of extension would be around 7ft with just one escape window at the front Any ideas greatly appreciated

As far as I'm aware Merseyside motorboat club do not allow liveaboards and imo i wouldn't leave a rowing boat in Litherland unattended. I know people who do moor there regularly but they have a large angry bull mastiff looking after the boat when not onboard. The best place to be on that stretch as I've mentioned before is Hall Lane Maghull. Power, water, parking, elsan and local shops. Five minute walk to the station and 20min journey to Liverpool every 15mins. Not always space available and no idea on cost if any but worth a try. PM me if you'd like contact details.

Steve at Stretford Marina has always been really helpful whenever passing that way. Might be worth giving them a call for an idea of mooring fees. Tidy little place with diesel and gas for sale.

Just sent you the owners number for Maghull.

I could be wrong but pretty sure MMBC don't allow liveaboards on their moorings.

Free electric too! Electric heater full whack 24/7 from Oct to mar sounds tempting

I've moored at Maghull / Hall Lane a couple of times on my way to into Liverpool it's on private land opposite the towpath with electric, water, toilet and cassette emptying facilities. Plenty of shops nearby and only a couple of minute walk to Maghull station for trains every 15 minutes. Takes around twenty minutes to Liverpool central. PM me if you would like the owners phone number. Its not rural but I'd say it's the safest and nearest to Liverpool after Litherland. Personally I wouldn't want to leave a boat with all my possessions anywhere between Lydiate and Parbold unless it was in scarisbrick marina the caravan park or one of the rufford ones. Always thought the CRT ones at Haskayne were particularly open to vandalism and theft and I know of a long term boat at Burscough that was vandalized a couple of years ago. There is a pub I think called the slipway that has offside CRT moorings but from what I remember it looks like anyone can gain access without a key so the only security would be you neighbors. Have you priced Liverpool marina? A friend lives there and although expensive it is a great place to be and could save you hundreds of pounds a year on train fares. You would also need to change your anodes for saltwater.

I got a bit worried doing the Aire and Calder a couple of years ago, when a guy approaches me with what seemed to be a cross between a length of 4x2 and a baseball bat. Turns out I had done nothing to upset him and he kindly explained that it was an Aire and Calder paddle needed to operate the locks. I did manage (slowly) without one though.

Yes and considering that there are 5 yearly rent review's. Let's hope that CRT are not being a little short sighted in selling off the family silver..

oops http://www.pugh-auctions.com/Lot/Manchester/20170221/053

Thanks for your reply. As mentioned in op i have seen an auto elec who is happy to have a go. If you have time could you expand on your return path comment please so i might understand a little better what you mean. Cheers

Thanks for the reply, looks like it would be cheaper to buy individually. I'd like to have the appliances wiring individually colour coded so each has a different colour. Can cable be bought by the metre or does it only come on the roll? Be back to ask more questions about cable size when i have measured distances from switch panel to appliances. Cabin size is only 17ft so no length would be much longer than this taking into account vertical runs etc.

Anyone looking for canal side property in the northwest or just interested in seeing what crt are getting rid of should check out Pugh and co auctions. I've noticed the last few auctions have had a few interesting things for sale. These all went in the Feb auctions http://www.pugh-auctions.com/Lot/Leeds/20170223/197 £132.000 http://www.pugh-auctions.com/Lot/Manchester/20170221/002 £75,000 http://www.pugh-auctions.com/Lot/Manchester/20170221/052 £267,000 http://www.pugh-auctions.com/Lot/Manchester/20170221/052 £215,000

Apologies for this long first post but here goes. I am currently fitting out a new 25 ft narrowboat shell and I'm having problems finding an electrician. My previous (spirecraft) boat was a similar size and had a simple 12v only system which consisted of: 1 x starter battery 1 x leisure battery split charge system running to a simple fuse board powering 1 x horn, 1 x headlight, 3 x internal cabin lights, 2 x 12v power points inside the cabin, 1 x water pump and 1 x car radio cassette. This system although basic worked perfectly and had been working perfectly for over 25 years and as far as i am aware is still working for the new owner. I used a 100w inverter plugged in to the 12v power outlet to charge my laptop and phone while on the move with the engine running. I would like a similar system in my new boat as i don't feel I need 240v. The problem I am having is that the electricians who I have been in contact with are either quoting silly money prices, (£3000 from one guy!) and some others to turn up show an interest but then disappear from the face of the earth when I attempt to follow up and arrange a time and price. I think they feel that the job is either not worth their time or to simple to bother with. So I have located a few "motorhome / campervan" conversion companies online who offer to make up a full 12v split charge loom for “DIY” fitting, if you tell them what appliances you want with cable lengths etc they make up a pre manufactured loom. The cost for this bespoke loom service is around £200. I have spoken to one guy who provides this loom making service and he sees no problem with adapting this for marine use and is aware of cable size vs length and also the need to use only heat shrink connections. Here is a link to the type of thing I mean (but would be without the 240v hook up as I only want 12v) http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Full-Campervan-Motorhome-Electrical-Conversion-Kit-Split-Charge-Hook-up-12V-240V-/221683580235?hash=item339d5efd4b A local auto electrician who is a friend of the family has had a look at my boat and the DIY loom online and said he is happy to do the installation, which would be a couple of days work at the most so not too expensive. MY QUERY IS - Would anybody on here be able to offer any advice as to whether this would be ok to use? – The finished would of course have to properly examined for safety certification. I would appreciate any advice or observations in layman’s terms please