Ratkatcher

Just for closure, after all of the help previously. I did a service before taking the boat to Kedian for overplating etc. and used 20w50 Comma oil instead of 5w40. Pressure was still variable on the outward trip as coolant temperature varied on occasion Since the re-launch with a new skin tank (and getting the air out from the calorifier) coolant temperature has been nailed in the mid 70s and oil pressure sitting mid guage (about 35 psi) while running, at tickover while warm it drops to around 25 psi so all appears to be fine. The return journey was much more enjoyable then the previous outings as it got to the stage where only occasional glimpses at the guages were given as they didn't seem to move much. Most excitement coming back to the mooring was provided by copious amounts of leaves lurking in the water with a desperate urge to wrap themselved around the propellor... That and the biting insects... (I have a very sick dog who was bitten on the neck last Monday and has scratched so much the bite was egg sized when we got back Thrusday - a trip to the vet in the evening meant a couple of injections and antibiotic tablets for her, another trip tonight as she is still pretty poorly!)

Our cheapo Bush DAB portable works fine inside the boat most of the time, other times it has to be elevated to the window to get reception. We have the same issue with the radio as Nightwatch except it is with my rechargeable battery charger - plug it in and radio goes quiet, unplug it and all is normal. I assume it is RFI from the unshielded electronics in the charger. maybe the electronic gubbins in his TV are not as well shielded as they should be? Other suggestions welcomed!

I know this thread is a bit old.... I bought the Waternav PC software recently but have not yet been able to appreciate its navigation properties as finding a USB GPS dongle that works with the software is by trial and error as there is no 'recommended' product to use with the software. A GNSS receiver is not recognised (although it claims maritime use) and the SIRF receiver has yet to arrive (from China I hasten to add - but as it was a little over £4 against £30+ in the UK...) but should this not be recognised it will be a real challenge to actually find a receiver to use as these appear to be the only 2 'standards' available as a dongle. If anyone has had experience of this software working I'd be pleased if they would share their setup details.

I'd go back to Martin again if I needed more work doing, wouldn't hesitate to recommend him to others either, but then I may be biased as he has already done a great job on my boat!

He also appears to be blind to the fact that most of the NOx emissions are from gas burning boilers... When are the next mayoral elections in London? Perhaps he can be disposed of before it gets too silly there I left the GLA region in '99, a smart move I think.

Lovely to meet Matty40s and getting a helping hand too! We took a detour up toward Brum as the navigator thought the instructions said turn at Fazely Junction Now moored outside the Tame Otter for the night. Temperature so stable (even when working the engine quite hard) that it seems the guages have got stuck! Sorry Cuthound, my mobile was in the Saloon providing Trudi internet access so didn't get to read posts until we pulled over - hope we waved.... Trent & Mersey tomorrow.

Now on the way back to the Shroppie and on the Coventry having just done the 11 locks on Atherstone flight and stopped for the day now (it was only going to be for lunch but the boat moving just when I was climbing onto the bow to tie up meant that I was able to check the depth of the canal quite effectively - not having spare shoes was certainly a serious omission! ) "So how goes the new skin tank?" I hear you ask... Firstly, let me say that Martin has done a lovely job and my poor old Thorneycroft 90 (BMC 1500) has warmed up to mid-70's and stuck there no matter what engine speed - a massive difference to previous outings when one eye on the canal and the other on the temperature guage. Secondly, a massive 'Thank You!' to the Kate Boat technicians who connected the new cooling system and replaced all of the cooling and Calorifier feed pipes - having a few issues thrown at them on the way as old fittings either snapped or were rusted to the point of uselessness, they were both friendly and very profesional and I'd have no hesitation in recommending them! The calorifier took a couple of days to get rid of all of the air in the heating coil making some 'interesting' gurgling noises in the process. We now have an engine being cooled properly, oil pressure remaining stable (because the coolant temperature is correct I presume) and plenty of nice hot water too. Previously the coolant temperature was not stable and would randomly rise to over 100c and stay there until the engine was stopped for a couple of minutes, this appears to have been eradicated, temperatures rose briefly while the air came out of the calorifier and dropped once the gurgling ceased. The new cooling system appears to place no appreciable load on the water pump over the original keel cooling but certainly inspires more confidence than previously. When we called in to refill the Diesel tank (just in case) I enjoyed a good conversation with the proprieter about overplating / skin tanks (he does the same engineering himself) who asked who did the work, then commented that the surveyor who had done the hull survey after Martin had finished my boat had called in Wednesday to do a survey there - he had commented about the excellent work on the boat he had just surveyed in the last week - it just happened to be mine... What more can be said?

A couple of months back Norbury were the same price as Wheaton Aston (about .2p difference). Sorry I can't be more up to date but we're away from the mooring currently.

We'll be taking Tichitoro back to her mooring early next week, a pleasant 10 day cruise I'll let you all know how the new cooling system behaves. I would have thought that as the norm for the engine is in a pressurised coolant system, and that it certainly pumps through the calorifier efficiently that adding a little labyrinth for coolant that replaces a hefty keel cooling system would be likely to present a similar load to the pump. ETA: As the engine is a marinised BMC, its original home would have been in a Leyland van etc. with a radiator cooling system.

Gin Palaces... Ahh the good old days! Drunk for a penny, dead drunk for tuppence Then the governments introduced progressively heavy taxing on alcohol in an attempt to reduce the number of working days lost to drunkenness.

I'll ask one of the moderators to correct my spelling on Martin's name... @blackrose I took a look at the Beta link, curious, I'd have thought the further the coolant is forced to travel the more efficient the cooling (you should see the baffling on my CPU cooler! ) but as it is another of those 'black arts' who really knows?

I know - I edited it to remove a duplicate photo then couldn't edit again! The spelling mistakes will live on, shaming me for eons to come

When my boat had its pre-purchase survey it was pointed out that the base plate had 'a rash of pitting' and the sacrificial chines had been eroded to such an extent that the only economically sensible option was to overplate the base. (surveyor's recommendation), the other sensible option was to walk away and let it be someone elses problem - but I really liked the boat... I'd read on here (thanks everyone) recommendations for Kedian Engineering so approached Martin for a quote. Followed an enjoyable conversation and an exact description of the work that would be done (another company had quoted me also but were so vague in the work schedule that I walked away), how long it would take and when he would be able to do the work. Oh, and a price too... On the way to Kedian from my home mooring coolant temperature got a bit too high on several occasions - not quite to overheating properly but worrying nonetheless - so a phone call to Martin asking if a skin tank could be fitted while he was overplating. "No problem!" from his end. Martin had posted a couple of pictures in the last overplating thread so I thought I'd add a couple more from the work-in-progress collection. As can be seen, he has done a great job, explained exactly what he has done and finished off with new blacking (3 coats) not just over his work but the whole hull. He also added a 'step up' on each side of the hull at the rear - obviously thinking of the inevitable time when someone on the boat decided to take a dip in the canal - to make it easier to climb back on board, or for the Herons / Cranes to have somewhere comfy to stand... Now looking forward to the trip back to the home moorings without 'worn welds' preying on my mind Thanks to those here that mentioned Martin in high regard for pointing me in that direction (even though at that time I wasn't posting, just haunting here) and permitting me to add an equally enthusiastic recommendation for his work.

In the film 'If' the single record Mr. McDowell constantly played was 'Sanctus' by 'Les Troubadours Du Roi Baudouin', which was released in 1958, sung by a Congolese choir. I always considered a Latin mass song to be an odd choice, perhaps it was the 'heavy' drums that made it so... ETA: brilliant film though, may have to dig it up from the archives and watch it once more.

12 Volt Planet do a fairly comprehensive range of cables, although they are not as competitive as sellers on ebay... http://www.12voltplanet.co.uk/plain-copper-battery-cable.html

That boat looks awfully familiar.... At least you chose a great angle to show her, Martin

True - I have an HP (had a Dell until recently) that refuses to charge on a generic 12v adaptor, the Dell had the same attitude - unable to comment on Apple. Both the HP and Dell are able to 'detect' the power supply attached and complain bitterly if they don't 'see' the genuine article. True comment on the RING - budget item, although I am not certain if it is MSW (suspect it is) but runs my equipment without any ill effect, this may just be good luck though!

For laptop / TV/ DAB Radio (that I always forget to turn off properly so it eats batteries) I have a small RING 120W cigar lighter inverter (it is quite old...) that is not terribly inefficient. It will run both TV & laptop charging (not happy to power both switched on, but my laptop draws 90 watts-ish if being used for graphics intensive applications) through an extension lead quite happily. We have a small inverter for the twin tub but no other mains appliances on board otherwise. I don't know if the little RING inverter is what you were thinking of, but I would happily give it a 'thumbs uo' for convenience.

Oops! I was looking at the NASA marine monitor after reading about Smartguage here - my bad! I'll just slink away back to the rathole...

A valid point, Dave, I was in no way demeaning the Smartguage. In truth I'll likely get the Bluetooth version in the near future anyway and bin the Chinese one. I do have a laminated printout of this chart on the boat - it helps a little

I nearly bought a Smartguage until reading lots of posts on here about them Instead I spent £25 on a Chinese 'battely state meta' that tells me both battery voltage and current (charge & discharge) simultaneously (it runs through a big shunt on the domestic bank negative). Ths little cheapie instrument aided in determining that my alternator was not very good (lots of assistance in that original posting from lots of you good people) and since replacing it (the alternator) has provided the same aid in seeing charge current drop off (and voltage rise) as the batteries approached full. The rest of the functions of this meter make no sense to me so are ignored, but I consider the money well spent just for the reassurance that the alternator was duff. Just my tuppence worth...

There is an arada AX multifuel stove in our boat, there was a learning curve to climb in getting it to light (PITA) but once burning (Taybrite or Excel) it puts out plenty of heat and stays in for a very long time (overnight is no problem) only requiring a riddle to get the ash off the coals and opening the airflow up to get a new burn going with the top-up fuel. It is very good, really, but I don't think I would be brave enough to recommend one to someone I might run into again after... That said, having had both Villager and Cottager stoves in my house I'd say it was no worse to light than them - never had the pleasure of a Morso so cannot make a comparison.

On my boat the shower 'tray' is a removable bit of flooring on plastic feet, there is a gap around it and water drains into the bilge to be pumped out. As this is original fitting it was obviously designed to work reasonably efficiently, perhaps you could mimic the principle and have the full height of your bathroom available. Good luck in achieving your ideal shower.

Ah, the joys of Bootcamp I did once run OS X on my PC (in VirtualBox) which was quite fun!