bill brown

A little dated perhaps but the Lockmaster maps http://www.lockmastermaps.co.uk give a very useful overview of large areas of the system.

but what's that on the rug?

gotta love those 10 watt solar panels

The broker I bought from was a bit crap, but they had the boat I wanted so I dealt with them.

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/you-can-now-rave-inside-13953953

I wonder if the current owner has a compliant Boat Safety Certificate etc. for renting it out. Those windows make it look like a bit of a deathtrap to me .

A bit of a distance from Melton Mowbray but the Bridgewater Canal is good for beginners I think, with no locks you can concentrate on steering, mooring etc. and the lack of locks means you can travel that much further. When we first thought of buying a boat we did a boat handling course with Cheshire Cat Training based at Overwater Marina, then hired a boat for a week from Claymoore on the Bridgewater. We did that in October last year. I'd recommend both businesses. Claymoore do short bookings. Earlier and later in the year are generally the cheapest times to book but remember the days will be shorter so less time for cruising although if you plan to live aboard it may be best to sample the canals when the weather is bleak and cold. Many hire firms offer last minute bookings at considerable savings.

We have a Cello tv - 19 inch I think, with built in dvd player, freeview and it records to a usb stick, never had a problem using it on 12 volt whilst cruising (be aware some sellers don't provide a 12 volt power supply with it though ours came with both 12 and 240 volt adaptors). Bought for £150 last year so not really that expensive. A great little set except for that the sound is crap. I eventually plugged a bluetooth transmitter into the headphone socket and use it with a separate speaker.

I didn't say that the op did

Was it your intention to cc on the 7 miles of the Rufford arm until the Ribble Link reopens next April? Or moor in one of the marinas over winter perhaps?

Thanks guys you've all been very helpful.

Starter battery in boat needs replacing, its a SuperBatt LM135 installed by the previous owner. Looking for a cheapish replacement the question is how low can I go in advertised amp hours and what would be a reasonable minimum CCA for a 32hp Kubota?

Simplest 12 volt option would probably be a wifi hard drive such as the WD My Passport which could stream to a tablet of your choice which would then link to a 12 volt bluetooth amplifier, I use one made by E-Audio. It can be placed out of sight and connected to (wired) speaker of your choice. You can then play any media on the drive or stream from Spotify, Netflix etc if you have a suitable internet connection. If not Three's Go Binge seems like a cost effective solution, tethering via a phone or tablet.

You also might find it difficult leaving a lock without flouting 19 (ii)

Thieves cause £2000 of damage to narrowboat during Warwickshire canal joyride http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/local-news/thieves-cause-2000-damage-narrowboat-13547834

Yes the new owner has proved me wrong so far I'm glad to say. I too forked out for a annual mooring a couple of months ago. Have seen him out and about in the marina most times I've visited and true enough changes are being made for the better. What more do I want? A tarmacked road would be nice. I take in the photo above is pre floods of 2015? The road on the right is now stone chippings - a bit hard on the old plates of meat.

Sterling have a Power Management Panel - it ain't cheap but it works, you attach the solar to it via a shunt it counts the amps in and out of the batteries. You can find details on Mr Sterlings website.

For sure a boat is worth what you are prepared to pay for it. But some brokers seem to encourage sellers to inflate the price by 15%-20% as it's more commission for them and at the moment some people will pay silly prices. You can always up your offer if the first one is rejected.

Best advice I've heard (on here I think) is when you make an offer on a 'previously enjoyed boat' if your not at least faintly embarrassed the offer isn't low enough

Hope you realise that most wine is not suitable for vegetarians, fish bladders and gelatin being two of the most common products to 'clear' a wine.

If I'm in the pub and they have wifi I usually download a couple of programmes from the iplayer on my phone and when I get back to the boat use a chromecast dongle to watch it on the big screen - well a 22" Cello actually.

Don't put dawn samples hippy into the duckduckgo search engine unless you have thesafe search switched on

Though no longer on airbnb google still has it partially indexed "We had an absolutely fabulous time aboard Sally Cinnamon! Dawn and Bill were the perfect hosts, making us feel really welcome, nothing was too much trouble for them. The boat is beautiful and had everything we..." So it would seem it's not the first time she'd rented it out.

Stayed there for four months earlier this year, as above everyone seemed very friendly. Good pub, nice Thai restaurant, well stocked deli and the not so greasy spoon cafe does a good breakfast. The on site cinema shows a good range of films and live theatre broadcasts. Nice setting with the surrounding lakes and the village nearby has a handy Co-op and several pubs and a good bike shop if you cycle. The noise from the A38 never really bothered me but others did find it intrusive. There is building work going on at the moment adjacent to the shops, a complex of apartments is being built as well as more retail units. Secure car parking, good public transport links for a semi rural setting. If it was closer to home I would have stayed longer.

If I see a scruffy boat not displaying a licence I usually assume its abandoned and don't bother to pass it on tickover.