debbifiggy

Love And the object of my affections got into boating as a teenager helping to renovate an old working boat into a community boat project. D

We bought one of these panels, the big 68 W one. Think it was 2005 or 6 we installed it (but I will check the receipt again). Works very well in the summer and will run our fridge quite happily. You still get some useful input in winter too. However, the panel is beginning to delaminate at the edge and we are considering contacting Compass/Solara about their 25 year guarentee ..... We try not walk over it if we have to get on the roof but they are supposed to be designed to walk on. D

Having looked at water levels over the last few days I wouldn't recommend heading towards Berko, I'd go south. All the levels are well down from Winkwell to Berko Waitrose. There are lots of boats at jaunty angles in various places and friends tell me they have self opening drawers and cupboards and some have even rolled out of bed. Drawing off more water from the rapidly disappearing supplies will not be popular if people start listing even more. The pound above Northchurch also looked low from the train. D

Agree that the mill race by the Old Mill just south on the offside below the Esso garage water point is possible up to 72 foot nb provided there is plenty of water in the pound (it's been a bit low recently) and there are no boats moored on the bend at the towpath side. Last time I was there the towpath was full of boats from Little Bridge all the way to Bridge 143 so combined with the low water 60 foot will be a struggle. Phil on coal boat Hyperion winded successfully at the Station official winding hole on Berkhamsted Moor last weekend. I've never attempted to wind a boat above Broadwater (Station) Lock 53 so can't comment. From my view from the train this morning there is normal level water between Lock 53 and Lock 52 but between the Gas Two locks it is completely empty and the pound between the Top Gas Lock and Bushes is a long way down, probably not navigable. Above Northchurch the level seemed to be slightly down but there are boats still below Dudswell Bottom. There isn't any space to moor between Ravens Lane Lock (54) and Castle Street Bridge and above Lock 53 to the bottom Gas Lock is pretty busy with limited spaces. HTH D

Official update just received "Dear all, Firstly , thankyou for all your support over the last 2 weeks, the actions we have taken have certainly made a difference and I want to keep you informed with this below The calculated losses in the week prior to taking action were around 76 ML (megalitres). To put into context Tringford reservoir holds 166 ML when full In the first week (upto Mon 16th Jan ) – the calculated savings were that 20ML of water was conserved. This was only a part week. Last week (upto Mon 23rd Jan ) – the calculated savings were around 30ML The Tring group of reservoirs benefited by a net inflow of 52 ML last week – without the actions taken locally this would have been only 22ML As we stand the Tring reservoir group are holding 47% of their maximum capacity – this time last year it was 63% From a water ‘consumption’ perspective :- - We avoided drawing any water from the reservoirs - We utilised Cowroast borehole for 3-4 days, but now need to ease off this and hopefully rest the borehole for extraction later in the year - Shortly we will start to use Northchurch borehole and run Dudswell & Cowroast pumps to transfer to the point of need We do have issues with making the planks (by New Ground Bridge) watertight. Given measures that have been tried to date it seems that there is leakage around the brickwork rather than the planks themselves. We continue to seek a sustainable way of limiting this situation, so that we can achieve an even lower level across the summit (currently c350mm down). How are the reservoirs ? See below- modest recovery, much much more rainfall is necessary of course Thanks Jeff Whyatt" Sorry I couldn't copy the graph across. D

Update released this morning to BW boating and trade customers: Tues 17th Jan Summary of current status :- - Action plan communicated to customers via Waterscape, meetings and letter drop to many boats moored in the affected area ( Sat 7th – Mon 9th Jan ) - Boats allowed to move from affected area on specific days last week including Saturday. - Most boats have chosen to leave the affected area. - Planks were installed last Thursday. - The pound is now down 330mm. We have switched on the Cowroast (borehole) pump to bring the level up in the ‘marina’ section of the canal. It is our intention to now seal (rack up) the planks to enable the Cowroast section of the pound to maintain a differential head of water from the level on the north side of the planks. - We intend to monitor the levels either side of the planks to establish how effective the seal on the planks is. We will also monitor the hours run per day on any/all pumps used to maintain levels. - It is our intention to maintain the northern side of the planks at no lower than 450mm for the time being. NB – this is likely to need a feed of water to maintain this level, we will look to overpump using Cowroast borehole supply for this, where need be. It is clearly too early to give indications of the water conserved from this action – we will be better placed to inform you of this next week Car parking at Marsworth – the old BW yard has now been opened up as a temporary car park for displaced moorers How long will these current measures continue ? I recognise that this is a question that is concerning many. If reservoir savings that result are meaningful then possibly throughout February – it is too early to speculate any further than this. We will share results by way of this weekly update and take a view in consultation with the Trade and boaters who are directly affected Many thanks Jeff Whyatt I will post any further updates as I receive them. D

I agree with Lady M. Please research all previous threads on the forum regarding renting boats and take heed of the warnings. Really don't want to see any more people ripped off, out of pocket, without their possessions or worse such as injured or even possibly dead. As I've said before sometimes it is cheaper and safer to take the plunge and buy. It's a buyers market out there with so many boats for sale. Best of luck. Stay safe. D

Phil on Hyperion and Jules on Towcester/Bideford etc already know. Don't think there are any other regular coal boats still operating in the area but I do still have Peter Hawker's telephone number if necessary. D

There's been an update on the stoppage to give people more time to get out of the affected area. See update in the Stoppages section. Debbi

Update .... Tring Summit-Lock 39 Startops Reservoir-Bluebells Cafe and Lock 49 - Northchurch Wednesday 11 January 2012 until further notice UPDATE (10 January 2012): In response to customer requests for a longer window to exit the affected area, we have extended the period that the section between Cowroast Marina and Lock 39 will remain open for use. As planned, planks will be installed at Cowroast Marina during the morning of Thursday 12 January. This means that by the end of Wednesday 11 January, boats must be on the correct side of the Cowroast planks or within the planked off area if applicable. At this time, we will stop feeding water to the Tring Summit from the reservoirs. Between 9am and 12pm on Saturday 14 January, British Waterways staff will man locks to assist and marshal boats out of the section between the planks north of Cowroast Marina and Lock 39. All boats wishing to leave the area will have to move north and exit through Lock 39 by 12pm on Saturday, to avoid being grounded within the lowered section. At this time, Lock 39 will be locked. We would ask that any boats which are able to move out of the section before this date do so as soon as possible, to avoid undue congestion on Saturday. Many thanks for your assistance.

I noticed quite a few boats still moored between Northchurch and Dudswell Bottom Locks this morning as I whizzed past on the train to Milton Keynes. D

Tring Summit (Lock 39, Startops Reservoir/Bluebells Café, and Lock 49, Northchurch) Wednesday 11 January 2012 until further notice We will be lowering the operating levels of the Tring summit by 300mm from Wednesday 11th January 2012 (am). The immediate affected area is between :- Lock 39, Startops Reservoir/Bluebells Café, and Lock 49, Northchurch (NB. there is a full stoppage already planned at Lock 49 from 23/01 to 03/02) The above section will be CLOSED to through traffic and moored boats* from Wed 11th Jan(am) until further notice. Reduced operating levels (300mm min) will not allow boats to safely moor or navigate the section. A short section at Cowroast will be contained at normal levels through the implementation of stop planks (between Lock 46 and New ground bridge, no. 136). This will afford stability (although immobility for moorers at Cowroast long term site and the marina). The 2 locks (Lock 39 & 49) will be locked throughout, as others may be within the affected area to avoid losses through misuse. Aylesbury Arm, will continue to be locked against navigation and open to essential traffic only. The operating levels of the Arm itself will be subject to further review and nil lockage will be the target once the dredging team have vacated. Additional local arrangements will be in place with Bulbourne dry dock to facilitate a restricted occasional access. Enquiries: 01923 201120 More stoppages on this waterway: http://www.waterscape.com/canals-and-rivers/grand-union-canal/boating/stoppages You can find all stoppages at the url below: http://www.waterscape.com/things-to-do/boating/stoppages

I hear that Phil on hyperion made it as far as Bourne End tonight. Heading north tomorrow through berko but not sure how far he going. Coal, gas and diesel. d

Phil on Hyperion should be on another run. Think he did a Ricky/London GU between Christmas and New Year and should be heading north again to Marsworth. If I have any more info I will post. D Saw Jules on Lactodorum and Bideford just after New Year in the pouring rain. They certainly work hard for their money as do all the coal boats.

Phil should be heading south again as there is a social event in uxbridge on Friday he wants to go to. not seen him yet but i guess he will be aiming for hemel or further south today. d

If you are worried about your sold fuel stove installation have a good read here. http://staysafe.boatsafetyscheme.com/fire-safety-for-boats The main causes of solid fuel stove related fires are either bad installation/equipment failure and careless use. HTH Debbi

LOL! No.

Now that's a thought but I guess you would have to be careful not to use too much. We emptied our cassette with the bio washing liquid. Wasn't too bad, didn't notice any particuarly bad smells. The next cassette to empty has blue in it. The one after will be another bio washing stuff. I guess after that we'll make a decision on what we will use in future. Debbi

Please don't store it in your bow deck until your cratch. Your main air inflow to your stove should be through your bow door vents and so you will be drawing in combustion products/carbon monoxide etc into your cabin from your hot ash bucket putting nasty stuff into your living space and making your stove burn not so good. I'm sure Rob from BSS will be along shortly to clarify this as I'm not that scientific. D

Hmmm, our loo was getting full and despite adding yet another capful of bio washing liquid, as it filled up it smelt more like dirty nappies soaking before a wash ..... I will let you know how I get on when I empty the now full cassette as to whether it's hold your breath and try not to gag. The cassette I've just put on has blue in it. But if the bio washing liquid thing is not too bad on emptying I will give it one more try before making up my mind. I've never liked the smell of nappies soaking before washing. Reminds me of sibling rivalry when I was a kid. Fortunately I love my kid sister to bits these days but there's a lot of water and years under the bridge. After all she is 40 now!!!!! Oh bugger, that means I now old D

Interesting. Let's lets see what some of the others say too. D

So, if we clean the portapotti thoroughly with something nasty like bleach after every time we empty (top and bottom) and then rinse it out with lots of water, we should be ok with using bio washing liquid instead of blue unless we have a nasty splash back incident after a dodgy curry from the local takeaway????? D BTW I added another cap of washing liquid today. Not sure what we've been up to (might be the local beer festival and a thai curry) but the smell level was beginning to increase at bit beyond the previously fragrant level.

He is .... but I am chief toilet emptier and cleaner on this boat. He's deals with enough toilets at work LOL! D

There are some sick bastards out there. Poor dog, it makes me so angry that people can treat animal like this. I'll ask colleagues and boaty friends if they saw anything or recognise the dog. Trouble is along that stretch of canal is that it is very well used, not just by boaters and also it's not far from a lot of housing and also quite a few scrotes as the boaters who have been burgled in the past at Kensal well know. Very upset by this. D

2 caps to the base and one cap to the rinse. We'll see how the smell control goes as it gets filled. I wonder if the bio washing liquid is any better for the seals than blue? We tend to find over time that the seal on the base eventually starts to leak at bit resulting in an unpleasent surprise when you go to empty. I've not attempted to replace a seal yet. I guess it will be me doing the replacing as the man only likes mucky jobs involving grease, oil, tile adhesive and grout (not all at once I hasten to add). How easy is it to replace a seal? Also, I vaguely remember someone on here saying something about a quick slick of vegetable oil when changing the cassette to keep everything working smoothly. D edited to put a question mark in the correct place.