BeninReading

Evening all, I don't know if anyone can help, but I am looking for a 62' mooring on the Shropshire Union Canal. I am looking at the Shropshire Union Canal (Middlewich Branch) and anything South of Barbridge Junction. I am after something rural; either a farmers field or a CRT mooring where you have to bid for then. I am about to cruise the canal so any recommendations on good spots would be highly appreciated. Many thanks in advance, Ben

Thanks for all the replies. Will keep the windows open and ramp up the stove! Cheers, Ben

We have lived aboard for several years and in winter months mould is always a problem. Does anyone have any tips for getting rid of it, other than opening the windows and freezing!! Thanks, Ben

Thanks very much for all the responses. Very useful. Ben

Morning all, I have recently replaced a Morso squirrel 1410 with exactly the same model and have the new stove with the existing flue on top. Where the flue meets the stove collar needs sealing with fire rope and intumescent sealant. I have a 5" flue and the collar on the stove is 5 and a 1/2", so I have a gap to plug with fire rope and sealant. Can anyone tell me if this size gap is typical which you have to 'plug' with fire rope as it looks quite big? Is there anything else I should be putting in there? Thanks in advance, Ben

Thanks for a thorough reply. I am aware of the new guidance, hence me wanting to do it myself (and understand more about my stove and flue in the process)... Much appreciated, Ben

Hi, I have a 1994 narrowboat and I am wanting to replace the Morso squirrel 1410 with a new one (exactly the same - I hope). I have done some investigative work looking at where the flue passes through the roof collar. Between the flue and collar is a sealant that is squidgy (it may have fire cement/rope underneath) - firstly I stuck a screwdriver in and then I tried putting a scewer through the sealant between the collar and the flue and it went all the way through the sealant and up so you could see it in the collar on the roof (I did this in two places). This surprised me as I have been informed that I have to replace the collar when replacing the stove. The trouble is, my collar is covered by a sheet of oak faces ply from the underside where the coach bolts are and is very difficult to access. It seems to me that I may be able to disconnect the flue from the top of the stove and then move the flue enough to get the new stove in, before resealing and reattaching everything. As you may well imagine, I am not a natural engineer, so any simple help/advice would be much appreciated. Many thanks, Ben

Thanks for clarifying that...Ben

My water pump has recently been getting louder when running. I had a eurica moment, when I thought that the red button on the top of the nearby blue water filter cannister was a bleed valve for the water system, so I pressed it when the pump was in operation, but this has not sorted the problem. I would be very grateful if anyone could tell me what the red button on top of the water filter may be, assuming it is not a bleed vavle? Any ideas on why my water pump should be getting louder - it seems to still be working fine? Thanks in advance, Ben

Thanks for all you great comments - I feel more confindent now...where there is a will there is usually a way! Thanks, Ben

Afternoon, I am thinking of buying a narrowboat with an airdraft of 6 feet 1 inch. We want to see the system, and would like to know how many canals this airdraft would rule out. I know that several places on the Trent and Mersey have an airdraft below this - where else would be ruled out? Thanks in advance... Thanks, Ben

Great - I will have an exploratory look this evening...thanks very much for thorough replies. Ben

Morning all, I have a Sealand Traveler toilet which is on top of a holding tank which can be pumped out. The toilet has become increasingly wobbly to the point that ones balance is required just to stay on the thing! I have removed the outer cover on the toilet to reveal four mounting screws around the perimeter. I have tried tightening these up but no change. I assume (and hope) these screws to not screw into the underside of the holding tank, but into some sort of mounting plate which may well have rusted away. I have vinyl floor mat around the toilet, which I am reluctant to move until I have a plan of what I am doing. I was wondering if a) anyone has a similar experience of this happening anyone knows how these type of toilets are fixed in place c) How I can fix it? Thanks in advance. Ben

Afternoon all, I have searched the forums and cannot find the answer to my questions. I would be very grateful for any help with the ones below! 1) When I fill my fresh water tank up, there is damp in the blige surrounging the tank. This goes if the tank is not filled for a long time - someone suggested that it is probably due to me filling the tank up full (as you do!) and the water overflowing through holes where it welded to the top of the bilge. My tank is under the front of the boat. This explanation seems correct to me as I have checked for leaksin the pipework and can find none. I want to know if you have any ideas as to how i can avoid getting the water overflow, by measuring the level in the tank and stopping it overflowing in the first place? Blocking up the holes at the top of the tank seems impossible. 2) I am shortly going to switch from using toilet blue to yeast tablets in my pump out tank and was wondering what people put in their toilet brush holder instead of blue. I had thought a yeast tablet and some water? Is this too obvious - does anyone have any other ideas? Once again - thanks for any help - love the forum, Ben

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Afternoon all! Recently, we added blackout-blind material to all our curtains on the boat, including a curtain that hangs over the back doors for insulation. I had never seen this stuff before, but my mum and girlfriend knew all about it. It is white and not black and is quite thick making the curtains ‘hang’ better. Fortunately my mum offered to pay for the material (costs between 33-6 a metre) and sew it into our existing curtains. The change is amazing – it is so much darker on the boat so our sleep is better. Allegedly it keeps the boat cooler on hot days and I am looking forward to saving money on fuel this winter. I have been on the boat for several years, and regret not doing it earlier. I highly recommend blackout-blinds… Ben

Thanks very much to everyone for all your suggestions. We may well go for the rope - this is a popular option in several countries of the world! Thanks once again...Ben

Afternoon all, My girlfriend and I are starting a family and are thinking ahead to a fire guard. We have a Morso squirrel in the corner of the boat and were wondering what is the best type of fire guard? Does anyone have any experiences with any? We are after one that covers the two exposed sides of the stove. Many thanks for any help, Thanks, Ben

Thanks for all the responses - very informative. I am 6'4" so, may hold off due to the cost and hassle of having to duck all the time while under cratch! Also, I love the unobstructed view. Thanks, Ben

Hi all, I was recently quoted over a grand for the above and thought I would explore making it myself. Does anyone have any experience or recommend any suppliers of the cover? Thanks in advance for any help. Ben

Hi, Yes, that would be much appreciated! Thanks for all your replies - I look forward with nervous anticipation. Ben

Morning all, My girlfriend a I live aboard and have just found out that she is pregnant. We are both delighted and now have started thinking logistics. We have six months plus to plan how things are going to work out, but I wanted to see if anyone on the forum had any experiences/advice about babies on a boat? Thanks for any help, Ben

Hi all, Does anyone know of any good narrowboat window suppliers? I have pretty standard type windows and am thinking of getting new ones. Any good/bad experiences with companies would be much appreciated. Thanks, Ben

Morning all, I was a sceptic of solar panels until recently, but I am now looking into the feasability of them. I have done a search on the site and read all the previous information on them, but had some additional questions of my own. I understand that monocrystelline ones are the best. I use only lighting, the water pump and a 12v car charger type socket for phone charging and a radio on my boat so my power requirements are low. With that in mind, my questions are: I have three high spec sealed gel batteries (they were cheap!), which, with a two hour run of the engine per week, provide for my energy needs - so are solar panels worth getting for me? If not, how much additional power use would warrant their installation? Any idea roughly how bigger panel I need? - the size is in Watts I understand? Watts are a unit of power and I assume that this relates to how quickly the batteries will be charged? Is it a case of buying the panels and some wire and then attaching the solar panel up to my battery terminals? Is it really that simple! To which battery terminals do I attach the wire if I have three in-line leisure batteries to ensure that they all receive equal charge? I would appreciate help on any of these questions. Thanks in advance and Happy Christmas to everyone on this fantastic forum. Ben

Thanks - really useful replies....Ben