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Bargebuilder

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Everything posted by Bargebuilder

  1. Bargebuilder
    We all speak about these upgrades to the canal network as if there is the will and finance to achieve them. There are many waterways, the Kennet & Avon for instance, where one can cruise all day without finding a suitable place to moor for the night, the banks being thick with weeds and reeds, mile after mile. If a simple official mooring for overnight stops can't be achieved, then making one plus installing the hugely more difficult and expensive charging infrastructure to go on it is likely to be a problem.
  2. Bargebuilder
    Shower panels are excellent, but the planking product is cheaper and it's much easier to fit individual planks than large sheets, particularly when there are curves and uneven shapes to be covered. With either product, there is no grouting, silica or otherwise, so nothing to attract black mould, so both look shiny and fresh many years after installation. The cellular structure of the pvc planks also have an insulation effect - like polycarbonate roofing sheets - which is an added bonus. Perhaps not for a high end live-aboard fit-out, but for a holiday narrowboat or grp cruiser, arguably a better choice than ceramic tiles.
  3. Bargebuilder
    I've used tile adhesive with no problems at all on ceramic tiles on marine ply in a boats shower room. Perhaps technique and the right choice of product is key. I've also used silicone to grout tiles and that works pretty well, although it's more time consuming and fiddly to do really nicely than old fashioned grout. The only problem with silicone and similar mastics, even those advertising mould resistance, is that when they do go black, and they will eventually, the stuff is an absolute pig to remove completely.
  4. Bargebuilder
    This was a uPVC interlocking 'plank' system, so very quick and easy to cut to difficult shapes and fit. The planks are about 8ft long and 9" wide and the joins totally waterproof when installed properly. This picture is of an installation that has been in place and used for 6 years and in my opinion looks pretty good.
  5. Bargebuilder
    Wel..... I agree with you when you say that Dutch Barges are the most beautiful boats.
  6. Bargebuilder
    You are right there, but I've seen 10 year old Thomas 50s for £140k with oak cladding and furniture and granite kitchen worktops, so not so different from a NB of similar volume, but much nicer to live in.
  7. Bargebuilder
    But if the boat owner isn't required to keep paperwork, then an inspector couldn't prove that the fuel in the tank hadn't been purchased fully duty paid from another supplier or forecourt.
  8. Bargebuilder
    The Thomas is a more recent design, an improvement on the Katherine with a 'V' hull profile, sweeter lines and designed to be able to achieve Cat B, so a more capable and comfortable seagoing vessel. Have a word with Nick and he might adapt the design to make it less beamy, but that would undoubtedly reduce the RCD rating dramatically.
  9. Bargebuilder
    No part of the Branson Thomas barge hull is flat, although it is quite a shallow 'V'. I believe that it's draft is about a metre, so okay for most wide canals when levels are normal and certainly capable of crossing the Channel in appropriate weather.
  10. Bargebuilder
    We all sign declarations when we buy red diesel, so the authorities must have some way of checking, don't they? But has anyone ever been inspected?
  11. Bargebuilder
    I'm not sure above what size a boat becomes a ship, but certainly there are replica Dutch style barges that would fit on our wide canals that are capable of being built to RCD Cat B; Branson's 'Thomas' for example. This would be a very competent coastal and Channel crossing vessel, but like all wide beams, in my opinion, not well suited to regular cruising even on our wide beam canals, but great on wider rivers and estuaries.
  12. Bargebuilder
    Just out of interest, has anyone ever heard of a NB's tank being dipped and their paperwork examined for the correct declaration?
  13. Bargebuilder
    In fairness, he did say boats and not ships, so he is probably largely right.
  14. Bargebuilder
    In practice, flat bottomed barges often roll like pigs in a beam sea. A 'V' profile hull is more likely to rise and fall as beam waves pass underneath rather than roll horribly. Try bringing a Tjalk over from Holland if you need convincing.
  15. Bargebuilder
    Although most genuine Dutch Barges were largely flat bottomed of course!
  16. Bargebuilder
    There may be enough HVO for canal boats, but what about all other boats of which there are far more. And what about tractors and the host of other agricultural and site machinery that needs to be weaned off of diesel? I can't see HVO being reserved for the exclusive use of canal boats given its advantages.
  17. Bargebuilder
    Last month I popped into a marina for RED diesel that last year was happy to sell it for heating and charge accordingly, only to be told that they only now sell white. They told me that the 'new regulations' had shifted the responsibility to them to make sure that the correct duty was being paid: they didn't want the hassle so just stopped selling red. I have no idea if, or how the regulations have changed, but if this is a trend, it is going to adversely affect live-aboards and those who use generators to power electric motors.
  18. Bargebuilder
    Yes for steel boats, but also for cruising boats of all types and then there are the coastal cruisers and sailing boats that currently use RED. What about other diesel engined site and agricultural machinery? HVO does seem to have huge advantages, but will there ever be enough of it?
  19. Bargebuilder
    When was "the same time"? If it was within the last month, that's not much different to full duty RED on the cut.
  20. Bargebuilder
    But how much is HVO at the pumps?
  21. Bargebuilder
    From where does one get this HVO and what is its price? The internet is being very secretive!
  22. Bargebuilder
    How many years ago did it become usual to close gates behind one upon exiting a lock?
  23. Bargebuilder
    That is indeed a huge advantage: do you think that electric motors, control systems and batteries are likely to last for the 40 years or more that a well maintained diesel engine could be reasonably be expected to achieve? Not that it's relevant, if diesels should be banned.
  24. Bargebuilder
    Are you sure, it doesn't look like the NB on their website?
  25. Bargebuilder
    This picture is from 2016 and I think it's Ilfracombe. The boat seems to be better suited to lumpy water than most.
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