stuart23

Thanks. OK the first 2 wires are connected to the solar panel, the 4th wire is 'Load' so I won't be using that, so the 3rd wire is for the battery.......so that goes to the positive side of the battery......and there is no return wire?

There are 5 wires coming out of the controller which correspond with the symbols on the top of the controller. In the scan of the controller the wires are out of focus I'm trying to find out what the symbols mean....which wires i attach where. I get the wire to the right is a temperature wire

I got a controller, but I'm a bit confused by the symbols on it. Can anyone clarify which wire does where?...as in one wire to the solar panel positive, one to solar panel return, one wire to battery positive, one to battery negative is what I think should happen but the symbols don't make it clear to me which goes where. The first wire on the left is red and is attached to the + symbol.

Thanks

I have a small solar panel....the invoice says it's a 30 watt and I'm looking to get a controller for it. As you gather I'm not electrically minded so wondered if anyone here can advise me on what sort of controller to get.

Where i moor most of the year is fine but during these summer months, the water level drops and we are often aground. To compensate for this I was thinking of building a jetty about 2'6'' out from the bank, ideally using posts run into the water but not sure legally about this...maybe having it cantilevered so nothing is touching the water. At the moment this is a theoretical discussion, just wondered if anyone has done anything to solve a similar problem.

Thanks for the replies

A few years ago I had to replace my Hurth HBW 100 gearbox, they had stopped making the HBW 100 but I was told the ZF 10m was it's replacement. What I didn't realise was that they had changed the ratio from 1.79 to 2.02 resulting in the boat going slower. I'm now looking to resolve this problem. I can try and change the propellor (someone at Uxbridge boats reckons they can add a bit to the existing propellor to compensate) or I can replace the gearbox. ...either by finding an old original HBW 100 or trying to find a suitable replacement. Both routes have problems.....to change the gearbox the engine has to come out...to change the propeller means lifting the boat out...and then hoping the propellor will come off Has anyone any advise on this? If I wanted to replace the gearbox how would I find a suitable replacement?

I need to charge this battery....can anyone tell me whether I am meant to undo the tops of the cells ...they are plastic and have a depression for a screw driver but they don't want to be easily undone

One disadvantage I've had with a water cooled exhaust is the couple of times I've tried to get through stretches of duck weed...unsucessfully !

My boat originally had a sealed gas heater which heated air which came out the top and was also ducted through the boat...there was a flue which took the fumes out ...it was an efficient system but I replaced it with a torgem

Most airbrushed sign writing is usually based on a stencil cut by a computer....so in some ways it's easier to use the vinyl. Airbrushing comes into its own when it's used in a more creative way but that , like good hand lettering, requires mastery of the equipment and years of practise. I have spent years using airbrush as one of my painting tools ....the portrait of Arthur Bray on my avatar was done mostly with an airbrush and I've been asked many times why I don't airbrush my boat. I don't airbrush my boat because I don't think it is suitable....I prefer it looking plain and simple. I would hate to see any of the classic working boats treated with an airbrush , they are meant to be treated with the respect/artistry of someone like Dave Moore but I can't see any reason why airbrushing shouldn't be used on modern boats. I mostly paint motorbikes.......bicycles .....murals on canvas/walls and I can't see any problems transferring these skills to airbrushing on a narrowboat ....but there again, as it is a labour-intensive skill, it would cost a lot more than vinyl. Here is a link to some of the stuff I do www.bikeart.co.uk

I just love hand painted lettering...even badly hand painted lettering....there is a feeling of effort and concentration .....and lettering done by artists who have spent decades practising their skills just looks superb. Having said that, I can appreciate that choosing hand painted lettering over vinyl slettering is probably the obvious choice for most people...but the price difference most often swings it so that vinyl is chosen. I have done a few hand painted lettering signs...badly compared to people practising their skills for years...I've also made vinyl signs...which look superb, crisp, clean, nearly perfect (and can be made for pennies...most vinyl is well over charged!!)....but they are not hand painted!!! A friend asked me to paint a sign for their boat....eventually I did a painting on a piece of board and then photographed it and got it printed on vinyl..we then were able to get 2 prints, one for either side of the boat...I would have preferred to have done the paintings direct onto the boat but the cost of doing this was prohibitive....

I once moved a shed ( dismantled) about 2 miles, gingerly , the parts laid on the roof of my narrowboat, from one canalside property to a friends mooring...without the whole lot sliding into the canal.

....but don't (like I did!!!) spray it when the paloma is lit!!!

We had a new engine put in (a long time ago now) and just had the basic starter panel ...so there are some loose bits of wiring ...but cant remember seeing this one...but senility......

I had a good nose round and couldn't see any obvious places it could have come off...no spade fittings minus a wire....I'll have a really good explore when I'm next up there

Two questions Firstly any suggestions as to how to protect the channel that supports the deck boards and runs under the side edge of the boat? Not easily got to to paint. What can I pour down there to stop the rust? Secondly in the photo of the engine there is a loose wire, I haven't tried starting the engine as I'd painted the engine well but I just wondered if anyone knew whether that needed to be attatched and whether I knocked it off whilst moving around painting. Wondered if it had anything to do with the glow plugs?

I have closed lock gates in the face of a waiting boat....years ago on a hire boat going downhill at a deep single lock with a footbridge at the far end, a few boats waiting to go down, the boat infront goes down, as it leaves I look over the bridge down the canal, see no boats so close the gates, fill it and start to go down...it was only as we left the lock that I got the abuse from the boat which was waiting under the lock gates....just hadn't seen it ! (although if that had been me I'd have made sure that people knew I was there waiting)

Can anyone suggest a not too technical book on diesel engine maintainance......

I spent some time researching small stoves and the one I chose was the Boatman http://www.boatmanstove.co.uk/ Also they even altered one to fit the existing set up I had ...and the price was good