Gabby_Boating

Thanks everyone!! Noted to use grout to fill the holes - thank you. I think we'll go for a flexible grout but I'll look into that envitograf! Thanks 👍

Has anyone tried not grouting the tiles behind the fire?! We're going to stick them on with some plumber flue silicone, but just wondering if there's a reason to use flexible grout or if I can just butt the tiles closely together and not use any?! Not having much luck googling! Thanks in advance :)

Thank you everyone for the varied responses! I didn't work on it...but there is a couple who live on a narrowboat in series one of the show (available online in episode 1) which shows the tone of this piece. It's just sharing the lifestyle tips that come with boating really! I know of course this isn't for everyone - and of course not every boater is tight for money! But I thought I'd share it with the lovely boating community incase anyone would be open to taking part. My everyday boating life naturally includes money saving tips - making your own firelighters, foraging, solar panelled electricity etc - and so thought it was worth a shout! Feel free to message me on here rather than emailing the contact in the ad if you have any questions

TV Show is currently looking for people who lead an alternative lifestyle, that would be happy to appear on a Channel 5 series to share their hints and tips for saving money. Food sharing initiatives, foraging, coupons....and anything more inventive is great! For this one, they're looking for people who receive some kind of income from the government be it PIP or child benefit. Email bargains(at)itnproductions.com for more info! Promo from Series 1:

Super helpful thanks Tony

Great thank you! We're now sadly off the boat until Monday but will check out the valves etc straight away when we're back. Thank you!!

Okay - slightly hoping this isn't the issue as this might be v embarrassing... Could the sound be the cause of no fuel? On our old boat we had a huge fuel tank and never ran out before filling up... Tried to start the boat today - but when I turn the key back the engine cuts out. So this isn't fully a video of the knocking sound, but possibly the cause of the problem... Video here:

Sure, thanks Tony we'll take a video 😊

Thank you all, this is really helpful. We're going to try and take a better recording of the noise as it did sound a little bit worse than it did in the video. We'll try the rag exhaust tip, and push the engine sideways to see if that makes a difference to the sound...our engineer that fixed the gearbox said our mounts needed sorting so it could be that! Thank you all as always!!

Thank you everyone! Sorry the Google link is a faff.....uploaded to YouTube here (I hope!) https://youtube.com/shorts/f4FuEwiST8I?feature=share

Hey all - Could I ask for some advice? We've recently moved on board a new boat and are slowly learning her 'charms' Things like having to replace the gearbox two weeks after buying her! Ah boats! We have a BMC 1.8 engine. After a day of cruising the noise from it has gone from being the usual diesel rumble to that combined with a 'put put put' noise... Also not sure if it's a coincidence but the exhaust seemed a lot more smokey than normal with white smoke coming out. Anyone have any suspicions with what it could be? The heat wrap around the exhaust has started to come off around the join from the engine to the exhaust. Could this be why it's louder or something more significant!? Uploaded the sound here: Thank you!!

Oh great thanks everyone - we'll try and see if enginesplus can help!

Hi - Could somebody help us out with this please? We've had leaky thermostat for a while and presumed the gasket had gone. Went to replace it today to find the housing has actually cracked and the previous owner has patched it up with some waterproof gunky stuff. Weirdly, there was no actual thermostat in the housing. Our engine is an Isuzu 4LC38 - I've tried searching around but can't find any parts to replace the housing. So I've turned to the wisdom that is this forum! Does anyone have any solution for how we can fix this? Shall we just reseal with whatever gunk was used by the previous owner? THANK YOU!

Thanks both. The welding is a great shout! We'll try and fix this, replace the belt, and then sort our wiring which needs a look at. Forum advice as wonderful as ever ?

Great thank you! We have got new belts, just need to fit them. We'll try these brackets and see how we get on. Fingers crossed!

Okay sounds good, thanks! Here's a pic of the one that's good, and then the broken one

Hi guys, can anyone help us with this... One of our alternator brackets has somehow snapped resulting in a number of cables shorting. Engineer is quoting £64 for replacement alternator plate which seems mad for a piece of metal 18cm long. It's an Isuzu marine 4LC, I think similar to the canal line beta marine engines. Do I need to replace it with this 65 bracket that has to be shipped from Belgium, or does anyone know if this universal plate would do: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Alternator-Mounting-Brackets-Car-Van-Truck-Chand-Type-Curved-Slot-Adjustable/322864183673?hash=item4b2c347979:g:z2MAAOSwhDBZ~f0e Thanks!!!

Thank you for all of this!! Yes it is the roof collar upside down Having round a few marinas and chandlers it seems the 6" is the correct size and we just need to correctly fill the gap. We're going for thick fire rope ladding - and lots of sealant. So we'll avoid the cement - thanks for the tips. Wealth of knowledge, as per!

We've ordered all our bits to install the woodburner - including a collar of 6" outside diameter (5" inside diameter) and it said it was suitable for a 4" - 4 3/4" outside diameter flue. But on looking at it, the gap seems huge between the flue and the collar. It's 15mm gap all around. Is that normal? When we put our fire rope in to stuff it out, there's still quite a lot of wiggle room. Do we put stove rope in and then seal it on inside with fire cement and outside silicone and then it will be fine - or do we need a smaller collar? Thank you canal forum knowledge!! Gabby

Hey all, We're at Stonebridge lock (tottenham) and looking to get a service done. Does anyone know a good mechanic around here to recommend? Thanks

For all of those interested, the first pump out was a success! Nowhere near as bad as I was expecting... thanks all

It was so windy we chickened out of turning her round so postponed until Tues... Update to follow ?

Thanks all, we're doing the deed later today so will turn the boat around for it to save injury! Thanks

Hello! We're doing our first ever pump out at Stonebridge lock tomorrow....ah.. and after huge amounts of research have a question still lingering. Can the hose on a self-service pump out reach over our narrowboat roof to the cap on the other side, or do we need to turn our boat around so it is land side? Any tips for a novice nervous poo pumper are much appreciated. Anything key we need to know?! We're also looking to use bio rather than blue for the rinsing.. Thanks Gabby

Ah okay! We're still rather new to this... Thought we needed a cap on the rinse out to create the vacuum for the pump out. This is great news if we don't actually need one!