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BeckyJC

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Everything posted by BeckyJC

  1. I made a variation on this on Saturday, used (soaked) dried chick peas though as I had those in the cupboard. I added mushrooms, peppers, cumin, turmeric and a bit of chilli too and served it with couscous - delicious. And I made a huge pot of it for about £2 - definitely one worth remembering. Becky
  2. Hi Chickadee, I believe that Thetford make 2 versions of their cassette toilet - one with electric / water flush (which I have) and another without. The cassette just slides in underneath though - if you didn't plumb the flush in (or had the version without the electric flush), the loo would be completely portable. Even plumbed in, it really wouldn't be a big job to disconnect (12v wiring connection, and a water inlet hose). As for capacity, how quickly it fills depends entirely upon how often you use it. I know that sounds obvious, but it's a bit of a "how long is a piece of string" question. Make the men pee in the hedge, and it will last longer I have 2 cassettes for my thetford loo - if I was on the boat all the time, I guess I might get through 1 - 1.5 cassettes per week. In practice though, they last longer as I tend to go out to the pub / see friends / wherever. With my parents on board cruising (so 3x adults) we get through almost 1 cassette per day. Emptying really isn't a big deal though, as the cassettes are completely sealed so you can just pop them in the car if you can't get to an Elsan point by boat to empty them. Hope this helps, Becky
  3. Hi All, I have my boat booked in for a repaint in just over a month's time, and am yet to decide what colour to paint it! Would those of you who have experienced both go for a dark or light roof (dark for warmth in the winter, light for reflecting heat in the summer)? Aside from the practicalities, has anyone seen any really unusual paint schemes recently? I'm very open to suggestion at the moment; have considered everything from tradtional colours to trying to think of a way to persuade Banksy to paint it for me! I've tried "painting" my boat every colour under the sun in Photoshop already, but fancy something a bit "different" and time is running out. Cheers, Becky
  4. Hi Sal, I'm a female single-handed CC'er too, and just wanted to back up what the others have already said really - I feel safer on my boat that I did when I lived alone in houses in towns / cities. I did have one instance recently where a fellow-boater made me feel a little uncomfortable (nothing bad, he was just a little more interested in me than I was in him) but all I had to do was untie the ropes and move on! On land, if I didn't appreciate the company of a neighbour, I would have been stuck with them. If you're worried, it may be better to stick to the busier areas to begin with so that there are other boats around "just in case" - this was what I did, but quickly learnt that I feel just as comfortable out in the more remote places on my own. Just apply a bit of common sense (lock doors at night etc) and I'm sure you'll be fine. Boaters tend to be friendly folk... Becky
  5. No contact yet? Am hoping it's the right boat now....
  6. Excellent! I suspect that the boat may have been repainted since you saw it, as the one at http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=8403 looks much bluer than the Lichfield moored at Hillmorton.....looks like the same shape/boat though, from what I can tell from the photo.
  7. OK, I think I found it. At any rate, I hope it was the right boat, as I've popped a note on the doors at each end in the hope that Garry gets in touch! The boat which I remembered seeing was indeed called "Lichfield" and is still moored in the Hillmorton top lock area. It matches all of your descriptions, except that the top is more of a greeny colour than blue. The wooden tiller and outboard were there though. The door on the bow end appeared to be made of untreated wood - does that ring any bells? Fingers crossed it was the right boat, and that Garry gets in touch soon! Becky
  8. Oooh it's all turning into an adventure now. I have written a note for Garry with your e-mail address and my contact details on, and will pop it on his boat if I manage to find it at lunch time. The spot described in Bigmac's post sounds the same as where I recall seeing the boat too, so there's a chance that he might still be there. Maybe he has a winter mooring there or something?? Fingers crossed I find it, and it's the right boat! Either way, it'll be a nice break from the office. Becky
  9. I definitely remember the tiller, but am not 100% on the outboard motor. I *think* it may have had an outboard. I will most likely be popping down to Hillmorton tomorrow in the car anyway, as I need to pick up a bottle of gas, so will try and leave myself time for a quick wander up the locks and check / see if the boat is still there for you.
  10. The boat I saw did look rather "tired" and, from memory, had an odd (probably home-made?) tiller setup.... I'm guessing that it probably had a few bilge pumps somewhere helping to keep it afloat. I noticed it as I was passing and wondered to myself how it was kept afloat. Think I saw it in Hillmorton maybe a month or so before that too, whilst I was having some work done in the yard there. Of course, it may not be the boat you're talking about at all...
  11. There was a boat matching that description moored in the Hillmorton top lock area (Rugby) when I went through there approx. a month ago... it was on the 14 day moorings though, so doubt it's still there.
  12. Picture of Muddy Waters, taken in Braunston on 10/2/08 Credit for this picture goes to my friend, Jonno. It's by far my favourite picture of my boat!
  13. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    Thanks for all the tips everybody! Where my gas went is still a mystery, as the new bottle which I've put on seems to be doing fine, it's still feeling pretty full when I lift it... it *could* have just been a problem with the last bottle or dust in the connection or something. Next time I get back to the boat yard I'm going to have them fit a bubble tester for me so that I can check it out properly, but until then I'm just turning the bottle off all the time except when I cook / use the hot water. The system seems to be keeping gas in it when the bottle is turned off, i.e. Paloma pilot light / cooker light immediately when I turn the bottle back on and light them, even when they've been off for a day or so, so I doubt that it's leaking any more. Perhaps the last bottle just wasn't as full as it was supposed to be? Am interested to see what happens when I get a bubble tester fitted.
  14. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    Well, that is technically possible. I'm starting to wonder if it could have been a faulty bottle / screw thread though, as I do remember having a bit of trouble when I connected that bottle - the screw thread didn't "catch" like normal. Once it started to screw in though it seemed fine :s I think the only way to know for sure is to get a bubble tester or similar.
  15. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    Anyone got any experience of these smoke-alarm style gas detectors? Contemplating getting one to fit somewhere low down, just as a precaution. http://www.diytools.co.uk/diy/Main/sp-2-51...propane-gas.asp I really do think that IF I have a problem at the moment, it's going to be in the gas locker area, as I can't believe that an entire bottle of gas could have emptied into the cabin over the course of a week without me smelling it! Bubble detector will prove / disprove that theory when I get one though.
  16. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    I think this seems like the best plan - Alde bubble tester. What size is the connection on a standard Flogas bottle? Need to make sure I order the right one!
  17. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    Absolutely - that's my attitude too. Stuff that can kill isn't stuff to be taking chances with. Am going to keep it turned off at the bottle until I can either get back to the boat yard or at least get/borrow a pressure tester and establish more certainly whether there is a leak or not. Thanks for all the advice!
  18. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    It does seem a lot, however there was no smell, and now I'm really not sure whether it's leaking or not even. I put the new bottle on last night, opened the valve on the bottle, then went round and checked all my pipes / appliances as best I could with washing up liquid, but there was no gas smell or sign of a leak anywhere. It COULD have been a faulty bottle or something, but I just don't trust it now. Last night I just turned the bottle straight off as soon as I had done my washing up, and will continue to do the same until I can get it pressure tested properly. Whilst I can't find a leak, I can't be certain where the gas has gone....
  19. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    Orange hose? Mine isn't orange, it's a flexible metal-armoured one - is this abnormal? Guess they can all leak though... When I get home tonight I'm going to go out to my gas locker armed with washing up liquid and and a big torch and see what I can find.Would ask my boatyard to take a look, but I'm unlikely to get back there for at least a couple of weeks now. If I can't be 100% certain that I have found and resolved the problem, I'll just leave the gas turned off until then. Did this one last night....definitely felt like an empty bottle to me And it definitely felt full when I put it on just over a week ago, I remember lugging it down the towpath
  20. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    Good point... I hadn't actually considered that. It was late last night when I discovered the problem, so haven't had chance to try another cylinder yet. I do have another charged one though. Problem is, how will I prove that that's the problem? i.e. if I connect another cylinder, how will I know that the hose/regulator/whatever isn't leaking? Think I need to aquire either a gauge or a bubble tester from somewhere.... If anything else was leaking / faulty I'd be much calmer about the whole affair, but gas is one of those things you just can't take chances with!
  21. BeckyJC

    Gas leak

    Hi All, I suspect I may have a gas leak on my boat, and whilst I'm fairly sure the boat is safe right now (gas bottles turned off, Paloma and cooker off, everything off) I need to resolve this ASAP for obvious reasons. My gas bottle ran out last night after only 1.5 weeks' usage. Normally, a bottle seems to be lasting me about 4-6 weeks depending on how much I use. I could definitely smell gas in the gas locker when I went out to investigate but the regulator seemed to be connected properly / done up tightly. I don't own any kind of gas testing equipment (yet!), but am going to try to get / borrow some at lunch time to get to the bottom of this. Apart from not turning the gas back on until I'm 100% sure what happened here and have fixed it, is there anything else that I can do or should be aware of? I did stick my head down into the cabin bilge this morning and couldn't smell any gas there, or anywhere else inside. Not a scientific test I realise, but it's all I have. Can anyone recommend a gas detector / alarm system too? My boat passed the BSC just before Christmas, so whatever the problem is it's something that's happened very recently. Just goes to show, I guess, that it's important to keep a check on these things and not just assume that a recent BSC means that everything is OK..... At this stage, I'm guessing that the problem is somewhere around the hose / connector / regulator in the gas locker, as that's where the smell was. What would be the best / safest way to test this and prove / disprove the theory? I did a search on here and someone suggested fairy liquid, similar to finding a puncture on a bike tyre? Thanks in advance, Becky
  22. Sorry to hear about that, glad you are OK though and woke up in time! Where in Leamington were you moored? I'm currently in Long Itchington and was thinking of maybe going to Leamington / Warwick next. May re-think now...
  23. Oooh I passed that boat on Saturday on my way from Hillmorton to Braunston - there were a couple there, one of them wearing a wetsuit, trying to pump it out. Anyone know if they managed to get her floating again yet?
  24. Hi All, I've been lurking on here for months now, but have finally decided to bite the bullet and say Hello! I've been living on my boat for 6 months now, and have her booked in for a paint job next summer. As the windows on the (16 year old) boat have been painted by previous owners, and are in varying states of repair, I'm going to have them replaced when the boat has been stripped for the paint job. Does anyone have any recommendations for boat window companies, or horror stories of ones to avoid? The current windows are made by Caldwells, but are a standard size so I believe (?) I can go for ANY manufacturer for the replacements? I will be looking at single-glazed windows, probably black (powder-coatdd?). Thanks in advance for any advice, Becky
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