Chrisy

Today I am helping my friend move his boat from the Falkirk wheel to Auchinstarry marina. I thought it would be a great chance to show people the layout of the canal and the structures on the way so I am going to be posting tweets throughout the journey. If you would like to follow the journey and see what this section of the forth and clyde has in store please follow @canalskills Unfortunately I won't have a laptop and internet access to post in canal world. Lets go Boating

Are you painting the base plate or just sides? And is there any reason you are choosing to use such an expensive product? Sorry just noticed your using epoxy

I would be coming down from Scotland got family not to far away so would need to sort out the logistics. Can you give me a few more details of your plans

Hi, Have you sorted crew?

brilliant news - thank you

5 new blades

Hi All, Any idea how long it might take to cut a 6" hole in 4mm steel with a jig saw?

Someone had mentioned the wool but your way seems much better. Thank you very much for the advice. Now to cut a hole in the roof

For the back of the stove I am putting a 30mm air gap then heat board then tiles. For the bottom I anm putting an air gap then heat board, then a cement board and tiling. I have purchased a brass collar for the internal roof lining and intend to cut back the insulation at least 3 inches from the hole and repack with something like fire proof natural wool (if I can source it.

Thanks for that. I have been using the soliftec guide but It has still left me a bit unsure about the sealent and lagging on the joints. Just a bit nervous of getting it wrong.

Hi all, Having had several problems with my heating I have decided to put in a multi fuel stove. All the stuff I think I need has now arrived but having never put in a stove I am at a bit of a loss with parts. Can anyone tell me the correct way to put together the flu kit and stove. Its really the joints that i'm not sure what to do with. The flu kit has chimney collar for the roof some lagging sealent reducer and flu I think my question really is which bits do I put the sealent on and what has the lagging ???? Sorry if this is a basic question but I only want to do it once

Hi I am looking for a 12 volt TV. Can anyone advise on how good they are, what bands best, where to get a good price and generally any thing else you think I could do with knowing. I have never had a 12 volt TV so all advice appreciated

Hi All, I have an RR150 Shoreline 12v Fridge about 7 years old. About 6 months ago the ice box stopped keeping anything frozen and is building up ice on the side of the door opening (so i'm thinking door seal) unfortunatly as of a couple of days ago the fridge section is no longer keeping cool at 2/3 and I have had to turn it to 4 and it still seems it should be cooler. Any thoughts?

SeaSkills Inland www.seaskills-inland.co.uk Seaskills Inland Waterways are based in Scotland on the Forth and Clyde canal. We provide training on a 57 foot wide-beam canal boat. Tuitition is also possible using a client's own vessel providing it meets RYA requirements. We offer a range of inland waterways related tuition including the RYA Inland Waterways Helmsman course and international CEVNI certification.

website name: SideHatch Chandlery URL: www.sidehatch.co.uk The only canal specialist chandlery in Scotland we are ideally located between Edinburgh and Glasgow at Auchinstarry Marina on the Forth & Clyde canal, just minutes from the M73 and M80. Providing a wide range of chandlery including rope, fenders and safety equipment we not only cater for the traditional steel canal boats and cruisers based on the Scottish Lowland Canals but also for yachts using the canal to transit between the West and East coasts. Our online chandlery provides the ability for customers to order products in advance and collect them at their convenience (e.g. as they transit through the marina). We are of course also happy to ship products directly to our customers. As long standing live aboard boaters and fully qualified RYA inland waterways instructors we have a good knowledge of our customers’ requirements and service needs and also provide training and skippering services.

Hi All Don’t know if anyone else has had this problem but my deck boards have warped over the engine, which is unfortunately letting in water. I was given a sample of some teak affect rubber decking but can’t locate it anywhere Does anyone know where to get this or have any other ideas? Cheers Chrisy

I have cheated a little and got my first boat and now the new one been built part-fitted. So I had the Kitchen and Bathroom done meaning only the electrics for me to do. Always thought it was nice to have someone to go back to if there is an issue with gas, diesel or plumbing as they generally take longer to sort than electrics. The boat builders I use let me buy my own cooker ect... Therefore knowing exactly what I'm paying and they fit it for free. It also means that from getting the boat I can be living in it in 4 weeks max. Just a thought.

Brenda is now at the Glasgow office and she has a new lass working with her called Vicky. The only imediate mooring i know of on either canal is there is one space in Auchinstarry basin on the forth and clyde for home moorings but you must check the restrictions as I know for sure it is only available for a steel narrow boat and there maybe length restrictions.

Of course there are pro's and cons to having a new boat bilt but on the pro side you get to have all the things you want but you should definatly chose your builders well. I suggest as well as seeing them talk to boaters around the area you want to be in they will know the reputation of local builders. What ever way you decide to go some things to take into consideration especially if you intend to liveaboard size of water tank as having to fill up all the time is a pain and in my experiance if the water tank is under the bow the space to the sides of it tend to be dead space and therefore I always try to get one that fills the whole space. On the side of toilets personal preference is holding tank I'd prefer to pay someone to pump it out over having to haul it to the elsan point and deal with it.

just a second thought for you my friend Alison had exactly the same problem with the tiller shaking and it was fixed by putting a grease nippe in and packing the tiller shaft with grease don't know if this will help or not but I know I always prefer options.

4m is generally to big to post on most galleries on the web try using a general photo utility to resize the photo. I would suggest reducing it to 20% of its original size. Hope that helps Chrisy

Josef I live on the Forth and Clyde canal joint with the union if your still looking for some assistance on this give me a shout back Chrisy

Personal opion but if you have the time to take over it and your willing to spend the time saving I would be tempted to be thinking about what you want opposed to what you can do without. Also are you good with electrics or anything like that because you can save a fair wack even on a new boat if you can do some of the more time consuming jobs yourself. Try writing a list of all the things you want and work backwards from there. No point in ruling things out until you know you have too. But absolutly spot on when it comes to mooring bane of all boaters lives. Chrisy