Wanderer Vagabond
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Posts posted by Wanderer Vagabond
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I have seen this used idea quite regularly(not that I have solar panels) and you can get away with quite a reasonable height. This is an old picture of my boat and you can see, compared to the mushrooms the top of the covering on the boxes is quite high.
Bear in mind that every time I go out I have to get through Gosty Tunnel
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4 minutes ago, MtB said:
Y'know I'd totally forgotten about that!
I think the light ale gave the grim bitter on draught in those days a bit of life and flavour. I think this was in the early days of CAMRA, and part of the reason they really started gaining some traction.
We used to go to the Haut Boy out in the sticks near Guildford back then for a decent pint of proper ale. Theakstons Old Peculiar if you wanted to live dangerously, IIRC.
I don't think is was just the bitter on draught in those days that was grim. Light and Bitter seemed to be the choice in London and the Home Counties (it was my father's choice of drink), but then if you went up North they were drinking Brown and Mild or Mild and Bitter. I reckon that the thinking was that if you mixed two beers they couldn't both be crap! Bear in mind that these were the days when we were drinking Watney's Red Barrel and Party 7's FFS, so most beers were pretty dire......hence the emergence of CAMRA
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40 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:
Aldi's own
Have to say I'm getting a taste for Aldi's Coffee Stout (made by Hall & Woodhouse) after all if you can contaminate good beer with fruit (Plum Porter
) matching it with coffee certainly isn't going 'one step beyond'😱
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We were down the Staffs and Worcs a couple of weeks back from Autherley Junction down to Kinver and there was plenty of water/depth.
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1 minute ago, Alan de Enfield said:
Typically the forum is unable to answer a question.
The question asked (by the site owner) was "how many MPG do we get from our boats".
Litres per hour is not the required answer.
Its a bit like - how much in GBP do you get paid per hour ?
Well - I get 17,516,000 Japanese Yen per annum !
Objection your Honour, I gave my mpg (13). I would guess if converted to lmpg (lock miles per gallon) I'd still get much the same result, possibly marginally more.
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Think ours also falls into the 1litre per hour bracket, so travelling at 3mph and working at 4.54 litres to a gallon would give something like 13 mpg.
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6 minutes ago, 5239 said:
if you want head like that then you want it to be outside the glass 😃
(that portion of head inside the glass is kind of spot on for my pint).
Is that a beer cappuccino?
(I only ask because I'm getting a taste for Aldi's Coffee Stout)
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4 hours ago, 5239 said:
Another advantage (for me) to bringing the boat to a final stop on a bollard is when sharing locks,
if we don’t enter together and I’m the first in the lock then I bring my boat to a stop on the bollard and then it’s tucked nicely to the side out of the way of the other boat coming in,
this can work for me entering either the top or bottom of a lock.
You sound as though you use much the same method as I do, although I do regularly use those square posts to bring the boat to a gentle stop, friction over time will round them off nicely
. The only significant point is when dropping a single friction loop over a bollard to slow the boat, the end going to the boat must be on top if the lock is full (rope going upwards), and on the bottom if it is empty (rope going downwards) I have been known, when not fully concentrating, get that wrong, and you know when that happens because the boat comes to a shuddering, instant stop as the loop locks off on the bollard. I first adopted this method a few years back after going into Ryders Green Lock under power and then, when trying to stop the boat by putting the engine in reverse, got a load of plastic bags around the prop, lost any hope of stopping and hit the bottom gate a lot harder than I would wish to (fortunately without any recognisable damage). Since then I always stop the boat in lock from the lockside using ropes. It has the added advantage that I don't spend my days in the bottom of diesel fume filled locks.
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23 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:
The Americans manage Dodge Ram pickup truck 360 inches
To me that'd be telling me he'd got a 30 foot engine
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25 minutes ago, Ex Brummie said:
Because that is how the regulatory bodies specify it in their publications. Have you checked BSS requirements lately?
No, as far as I'm concerned the boat passes or it doesn't (a bit like a car MOT) I've got no real interest in the trivia of it. It still means that it is easier to call it 141 sq cms though rather than 14,100 sq mm. I also never really get why they give a direct conversion between weights on packaging, 454 gms to 1 pound as an example. Am I supposed to believe that they measure accurately to 4 grams? (alternatively their conversion is 0.14 ounces out
) Why don't they just call it 450? Or even better charge a bit more and call it 500?
Having given it a small amount of thought I rather wonder why engines for the entire of my lifetime have always been measured in cc's? 1000cc, 1500cc, 2 litre, 650cc (motorcycle) etc.etc. If someone were to tell me that their car had a 97.6 cubic inch engine I wouldn't have the foggiest idea what they were talking about.
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4 hours ago, MtB said:
You must have really big apples round your way then!!!
If, as another poster has indicated, a pound force is around 4 and a half times a Newton, my maths would suggest that there would indeed be 4 to a pound, which amazingly (unless you are buying chuffing great big Bramleys) is about right, isn't it?
Also why would you refer to 14,100 sq mm rather than simply 141 sq cms? Would you ask for a 6 inch nail? or a 6000 thou nail?
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5 hours ago, IanD said:
There are several locks which can't be operated without a handspike, I can't remember exactly how many...
A handspike can be made from a cheap pickaxe handle with the aid of a saw... 😉
I seem to recall that when I passed that way I simply fished a bit of wood out of the canal (I think it may have been a bit of a pallet
).
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7 hours ago, MtB said:
In the nicest possible way, might it not have been better to start a different thread, given this thread still hasn't been resolved? I'm losing track of the OP's problem without differernt issues with different alternators being added in!
To summarise, ISTR Blackrose has an A127 putting out 14.70v into a fully-charged battery. He has changed the regulator and had slip rings and bearings refurbished at Electro Start. On the bench as Electro Start it was pronounced good (but I can't find what the basis for this was) but back in the boat, the alternator is still putting out 14.70 Volts. I'd inclined to a) buy or borrow another DMM to compare the one giving the 14.70V, reading, then if not resolved b ) buy a new A127 given how cheap they are.
Well, equally in the nicest possible way, would it not be better for those of you who wish to discuss Li batteries be better off starting a different thread? What have they got to do with A127 alternators?
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Have to say that my A127 has now got me totally foxed. To give the timeline, I travelled 4 hours from Halesowen into Birmingham at normal engine running speed (1700 rpm) no problem. Spent a while in Birmingham then on the way out to Wolverhampton the Adverc over-voltage and alternator light started coming on. Cut the revs to below 1500 and all is fine. Got to Wolverhampton and changed the regulator on the Alternator for a new one that I had bought a while ago from Sparkrite at Daventry and the problem seemed 'fixed' except that a couple of days later, once again the warning lights came on. Using the spare Alternator that I carry I then replaced the Alternator altogether, once again problem seemed 'fixed' for a couple of days until the damn warning lights came on again. Have now disconnected the Adverc and once again the problem seemed 'fixed' until now the damn warning light is again coming on!!! Any suggestions????
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3 minutes ago, Tony Brooks said:
As a matter of interest, how many charge warning lamps do you have? If only one, then that makes diagnostics harder, so you will have to rely on volt meter readings for each alternator to identify a faulty one. However, disconnecting the Adverc should prove if it is the culprit - as you say.
Of all the advanced alternator controllers available a number of years ago, the one least likely to wreck the alternator is the Adverc, because it shuts itself down on a 15-minute cycle and that will let the alternator cool down, but many vendors are likely to take any opportunity to void a warrantee.
There are separate charge warning lamps for the domestic and the engine alternators. Have to say that I'm rather glad of that since the engine warning light is attached to a warning buzzer whereas the domestic alternator warning light isn't. Back in 2020 when coming back from the Nene through Northampton the domestic alternator failed (again) and I managed to disengage the alternator entirely (removed the drive belt) and took the boat back to Braunston with a jump lead between the domestic and engine batteries which kept the domestic batteries charged by the engine alternator (thereby by-passing the Adverc). I disconnected the jump lead when starting up so that the starter motor wouldn't be drawing from the domestic batteries. I think it would have 'done my head in' if I'd had the warning buzzer sounding all the way.
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1 hour ago, Tony Brooks said:
Any solar, and how well charged are the batteries? I think that we have discussed this before. I have had this with very well charged batteries and solar still charging them. It can shut some alternators down.
It could be high resistance between the battery and charge warning lamp, causing the voltage at the warning lamp to be less than that in the alternator., but usually that is just a low glow on the lamp.
I think an open circuit field diode could do that as well.
The battery meter reckons that the batteries are 90% charged when I start in the morning, but that is open to question since it is still charging at 28 amps whereas once fully charged, the charging rate goes down to 9 amp or less. Tonight when I switched off the charge rate was down to 12 amps. We have no solar (we decided that when we needed it, during the winter, there was insufficient daylight hours but then during the summer with loads of daylight hours we also travelled a lot, so didn't really need it).
The reason that I am now questioning the Adverc is because now, when replacing the alternator for at least the 5th time, I realised that I had never replaced the starter battery alternator, and that isn't connected to the Adverc. Originally I'd put the regular domestic alternator replacements down to the engine environment in which the alternators are, not much air circulation, pretty warm etc. and obviously that it does more work than the engine alternator. Now I'm starting to question that assumption. I seem to recall in the dim and distant past when I had an electrician working on yet another failed alternator he said something along the lines of,"You know that an Adverc can invalidate the alternator warranty ", and it was after that I believed that it had been disconnected. I'm not reporting that as fact, merely what the electrician had said, which may or may not be correct.
So now, having disconnected, and removed, the Adverc (which is now 12 years old) I'm going to see what happens tomorrow on my 7 mile run back to my mooring. On previous experience that should be plenty long enough for the ignition warning light to come on, if it is going to. The green overvoltage lamp was connected to the Adverc so that now doesn't come on when I start the engine (although the ignition light does, and goes out when the engine fires). I'll keep a regular eye on the charge rate and the voltage as we go along to see if anything untoward happens.
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2 minutes ago, blackrose said:
I'm between Wellingborough and Peterborough and I often go into Northampton so I can get to Braunston ok. Thanks
Just to clarify, Electrostart are on the industrial estate in Daventry, which for me is rideable from Braunston.
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1 hour ago, blackrose said:
Ok thanks I'll just buy a new alternator.
Any tips on finding one with the correct pulleys & mounting configuration?
Whereabouts are you in the Country? My 'go-to' place when I'm in Braunston is Electro-Start (https://electrostart.co.uk/) who have very reasonably priced alternators and regulators for sale. If you need to change the regulator, you will need a 5.5mm spanner to do so DAMHIK
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Interestingly, whilst on the topic of alternators, I've just changed mine (again) as the overvoltage warning light from the Adverc (along with ignition light) was coming on. Had another run today with the new alternator and after about 40 minutes of running at 1600 rpm, the bl**dy light came on again. As I'd previously changed the regulator on the alternator that was on the engine, and have now changed the alternator itself, I've come around to thinking that the Adverc is the thing that is at fault, so I've now disconnected that leaving the charging system relying on the regulator fitted to the alternator. Anyone got any views of anything else that could have been at fault?
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Isn't the Aylesbury Arm going to be shut for a while?(https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/notices/01973157-07fc-7b83-8845-528901ebc71a), or have I got the wrong dates again?
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1 minute ago, Clanky said:
The date on that is the 4/10/25 not tomorrow.
Yes, you are right, my mistake, caused by the fact that I got the e-mail from CRT warning me of it last Thursday so thought it was going to be quite soon
. Since I'm heading back into the basin tomorrow I'll miss seeing all of those happy, smiling fishermen's faces.
That does make more sense though 'cos I thought who on earth is going to be fishing in those sort of numbers on a weekday.
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20 minutes ago, Francis Herne said:
That's just moved it to the small one that backs onto the canal just beyond Hawne's linear moorings. Unless that's been fenced too in the last few months since I had a proper look.
There is apparently a big fishing competition there tomorrow (https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/notices/01971b62-91fb-73c0-b2ba-1e1cc777b9a9) although I have to say that for the length of canal they reference in the Advice (from the bottom of the Delph Flight to Hawne Basin, although I think I resent them referring to Hawne Basin as a 'skip compound'
) there must be thousands of fishermen expected to show up
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4 hours ago, Up-Side-Down said:
That seems an eminently sensible idea. It's first hand contact with people who have had the disease that really brings the dangers home to you. It's a zoonotic disease meaning it's carried/spread by both humans and animals so a range of our four-legged friends also carrying it, ranging from dogs to cows. Dogs are innoculated against it on an annual basis I believe. Rat piss (through cuts and scratches) in still water is, I understand, the most common source so canals are common culprits.
It does seem interesting that whilst dogs can have an annual inoculation against Leptospirosis, there isn't an equivalent vaccination for humans. I also have a familial interest in the disease as my uncle (father's brother) died of the illness precisely because they didn't realise what it was until too late, thinking it was just flu or something similar. As he died during the war whilst in service he also has a mention on the Commonwealth War Graves site (https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2932688/george-william-carter/) although the circumstances were that whilst cycling back to base he came off his bike into a ditch, which it is where it is believed he contacted the infection.
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On 29/05/2025 at 20:25, NB Alnwick said:
Yesterday, we moored at the secure mooring facility at Leicester's Castle Gardens and were surprised to see so many people sitting around in Castle Gardens and feeding the squirrels. The squirrels appeared to be so comfortable in the presence of humans that they were going right up close to people and taking food from their hands. Then we noticed that many of the 'squirrels' did not have the usual bushy tails! Castle Gardens appeared to be populated with a large number of very healthy and extremely friendly rats. We counted at least a dozen and they outnumbered the real squirrels by at least three to one. This morning we also noticed several rats at North Lock and like the ones in Castle Gardens, they appeared to be healthy and not at all afraid of humans. One even jumped in and swam round the boat before climbing onto the lock gate.
In Castle Gardens, there are notices posted urging people not to feed the animals but no one appeared to be paying attention to these.
Having just checked my first visit to Castle Gardens, it was back in September 2015, and as I recall there was a very healthy population of rats there then, so not much seems to have changed.
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5 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:
A little bit of good came from it Stricken Stena Immaculate donates food to Norfolk food banks - BBC News
I would guess that the meat and fish donation came ready cooked didn't it?
Has anyone ever
in General Boating
Posted · Edited by Wanderer Vagabond
The guy on the mooring next to us in Hawne Basin has pretty much done what you are proposing. The boxes in the photo don't have a solid top, they are canvas tops held on by bungee cords, it was to give you some idea of just how high you can get away with on top boxes. The only place I can remember having had to take them inside was to get through Standedge Tunnel, so if you are planning to go through there you'll need to make them removable. I haven't got through Froghall Tunnel yet, and I suspect that I'd have to take them off to do that, but for all other canal bridges and tunnels they have been perfectly fine.
ETA This is assuming that your boat isn't a lot higher than most narrow boats