Gary Stacey

I have painted two boats and on both i used just standard exterior paints. They were however industrial trade paints. I achieved a reasonable fininsh on both for a fraction of the cost of 'boat' paints. i am happy for the boat to look just ok as they inevitably get a lot of knocks and scratches Gary

Sacrafical anodes and impressed currents are used in many areas other than boating to great effect. The galvanic series is a scientific fact and is not based on psuedo science. Bonding two pieces of metal immersed in an electrically conductive fluid does not render them at the same potential. havnt we had this discussion elsewhere?

Yes indeed! I would say their applicability to inland waterway boats (I assume this forum is not just for narrowboats) is that theoretically you could do away with the need for a reversing gearbox, thus reducing drive chain complexity. Indeed for a slow running engine you could loose the gearbox altogether.

Your having (very) small chines - is this because of the width of baseplate available? Gary

What if you spend a 'lot of time aboard' but also jointly own a property where council tax is paid? Gary

Hmmm. it would appear that they are not a very economical way of heating a barge! Good job I have a stove as well (no back boiler) Gary

Hmm. alde quote about 480grammes per hour gas usage at maximum which gives approx 28 hours use out of a 13kg bottle. Reckoning on 6Kw usage using your figures and allowing for about 85-90 percent efficiency gives (180/6) * 85 = 25.5 hours which seems to tie in. I have checked for gas leaks, it must be the way i am using it! Or I have bought the wrong device for the size of boat i am expecting to heat (55 by 10ft 6 ") Gary

I've mentioned the Alde gas consumption in another thread. I was just wondering what kind of gas consumption other Alde owners get. I can use a 13Kg bottle in three days in a cold spell on my barge. The boiler is used for heating and hot water, the cooker is gas run from the same bottle. Beginning to think that I may have picked the wrong type of boiler, any thoughts/ideas? thanks in advance Gary

Alde boilers can use a lot of gas. Mine used a 13kg bottle in under 3 days. If you look at the alde website they quote approx 419 g/h usage at full chat. Gary

A friend of mine has a JW hull with the 5mm sides, construction is very substantial throughout. Flatter hull topsides can be achieved with 5mm plate but they may not have box tacked to the inside to fit battening to (see another thread). JW boats are very well built but their construction means they sit very low in the water as a result some can and will struggle on the shallower canals. I have seen it happen a number of times on the Chesterfield. Boats with 5mm topsides do also seem to roll a bit more as well as you move about the boat. In addition to this and with regard to my firends hull I had to carry out a number of minor mods on area he was unhappy with. ie it originally would not reverse at all (I know boats genrally do not do this very well but his was terrible) so I increased the size of the rudder which made it much better. The gas locker seemed to take on a lot of water on rivers so I modified the drains to be rear facing and I also modified the rudder post to stop water jetting up to the top bearing whilst going astern. Gary

We are aobut to move onto our barge with our 16 month old daughter. It was hoped that we wre going ot be on the boat when she was born but alas you cannot plan these things! Gary

me too!!

'And Gary, it is nothing to do with snobbery to apprecaite a thing of beauty, but if that is being a Luddite then I am quite happy to be called a Luddite.' Nothing to do with appreciating a goood quailty product more to do with peole who look down there nose at those who cannot afford or choose not to buy one of the 'top' names. And no I am not saying you do this but I have met those who do. There are lots of quality shells to be had out there, it could be to some people that what is on the inside is of more importance. Gary

Michael Stimpson apparenty does good liveaboard cover.

Nothing wrong with liverpool boat shells in my mind. Have seen quite a few and they seem solid, straight have reasonabley clean welds and as you say are quite cheap. There is as Gary pointed out quite a lot of snobbery regarding certain boats/styles etc from certain quarters and this needs to change. What about one of Gary's barge style boats what price for one of those Gary, do they come in at a competitive price?. Not a trad but there again there is no such thing!

A bow thruster seems to be one of those things that once you have one you wonder why you went so long without. I have heard many a time from old boatmen that they are for wimps etc and then seen the same peole going sideways down west stockwith basin in the wind whilst frantically trying to fend themselves of all the expensive cruisers in the locality. They make life easier full stop. but you should still know how to handle a boat without one. I have the nobles fitted to my barge, it has no shearpins and the prop is stainless steel instead of plastic. Gary

Got an important birthday coming up then Wynd lass ? Gary

Richard are you going to add any more ballast or do you extpect the out to take it down 8 inches? Gary Peacock how much ballast do you normally put in broadbeams? Gary

How much ballast would you normally expect to put in a broad beam flat bottomed boat such as a broadbeam narrowboat? Are they usually double slabbed? Gary

I would second the advice regarding travelling with another boat un less you have complete confidence in your own. I have toed two boats on the tidal trent with broken engines! this journey both times on the ebb from torksey to West Stokwith, getting in the lock was interesting. On that point if you are comng in at WS and are unsure about getting in the lock you can always pull along side the wall and be roped in. Gary