dor

polystyrene insulation underneath perhaps?

firstly Stuart it depends on how far your budget will stretch. Perhaps it would go further with the sailaway as you would have more time to do it. Obviously you will have to assess your own diy competence as well, it is a multi-skilled job. Don't underestimate the time it will take to fit out a sailaway (or for that matter to rip out & refit an old hull, but you will finish up with a boat with much higher value or one htat will last you happily 20+ years. Graham booth's book on fitting out would be indispensible, and could also give you an idea of total cost. Then there is what type of sailaway: ordinary, lined or lined plus. The last of these would be fully lined with electrics and possibly some plumbing partly done, but obviously the more you have done the more it will cost. I'm currently giving serious thought to getting a lined sailaway for my next boat. If you keep it for 5 years you get round the RCD problems, and it is not unusual to come across "owner fitouts" so it will still be saleable, providing the work is done to a reasonable standard. An old boat will always be an old boat, even if you have stripped it out and refitted it. A sailaway starts as a new boat, and will you really save that much if you are going to strip out most of the interior of an old boat? Don't underestimate the amount of time it will take though. I'm reliably informed that, assuming you have a full-time job, three years is the typical time it takes to fully complete the project.

I think passing the pipe through the bulkhead by for example drilling out the normal bulkhead fitting is not uncommon. You have to seal it though with a flexible sealant so gas can't go through the hole as well, and to prevent pipe vibrating against the metal.

I would be pretty impressed with a battery angle grinder that would run for an hour taking off the roof paint, including sand! If the paint was as resistant as you indicate Simon, I think I would be very tempted to follow the stripper route. There are now many different sorts available in B&Q and the likes and I am sure one would be suitable. They tend to be gelled, so drips and spills should not be a problem if handled carefully. Equally, when you take it off with an ordinary scraper it is semi-solid after reacting with the paint (reminiscent of snake skin) so pollution should not be a problem. If a small bit does go into the water, I don't think it is particularly toxic in itself - the nastiness derives from its acid content. A drop in the canal will be diluted beyond any risk.

I think there is a similar thread elsewhere, where I mentioned I've a omnimax aerial (the wiggly wire one) on a telescopic aluminium pole. I've fitted an external socket in the cratch. to put up, I just have to slot the pole into some pipe brackets attached to the cratch board. Very quick and simple, and allows a higher aerial position than roof mounted.

s'pose it depends on whether the plug is in

The problem with surfing these days is that web designers seem to assume that everyone has broadband (The same goes for emails with huge attachments). As a result they put in lots of pictures and fancy effects that can add hugely to your download capacity. However in your browser there should be a settings option not to show pictures, videos etc. You can always turn it on and referesh the page if there is something that looks interesting.

My insurers let me increase the insured value by 10% a year - needed as I bought it very cheaply and they would only value it at the purchase price. Could still have an argument if I did have a total loss of course, but I do have all the receipts for any work done.

venetian marina quite often have older/cheaper boats. Not a big selection, but they turn them over quite quickly.

I always though it was the seller that bought the customer a drink - after all you will have just handed over a substantial wad of beer tokens.

Good grief Richard: is there anything I can build for you? I'm sure I could last at least an hour with £100 behind the bar. Seems generous to me, I bet very few people would consider giving any tip at all.

Well I've got a 10 inch panasonic tv. It was quite expensive, but is designed for travelling so runs off 12-24vDC & 230AC, but the clever bit is the automatic tuning which searches for the best signal for each channel then assigns them to channels 1,2,3,4&5. Not quite the equivalent of RDS, but about as near as you will get on analogue TV. I also use a little aerial booster that was designed to run of a 9v battery, but I have linked it in to the boat's 12v supply with no problem. Aerial is a omnimax (the wiggly wire one) on a telescopic mast which generally works well. I also have a £39 DVD player which I run through a 150W (sterling) quasi-sine wave inverter. I think I would probably use this for a cheap mains TV if I did it again, rather than paying a premium for a 12V tv. I might then be tempted to leave it on the boat rather than taking it off every time.

I too do not live aboard, but we go out all year round as long as the canal isn't frozen. There is something very comfortable about being moored up in the middle of nowhere on a really cold wet night and being nice and warm and cosy in the boat.

It took me a while to work out what the top vent is for; the user manual with the stove is not very helpful! However I came across someone using a different make of stove (not on a boat) which also had a vent at the top of the door. Their instructions suggested that letting air in at the top of the door would help to keep the glass clean as is draws fresh air down the fornt of the door on the inside. That's the theory: in practice I find it harder to control the stove, especially when I want it to tick over. I know that 3/4 turn on the bottom vent with top vent closed lets in enough air to keep the stove in easily overnight. I have tried different settings on the top vent and can't say it has made any difference to keeping the glass clean. I tend therefore to keep the top vent closed and just use the bottom vent. May experiment some more this winter though.

Now lets see if I can get the hang of this new forum ...... If you have twin alternators, I would really question whether you need an external regulator on your starter battery. Check what the output voltage of your new alternator is also, as there may be limited benefit.