LEO

Hi, £20K for a 1975 30ft boat in today's market and economic situation is a 'lorra, lorra boodle'. There are loads of boats for sale, hunt round and remember at the moment 'Cash is King' and only a fool would not carefully consider a very realistic offer on a boat they were selling, assuming the purchser could complete quickly. Perhaps vendors minds would be sharpened if brokers charged mooring fees whilst boats are up 'for sale'. Albi

RLWP I'm an MG man got a '71 B Roadster, had it from new 32500 on the clock. Albih

I used a fairly cheap impeller pump, which was flat bottomed and had an upright outlet, the Rule one worked well, but one of the retaining lugs snapped off and a replacement cover was difficult to get hold of. They have to be easy to seperate to overcome blochages with hair etc. Also get one which fits the non-kink hose you will be using. I found that non-return valves were a waste of time. Hope that helps Albi.

RLWP - a very interesting reply, how old is Tawny Owl?, it would also seem that all your repairs were hull related suggesting that a hull survey is the best course of action - I would also go so far as to say that you had a very good surveyor. ATB Albi.

Hi, The food dye tip is excellent - I have used this method (but using coloured ink) as a means of proving that leaking waste water from a Chinese restaurant was causing damage to the premises below. It was more difficult to prove they had a cockroach infestation as well. Albi

Hi, I agree about using any Surveyor's report to use a lever in price negotiations, but if one is reasonably practial it is possible to check the fittings on a boat to see if they work. Checking the water pump for leaks and importantly that the hot water/ heating system works properly and generally open cupboards etc to look for leaks. All to often Surveyors generalise and comment that the service was covered and so could not be checked. Surveyors and engines - can they really comment upon it's condition other than saying it's there and starts, if it is a vintage engine it might be worth commissioning an engine survey (probably the best thing to do), gearboxes the same. Really the best thing is to rely on good documentation something which a prudent owner will have and be pleased to hand over, this should contain a comprehensive schedule of repairs servicing and expenditure. If the Surveyors report is limited to those things you want inspecting you will save money and the best lever on price at the moment is ----- Cash!. Carlt - I agree about the use of a screwdriver, when I used to do residential surveys I found a jemmy was also a useful tool for lifting floor boards, but few surveyors do this now with fitted carpets- just commenting that the area was carpetted and could not be inspected - an unsatisfactory comment if problems are found, as they must 'follow the thread' to avoid liability. Albi.

Hi, The arrangement I had used an impeller type pump, with the strainer/base fixed to the floor and using a flxible drain pipe. It worked well and was easy to clear if the impeller became blocked. There was slight problem with water draining back from the pipe when the pump was switched off, I tried various ways of overcoming this but after 19years of ownership resolved to live with it (the water was only a very small amount). The strainer was screwed to the tiled floor, but with plastic or GRP this could be glued. Hope that helps. Albi.

Hi, Interesting post, I would just ask for a hull ultra sound scan to check the metal thickness and pay accordingly. Have some spare cash to cover the problems which come to light when you use the boat though as these are points that most Surveyors fail to cover. Why pay for a 'heavily padded report' when all you want really is a schedule of defects affecting the hull and the metal thickness. Albi.

Hi, Sorry to hear of your problems. there is lots of information about unhappy experiences with Marine Surveyors on the site. Sounds as if some external welding will cure your leak. Where are you on the system?. I would be interested to hear more about the Surveyor (you may care to send me a PM). I am sure lots of members will offer assistance and advice, but bad experiences with Surveyors are becoming all to common and perhaps some representation should be made to their governing body to try to overcome these problems and improve standards. Your not the guy who had problems with a leak on a new purchase on the Southern GU about 6weeks ago are you?. Albi

Hi, The other problem with having a shower tray for dual use is the wear it will get with shoes etc. when one is using the WC. The wet room principle with a tiled floor overcomes the problem of having a 'jimmy' with your outdoor shoes on, which would cause damage to a Plastic or GRP tray. Hope that helps. Albi.

Hi, Sorry, should have pointed out it was a 30ft Nb. and space was at a premium, thus the shared arrangement. ALBI

Hi, Instead of a shower tray, why not turn it into a 'wet room' style floor with concrete, (laid in a thick layer of bitumen) with a tiled floor and one row of tiles for the upstand then normal walling and tiling above that. Shower pump can be surface mounted in a small recess in the floor. WC can be free standing above. I had this arrangement in a boat with a small shower room and it was excellent. Albi

Hi, OK so the pic may be wrong, but it is costing BW a lot of money to clear the site and they are having to pull in staff from as far away as Cowroast to move the BW flats about. NBW does provide some news and it looks as though you will be starved of spotting the mistakes until mid October 2009 (some may wish it were longer). There's room for everyone in this life - that's what makes it such fun. ATB Albi.

Hi, Go to the latest home page, good picture of the newly overpainted boat. Albi

Hi, Definately take it for a test run and for a reasonably trip, Get the engine up to running temperature and check for noises and the charging rate. Someone from the brokerage will probably steer it, but do ask to take the tiller for a short while. Make sure you have a survey before parting up with the 'boodle' and make sure the surveyor (who should be your choice) is competent, issue careful guidlines to the Surveyor as to what you want him to do. Buying a boat (unless you are careful) is a bit like walking through a mine field backwards. Best of luck, it's not as bad as it sounds, I've done it twice and found it's advisable to have some spare cash as inevitably something goes wrong shortly after purchase - a gearbox in my case. Albi

Hi, I thought Board of Trade regulations stated that 13 was the magic number. Albi

Hi, Looks as though it will be as good as previous years. Could you all remember to shut at least one gate when you have finished with the lock please - I followed your boats one year and as a single boater it was interesting to have to keep shutting both gates before using the lock. That aside have a good time. Albi.

Hi, Try newspapers, soaks up all the oil, water, cheap and very effective. Have been using this method for years. Albi

On the 'big engine front' I can only go along with what the experts say and my experience with 4LW's (56 hp) and 2LW's (28hp). The 4LW was not mine, but it smoked badly and took ages to warm up (if it managed to) even under load even worse if it's running with a calorifier. Diesels will smoke if they don't work hard enough and warm up. My 2LW smokes for about 15 minutes after starting from cold, then the smoking stops, it smokes a little if left ticking over or working through a long lock flight, but as soon as revs increase it stops. The engine also heats a calorifier. Albi

Hi, Thanks, still too big, even for a widebeam, unless fitted with a miniscule prop. Albi. PS when do you complete the last part of your cruise blog?.

Hi, Engine is much too big for the boat, - see earlier post - my pal left Barrus because he was fed up trying to sort out problems with over-engined boats. Consider the boat 'Apache' (hitting the headlines at the moment) fitted with a Gardner 2LW (28Hp) perfectly adequate. Smoke on your engine will eventually lead to long term damage of the unit. (I am assuming yours is a narrowboat and not a Dutch Barge) Albi

Hi, Have read the posts with interest, and one assumes all the facts are correct. Probably came about by using the wrong type of auction house, inadequate advertising, not allowing sufficient time for veiwing before offering the item for sale and 'knocking it' down to quickly. It may have been done in all innocence - someone in the right place at the right time with cash got a deal due to a badly managed sale Normally auction houses advertise boats being offered 'for sale' by auction in WW but I have seen no details of this one. Can't believe any auction house could have sold a lot such as this for 'scrap' value, at least with no reserve. I would suggest the creditors call for an investigation and I would love to see details of where it was sold and how it was catalogued. Albi

Hi, Not sure how many hours this gearbox has done, but I found that gearboxes breakdown at the inconvenient times and assuming it's a Hurth box I found the cheaper option was to replace it. Not hard to fit yourself and not too expensive. Labour costs and gearbox overhauls can work out expensive - see an earlier post. I note the comments on the previous post about DIY repairs - fair enough if you are good with the 'spanners', but mechanics charge a lot for fixing jobs other people start but can't finish. Albi.

Hi, It's interesting, but it depends on the spec. you gave them, it looks as though the camber of the roof did not lend itself to fitting a 'Houdini' hatch. Did you want light or ventilation? - if the former I would have gone for a 'prism' a much neater option. looks as though they did not have a rolling machine. Basically wrong fitting for roof of this style. Did they advise you before fitting it. Albi