Jen-in-Wellies

Alternators also have a maximum rpm too, above which they risk breaking up inside. The pulley ratio needs to be chosen so that at maximum engine revs you won't over speed it. More a problem for racing cars than inland waterways boats, but something to check if you are looking at unusually high ratios. Jen

Congratulations to your friend for doing the job properly. I suspect that a lot of rented boat owners have not made a full declaration to the insurance company, let alone passed the stricter BSS test. Very dumb thing to do if there is ever a claim. Jen

Softwood will last maybe seven years. Hardwood longer. Eventually they will rot and then you'll have to remove them, the glue and fix any roof rust. I've had mine held down by magnets for years. No movement in numerous storms. Jen

One for the starter, one for both leisure, one spare. It needs to be permanent. Croc clips will fail a BSS exam. There will need to be suitably sized fuses between the batteries and the charger in the positive wires. A suitably rated plug and socket can let you remove the charger in summer. No conflict. One will supply the charge in preference to the other. Which one that is depends. Jen

They do a multi-fuel version too.

Is it one of these? https://www.bubbleproducts.co.uk/info-(b1-oil-fired-pie-pod).html They are very tall! Not sure how you might do the silicate board around the gunwales. Others may have some ideas. Moving it towards the centre line of the boat could be the easiest option. I have my, much shorter, stove in this position. Perhaps the way to think about it is this. The British Standard is based around making the installation safe. The silicate board and the air gap is to prevent any hidden wood being at a high temperature for too long, eventually turning to charcoal, then catching fire. Could you get rid of combustable material completely around that area? Perhaps fibreglass insulation to the metal hull locally, then the silicate board screwed to a metal angle as it goes round the bend? I don't know, but a bit of lateral thinking may do the trick. Top it off with tiles to look nice. Jen

Lancaster Canal? The end result of CaRT's (no) dredging policy. 😁

It suggests that next to no current flow is being measured. That could be for a number of reasons, that might even include a fault in the wiring to the monitor from the shunt. Other reasons include, but not exhaustively: full charged batteries, unlikely, if the battery voltage is correct. The shunt being installed in the wrong place, so it doesn't measure incoming current from the alternator. The alternator being damaged. The belt slipping. Jen When you say AVO do you mean one of these? For measuring current of the scale that an alternator can give out you need a DC Clamp Meter. A different thing. Jen

Where does it say that? What it does say on the BSC site is and So an alteration that is made in a compliant way is fine. A non compliant alteration may invalidate it. That would be if found out and that is only likely at the next due exam, or if something goes horribly wrong in between. In which case you'll likely have problems with insurance, the law, the navigation authority too. Nothing to stop you getting another exam, but it would be for your peace of mind only. Jen

The pressure relief valve on the cauliflower is relieving pressure in the hot water inside, not the coolant circulating around the heating coil from the stove. They are separate.

The culprit! You obviously dislodged the clay plug. 😁

I take it that stove means solid fuel heating stove, not gas cooking stove. Misunderstood as it was in the same sentence as talk of LPG hose. A HETAS fitter isn't necessarily the best person to work on a solid fuel stove in a boat. If their usual work is stoves in houses, they'll try and fit it to house regulations and want to do things like install a thirty foot high, non removable chimney. There are standards for boat installation that are summarised in to a handy diagram here. You definitely want someone who is used to fitting stoves in boats. Inland boats aren't so common round Sheffield, so you need to expand your search area. Bradford, Derby etc isn't far for someone to travel from. Using a BSS examiner to also carry out work means that they aren't going to fail their own installation if you use the same person for the 2023 exam! Jen

I'm not saying he's not. Just giving alternatives if this one isn't available.

That's what working on boats does for you. Some boating neighbours in Sheffield got some gas work done just by using the gas safe register to search for fitters with LPG and boat approval on their tickets. The fellow they got did an excellent job for them, though boats were only a small part of his work. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of the company, but a similar search throws up several companies with at least one suitably qualified fitter on their books in the neighbourhood. Jen

Yes it would need to be custom built just to get the ridiculous low gearing and clearance for big tyres. Not to mention a strong point for attaching the tow rope, plus a quick release mechanism. There are ways to do two wheel drive for trikes, but as you say, many drive to just one wheel.