monkeyhanger

Thanks for all the help. The best price I found locally was £34 for 20 litres at Unipart Automotive, which I found when I googled "Partco".Thanks to Steelaway for that info. I thought that was a pretty good price. Jack

Didn't realise you could use automotive antifreeze in central heating systems- are you sure that it's OK? I used Fernox Alfi 11 in mine, and if I remember correctly, it wasn't cheap.

It's getting to that time of the year again! Has anyone seen any good deals on antifreeze, please? I need about 5 gallons. Obviously because of weight I'd prefer to collect. I live in East London. Thanks.

That's what I thought. This one has 4 very small flames that make a "roaring" sound.

Depends where you're from.

Does anyone have a Thetford gas fridge on their boat? I have seen one, model N100, 3-way which seems incredibly noisy when running on gas,with a sound almost like a tiny jet engine running. I used to have an old Sibir gas fridge which was silent to run. Do all Thetford fridges make this sort of noise when run on gas? I'd be grateful for any information and/or opinions.

The header tank for my engine cooling system is fabricated from 5mm mild steel and measures 13in x 10in x 3in.The inside is coated with rust - serious rust, flaking off in sheets. I've managed to remove quite a bit of it by rattling around through the filler with a mooring pin, but there is still an awful lot remaining, which will not be easy to remove because of limited access. I think the cause is due to the large size of the skin tank,which causes the header tank to empty as the engine cools and the coolant contracts, exposing the damp inner surfaces of the tank to the air. My thoughts for dealing with the header tank were, after removing as much rust as possible, to empty a 500ml bottle of Fertan into the tank and give it a good shake to coat the inside. Once dry, do the same thing with Hammerite paint, which I have a few odd tins of. I did consider cutting an access panel in the back of the tank, but I'd like to avoid this if possible. Does anyone have any better ideas?

Where do you get the stripey paint???

I have always run mine on high compression, whether on canal or river. I have tried it on low to see what it was like, and ,to be fair, it seemed to run a bit "softer", with slightly less vibration through the boat, but it did smoke more. I presume this would be due to lower compression, and therefore less efficient burning of the fuel. However I have met people who say they always run on low compression. These engines seem to be idiosyncratic anyway, so what works for one may not suit all. Baldock will have a very valid opinion-wait for him to come along-probably very soon, if he hasn't already beaten me to it!

Yes,indeed,very sad. I really feel for the family. Maybe passing by so close to where the tragic event took place makes it seem more immediate, more personal. One tends to think" if only I'd been there earlier, maybe I could have done something to help". Deepest sympathy to all concerned.

Travelling south on the GU yesterday, between Fenny Stratford and Soulbury 3, I passed a fallen tree across the canal. According to another boater, as the tree fell, it swept a woman off the stern of a passing boat and she was seriously injured. I hope that this is only a rumour and is not true. Does anyone have any more information?

For your BSS, I'd recommend Roger Alsop at Comet Marine. Tel 01442 399103 or 07956 656063. Very thorough, very sensible.

When you position your calorifier, you should try to position the inlet/outlet fittings vertically, not horizontally. Experience tells me you'd get a pretty big airlock which would be difficult to shift, otherwise. Cold water inlet at the bottom, hot water out at the top. The air that initially gets trapped at the top of the calorifier when you fill the system will work its way out when you run the hot tap.

Thanks very much!

What day(s) and what time, please?

Sorry, I did not make myself clear. We are referring to the same pound. As I said there was plenty of water there, but of course, I don't know what MAY have gone on before I cycled by, although the water in the pound was crystal clear, so I suspect no boat had passed by for some time. Maybe it's been fixed!

I cycled past there last Friday afternoon, and there was plenty of water in the middle pound.

RE-- Rules and Common Sense I met a BW maintenance man at Berkhamsted bottom lock last week. Nice bloke, he helped me through the two locks. While I was passing through the locks we chatted. I watched him putting a squirt of oil from his oilcan onto each of the rack and pinion mechanisms. I commented that, while not wishing to tell him his job, there seemed, to my eyes at least, to be an awful lot of grease on the mechanisms already. His reply went something like "You know there's enough oil on there, I know there's enough oil on there, but the computer says I have to oil the mechanisms" Off he went, all the way up to Cowroast. I've still got the b----- grease on my trousers.

You can buy red diesel on the lower Lea from "New Era Fuels".Tel. 0208 534 1665 They are canalside, just south of Bow flyover. That's about 15 minutes cruising downstream from Old Ford Lock. Note that this is Old Ford Lock on the River Lea, not the one of the same name on the Regents. After exiting the one on the Regents, you will need to turn left along Duckett's Cut to get to the Lea. The time taken to get to Limehouse will be approximately 30 minutes longer if you take this route, rather than if you continue straight ahead on the Regents. There is a Calor Gas place directly opposite New Era Fuels, and a large Tesco a little further on. Bear in mind that the fuel and gas places close Saturday afternoon and Sunday. A final point- if you wish to see the Olympic Site, you will be closer to it on the Lea.

Potential for a nice liveaboard on the southern G U perhaps!

I'm intending to take my narrowboat down the Nene over the next couple of months, weekending it from place to place (actually long weekend-thurs, fri,sat,sun). I've not been on the Nene before, so I'm unfamiliar with public transport in the region, and, more importantly,secure moorings when leave the boat. Any recommendations regarding these, and places to visit/avoid would be appreciated. Also, is there a "Nicholsons" for the Nene?

The guys who built my boat 20 years ago used, as I recall, to refer to it as the "z-iron". They'd been building narrowboats since the 1940s, so it probably wasn't a modern misconception. I've never heard it referred to similarly anywhere else. Perhaps its a West Midlands expression?

I agree that Purdy brushes really are the ultimate, and I have used them for years, but, always on the lookout for a bargain,I recently tried Wilkinsons "Suregrip" (from Wilko supermarket) and found them to be incredible value. £4.99 for a pack of three brushes- 2in,1.5in. and1in. At that price you could use them and throw them away afterwards, but , believe me, you won't want to! Obviously not up to Purdy standard, but give them a try. I think you'll be impressed. I'd be interested to hear what others think of them too.

One of the hardest jobs I had to do was retrieve my wife's glasses after she'd dropped them down the toilet into a full holding tank. Gives a new meaning to the word "Specsavers"!