Onewheeler

The EA website shows the level above the lock only fluctuating by about 50 cm in the past few days, other than a 5 m spike which must be a faulty reading. Even the highest level recorded is not much above the recent levels. The recent fluctuations look to be tide related, probably due to sluice closures to prevent downstream flooding. Our Oxford mooring is about 1 m up and seems to have stabilised. It was at least 20 cm higher 2 weeks ago. Martin/

They are a perfect fit in old (i.e. 25+ y.o.) Hep2O pipe.

Just ordered some of this: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MEG-Blue-Antifreeze-Concentrate-BS6580-Silicate-Free-All-Year-Use-20-Litres/113340508842? Seems a good price and should do me two changes at 2:1 dilution.

Be careful with the blue retainers on the pump fittings. They break very easily. Even so, one can usually jam the broken bits back in to fulfil their purpose.

In Reims, the Veuve Cliquot visit is worth it for the trip down to the cellars. About €20 with a couple of glasses, book a couple of days ahead. Their fizz is cheaper in Tescos though. There's a good pie shop just across the roundabout outside. Usually there is free music in the Place du Forum at weekends in the summer.

Metz, Reims and Chalons en Champagne are all worth a visit, not necessarily in that order. Chalons has music outdoors weekends in July and is generally very agreeable. Verdun isn't far off your route and is on the Meuse and canal de l'est. I'd happily miss Epernay which, other than a street of vulgar champagne houses (one can see why the stuff is expensive) is rather a dump. Chateau Thierry is on the Marne and is pretty. If you're avoiding Paris to the south, Troyes is lovely but not on a navigable waterway, Nancy & Toul are on the waterways and good places to stop. Nancy is big but has a spectacular son et lumières every summer evening, Toul is a good place for a night or so.

I've seen something like a couple of Stanley knife blades in a vee configuration which would be ideal for cutting the sheath of large cable with restricted access. Blowed if I can remember where though.

The inside of the cover should look something like this: The blue bit is the end of the thermostat and it slides into a pocket. It is only held in by the wires so is easy to change. Try turning it up a bit. If that doesn't work they're only a few quid from Screwfix to replace, just get one the right length. Martin/

More likely that the thermostat needs adjusting or replacing if the water gets warmish. Is it the usual domestic arrangement coaxial with the heater or a separate unit?

A 10 A controller should work but it will only deliver 10 A. It's excess input voltage which will destroy it. Definitely a MPPT controller though.

Maybe in the salty places, but I've never seen one on the shore side inland.

I've never seen a connector like that over on the mainland. Bog-standard blue ones with round pins like here (IEC 60309 16 A 2+E), and very occasionally a variant on the standard 3-pin "euro connector" on the bornes in France.

I'd use relays / latching contactors and a multipole switch to control them.

The usual 'external' connectors are as waterproof as a paper bag (even the IP67 versions). Drill a small hole at the bottom end to let the water out.

Being slightly pedantic, the new contract only covers the work to connect the two sides of the roundabout. The new lock E of the roundabout is part of the phase 1b restoration which awaits HLF funding. Good to hear about the contractor! Martin/

There is no door catch adjustment so when the seals bulge due to corrosion behind them it's a strip out and wire brush job. If buying another Squirrel the first thing I would do is dismantle it and put copper grease on every screw. Then sell it to someone who doesn't mind cracked casting.

That sounds interesting. Mine does need adjustment every two years or so. Does your modification avoid the need for that?

I've only had one fail in 20 years, at the end where it connects to the controller. It caused a spectacular stop onto the visitor pontoon in Bristol harbour, 30 minutes boating before locking down to the tidal Avon and Severn. Worth keeping a spare and knowing how to fit it.

I like my Boatman. Easy to light, very controllable. A separate ash box would be nice but not enough to make me want a Squirrel. A poker with a bent end is handy for riddling the ash. The bloke that makes them is very nice but takes an age to respond to emails. Not sure about the colour options. Black is easy to touch up.

It certainly is, at least for a few weeks. Had to paddle baarefoot to get off the boat on Friday, it peaked at about 1.3 m over usual in Oxford. Back down to about a metre up but it will take a while to get to a navigable state.

Radiators are designed to transfer heat and so will freeze more easily. Pipes can be insulated. You'd have to insulate them anyway if you propose a recirc system. That alone will increase heat loss and battery drain under normal operation. Radiators are also usually steel so will corrode. Dunno about finrads. It would be a right PITA to have to drain the whole system and refill it regularly and bleed it all.

I think you're running tap water through the radiators with no inhibitor or antifreeze? Doesn't sound like a good idea. What happens when it's cold and you're away?

I replaced an old Jabsco manual toilet (horrid thing) with a Sanimarine SN31 Comfort last year on our boat on the mainland. Lovely piece of kit and not expensive as these things go. I preferred the one with a two way rocker switch to pump out / fill, there's less to go wrong. It's not even very noisy. I used to have an electric RM69 on our narrowboat. No end of trouble, it blocked frequently and very, very noisy.

A 1/2" inch drive is handy for turning the engine crankshaft by hand. Or a dedicated big spanner. Don't forget to take it off the nut when you try to start the engine else it may wreck several hoses. I know about such things.

There aren't any closures planned on the Thames for a good distance either side of Oxford as far as I recall (I am hoping to do some winter boating). Whether College Cruisers or Anglo Welsh at Eynsham are open I have no idea. The Thames might be unnavigable, in which case with College Cruisers you'd at least be on a canal in a nice place. Otherwise one could have a pleasant week bimbling around Oxford and Abingdon. Martin/