grandunion5

Thanks for your advice. True... I forgot to mention it was a 58ft narrowboat. Time to start shopping around now Marc

Hi everyone. I would just like your advice on bow, stern and middle mooring ropes. What length, thickness and material would you recommend? Cheers, Marc

Yes, the negative ring goes all 360. I bought them from here: http://www.ecs-marine-equipment.co.uk/mari...item-24192.html As I will use a 12v TV/DVD with them, the connection should be good otherwise I guess the appliance might suffer. Not sure whether I can swap plugs though, something I need to investigate.

Thanks for all those comments. This morning I did some more tests. I tried the plug in another car and it wouldn't work. The neighbour has this big spot light with a 12v cigar lighter plug so I tried it on all sockets in the boat and it works fine no matter how you push it in (my sockets are full metal inside for negative and a little cup thingy at the bottom for positive). I then tried my TV lead again, pushing it in odd positions into the sockets and finally got some readings at the other end. Depending on how I push it in, I read either 0 volts, 14.75 volts (when battery charger is on - 12.78 without charger), or any other kind of voltage inbetween. So it seems that there is bad physical contact between the plug and the sockets. If I touch the plug while in the socket only just slightly, the voltage just either drops or shoots up and then seems to stabilise to any voltage between 0 and battery level. Is it possible that the resistor inside the plug is faulty? That would mean the resistor in the phone charger plug would also be faulty... I doubt it though, but then I can't see why the plugs without resistor work fine (the spotlight and an extension socket I tested as well). (Resistor might not be the right word. As far as I was told, the plug contains a regulator to keep voltage constant, but I have not verified this) This is the sockets I have : http://www.sutars.com/1212.htm

No voltage on the plug at the other end indeed. That is in the boat only. In the car, I get voltage through and tv works fine. Same result with the other plug (phone charger) I tested. All sockets in the boat have same voltage reading as the batteries. So, with the boat sockets, somehow current is going into the plug as the indicator light is on, but it's not going beyond to the other end.

I checked the polarity and all 6 sockets are wired properly. Light bulb is super bright and happy in all of them. The sockets are brand new as they have just been installed. Little indicator light on the 12v plugs (two of them tested) comes on when inserted in the sockets, but still no power in the cable beyond that. However, as I said, it works fine in the cigar lighter socket of the car. So, still puzzled Marc

Hi all! I have a bit of a problem with 12v cigar lighter plugs. I have installed the sockets on 3 different 6mm2 cable runs and today I tested my first 12v appliance (TV) on them. To my surprise the appliance was not getting any power. So I took out my multimeter and this is what I've got: - Sockets work fine as they read same voltage as what I get on the batteries. - When the 12v plug is inserted into the socket, the indicator light comes on but there is no power whatsoever at the end of the lead. - Tested another 12v plug (phone charger) with same results, no power - Took another 12v socket, wired it with 30cm 6mm2 wires to test it as close to the batteries as possible; socket has power; plug indicator light comes on but no power at the end of the lead - Made the same test on a battery not in the boat system with same results, no power - Took the plug to the neighbour's car, plugged it into the cigar lighter socket of the car, and got power all the way through. If anyone has any idea as to what the problem is, comments would be much appreciated. Thanks Marc

Got mine from Wolseley Timber/Build Centre. There must be some around Birmingham. Fair price and quick delivery. Marc

Yes, it heats the boat rather well, I'd say. I have 8 radiators (4 on each side of the boat - 2 large ones, 4 medium and 1 smaller size and 1 small finrad). Even when I use it to heat up the calorifier, it still delivers the same heat for the radiators. On average (with the cold weather we're getting now, the temperature in the boat goes up by about 3 or 4 degrees per hour. Have you checked whether you've got air trapped in the system?

Thanks for your comforting comments Now I know that Webasto is a noisy fella and will just have to live with it haha

Thanks for the suggestions. After careful examination, I found a neutral wire loose in the consumer unit. Was easy to fix. Marc

I'd recommend Darkesteelboats in Stilton, near Peterborough. They're building a narrowboat at the moment. Looks really neat. Worth having a look and a chat. The main fabricator is Stan Hardy and their office number is 01733 240 580. Good luck in your search. Marc

Hi there A 240v question. I've got a ring main with 4 sockets. 240v gets into the boat via a consumer unit into a Sterling ProCombi S, then out of the combi into another consumer unit that protects the sockets (Both consumer units are of the garage type as sold by Screwfix). It's the RCD in the second consumer unit (so the one after the Sterling ProCombi) that keeps tripping whenever a load (even a small bulb) is put into any of the sockets. However, when a tester is put into the sockets, it shows everything is fine and nothing happens. Any suggestion as to where the problem might be? Thanks for your help. Marc

Hi there. Webasto is a topic that has often been discussed here but I'd like your comment on a noise that's appeared recently. I started using my Webasto about a month ago for the first time ever. It sounded quite nomal at that time. I have been using it roughly for 2 hours every morning and occasionally 2 hours in the evening. For the rest of the time, the fella is off and resting. Suddenly, about a week ago, that strange noise appeared in the very first minute after ignition (after that it's fine), and that noise seems to be getting worse every day. It sounds a bit like an old engine that would need oiling or lubricating... that's the best I can describe it. Any suggestion what that might be? Thanks Marc

Well, thanks for all those replies. I have now got the answer to my particular problem. My engine comes with wires in the loom for oil pressure gauge and water temperature gauge, but no sender fitted As the gauges came with senders, that will all be sorted out soon