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arbutus

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Everything posted by arbutus

  1. It’s interesting that one of the vents is by the batteries. If you have open-vented batteries you will need ventilation. On Electrical installations the BSS essential guide says: All battery compartments containing unsealed or open-vented batteries must be adequately ventilated to prevent a build up of flammable mix of gasses. Spelling it out in more detail, the Boat Safety Scheme says: All unsealed or open-vented batteries must be stored within a ventilated space. Dedicated battery spaces or boxes for unsealed or open-vented batteries must be ventilated at the top or the highest point of the sides of the space or box and any ductwork used must run horizontally or upwards. The ventilation pathway from all battery storage locations must lead to the outside of the hull or superstructure.
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  4. The weather is currently cold and dry with low humidity so any static electricity has problems draining away as it would under more humid conditions. My guess is that you are generating static electricity, either by rubbing the antlers, wearing synthetic clothing or have synthetic carpets. It’s probably actually you discharging static electricity to earth rather than a faulty appliance shocking you. As a computer maintenance man, I used to have a few calls each year, especially with printers, with operators complaining that the printer was giving then shocks. It turned out to be the computer operators discharging themselves through the machine and the calls were normally in very dry weather. One customer had a large steel fire door with a steel handle as the entrance / exit from their computer room. Whenever there were complaints that the steel handle was giving people shocks, the manager would spray the carpet in the room with dilute fabric softener, as used in washing machines (this was a washing machine manufacturer). It always cured the problem for a few weeks. Fabric softener has anti-static properties. You could try doing the same.
  5. The “basin”, as shown in the photo occurs just after the canal crosses the river Stour on an aqueduct and the canal then immediately turns 90 degrees. A few hundred yards past the “basin” is Stourton junction. I assumed it was mini stone quarry. If you are looking for a house and have a spare £1.2 million, the house and pool that you can see as you go over the aqueduct and immediately before you swing right and pass the “basin”, is for sale. The plot includes the land around the “basin” asked about by the OP. I’ve often wondered whether a narrowboat could navigate through to the pool from the canal and moor by the house. That would be some end of garden mooring. Photo numbers 22 and 23 in the sales guide show what you see from the canal. http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-46387012.html
  6. From the local Express & Star newspaper, published 12 January 2015. Narrowboat destroyed in suspected arson attack A narrowboat was destroyed in a suspected arson attack while moored for the winter on a Wednesfield canal. Firefighters from Willenhall were alerted around 12.45am after neighbours spotted the blaze on the stretch of water at the back of their homes in Lichwood Road. Watch Commander Andy Morgan said: "It was well alight when we arrived. It had not sunk but it was unsalvageable." The crew had to go through the back gardens of homes to reach the scene and extinguished the flames with a hose reel jet. Firefighters were at the scene for almost two and a half hours yesterday and believe that the blaze had been started deliberately. The value of the narrowboat is unknown but it is believed that the owner regularly moors it in the area.
  7. Our boat fitter also used a Bette shower tray. They are German made of enamelled steel. The surface can be specified as slip resistant.
  8. Yes. More information and photographs http://www.ayland.eu/gands/G&S/Peter_Else_Narrowboats.html I think Waterways World reviewed one of the boats. The design gave a lot of room up front for a boat of only 30 or 35 feet.
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  11. Calcutt Boats used to have semi-display adverts in the classified section of Waterways World with boats for sale. I’m Not sure whether this is the boat you have in mind, I can’t find any other boats actually sold by Calcutt Boats between 1980 and 1982 with the names you mentioned, but I assume that they may not have been sold by Calcutt themselves. In February 1980 they advertised “Juniper – 57 Ft Castle cruisers 1976 all steel with Lister SR3, h & c to stainless sink, w.b’s and shower, 2 pump-out toilets, generous storage space and wardrobes, Astral 3-b cooker, Good value at £8,600 inc VAT.” The next month, March 1980 the specification had changed with only one toilet mentioned and price had gone up to £9,000 “Juniper – 57 Ft Castle cruisers 1976 all steel with Lister SR3, h & c to stainless sink, w.b’s and shower, pump-out toilet, generous storage, catalytic gas fires plus Eclipse No 9 solid fuel stove, Collette cooker, Electrolux fridge. Excellent value at £9000 inc VAT.” Then two years later in August 1982 they advertised Juniper and it had shrunk by a foot. “Juniper – 56-FT all steel Castle Cruisers narrowboat with Lister 3-cylinder engine. Has been a little neglected lately hence the bargain price of £8,500” Finally, the following month the same advert appeared but it did not mention the neglect, it just said “Juniper – 56-FT all steel Castle Cruisers narrowboat with Lister 3-cylinder engine. £ 8,500”
  12. I would think carefully about where you want the engine exhaust gasses to exit. Vintage engines tend to have their exhaust stack exiting through the roof and the steerer will be breathing in a certain amount of the exhaust fumes. Modern engines normally have the exhaust exiting at a low level through the stern, leaving the steerer to breath cleaner air. I definitely wouldn’t have another boat with a roof mounted exhaust stack no matter how clean the engine exhaust looks but I do like the measured tone of a Gardner and the way the boat handles with a large propeller compared to a modern fast revving engine with a smaller propeller.
  13. We ate at The Cheshire Cat a few months ago. It's on my list of food pubs to return to. They open on Mondays and they are not too far from the canal aqueduct. http://www.thecatat.com
  14. They are not based within three days of Sheffield but Shire Cruisers at Sowerby Bridge list a 14 day adventure cruise to Sheffield, 158 miles, 114 locks, some locks being electric, and 70 hours cruising. They have eight and ten berth boats available with singles and one double bed, boats are 56 foot long. I’ve only hired a four berth from them some years back, so can’t really comment on the boats or the route. http://www.shirecruisers.co.uk/routes/canal-adventure-holidays.php
  15. A couple of years ago we did the Bridgewater canal. The one thing I remember was going to the Swan With Two Nicks Pub which does food and is well known but well hidden. It’s in a little hamlet but can’t be seen from the canal. We moored in what seemed the middle of nowhere, but right by a small aqueduct which is hard to spot as the only indication from the canal is a short stone wall. Walk down the steps by the aqueduct and come to a cart track. Walk under the canal and a couple of hundred yards up the track and you are at the pub. http://www.swanwithtwonicks.co.uk/index.html
  16. Negotiating the junction at Middlewich can be tricky. Wardle lock is just immediately through the bridge as you turn from the T&M onto the Middlewich branch and you don’t want to be turning and going through the bridge if a boat is coming down the lock. It’s best to send someone ahead to check out the situation at the junction after you have dropped down the last lock on the T&M just before the junction. The shore party can check if the lock is free or if other boats at the junction are in a queue waiting to get into Wardle lock. The area can get very busy and mooring while waiting for Wardle lock can be tricky. Paul C has already covered advice on Harecastle tunnel and mooring after it.
  17. I agree with you, I enjoy long boating days, early morning and late evening are some of the best times for me, but Boaterdave mentioned doing (only) 8 hours a day. Boaterdave’s previous trip on the four counties ring would have consisted of 94 locks, 109 miles and taken about 8 or 9 hours a day, so the proposed trip of 101 locks and 105 miles from Mercia marina doing the Black Country ring isn’t so different, but some days will need more than 8 hours boating. Most people go from the Curdworth flight on the B&F to Gas Street in one (long) day so that is 3 Minworth locks, 11 Locks Aston flight, 13 locks Farmers Bridge plus any of the 11 Curdworth locks that were not done the previous day, so a minimum of 27 locks, maximum38 locks. We recently, in one day, went from Catherine-de-Barnes on the GU, up Knowle locks, through the B’ham Camp Hill flight, down to Salford Junction, and through the Curdworth flight to the Dog-in Doublet. It was relaxing as around B’ham there were no boats chasing us down the lock flights and the two of us were able to do the locks at our own pace. It depends what type of holiday Boaterdave (and his other half) want to have. Boaterdave, If you do decide to do the Black country ring think about using the BCN old mainline between Smethwick and Wolverhampton, it takes longer than using the new mainline but is much more interesting. Alternatively, although the Ashby itself is lockless, there will still be 48 locks to negotiate,
  18. The Mercia Marina website has a downloadable (PDF) route planning guide. It reckons that the black country ring, including return to the marina is 105 miles 101 locks and recommends 8 days (two weekend plus the bit between them). It also states that the black country ring is the ONLY ring doable in a week. Doing the black country ring, the center of Birmingham is on a hill so you spend a lot of time in an urban environment doing locks to get up the hill and then more locks to get down the other side. My guess is that it’s a bit much for a one week outing. With a crew of only two people and assuming one week hire, as you have already done the four counties which includes bits of the T&M and Staffs & Worcs, I would do an out and return trip making for Snarestone at the end of the pretty Ashby canal. The Mercia planner shows 48 locks and 78 hours over 10 days to reach Snarestone you may do it in less time or you may have to turn around and head back to base before reaching Snarestone but with a canal holiday it’s the traveling rather than the arriving that matters.
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  20. Perrydale fit out shells at Ashwood Marina on the S&W. They have a web site http://www.perrydalenarrowboats.co.uk I've seen a couple of boats in the marina but haven't looked at them, so can't give any comments.
  21. I assume “registered with the RYA” means that the seller obtained a Hull Identification Number (HIN) from the RYA, which allows the boat to be CE marked and therefore can be legally sold within the first 5 years of completion within the European market. The RYA are the people who dish these out for the UK if you are a self builder or, as in my case, have the hull built by one company and the fit out done by paying a few different people to do it. Not sure whether it’s called a Craft of Hull number these days i.e. HIN or CIN.
  22. I think this will be a super silent Beta marine box. See http://www.betamarine.co.uk/inland/Beta_SuperSilent/supersilent_inland.html It contains a diesel engine and probably a 3.5KVA Travel Power AC generator. The gearbox will probably be a PRM hydraulically operated mechanical gearbox so the drive shaft for the prop is fitted to the gearbox at the one end of the cocooned engine box, and the drive shaft runs under the raised floor to the propeller. I think some of these Beta units may alternatively have a larger AC generator fitted and run the engine at a constant speed to produce electrical power. It then uses a trolling valve to vary the speed of the prop shaft. http://www.tadiesels.com/newage_prm-trolling-valve.html This could cause confusion to some people when passing moored boats at high engine revs but at a low boat speed.
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  24. As you’re a newbie have you thought of buying a couple of canal guides through Amazon.com. Nicholson guides give detailed maps of the canals and describe local villages and pubs along the way. Search for “Collins/Nicholson waterways guide” If you are collecting the boat at Anderton look at the “Four counties and welsh canals” the 2012 edition. If you are going from Market Harborough look at “Birmingham and the Heart of England” 2014 edition. If you go from Anderton and go up the Llangollen, one of my favourite places is Wrenbury. It’s nothing special but if you moor there you can hear the church clock chiming every quarter hour and you can walk across a field and through the church yard to get to the village shop., reading the inscriptions on the gravestones as you go. There’s a pub, a restaurant and an electrically operated lift bridge where you have to stop the traffic to open the bridge to get your boat through.
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