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New boat dimensions wide-beam


Fraclowe

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The year before last we went to Liverpool followed by Leeds and I felt really sorry for hires on widebeam boats trying to aim through the swing bridges. Close visibility from the steering position was about zero, they couldn't steer and see down ether side of the boat and once within 50 yards of the bridge had no idea where it was

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Some wide boats manage quite tight spots on canals.

 

 

 

 

Fred Olsen's cruise ship Braemar is set to repeat its record-breaking journey through the Corinth Canal, the latter which is just 24m wide at its narrowest point.

 

 

It was such a tight squeeze that passengers onboard could reach out and touch the sides of the canal.

The Corinth Canal is a waterway that separates the Greek mainland from the Peloponnese, turning it into an island and is an important navigational route

 

0_Screen-Shot-2019-10-11-at-091401.jpg

 

Braemar traversing through the canal in 2019

 

Edited by Alan de Enfield
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8 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Some wide boats manage quite tight spots on canals.

 

 

 

 

Fred Olsen's cruise ship Braemar is set to repeat its record-breaking journey through the Corinth Canal, the latter which is just 24m wide at its narrowest point.

 

 

It was such a tight squeeze that passengers onboard could reach out and touch the sides of the canal.

The Corinth Canal is a waterway that separates the Greek mainland from the Peloponnese, turning it into an island and is an important navigational route

 

0_Screen-Shot-2019-10-11-at-091401.jpg

 

Braemar traversing through the canal in 2019

 

I'm now imagining coming the other way on my narrowboat! ?

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I have a 57 x 12 widebeam with wheelhouse, the wheelhouse comes down, as yet i have not needed to fold down the wheelhouse [10 years of ownership]. I am on the northern waters which are mostly designed for proper boats so you should have no issues at my size, it has a round stern as as someone else has pointed out square sterns can cause problems in locks that are tight. Find the right boat builder and it will be a joy the wrong builder will break your heart, Finesse in Sheffield are specializing in electric boats so worth a look and a call with Riccy.

By the way my boat is electric with a large battery LifePo4 battery bank 4.6 kw of solar and a diesel genny running on full biodiesel

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44 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Some wide boats manage quite tight spots on canals.

 

 

 

 

Fred Olsen's cruise ship Braemar is set to repeat its record-breaking journey through the Corinth Canal, the latter which is just 24m wide at its narrowest point.

 

 

It was such a tight squeeze that passengers onboard could reach out and touch the sides of the canal.

The Corinth Canal is a waterway that separates the Greek mainland from the Peloponnese, turning it into an island and is an important navigational route

 

0_Screen-Shot-2019-10-11-at-091401.jpg

 

Braemar traversing through the canal in 2019

 

Does it have a Narrowboat towing it?

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On 17/02/2021 at 22:11, Fraclowe said:

Yes I knew there where changes afoot, I had planned on having it electric motor and a diesel jenny that could run on veggie oil if neccasary 

I hope that you really mean Hydotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) and not biodiesel made from waste cooking oil by the transesterification process. For your own peace of mind you need to do some research here especially on the fast moving technology around serial hybrid drives. Here's a good starting point: https://www.waterways.org.uk/campaigns/listing/sustainable-boating-campaign or if you prefer moving pictures: 

 

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18 minutes ago, Up-Side-Down said:

I hope that you really mean Hydotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) and not biodiesel made from waste cooking oil by the transesterification process. For your own peace of mind you need to do some research here especially on the fast moving technology around serial hybrid drives. Here's a good starting point: https://www.waterways.org.uk/campaigns/listing/sustainable-boating-campaign or if you prefer moving pictures: 

 

I buy mine from a plant in Rotherham huge place really never had a problem with it and I suspect used cooking oil is one of the ingrediants, I will ask next time I buy some for the VW

I watched the video for a while lost the will to live especially when he thought hydrogen was what they were proposing for the future

Edited by peterboat
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1 hour ago, Up-Side-Down said:

I hope that you really mean Hydotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) and not biodiesel made from waste cooking oil by the transesterification process. For your own peace of mind you need to do some research here especially on the fast moving technology around serial hybrid drives. Here's a good starting point: https://www.waterways.org.uk/campaigns/listing/sustainable-boating-campaign or if you prefer moving pictures: 

 

thank you for that, I had already chosen in my head about the serial hybrid but was struggling to find info about it to show it was more efficient this has helped me a great deal, I am also very interested in heat exchangers, I know there are some systems that utilize the generator/engine heat to heat water for domestic use or underfloor heating, I would be interested to know if anyone is exploring using the canal water to help refrigerate or lose heat, ie making a HVAC system for a canal boat like you would in a seafaring yacht , after all these English summers seem to be getting quite warm spells throughout the summer, again thank you for the info 

4 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

It is huge monstrosity of a boat (looks pretty in 'red') but was just not suitable for an inexperienced boater.

don't suppose you can remember the name so I can go look it up 

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8 minutes ago, Fraclowe said:

thank you for that, I had already chosen in my head about the serial hybrid but was struggling to find info about it to show it was more efficient this has helped me a great deal, I am also very interested in heat exchangers, I know there are some systems that utilize the generator/engine heat to heat water for domestic use or underfloor heating, I would be interested to know if anyone is exploring using the canal water to help refrigerate or lose heat, ie making a HVAC system for a canal boat like you would in a seafaring yacht , after all these English summers seem to be getting quite warm spells throughout the summer, again thank you for the info 

don't suppose you can remember the name so I can go look it up 

 

 

I am reluctant to post pictures of other peoples boat on the web, but I have some pics of it somewhere, which I'll find and forward to you by 'message'.

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2 hours ago, peterboat said:

I have a 57 x 12 widebeam with wheelhouse, the wheelhouse comes down, as yet i have not needed to fold down the wheelhouse [10 years of ownership]. I am on the northern waters which are mostly designed for proper boats so you should have no issues at my size, it has a round stern as as someone else has pointed out square sterns can cause problems in locks that are tight. Find the right boat builder and it will be a joy the wrong builder will break your heart, Finesse in Sheffield are specializing in electric boats so worth a look and a call with Riccy.

By the way my boat is electric with a large battery LifePo4 battery bank 4.6 kw of solar and a diesel genny running on full biodiesel

aha, u seem to be the guy who is doing what I want to do and the way I want to do it, so the height is not an issue - great,  how many areas have u avoided because of it or the beam width ,  that is one thing that was worrying me, do you navigate leigh/wigan area a lot, I grew up for a few yrs just near Pennington Marina would want to travel that stretch , I dont suppose you have a v/blog do you I can have a smooch, sorry about all the questions but u have just got me all exited ?

4 hours ago, doratheexplorer said:

Fair point.  Now imagine the OP gets a similar boat, moors it in Wigan and the first thing he does is take it down the flight! :wacko:

yes , I watched a Vid or two on the Wigan bit, I never knew we had that many , I think I will be sneaky on that one and invite a few old mate's to come aboard for the day ?

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8 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

I am reluctant to post pictures of other peoples boat on the web, but I have some pics of it somewhere, which I'll find and forward to you by 'message'.

ok thank u

3 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Some wide boats manage quite tight spots on canals.

 

 

 

 

Fred Olsen's cruise ship Braemar is set to repeat its record-breaking journey through the Corinth Canal, the latter which is just 24m wide at its narrowest point.

 

 

It was such a tight squeeze that passengers onboard could reach out and touch the sides of the canal.

The Corinth Canal is a waterway that separates the Greek mainland from the Peloponnese, turning it into an island and is an important navigational route

 

0_Screen-Shot-2019-10-11-at-091401.jpg

 

Braemar traversing through the canal in 2019

 

Holy crap

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59 minutes ago, Fraclowe said:

aha, u seem to be the guy who is doing what I want to do and the way I want to do it, so the height is not an issue - great,  how many areas have u avoided because of it or the beam width ,  that is one thing that was worrying me, do you navigate leigh/wigan area a lot, I grew up for a few yrs just near Pennington Marina would want to travel that stretch , I dont suppose you have a v/blog do you I can have a smooch, sorry about all the questions but u have just got me all exited ?

yes , I watched a Vid or two on the Wigan bit, I never knew we had that many , I think I will be sneaky on that one and invite a few old mate's to come aboard for the day ?

Never gone that far across in this boat lack of water is the only reason why we gave up last time! Winter would be a better time I have thought so it will have to wait for Jayne to retire, leeds liverpool was ok and up to Ripon is doable so you will have plenty of places to go. My genny heats the water in my boat winter time, summer I just have some solar onto an immersion heater which gives me loads of hot water as long as sun shines. As I said earlier Finesse specialise in electric boats and widebeam ones so give them a call with your needs 

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18 hours ago, dmr said:

Rather than dreaming about what is theoretically possible, like crossing the Atlantic (where you might die), what boating are you actually going to do? Maybe a narrowboat is the way to go, they go on rivers, wide canals, and Narrow canals, and there are a lot of lovely narrow canals.

 

For English (and Welsh) boating a narrowboat is the best option, if and when you get bored with that then buy a big boat in Europe. Some people have both.

 

..............Dave

This is the point that many boaters get wrong. I have met and know many owners of the much used 57 foot narrowboat as being the go anywhere boat. More often than not the owner then remains in the south or midlands etc etc where a far more comfortable 70 foot boat would have made more sense. I have a mate moors in Sawley marina ,he has been in there and local area for twenty years on a 57 foot boat he bought so he could " Go anywhere "

Unless you are actualy going on the Land L and a couple of other short length places then a 70 footer with its way more useable space that costs the same amount of money in used condition makes far more sense. By all means buy 57 foot if u are actualy needing the length restriction, if not then go for a bigger boat.

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22 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

This is the point that many boaters get wrong. I have met and know many owners of the much used 57 foot narrowboat as being the go anywhere boat. More often than not the owner then remains in the south or midlands etc etc where a far more comfortable 70 foot boat would have made more sense. I have a mate moors in Sawley marina ,he has been in there and local area for twenty years on a 57 foot boat he bought so he could " Go anywhere "

Unless you are actualy going on the Land L and a couple of other short length places then a 70 footer with its way more useable space that costs the same amount of money in used condition makes far more sense. By all means buy 57 foot if u are actualy needing the length restriction, if not then go for a bigger boat.

I am not a CCer but I do move quite a bit, we have a 57 foot boat and in 18 years have spent one week where we couldn't have gone with a 70 footer

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14 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

I'd suggest that the vast majority of liveboards* are happily living on a 7' wide x 60'-72' narrowboat

 

* There are some 'fat boats' that live in marinas as 'floating flats' that never move so they can be discounted.

 

 

Actually there are far more people living in marinas on narrowboats that never move than widebeams. These are simply thinner floating flats and there are loads of them.

 

I've done much more cruising on my 57x12' fatty than the vast majority of narrowboaters that I meet.

 

Edited by blackrose
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7 minutes ago, blackrose said:

I've done much more cruising on my 57x12' fatty than the vast majority of narrowboaters that I meet.

 

 

I have never doubted that, it doesn't change my assertion ;

 

I'd suggest that the vast majority of liveboards are happily living on a 7' wide x 60'-72' narrowboat

 

But agree there are a number of marina based NB's that rarely move, and there are a number of FB's that rarely move.

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