I'm too hot!

[bargemast]

I have a friend on a narrowboat who experimented by running a hose down one side of the roof and back down the other, blanked off at the end with holes every ft down its length. The idea was that the water would cool the steel on the roof and the sides of the boat and that would make it cooler inside the boat. He ran it from the waterpoint at his mooring with the intention of buying a pump and using canal water if it worked.

 

After running it for a day, he said it didn't make a blind bit of difference to the internal temperature. At least he only wasted a cheap hose (and a bit of water!).

 

I've been doing since several years what your narrowboat friend did, and on my boat that has quite wide side-decks covered with black non-slip rubber, it does make a huge difference, without the water your feet burn, I'm pumping the water in which my boat floats and that running water keeps the decks really very cool, and drops the temperature inside drasticly.

 

Peter.

[blackrose]

That would suprise me, if the metal surface is hot, the heat will filter through to the inside of the boat. if you run water over it it will cool down, and not heat the boat up so much.

 

It surprised him (and me) too. I guess if the steel is hot enough to evaporate the water quickly then it stays hot. I don't know. I don't really have a good explanation, all I know is that it didn't work on his boat. It's easy enough to set up a similar experiment, but don't waste a hose by putting holes in it, just get someone to stand on the roof spraying the boat with water for an hour while someone else watches a temperature gauge inside.

Edited July 6, 2013 by blackrose

[BenC]

Cut roof of your boat make it a convertible, wear Miami vice style jacket with sleeves rolled up the you'll be cool!

Edited July 6, 2013 by BenC

[Athy]

Only hitting thirty one or two in the Lot his week. The boaters I spoke to yesterday were loving it......

I got back last night from the Ardeche where the temperature was almost as elevated. The only boat I saw moving on the Rhone was an imposing though ugly hotel craft called Swiss Corona; most of the occupants were on the roof or open decks and appeared happy enough.

The main purpose of my trip was to attend the reopening of the Vivarais railway, and I am not sure that the crew of the Mallet locomotive, clad in old-fashioned overalls and berets, appreciated the heat quite as much.

Doodle, refreshing cold wash or shower perhaps?

[Doodlebug]

Your probably right, I coped fine last year, I think its just today being the hotest day so far, after a freezing winter. My body doesn't understand! I'm sure i'll get used to it!

 

I'm on my second shower of the day

Cut roof of your boat make it a convertible, wear Miami vice style jacket with sleeves rolled up the you'll be cool!

 

This forum needs a 'like' button badly.

[Guest]

Your probably right, I coped fine last year, I think its just today being the hotest day so far, after a freezing winter. My body doesn't understand! I'm sure i'll get used to it!

 

I'm on my second shower of the day

 

 

This forum needs a 'like' button badly.

It already has one.....green button bottom right of each post, the one with the white uparoow in it.

 

Though you don.t see it if using the 'mobile' version of the forum.

[Québec]

We do the following:

 

1) ensure direct sun is kept out of the interior via blinds, curtains or shutters.

 

2) ensure there is as much airflow as possible.

 

3. Something that hasn't been mentioned yet...to cool the interior, use a fine mist plant sprayer filled with the coldest water you can find. Cools the air down significantly (and dries quickly in hot weather)

 

4. Run a fan over a tray of (ice) cold water.

[BenC]

Catch some wood pigeons, tie them to your head and shoulders, shout bang from time to time and you have a lovely cooling flappy feeling

[Québec]

Alternatively ...hire a punka wallah.

[Darren72]

Sit in the canal!

[comfortably numb]

We've been managing with doors and hatch open so as to get a slight through draft. That was okay until we had to lock the boat up for a couple of hours to go out this afternoon and when we returned the boat was like an oven inside, and hasn't cooled down yet hours later at 9pm. I think I'll sleep on the roof tonight !

[BenC]

We've been managi

ng with doors and hatch open so as to get a slight through draft. That was okay until we had to lock the boat up for a couple of hours to go out this afternoon and when we returned the boat was like an oven inside, and hasn't cooled down yet hours later at 9pm. I think I'll sleep on the roof tonight !

Slept on the roof years ago (care free days) on the Oxford canal, under a meteor shower, amazing.

[nicknorman]

Sitting outside in T shirt and shorts at 22:15 - just getting pleasantly cool. What a lovely evening! Inside of boat still on the warm side for sleeping.

[i love my narrowboat]

We have portholes on our boat and find that it is cooler than our neighbour who has large windows on theirs. we have our hatch open and a dark net across it and the doors open with nets across and have found it to be fine.

[Ange]

Front and back doors and all windows open along with curtains closed on the sunny side works for us.

 

We used to moor in the shade but have solar panels now.

[canals are us?]

I took my Grandparents and Sister out for a short cruise to Alrewas and to be honest I was baking hot at the tiller in full sun with no sunblock unfortunately and found it too hot for me. Even with the doors open and the hopper glass removed it's still rather warm indoors, although a slight breeze which is lovely when it blows over my rather red face.

 

Setting up a large floor standing fan tomorrow, hope this helps I already close the curtains on the sunny side.

We all enjoyed the cruise out and I found it great to get out the Marina.

 

James

[onionbargee]

Running water over the steel cabin does work, i tested the idea out with a hose once, to do it properly you would need a solar powered pump, sucking up from the canal bottom.

 

If you put a space blanket up to shade the cabin that works too, but blinds everyone for about a mile radius !

 

theres also the fact that the canal water were sitting in is quite cool, about 10 deg lower in the summer, pump that to a car radiator, and fan it into your cabin, and your in business ?

 

Use a mirror to focus the sun on the burner of a gas fridge, and fan the cold evaporator into the cabin ? free cold.

[Doodlebug]

How (if I was to use a hose permanently attached to the rails on the boat) would I make sure it is an even flow of water rather than little drips running down the boat at intervals. The entire side needs to be made wet.

 

Also would the canal water not leave bad staining all over the boat?

 

In theory I could dedicate an 80w panel to running all of that, for the summer months when I have too much power anyway.

 

Also, how hot do the burners on the gas fridges have to be. I have one that has a faulty burner, and I dont want it any more. I wondered about running hot water through the tube the gas exhaust runs through (i.e. have it plumbed into the heating system) and then use it as a dehumidifier. It would also be 99% efficient.

[blackrose]

Running water over the steel cabin does work, i tested the idea out with a hose once, to do it properly you would need a solar powered pump, sucking up from the canal bottom.

 

It obviously works on some boats but not others for some reason. It didn't work on my friend's boat and he tried it all day. How many degrees did it reduce the inside temperature by when you tested the idea?

[tree]

It's on days like this that you find out just how good you insulated the boat! (only feeling slightly smug at those who said I went OTT).

As said, try to increase the air flow, if you can take glass out of window.

A net of some sort will let in air but keep direct sun out, I use voile on my side hatches for this reason. Another way is to fit Houdini's as warm air rises.

aha!! so that is why it was lovely and cool inside your boat when it was roasting outside. plus if you take any glass out.. put it somewhere safe ( doesnt mention moi putting them in odd places... sits whistling with it wernt me expression ..it was one of 'the kids'

Moor under a tree

OI!! nigel i aint that BIG lol

[Kwacker]

From yesterdays experience, I'd recommend Husbands Bosworth tunnel.

Could not touch the cabin roof going in, stone cold coming out.

[DHutch]

Can`t wait to get back, it`s 44 degrees here at the moment.

I was going to say, I can also emperthiese with the OP, its only about 38 here, but im still at a lose as to how to get to get to a bar cafe (conditioned) without first wetting my t-shirt through. Sigh!

 

As to the OP the cream roof will help a lot, ours is mid green, however we also have two side hatches, one on each side and end of the main living space, so whichever way you are facing you get a through draft over the boat, excluding the engine room. We then also have a pair of large roof hatches, on in the main living space, and one over the engine room. The engine room still gets mad hot (60c+) but you dont have to be in there very long unless something goes wrong!

 

 

Daniel

[Doorman]

Remove all clothing and splash cold water over protruding parts. Post photos to show results.

Can't stand photos of 'pot bellies', lol.

 

Sitting outside in T shirt and shorts at 22:15 - just getting pleasantly cool. What a lovely evening! Inside of boat still on the warm side for sleeping.

Aye, you're right there!

 

Trust me to pick the hottest day of the year to record our freezer temperature (using the timer reference) overnight. An increase in 3 degrees C was duly noted.

Edited July 7, 2013 by Doorman

[Suzie_q]

From yesterdays experience, I'd recommend Husbands Bosworth tunnel.

Could not touch the cabin roof going in, stone cold coming out.

The cold shower in the early part of crick tunnel helped yesterday as well.

[Athy]

We have portholes on our boat and find that it is cooler than our neighbour

 

 

I always knew that portholes were cool.