Handrail Protection for Standedge Tunnel??

[frangar]

HI Chaps

 

We maybe doing Standedge Tunnel over this summer and whilst we fit the tunnel dimensions with room to spare we also have wooden handrails…..

 

Has anyone used anything to protect their handrails from navigational error?? I thought of using some electrical conduit but the cost would be the wrong side of £200 to get the right size which seems slightly pricey for something I won't use again and hopefully won't be needed anyhow!

 

Im not sure anything cheap like pipe lagging will offer any protection and being foam may even catch and pull the boat onto the wall more….

 

Am I worrying unduly?…I know one boat in our marina who's cabin is a bit shorter on one side after having gone through……We made it safely through Froghall tunnel but thats quite a bit shorter…..

 

Any thoughts most welcome

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

[Grace and Favour]

Could you mount some small wheeled castors on to the handrails fore, aft and middle? (much better than anything that'll be abraded)

[Mac of Cygnet]

I usually tape thick wads of newspaper to the front of my handrails , but in the event they've never been needed, although I see marks on the tunnel walls where other boats have made contact. In fact it's usually my cruiser stern side rails which have been scraped (but not this time )

[frangar]

Well thats a couple of ideas I hadn't thought of…..I will ponder them for a bit!…..keep the ideas coming…..the more the merrier!

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

[Daiboy]

If they are wooden handrails, how easy is it to remove them completely??

[Neil2]

Presumably you mean on the cabin roof?

 

I wouldn't bother. We got through Froghall with our previous boat, and Standedge was no problem. As Mac says the main area of concern is side rails on a cruiser, but it looks like you have a trad/semi.

[frangar]

If they are wooden handrails, how easy is it to remove them completely??

Impossible without destroying them! They are bolted to the steel….bonded underneath with sikaflex and mastic tape then all the holes filled with epoxy resin and binder…oh and then the whole lot coated with more epoxy resin before painting!…..I don't do half a job do I…!!

 

Perhaps I should have made them to be removable with hindsight!!

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

Presumably you mean on the cabin roof?

 

I wouldn't bother. We got through Froghall with our previous boat, and Standedge was no problem. As Mac says the main area of concern is side rails on a cruiser, but it looks like you have a trad/semi.

 

Yes I do!

 

Its a Trad and quite a low one at that…its the change in profile which Im a bit worried about….we came through Froghall with room to spare but its straightish compared to what I've been told about Standedge!

[David Mack]

BW used to put rubber sheeting over boat cabins when boats were towed through behind the tug.

[Paul G2]

Sheet metal roof flashing is pretty inexpensive and could be temporarily affixed with duct tape.

 

Something like this (PVC) or this (aluminum)

 

This is actually more of what I had in mind because you can roll it up and stow if for future use, but I have no idea what it is called on your side of the pond so you'll have to figure that out yourself if it interests you.

[Paul C]

As above (Paul G2's post). I was going to suggest something like rubber gym (or judo) mats, securely (I'd suggest drill some holes in them and use wire, cable ties would probably tear) attached to your handrails. Basically you want to take it slowly, and if it hits, act as a 'bumper' and deform to stop the boat, not just tear away or shift around.

 

I'll say though I've never done Froghall tunnel (chickened out due to possible boat damage!), not Standedge but just done Gosty Hill tunnel which is pretty low in the middle. I too was worried about the cabin edges (we have cant rails) but just reduced speed a lot and concentrated and the boat went through the middle with no scrapes.

[PhilR]

For Froghall tunnel I fasten plastic fenders to protect the front corners of the cabin roof and handrails - one on each side. You shouldn't need to cover the whole length of the handrails. All you should need is something that stands a few inches proud and is strong enough withstand the odd nudge. If you keep your eyes open on your travels you should find a few plastic fenders floating in the canal. GRP boats tend to lose them in lock flights. Sack cloth also works well.

 

The aim is to use Sod's Law. If you have no protection you will probably scrape some paint off. If you use some protection the chances are you will steer straight through without touching anything.

Edited May 26, 2014 by PhilR

[frangar]

Ive found this:

 

http://www.plasticbuildingsupplies.com/products/pvc-flexi-angle-37-5mm-37-5mm-white

 

it might work well as the angle on the outside edge of the handrails isn't 9o degrees.

 

It comes in a few sizes….not too pricy…well cheaper than new handrails!….was thinking of holding it on with wide masking tape so don't damage the paint…..might also use the fender idea on the front cabin corners as well….

 

I could also just do the L & L or the Rochdale and not go on the HNC…..

 

Many thanks for all the ideas so far.

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

[Neil2]

Impossible without destroying them! They are bolted to the steel….bonded underneath with sikaflex and mastic tape then all the holes filled with epoxy resin and binder…oh and then the whole lot coated with more epoxy resin before painting!…..I don't do half a job do I…!!

 

Perhaps I should have made them to be removable with hindsight!!

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

 

Yes I do!

 

Its a Trad and quite a low one at that…its the change in profile which Im a bit worried about….we came through Froghall with room to spare but its straightish compared to what I've been told about Standedge!

If you got through without touching the guage at Froghall I think you are worrying unnecessarily.

 

Ok it is more of a cave than a tunnel, but bear in mind that you transit Standedge with a "pilot" and they know the tunnel intimately..

[wirren]

Hi

I have altered a pair of go-cart tyres so that the tyre fits snugly on the front corners of our cabin roof.

 

If you have a cart track near you you can usually pick them up for free.

 

Good luck tunneling

 

Mark

[frangar]

Well I've managed to get some 50mm x 50mm upvc angle from a local supplier of building plastic for roughy half the price of anything I found online...meaning I have enough for the whole length of the handrails for just less than £30!

 

I'm going to hold it on with wide masking tape so hopefully it will come off without taking the paint with it....I'm also working on a way to fix some of my side fenders to the front cabin corners to offer some protection there.

 

Many thanks for everyone's input....now all I need is the water level to drop so I can get up the soar and Trent!

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

[Paul G2]

Well I've managed to get some 50mm x 50mm upvc angle from a local supplier of building plastic for roughy half the price of anything I found online...meaning I have enough for the whole length of the handrails for just less than £30!

 

I'm going to hold it on with wide masking tape so hopefully it will come off without taking the paint with it....I'm also working on a way to fix some of my side fenders to the front cabin corners to offer some protection there.

 

Many thanks for everyone's input....now all I need is the water level to drop so I can get up the soar and Trent!

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

You might want to consider getting some low-tack (weak adhesive) masking tape to wrap your rails where you want to affix the protection but then using duct tape over that to actually affix the upvc angle. Duct tape is much stronger and will hold the angle in place better.

 

One of the secretes to removing the masking tape without damaging the paint is to remove it as soon as you can after it has served its purpose. Another trick is to spray it with WD40. The WD40 will dissolve the adhesive.

[Guest]

If you got through without touching the guage at Froghall I think you are worrying unnecessarily.

 

Ok it is more of a cave than a tunnel, but bear in mind that you transit Standedge with a "pilot" and they know the tunnel intimately..

 

But they don't steer the boat.

 

Personally I find it very hard to maintain concentration in a long tunnel and would find it very hard to get through Standedge without touching something along the way.

[Neil2]

But they don't steer the boat.

 

Personally I find it very hard to maintain concentration in a long tunnel and would find it very hard to get through Standedge without touching something along the way.

As Mac of Cygnet said, and I concur, the only real issue with Standedge is stern rails, and only then if they don't follow the cabin profile (as many don't). Standedge is actually a lot easier than many tunnels, and you are slowing down, and stopping, frequently.

 

Most of the damage sustained by boats in transit originates from the days when boats were convoyed through.

[frangar]

I will report back if they have been successful or not when I have done it…..if it would stop raining and the River Soar drops a bit….still at least Im still in the marina and not in a field somewhere!

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

[Capt Ahab]

HI Chaps

 

We maybe doing Standedge Tunnel over this summer and whilst we fit the tunnel dimensions with room to spare we also have wooden handrails…..

 

Has anyone used anything to protect their handrails from navigational error?? I thought of using some electrical conduit but the cost would be the wrong side of £200 to get the right size which seems slightly pricey for something I won't use again and hopefully won't be needed anyhow!

 

Im not sure anything cheap like pipe lagging will offer any protection and being foam may even catch and pull the boat onto the wall more….

 

Am I worrying unduly?…I know one boat in our marina who's cabin is a bit shorter on one side after having gone through……We made it safely through Froghall tunnel but thats quite a bit shorter…..

 

Any thoughts most welcome

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

If you made it through Froghall you have nothing to fear. The perils of Standedge are exaggerated - have passed through twice with no loss of paint.

[NickF]

Well I've managed to get some 50mm x 50mm upvc angle from a local supplier of building plastic for roughy half the price of anything I found online...meaning I have enough for the whole length of the handrails for just less than £30!

 

I'm going to hold it on with wide masking tape so hopefully it will come off without taking the paint with it....I'm also working on a way to fix some of my side fenders to the front cabin corners to offer some protection there.

 

Many thanks for everyone's input....now all I need is the water level to drop so I can get up the soar and Trent!

 

Cheers

 

Gareth

How about fixing it on with cable ties? Really secure and you can cut them off afterwards and no risk of damaging the paint.

 

Have a great trip, I think HNC is my favourite canal!

[MartinClark]

Are the hand rails right on the very edge of the roof or are they set in a little way from the side?

 

There is not really a problem with height in Standedge as there is in Froghall, but it has an awkward and constantly-changing tunnel profile. Forget ideas like attaching castors - they might work if it was a regular brick-lined tunnel but in places Standedge has a rough and uneven rock face and you wouldn't want anything protruding that might catch.

 

If you take it nice and steady and listen to the advice of the CRT chapperone, you should be able to avoid too many bumps. You should be able to avoid contact with the roof completely, as you can see that, and steer away from any overhanging bits that might appear. I found the problem was that there are bits sticking out further down, which you cannot see. If you hit a bit sticking out down below, it way well cause to boat to ricochet towards the other wall, which is a good reason to keep the speed down.

 

You'll almost certainly end up with scrapes below the gunnels and perhaps some scrapes to the cabin sides but, with care, you ought to be able to keep the roof away from harm. The worst thing to beware of is protruding bolts which can seriously gouge your paintwork.

Edited May 30, 2014 by MartinClark

[PhilR]

Have a greenie Martin. That is probably the best advice so far.

 

I still reckon that the best, and free, protection is fenders or tyres to protect both front cabin edges. It is very likely that they won't be needed but they might give some peace of mind to the steerer?

[MartinClark]

Have a greenie Martin. That is probably the best advice so far.

 

Thanks, Phil. The only greenies I've had recently are best kept confined to my handkerchief.

[ditchcrawler]

If you made it through Froghall you have nothing to fear. The perils of Standedge are exaggerated - have passed through twice with no loss of paint.

Maybe that is because you can steer