Good Bridges for painting under

[junior]

Bit of a tricky one/long shot.

 

As soon as the weather warms up I am going to give a friend a hand with a bit of paint touching up on his boat. To keep costs down he'd like to avoid paying for a wet/covered dock if possible.

 

Are there any good bridges between say Weedon and South Birmingham that could be utilised for a few days of keeping dry?

 

I guess some basic criteria need to be that it is very wide so as to cause no hazard to navigation, have some way of tying the boat up and also be fairly light. I can think of one in Milton Keynes that is often used as a paint shop but that is a bit far really.

 

In case there is no positive outcome on the above, what are the options round there for a wet dock? I think it is going to be fairly short notice as he's going to be relying on decent weather to do the prep work so can't book something too far in advance. Lastly what is the going rate for a wet dock? He can deal with that for himself, but I'm curious myself.

[Mendip-Locks]

Geoff off Seyella did his August 2013 in Stone £210.00 for the week see here http://seyellas-journey.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/more-bits-and-pieces-and-counting-cost.html

 

Ade

[forsberg]

From friends reports on passing Birmingham I'll gather that if moored under the correct bridge he wont even have to pay for paint or do the work himself?

[alan_fincher]

I guess some basic criteria need to be that it is very wide so as to cause no hazard to navigation, have some way of tying the boat up and also be fairly light. I can think of one in Milton Keynes that is often used as a paint shop but that is a bit far really.

As you suggest, this is fairly common practice under several of the bridges further South, not just in the Milton Keynes area, but also the M25, and the M25 feeder bridges near Watford.

 

Unfortunately I'm now going to sound a bit like Mr Grumpy, but under most of these bridges the sides are solid concrete, so no use of piling hooks or chains possible, and people end up attempting to ram stakes into minor gaps in a very solid surface, often only resulting in the most tenuous of tying ups, and also sometimes causing considerable damage.

 

Passing boaters then get shouted at, even if genuinely on tick over, because there is a very good chance they will yank such boats off their very dubious mooring arrangements, particularly where the channel is relatively narrow, as it is at some bridges people try to exploit as paint docks.

 

By all means try it, but please accept that if a passing boat has made a reasonable attempt to slow down, and you still get a heavy rocking, that where you have chosen as a "mooring" is probably a very unsatisfactory one.

 

A further thought is that painting is usually achieved fastest if you can freely switch between both sides of the boat, leaving one side to dry, as you progress with the other. Not many of these bridges will easily permit this, so the nearest point(s) you can wind at may also be a strong consideration.

[Athy]

A better modus operandi might be to watch the weather forecast, and when two or three dry days in a row approach, then get on with the work in the open. Everyone makes fun of meteorologists but the more reputable ones, e.g. the Met Office, are reliable most of the time.

[Proper Charlie]

I've see people working on boats where the A14 passes over the Leicester branch. Not exactly Weedon but not too far away.

[dave moore]

The problems with long bridges are also wind and poor light. The traffic passing above motorway bridges has made the ones I've used something of a wind tunnel while decent light is essential for painting. I've overcome the mooring problem by screwing hasps into the wooden edging, adding a shackle then tying up. Not the best solution to be honest. The M54 bridge South of Brewood on the Shroppie is sometimes used, it's possible to push the boat across to the far side too, though there is a winding hole nearby.

 

Dave

[matty40s]

About 1/4 mile from Barby Marina is the M45 bridge, wide enough and long enough, in the right place and has railings on the offside to tie to.

Failing that, M69 bridge just past Ansty on the North Oxford, again, railings on the offside.

[Nightwatch]

About 1/4 mile from Barby Marina is the M45 bridge, wide enough and long enough, in the right place and has railings on the offside to tie to.Failing that, M69 bridge just past Ansty on the North Oxford, again, railings on the offside.

You beat me to it with these two locations.

 

Martyn

[jim and pat dalton]

know someone who painted there boat under a bridge last year. Less than satisfactory finish due to the dirt and dust constantly being dislodged by the traffic overhead.

 

 

choose your site carefully

[matty40s]

know someone who painted there boat under a bridge last year. Less than satisfactory finish due to the dirt and dust constantly being dislodged by the traffic overhead.

 

 

 

choose your site carefully

 

The M45 is one of the quietest motorways on the system outside rush hour.

[cuthound]

The M45 is one of the quietest motorways on the system outside rush hour.

Yeah but using an M25 bridge is better 'cos the traffic hardly ever moves:)

[Stilllearning]

About 1/4 mile from Barby Marina is the M45 bridge, wide enough and long enough, in the right place and has railings on the offside to tie to.

Failing that, M69 bridge just past Ansty on the North Oxford, again, railings on the offside.

I agree about the M45 bridge just past Barby, it is very long, has railings along one side at least, and the canal is nice and wide there.

I spent a very hot afternoon tied up under it years ago, avoiding the sun.

[bizzard]

I'd paint it white, Pigeons roost under bridges. Also muck can sprinkle down, caused by the traffics vibration. I painted my last boat under the A414 road bridge at Stansted Abbots, white and pebble dashed.

[system 4-50]

When I was painting at MK a local asked me nicely to keep the noise down as the bridge acted as an echo chamber. So I did my power tools work at Wolverton and moved it back to paint. Armco made the mooring aspect easy and the canal is wide (but I still got rammed by a beginner!).

[madcat]

The M54 bridge Dave Moore mentioned is quite popular . I've never used it but friends have .

[onionbargee]

Just north of Fenny Stratford lock is a good one.