DaveS

Does it cost £12 to come to the Boat Jumble? Dave

We took our grandson Luke to Banham Zoo today, and met Alexander the Meerkat, his Gt Uncle Vitaly and the rest of the family Also saw an unusual Red Panda, which I thought looked a bit photogenic, although he wouldn't smile when asked Canon 30D with Canon 75-300 USM zoom lens. Dave

It was on the lunchtime BBC 'Look East' TV news, and it was said that the vessel had lost power, so I wonder if without power she had broached? Dave

Just looked at the live pictures on the web-cam at Cromer, and there's a lot of 'white horses' on the sea. I notice that the pressure had dropped to 994mB this morning, but the good news is that its now staring to rise. If you do go, then good luck and a safe passage. Dave

The pressure has been dropping steadily for the past 24 hours. From 1016mb to 1008mb now, and still dropping. Dave

A nice 'photo log' of the journey Chris. The Force 7 bit looks quite exciting Dave

Well captured Pete Not an easy target, as you don't know when they are going to appear, and there is a limit in that sort of location, as to how long you can leave the shutter open before light pollution becomes too intrusive. Dave

Nothing specific planned, but highly likely that we'll be out and about somwhere on the southern end. Dave

Welcome home 'one and all' Dave

As I said once before on this forum, in the Royal Navy they are known as "Irish Pennants" and much frowned upon . On the other hand absolutely essential on the Broads!! As for the absent lifejacket, I couldn't agree more. Young Luke does have one, and he probably slipped unoticed out of the cabin, but thats just how accidents can happen. Dave

And here's the nice Roach that Luke caught with Grandad's rod Dave

Here's a couple of piccys that I took of Destiny during the 'holiday cruise', while we were crossing Breydon Water. Dave

Glad all is going well Wayne Your latest pictures are all very dejavu, as we did that bit of the Thames back in 1983, in a little 16ft Microplus 501 Explorer with an 8HP outboard, and two then young children Having set off from Stanstead Abbotts in Herfordshire (our mooring base), travelling the length of the River Lea (overnight stop at Clapton), and out into the Thames at Bow Locks. Then up under Tower Bridge running with the incoming tide, getting through the lock at Teddington and into the non-tidal Thames before the ebb started. From there up as far as Wargrave, before heading back to Penton Hook Marina where I had delivered the car and trailer a few days before starting our epic journey. The whole journey, taking us just over a week. Can you imagine two adults, the eldest being 15, spending over a week living aboard a 16ft cabin cruiser, with a two burner gas cooker, no fridge, and a 'bucket & chuckit' Elsan toilet, that was stored under the sink I certainly couldn't imagine doing it now , but it was a bit of an adventure, and we all had great time. The journey back was a lot easier, with the boat on it's trailer, and only took 1.5hrs . Keep the piccys and reports coming, it makes fascinating reading. Dave

Hi Jill If your taps are of the Micro Switch type, that is to say that they have a couple of wires coming from the underneath of them, and you may even hear the click of the built-in switch as you turn them on an off, you need to be sure that the pipe to tap connection is capable of not be forced out by the 25psi pressure of a pressure switch pump. Quite often the micro-switch taps have only a 'push fit' connector which rely purely on an 'O' ring to make the the seal and keep the spigot connector in place. This is fine with a non pressure switched pump, as the the pump only activates when the taps are opened and unlike the pressure switched pumps, do not rely on back pressure to turn the pump off. Systems using a pressure switched pump, use a domestic type tap, without any built-in switches. When the tap is opened, the back-pressure on the pressure switch in the pump is released, and the the pump runs. When the tap is turned off, a back-pressure builds up, until its sufficient to operate the pressure switch and turn the pump off. In the off position, the pressure in the pipe and on the tap connectors, can be up to 25psi. It remains under pressure all the time the taps are closed. If you don't have any wire connections to your taps, then you'll be fine with a pressure pump, and the Jabsco units are a good choice. Dave

Hi Chris I find that most times, sweetcorn or bread produces some quailty Roach and Bream, pretty much anywhere on the Broads. Unless you don't mind be hassled by Eels, don't use worm or maggot. Tight Lines Dave

Good news Glad to hear that you all arrived 'safe and sound' Dave

Under 'Edit Avatar', above 'Upload from url' there should be a line that says 'Upload from your machine, and a 'Browse Box'. From there you can link to your 'My Pictures' folder, or where ever you have stored your avatar. GIF's are the preferred format. I have just deleted my avatar and re-uploaded it, to make sure the system still worked, and it did. Dave

HMC tell that they have visted my boat, taken all the necessary meaasurements, and will be fitting the canopy towards the end of next week. Comfortably within their agreed time scale. Dave

It would be good to know if anyone is running an LCD TV of an inverter, without any problems, such as hum on the sound etc. I say this because most popular 240v A.C. to 12V DC inverters do not have a true sinewave output. That is to say, that its 'dirty A.C.' that comes out. Some equipment may not like this. True sinewave output inverters, are many times the price of those that aren't. So, if any of you guys are running LCD TVs on circa £25-£30 inverters, without experiencing problems, then that has to be the 'way ahead' for Grant. Dave

Mine is exactly what you want, if you can still find one in-stock anywhere, as its a discontinued model, albeit not that old. 15" LCD, 12V i/p (or main via psu), with built in digital tuner, HD, built in DVD player, and HDMI, SCART, RGB in, Comp Vid in, and digital out etc. Hitachi HT 15WBVBDVD

It has also been said, on the Viking Owners Club forum, that there are several boats 'out there', with original vinyl canopies, that are over 10 years old, and still quite serviceable. Maybe mine was made from a 'duff' batch of vinyl, or there is some truth in the jet fuel theory, I don't know, but the roof was well gone in less than 3 years. A telephone conversation with one of Viking's canopy makers, informed me that mine was not an isolated case. I believe that Jeckells now have the Viking contract. I approached three Norfolk based canopy makers, Jeckells, who priced themselves out of 'the equation', another had a lot of work on, and couldn't take anymore on until sometime in July, and finally Horning Marine Covers (HMC), who contracted to supply and fit the canopy within 4-5 weeks. So, back in June, I placed an order for an Acrylic Canvas canopy with HMC, and now await to see if they are 'true to their word', and supply the canopy within the contracted 'time scale'. Hopefully, if all goes well, I should have the canopy very shortly. I could have saved quite a bit of money by having the another PVC canopy, but as I'm sure you will understand, I have lost confidence in the material, being 'once bitten, now twice shy' Dave

Given the proximity of Southwold to Sizewell, and that fact that many (if not all) of the boats there will frequently pass back and forth by the outfall, Probably explains the 'goings on' at Southwold, including the EA collecting water samples. However, as I said earlier, I don't trust the Nuclear Industry, and using a fuel that is deadly to start with, and remains deadly for thousands of years even when expended, that it has to be buried deep underground in bedrock, isn't my idea of 'clean'. Like it or not though, its here to stay, it's use will increase, and there's nothing going to change that. Dave

Ok guy's, I've been doing a bit of 'digging', and here's what I've come up with: The MFV Rachael is a CEFAS reserach vessel: http://www.cefas.co.uk/media/130773/fsp ... report.pdf These activities are probably related to the recent "habit survey" that has been carried out by the CEFAS Laboratory of Lowestoft on behalf of the EA and Food Standards Agency. (It might also be related to some sort of baseline survey before Sizewell C gets built??) They update the habit survey every few years to review the habits of the population and wildlife around the site so that they can estimate the radiation doses to these groups which they call critical groups (i.e the groups that receive most radiation dose from discharges, etc - usually local fishermen and long term/permanent residents). The data is used to produce annual reports called Radioactivity in Food and the Environment - R.I.F.E. These include doses from natural background radioactivity too. They are all in the public domain and you can download them here: - http://www.cefas.co.uk/publications/sci ... nment(rife).aspx Hope this puts your minds at rest BTW, even the Olympics it would seem, is at the cente of a radioactive waste issue!! http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010 ... ympic-site Dave

That is quite likely Frank, but as customers, how can we be sure of the quality of the Vinyl we a buying. We can only go on what the canopy maker tells us. Only time in use would tell it seems, and by then its too late, and the expense of another canopy is called for. I wouldn't like to think that the manufacturer of a boat, boat costing in excess of £30k, would put a crap quality conopy on it, but the vinyl material used on mine, seems to be just that. Given the condition of the roof after just three years, I would guess that it was on it's way out in less than two years. So, as you might understand, I have lost faith in Vinyl, and will be going for an Acrylic Canvas one. Dave

Frank, if you saw how the roof area of my four year old Vinyl canopy has broken down (powdery and fast disappearing), you might not want to spend money on a Vinyl canopy. I should add that it was already well gone when we bought the boat at only three years old, and subsequent enquiries have revealed that mine is most certainly not an isolated case. You are very welcome to come and have a look for yourself, if you wish. I note that you are at Lowestoft, so my boat is not far away from you. If you don't want the expense of replacing your canopy too frequently, then IMO, it has to be Acrylic Canvas (as opposed to cotton canvas). Initially more expensive than Vinyl, but much cheaper in the medium to long term. Dave