grendel

when my mum was young, she used to work at the local photography shop, hand colourising the black and white photos for customers.

unfortunately not, just a mere coincidence

I am just worried they thought you were a zebra

just off to get a marmalade sandwich

I suppose i can be glad that my new v50 only has a 55 litre tank (never managed to fit much more than 35 litres into it from near empty on the gauge), the only issue is that even at 50mpg, thats only just over 500 miles range, and by then the gauge is reading worryingly low.

considering the massive hike in the electricity prices, I think that is where we will be seeing the price rises to cover the losses in fossil fuels, i have already heard that the new smart meters combined with the new smart chargers, will be able to restrict charge rates and time when EV's can charge (so they dont all go on charge at the same instant- they say) in reality the energy companies will be able to control your charge rate and times so when everyone wants to charge the energy charges will be higher.

So, not only are they forcing us to use fuel with added biofuel, they are happily charging 10% on the price for the privilege, this is effectively saying that the biofuel additive costs twice the cost of the non biofuel fuel (10% + 10% extra) (not withstanding that the ethanol is destroying the rubber fuel components on all the older cars)

thats just like wildlife, - like the swallowtail butterfly that landed on my shoulder the other year, couldnt reach the camera without moving and disturbing it. (apparently they like red tee shirts and think you are a giant flower)

for those who can struggle at moorings carrying a caravan step might help (either inboard or on the bank) that said the other week I was chatting to someone who had his 91 year old mother on board, and she was managing with assistance.

depending on tide, at some times I can step off the boat onto the dock, and at others at the same location step off the dock, down to the roof, so basically the nearer great yarmouth you get, the higher rise and fall at moorings (if you have a low freeboard and want to moor at great Yarmouth you might be better off mooring close to one of the ladders (dont block the ladder completely as its for emergency use too) other areas it will vary, some moorings are so low its a struggle to get off down to the bank, others may be higher, its the luck of the drawer, usually where there is a will theres a way, carrying a small set of steps on board may be one way to go., just make sure its secure.)

was that the big magic hammer or the small one Doug

i suppose i ought to explain, my sister and her husband dont drive, they have taken over the garden and my sister will run the odd errand (shopping etc), so I just do a monthly heavy shopping trip, and running them around as necessary, is my side of the deal. we both do what we can t assist.

ah now mum is 91, so as dad was out of action, i have been getting things off the high shelves for her, she had a list of what she might need before my sister calls round to help (my sister is 5 minutes walk along the same road)

ah what a weekend, so friday I got a call from my 89 year old dad, he had a pre appointment saturday morning for his cataract operation, I arrived at his house for 9.30am (for his 10.15 appointment) this appointment took 1 1/2 hours (me sitting in the car park) in all with travel a 4 hour process for me. when he came out he informed me his operation would be at 9.45 this morning and could he have a lift. this was supposed to be a quicker appointment as he had been given drops to take in the hour prior to the appointment. I arrived at 9am to find my mother struggling to give him his eye drops as she couldnt reach properly, and couldnt see when a drop came out of the tiny dripper. he had one more set of drops 5 minutes after this, which I applied by asking him to lean against the back cushion on his chair, while I stood behind the chair and administered the drops. we then headed for the surgery where the cataract operation was to take place. once again I had an hour and a half wait in the car park before my dad turned up again with an eye shield and nurse in tow (he couldnt see where he was going without his glasses (he has worn them since the age of 7)) apparently the long delay had been caused by a fire alarm going off and nobody being able to stop it. got him home at last and sat in his chair, and what fun when he realised that he couldnt read his tablet, of course he tried, sitting there with the tablet in front of him and a magnifying glass, while me and my mum said just leave it until tomorrow, when he would be allowed to wear his glasses. (just another 4 hours this morning) plus of course we have all the same fun to go through in 6 weeks or so when they come to do the other eye.

This is the main panel of my solar install, the batteries are directly below this, and the solar input ( on 6mm2 cable) comes in the window on the far right. I chose to output just to that switched socket bar, so wiring was fairly simple.

in this case you will need cables rated for at least 170Amps (probably 200Amps to be on the safe side) thats going to be a big cable, as I know a 35mm2 cross section is only good to about 150A and volt drop will come into your calculations depending upon your cable lengths. https://www.12voltplanet.co.uk/cable-sizing-selection.html on my 1.5m inverter/ battery connection I used some 16mm2 jump leads as the connector cables for the 1 kw inverter, and they are probably on the small side (I need to visit my friends in the stores at work and get some thicker cables) the calculator on the link shows that on volt drop, the smallest you could get away with is 25mm2 (for a 1.5m length of cable)

1. after the battery isolator as close to the battery as possible with suitably large wires (the interconnecting wires between batteries should be the same cross section too) a 1kw inverter at 12v can draw up to 84A from the battery at full load (12x84=1000) 2. good question, nobody at work has been able to tell me how an inverter is earthed either. 3 it can, but you will need a changeover switch 4 solar panels should be wired to the batteries with a charge controller (MPPT for preference). so panel to charge controller to battery (with maybe an isolating switch) 5 it can be done by a layman, I have wired my shed solar system, there are two heavy duty wires into the inverter from the battery, and then the mains output to the sockets (I understand electrical wiring, but dont hold any qualifications), you may want to get it inspected by a professional if you are unsure, it depends upon how confident you are with your wiring skills, its pretty straightforward, but understandably, it also needs to be correct.

only for greasy things that fit inside, a whole engine might be pushing it

its probably also worth a note that pure air draft may not be good enough for some bridges (i am thinking Wroxham or Potter Heigham here (not that this will help you get through either)) its the shape of the bridge that needs considering, so for some boats the air draft quoted by the hire yard, may be to fit through a certain bridge. for example Water rail has a maximum air draft of about 5'11" (to the heighest point, but I have been told requires 6'3" for potter heigham for the corners of the roof to clear, also for some bridges the height gauge is the height at a certain width of the arch of the bridge, so just relying on the air draft is not always the best bet. I have personally measured Ludham Bridge, and if the cills are at water level, there is eight foot in the middle (the village side is some 2" lower than the other side of the bridge) so be sure to allow for that if your maximum height isnt on the centre line of the boat, so a good check is to estimate how far above the water level the cills are, and thats the clearance over 8 foot, no matter what the gauges read.

https://www.yell.com/biz/marine-transmissions-norwich-1702936/

would that be marine transmission services, just across the road from the end of the staithe, I seem to recall some kind of marine engineering company there when i was moored there the other week.

yes, the parish council apportioning the blame on the Broads Authority, when in reality they wanted a change of use for all but a single space on the end to parish moorings (for which they needed planning permission that went contrary to the broads development plan (which they then also wanted the broads authority to pay the legal fee on)) plus for that they wanted the BA to maintain the quay heading. apparently there are legal covenants governing the use of the staithe too, its all there in the reports on the BA website and the pdf linked at the beginning of this thread. certainly the facebook post stating the BA wouldnt spend a mere £675 was a misrepresentation of the facts of the matter, and maybe could even be seen as sour grapes on the behest of the council, that hadnt got their way of converting the majority of the moorings to parish ones. (for which a change of use was required)

its here (where the blue arrow points) there are a couple of fishing pegs here (one at each end) and you can walk along the bank to the dyke where there are private moorings a bit closer to beccles.

I just do my best, some come out with the object of my attention in the wrong place - eg against the land, so not as visible like this, or are just blurred

rightho, time for pictures, apologies for the delay but its been hectic since i got home Ranworth Island and its guardian geese strangely as leader of the procession from Ranworth to Salhouse, I was too busy to get any pictures, and i didnt get any during the meet either. on the way back from coltishall, I encountered a fair few canoists and paddle boarders Ah, thats where they are all headed, swimmers too overnight on bridge broad, tucked round the corner, a nice peaceful mooring, it was here i cleared the prop that cruiser stern moored to the bank of the bure between ranworth and st Bennets Hunsett mill and the river works on the way to Dilham, the works are right on this bend and considerably restrict the river wildlife Moored at Great Yarmouth before I headed down there, I moored overnight in another favorite spot in south walsham broad, where I met some Local wildlife the clouds on the trip to Great Yarmouth were spectacular I saw a marsh Harrier Hunting as I neared Great Yarmouth the early morning crossing over Breydon was quite choppy after mooring at the totem pole moorings I spotted this wherry heading for beccles and unfortunately thats the sum total of my pictures from this trip