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Mouldy

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Posts posted by Mouldy

  1. 6 minutes ago, dom said:

    I'm subscribed to no end of boating channels and it's nice to see the Broads featuring, but the whole Ludham Bridge situation is starting to grate a bit with me. It's getting to the point where you inevitably have one of the three main protagonists recording every weekend. I think it's starting to get a bit intrusive and it's obviously largely waiting for something untoward to happen. I can't help but wonder what the net effect of it all is. If a new hirer comes down from Stalham the first time, bumps the bridge and their error ends up attracting derision on YouTube, are they more or less likely to come back next year? Between that, and the added emphasis it puts on bridge clearance issues, it all seems a bit undesirable for the hire industry in my eyes. It's not really surprising to me that at least one of them has attracted some hostility from certain areas.

    I have to say that I too am unhappy about the picture of The Broads is painted by the video vultures.  I will not subscribe to them and am disappointed that the use of clickbait titles helps them to make money from predictable chaos at the worst pinch point on the network.

    • Like 4
  2. 2 hours ago, Lulu said:

    We’ve never had phone signal issues there. We are on Vodaphone, but never had tv signal which we had forgotten about.  In the photo of us moored you will see the telescopic pole with the aerial at full height but nothing. So we were properly off grid! Fine for one night but I do like my tv. 

    The radio in NL is poor, so we generally stream music using my phone as a hotspot and linking my iPad for the source to a Bluetooth speaker.  We used to get a few times when the signal would drop out, but we cruised all the way from Brundall to Beccles, listening to Greatest Hits Radio.

    We also sometimes used to struggle with phone signal at the marina, but it’s improved so much now that Deb can work on the boat, hot spotting her laptop to the phone.

    I guess that the announcement that the old copper phone lines will end soon has forced the mobile companies to improve their service, so that there is continuity of a phone service when it happens, although many in remote areas fear that it will impact them.

  3. 2 hours ago, Jbx5 said:

    Good to speak briefly when passing (on Noah’s Ark ) yesterday afternoon Mark I thought you looked a little calm after the storm 😂

    Also passed your family Mouldy same time around the Ferry house.

    John 

     

    We saw someone on Whitey wave as we went past on Sunday, guessing it was Mark.  May have seen you too @Jbx5 as we ended up at The Ferry House.  Managed to squeeze in so we could go for dinner in the evening.

    Smoggy was also there, celebrating having his boat back for the weekend, following some work on his boat.

    • Like 3
  4. 8 minutes ago, kpnut said:

    Sounds like a couple of days spent in the best company, it’s wonderful they love boating so much. 

    Our son and his family are using one of our weeks on Moonlight Shadow this week.  It seemed very selfish to use it ourselves, when it fell in a school holiday.  We took him on The Broads for the first time when he was about six and went annually for many years after and although he kind of fell out of love with the place through his late teenage years, since having a family of his own, he now looks forward to his time afloat as much as we do.

    Our grandchildren are all now boating fans, our eldest grandson is currently enjoying his seventh boating holiday at the age of (almost) eight - birthday on 7th April!

    • Like 3
    • Love 1
  5. Salhouse is one of the worst places for TV reception on The Broads, or so we’ve found.  However, 4 & 5G coverage seems to be much improved across much of the area and if you have a smart TV, streaming services may be the answer, with a decent data package on your mobile phone to hotspot.

    • Like 1
  6. 4 minutes ago, kpnut said:

    My ‘bible’ onboard also says pacific cruisers st Loddon on non-turnaround days, but that’s on the wrong river. 
    And perhaps a self serve pump out machine at the Waveney river centre, no diesel though and I don’t even know if the self serve one is still there. Last time I used it was in 2019. 

    We went past over the weekend and they are advertising diesel (£1.87/ litre), water and pump outs on their quay.

    • Like 3
    • Thanks 1
  7. 14 hours ago, Broads01 said:

     The engineer said they used to use Eberspacher units which were repairable but expensive. They now use Chinese units which are comparatively "throw away" at £80-£100 each but just as reliable. The heater issue would have been a hard one to spot as the heater worked perfectly well for an hour or two at a time initially. I also took into account I may well have been the first hirer of the year.

    Point taken regarding the bolt, but surely a mention of the electrical system during a handover isn’t too much to ask for?

    As for the heater, I get that the Chinese ones are cheap and probably not worth repairing, but for a hire yard who appears to push technology and battery technology, it does seem strange to use something that is potentially of dubious quality in a premium product.  I know that several Forum members have used Chinese heaters and some for several years, but I am also aware of safety concerns and failures too.  There are mid priced heaters with a proven track record that are cheaper than Eberspacher or Webasto (who are generally considered within the industry to be the best, as I understand it), like Autoterm/Planar and Mikuni.

    Still, they have their own business model and are doing things their way.  Good luck to them, but maybe some customers wouldn’t be as forgiving as you, Simon and unreliability may cause them to lose return business in the long run.

     

     

    • Like 2
  8. I have to say that for an ‘Elite’ boat, hired at a premium price, the upholstery looks poor and if I were you, I wouldn’t have been as understanding of the requirement for three call outs.  One of them should have been dealt with but adequate explanation of the electrical system at handover.  A broken bolt is not acceptable, being able to secure the boat is a given and issues with the heating this early in the season, when the boats should all have been thoroughly checked over is poor.  The heater on Moonlight Shadow is serviced as part of winter maintenance and one hopes that hire craft are treated similarly too.

    We hired from Summercraft several times over the years and the biggest issues we experienced were a blown bulb in the heads, that we replaced, much to Sue’s disappointment, as she told us we should have called them out and paid me four times the cost of the bulb in recompense.  We also had a faulty hairdryer on one boat and again Sue told us we should have called to get one sent out.

    It seems that some yards are happy to let the customer find the faults and repair them as they go.  The fact that they were repaired quickly is a bonus, but should they have happened in the first place?  Of course, the failures may just have occurred, but it’s only March.

    • Like 3
  9. Moored yesterday lunchtime at Beccles Yacht Station.  The sun was out and it was very pleasant.  We had our saloon windows open, the galley window open as well as the doors to the aft well, where our canopy was also open.

    I lit the grill and within seconds our CO alarm was sounding.  Pushing the button to silence it didn’t stop the bloody thing, so I took it off the wall and the wife went outside with it, covering it with her hand to kill the sound.  She was outside for about fifteen minutes and it still wouldn’t switch off, so out of desperation, it was drowned, not in the river, but in a sink full of water.  That did the trick.  Less than three years old, too.

    We left it in the aft well overnight with a view to take it home to be thrown safely with our electrical waste.  The alarm light was still flashing.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m in favour of these to promote safety, but to be fit for purpose, they have to be reliable.

    I hope the new one is better.

    • Like 1
  10. We headed for Beccles yesterday and noted that there were three yachts with a certain patina occupying the Worlingham moorings.  Interested to see that one of them had been moved this morning alongside one of the others to make space for an outboard equipped dinghy to moor there.

    Its obviously not worth checking the BA webpage to ascertain whether they were tolled, as we know that it may not be up to date, but it already seems apparent that some live aboard/continuous cruisers are already doing the same thing on The Broads.

    Don't get me wrong, I understand that some people can’t afford housing and have turned to the Broadland rivers as an alternative, but those of us who wish to legitimately use the rivers and moorings that we pay to use, are going to be denied the privilege if something isn’t done soon.

    • Like 10
  11. 10 minutes ago, grendel said:

    best get away early tomorrow as thats the first day of charging- I bet they will be round and asking for money as soon as they arrive.

    Thought charges applied from April 1st, which is a most appropriate date, tbh.

    • Like 1
  12. 12 hours ago, MargeandParge said:

    I think I might have to pay the mooring fee as I'm sure that a visit to Ranworth will now be very tempting.

    1000 pennies need some counting and I will ask them to check it :default_biggrin:

    Nice thought and one that appeals to my sense of humour, but did you know that according to The British Coinage Act (1971), you are legally allowed to tender up to 20 pence (total) in mixed one and two pence coins.  More can be paid, but only if the person you are paying is willing to accept them.

    • Like 1
  13. 1 hour ago, Bikertov said:

    So is the general consensus NOT to repair the Mira ?

    My reasoning to keep it is that I am £50 down on the service kit etc that can't be returned now, and replacement brass cover assembly would be about £90 and I should be running again.

    No need to blank off old holes or make new ones, and no changes to the plumbing

    If I ditch the Mira for a new valve I would probably end up having to replumb (a new skill to learn for me) and patch existing holes and make new ones (more new skills). Otherwise a good few £100 for someone to do it for me. 

    Danny, always remember B O A T.  Bring Out Another Thousand.  Always worth remembering that old and much used adage.  :default_coat:
     

    Just enjoy the boat, get it sorted out and think of the good times to come, when it’s done (which, frankly, it never will be, ‘cos there’s always something else to do).

    No good being the richest man in the graveyard! 👍

    Good luck, mate!

  14. 8 hours ago, Broads01 said:

    It was a thumbs down from me for the Fur and Feather. Whilst they were busy I felt the service was too slow (almost an hour's wait and only a brief apology). I ordered fish and chips and it was basic to say the least, my main complaint being the fish was tasteless but the chips weren't great either. The manager asked for feedback when I was paying and so I politely explained.

    Our son and his family are in Moonlight Shadow this week.  We met them at HPC to sort the bedding out and went to The Ferry Inn for dinner, before heading back to Brundall and Norfolk Lady.

    We hadn’t booked, but soon found a table for us all (four adults and three grandchildren).  They’d just switched to a new menu, which certainly looked more like ‘proper’ dishes rather than something out of the Brakes Brothers catalogue.  We did wait quite a long time for the food, but it was very evident that it was a long way removed from what they used to serve.

    Our son and daughter in law both had a 12oz gammon steak, which looked really good, thick and well cooked, the wife had lasagne, which she described as freshly made with plenty of mince and sauce, served with a salad of dressed leaves and olives, with garlic bread.  I opted for pie of the day, which turned out to be turkey and mushroom.  Unlike some pies, this was a proper shortcrust number (top and bottom), properly filled and very tasty, served with creamed potatoes, green beans and gravy.

    They’ll need to speed service up before we get to ‘peak,’ but after a winter plagued with closures due to the flooding, it was good to see the place busy again and serving food that would entice me back.

    • Like 8
    • Thanks 2
  15. 1 hour ago, Bikertov said:

    The shower I have on A Frayed Know it an old Mira 88, that were quite popular back in the day on these Brooms and Sheerlines too I think.

    However, it was not working very well, with the temperature and flow knobs being very stiff.

    On reading up on this, the consensus was to replace all the seals etc, so I bought a service kit and new white knobs, and stripped it down thinking it would be an easy job ... but Oh No !

    Having taken the internals home to clean up before fitting the new seals etc, after cleaning up the brass outer housing ("cover assembly") I noticed a massive crack in it, so when it was all reassembled it just spouted water everywhere. And of course, there are no isolating valves fitted, so I had to turn all the water off.

    Mira88cover.thumb.jpg.1aa70e4d73e3f606901e2929d7c62eac.jpg

    Having spoken to the workshop at Jones, they said to repair the crack (by silver soldering) would not be worth it and probably wouldn't last long, and the replacement part is not cheap. So for now, they have capped off the hot and cold feed so at least I can have the water back on again for now.

    I could try and replace the shower with a whole new unit, but that will be fiddly and costly and I would probably have to get the workshop to do it, as plumbing is not a strong point of mine. As I already bought the service kit and knobs, I want to try and keep this one going if I can.

    So my question is ... does anyone have an old Mira 88 unit they are no longer using, that I could have the cover assembly from ?

    You remember our conversation from a few months ago . . . . . you know, when I said ‘you don’t buy a boat, you buy a hole in the water to throw money into.’  :default_welcome:

    • Haha 2
  16. 7 minutes ago, NeilB said:

    That stretch of river is quite popular for wild swimming, I think because the water is usually clear they believe it's clean!

    Exactly!  In my opinion, the fact that water company bosses are trousering huge bonuses for running largely profitable businesses, whilst dumping vast quantities of untreated sewage in our rivers, is utterly unacceptable.

    • Like 4
  17. 50 minutes ago, Happy said:

    You get some great pictures of your Shiz-tzu.  As soon as we point a camera towards ours she turns round and shows us her bum.  Maybe she's camera shy? :default_rolleyes:

    In the other hand, she could be expressing her feelings towards your photographic technique!:default_hiding:

    • Like 1
    • Haha 2
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