TheQ

I don't have much energy for anything these days, it's a real struggle, The above has been going on for 5 years and will probably take another 5 Years. Taking the engine out, fitting the electric motor and battery pack, I've had to commission a boat yard to do as I don't have the lifting gear and she's moored the wrong side of the river to move her with no engine. Other work Rebuilding my 18ft sailing boat that I built in the late 1990s, will be 16ft shortly.... weather permitting, it's under a tarpaulin. Just about finished the exterior of a 54ft X 12ft shed (it's taken 5 years) for my model railway and SWMBOs art studio. There is 1.5 acres of garden jungle Finishing rebuilding the Mobile home (double unit) in the garden, (The stairs in the house are too steep for the elderly relatives when they visit). It was 3 bed room, with the living room facing North west, it's now 1 bedroom, with the living room facing south west. I've fitted reversible Air-conditioning so it heats and cools, (therefore you don't waste energy with an electric 3 bar heater fitted inside the a/c.) Work can only be done in the winter, as one year we had 20 weeks of family Visitors... I definitely need to spend more time working on the house, I'm just about to commission tomorrow, having the chimney stacks rebuilt (there is a crack), I ain't going up there facing the North sea. (1/2 mile but windy!!) Oh and SWMBO is officially disabled and can't lift anything, stand for a long time or sit for a long time. She also has hand problems so can only paint on the good days and therefore has to work from photographs. although you wouldn't know that if you met her. If I hadn't hurt my back ( it doesn't like the twisting, with legs facing across the boat, but upper body trying to face forward to see where I'm going), I would be sailing every Sunday, the sailing boat above is being rebuilt so I can get back to sailing more often. and Also I have a full time Job, luckily no overtime, (except for tomorrow.) ..... What's a Holiday?

Well My ideal boat would be 60ft on the inside and 20ft on the outside!! Sadly this impossible so to my Elysian 27CC, which is actually big enough for the two of us considering we live here. Get rid of gas I don't like gas, (even though I worked at Bacton for a while) you can't see it and it goes bang.... Done I don't like noise, Remove Noisy smelly very unreliable, ancient diesel.... Done. I understand electricity, Install a Electric Motor and battery pack.... In progress Install a quiet pack generator.... In progress, Install shore power, inverter, cabling.... parts ordered. Install a quiet Heater that is possible to leave on all night while wild mooring.... One of these I think http://www.samphireseastoves.co.uk/ Replace all the leaking windows.... I now know what I'm going to do, Finish rebuilding the forward Cabin.... The bunks had been replaced by chip board at some point!!! in progress Finish rebuilding cockpit area.... I'm having to change the design I had thought of, because, A, it didn't work for us, and B, The Engine change. When the above, is done, rebuild the aft cabin I have discovered the kitchen area is built with laminate faced chipboard and so is definitely going, also since the gas has gone, It needs fitting out with Microwave, hot plate and kettle. Actually the kettle may come first... And Finally after all that is done an exterior removal of many layer of paint, repaint tidy up and fit a flag pole for the NBN flag.

Bullace is a larger "white" variety of the sloe, I've got several trees in the hedge row of my garden, yes it does make a good wine

a quick Google shows there are two homebrew shops in Norwich and one in Great Yarmouth, there are at least two Norfolk shops online, goodlife homebrew, and norfolkhomebrew.co.uk. Also Wilko do home brew gear. Saying that ive made cider quite successfully using bread making yeast, there aren't too many home brew shops in Saudi. i don't strain my juice till after fermenting is complete and I'm bottling.

With this house on the site of an old pub, 17 apple trees here when we moved in ( 3 have died since) I've made 5 gallons each year, I would make more but it take so much time to crush all those apples. I've made home brew for many years, like my dad did. In the garden There are pear trees, elderberry, bullace, damson, and then hops in the hedgerows, I just don't have time to process it all

I've been through Potter bridge many times over the last 35 years, the only time I sounded it was when I discovered it had been fitted inside the helm console! so the only people who could hear it were on board any way!! Every other time I've been through I was a bit busy paddling, during the 3 Rivers race, we definitely could have done with a horn for that!

Wasn't me, if I go into shop without trousers and underwear they might recognize the Tartan... Of My Kilt.

Suitcases and escape chutes probably explain some of the minor injuries on exit.

good job I don't have a mobility scooter.... I like Haggis.

I know from experience that heavy fouling on a broads boat is likely to reduce top speed by a couple of miles an hour. if you top speed was 6mph that's down to 4 which could be a problem down Yarmouth way.

Whilst of the same vintage as a Triumph Herald/ Vitesse, that is not one, It's a German built Amphicar of which 4000 were built between 1961 and 1965. This is what the Dutton floating car looks like, http://www.4wdonline.com/Amphib/Dutton.html

Last time I stayed in Horncastle, it was so wet someone was pictured in a topper dinghy circumnavigating a cow, just outside the town. It's an interesting area which I quite liked, luckily for me I was being paid to work at scampton and coningsby so I got to see the red arrows and BBMF from somewhat closer than the public. Also on a few occasions I stayed in the Petwood hotel in woodhall spa which 633 Squadron used.

I know someone who did manage to get a house built on one of the dykes in Horning, the BA tried to force him to have a tin roof saying that's how houses on the broads were built. It took him a lot of work to convince them that's how they do it in potter not Horning !!

go to 3 minute 30 seconds and watch!

Bad news Stern on mooring in at both the Swan and Ferry causes chaos, trying to go past both sites, I seem to remember that the Swan is not a permitted stern on mooring for the larger boats, but only for day boats due to the narrowness of the river there. Also the Ferry stern on mooring was stopped last year after the trial which caused some problems on the corner. Broads regulation 58 (1) The master of a moored vessel shall ensure that the vessel is properly, safely and effectively secured and fendered so as to hold the vessel to the mooring and to prevent the risk of avoidable damage to the vessel or any other vessel or to the place of mooring or to any mooring equipment provided therein. (2) The master of a vessel shall not without the consent of the Authority moor that vessel stern-on or bow-on except (a) at a place where stern-on mooring or bow-on mooring (as the case may be) is approved by the Authority and (b) in accordance with such conditions and during such times as the Authority may have by Notice displayed at or near that place. Broads regulation 63 63 (2) the master of a vessel shall not moor alongside another vessel if by so doing any part of his vessel extends more than 10 metres (32 feet 9 inches) into the channel or extends into the channel more than one quarter of the width of the channel whichever is the less. There was at one time on the BA site a list of places where Stern on mooring was permitted, but at the moment I can only find the list for BAs own moorings.

Much Better...

if your going to put that up please get someone who can sing!! other than that I like it.

Speed reading is a problem I have, In my school days I used to read 10 books a week and not just little books often a thick tome like Palaeolithic Archeology. Even today two or three books a week is not unusual. My brother is worse, he can remember ALL he reads

The last time I bought a battery it was for my landrover, I found that I had a much bigger range of batteries to choose from and they were cheaper online. It now done several years with out a problem. The packaging the company (Tayna) used was quite impressive, and they had taped all the breather holes with warning labels.

My current hate word is trainings, which appears among many misspellings caused by Noah Webster, (I work for an American company). It's not helped by this tablet's auto mistake programme. Word perfect?! I didn't think that was still around, so I checked, it is, version X7 now cost £250 pounds!

Initially there is a 48V 500Amp hour Traction battery pack (the minimum recommended by the electric motor manufacturer) which maybe doubled later. There are 24 2V Cells at the moment. .However the chargers I have are all singing, all dancing, dong all sorts of thing to keep the batteries ok. I may in the future change to AGM odyssey batteries (especially if I decide to double the Amp Hours) which can take a high charge rate, are low maintenance, and take up a lot less space. So my allowances are for the absolute maximum I may use, Plus a bit for safety ( I don't like running things at MAX power).

Something just went wrong there , That previous post wasn't meant to be sent I hadn't finished. When the motor boat comes back from it's conversion to Diesel electric, I'll buy 32amp cable which will solve the above problems.. But I have worked out the following: Power for Battery chargers 10A 230V Power for Microwave 5A 230V Power for cooker ring, 6A 230V, Power for Fridge 1A 230V Power for low power electric kettle 6A Power for TV, Tablet computer, phone charging. 1A So if we are at lunchtime after a long trip, requiring battery charging I think I'll have to limit power to the galley, on a 16A supply!!! For safety I think I'll have to put just one Socket in there.

As my boat will shortly be Diesel electric, I'm going to by 32amp flexible cable, for the run to the pillar. that way if I can only get 16A for some reason I won't have the above problems. but my maximum load could be 10A 230V for chargers 5 A for the microwave

At least that over paid, pensioner isn't running the show anymore, we used to have the mute button ready for every time he used his obvious over rehearsed jokes ie every time he came on. He seemed not to know the show wasn't about him.

Sorry I'm not interested, in 22 overpaid men kicking a piece of leather around. Sailing all year round is a lot cheaper than going to, and watching football.