Meantime

For reference, this is the more usual style of thermocouple with a nut on the cold junction end, that could look like it is a gas style connection, again though it is only an electrical connection and can be disturbed and replaced without breaking any gas seals.

In theory yes because you are only working on low voltage electrical connections. It is also a fail safe device so if you fit it incorrectly you'll have the problem of it not staying alight. I say in theory because to access and change the thermocouple there is the slight possibility of disturbing a gas joint unintentionally. If you have a bubble gas leak detector as part of your gas installation then it should be easy to check for unintentional leaks. As long as your very careful around any gas joints then you should be fine.

Some thermocouples do come with a spade connector such as the Hotpoint one below. Thermocouples are not a bi metallic strip, although you are right to suggest there are two different types of metal used in a thermocouple. When metal is heated is causes electrons to flow away from the source of the heat. Differing metals have slightly different flow rates. If you join two different metals and place this joint in a flame, known as the Hot junction, electrons will flow away from the Hot junction at differing speeds thus creating a small potential difference, voltage at the other end known as the Cold junction. This is plugged into the control solenoid and used to keep the gas valve open. Once heat is removed such as when the gas blows out the probe cools down and the voltage stops and thus the solenoid drops out cutting off the gas.

Personally I'd do as Ray suggested. That in line filter looks a bit grotty inside. If that was my boat I'd remove everything back to the tap coming out of the tank. I would then fit a T piece with another tap and a hose going down into the bilge. This will allow you to easily drain down your tank for the Winter or to replace the water if the boat has been left standing a few weeks without having to pump the whole tank through the taps. Next take Blue food grade hose from the other outlet on the T piece to a new variable speed pump. The latest Jabsco ones will come with a new in line filter that clips directly onto the inlet of the pump. Finally take the output from the pump in Blue food grade hose to supply your taps / hot water calorifier. Result, much simpler system, easier to maintain and consistent temperature water at any flow rate.

Byelaw 84 Emission of Smoke or Fumes or the Making of Noise The master of a vessel shall not permit the vessel to emit smoke or fumes or make any noise or nuisance which gives reasonable grounds for annoyance to any other person. The above is the actual byelaw, as opposed to the oft quoted unofficial BA advice which contravenes their own byelaw, re running of engines after 8pm. The advice leads lots of people to assume it must be legitimate to run engines before 8pm, NOT if it is in contravention of byelaw 84.

Now if it was a smart phone it might have predicted the forthcoming precipitation!

It had been scheduled for half a day and they are now saying that due to the complexity up to three days is needed. The principle MAIB investigator is also being called.

It most certainly is rewriteable memory. The problem with all flash devices whether that be memory cards or SSD disks is that each bit of memory can only be rewritten a finite number of times. The cheaper ones can be written to less times than the more expensive ones. Then you have the professional ones. The only real difference is that the professional ones tend to have twice as much capacity as stated on the packaging. In the background as individual bits reach the end of their life, they are remapped to new bits and hence the professional cards seem to last twice as long, but that is really because they was 100% spare capacity to start with.

A quick Google and nothing shows up as being a common occurrence and they seem reasonably cheap to buy on FleaBay. I would guess an unlucky one off. More than likely someone doing a cheap crash repair and you just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. It strikes me that if someone is doing a moody repair on a van to sell, that a pair of dirty wheel arch liners are probably better than a pair of shiny new ones which would prompt the buyer to investigate further.

Apart from the bit where it says "You will also require a standard caravan hook up plug and cable."

Now I'm fully aware that the purpose of the MAIB report is not to lay blame and it cannot be used in any court case involving this particular incident, however I wonder what the situation is now that a recommendation has been made, if it is ignored and a similar incident occurs? I think the AIWA is making a statement that doesn't sit very comfortably!

There are so many things wrong with that picture, you can see why the BA don't support their use. Whilst splitters are not illegal, they should be used correctly. The sockets on that post are designed to safely carry the weight of ONE commando plug and some cable. With the use of the splitter there are two additional sockets and two additional plugs hanging of each socket. Where is the strain relief. Those splitter cables should be used appropriately either with strain relief or placed on the ground if possible. It looks like it is not possible to close the post cover due to at least one of the splitters being in the way. I would bet that the weight of those splitters and cables is dragging each plug downwards to the point that it is only the latch on the Blue flap that is keeping the plugs in place. If you look carefully at the post, it has space to install four sockets. Whoever designed the electrical installation at Beccles yacht station decided that the post pictured could only support three sockets being installed for a reason. Possibly based upon overall infrastructure capacity based around the whole of the yacht station. As installed it can provide up to 48 amps through 3 outlets. With those two splitters there is now the potential to attempt unsuccessfully to try and draw 80 amps. Then there is the breaker installed to protect each socket. The breakers main role is to protect the socket in the event of an abnormal high load or fault condition. It is not designed to routinely limit the amount of current that can be provided by that socket. If used properly the breaker should rarely if ever trip. Used with a splitter between two different boats with no knowledge of each others usage the breaker is likely to trip far too often. Splitters should really be used in installations where one person knows exactly what current load is being placed on each socket and where the total load is very unlikely to exceed the master sockets rated capacity.

As I alluded to at the start of this thread, it needs to be remembered that these are Electric Boat Charging Posts. If used for that purpose it would be expected that there would be a large current draw, hence the provision of 32 amp sockets as well. If they were being used correctly for charging electric boats then whilst a splitter may not be illegal it would encourage drawing too much current and causing the breaker to trip. We also need to consider that there is no ideal place to site an electric post in a public environment without causing some sort of potential hazard. Extra cables, connectors and splitters all present an extra hazard to others using the public area.

They are not illegal, just not allowed by The Broads Authority. Their post, their rules. They could just as easily come along and unplug you. Only connect one boat to one socket • Check your cable is not damaged and is a continuous length without joins • Disconnect all electrical equipment • Ensure all electrical connections are clean and free from moisture • Arrange cable so it will not fall in the water if it becomes disconnected • Ensure cable is not a trip hazard or obstruction Charging-points-2014.pdf

My friends machine is a Res Med. I'm not sure if this is the exact power supply, but it is certainly something like this that he got. I think he had to buy both the power supply and the heated hose personally. https://www.amazon.co.uk/KFD-12V-24V-Vehicle-Cigarette-R360-760/dp/B07SJCTCN4/ref=sr_1_8?crid=1OQF8AQAOGHFR&keywords=resmed+24v+power&qid=1652033827&sprefix=res+med+24v+power%2Caps%2C63&sr=8-8

I cannot remember the make of my friends one, but to make like easier we have installed a cigarette lighter socket powered by the 24V battery bank. He was able to find that they make a 24V power adapter for his machine and also a heated hose which seems to help in the Winter cruising period. Saves having to use an invertor and the associated power wastage.

First and foremost I would give them the proper title The Broads Authority give them. Electric Boat Charing Points, then with that in mind I would enquire whether they are on an electric boat and do they need to recharge for propulsion. Beyond that I think its fair game for first come, first served, however I still might have a mind to enquire if they have any special reasons for needing the post. For instance more and more people are cruising with CPAP machines and may need power for a decent night s sleep. Knowing someone with sleep Apnea I would be inclined to share the post with them by letting them plug in later. However to be fair it rarely is an issue for me as I only normally plug in to a post in the depths of Winter.

Part of the reason for recounting that week is because most of my weeks in the past have been like that as well. It is part of boating and I'm always happy to help others where I can. I guess why I highlighted the most recent week is because due to recent incidents there was a tightening up of procedures last year, including mandatory handling tuition for all hirers regardless of experience and upon listening to John Packmans recent TV interviews you would imagine things to be a whole lot better now, or at least some improvement. I personally didn't notice any change in the end behaviour or handling skills. Something that occurred to me as I wrote the above is that I wonder if the mandatory hand over tuition might actually be leading to less tuition for those that need it most. Unless the number of staff have been increased, then extra tuition with those people who may not normally have had it, must lead to less time spent elsewhere!

I think you are starting to lean towards a conclusion that many of us have been suggesting for some time, but have been berated for. I know your instinct is to protect the hire yards as it's an industry you have worked in and grown up in, but times do change. A Broads hire yard of today has many more dual steer, larger boats with more onboard systems, bow and maybe stern thrusters etc, than it did 20 years ago. The fuse panels on some of the latest hire boats looks like something from the Starship Enterprise. Even explaining what to turn on to boil a kettle or cook a meal is longer as simple as there's the gas tap and lighter. A genuine question based upon your post above, how many boats can a single mechanic turn around in a day? Many of us have said that the maths just doesn't add up for the amount of boats some yards send out in a day, if they are giving the kind of handover you suggest could be needed. As a privateer I don't rush from mooring to mooring and am happy to chat to others at a mooring. It is through this first hand experience of talking to hirers that you get a sense of often how uneasy they feel at being sent out with what they realise once under way is not enough tuition. Two weeks ago I was out on the boat on the North side for a week. We saw two hire boats damaged due to poor handling. We personally helped two boats in tricky situations and gave them some useful tuition. Then shortly after coming through Yarmouth on the Saturday within a few hours 2 boats had gone aground on the mud on Breydon. We spoke with a few mooring neighbours who were genuinely surprised it is not like driving a car. I've already recounted elsewhere that after helping one boat out they offered to buy my friend a beer as we walked into the pub. That conversation ended with them saying that's what the CDW is for. Shorter breaks, a desire to get under way quickly, a misapprehension of just how easy they are to drive, too much alcohol and a desire by boat yards not to over state the risks for fear of putting some off is becoming the perfect storm in many respects, and that word also has a lot to do with it to. Actually respect and entitlement. There are too many entitled people who have absolutely no respect for other people or their property.

However these days the yacht station does occasionally give out the advice to arrive at low water, not slack water for certain boats requiring extra clearance, does that make these boats not particularly well suited for hire on The Broads? Perhaps one of the mistakes was when they stopped designing boats that at least had some chance of passing through Wroxham and Potter bridges.

The old rail bridge had some timbers added to the underneath to protect it and this reduced the headroom by about three inches.

Oh the irony, it's not so long ago that they actually lowered one of the bridges!, but they did manage to repaint most of it!

However it is something I would never want to do and would avoid at all costs.

I think there is a sign that says no turning here by Everitt Marine Services because of damage in the past to their home, but more importantly what happens if your on a boat to tall to pass the bridges if you've arrived on an ebb too far ahead of slack water. Such signage needs to be further back by Marina Keys and the crew on board need to have been made explicitly aware of the dangers of arriving at the wrong state of tide on certain taller boats which don't have screens and roofs that can be lowered. I will keep biting my tongue on the pricing structure and periods covered at Yarmouth yacht station. Those who know me already know my views on that one.

Not our rules unfortunately. It was made pretty plain at the start of this thread and it was reinforced further down as well. Oops and just above as well.