We are so posh

 So it would appear part of the problem with the lead acid replacement batteries was that the solar panels were no longer working.

I removed them myself

This is what I found.  

This is the dreaded combination of silicon thinners used by my first boat painter Liz Portas in error

 (she was unaware that silicon is an absolute no no.)

 and water getting under the stick on panels.  

I should have let the second boat painter (Rob Bryan - Ashby Canal)  remove the panels and deal with the underside at the same time as he did the rest of the boat.  Hey ho.

and then Gareth from Shobnall Marina very kindly sorted out the mess and painted a rectangle of black - we felt trying to match the cream would have been impossible.

He found some interesting things under the paint.  Mainly a curious set of four semi circles.  I looked at them and immediately knew what they were.  Clearly Mel Davis had intended putting my centre line there and realised it was in the wrong place!  He filled in the gouges and did the first coat of primer so no one was any the wiser until now.

So here is the new black rectangle

now covered with the new solar panels from Tim at onboard solar

I spent the rest of the day obsessed with the readouts.  I got a lot of exercise up and down like a yo yo within an hour of fitting they had got the batteries from 94% to 96%.  By evening they peaked at 99% before the sun went down and the fridge did it's level best to take it all out again.  At 10pm it was 85% and I bottled it and turned the fridge off.  No idea what happened overnight but by the time I switched the engine on to move at 9.20am it was up to 87%

And today I met back up with the little chimney company and had my new chimney fitted.  It is in two halves and the bottom half at 8 inches should go through tunnels okay but it can still be removed if necessary.  It weirdly looks taller than the old chimney but I can assure you that it is an optical illusion.

Regarding the batteries I will give them the rest of the summer to improve before returning to gel ones I think.  One must be duff - but which one and by now it has probably ruined the others.  

Off to check the levels again.

 

France and Spain by vw

Our first Aire (no WC but one nearby in the village) Here we finished putting the interior panels back in the van - as we had seriously run out of time before the ferry deadline.

Besancon to meet friends and a trip on a boat.  See that entrance under the citadel?  That is a tunnel with a lock in it.  The River Doane (I think) does a grand loop in Besancon and tunnels under the citadel.  It was a holiday and everyone was lining the river in the sunshine but only us three on the top deck and a family of 4 or 5 downstairs.  A lad playing his trumpet at my shouted request for an encore played La Vie on Rose just for me!!!

No holiday is complete without icecream - and just look at the size of that Sorbet!  I did have to share it though.

Pleasant little seaside resort.  

Inside the Sagreda Familia

The flat we stayed in in Barcelona was behind a door from the street that looked from the outside as if it went into an apartment foyer.  But what you got on the other side was this little secret oasis.  The alley formed a T and our flat was the far right hand side one.  Very private and it had it's own roof terrace.  Were the apartments built around the original houses or were they infill?  Who knows.  AND it was right by the Sagreda Familia

On the way home again we just fitted into the last slot at this Aire and look I had an en-suite toilet.

  Fabulous.  

In the morning various camper vans used the Elsan and dumped their grey water etc and there was no smell whatsoever.  

Lucky.

Last Patisserie stop before the Ferry and yet another interesting village.

Natures/Air Head - improvement

I just thought I would share this massive improvement I have made to my Natures Head (identical to the Air Head)

I have removed the churning element completely and stuffed this flexible bucket into the box.  It just fits nicely 14 litres.  I imagine the 12 litre one might fit better as the 14 litre one is a tad 'snug' with the handles.

So with this shoved in the box suitably lined with a bin liner and with a modicum of sawdust/cocoa shells or whatever at the bottom to soak up any errant liquid all is sunny and bright as far as I am concerned.

Change over day takes 5 mins , no mixing, no smell, no worries.

Hope this is of use to others of the third way.

The offending article

What I caught my nose on in the lock.

How to ... How you shouldn't ... and copying another's idea

How to remove a very heavy battery from an awkward position when you are a weak and feeble woman.

Tie straps to the handles so when you lose your grip it doesn't fall into the bilges and knock the expansion tank etc etc

wrap the end of the positive cable (and same at the other end) so that you don't have to actually remove the cable at all which is firmly fixed in place!

Join the long negative cable to the short negative cable on the starter battery together with a bolt and cover with rubber (inner tube).  Job done

Oh and place errant battery in the battery box with the other 4

How one shouldn't do Swarkstone Lock.

I clearly caught my nose on the metal cover for the bottom gate paddles.

I was on the boat and other people were operating the lock for me. I took my eye off the ball whilst chatting.  Just goes to show even with a rounded nose you can still get caught.

I thought the 'Willows' idea was a brilliant one so I copied it.

Here is my lovely tin trunk.

It slides under the end of my sofa bed and lifts up sufficiently to sneak an arm in and get at the logs.

I did have to move the right hand legs over to accommodate.  Benefit of a home made sofabed!

And you can still - just - get the ash pan out.

Windows 7 home premium logon failure

Long shot but anyone know how to access a laptop that won't let you log on to your user profile any more?

You get the welcome screen but when you put your password in and press enter it gets you all excited because it briefly says

Welcome

Then it says

The User Profile Service service failed the logon

User Profile cannot be loaded.

Any ideas how to get in to Safe Mode?  I have tried all the F keys

Here's hoping.

Thanks

Now then tell me

is it normal to cross over someone else's boat to reach the towpath.  Or is it just plain bad manners?

the reason I ask is that I observed people off the boat behind me do this twice.

The first time he crossed via an occupied moored boat near the lock landing at Barton Turns.  The lock landing was vacant as I was already in the lock.  He seemed a nice fella and we had a chat whilst operating the lock so I didn't think much of it.

But then at the next lock SHE crossed the front of my boat from the back of theirs so basically they had overtaken my boat.  This was at Tatenhill Lock which those of you who are familiar with has the lock landing away from the lock itself.  There is an oval shaped pound with a narrow entrance complete with an historic boat moored by the lock cottage in between the lock landing and the lock.

As I walked back to my boat having set the lock in my favour I commented (in jest) I hope you aren't queue jumping.  Well she went off on one ... we don't do that blah blah.  I pointed out that her boat was now blocking the entrance to the pound.  Oh he will reverse etc ...

I told him that I might have upset his wife with my comment.

He then bizarrely proceeded into the pound and breasted up to the moored boat.  If they had gone to the left hand side and left me a straight run at the lock it would have been okay, but no ...

They were adamant that they were not going to queue jump so I had to zig zag into the pound, he then reversed and I managed to get into the lock.  I was still trying to be polite so as I came up to the woman I said you can't beat a bit of fun and games of an evening and she responded with well you made a bit of a meal of it you could have gotten a broad beam through there.

IS IT ME???

So am I making too much of it?    I have been simmering for days now.  I spoke to another boater and he said if anyone stands on your boat uninvited you are within your rights to throw them in the water because of piracy?  Perhaps a bit drastic.  I know that if I was moored up minding my own business and someone casually crossed my boat rather than use the lock landing I would be furious.   But then I feel guilty stepping across a CaRT boat left moored on a lock landing so perhaps I am a little sensitive.  I suppose it is the equivalent of crossing someone's garden as a short cut to the street behind.  What if Rob had been in bed with a migraine?  Often happens and someone stepping across the front deck?  boom boom boom

And don't get me started on going to the front of the queue in a bank and making the people standing in the queue supposedly in front of you manoeuvre their way past you

Let me tell you if I meet up with this pair again I will not be polite.  I know who you are 515xxx.

And what if there had been a boat waiting to come up after I had vacated the lock?  Hmmm that would have been fun.