Ten Bob Note - Events of 2006

Decided to move on at 14:00 as the rain had cleared a bit. Needed to move as we were getting low on water. Decided to head for Coven as it is the nearest proper village with shops. All in all, a very damp journey as it rained almost all of the way. We could have moored up earlier but once wet, it made sense just to continue on. Arrived at Coven at about 19:00.

We picked up a bag of coal on the way, £6.50 for a 25kg bag. Lit the fire as soon as we moored up so that we could dry the clothes, also, it was a fairly cool evening. Most of the boats we passed already had their fires lit.

It is nice to have a real coal fire again, there is nothing like it. I think I almost get more pleasure watching the fire than I do the TV. Once lit, the fire burnt well, even with the cheap coal. A glass of wine (or two) was consumed to celebrate the lighting of the new stove!! Very pleased with it.

Got up around 08:00 and lit the fire. We deliberately kept the fire small over night as the stove is new and we didn’t want too big a fire until the sealant and paint had cured.

It rained all night. A six inch deep dog’s water bowl on the deck that was empty last night was overflowing this morning.

Walked into Coven with the dogs. There is a family butchers, a co-op, fruit and veg shop, bakery, chip shop and post office in the village. Once again, everything needed.

The weather doesn’t seem to know what to do today, one minute the sky is black, the next minute, the sun is out and it is hot. At the moment, the fire is lit and the windows are all open wide. I want to make sure all of the sealant is set before I paint the stove. Once painted, I will run it again to burn off the smell of the paint. Will wait for better weather to do this so that we won’t be inside the boat with the smell of the paint.

We have been thinking about getting a pram hood fitted to the stern as it will give us another room for taking off wet coats and muddy boots etc. Also, somewhere to dry the dogs off after walking them. I am not totally keen on the look of them but it would be very useful in wet weather. We phoned Wilson’s of Kinver and they advised us to come down and have a look at some of their work so our next destination is Kinver. They also advised us that they have a twelve week lead time at the moment which suits us fine as it means we will have it before the start of the winter – if we decide to go for one.

Disaster!!! Had the fire lit yesterday, just a fairly low fire. One of the tiles at the side of the fire fell off. On investigation, the tiles at the side of the fire were too hot to touch. Also, the tiles were glued on to ordinary ply wood, not some form of non flammable material as I would have expected. There would be a real risk of the wood catching fire if the stove was turned up high.

Phoned a local boat builder recommended by the chandler that sold us the stove. He said that he would not be happy using ordinary wood in such close proximity to the stove. He advised taking out the wood and replacing with Asbestolux. On investigation, Asbestolux turns out to be a replacement for Asbestos. The boat builder said that there is a builders merchant in Wolverhampton that is near the canal that stocks the stuff we need. I phoned the builders merchant and they have some in stock. Problem is that the merchants is at the top of a flight of 21 locks and is not on our intended route. Have decided to moor up at Aldersley junction at the bottom of the flight and walk the two miles to the merchants. The sheets of Asbestolux are four feet by four feet so should not be too much of a problem to carry back to the boat???

Came across your site by chance. Like the boat!!

NB Asbestolux DOES contain asbestos (see http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos). It was (hopefully) Supalux you were sold, which is an asbestos insulating board substitute. Good idea to check this - call your local authority.

Can you make a correction to your website or add a footnote?

Got up this morning and removed the stove and flue (not much fun). Walked into the village for the papers etc. then removed the wood panelling at the side of the stove after removing all of the wall tiles. When I fit the asbestolux, I will be able to have a larger gap between the asbestolux and the side of the stove, should have a good three inches or more. Am hoping that I will be able to glue tiles to the asbestolux but am not shore if they will adhere ??

All in all, not a great day. Will stay here until Monday morning then head for Wolverhampton and the builders merchant.

The weather is still not great, heavy thunder storms last night and showers on and off today.

	Ten Bob Note
	14th-16th June 2007 Location: Coven, Staffs. N52:39:23 W2:07:24 Today: 8 miles, 8 locks. Total distance: 154 miles. Total locks: 111 Awful weather today, rain, rain and more rain. Some of it very heavy. Decided to move on at 14:00 as the rain had cleared a bit. Needed to move as we were getting low on water. Decided to head for Coven as it is the nearest proper village with shops. All in all, a very damp journey as it rained almost all of the way. We could have moored up earlier but once wet, it made sense just to continue on. Arrived at Coven at about 19:00. We picked up a bag of coal on the way, £6.50 for a 25kg bag. Lit the fire as soon as we moored up so that we could dry the clothes, also, it was a fairly cool evening. Most of the boats we passed already had their fires lit. It is nice to have a real coal fire again, there is nothing like it. I think I almost get more pleasure watching the fire than I do the TV. Once lit, the fire burnt well, even with the cheap coal. A glass of wine (or two) was consumed to celebrate the lighting of the new stove!! Very pleased with it. 15th June Got up around 08:00 and lit the fire. We deliberately kept the fire small over night as the stove is new and we didn’t want too big a fire until the sealant and paint had cured. It rained all night. A six inch deep dog’s water bowl on the deck that was empty last night was overflowing this morning. Walked into Coven with the dogs. There is a family butchers, a co-op, fruit and veg shop, bakery, chip shop and post office in the village. Once again, everything needed. The weather doesn’t seem to know what to do today, one minute the sky is black, the next minute, the sun is out and it is hot. At the moment, the fire is lit and the windows are all open wide. I want to make sure all of the sealant is set before I paint the stove. Once painted, I will run it again to burn off the smell of the paint. Will wait for better weather to do this so that we won’t be inside the boat with the smell of the paint. We have been thinking about getting a pram hood fitted to the stern as it will give us another room for taking off wet coats and muddy boots etc. Also, somewhere to dry the dogs off after walking them. I am not totally keen on the look of them but it would be very useful in wet weather. We phoned Wilson’s of Kinver and they advised us to come down and have a look at some of their work so our next destination is Kinver. They also advised us that they have a twelve week lead time at the moment which suits us fine as it means we will have it before the start of the winter – if we decide to go for one. 16th June Disaster!!! Had the fire lit yesterday, just a fairly low fire. One of the tiles at the side of the fire fell off. On investigation, the tiles at the side of the fire were too hot to touch. Also, the tiles were glued on to ordinary ply wood, not some form of non flammable material as I would have expected. There would be a real risk of the wood catching fire if the stove was turned up high. Phoned a local boat builder recommended by the chandler that sold us the stove. He said that he would not be happy using ordinary wood in such close proximity to the stove. He advised taking out the wood and replacing with Asbestolux. On investigation, Asbestolux turns out to be a replacement for Asbestos. The boat builder said that there is a builders merchant in Wolverhampton that is near the canal that stocks the stuff we need. I phoned the builders merchant and they have some in stock. Problem is that the merchants is at the top of a flight of 21 locks and is not on our intended route. Have decided to moor up at Aldersley junction at the bottom of the flight and walk the two miles to the merchants. The sheets of Asbestolux are four feet by four feet so should not be too much of a problem to carry back to the boat??? UPDATE 31-01-09 Following email received: Hi Came across your site by chance. Like the boat!! NB Asbestolux DOES contain asbestos (see http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos). It was (hopefully) Supalux you were sold, which is an asbestos insulating board substitute. Good idea to check this - call your local authority. Can you make a correction to your website or add a footnote? Regards, Paul. END OF UPDATE ------------------------------ Got up this morning and removed the stove and flue (not much fun). Walked into the village for the papers etc. then removed the wood panelling at the side of the stove after removing all of the wall tiles. When I fit the asbestolux, I will be able to have a larger gap between the asbestolux and the side of the stove, should have a good three inches or more. Am hoping that I will be able to glue tiles to the asbestolux but am not shore if they will adhere ?? All in all, not a great day. Will stay here until Monday morning then head for Wolverhampton and the builders merchant. The weather is still not great, heavy thunder storms last night and showers on and off today. The gap between stove and tiles was about an inch and a half. Side wood panel and all tiles removed Stove set back in place until we get the asbestolux board. Much bigger gap now Previous page -\|- Next page -\|- Index page

	Material Copyright © 2007 Ernie Williams This page last modified on: 22 April, 2014 12:47 PM