The boat safety prep - the stove Pt 1

When we had Percy painted in 2015 we had the front and rear stove cowls off and re sealed. There has recently been evidence of the horrible tar staining on the inside wood of the cabin by the stove indication the cowl is letting a bit of water in so (picture check) on August 10th we were on Percy and I took off the cowl repainted it and re sealed it. I didn't re seal the flue to the cowl. 

Did some 'gardening' at the same time 

However on working around the stove it was obvious it was a BSC fail as the rear flue pipe cover was rusting of and the side was also easing off - all age related Morso issues. The top was also starting to crack on the lip at the back. The stove is 30 plus years old and had a new top on as part of our purchase. So it was in need of a replacement.

We considered having a diesel stove but to be honest the Morso and its back boiler with large copper pipes along the living area just works. Problem is they do not sell the Morso Squirrel 1410's anymore ! I wanted a swap out and pleasing found Morso Heaven in Bodmin who 'refurbishes' said stoves. Looking at his pictures and testimonials I  was happy to commission one. 

 - The van, so much to blog about. 

For a while I've wanted a van for general DIY duties as well as carrying cycles for holidays  and maybe a motorbike! Anyhow I got one having sold the trusty Toyota Auris - another saga. A lovely little Peugeot Partner one owner full service history, clean, cruise control Apple car play low miles. The van afforded me the opportunity to take to old stove to Bodmin and bring the new one back, Did that in 24 hours getting up after a stop in a Travel lodge near Bodmin  at 4.30 am and a round trip of 550 + miles. 

Of course I'd had to remove the old stove for its trip to Cornwall. It pleased me to do it on my own as when we brought the boat Tony had made me aware what a PITA is was to replace the top of the existing stove. 

It took some draining down. The pipes hold more fluid than I was expecting, this is my decanting device  

The tricky bit was releasing the flue from the stove collar. A cement is used and sets hard. The win is using a multitool and pre bending the cutter with a curve.... like a hot knife through butter - all hail the multitool  

Removed and ready for its trip - Mike the gas man helped me get it into the van. Hopefully the new stove will go back in without a fight .... We've the Boat safety on Tuesday then the stove will go back in.  

It's been a while - the gas leak

I do miss blogging. Leaving the blog and getting behind in updates starts to feel like an impossible task to 'catch up'. 

So in an effort to maintain the spirit of the blogging community and to distract me from watching so much Youtube I've decided I am going to try and catch up from April.... it'll maybe not be so interesting but it will get me back in the horse so as to speak. As ever I will use my photos to remind me when we've been to Percy and maybe a few other  bits and pieces that I'd like to record.

But for now I'll start with the most recent updates and that is all about the Boat Safety Certificate (BSC) work. For those non boaters it is a four yearly safety check by a registered BSC examiner. It gets a bit complicated around Gas safe BSC engineers and non gas safe as well as your boat use  - live-a-board or recreational users. We are now the latter..... there is detail around that but to be honest it's confusing and can be interpretational as to who can and can't test what and what needs testing. 

How do I know - well  three years ago we had to have an out of water 30 year insurance survey. We contracted Balliol Fowden (great name and nice fella who also knows more about boats than Noah) to do it. He was flabbergasted that our gas regulator and flexible pipes were so old and recommended ( as gas safe engineers will do ) to replace them every 10 years. The Boat safety guidance is visual inspection  - so ours being dated 1989  - yes OEM from Tony's build were still being passes as they didn't have and signs of cracking or perishing. 

So... I read on Adams Briar Rose blog ( Thanks Adam) he had used and recommended Mike Bickley a gas safe engineer. I contacted Mike and we agreed for him to come over and replace the regulator and pipes. Plus do a looksy on the system. In hindsight we should have had him to the BSC but I'd already started talking to the guy who does the last two on Percy -I wanted to be fair. 

He arrived on time and we chatted on options and I opted for a bubble tester and on bottle regulator  (Bubble tester not really needed) but it means we can do random leak tests and it also means I can replace the gas cooker hose (would have been £65+ for Mike to do it ) and check for leaks after using the bubble tester.

Work done and Mike gave the same information via a BSC scheme leaflet we always get about the gas water heater  really should not be in the bathroom - been there 30 plus years. He then found a small gas leak on the gas tap that isolates the water heater - replaced the old tap and all good. That sort of leak would be evident using the bubble tester. 

All in all a good visit and we were very pleased with Mikes work and approach and information given. I'd highly recommend Mike and grateful to Adam for his recommendation.

So that's the first £500 to sort the BSC - the stove is the next story !  

Good stuff and worth having on the boat. 

One side note  - being fed up with the gas cylinders trapping moisture and grinding aways at the locker bottom I built a wooden platform but crucially put it on 4 rubber 'door stops' and was pleased to see the gas locker in the same condition as it was 3 years ago - dry and rust free  =  result