The saga of the stove continues.

Our week with Toffee has been a joy and would have been just perfect if it hadn't been for the weather. Being young, her energy levels are off the scale and if she could talk, would nag us incessantly to go out for walks. But plead as much as she likes, with the atrocious weather of late, conditions are far from ideal for long walks. The towpath along the Erewash is particularly bad, so the only place to go without sinking into the mud was along the old disused Nottingham canal. Luckily, today (Tuesday) it really felt like spring had finally sprung and that long awaited walk could finally happen.

Remember the sago of our stove?. The issues with the CO alarm going off was, thankfully, resolved, but now the latest problem has been tar running down the wall and chimney inside the boat! Okay, tar can sometimes be seen around the flue on the outside which occasionally flows down the cabin side, a lot depends on how the chimney is fitted, whether an inner skin is used and which coal is bought, but when it starts to run down on the inside....well that was unacceptable.

Took some cleaning and the smell was pretty bad.

This last week it's been cold and wet, so the stove had to remain lit for warmth. It was the smell that grabbed our attention first, and the side of the copper kettle was covered with the stuff. No way could anything be done until the stove was cold, so when the sun finally put in an appearance, it was the perfect opportunity to let the fire go out and for Ian to see if he could reseal the top of the flue. Well, what appeared to be a simple job turned into a massive one. 

First, the chimney was swept, which resulted in the brush becoming well and truly jammed! A lump hammer and a lot of bashing on the handle did the trick, thoughts of having the brush stuck almost 3/4 down the chimney didn't bear thinking about.  The resulting soot and congealed material (probably tar) was found to be the culprit.

Clumps of the stuff

 Next he applied heatproof silicone on top of the old fire rope, hoping this would seal the flue surround to stop the tar from spilling out…another failure as the silicone didn't stick at all! Then, as he was trying to dig the newly applied silicone out to start over, a small section of the chimney liner broke away! Oh, eck...now what??? He decided to remove the old fire rope, but that rope was covered in nasty stuff and had gone solid, so a drill was needed to make a few holes to allow a sharpened screwdriver to start the removal. Crikey, it was awful stuff to remove having gone fibrous and took nearly 2 hours to dig out!

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The old silicon removed and new was to be applied.

Old fire rope cavity ready to be filled.

With that job done, the gully was refilled with the silicone, and allowed to cure overnight. So we hope this will be the end of it for the time being. A bodge job indeed, as we will have to replace the collar and flue pipe once the stove is allowed to go out for good. Hopefully the bodge will last long enough to see us through this month!

And the ducklings are down to 12!

Recent update

Blast, MB failed its MOT. For heaven’s sake, the amount of mileage done last year was almost non-existent. Yes, it was taken for a jaunt to Scotland by Marilyn and David, but the mileage would have been minimal. It failed because the front LED high lights didn't work, Ian was astounded, all the exterior lights worked when we were away, headlights, sidelights, reversing lights, indicators all good and even those high lights on the motorhome, front and sides. So it was baffling as to why those front ones had given up the ghost. Anyway, a retest would be needed within 10 days, so Ian set too to find the cause. Turns out after a bit of research that the Sargent Unit was the culprit and of course that had been sent away for repair! 

 What to do? Phoning the company repairing the unit, mainly to find out when it would be returned, he was told it was already on its way back. Good news you would think, well in a way yes but when he was told they could find nothing wrong, the worry now was why had the heating and lights failed when we were away!Anyway two days later the unit was back, and within an hour of it arriving, had been reinstalled in its rightful place and yes he was very glad of the photos taken to see where those wires went! Oh, and the interior lights started working as well,.. hmm, most strange. Anyway, Ian now had to find the cause of why the heating and hot water didn't work. and the only clue he had was that the error code on the control panel pointed to the fan. A company called Premier Technical Services was found in Cannock that dealt with these fans so that day it was sent off to await the verdict.

Heating fan

Well, two days later it was returned fixed. Something on the circuit board was the problem and yes it now worked a treat. So everything on MB is now all tickety-boo and yes it also passed the MOT. 

Whilst this was all going on, I had a birthday, a good one at that because lunch was had at our daughters and dinner at our sons. This all coincided with our son jetting off to Austria with the family for half-term, and we had the pleasure of Toffee's company for the week.

 

I think she's pleased to be back!

 

Next week we dock the boat. Weather so far has been awful and with the dock not being covered, I am keeping everything crossed for some dry weather.

New life had also arrived in the basin. A duck with her 13 ducklings, but how many will she keep? Too many Pike about in these waters, mores the pity, and then there are all the cats around here too. Poor ducklings, the odds are stacked against them!

Too wet to fly

 The phone call from the Falconry centre arrived well after 5 pm with the news I had been dreading, no flying or handling the birds in the morning. The inclement weather put paid to that! Another couple had also booked at the same time, there would have been four of us.  As the other couple were locals, it was easy enough for them to rearrange within a day or two, but for us, well that was a different matter.  David expressed his concern that we had come all this way only to be disappointed, but when I explained we would be returning later in the year, I could hear the relief in his voice. Such a lovely man. So it was agreed that we could come again in June, a date was set, and we now keep fingers crossed the weather (then) will be a lot kinder.

So now back to our lighting dilemma. Without lights, a torch had to be used. One we bought in NZ was multi functional, it could also be used as an insect zapper, which worked brilliantly in killing those horrible sand flies. Anyway, shining the light up towards the ceiling worked a treat as the beam bounced back illuminating the table, so playing Quiddler was a lot easier than we thought.    

 

The rain and high winds continued well into the night, but sods law said it would be dry when we awoke. And such was the case! Not only that, but the sun put in a very brief appearance too! It was but a short respite because the forecast showed more high winds and rain. By the time we set off toward Beverley, the rain had started, it diminished the further East we went, and I was beginning to think we could have gone to the Falcon centre after all. A quick look at the phone for weather in Settle and it showed this.

It took the best part of 2 hours to reach Beverley. A stop at Sainsbury for lunch and whilst in the car park  Ian removed the Sargent unit. Gosh, the wires seemed to be in a tangle and I wondered how Ian would remember where they all went. Very wisely, Ian took loads of photos so that when we eventually have it sent back fixed, he knows exactly where each wire bundle goes.

Having taken the unit out, it meant that all remaining electrics failed, including the fridge. It couldn't even run on gas because the igniter was electric. We knew, though, that as long as the door was kept shut the food in the freezer would stay frozen, but it was the retractable step I had most trouble with. I forgot that it wouldn't come out to allow me off MB, much too long a drop for my little legs, so my only means of getting out was through the passenger door. 

Sargent electrical services was eventually found at Tokenspire business park, then it was a matter of handing the unit over with the reassurance that it would be sent back to us within 2 weeks. I do hope so because we hope to leave with MB again after Easter! Anyway, a further 2 hours later we were back on FS, and bringing the rain with us.  The stove was lit and MB unpacked. Such a shame we had to return early, and I was disappointed on not handling those birds of prey today, but something to look forward too in the summer. Our next adventure on MB will be after we have blacked FS's bottom. Toffee is also coming to stay for a week over the Easter break, so really looking forward to that.

More problems with MB (Mini Beast)

Turning mild, we didn't need the heater on this morning. Shame the rain hasn't eased, though. In fact, it was that and the wind that woke us before dawn. With no plans today, should we stay at the site and watch a film or two? We were so close to the Dales that I fancied a drive out and, heading toward Settle, decided to find the Falconry centre at Feizel.to find out if tomorrow's Bird of Prey experience was still on. 

Well the sat nave took us along some very narrow roads, onto the Dales and even one with a width no more than 7' 6". It was too risky to even try, so we did no more than turn around (not easy) and find another route.

Eventually we found the Falconry centre, gosh the road to it was EXTREMELY narrow and how we made it there without meeting another vehicle was sheer luck. I would hate to try and get there in the height of summer! Although to be fair this place is open by appointment only so the chances were pretty slim. Anyway no one was around so all that way for nothing! We did find a lay-by which seemed a good place to stop for lunch. It was high on the Dales, and we watched the horizontal rain crossing a very misty landscape. If the rain had eased we may have been able to go exploring because this lay-by also had an information board about the Winskill Stones

After an hour of listening to the wind and rain, it was decided to head back to the camp site. At least we could watch a film and switch on the electric fan heater. The journey back was along the main roads, so no trying to negotiate those tiny lanes.

Back at the site and..... groan....yet another problem with MB. Discovery made that the satellite wasn't working and that wasn't all, no lights either apart from the one in the loo (at least Ian will be able to see where to aim) and the outside lights. Was it a fuse, and if so which one?

 Unfortunately, all seemed to be working okay, so what could it be? When we bought the van it was found that the Sargent power unit had a fault, luckily it was exchanged, but we have no idea if it was replaced with a new one. It seems strange that the heating packed up a couple of days ago and now the lights. We have a horrible feeling that the unit is to blame. Groan again....why now...although at least it didn't happen when we were on our way to Shetland! Ian phoned Sargent electrical services, who mentioned it could be one of the circuit units having failed. The good news is it is repairable but obviously at a high cost. To send the unit would add another £15  but on enquiry as to where they were, turns out they are in Beverley near Hull. Good news in a way because at least we can drop it off on our way back to the Mill. 

I also phoned the Falconry centre to see if all was good for tomorrow. So far I'm still waiting for a return phone call, but the weather looks to be as bad tomorrow. Somehow I think they will reschedule, although the earliest we can do it now will be June. We wait and see.

The biggest concern though was how to cope without lights. We have torches, so that will have to do.

On route to Settle

 The rain started again in earnest in the wee hours. Huddled deep into the sleeping bag, even the extra blanket didn't keep out the chill. Luckily I had a thermal long sleeved vest in the cupboard so that, and thick socks for my cold feet, went on. I noticed Ian had also grabbed a blanket to put over him.  And he wore a woolly hat to keep his head warm. Ha....so much for he never feels the cold! And if you're wondering why we didn't cuddle up, well this motorhome has two single seats either side which can be made up into a double by adding a centre piece, but we find it easier to sleep on them as singles. 

7 am, both lying awake, Ian drew the short straw to get the kettle on. The gas ring, once lit, gave out enough heat to take the chill from the air but the continuing rain made inside feel damp. Unfortunately the cassette light came on during the night which meant Ian had to brave the rain to go and change it. It's a shame it couldn't have waited for another hour because suddenly the incessant drumming of droplets on the roof stopped. Of course both of us needed to use the loo so that job had to be done pronto.

Water tank filled and waste water emptied, we headed off to Wicks (not Argos as I stated yesterday) to collect the heater. I don't envisage being cold tonight as it has two heat settings and a thermostat!

The Sat nav had the co-ordinates put in for the next camp site at Coniston Cold. It was the nearest Camping and Caravan site we could find to Settle and as I mentioned two days ago, this will be the place to go to for the flying and handling of Birds of Prey, another gift from Marilyn and David. Thursday is the day for that

The 55 mile journey took us over the Holme Moss Summit. The climb was bad enough, ears popping on the way up, but the descent was as terrifying as the Remutaka Pass in NZ.  This from Wiki. 

Holme Moss is high moorland on the border between the Holme Valley district of Kirklees in West Yorkshire and the High Peak district of Derbyshire in England. Historically on the boundary between the West Riding of Yorkshire and Cheshire, it is just inside the boundary of the Peak District National Park.

Why does Ian insist on letting MB run with his foot hovering over the brake pedal? Hands clenched, I was preying for him to brake but no, great pleasure in terrifying the misses! When he finally did have to break on an S bend, my prayers went to the brakes, hoping they actually worked! Very relieved to get to the bottom, and Ian's comment of "Just like those hills in NZ" made me realise he was wishing he was back there.

Going up

View from the top

 And this was seen on route at Glossop,

 

The camp site was lovely, in fact we were the only van there. The only downside was how far the showers and toilets were from the hard standing. Predominantly a camping site, a huge field was set aside right by the facilities and only 6 hard standing areas were available for caravans and motorhomes. I expect it had something with our having toilets and those camping did not.

In the field opposite were sheep with newborn lambs. A constant 'baaing' has been going on since arrival, wonderful as this means Spring is just around the corner. 

 

Dog fights, take off and landings

 When we left Langley Mill, MB was in tip-top condition. Everything was working fine, especially the heater. Our heater works either with gas or electric, and both settings were tested before we left. Last night was freezing, so the electric heating was switched on until we went to bed. On waking to a very cold Beast, it was again switched on, only to find the £3 we put in the meter yesterday had been used. Right...switch to gas, electric was far too expensive at this camping site. But guess what...the error code came up on the panel and until Ian could figure that one out we had to bite the bullet and top up the meter, so electric could be used instead. The dial was moved to the required setting and...blast.... another error code appeared. Long story short, we now have no means of warmth, and the nights here are below 4 degrees.

Sitting out the chill with only the gas cooker rings to throw a bit of heat our way, both were glad when the time came for us to drive the Beast to Stockport for Ian to attempt to fly a Spitfire. By 2 pm we arrived, was greeted by the instructor Keith and taken to the cockpit of the Spitfire. Here Ian was shown the controls, and so he could get used to them, decided that a few dog fights with the Luftwaffe was the way to go.

Having shown an aptitude for flying and impressed the instructor, take off and landing were next. Well, never have I laughed so much. Ian mastered the takeoff, but the landing was disastrous. I have a video on my web album if you fancy a look. CLICK HERE. It's over the 100mb blogger will allow. Below is his takeoff attempt, followed by two more awful landings.

 

 

Ian was at the controls for one and three-quarter hours. Loved every minute and threatened to wake Marilyn and David up in NZ to thank them once again. I had to curb his enthusiastic intentions because after all, to wake them at 3 am would not go down well!

On our return Ian once more had a go at starting up the heater but no, it is deceased so to freeze for another night is our lot. Tomorrow we buy a fan heater from Argos, so a good job we are not freedom camping and have found sites with electric. The only bummer moment was when we realised Ian had fed the meter on this site with another three pounds, and I very much doubt this will be used up by the lights or TV. So a present left to the next motorhomers when they arrive!

We head North to participate in our surprise gifts.

 Would you credit it!!! How many years have we been boating??? Last night we ran out of water and at the most inopportune moment. I won't say what, but the loo was featured! Anyway, with only enough water in the kettle for the first cup of tea the next morning, Ian was kicked out of bed very early to run the hose out. He was not best pleased and kept blaming me for doing 4 wash loads and having two showers without checking. Hmm...he does have a point, but I'm too stubborn to admit it was my fault, so I kept on that it wasn't just my job to keep an eye on things.  Still, all was forgiven because things needed sorting for our getaway tomorrow morning. Yep, our next adventure was but a few hours away and the Beast (motorhome) had to be stocked with food, clothes, etc and of course filled with water! Don't want the same thing to happen again 😀

 So by midday today we left Langley Mill and set off with MB in the pouring rain! The plan was to first head to Stockport and then onto Settle 'op North'. In one of my earlier posts I sort of hinted this was coming, and today I can reveal exactly why this trip was happening.

Think back to last summer and the weeks we spent with Marilyn and David helping to get Waka Huia ready for sale. Well after their return to NZ we of course kept in touch via plenty of WhatsApp messages and the occasional FaceTime. One of those messages had this for Ian

A 90 minute virtual aerospace and flight deck experience

 And another for both of us

Settle Falconry, Fly birds of prey in the heart of Yorkshire

I can't tell you how touched we were and no amount of "You shouldn't have" and "As our most cherished friends we would always come to help out" it all fell on deaf ears, so thank you once again Marilyn and David for the most wonderful gifts ever 😘 

After 90 minutes of battling the wind and rain we finally arrived at Marl Houser Farm, Little Hayfield nr Stockport. Nice small Caravan and camping site for members only. Five dogs sounded the alarm as we came through the gate, and I was a little worried that Ian had to negotiate all of them to get to the front door. But all that racket brought the owner to the door, showed us where to go, and found the one and only remaining space. Gosh, they were busy even this early in the season. Still it's pleasant although a bit odorous! At the back of a huge barn, so it's ever a wonder! Tomorrow it's the 'Flying a Spitfire simulator experience' for Ian, and the great news is I'm allowed to sit in the back and watch. Yea.

5 Old English Sheepdogs

Time to make the Mini Beast ready.

 On this cold dismal grey day with nothing much to do except watch dross TV, I began to wonder where these last few months have gone to. Hardly weather for venturing out, there has been a lot of cleaning and sorting out of clothes. Three large carrier bags have made their way to the charity shops, mostly size 14 which I unfortunately no longer fit into! I suppose I could go on one of those starvation diets but at my age...well what the heck! A bit of extra fat keeps me warm! Anyway my thoughts also went forward to our upcoming trip in the Beast. In less than 2 weeks we head up North but for why? Well more of that in a later blog.

So getting MB ready was now a matter of urgency. Several problems needed addressing. Repair the water tank outlet, fix the reversing camera, try to get the radio to work, and today the screen washer packed up. Thankfully, a motor factors on the industrial estate in Ilkeston had a new pump on the shelf, so Ian high tailed it to the shop pretty quick. But for me, the utmost importance was to replace our cooker.

The cooker is a good cooker, has three gas rings and one electric hob. The grill and oven work fine, although like all calor gas cookers, to grill anything takes forever. We have always maintained that to toast bread it would have to be put on the night before! Anyway, my issue with the cooker was the oven door. It opened to the side which meant that if we were not one hundred percent on the level, a very hot door would shut on my arm! Too many times I nearly got burnt and in the end we had to resort to Ian holding the door while I took the food out. So a new one had to be bought. 

Looks like the oven door should open downwards, but it doesn't!

Anyone want a decent cooker for £150?

 

We were almost at the stage of choosing a new Thetford cooker from Midland Chandlers when, having mentioned this to Ian's sister, she then tells us an almost brand new Thetford cooker is sitting in her garage. Well....turns out this was a replacement after the glass top had shattered when the electric hob had been accidentally turned on when out with the camper van. A year later, the company who had sold it to her still hadn't picked it up. The deduction was it had been forgotten, hence why it was offered to us. All that was needed was a new glass top, and that can be easily purchased. Last week we drove down to Maldon for a few days so we could visit and fetch it back. On our return, Ian removed the old cooker and replaced it with the new. Excellent result, the new one works a treat, and I am now one very happy lady.

As to FS, she will be going into the Great Northern Basin moorings on Friday whilst we are away for a few days. Nice and secure, we never have to worry when she is in there.

Oh, and one sad note, the Great Northern Pub is up for sale. (Click Here) Changing its purpose to flats has been mentioned. Groan...I do hope not, but as far as we know, the days of it being a pub are now almost over.

Yessss, no more alarms.

 For Goodness’s sake....not again.... we returned from a shopping trip to hear the CO alarm going off. Things were getting beyond a joke. Everything we could think of to rectify the problem had been tried, except for one. So we let the stove go out overnight, brrr, turned very chilly in the cabin, and even with the extra blanket on the bed, it was freezing.  Good job I had my human hot water bottle! 7 am and the diesel heater was fired up. Not as good as having the stove lit but took the chill from the air and stopped me moaning. So after breakfast, Ian drove to Tool Station to purchase a packet of smoke pellets. 10 in a packet, and by Jove we nearly used all 10! Also, he decided to fetch the spare stove door which was in our garage. Why have two stove doors? Well, when we purchased the stove from new roughly 10 years ago there was a problem with the door, so the manufacturers sent a replacement. Anyway, having changed the doors over, placed a smoke pellet inside, this happened! Ha...no wonder we had replaced it!

The silver surround was the original door, the replacement had a gold surround. The door seals were obviously the problem

 So that door was removed and replaced with the other door to try again.

In went another pellet

 Sure enough, smoke was seen escaping from the ash pan door as well as the glass surround.

 

Although Ian had replaced the rope seal from around the door a while ago, a search on the web found he had used the 8 ml rope instead of the 10 ml. Blast! But then he remembered a conversation with Jim (nb Dire Straits) who had the right size rope given by another boater, so maybe Ian could go cap in hand and see if we could purchase it. 

Jim came good, asking not a penny (thanks Jim) and the old rope was removed, and the 10 ml stuck down in its place. He even replaced the rope around the main door.

 

 To try and sort the smoke seen escaping the glass, a brainwave! Take out the glass from the door with the silver surround, replace the gasket seal and try that instead.

 

In went another smoke pellet.

I could swear now....and if Ian had any hair, that would have been pulled out in clumps!

Time was now 3 pm. All blooming morning and into the afternoon, he had been trying to resolve the issue. The heater had been going too and goodness knows how much diesel had been used! Off came the door again. This time another gasket was placed on top to make double the thickness. In went yet another pellet and YESSSSSSSSSS. No smoke was seen. OMG, we both did a bit of a jig on the spot. Grins all round and a celebratory cup of tea. Fire was lit, diesel heating switched off and now back to being nice and toasty and more to the point, not a single bleep has come from our alarms......result.

Update. All is still quiet, last night was stress-free, no windows or doors had to remain open, and I have high hopes this will now continue.

To everyone that has sent suggestions, I say thank-you, your input was much appreciated.

And as today is Shrove Tuesday, for the first time in ages I made pancakes for lunch, 4 for Ian and three for me. There is an argument in this household as to what filling should go in them. Ian is a traditional lemon juice and sugar person, as for me, it has to be golden syrup. Oh, and Ian made a cake! Yep, he found a recipe for the bread maker. Raisin and walnut loaf, and that was even yummier!