The forecast is not so good for the next couple of days, we still want and need to get moving. Our main need today was for water. After breakfast we put on our waterproofs, we knew we’d be getting wet this morning, just how long we’d last for was still an unknown.
Time to move onwards and downwards
A paddle was lifted at lock 46 to fill it as we rolled up the covers, then Mick reversed Oleanna out from the notch back onto the canal. This is a lovely place to be, suspect it’s even nicer in the summer.
At the water point we’d been warned that there was a boat that has taken up root, they’ve been asked to move by C&RT several times, but it has fallen on deaf ears. The only boat we’ve seen moving since we’ve been in Littleborough had tucked itself in behind the overstaying boat, today we’d have to breast up to get water. But as I lifted a paddle to empty the lock I could see movement at the waterpoint, the boat was on the move also. Maybe they were hoping for a locking partner, maybe they were just moving on, but it was a welcome sign as we’d not really wanted to be filling with water across two boats.
Another wet day in the Pennines
As the tank filled it rained. As the tank filled the forcast wind started to pick up and by the time we were pushing back off the gusts of wind had started. We worked our way down the next two locks getting wetter every minute. Five years ago we’d had gongoozlers at Littleborough Bottom Lock discussing glasses of wine, today only hardened waterproof clad walkers passed, only a nod from them.
We pulled in and made use of the rings at the wharf, a restock very much required on the food and coal front. The weather forecast keeps mentioning unseasonably high temperatures, we’ve not noticed them here at all! The two bags of Ecoal Mick bought in Wakefield have been driving us up the wall the last few days. It not only creates SO much ash but it also takes an eternity to light, some decent coal woud be welcome.
Is this brick and extra layer of insulation? All the other buildings are stone
After a slight dry off and a cuppa Mick headed into town with the bike returning with two 20kg bags of Glow. Next job restocking the cupboards. By now we’d made the decision to stay put for the rest of the day and not head onwards in the strong gusts of wind, this meant we’d be able to get a supermarket delivery if one was available. A slot was booked and a big shop put into our basket. We just needed some things for tonight, so we walked over to the Co-op where pizzas and extra toppings were selected.
The rest of the day we hunkered down gradually warming up inside, coats drip drying in the shower, howling gails whistling through the windows, geese squabbling, there’s everything here, even Horse Bananas clinging to the hillside! Inside I watched more bake off and knitted with the occasional winge from Tilly at not being allowed out.
Blackcurrant Chilled Medication!!!!
Unfortunatly today wasn’t a suitable day for chilled medication despite the nearest shop selling my favourite flavour!
3 locks, 0.5 miles, 1 full water tank, 1 empty yellow water tank, 1 boat ahead, 1 food order, 40kg coal, 2 soggy boaters, 1 bored cat, 1 sock on it’s 3rd incarnation! 0 chilled medication, 2 volunteers stood down, postponed by a day.
An early start for Mick who headed off to Littleborough Station to catch a train just before 8am. Tilly and I stayed tucked up in bed and enjoyed a cuppa with the puzzles from Saturdays newspaper.
A day return to Scarborough woud have been about £70 at that time of day even with an old gits railcard, but Mick had booked his tickets in such a way that he got off peak tickets from Mytholmroyd, therefore costing £37.35 including a plus bus for around Scarborough.
View from the cratch today
On board, after the usual mornings activities I decided to give the interior of Oleanna a dust down and then a sweep through followed by a floor clean. Tilly kept out of the way for much of the time, the lack of wind and rain encouraging her to go outside.
Then it was time to investigate why our pullout corner cupboard is starting to ground and make grooves in the newly oiled floor! I’ve been wondering if the weight in the pan drawer, which is attached to the cupboard might be doing this. Maybe when I’d reattached it I’d screwed them together at a slight angle that gets exacerbated when the corner cupboard is pulled right out.
I emptied the cupboard and drawer so that I could detach the two. There lying on the floor was part of a circular piece of plastic. Was this off one of the castors? Yes. The plastic helps keep the wheel square and helps to keep the rubber wheel from flattening out under the weight. Without it the rubber wheel was flattening, a bit like a blown tyre on a car and therefore the plinth of the pullout cupboard was grounding across the floor, it having dropped by a couple of mm.
How were the castors attached? To blocks of wood, which of course had been attached from below not above. So to remove the castors we would need to remove the cupboard to be able to turn it on it’s side! A look later on from the opposite side by Mick suggests we might be able to just replace the wheel on the caster without dismanteling everything.
Cupboards were open! Quick quick I must get inside! The way through from one side was blocked by the squishy wheel. I managed to rush round to the other side to get in underneath, one of my favourite places to get in the way. She doesn’t like to close it if I’m in there.
But where’s the top gone!?!
Tilly gave me a site report from low down. She was quite purrplexed about the whole situation.But hey hang on! There’s no top!! Someone’s stolen the top! I can’t hide in here anymore, there’s no IN to be IN! This is what the problem is, the IN, not the squishy wheel. I’ve left the pan drawer unattached until we can replace the wheel.
It’s okay there’s still an IN to be in here
Next it was time to restick some edging onto the side of the drawing board slot. This has been held on by tape for about a year. Some wood glue down between the main board and the strip, tape back on to hold it in place.There’s far too much stuff in the slot! It needs clearing out to leave enough IN for a cat.
Lunch was arepas with red cabbage, cheese and slices of apple, very nice.
Blues
Time to select the yarn for the next pair of socks. I’ve had quite a few requests for blue socks this year, so any yarn that was blue was laid on the bed. Three selected, I just need to decide how to knit them up.
Meanwhile in Scarborough Mick had caught the bus to the hospital, a blood test required by his GP, this was all very efficient. He then walked to the house to meet with our current lodgers. A coffee, chat and he picked up our post, including postcards about the York and North Yorkshire Mayor election. A few years ago we had lodgers put our postal votes on the top of a book shelf for safe keeping along with other post. Mick got the train to Scarborough especially to pick them up but couldn’t find them. They were found a few months later long after the poll. We now have a tray in the kitchen for post to go in.
You don’t need to be in there! Just checking it’s still got an IN.
Then he caught another bus out of town and headed to his dentist. His return to Seamer Station was thwarted by numerous school buses refusing to pick him up and then the next bus was ten minutes late, by which time he’d missed the hourly train from Scarborough!
I wonder what Clare made of this
In Littleborough the day had been a perfect one for cruising, no boats had come past though. I frogged another pair of socks to just past the heel, adjusted my needle size hoping this would rectify their tightness. I watched another Bake Off, more comdey biscuits and The Woman In Gold 2015,starring Helen Mirren. Sixty years after she fled Vienna during World War II, an elderly Jewish woman, Maria Altmann, starts her journey to retrieve family possessions seized by the Nazis, among them Klimt’s famous painting ‘The Lady in Gold’. She enlists a young lawyer to help her and they end up taking the Austrian Government to the US Supreme Court.
More yummy yarn
Mick returned home a while after 8pm. In amongst the post was a parcel from Rachel at Skein Queen, another rather yummy skein of yarn in white and blues. She’d also added in a pattern for a pair of socks. Thank you Rachel.
0 locks, 0 miles, 4ft edging re-stuck,16 tickets, 6 trains, 3 buses, 3 ignoring buses, 1 flattening wheel,1 pleasant day, 1 test, 1 set of clean gnashers, 1 puzzled Tilly, 1 skien, 1 patter, 1 omlette for 2, 1 normal result.
There was time for MIck to whip up a cooked breakfast before the Geraghty zoom this morning, it did mean that we’d be eating it whilst we chatted to everyone. Subjects covered, canvasing, folk, endive and sparkling ash leaves.
Zooming breakfast
Late morning we pushed Oleanna back over to the other side of the little notch as we were expecting little legs again this afternoon. It was hard to move across as the wind was pinning us to the side. I managed to get a rope around a bollard at the bow, then we used the Andy method (springing off) to force the stern across against Kathleens best efforts. We soon discovered that on the east side of the notch we’d managed to get ourselves tied up so as not to be buffeted about so much, the west side we’d not been so sucessful!
I think it’s stopped raining
We pottered away the morning and by mid afternoon squally showers were whisking around. Mick confired with our prospective visitors who’d planned on a visit before we all headed out for Sunday lunch. Instead we’d meet a car at the next road bridge and get a lift.
Soggy sponsored walk
Full water proofs didn’t manage to keep us dry for the five minute walk to meet Anne, sorry for leaving you with soggy seats! The Moorcock would have only been a 20 minute walk according to Google, although it would all have been uphill, glad we’d not done that in the rain!
A large table had been reserved for us at the end of the pub and we were soon joined by Ruth, James, Penelope and Daphne. There was Vocation beer on tap, so for the second Sunday in a row I had a pint of Heart and Soul a nice GF brew. Roast pork, beef, sausage and chips plus a chicken nuggets and chips were ordered.
Nice pint
The pork almost certainly didn’t come off a joint, most probably steaks roasted in the oven. Crackling had been mentioned on the menu and this was brough on a seperate plate. I suspect this had been cooked in an air fryer. It looked like it should be good, but I have to say it was a chewy disappointment. However we were there to enjoy being with family which made for a lovely late lunch.
Disappointed Ruth
James offered to do bathtime and leave us to chat for longer. This meant that some of us, Mick and myself could have pudding away from younger eyes who’d already had some chilled medictaion at lunchtime. A huge slab of chocolate fudge cake each. Ruth ordered an expresso martini for her treat, but they were out of these! She was very disappointed.
Mick, Ruth, Anne, Pip
There was a little lull in the rain, just long enough for a Sunday selfie before we climbed back in the car and made it back to the canal. Goodbyes and hopefuly it won’t be so long before we see everyone again.
Rain set in on our walk back to Oleanna. We decided to push back over the notch and whilst doing so we got another very good soaking! The stove was lit, coats and jeans hung up to drip dry.
Earlier in the day a message had been put on one of the facebook groups, a boat was looking for someone else to share the journey into Manchester. I made contact, a second boat with crew would make it a lot easier even though we may have extra crew for the final push. They have yet to cross the summit and our current schedule will mean we are still ahead of them. But with the current weather forecast, we may not be moving very far due to another storm. If they’ve any sense they won’t move either.
I wonder who will win this time?
Today marks the seventh anniversary of moving on board Oleanna in Sheffield. Oleanna was very shiny and new then, she’s showing her age now, still in desperate need of a wash and polish, the rain isn’t helping this. Time for a toast to mark the occasion.
0 locks, 2 pushes across the notch, 2 car rides, 2 very soggy walks, 1 last bag of coal, 4 pork, 1 beef, 1 sausage and chips, 1 chicken nuggets and chips, 2 slabs of chocolate fudge cake, 2.5 pints, 1 lovely meal with family, pair 14 finished, 50 years since Abba, 7 years onboard Oleanna.
After breakfast and writing the blog, on what feels like the smallest keyboard ever, we headed into town to do a bit of shopping, find a newspaper and have a look round.
They are rather fine
Two fine front doors stood out, one house for sale. You get quite a bit of house for your money in these parts. We’ve been spotting a lot of places named Royd recently. Old Royd Lock, Royd Street. Looking the name up it turns out that Royd is local dialect for ‘cleared land’ especially in a wood.
The centre of Littleborough has a mix of shops, not many unoccupied. Some smart clothes shops, a couple of butchers, a discount hardware shop and a knickers shop! Just who had the money for the fancy grave?
Who was so important to have such a grand grave
We got a newspaper, some thick cut bacon, a disappoinitng pork pie and a few bits and bobs fom Sainsburys before heading to the Co-op to see if their cat food was cheaper. It was, especially with a members card which we applied for whilst stood in the pet food isle.
As we headed towards the canal we spotted signs in the station window for a museum. Well that needed looking at, so we made our way up onto the platform where a chap asked if we knew there were no trains today. Yes, but we were looking for the museum. ‘Round the corner, there’s three chaps in there’.
No trains today
The main waiting room/old ticket office is now a museum for Littleborough Historical and Archaeologocal Society. We were welcomed in by a chap who immediatley mentioned about their flint collection and Roman coins. Flint is not found in the area, so was imported from other parts of the country. He also appologised that their main computer was broken so he wouldn’t be able to show us much from their archieve. This however didn’t stop him from chatting away to his hearts content.
An interesting man. He covered the railway, when the canals were built and how they had originally been planned for a different route. The feeder reservoirs for the canal, originally seven were created, Hollingworth Lake was by far the biggest. This was lower than the summit pound and required a steam engine to pump the water into a channel high enough to supply the summit of the canal. Hollingworth became a resort in the early C20th, numerous pubs, steamers, one pub boasted that with prior arrangement they could host 1000 people at a time.
As it says on the door
The chap chatted on for ages, he could have carried on for hours. Don’t get me wrong he was interesting, possibly being shown images and maps would have been even more interesting, but when someone wanted to show him a recent find that was almost certainly Roman we were quick in heading for the door. More a place for serious research on the local area than just a browse around.
Back at Oleanna we had lunch and enjoyed the last Hot Paw Bun of the year. These were the best I’ve made by far and Mick doesn’t see why they should just be for Easter!
Tilly came and went, then as the winds increased into the afternoon she was grounded. Kathleen was showing her force. Thankfully our mooring means Oleanna’s bow faces into the wind and with a few extra fenders out we are held into the side, so no bumping about.
Plans for the next few days were discussed. How long it will take us to get down into Manchester, which moorings to stop at, will the wind have died down sufficiently to make this all possible?
Tilly slept the afternoon away. The yellow water tank was emptied, Tilly’s pooh box refreshed and quite a bit of knitting done. I should just about finish pair 14 by the end of Sunday, Hooray!
Our evening meal was accompanied by growing winds and torrential rain. Really! Surely there can’t be anymore rain!!
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 windy walk, 1 puzzled baker, 9 rashers bacon, 1 pie, 1 paper, 0 knickers bought, 1 very knowledgable man, 0 wedding ring, 1 very blustery afternoon, 2 salmon steaks with red pepper sauce, 13.5 pairs of socks knitted so far.
With Storm Kathleen on it’s way in the next few days our ropes needed tightening, we’d bumped about a bit in the night and that was before Kathleen arrived.
I had no intention on venturing far today, the same couldn’t be said for Mick, he was going to set forth to the bright lights of the Trafford Centre!
eeek!
Last summer Mick had bought me a new laptop. A couple of days ago it lost it’s ability to fold closed, not much good for a portable device! The IT department had given it a good look over and nothing could be found in the hinge that shouldn’t be there and the surround to the screen was starting to come away. He sought IT support via John Lewis, chatted away to someone on the phone and was given a number to quote when he took it into a store. The nearest store to us currently is at the Trafford Centre, today a window of opportunity between rail strikes was to be taken.
Awkward to transport
He caught the train from Littleborough into Victoria, a tram to Deansgate and then another out to the Trafford Centre. Here he visited John Lewis, a chap looked at the laptop which had been carefully transported in it’s open state. It was still under manufacturers warranty so would be sent to Warrington to be mended, this may take 28 days! Mick said it would be really good if it was quicker and we’d still be in the area. If it returns quickly enough then we’ll even be able to cruise there on the boat to collect it, fingers crossed. There was an option for it to be sent to our home address, but this isn’t really an option for us. Mick will get a text when it is back at the store.
Meanwhile Tilly and I got to grips with Micks tablet, from which I’m writing this. Then we wound some more yarn for sock pair 14. Ends needed weaving in on the last the pair of socks. Last night I’d heard something fall on the floor, most probably one of my darning needles which normally live tucked into my sheep tape measures wool. Sure enough this morning there was only one needle there not two. Best find the other one.
With my faithful assistant hunting for the needle
I hunted round on the floor, no sign of the 2 inch needle. I got a magnet from the notice board, this was used to see if I could lure the needle out from under the sofa, which is where it must have ended up. Tilly helped, pulling out the odd thing that’s been tucked under there for safe keeping. Nothing magnetic! Oh well just as well I’d another needle to hand.
Work on pair 14 started in ernest up from the toe. I wanted to do something a little bit random with it, but that necessetated it being pulled out several times all whilst watching Great British Bake Off. I especially liked Jodie Whittaker’s biscuit of Paul and Prue!
He heee!!!
By the time Mick returned with a few items of shopping I’d let my ordered side take over on the knitting, far less random than originally planned, the pattern was starting to come together. I asked him if he’d seen the needle. Yes he’d picked it up this morning and popped it on a shelf to be safe!
Late afternoon we had another visitor. Anne, Mick’s big sister who had driven down from Scotland today. We tried to work out when we’d last seen each other. Originally we thought it was Christmas 2019, then more likely Christmas 2018! But after Anne had left Mick remembered that we’d met up in Wiltshire in September 2019, not quite as long ago as first thought, but still too long ago. Of course we get to see each other on the Geraghty zoom quite often, but it really isn’t the same as being able to give her a hug.
Long chats over a cuppa and then there was the opportunity for a family airloom to head to it’s new home. The ‘Joan’ chair.
When Aunty Joan, Micks Aunty on his Dad’s side, was little she was given this little chair. None of Mick’s siblings actually remember this chair. About a year ago on a Hessle History facebook group there was a post about school teachers. There was a comment saying that they remembered Miss Geraghty from Penshurst Junior School, did anyone else? Several people had made comments saying what a great teacher she’d been, Mick chipped in saying what a great Aunty she was too!
Joan’s chair
A chap called Brian then replied that his Mum used to clean Miss Geraghty’s home and that he used to go with her. He would sit in this little chair and wait patiently for his mum. Joan, Miss Geraghty, one day said would he like to have the chair. So he ended up with it for several decades. On facebook Brian then offered it to Mick, so that it could return to the family, a rendez vous was arranged in the pub car park next door to where Joan used to live and the chair was handed over.
Our friend Frank did a little bit of mending and we did consider contacting The Repair Shop about it, but that would involve having to appear on TV which isn’t something Mick was too keen on doing. What to do with it then, well it should stay in the family and as we knew we’d be seeing Ruth this year we brought it onto the boat to hand down so that Daphne and Penelope can sit in it.
Another go at Lamb biryani this evening with the correct rice this time. It was very tatsy and theres still some lamb left in the freezer for another go.
0 locks, 0 miles, 2 trains, 4 trams, -1 laptop, (blog posts may be a touch shorter for a while), 1 moving boat, 1 needle, 1 hour out of 8, 1 sausage day not made the most of, 1 sister, 1 diddy chair, 1 sock nearly completed, more space under the dinette.
A drier start to the day, but chilly! We had our breakfast then started to make ready to head up Lock 35, swing the bridge and enter Lancashire ready for 11am when our booking was to cross the summit. As we were rolling the covers up a CRT chap walked towards us, windlass in hand. It was only 10am, but they were ready when we were. Brilliant.
Getting close to leaving
We both stayed on board and let Billy and Richard work the locks for us. Up Warland Upper Lock, we then crossed the border, Billy welcoming us to bright side! Oleanna has been in Yorkshire for just over six months and now finally we’ve escaped, a few weeks later than originally planned.
Up ahead at Longlees Lock 36 another chap emptied the lock and pushed open the bottom gate for us whilst the other two chaps closed up behind and walked up to meet us.
Richard to the left, Billy the right, Summit straight on
Up we rose to the 600ft that the summit pound sits on. Grey overcast, slightly damp in the air, gloves a necessity, we could see our breath! Brrr!!!
Lancashire ahead
As we pootled along the summit pound, streams cascaded off the hillsides. A toot of a horn as the CRT chaps passed us in their van waving, they’d reach the other side before us to unlock West Summit Lock 37.
Mick and Yorkshire behind
Currently to help reserve water you have to book to cross the summit of the Rochdale, there are slots for 2 boats each way, today we were the only boat to cross. Billy said they’d been at the summit from 8am, sorted water levels out down on the west side so they really didn’t know why there was the 11am time to cross. An hour to sort levels would be sufficient. So those boats we’d seen yesterday had most probably come over the summit early on.
The western end of the summit pound
I stayed on board to go down Lock 37 then stepped off when we reached 38 time to warm up and lend a hand, Billy and Richard would be with us for a few more locks yet. Ahead of us down the big hill into Manchester there is a section that earlier this week had been emptied by vandals, a group of CRT employees were busy running water down to where it needed to be, hopefully by the end of today it would be back in navigable order.
The three of us leapfrogged each other, one going ahead to set the next lock leaving two to lift paddles and open and close gates. Time to chat. Richard used to work as stage crew at the Palace Theatre in Manchester, his son works on Coronation Street in the props department and Billy had a nice holiday in Scarborough last year.
Top gates
Locks 40 and 41 have narrowed so will only take one boat at a time, no problem for us today as we were on our own. The intermediate pound I remembered from five years ago was low, we’d cautiously let water down to enable our crossing. As 41 filled the chaps confired, Richard ran water through 40 to help the low pound. It still seemed very low to me when he lowered the top paddle, two huge blocks of stone lower than where the water mark suggested normal height was. It was easily passable.
I wonder how this is pronounced?
Our last passage down here we’d encountered another low pound, well more like an empty pound! Today we were told we’d be fine, the levels would have sorted themselves out by the time we got there. The chaps helped us down 41, they got a call, they were needed at Lock 51. We waved goodbye and thanked them and off they went in their van to help someone else.
A few days ago they’d been called out to help a boat heading up from Manchester. They’d found them a pound to moor in and told them to stay put overnight and they’d return in the morning to sort the levels out ahead of them up to the summit. That same day they were called out at dusk as the boat had continued uphill and had run out of water. If only the boat had stayed put, it would have only meant sorting the levels out once not twice.
How much water?!
Considering we’d not had enough water in a pound behind us, we all of a sudden had too much. Water flowed over the top gates straight to the other end and over the gates there too. So much water! This made opening bottom gates a hard job, patience for levels to equalise required. Maybe another bum against a lock beam would have helped, but despite there having been several walkers now there were none! We waited and eventually I could feel a touch of movement, phew!
We carried on down the next few locks. Billy had said that our preffered mooring near Littleborough was occupied by two boats this morning. So we tried pulling in before we reached there on a nice wide stretch the railway set back from the canal. Sadly there was not enough depth even at several feet away from the bank, we carried on resolving ourselves to mooring below the next lock, close to the railway where Tilly would have to stay inside.
Pushed over to the lock side
But hang on! I zoomed in on the little notch by Lock 46. Unless the two boats were very short, they must have left this morning. Brilliant! Our chosen mooring was available, we pulled in on the far side from the lock, a field, geese and leaves from a cauiflower for company. Tilly approved and vanished for quite sometime.
Skin *ed!
A grade three hair cut was long overdue, so we set up the towpath barbers making use of the bench by the lock. There he is again! Smart once more.
Messages were sent to Ruth, Mick’s niece, who gathered her daughters together to come and find us. With little legs expected we decided to push over to the other side of the notch making getting on and off the boat safer. Tilly was called back onboard and we pushed over. A quick tidy up and then a peek over the bridge to see Ruth, Penelope and Daphne walking up to meet us.
Nieces
Penelope isn’t quite 5 and Daphne just under 2. It was quite exciting to be on the boat, Tilly was spotted in the hedgerow and then we did a guided tour. Of course rocking the boat was an exciting thing that had to be explained, especially why Penelope couldn’t make it work but Mick could. We had a lovely hour with them all and look forward to seeing them again in the next few days. You might be looking forward to it! I’ll be behind Tom’s pillow if anyone wants me.
Once they were gone we decided to push back over to the field. Tilly having just claimed the tree by the lock hopped on board, then hopped off again just as we pushed off. Panic! Why were you moving the outside with me in it !!?!! Only one thing for it. Speed maths, correct footing and ‘Don’t you DARE Tilly!’ laaauuuuuunch! Plenty of spare leapability, maybe even a cats length.
The best mooring in Littleborough
A mousakkish was put together from some bolognaise sauce we had left over, the stove lit. The second sock that I’d frogged was finished and the first toe of pair 14 was cast on, it’s a bit wierd knowing how far into the year we are by weeks.
11 locks, 2.54 miles, 2 helpful CRT chaps, 1 helpful volunteer, 600ft, 45ft lower than the Huddersfield Narrow, 2 much water, 3 foot down, 1 notch, 1 happy cat, grade 3, 1 niece, 2 great nieces, 1 hiding cat, 27 weeks 2 days in Yorkshire, 1 long leap, 10 years to the day of owning NB Lillyanne, 10 years of being boat owners, 2 glasses of wine each to celebrate.
Before these go onto ebay I thought I’d offer our old batteries on here to see if there’s any blog reader that might be interested in aquiring them and putting them to use.
Two RELiON RB24V50 LiFePO4 lithium batteries for sale. Each battery is 24 volts, 50 Amp hours. They have been installed on our narrowboat as domestic batteries for 7 years. They were new when they were installed. The battery management system (BMS) is pre programmed by the manufacturer so the settings cannot be changed by the user.
They have worked fine on our boat for all this time, running in parallel with a 24v lead acid bank and being charged by the 24 volt alternator on the main engine as well as a 500 watt solar array.
They were replaced a few weeks ago because a third battery in the bank had gone faulty and rather than try to integrate a new battery into the old bank I decided to replace the whole bank with two much larger capacity LiFePO4 batteries.
I’d be open to offers of maybe £50 each plus deleivery costs. They were over £1100 each when new. Will split if you only want one. UK delivery only.
Please add a comment or use the “contact us” form if you are interested.
Long time readers of the blog might remember that when Oleanna was being built in Sheffield back in 2016 we decided that we would have a lithium battery bank installed. Finesse, our boat builders, had suggested it to us and we decided it was a good idea. There were many delays in getting them from the supplier but we finally got our three RELiON LiFePO4 24V 50Ah batteries installed giving us 150 amp hours of electrical energy. We were quite happy with them although larger capacity would have been nice.
One day last summer (2023) the voltage of the battery bank wasn’t as it should be. Upon investigation I found that one of the three batteries was faulty. It was showing 23 volts instead of the more usual 26. I tried to revive it by connecting it on its own to our Victron Multiplus charger whilst we were hooked up to shore power in Cropredy Marina. But it didn’t play ball so a replacement was required.
In theory these batteries have a 10 year warranty so I set to with some investigation. I spoke to Ricky at Finnesse who said that they had not used these batteries again after the long delays in supply that we had experienced. I contacted RELiON direct and they explained that the 10 year warranty worked like this:
Legacy Series (Model numbers that begin with RB) – Should the manufacturer deem a valid warranty claim exist and battery(s) are unable to be repaired in year one (1) through three (3) the manufacturer will replace the defective battery free of charge with a similar product. Should the manufacturer deem a valid warranty claim exist and battery(s) are unable to be repaired in years four (4) and five (5) a similar product will be offered at 20% off the retail MSRP listed at the time of the offer. Should the manufacturer deem a valid warranty claim exist and battery(s) are unable to be repaired in years six (6) through 10 a similar product will be offered at 10% off the retail MSRP listed at the time of the offer.
So, not really a 10 year warranty after all. We fell into the last category of getting a 10% discount off the retail price of a new battery. That was really not an option. We toyed with getting a new bigger battery from another supplier to connect in parallel with the two remaining batteries. At first this looked hopeful but in light of the fact that the old batteries have no programmable battery management system (BMS) it would be difficult to get the settings of a new battery to match. So we decided to limp along on 100 amp hours for the rest of the season and sort it out when moored for the winter back in Goole.
I did a lot of research. There is a very useful Facebook group the “12 volt boating group” (https://www.facebook.com/groups/144684286108763 ) which has many knowledgeable members. In the end I decided that we would buy two new self heating 24v 230Ah LiFePO4 batteries from Life Batteries, a nice friendly company in Cornwall https://www.lifebatteries.co.uk/. There will be a very useful big step up in our capacity from 150Ah to 460. I considered getting just one battery, but as Paul Balmer of Waterway Routes fame (https://www.waterwayroutes.co.uk/) pointed out, if that one battery goes faulty then you have no domestic power. The self heating will come in useful if ever we need to charge the batteries when they are below 0 degrees C.
Measuring the battery tray. 53 x 33 cms available.
The new batteries will be connected in parallel with the lead acid bow thruster bank thereby providing the alternator with somewhere to send its electricity when the lithium batteries are full and switch themselves off from charging. Our old batteries were connected up in the same manner. One new battery would go in the old battery tray in the engine bay and the other in The Shed cupboard inside. There will be a shelf over it so the cupboard can still be used as a Shed.
A bit of a rewire was required. The original installation was a bit untidy and in seven years I’ve not been able to find any fuses in the DC supplies to the inverter or the domestic distribution panel.
Old batteries. The one in the middle was faulty and bypassed with a bolt!
Two of the three old batteries. Showing the lack of bus bar and fuses
A total of three old batteries. The one with yellow tape on the terminal is faulty. “Temporary” connection block in the foreground
When the old batteries were removed it was clear that the tray neaded a bit of TLC. Now painting is not usually my reponsibility on Oleanna but in this case I took on the job, mainly because once completed I would be the only person who would see it and Pip was busy with other stuff.
TLC required
Fertanned
Painted
Next came the installation of a new positive bus bar and fuse holder. It is attached to a bit of wood that was glued to the bulkhead with Gorilla Two Pack glue. It’s a bit skewiff, my excuse being that I was working upside down, back to front and left handed. By the time I noticed the skewiffness the glue had gone off so there was no moving it to make it straight. But it does the job. Along the top is the bus bar. The thin red cable on the left goes via an inline fuse to the shunt for the battery monitor. Next is the orange cable to the new inside battery, then a black cable to the bow thruster bank (via a Mega fuse), another black cable to the 24v alternator and then another orange cable to the new outside battery.
Bus bar and fuses
The Victron inverter / charger is connected via the blue Mega fuse at the bottom and the 24v DC system to the orange fuse. All is covered by a plastic cover.
The Outside battery
The independant 12v starter battery is on the left. A wooden cover will be placed on top of the whole lot to protect it.
The inside battery. Terminal covers yet to be fitted
The BMS settings in each battery were programmed as advised by the very helpful Mark Cheesman at Life Batteries https://www.lifebatteries.co.uk/. You can connect to each battery via Bluetooth and an app on a phone. There are two important settings to change: the “batt over voltage” is the voltage at which the charging is turned off, set to 28 volts. It turns back on again when it drops to 27 volts. The other setting is the “batt under voltage” which is when the discharging is turned off, set to 24 volts, it comes back on again at 25 volts.
The important settings circled
Time to start the engine. A final check of everything then turn the key. The engine fired up and I monitored the charge going to each battery. Just under 30 amps to begin with which was good. The 100% state of charge (soc) is incorrect. The BMS requires a few days of use to work out the correct soc and even then, as with all soc readings it is liable to inaccuracy.
Real time monitor of one battery
The temperature of the alternator needs to be monitored and after about 30 minutes it was reading a steady 40 degrees C. This is on the cool side, apparently 90 degrees is ok. I think I need to get rid of the surplus length in the battery cables. I reckon I’ve got about a metre too long in each cable. Once this is done the charging current should increase. To do this I need a crimping tool and some new lugs which I don’t have. That can wait for another day.
I’m looking forward to using the electric kettle when making tea in the morning.
Well today marks the 8th anniversary of Oleanna’s baseplate being laid in Tim Tylers workshop in Newcastle under Lyme. It was another year and a bit before we finally moved on board to cruise her down to Crick to meet with Lillian and fully move onboard.
Mick stood at the stern 58ft 6 inches away, 8 years ago
Currently we are gradually getting ourselves ready to move back on board, the date still a little bit up in the air.
Sunday in the Park with Mick
Mick went down to check on Oleanna on Monday. A chat with the bully boy batteries went well, the newly oiled floor had cured so the back steps could go back in. I’ve been busy covering new and old dinette cushions and today we should receive new cartridges for our life jackets, which are currently still inflated in a closed room well away from cat claws.
The world of canals and rivers is keeping us on our toes as regards to stoppages at the moment. There is a silt build up on the River Trent which needs dredging between Beeston and Cranfleet locks. The coal boat had serious difficulty passing that way a week ago and was having to wait for levels to rise again before attempting to return to base. Since then the Trent has gone back into flood.
Can we start packing yet?
The Don Doors on the New Junction are having issues with their gearbox so are closed to the canal currently. Even if we got past them Vazon Sliding Bridge is closed to boat traffic until mid March whilst strengthening works are carried out to the north canal wall.
However we’d planned on crossing the Pennines. The Rochdale, Lock 67 is suffering from subsidence which will be worked on next week. Lock 65 is also showing similar signs and will be looked at next week to see what should be done.
Round 1
The Leeds Liverpool has a navigation restriction near Burnley, Embankment 39, so it is still navigable. Works at Wigan have been slowed by the weather so the closure there has been extended by a week so that concrete has more time to go off, the concrete has as yet to be laid. Problems near Foulridge Tunnel seem to have been sorted.
Round 2
Then the Huddersfield Narrow and Broad. There are bridge works and a lock closure on the Broad along with repairs to a wash wall which should be finished mid March. On the Narrow locks on the east side are closed until the end of February, then there is a closure in Stalybridge which should open mid March.
Round 3
So at the moment the Leeds Liverpool is looking the most promising, followed by the Huddersfield canals. Further south there has been a substantial landslip on the North Oxford near Brinklow. We’d planned on heading southwards this way, but we strongly suspect it will take a while for this to be sorted so will have to head southwards through Birmingham. Or do we wait for the Trent to be sorted and out of flood then high tail it south along the Leicester Section?
Who knows! We’ll wait and see what is open when we set off.
Thank you Beth
In Sockathon News I now have sponsors for 29 pairs of socks and have raised £655 for Dementia UK. Pair 7 will soon be finished. I now have a very large box of yarn donations sent in from all over, details of which are on the Yarn Donations page. There are still a few more people who have pledged yarn donations so they will be added as yarn arrives. I think I may be knitting for a few years to use it all up! If you fancy a pair here’s a link to my JustGiving page
Thank you Debby for becoming pair 30!
My friend Morag looking across the harbour
0 locks, 0 miles, 8 years old! 4 routes from the north closed, 1 bathroom delayed, 1 best mate visit, 2 lodgers, 1 fair weather cat, 2 opticians appointments, 2 doctors appointments, 1 vets appointment, 1 gathering, 1 leg of lamb, 2 boaters nearly ready.
My mother Ruth Geraghty (née Chignell) would have been 100 years old on 4th February 2024.
Ruth Geraghty
Ruth was born in Hessle near Hull in the East Riding of Yorkshire. Her mother was Katie Chignell (née Netherwood) and her father Philip Chignell.
Philip was the organist and choirmaster at All Saints Parish Church in Hessle and had spent all his life in working as a musician. He started aged nine as a choirboy at St Georges Chapel school in Windsor during Queen Victoria’s reign and took part in many Royal occasions including the Queen’s Golden Jubilee in 1887. He became an organist at various churches around the country before settling in Hessle in 1901. Philip and Katie met in 1911 while they were both taking part as singers in a six month long World Tour as members of the Sheffield Choir. This tour took them round the world by ship and train, starting in Liverpool in March, across the Atlantic to Canada and the USA. Then across the Pacific to Hawaii and onto New Zealand. Australia and Tasmania followed and then South Africa before returning to Plymouth in October. They married in 1912. They were a very musical couple and produced a very musical family. They settled at Philip’s home at number 19 The Weir in Hessle.
Stephen Katie Philip Ruth
John Chignell was born first in 1916 followed by Henry (1918) and Stephen(1922). Ruth was the youngest and the only girl in the family. She went to the local primary school in Hessle then onto the Boulevard School in Hull. At this time Ruth and her friend Marian took an interest in bell ringing and with one or more of their brothers would tour the local area on bicycles visiting various bell towers and taking part. Days out with friends were common. She had by now picked up the nickname Trigo.
She even had a narrowboat named after her!
Ruth and Stephen Cycling
Ruth was at the Boulevard in 1939 aged 15. When war broke out the school was to be evacuated to Scarborough. The day for evacuation came and she said her goodbyes to her parents and brothers in the morning and headed off to school and the unknown. By mid afternoon she was back at 19 The Weir. She refused to be evacuated, finished with school that day and came home to be with her family.
In the back garden of 19 The Weir
One by one her brothers all went off to war. John and Henry within the first few weeks and Stephen a couple of years later when he became old enough. But Ruth stayed in Hessle for the duration. She was a big comfort to her parents who had the great worry of Henry being posted as missing and then becoming a POW in Germany. John and Stephen were both posted overseas at times and were also a concern to the family back in Hessle. Ruth was often to be found helping in various local canteens which had been set up to try to boost the morale of visiting military personnel in the area. She was also a keen violinist and many evenings would be spent playing violin sonatas, her on the violin and her father on the piano. She would also be found singing in her father’s choir at All Saints Church.
Ruth and Henry
Hessle is only about 4 miles from Hull and its docks. Hull took a pounding during the blitz and Hessle took a number of direct hits. But 19 The Weir and its occupants survived.
During the war Ruth had started “seeing” local lad Peter Geraghty. (https://oleanna.co.uk/2022/06/03/peter-geraghty-3rd-june-1922-13th-september-2002/) Peter was from Hessle and was a bomber pilot at RAF Pocklington. Ruth must have heard planes flying over Hessle and wondered about “Her Peter” in one of the bombers heading to Germany and war.
Peter Geraghty
In 1945 Henry had returned home from POW camp after a five year absence. Ruth had gone to meet him off the last train into Hessle that day having not seen her big brother for all those years. Her other two brothers also returned home and the family was once again complete.
Ruth had taken up a secretarial post at an insurance company in Hull, but I suspect her heart wasn’t in it. Married life beckoned, Ruth and Peter got married in May 1947.
17th May 1947
By then Peter had become a commercial airline pilot with British European Airways (BEA) based at Northolt Airport just outside London so they set up home there. Daughter Christine was born in May 1948, followed by Marion in 1950 and Anne in 1952. So a busy time for Ruth looking after a young family. But she still found time for music and was selected to join the Royal Choral Society as a soprano. She performed in many concerts at the Albert Hall under the conductor Sir Malcom Sargent.
Sir Malcolm Sargent conducting. Ruth behind to his right
Ruth and Peter moved to Ealing in West London in 1953, at the same time as BEA moved from Northolt to Heathrow. A bigger house was required and there was a good new primary school, St Gregory’s, in Ealing for the children.
I came along in 1958 followed by my little sister Kathryn in 1966. Ruth had become a Brown Owl in one of the local Brownie packs. My sisters had all been Brownies and it was common for me, a four year old boy, to don a brown jumper and go to a Brownie meeting and take part. I suspect there were child care issues!
Ruth and Kathryn
Ruth continued with her musical life. She joined the Ealing Symphony Orchestra playing in the first violins and took part in many of their concerts. There were many evenings at our house when three other musicians would arrive and a string quartet would take place in our front room. All of us children were encouraged to take part in musical activities and we had outings to various concerts and musical events in London. At school I had taken up the bassoon and the piano. I played bassoon in the Ealing Junior Music School and I also obtained music O Level when the time came.
Ruth Marion Kathryn Peter
Ruth continued to take a big part in the local Girl Guiding movement taking Brownie packs on holiday and Guides on camps. She became a District Commissioner for the Ealing and Hanwell District.
District Commissioner
Anne Mick and Marion in the Chester Gardens back garden
Family life continued. Ruth organised many family summer holidays, often with her brother Henry’s family sometimes on the South coast. Henry and his wife Gill had a caravan and they would set up in a caravan park, whilst we had a holiday home somewhere nearby. Henry and Gill had four children and with all of us we made a good holiday party.
Henry Ruth Gill Peter
Mick Kath and Christine in the front garden
In 1977 Peter retired from British Airways. Three of their five children had moved out from the family home and on to further education and careers. Life quietened down a little. Peter was a keen golf player and Ruth occasionally would play a round with him. They would also go on holidays to watch amateur golf tournaments around the country. Peter had a lifetime concessionary travel benefit with British Airways so there were overseas holidays to Africa, Canada and Europe. But Peter wasn’t a great one for flying as a passenger so UK holidays were more common.
Peter and Ruth on the Equator
Ruth enjoyed train travel very much. Once a year she would arrange with her brothers to meet up in Llandudno where they had spent childhood holidays with their Grandma.
Outside her maternal Grandmother’s house near Llandudno
In about 1985 Ruth and I each purchased a British Rail All Line Rail Rover. Over the course of a week we travelled from London to Thurso in the very north of Scotland, over to the Kyle of Lochalsh, onto the ferry over to Skye, another ferry to Malaig and down to Glasgow. Over to Hull via the Settle to Carlisle line. Ruth always enjoyed visiting Hull and Hessle and there were still many family members. Then we travelled to Llandudno, Shrewsbury, Llanelli, Bristol, Exmouth and Plymouth before heading back to London.
Ruth on the Settle to Carlisle line
In 1967, when I was aged 9, Ruth and I had a day out on the Underground on the very first day of operation of the brand new Victoria Line. Very exciting!
Ruth continued her violin playing with the Ealing Symphony Orchestra and her Girl Guiding District Commissioner duties. She became a Governor of St Gregory’s School where all her children had attended, here she also helped with teaching the violin and music in general.
Playing the Violin
She also helped out at other schools. Youngest daughter Kathryn was at secondary school and relates the following story: Cardinal Wiseman’s production of Oliver! There was no school orchestra, so they hired in some kind of military band. God knows where from. Anyway, Mum wanted to play, so she was a guest 1st violin with them for the show, and I imagine enjoyed herself enormously.
Henry Ruth John Stephen in the 1980s
I moved out from home to pastures new in 1981 followed by Kath later in the 1980s so the nest was empty after 40 years. They stayed on in the big house at 8 Chester Gardens for another ten years or so, then moved to a very nice two bedroom flat nearby.
8 Chester Gardens
Retiring from the Ealing Symphony Orchestra 27/11/2000.
By now Peter was suffering from Parkinsons disease and life slowed down a lot. But Ruth still managed to get out a bit. She took part in meetings of the local Trefoil Guild, consisting mainly of retired Guide leaders and Commissioners. There was a school nearby and every afternoon in the summer Ruth and Peter would head out to get ice creams from the van parked at the school gate. Ruth had a sweet tooth!
Parkinsons took its hold on Peter and he passed away in 2002 aged 80. Ruth had also by then contracted the same disease but carried on in the flat on her own for a few years.
Surrounded by her Stuff
On the balcony
But eventually she succumbed to Parkinsons and moved into, a care home nearby. Peter’s BA pension contributed handsomely to the costs.
She had many visitors while at Downhirst, both family and friends and much reminiscing was carried out. The staff looked after her well, but I’m sure she missed Peter and her active life. She never complained about her lot and stoically carried on being cheerful right to the end.
She passed away on 14th December 2008 aged 84 and is still much missed. We took her ashes back to Hessle and scattered them on the Foreshore in the shaddow of the Humber Bridge. A suitable resting place for her.
Thanks to Anne, Kath, Marion and John for help with the photos.
