Inland waterway cruising is relaxing and stress-free, but it can also be a challenge. Here, River Canal Rescue details some common examples…
NARROWBOAT owners must understand the workings of their vessels and be able to problem-solve. For the practically-minded, this may not be a problem, but not everyone has the mindset or skills to do so, as witnessed by River Canal Rescue engineers.
Among RCR’s 2100 call-outs last year, engineers found cases where human error put owners and their boats in dangerous, and on occasions, life-threatening, situations. Examples include live 240V cables hanging in the bilges, overloaded electrical connections, surplus battery wires, badly-fitting diesel lines and carbon monoxide exposure.
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Boat owners have a responsibility to obtain a valid Boat Safety Scheme (BSS) certificate every four years, but RCR believes such a length of time between visits leaves any post-pass modifications unchecked until the next inspection. The BSS recognises this happens, but says it is not responsible for enforcing navigation authorities’ safety standards between inspections.
Live wire: An all-steel narrowboat in Stratford-upon-Avon had a starter motor fault. The engineer examined the starter motor wiring, which was okay. When he traced the wire back to the battery bank, he found the wire was fine all the way to the batteries, but at the battery bank were two live battery wires, free of anything, with one dangling into the bilge area. This could potentially cause arcing (electric current jumping from the connection), shortening of the batteries, electric shock and fire. The engineer removed the defunct wires, leaving only the ones required, in place.
Fire risk: A customer fitted a new alternator on an all-steel narrowboat and called RCR complaining of a burning plastic smell, unable to pinpoint where it was coming from. The engineer found the charge cable coming from the domestic alternator had been placed over the top of the engine and it was melting from the engine’s heat, and now arcing over the top of it. This posed a huge fire risk, so the engineer refitted and relocated a new alternator cable.
Meltdown: A boater complained that every time the 12-volt fridge was switched on, the batteries started to smoke, giving off an acrid smell. The engineer checked the battery was ok and then asked the customer to pull the fridge out. He discovered the wires used to install the fridge were too small for the job and had melted to the bottom of the fridge, causing a fire risk. The engineer advised the wires need to withstand the amount of power coming through them (the ones used were the same size as speaker wires). The fridge was subsequently re-wired.
Loose wires: Although an RCR engineer was called out for a starter motor issue, he found the owners had recently replaced their three domestic batteries with one large battery, leaving the wires from the two now missing batteries still in place, connected to the battery bank. Rather than removing them, two positive and two negative wires were hanging, waiting to cause anything from a short-out, to electric shock, fire and so on. Posing a threat, the engineer sorted out their wiring and returned a day later to fit a new starter motor.
Acid: Battery acid, if left, can eat through the hull of a boat. Engineers have had instances where they lift the battery and find water, where a perfect square has been eaten away.
Overhaul: A new boat owner was replacing the battery every two days. The engineer found the bilges were full of fuel/oil/water and there was no fan belt for the alternator, so it was not charging the battery or driving the water pump for cooling, seizing the engine. The engine had no oil or coolant – luckily the customer was only filling up with £20 of fuel each time – because there was also no fuel cut off (tap) and a split in the main diesel line (emptying contents into the bilges). To resolve the issue, the engine was serviced with new oil, filters, coolant and a fan belt. The engineer also fitted a new diesel line with a tap, drained the bilge into containers (safely disposing of the contents at RCR HQ) and showed the owner how to maintain and check the engine in future.
Swimming in diesel: A customer had fresh diesel lines fitted on the engine (not by RCR) and was concerned about a diesel smell and diesel in the bilge. The engineer found the diesel line union was incorrectly fitted and it was spraying diesel over the exhaust wrapping. Diesel ignites at 56 degrees so they owners were lucky this didn’t cause a fire. The engineer refitted the union and advised not to run the engine until the exhaust wrapping was changed, because it was diesel-soaked. The boater replaced it the next day.
Top-up error: After a number of ‘overheating call-outs,’ the engineer found the customer had filled up the heat exchanger, not the engine, with oil, contaminating his cooling system. The engineer drained and flushed the coolant system, refilled and then bled it. He also advised what to do in the future, to prevent this happening again.
Last breath: An engineer attended an all-steel narrowboat in the Midlands to work on an engine problem. Upon arrival, the customer advised she and her partner had been suffering with very bad headaches and extreme tiredness. After entering the engine bay, the engineer found the whole area covered in thick black soot and the exhaust broken away from the housing. He was told it had been like that for a ‘good while’ and that while running their engine to charge the batteries for their electric, they were falling asleep. With the exhaust no longer connected, the engine was pumping carbon monoxide into the boat. There was no carbon monoxide alarm and in the engineer’s opinion, “they were very close to death.” The issue was sorted the same day.
Potential poisoning: While attending a call-out, a customer complained about headaches and being tired. It was a mid-engine boat with an exhaust leak, causing carbon monoxide poisoning. The engineer replaced the exhaust, using a new flexible pipe, new gaskets and exhaust putty, and used a gas detector to check there were no carbon monoxide leaks. He advised the owners to install a carbon monoxide alarm in line with the BSS requirement for an alarm to be fitted within 10m of a stove.
Worn out: RCR also had a case where an engineer fell through the engine boards when stepping onto a boat to look at a repair.
River Canal Rescue runs a two-day diesel engine and boat maintenance course at its Stafford HQ, covering how to maintain diesel engines and narrowboat systems, including propulsion, cooling, engine servicing and fault finding. Costing £300 (with an additional charge of £15 for a RYA certificate or the Narrow Boat Engine Maintenance and Repair book), places are available on November 11/12 and 25/26 and December 9/10. RCR also undertakes engine inspections and servicing from mid-September to mid-March with discounted rates for members. Find out more at www.rivercanalrescue.co.uk
