Where is everyone?

For the non-technical side of living with Steamboats, videos and general pictures.
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TahoeSteam
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Where is everyone?

Post by TahoeSteam » Sun May 29, 2022 1:09 pm

Where is everyone? There haven't been many new posts for quite a while. This is one of the last few places to pass on steamboat information unless I'm missing something?

This is a great forum and source of information without relying on quarterly publications. We're not getting rich selling stories or articles to associations... What's stopping us from just sharing that info here?

Did something happen I'm not aware of? Surely we didn't all just pass away slowly like the last contacts around the world in Shute's "On The Beach"...
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RNoe
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Re: Where is everyone?

Post by RNoe » Sun May 29, 2022 3:37 pm

I was also wondering about the lack of postings.
But if everyone else was having a week like ours here, I understand.

All in due time, I suppose...
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TahoeSteam
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Re: Where is everyone?

Post by TahoeSteam » Mon May 30, 2022 4:06 am

Hope it's just a phase for the forum.

As for other current events, there are some pretty horrible things we've witnessed and continue to witness. Lets hope a solution is found, and quickly.
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PeteThePen1
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Re: Where is everyone?

Post by PeteThePen1 » Mon May 30, 2022 7:55 pm

Hi Everybody

Yes, I would agree that I too had wondered where everybody had gone. I am afraid that in my part of the world life has been all about the 'downsize' house.

It is a 1930s semi-detached that goes under the name of Creuddyn (being in Wales). That particular Welsh word has no real translatable meaning but I have joked with my old friends that it is realy the Welsh for 'Jobs List'. It is not at all an 'eco' house and we have spend no end of time and money to improve it a bit. Its heating system used to be night storage heaters. For those who are probably too old to recall that technology they are basically boxes of bricks with a resistance heating element. The idea was implemented in the 1960s when the UK found itself with an excess of base load electricity generation. So the idea was to sell electricity over night at a lower rate and the heated bricks would warm the house in the day. This all required a second meter with a time switch to switch on the power at the surplus time and then switch it off later on. When we added an extension to the house, the utility company removed the two meters and then put back only the standard service meter when the new meter box was set up. We had to put on a lot of pressure to get them to think about giving us back off-peak. In the end they gave us an old second hand meter with two readouts and were told that the Off Peak was on 24/7. This led to sister Ceri having to switch the heaters on and off manually when she thought it sensible. After much puzzlement we discovered that the meter was not even capable of switching the heaters. So we have junked the old heaters and put in new ones with progarammable thermostats. The result is that we now have heat when we want it and our energy usage has fallen by 30%.

Simultaneously I have ben pushing to get us a decent solar PV array. The builders had put us a small one on the re-built garage but the new PV guys discovered that they had got the wrong size of inverter - way too big. It has taken a long time to get it all finished but on a sunny day we can now generate 30kWh. We have also added an 8kW battery which will help us to load shift. Now it is all in action we have got energy use down to 2kWh a day at the moment. Of course when the summer is over the heating will come back on but I think we will be much lower than last year's 13,000kWh consumption.

I have not given up on boats. I have been keeping the canoe steam launch idea warm and stumbled upon a Stuart Turner Sygnet engine, but without pumps. I have been researching what can be found in Funnel about steam canoes. That has led me into the issue of monotube boilers. For a bit of entertainment I bought myself a copy of Alibre Atom 3D since I have always fncied drawing in 3D. My skills, whilst still rudimentary, are improving and I have been recently drawing John Emmett's monotube boiler that he built for his latest canoe, "Snipe". Do have a look in the SBA Steamboat Register. Only one photo but an excellent vessel. That has led to much discussion and now we are building an article (or two) for Funnel on monotubes for steam launches. I may eventually get around to building one of his design to go with the Sygnet.

Then there is the garden. I have bought us a couple of water butts to try to reduce our use of Utility supplied water. My pland have gone rather awry as it has been very difficult to get hold of the particular plumbing bits I need to the feed from the rainwater down pipes. No boat photos but though you might be amused by one of our choices:

IMG_20220525_The Pot (342 x 448).jpg
IMG_20220525_The Pot (342 x 448).jpg (52.68 KiB) Viewed 3181 times


Regards

Pete
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