Date: 15th January 2025

Canal: Ashby Canal

I thought I’d write a short post because this was the first time that we have had a technical problem with our boat (1 year into our adventures).

We have been moored on the canal in Hinckley for a week because the winter weather really kicked in and the canal froze. So, we hunkered down, kept the fire lit 24 hours a day and stayed warm and comfortable. I also took the opportunity to go and visit family whilst we were close to Birmingham airport.

But on Wednesday most of the ice on the canal had thawed and our intention was to move onto a new part of the Ashby Canal.

John did his usual checks in the morning and the battery voltage was a little low, so he turned the generator on. It ran for a couple of minutes and then stopped. He tried to start the generator again, but it wouldn’t start at all and there was an error code on the digital display.

Because we have an electric boat, we need the generator not only to give us electricity to power the lights, plugs sockets etc. but most importantly we need it to charge the batteries that power the boats propulsion system.

Fortunately, we were moored very close to Trinity Waterside & Marina and when John phoned them they had a visitor mooring available, so we reversed the boat back a short distance and brought it into the marina. The good news was that we still had enough battery charge to power this short move.

Being in a marina meant that we could plug the boat into the mains electricity and charge the batteries up. Protecting our batteries and maintaining sufficient voltage is essential when living on a boat.

We arranged to stay in the marina for 3 days, which we hoped would allow us enough time to get the generator problem sorted out (although it ended up being 5 days) and then we would be able to cruise again.

Before we moved to the marina John emailed the Beta Marine technicians and they called him back within 2 hours (I was very impressed). Tim and Adrian talked John through some possible fixes.

John had to check the diesel and change some of the filters, to see if this would resolve the problem. He also took the opportunity to service the engine, which was due to be done soon anyway.

But the generator still wasn’t working, so (as agreed) he contacted Beta Marine again. However, whilst servicing the engine John noticed that a solenoid appeared to have split and he described this to the technical team, also explaining that he was concerned that the generator’s digital display was not working correctly. Tim arranged for replacement parts to be sent out the same day and when they arrived, on Friday, John was able to fit them all (with some advice from Beta Marine). This partially resolved the problem and once John also replaced a blown fuse everything was fully functioning.

So now we can get on our way again, safe in the knowledge that our batteries are charging correctly.

The good news is that being in this lovely marina has allowed is to use the pump-out, fill up with water, get rid of all our rubbish and do all of our washing.

Links:

Aquavista – Trinity Waterside & Marina

Beta Marine