shades
Well-Known Member
I am sure that the lockie that told you to leave the gates was going to close them for you, to save you stopping. I am sure that he was not suggesting that leaving the gates open is encouraged...
Self Service lock etiquette
- Thread starter Cashbuyer
- Start date
Chris_d
Well-Known Member
Not suggesting its not lazy practice, but I can think of a few locks where there maybe be mitigating circumstances.
Some locks the pedastal is on the wrong side and the layby opposite and the lock access back via a road or something, so being
single handed means remooring and securing the boat and then a long walk back right round the bottom gates to get back and close
the gates. Having done this several times it can be frustrating when another boat then comes into view or you see the lockie walking
back after lunch or something.
But agree there is some very poor behaviour out there buts its usually just ignorance.
rotrax
Well-Known Member
As a long time canal user and sometime Thames user it is instilled in me to leave all gates shut and paddles/sluices down when leaving a lock.
I dont really buy the growth af algae thing-leave it full if you have gone up, empty if you have gone down.
If, however the EA want the lock left empty, so be it. It does waste water and the boaters time if the person operating the lock has to wait untill it is empty and then close the sluices before continuing if going up.
But hey-what do I know...................
I dont really buy the growth af algae thing-leave it full if you have gone up, empty if you have gone down.
If, however the EA want the lock left empty, so be it. It does waste water and the boaters time if the person operating the lock has to wait untill it is empty and then close the sluices before continuing if going up.
But hey-what do I know...................
mlines
Well-Known Member
For the Thames I do not buy into the "saves water" advocates.
By my schoolboy maths the volume of say, Marsh Lock, is 350 cubic metres. (41 x 6.5 x 1.3 drop - approx.) The mean Thames flow is recorded as about 38 cubic metres per sec. So you save less than 10 seconds worth of weir flow water. In the summer I see that it can drop to 5 cubic metres per second. So it is still only 70 seconds worth of weir water. In winter it looks like 95 cubic metres per second, so 4 seconds worth of water.
By my schoolboy maths the volume of say, Marsh Lock, is 350 cubic metres. (41 x 6.5 x 1.3 drop - approx.) The mean Thames flow is recorded as about 38 cubic metres per sec. So you save less than 10 seconds worth of weir flow water. In the summer I see that it can drop to 5 cubic metres per second. So it is still only 70 seconds worth of weir water. In winter it looks like 95 cubic metres per second, so 4 seconds worth of water.
rosssavage
Well-Known Member
Rotrax - don't close the tail sluices 
close the gate, leave the sluices open and move on...
close the gate, leave the sluices open and move on...
Chris_d
Well-Known Member
Doesn't save any water on a river you just open the sluices and walk away leaving it emptying, if you wait to close the sluices the next boat coming up will
curse you as he waits for the OOH sequence to reopen the sluices.
shades
Well-Known Member
"Pedestals on the wrong side?"...
"A long walk?"...
Nobody is forcing anybody to go through an unmanned lock!
Yes, at some sites you may need to walk "all the way round" to shut the gates, but after your bit of gentle exercise, all you have to do is push a button to shut the gates. There is no hand winding involved anymore. It is then a very short walk back to your boat.
Would you like a busy public footpath diverted through your garden? I think not!
"A long walk?"...
Nobody is forcing anybody to go through an unmanned lock!
Yes, at some sites you may need to walk "all the way round" to shut the gates, but after your bit of gentle exercise, all you have to do is push a button to shut the gates. There is no hand winding involved anymore. It is then a very short walk back to your boat.
Would you like a busy public footpath diverted through your garden? I think not!
Actionmat
Well-Known Member
Far too many people are in a hurry on the river and especially when they think that no one's looking.
Chris_d
Well-Known Member
Think you took my words out of context there, I'm not defending the op,s culprits. Just advocating some common sense that it's not always black and white. Thought better of you my shaded friend
boatone
Well-Known Member
Its important not to lose water on the canals as there is usually no natural water ingress other than rain and drainage The Basingstoke Canal, for instance, is often closed for most of the summer simply because there is not enough water in the higher levels to support losses caused by lock usage. On the Thames there is a constant feed of water flowing downriver and over the weirs anyway so water wastage is not an issue except in times of extreme drought.
Surely this issue is quite simple - the EA manage the river and request users to comply with their instructions when transiting locks.
Last edited:
TrueBlue
Well-Known Member
Absolutely!
Despite Chris-D's negative comment (shame...) It's really not much of an effort to do what is asked and 'we' take a vicarious pleasure in trogging down to the other end (when needed) to pull the sluices. I'm not convinced of the real need to leave the lock empty / emptying, indeed on some of the 'proper' locks upstream that requirement has been struck out - however we gladly do as we're told.
Chris_d
Well-Known Member
Still don't understand what negative comment I made
I agreed with the OP the gates should be left shut etc... Was just making the point that sometimes following the instuctions to the letter is not always the best thing to do and you seem to agree.
JumbleDuck
Well-Known Member
Yup. On the up side (literally) if the next boat to come along is going down, the lock has been partly filled for them with water which would otherwise have been wasted. In any case, the amount of water which leaks through two gates is a lot less than the amount which leaks through one. Normally all the locks fill to overflowing overnight.
JumbleDuck
Well-Known Member
Try that on the Crinan Canal and staff will quickly and pithily re-educate you. Of course that's a canal, not a river, which makes a big difference.