Working boats on working canals.

Routine maintenance, such as raking out and clearing fouled cills and gates was a day to day task for lock keepers and lengthsmen, and in addition to the immediate beneficial effect of reducing leakage it prevented the subsequent leakage resulting from physical damage to the fit faces of gates and cills when, as happens these days, junk such as chunks of metal and brick-ends is left fouling gates for weeks or months on end. It's worth mentioning here that another routine day to day preventative maintenance task, very much dependent on keeping lock leakage to a minimum, was that of keeping pounds 'on weir'. This may not sound like 'maintenance' but it was essential, particularly in hot, dry spells, to prevent the puddle lining just below normal (weir) retention level from drying out, cracking and then leaking when the pound was once again filled to weir level.

More major tasks such as re-lining gates or fitting new paddles were carried out as and when it became necessary, so certainly at shorter intervals than nowadays, but the useful life of gates and the intervals between replacement/renewal becoming necessary was no different in working boat days from what it is now. Gates didn't wear out or fall to bits through being slammed shut or pushed, or pulled, open with boats before the lock had leveled off, . .  they rotted around where the cross beams were mortised into the heel and mitre posts, where the heel post is mortised into the balance beam, and where the balance beam is mortised into the mitre post. 

Paddles were invariably dropped and not wound down, and in truth it never did them any harm at all. If anything, and comparing how much easier they were to draw in those days than they are now, it probably contributed to keeping them working more freely and better.

I once talked to a very old ex maintaince man who actually started out in the GUCC in the 1930's, who told me they would replace a pair of gates on the Grand Union over a weekend, using only a set of shear legs, and he couldn't understand why it now took BW two weeks.

As for clearing the gate recesses, they cut that out of routine maintaince a few years ago due to some ridiculous H & S rule.

Boats wearing away the gate mitres because the gates wont open fully also creates jobs. 

I know that in the past, every morning a C&RT employee would visit Braunston locks and Napton locks, and let water down as necessary to level pounds. Particularly at Braunston, the top two pounds have always been subject to dropping level overnight.

I used to see the guy at Braunston when I was running, but we were discussing the other day how we've not seen anyone for a few years.

I wonder if this routine work no longer happens, and they merely respond to reports as they happen?

I have occasionally seen a C&RT van turn up to clear out by-washes with a keb, but again I wonder if this is in response to reports now, rather than routine maintenance.

Rog

The lock keeper from the top lock cottage used to cycle down the flight checking the locks at around 10/10,30pm each night & also the same at around 5/5,30each morning running down water & if any boats were set to come up or go down would set the locks leaving the gate/s open to allow a passage straight into the lock/s the rest generally as Tony said Also the crews knew what they could /couldn't do that didn't do damage, because if you caused a stoppage by being/doing some thing stupid the other boaters would not let you forget it +you wold not get any help/assistance.Paddle replacement took between 2hrs   & half a day from the arrival of the maintenance gang.as time was money boat crews got pretty pi**ed of if the were held up for longer than they thought they should be I have not been on the canal boating for some years but I'm sure the whole canal ethic is now completely different

I would like to know why the stern tip cat fenders were topped off with a button fender for towing with cross straps, I found it a pain in the arse, three tipcats were much better.