Fixing the Trumpet Horn

It was cruising day.  Primarily because we didn’t want to be in Aylesbury over the Easter long weekend as it was likely to be both noisy and busy.  The water pressure from the CRT services tap was woeful, obviously older than me!

We stopped at Tesco on the way out and we were still the first boat away in the morning.  There was a slight issue entering Lock 14 which is the one where the parapet has been partially demolished by a vehicle.

Waiouru was riding over rubble on the canal bed.  There Is a second bridge hole that is also in need of some repairs.

It appears the design of the lock paddles has been changed at some stage.  They are currently fitted to the gates but you can see the in filled brickwork at the base of the chamber sidewalls where they once were.

  

The damned trumpet horn stopped working today.  Of course we didn’t know that until I went to use it two warn an oncoming boat at a blind bridge hole.

We only did half the locks on the arm electing to moor above Lock 8 adjacent to Wilstone Green Village.  First task was to ensure Jan had her TV channels and then we had a late lunch.  After that I plugged the laptop into the boat and checked the system.

The Empirbus system wasn’t showing any faults and the log was clean so I knew it had to be the horn.  I guessed it was going to be a sealed unit which suggested a replacement might be needed.  The first step was to remove the horn off the bow and then remove the protective cap off the terminals.  Everything looked normal so I made up a 12V test lead which had a cigarette plug on one end and spade connectors on the other.

I then plugged it into one of the boat 12V sockets…… NOTHING! 

The horn is sealed, but then I noticed a small screw adjacent to the cable terminals.  With nothing to lose I used a screwdriver and turned the screw two turns clockwise whilst the horn was still plugged into the 12V. It burst into life!  

Now that I know how to fix the problem I realise there is no need to take the horn off the bow.  Just remove the protective cap and turn the screw.  If it reoccurs I’ll probably also place a bead of adhesive on the screw head to stop it moving,  So we don’t need a new horn!