New washing machine and it’s stuck

There was time for a short walk around the top end of the Montgomery Canal before we headed further west.  An initial 4 locks take you down onto the canal.  The first two are a staircase which are locked by CRT as access to the canal is restricted and controlled.

It looks like a fairly substantial change in levels.  My guess is about 15ft.

There is a rather attractive canal side cottage below the locks.  Shortly after the locks the Weston Arm branches to the left.  This short arm now contains moorings and the CRT facilities.

Looking into the arm with the canal leading back to Frankton Junction on the left.  The Weston Branch has been filled in and I wanted to know where it used to terminate.  After some searching I discovered the branch went to Weston Luttingfields

I wasn’t able to find the reason for the construction of the Weston Branch and assume it was the same as the Montgomery.  Unlike most canals the latter wasn’t built to make money from transport.  Instead its primary purpose was to transport lime for agricultural purposes, which would allow the Upper Severn Valley to become better agricultural land. As a result, the promoters of the canal included local landowners who hoped to achieve a return on their investment through greater crop yields, rather than relying upon share dividends.

Back at Frankton Junction I found a gaggle of Fountains “veg pledge” vehicles and workers.

We were in the midst of making the turn from the Montgomery onto the Llangollen when a hire boat appeared in the bridge hole behind us.  Looking at the boat colour I assumed they would only follow us for a short distance to the hire base at Maestermyn Cruisers.  There were two employees at the wharf waiting for the boats to return.

There is quite a long line of moored boats here which we slowly passed on tick-over.  Both of us commented on the advertising colour scheme on this boat.

We were heading down a short straight when Jan noticed the trees in the photo below.  Unfortunately the photo doesn’t do justice to the live scene.  There was a very light breeze and the leaves were moving slightly creating a golden shimmering effect.

You will have to imagine it!

At New Marton Bottom Lock we found a potential retailer for the new washing machine.  There was a shop soiled one out front.

 

Funding the purchase won’t be a problem as we’ve found a ready source of cash.

Or is this an unmarked water point?

Jan provided lock instructions and advice to a young family on a hire boat at the bottom lock.  They had come from the base at Whitchurch and had never seen a lock.  14 years ago we were in the same situation and kindly assisted through New Marton Top Lock by a live aboard couple.  Favour returned!

The inside of the pram cover has been looking a a motley grey/brown colour.  It’s uniform across the entire surface and I was unsure whether this was the original colour.  Today we got out the ‘Pink’ cleaner and with a combination of cloth, pink and elbow grease the interior was wiped down. What a difference.  We’re back to the original light grey.

 

There is now a second matter to be addressed.  The half full led on the black water tank is continually illuminated.

The likely cause is a stuck probe and I know what is probably causing the probe to be stuck.  There are three options.

1. Ignore it.  We know the capacity of the tank in days and don’t really need to use the gauge.
2. Disconnect all the wiring.  Remove the sender unit and clean it.
3. Fill the tank and “slosh” the contents around before emptying it and hoping the obstruction is rinsed off the probe.

Chose the easy option first.  I’m going with Option 3.