 Canal
locks are probably the most difficult thing to get the hang of,
and they require the most physical effort too! We've provided
some detailed advice below, but it will all make more sense when
you get to your first lock! Remember that hire firms will always
take you through your first lock if required.
It might seem confusing here, but in fact most
of these things are just common sense that you can pick up by
taking it slowly and watching and talking to other boaters. Most
boaters will be holiday makers just like you, and happy to chat
about ways to do things, the weather and canal conditions.
Important safety points are highlighted in the red boxes.
Being able to work locks is essential if you
are hiring a boat (you won't get a skipper with it) and handy if
you are going on a hotel boat. Some rivers have locks that are
worked for you by lock keepers and some canal locks have keepers
who may assist you, but mostly you work the locks yourself. Two
narrowboats may share a 'broad' lock.
Locks allow canals to go up and over hills and
sometimes come in flights of twenty or more. A lock is a bit
like a big bathtub that you sail in to when it is nearly empty.
You fill it up and then sail out the other end. This lifts the
boat up to a higher canal level. Or it lowers the boat down to
the lower level if you are letting water out of a full lock. |
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The main ‘rules of the road’ are -
don’t rush, consider others and don’t waste water.
If you come to go up a lock and it’s full of water, see
if there is a boat coming wanting to go down. It won’t
take much longer, it will save water (a lock can use
50,000 gallons of water each time) and it will be easier
for you. If you help another
boat with a lock make sure they know what you intend
to do. Some people like help, others feel safer when
they do the lock themselves. If the lock is big enough
to take two boats then share the lock if another boat is
close. |
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Being able to work locks efficiently
and safely is really important, you can drain an
entire canal if you get it wrong, and, even worse,
people have been drowned by incorrect lock operation.
Read the information below, listen carefully when you
are given instruction and take your time, and wait for
someone to help if you are not sure. There are
millions of lock operations each year without problems. |
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YOU SHOULD KEEP AWAY, AND KEEP
CHILDREN AWAY, FROM THE LOCK EDGE. Water enters the
lock with tremendous force and anyone falling in to the
lock or into the canal above the lock could be sucked
beneath the water. |
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What things are called, paddles,
gates, windlasses and bollards!
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To allow the boat to get in and out, and
to keep the water in, there are gates at both
ends of the lock. Sometimes they are single gates,
sometimes double ones. These are called the top and
bottom gates and you can only open a gate when the water
levels on both sides are the same. So the top gate(s)
will only open when the lock is full, and the bottom
gate(s) only when the lock is empty.
To let water in and out you wind up paddles,
which are a bit like valves, using a windlass.
Your boat will come with windlasses supplied.
So to work a lock you need to wind paddles up and down
and push gates open and shut. The top paddles let water
from above the lock in to fill the lock. The bottom
paddles let out the water from inside the lock.
Sometimes paddles are attached to the gates, gate
paddles, like on the bottom gates here, and sometimes
they are free standing ground paddles like at the top of
this lock. The water fills the lock through the
underground passageway outlined in blue.
Locks usually have wooden or metal bollards that you can
wind a restraining rope around. |
| Paddles may be ground
paddles set in the canal bank like the one
in the foreground or gate paddles fixed
to the gates like the one top right. Most locks
have one type or the other. Some locks may have
both types, as in this photo. Some locks have
hydraulic paddles which look different but
have the same effect. Always wind the paddles
slowly, checking to see what effect the water is
having on your boat. Be
very careful with GATE paddles, when you are
going up a lock don't open them when that would
direct incoming water into the front deck of
your boat!
We've illustrated a narrow
lock here, only room for one boat across,
broad locks work in the same way but because
they are wider and there may be other boats in
the lock even more care is needed to restrain
boats adequately. Always take extra care
whenever there is more than one boat in any
lock, boats can get jammed together. There are a
number of different types of lock which may have
different methods of operation, click to see
some different types of lock. |
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Taking a boat up a lock.
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Working Locks Safely
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If the lock is full of water you must empty it
before you can open the bottom gates to let the boat in. Make
sure all the gates and top paddles are closed and then wind up
the bottom paddles to let the water out. Always check that all
top paddles are closed before opening the bottom paddles,
otherwise water will just be wastefully running straight through
the lock. |
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When you wind up a paddle don't leave
the windlass on the paddle gear. The safety catch on
the paddle gear could slip off and the windlass would
spin rapidly and fly through the air. People have been
badly injured by flying windlasses. |
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When the water level has dropped enough to
let the bottom gates be opened wind the paddles back down again. |
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The lock is empty. Open the bottom gates to
let the boat in. When the boat is in close the bottom gates.
Some people prefer to use the engine to enter and help keep
position in locks, others rely solely on ropes. It really
depends on the boat and what you feel most secure with. |
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If you are using ropes make sure you
don't drop the rope into the lock, it may get
tangled around the boat's propeller. This could stop the
engine and leave the boat out of control. |
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Most people consider the safest position for
the boat to be is in the middle of the lock, not touching the
top or bottom gates where a fender could catch and hold the boat
down as the water rises. If your boat is the full length of the
lock you will have to take extra care to make sure that it does
not get jammed on any obstruction on the top gate. |
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Usually there should be at least one
person on the boat, checking its position and
possibly using the engine to help maintain position, and
at least one person operating the paddles and holding a
restraining rope. |
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You will probably need to restrain the boat
with a rope, wrapped around a convenient bollard, to make sure
it is not pulled around by the rushing water. |
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As the boat rises the rope will get
slacker and must be tightened, so don't tie knots
you can't undo, just wind it once around the bollard and
take up the loose rope as the boat rises. |
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Now gently wind up the top paddles to let
water in to the lock. Open ground paddles first. The boat will
rise to the upper level. Don't use the gate paddles until the
boat is above their level to prevent water gushing into the
front deck. |
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Watch the boat all the time to
make sure it is not being violently thrown around by the
inrushing water and that nothing is holding it down as
the water level rises. If at any time there is concern
about the way the lock is filling, immediately close the
paddles. |
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When the lock is full you will be able to
open the top gates and let the boat out. |
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Wind down the top paddles and close the top gates
after the boat. Don't let the paddles fall on their own, it can
damage them, and always check that you have fully closed gates
and paddles after leaving the lock. |
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Taking a boat down a lock.
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Working Locks Safely
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If the lock is not full of water you must fill it
before you can open the top gates to let the boat in. Make sure
all the gates and the bottom paddles are closed and then wind up
the top paddles to let the water in. When the water level has
risen enough to let the top gates be opened wind the paddles
back down again. |
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When you wind up a paddle don't leave
the windlass on the paddle. The safety catch on the
paddle gear could slip off and the windlass would spin
rapidly and fly through the air. People have been badly
injured by flying windlasses. |
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When the lock is full open the top gates to
let the boat in. When the boat is in close the top gates. |
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You will probably need to restrain the boat
towards the centre of the lock with a rope wrapped around a
bollard to keep it away from the gates and to make sure it is
not pulled around by the rushing water. If your boat is the full
length of the lock you must take extra care to avoid being
caught on the bottom gate or the top sill as the water falls. |
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As the boat falls the rope will get
tighter and must be let out, so don't tie knots you
can't undo. Wind the rope once around a bollard and hold
it firmly, letting more rope out as the boat descends.
Don't drop the rope into the lock, it may get tangled
around the boat's propeller. |
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Now wind up the bottom paddles to let water
out from the lock. The boat will fall to the lower level. |
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Watch the boat all the time to
make sure that nothing is holding it up as the water
falls. If at any time there is concern about the way the
lock is emptying, immediately close the paddles. |
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When the lock is nearly empty you will be
able to open the bottom gates and let the boat out. |
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Wind down the bottom paddles and close the
bottom gates after the boat. Don't let the paddles fall on their
own, it can damage them, and always check that you have fully
closed gates and paddles after leaving the lock. |
