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WATERWAYS WORLD SITE OF THE MONTH JANUARY 2002 How Do Locks Work Locks You will not go very far on any canal or waterway without coming across locks. Locks are needed to raise or lower the level of the canal according to the lie of the land. Almost all locks have two bottom gates and one or two gates at the top. Locks vary in length and depth from the very large lock at Appley Bridge on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal to ones where the drop is a matter of inches. Most have gate paddles, and some have ground paddles and some have both. Gate paddles raise sluices set into the gate itself, this allows water to flow directly into or out of the lock. Ground paddles are Usually found on top gates, they have a sluice that is set into the side of the lock near the top. Water flows from there through an underground culvert and enters the lock chamber below the lowest water level. Make sure before you go cruising that you have at least two windlasses, you will need these to operate most locks, if you are cruising on the Leeds and Liverpool or the B.C.N. make sure you have a handcuff key as you will find most locks on these canals locked, and you will need the key to open them. Descending a lock If the lock is empty, you must fill the lock by opening the top paddles (make sure the bottom ones are shut). When the lock is full you can open the top gates and the boat can enter the lock. Close the top paddles and gates, now you can open the bottom paddles to drain the water from the lock. Keep well away from the the cill, when descending otherwise your boat could get cought on the cill with disasterous consequences. The extent of the cill is usually marked by a white line on the lock wall. When the water in the lock is the same level as the canal you can open the bottom gates and leave the lock, make sure you close all paddles, and unless a boat is coming into the lock, close the gates. Ascending a lock Ascending a lock is more or less the reverse of descending. But extra precautions must be taken. If the water in the lock is not at the same level as the canal, open the bottom paddles, when the water is level open the gate and shut the paddles, move your boat into the lock and open the top paddles slowly and just a few inches at a time. When the water is level you can open the top gates and leave the lock. When ascending a lock you must position your boat at the back of the lock or if you have enough experience go right to the front of the lock, touching the front gates. Do not stay in the middle, the force of the water will send you forwards into the front gates, this can cause damage to your boat and to the lock gates and could be very dangerous. If you are ascending a wide lock on your own again extra precautions must be taken, you must not go to the front of the lock, stay in the middle and use ropes to keep the boat close to the lock wall, never tie the ropes, pass them round a bollard and back down to the boat so that you can let the ropes out as needed. Only open the paddles on the side you are against to start with, the water entering the lock will then hit the wall opposite and rebound holding your boat against the wall. When the level has risen and there is less turbulance, the other paddles can be opened with care. Whenever you are ascending or descending a lock be ever watchfull and expect the unexpected, be ready to drop the paddles at any time if you think something is wrong; and in wet or icy conditions take extra care, keeping well away from the lock sides. Other Locks If you cruise in certain areas you will find other types of locks, there are staircase locks and others such as The Bratch on the Staffs. and Worcs. Canal that have extra chambers to save water. On most of these you will find a lock-keeper who will guide and help you through them. You will find that a lot of these are locked out of hours and you will have to wait till the next day to go through. You will find some staircase locks with no lockkeeper, or some that are not locked at night, so it is essential that you know the basics of them if you wish to use them. Once you grasp the basics of how they work then you will find them easy to use, you just need to think what you are doing, and not rush things untill you are sure of what you are doing. The one thing to remember is, when you are ascending staircase locks, they must all be full except the bottom one, when you are descending they must all be empty except the top one. Locks are an enjoyable feature of the canal system, but they must be treated with respect, a lot of them are many years old and cannot stand up to continual abuse. Take your time, take care, and enjoy. UKCanals Ring Owner: Ken Fairhurst Site: UK Canals PREV LIST RANDOM JOIN NEXT Powered by Bravenet UK Waterways web ring member [ See All Sites | Join | Random | << Prev | Next >> ] The author is a member of Mail the Web-master. This site is designed and written by KJF Designs © 2000 - 2008