diff --git a/libp2p/muxers/mplex/lpchannel.nim b/libp2p/muxers/mplex/lpchannel.nim
index 88c46cbec..52df181c3 100644
--- a/libp2p/muxers/mplex/lpchannel.nim
+++ b/libp2p/muxers/mplex/lpchannel.nim
@@ -31,6 +31,10 @@ logScope:
 ## directions are closed and when the reader of the channel has read the
 ## EOF marker
 
+const
+  MaxWrites = 1024 ##\
+    ## Maximum number of in-flight writes - after this, we disconnect the peer
+
 type
   LPChannel* = ref object of BufferStream
     id*: uint64                   # channel id
@@ -42,6 +46,7 @@ type
     msgCode*: MessageType         # cached in/out message code
     closeCode*: MessageType       # cached in/out close code
     resetCode*: MessageType       # cached in/out reset code
+    writes*: int                  # In-flight writes
 
 proc open*(s: LPChannel) {.async, gcsafe.}
 
@@ -149,6 +154,10 @@ method readOnce*(s: LPChannel,
                  pbytes: pointer,
                  nbytes: int):
                  Future[int] {.async.} =
+  ## Mplex relies on reading being done regularly from every channel, or all
+  ## channels are blocked - in particular, this means that reading from one
+  ## channel must not be done from within a callback / read handler of another
+  ## or the reads will lock each other.
   try:
     let bytes = await procCall BufferStream(s).readOnce(pbytes, nbytes)
     trace "readOnce", s, bytes
@@ -160,12 +169,21 @@ method readOnce*(s: LPChannel,
     raise exc
 
 method write*(s: LPChannel, msg: seq[byte]): Future[void] {.async.} =
+  ## Write to mplex channel - there may be up to MaxWrite concurrent writes
+  ## pending after which the peer is disconencted
   if s.closedLocal or s.conn.closed:
     raise newLPStreamClosedError()
 
   if msg.len == 0:
     return
 
+  if s.writes >= MaxWrites:
+    debug "Closing connection, too many in-flight writes on channel",
+      s, conn = s.conn, writes = s.writes
+    await s.conn.close()
+    return
+
+  s.writes += 1
   try:
     if not s.isOpen:
       await s.open()
@@ -179,6 +197,8 @@ method write*(s: LPChannel, msg: seq[byte]): Future[void] {.async.} =
     trace "exception in lpchannel write handler", s, msg = exc.msg
     await s.conn.close()
     raise exc
+  finally:
+    s.writes -= 1
 
 proc init*(
   L: type LPChannel,
diff --git a/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/gossipsub.nim b/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/gossipsub.nim
index af2a40fbb..7a60ef4fb 100644
--- a/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/gossipsub.nim
+++ b/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/gossipsub.nim
@@ -530,7 +530,7 @@ proc rebalanceMesh(g: GossipSub, topic: string) {.async.} =
         if g.mesh.addPeer(topic, peer):
           g.grafted(peer, topic)
           grafting &= peer
-          trace "opportunistic grafting", peer = $peer
+          trace "opportunistic grafting", peer
 
   when defined(libp2p_expensive_metrics):
     libp2p_gossipsub_peers_per_topic_gossipsub
@@ -977,9 +977,9 @@ proc handleIHave(g: GossipSub,
                  peer: PubSubPeer,
                  ihaves: seq[ControlIHave]): ControlIWant =
   if peer.score < g.parameters.gossipThreshold:
-    trace "ihave: ignoring low score peer", peer = $peer, score = peer.score
+    trace "ihave: ignoring low score peer", peer, score = peer.score
   elif peer.iHaveBudget == 0:
-    trace "ihave: ignoring out of budget peer", peer = $peer, score = peer.score
+    trace "ihave: ignoring out of budget peer", peer, score = peer.score
   else:
     dec peer.iHaveBudget
     for ihave in ihaves:
@@ -995,7 +995,7 @@ proc handleIWant(g: GossipSub,
                  peer: PubSubPeer,
                  iwants: seq[ControlIWant]): seq[Message] =
   if peer.score < g.parameters.gossipThreshold:
-    trace "iwant: ignoring low score peer", peer = $peer, score = peer.score
+    trace "iwant: ignoring low score peer", peer, score = peer.score
   else:
     for iwant in iwants:
       for mid in iwant.messageIDs:
@@ -1178,7 +1178,7 @@ method publish*(g: GossipSub,
     # but a peer's own messages will always be published to all known peers in the topic.
     for peer in g.gossipsub.getOrDefault(topic):
       if peer.score >= g.parameters.publishThreshold:
-        trace "publish: including flood/high score peer", peer = $peer
+        trace "publish: including flood/high score peer", peer
         peers.incl(peer)
 
   # add always direct peers
diff --git a/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/pubsubpeer.nim b/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/pubsubpeer.nim
index d784de1ed..ade6f4468 100644
--- a/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/pubsubpeer.nim
+++ b/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/pubsubpeer.nim
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
 ## This file may not be copied, modified, or distributed except according to
 ## those terms.
 
-import std/[sequtils, strutils, tables, hashes, sets]
+import std/[sequtils, strutils, tables, hashes]
 import chronos, chronicles, nimcrypto/sha2, metrics
 import rpc/[messages, message, protobuf],
        ../../peerid,
@@ -17,6 +17,8 @@ import rpc/[messages, message, protobuf],
        ../../protobuf/minprotobuf,
        ../../utility
 
+export peerid, connection
+
 logScope:
   topics = "pubsubpeer"
 
@@ -60,8 +62,6 @@ type
 
   RPCHandler* = proc(peer: PubSubPeer, msg: RPCMsg): Future[void] {.gcsafe.}
 
-chronicles.formatIt(PubSubPeer): $it.peerId
-
 func hash*(p: PubSubPeer): Hash =
   # int is either 32/64, so intptr basically, pubsubpeer is a ref
   cast[pointer](p).hash
@@ -75,6 +75,9 @@ proc connected*(p: PubSubPeer): bool =
   not p.sendConn.isNil and not
     (p.sendConn.closed or p.sendConn.atEof)
 
+proc hasObservers(p: PubSubPeer): bool =
+  p.observers != nil and anyIt(p.observers[], it != nil)
+
 proc recvObservers(p: PubSubPeer, msg: var RPCMsg) =
   # trigger hooks
   if not(isNil(p.observers)) and p.observers[].len > 0:
@@ -90,7 +93,6 @@ proc sendObservers(p: PubSubPeer, msg: var RPCMsg) =
         obs.onSend(p, msg)
 
 proc handle*(p: PubSubPeer, conn: Connection) {.async.} =
-
   debug "starting pubsub read loop",
     conn, peer = p, closed = conn.closed
   try:
@@ -176,50 +178,54 @@ proc connectImpl(p: PubSubPeer) {.async.} =
 proc connect*(p: PubSubPeer) =
   asyncSpawn connectImpl(p)
 
-proc sendImpl(p: PubSubPeer, msg: RPCMsg) {.async.} =
-  doAssert(not isNil(p), "pubsubpeer nil!")
-
-  let conn = p.sendConn
-  if conn == nil:
-    trace "No send connection, skipping message", p, msg
-    return
-
-  trace "sending msg to peer", peer = p, rpcMsg = shortLog(msg)
-
-  # trigger send hooks
-  var mm = msg # hooks can modify the message
-  p.sendObservers(mm)
-
-  let encoded = encodeRpcMsg(mm)
-  if encoded.len <= 0:
-    info "empty message, skipping"
-    return
-
+proc sendImpl(conn: Connection, encoded: seq[byte]) {.async.} =
   try:
     trace "sending encoded msgs to peer", conn, encoded = shortLog(encoded)
     await conn.writeLp(encoded)
     trace "sent pubsub message to remote", conn
 
-    when defined(libp2p_expensive_metrics):
-      for x in mm.messages:
-        for t in x.topicIDs:
-          # metrics
-          libp2p_pubsub_sent_messages.inc(labelValues = [$p.peerId, t])
-
   except CatchableError as exc:
     # Because we detach the send call from the currently executing task using
     # asyncSpawn, no exceptions may leak out of it
-    trace "Unable to send to remote", conn, exc = exc.msg
+    trace "Unable to send to remote", conn, msg = exc.msg
     # Next time sendConn is used, it will be have its close flag set and thus
     # will be recycled
 
     await conn.close() # This will clean up the send connection
 
 proc send*(p: PubSubPeer, msg: RPCMsg) =
-  asyncSpawn sendImpl(p, msg)
+  doAssert(not isNil(p), "pubsubpeer nil!")
 
-proc `$`*(p: PubSubPeer): string =
-  $p.peerId
+  let conn = p.sendConn
+  if conn == nil or conn.closed():
+    trace "No send connection, skipping message", p, msg
+    return
+
+  trace "sending msg to peer", peer = p, rpcMsg = shortLog(msg)
+
+  let encoded = if p.hasObservers():
+    # trigger send hooks
+    var mm = msg # hooks can modify the message
+    p.sendObservers(mm)
+    encodeRpcMsg(mm)
+  else:
+    # If there are no send hooks, we redundantly re-encode the message to
+    # protobuf for every peer - this could easily be improved!
+    encodeRpcMsg(msg)
+
+  if encoded.len <= 0:
+    debug "empty message, skipping", p, msg
+    return
+
+  # To limit the size of the closure, we only pass the encoded message and
+  # connection to the spawned send task
+  asyncSpawn sendImpl(conn, encoded)
+
+  when defined(libp2p_expensive_metrics):
+    for x in mm.messages:
+      for t in x.topicIDs:
+        # metrics
+        libp2p_pubsub_sent_messages.inc(labelValues = [$p.peerId, t])
 
 proc newPubSubPeer*(peerId: PeerID,
                     getConn: GetConn,
diff --git a/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/rpc/protobuf.nim b/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/rpc/protobuf.nim
index 28755cdcc..7a8c0742f 100644
--- a/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/rpc/protobuf.nim
+++ b/libp2p/protocols/pubsub/rpc/protobuf.nim
@@ -14,6 +14,8 @@ import messages,
        ../../../utility,
        ../../../protobuf/minprotobuf
 
+{.push raises: [Defect].}
+
 logScope:
   topics = "pubsubprotobuf"
 
diff --git a/libp2p/stream/bufferstream.nim b/libp2p/stream/bufferstream.nim
index a7ab8de14..311ef81e6 100644
--- a/libp2p/stream/bufferstream.nim
+++ b/libp2p/stream/bufferstream.nim
@@ -165,6 +165,7 @@ method readOnce*(s: BufferStream,
 
     if buf.len == 0 or s.isEof: # Another task might have set EOF!
       # No more data will arrive on read queue
+      trace "EOF", s
       s.isEof = true
     else:
       let remaining = min(buf.len, nbytes - rbytes)