******* Thread now closed, please see volume 41 ********
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=22013
In this thread you may ask any question for which you need help, advice, suggestions or whatever.
It does not need to be motoring related. In fact, in this thread it should not be.
No Questions About PC\'s. They now go in another Thread.
No politics
No Speeding, speed cameras, traffic calming
No arguments or slanging matches
Nothing which I think is not following the spirit of the thread
Nothing that risks the future of this site (please see the small print for details www.honestjohn.co.uk/credits/index.htm )
Any of the above will be deleted. If the thread becomes difficult to maintain it will simply be removed.
However, as has been said a couple of times, there is a wealth of knowledge in here, much of which is not motoring related, but most of which is useful.
This is Volume 40. Previous Volumes will not be deleted,
A list of previous volumes can be found here:-
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=18847
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{Question moved from the latter end of IHAQ Vol 39 as previously unanswered. DD}
Thinking about buying one of these for the summer for the kids to mess about in. Both in their teens and good swimmers BTW
I live in a non water meter area but do you think some jobsworth (with too much time on their hands) will get onto the local water company when they see me filling the thing up. I don\'t want a massive hike in water rates and the old water would be used on the garden anyway.
Has anyone had any issues like this to contend with or are these pools exempt as they are a temporary fixture??
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Does the water company have a website that covers this? Failing that, a call to them would at least establish whether you need a 'licence' or extra payment.
It could be that you don't in which case two fingers to the jobsworths. Or there may be some kind of silly condition like you can't let it fill unattended.
PS Good deals on these pools in Makro usually.
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Many thanks for the reply
>PS Good deals on these pools in Makro usually....
Seen a good deal on these somewhere else.
Have checked the Severn Trent website that doesn't seem to have a decent FAQ section so I'm going to contact them anonymously by phone and ask the question.
Will post the response....
Charles
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{Question moved from the latter end of IHAQ Vol 39 as previously unanswered. DD}
There is a huge project to build wind farms in many parts of the country. From my largely ignorant perspective, they seem to be a bit noisy, arguably unsightly, and only operational on a \'good\' day.
Alternatively, there seems to be no such activity in promoting the use of wave or hydro power which, to my simple mind, appears a better and more reliable alternative. What happened to \'Salter\'s Ducks\'?
Anyone care to offer an explanation?
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I recently visited a hydro-electric power station. Strange what some people's idea of a good time is.
Its only purpose is to enable the national grid to cope with short-term peaks in demand. We were told that it could be producing energy at three minutes' notice or less than a minute if the turbines were already running. It can run for a maximum of 22 hours at a time but this doesn't happen in practice.
Once the demand has passed, the same turbines act as pumps to send the water back where it came from. Doing this obviously uses energy which will mostly come from coal, gas and nuclear power. The justification is that stations using these cannot be shut down at short notice so energy produced at times of low demand is considered cheap. The hydro-electric power station could therefore be said not to produce any energy at all, it just enables power to be provided when it's needed during the commercial break in Coronation Street.
Wave power is a different matter and probably does need further exploration, provided you can position the equipment where it isn't a danger to shipping.
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Electric Mountain?, the sheer scale is breathtaking. Cannot imagine an idea like that getting off the ground now.
Pumped storage schemes (Dinorwig/Ffestiniog) are used like a battery to store power. The proper Hydro Stations in Scotland meet most of the needs of the Highlands and Islands.
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A friend of mine has 15 million AA batteries he would like me to sell. Does anyone have any ideas as to who may wish to purchase a few. I'm thinking of selling a few on ebay. They are good batteries, not the cheapo type. But he is looking to move them in bulk say 100k at a time. Any ideas?
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15 million ? You have got to be joking !
At 50p a battery that would be seven and a half million quid, even 10p a battery and you\'re still talking £1.5m
Somebody is pulling your leg.
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Does this friend live in Nigeria?
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This is no joke I assure you. The guy is an old family friend. He owns a recycling contract for disposeable camera's. All batteries are certified as having atleast 85% juice left. I wondered if anyone here knew of any businesses that might be intersted in the batteries, they are VERY cheap. I am not sure how to market them, i thought about approaching Poundland etc?
I should soon have some on Ebay. This is not a wind up.
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All batteries are certified as having atleast 85% juice left.
The trouble is, now that they\'ve been partially used, their shelf life *could* have been reduced considerably. I\'ve left partially used batteries lying around for a while and when I come to use them again at a later date they are generally flat.
btw, I\'m refering to Alakine batteries. You can generally leave lithium batteries lying around indefintely.
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This may be difficult. I've heard that certain shops have a policy of selling off stock at cost price when it goes end of line and is deleted from their system. The result is that staff can get £3.99 packs of Duracell (I forget how many) for something like 26p. (Certainly the retail vs wholesale cost of USB cables, etc., bears out this kind of margin).
While very cheap is one thing, would it be worth your friend repackaging them and selling them on to enable the retailer to make a profit. If retail is 50p/battery, they're already making about 47p gross margin. If they wanted cut price batteries, they could probably just halve the price of their existing stocks and hope that elasticity of demand would justify the price cut.
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Interesting points David, thanks. So thats 26p for how many Duracell batteries?
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I think you will need a lot of luck on eBay - there are dozens of auctions ending daily for AA batteries of varying quality/price.
You can try auctions on boxer.ebid.co.uk/ at least they don't charge anything for standard type listings, and there's no success fee either!
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Didnt think you was allowed to advertise here.I think your leg has been pulled off.sorry
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your friend with the batteries....
does he own a Reliant ?
is his name Derek ?
--
just 'cos I know what I'm saying doesn't mean I know what I'm talking about
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...or should that be Blueteeth?
Is there any way I can get my Nokia 8910i to connect to both my in-car kit, and my PDA whilst in-car?
I'd like to be able to use the contacts phone dialer through the car kit.
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Funnily enough Mark and I were discussing BlueJawing (more than one tooth? Let\'s call it a jaw) last night. We both understand bluetooth to be a single channel system that doesn\'t allow multiple simaultaneous \"active\" connections.
This came up as I was considering how you would use your bluetooth headset with a 6600 if it was running Wayfarer via a bluetooth GPS receiver.
I\'ll do a bit of digging and get a definitive answer.
ND
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Bluetooth *can* be multi channel, making it work is all about id's and permissions. My laptop bluetooth hub is multichannel, my nokia phone is not is not.
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My apologies. Just had a look over at www.bluetooth.com and you are right.
I think someone needs to check with Nokia whether the 8910 supports simultaneous multiple pairings. Certainly the 6310 doesn\'t, but then the 6310 was one of the first bluetooth handsets.
I\'m picking up my 6600 tomorrow and will be playing with it over the weekend to get it to talk to my pc, laptop and iPAQ. If I find it supports more than one active connection at a time I\'ll post back here.
No Dosh
Backroom Moderator
mailto:moderators@honestjohn.co.uk
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I was dead serious about blocking up the door.
Be careful about beating up the neighbours as you might end up with a 'neighbour problem' that you should tell the purchaser about.
I'd have thought that you should be able to get away with an architectural draftsman, rather than an architect, to put your drawings together. A level tech drawing rather than degree level!
[Wish it had been L'Escargot who had posted this problem, and then we could have called him 'slug' - a snail with a housing problem.]
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I too am serious about the door going if it has too. I think we can get the regs agreed as the regs in force when the porch was constructed allowed for a fire door.
I'm going to have a word with the chap that built it and see if he still has any drawings kicking around. Failing that I'll have him get his favourite tame architect knock something up.
As for the neighbour problems, I've constantly stressed to my mum the importance of turning the other cheek to avoid having to declare it to any potential purchasers. The paraquat can wait until after she's moved.
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[Wish it had been L'Escargot who had posted this problem, and then we could have called him 'slug' - a snail with a housing problem.]
My philosophy is that I would much rather that people took the mick than ignored me! Can't think of anything worse than being ignored. I've been noticed ~ you've made my day!
--
L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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Hi all
Does anyone know a good forum like this but for selfbuilding and home extension? I have found a few, but these seem to have very low attendance and posting counts. I am in the process of applying for planning for an extension and intend to do as much of the unskilled work as possible. I've read every good book going, but nothing beats experience and I would like to be able to chat to others who have done or are doing the sme sort of thing.
Thanks
Jonathan
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Would you reccommend any books in particular? We are planning an extention to our families house.
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This is the best one so far
www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1843303736/ref=s...6
The other in the page that are good are the mark brinkley and laurie williamson books.
Its best to get the most up to date version as these contain the current (or most up to date) building regs information.
Regards
Jonathan
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Try the newsgroup uk.diy, huge amount of expertise available from
BCOs, planning, gas, electrics, building etc, some professionals
and many skilled diy. A few idiots try and wreck it but still dominated by very helpful people.
Very active....several hundred posts a day.
If you dont want to bother wth the newsreader try looking via the google archive (updated twice per day). You can learn a huge amount
just by lurking, even if you dont want to diy you can learn enough to avoid getting the wool pulled over your eyes.
Dont be put off by the diy name, far far more than decorating and putting up shelves (although well covered) and covers everything from planning through foundations walls and roofing, electrics, plumbing,heating, networking and wall tiling, fitting kitchens etc.
NOT moderated so can go rather off topic but usually humourous.
regards
Ian L.
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I have a bizarre question, volume X.
'Hare grazing may actually be beneficial to young cereal crops. Some farmers run a mower over the young crop to invigorate the plants.'
I know of farmers running rollers over young cereal plants, but a mower?
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Some farmers run a mower over the young crop to invigorate the plants.' I know of farmers running rollers over young cereal plants, >> but a mower?
Guessing a bit here (not a farmer) but maybe removing slow /stunted /frost-damaged winter growth to encourage newer, more vigorous spring growth?
Like a kind of motorised pruning in a way - just on a much larger scale than my secaturs on the roses!!
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I was hoping for practical experience... but thanks!
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>> Some farmers run a mower over the young crop to invigorate >> the plants.' >> >> I know of farmers running rollers over young cereal plants, >> but a mower?
This is exactly the same process that you see when you cut your lawn... at the early part of the season after winter, the grass is long but not outrageously so and growth is quite slow however after the 1st cut the speed of growth accelerates, if it didn't we wouldn't need to cut the grass once a week :-)
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I understand the principles, thank you, but do you have any evidence of this happening?
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do you have anyevidence of this happening?
Regrettably, there is abundant evidence in my back garden (first mow last Thurs).
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Is there a farmer on this board who will admit to moving his cereals. Everybody else, if you want to talk about lawn mowing, please go to ask one of HJ's Telegraph colleagues for their gardening website...
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I've never heard of anyone running a mower over their cereal crops, and I sell agricultural machinery for a living.
That said, I don't really have an awful lot to do prolific grain farmers as I try and specialise in veg growing equipment.
I shall make some enquiries for you next week.
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The engine cover of my 9 months old Mountfield HP470 (Briggs and Stratton engine) rotary mower (from B&Q) bears a label claiming Reliable Starting, but it is anything but reliable. After only one mowing the spark plug gets what I can best describe as a black shiny glaze, which may or not be relevant. I?ve twice renewed the spark plug (Champion RJ19LM) ~ having first checked the gap of course ~ and also I?ve bought a fresh can of (unleaded) petrol just in case the petrol had gone stale over the winter. The engine starts OK when hot (if I can get it started in the first place, that is!), but it is reluctant to start from cold and it is extremely prone to flooding when cold. It appears that it is the flooding that really prevents starting. After flooding has occurred I?ve tried heating the plug on the hob of my gas cooker to dry the plug, but to no avail.
Has any other Backroomer had a similar experience, and what was the solution?
I had a go at starting it today, and gave up. But I need to find the solution before the lawn gets out of control.
--
L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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Take it back to B&Q and they'll give you a new one provided you still have the receipt. Provided you haven't invalidated the guarantee by
a) changing the plug
b) changing it a second time
c) looking at the plug
d) using the word flood!
When you flood it, put in the second plug you bought and try that?
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a) changing the plug b) changing it a second time c) looking at the plug d) using the word flood!
e) cooking the plug on the hob of your gas cooker
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I have a Husqvarna with a B+S 4-stroke engine (bought in Oz), same problem when starting from cold but OK when previously running.
Eventually tracked down the problem....when put away the previous time the residual heat or ambient temp would evaporate the petrol in the pipe leading to the cylinder. My mower didnt have the priming bulb so, turning the mower on its side to let the petrol flow through the pipe for a second or two then turning back onto its wheels worked wonders...started first time.
Problem usually worse in very hot weather, after the winter layup or the longer it remains unused. If I tried starting the mower from cold but only a couple of days since previously used...no problems but leave it a week and it would not start properly.
hth
Ian L.
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My Mountfield started first pull this year. It's c. 15yrs old so not the same model as yours.
Two 'start season' rules I observe are 1. remove any remaining petrol and fill with fresh and 2. remove spark plug, clean, and stroke soft pencil round centre electrode and into gap.
Sounds like overly-rich mixture causing the plug problem - is choke mechanism stuck?
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My mower didnt have the priming bulb so, turning the mower on its side to let the petrol flow through the pipe for a second or two
Mine has a priming bulb. When it doesn't start after pressing the bulb the recommended 3 times I press the bulb again. After 5 (total) presses I remove the plug and find that it's wet. Turning the engine on it's side is definitely not the thing to do with my model ~ you end up with the air inlet filter foam element saturated with oil. The instruction manual specifically warns against doing it when you remove the oil drain plug ~ which is on the underside the engine.
Regarding a stuck choke mechanism, there doesn't appear to be one.
I'll try the trick with the soft pencil and if that doesn't work I'll try being brazen about it and take it back to B&Q.
Thanks everyone for all your comments.
--
L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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I have a mower with a Tecumseh motor sourced from the same chain. I never bother with any of this palaver about fresh petrol, change plug etc. Don't waste perfectly good petrol just because it has spent the winter in the garden shed. Each time I use it I press the priming bulb 3 times, spray some easy-start into the air intake and it starts first pull. Maybe second pull on the first start of the season.
One can of the stuff lasts years. My mower is 5 years old now and no problem so far.
--
Terry
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand"
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Finally managed to start my Mountfield HP470, but it quickly developed another problem ~ the engine speed hunted badly. Mountfield directed me to the nearest Briggs and Stratton agent who diagnosed a dirty carb. As I haven't got an air line for cleaning purposes I took the machine to said agent for them to fix. Their estimate was up to 4 weeks. I've had to make alternative arrangements (petrol-powered) to enable me to cut my 350 sq. metres of tough lawn. It's times like this that I wish I didn't have a lawn!
--
L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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I have a mower with a Tecumseh motor
Ditto. 3 year old Tecumseh Spectra 40 on an unbranded mower chassis (electrolux group, but can't remember the now-defunct brand). Used to be a pig to start but found the problem; twisted fuel hose. From the outside it looked fine, but it was a double-skinned hose and the inner wall had kinked, severely restricting fuel flow.
90mm of replacement fuel-grade pipe later and problem solved.
If left for ages it can get a bit sticky on starting. I found that simply draining a teaspoon or so of fuel from system resolved this without fail. Cracking little mower for the money.
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Way back in IHAQ10 I posted about a central heating problem I was having. It appeared to go away before a final conclusion was reached, but unfortunately it's back again so I'm hoping for more advice on what to try.
The problem basically is with the boiler 'shutting down' completely and having to he relit, sometimes 2 or 3 times, before it will heat. It works fine when it is cold and both central heating and hot water are required but shows this intermittent fault when warmer and / or (mainly or) when only hot water is required. It basically runs for a minute or so after heat it called for from the controller then there is a 'thud' from inside and the burner and pilot shuts off and has to be relit.
In the previous thread it was suggested that the motorised valve may be a problem. Indeed, this recently failed and was replaced but the problem still persists. Also, with the pilot actually turning off it would suggest it is something internal to the boiler as otherwise surely just the burner would turn off and the pilot stay lit?
The thermocouple was identified as a possible cause - how easy are these to replace, or are they best left to a qualified engineer? Might it be worth trying just to see if it helps - after all, the boiler is 6 years old now so it's possible it is no longer functioning properly.
Any advice appreciated!
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I would agree that the thermocouple is worth considering - you may get away with just cleaning the business end also check the receive end for tightness/contact.
It's usually more a case of avoiding sharp edges than difficult to replace.
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easy peasy to change with anyone who has some diy nous. Before you change it tho (its a looooong copper coloured thin tube.
1/ make sure the "hot" end is in the pilot light flame.
2/ Undo the electrical end (its got a small nut on it) and clean it, (it bolts into a kind of socket)
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easy peasy to change with anyone who has some diy nous. Before you change it tho (its a looooong copper coloured thin tube. 2/ Undo the electrical end (its got a small nut on it) and clean it, (it bolts into a kind of socket)
It is a few years since I changed one but it is certainly simple.
IIRC you can buy a "universal" fitting from even the likes of Homebase. These come with a variety of different nuts for the end so you just match the old one.
Not very expensive so certainly the first thing to try.
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Daft question, but are these thermocouples cold-junction compensated, and could it be that causing the problem? I've found that the problem only really occurs when the ambient is reasonably high (>15C) so could it be the CJ compensator is not working as it should?
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I would think it will be overheat stat when they start playing up wont be long before the boiler wont start at all.Best left to an expert.I forgot to ask if it is a combi.if so pressure switch may do the same thing?
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I fancy putting some money (about £2K) away for a few years...
Anybody know the best, risk free way to invest it?
Thanks...
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Mini Cash ISA? Boring but probably the safest. Intelligent Finance or M&S offer the best rates at the moment. Or Abbey does a postal one at 4.6% too.
Actually this kinda crosses over with another website I visit regularly: www.moneysavingexpert.com/ Go there and check out their 'Besy Buys' link from the LHS menu.
Hope that helps.
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VDM, cheers 4 that.
I'll have a good weigh up...
Or how about any racing tips...?
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If you get any risk-free racing tips, please let me know !! :)
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Why not try premium bonds - You are quaranteed your money back and theres always the chance of a nice win.
I put £1000 away two years ago and picked up a £500 prize after three months,although it has to be said this was an exceptional bit of luck.
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...or more boringly have a look at
www.ingdirect.co.uk
If you're already to the limit on ISAs this is the best safe option I've found, with ready access if you need.
--
Terry
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand"
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Premium Bonds. Hadn't thought of them. Might be worth putting a bag of sand in them.
ISAs, no. What's the rate of return on them?
Like everyone else, I like £££s, but find it boring reading about it all...
Thanx 4 all the replies so far...
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ISAs, no. What's the rate of return on them?
4.6% on mine.
So assuming £3000 saved over 3 years, you would get £435 in interest assuming you pay tax at the basic or higher rates.
(Sorry, I culled the figures from somewhere else - can't work out the actual interest on "a couple of grand"!)
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OTOH I've had £500 worth for about 8 years now and have picked up 2x£50 prizes - would have done better in most savings accounts. That said, next month I might become a millionaire! (Yeah, right...)
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My Old Man has invested a wedge into US Dollars cash. He rekons the pound can only go one way in the future.
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Carried on from IHAQ 39,
More of an answer than a question.
Just found this useful link for all sorts of planning and building regulation information.
www.onlineplanningoffices.co.uk/frames.htm
cheers
Ian L.
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Thanks for that Ian. Will peruse at my leisure this evening.
ND
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I know there is a link running just now on problems with petrol lawnmowers. My electric Flymo is pretty much done and I was thinking whether to get another one or go petrol.
Plus points for electric are that you plug it in and it goes. However the Flymo has a grass collector box but I find that when you are newar the edge of the lawn, the blower actually blows a lot of grass over my driveway instead. My neighbour has a Mountfield petrol and he seems to have no problems with it, and it does not have any cables following it about etc.
I can probably get a petrol for about the £100 mark and a decent Flymo for maybe about £70. Going by the other link there can be various problems with petrol , flooding, spark plugs etc. Is this a common occurence?
Anyone out there swapped from electric to petrol or vice versa? Whats your thoughts on the matter? FWIW, I have a front and back lawn, both probably about 50 square metres each.
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Had mains electric hover, battery electric rotary and petrol.
All the cheap petrol mowers sem to come from the same Italian factory irrespective of badge. Mines badged Qualcast. Much less prone to gag on wet grass than even mains electric, but a bit of a brute to handle on a small lawn. Carb diaphragm in Briggs and Stratton engine gave up after 2 years, £40 repair bill. Grass scattering a bit of a problem, but soon brushed up. Too many factors at play to blame machine.
Battery electric a lot more bovver then a hover!!. Gagged and stalled on anything less then fine dry grass and ran out of puff on a lawn about the same size as yours. One of the few pieces of technology to go backwards in 40 years.
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I've has mains flymo, petrol flymo and now petrol B&Q rotary.
Never had problems with petrol mowers and they get precious little looking-after from me. A quick squirt of Bradex easy-start and they're off first time. So, for a reasonable sized bit of grass, it's petrol for me every time.
Especially if the grass is likely to get a bit long (holidays, warm wet springtimes), when electrics (and strangely the petrol flymo too) wouldn't take the strain.
--
Terry
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand"
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whilst in my local asda (or wal mart, as we now must call it !) last week, they were offering a flymo that claims to vacuum up the cuttings at just under either £60 or £70 quid
whether that would solve the problem with your drive edges, and be big enough
--
just 'cos I know what I'm saying doesn't mean I know what I'm talking about
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Asda/Wal-Mart comments removed.
Please remember this is a thread to ask non motoring related questions, not to speculate about what was or what wasn't discussed on a TV program.
DD.
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DD
As they were already in the public domain and I've seen previous threads on TV programs (admittedly motoring-related)I didn't think it would be contentious.
Sorry - it won't happen again.
--
Terry
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand"
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Similar amount of lawn to your goodself.
I have two mowers, both Webb, circa 1954 and have to be pushed a great exercise. Both leave a stipped effect as good as Wembley turf pre Cup final. Both cost me 50 pence at a local auction.
Lot of good stuff made int tawd days and you can put &99.50 into the bank.
DVD
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Respect as always DVD!
Your solution undoubtedly will give the best results for the lawn and the health of the person mowing!
--
Terry
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand"
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Before I decide if I need a new mower, trying to fix my existing Flymo Compact 350. It needs a new belt for it, Focus and B&Q don't sell Flymo belts though they do sell Qualcast for some reason. Even Flymo website "Parts Express" doesn't list the belts.
Anyone any ideas?
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I have just had my house insurance cancelled. It turns out that the person I spoke to on the phone when arranging the policy did not ask the right questions about previous claims (it is buildings insurance and he only asked me about buildings claims when it shoudl have been all claims) When the correct questions were asked they decided not to insure me and cancelled the policy. They are offering a refund on a pro-rata basis. Since my house was not actually insured because of the wrong questions being asked any claim would have been refused. Can I demand a full refund of all the money I paid?
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It depends entirely on whether or not they would have paid a claim, and I suspect that they would have done. Its an area that they are careful of since, for all they know, there has been an incident which they are not aware of which may cause a claim.
If they were sure that they wouldn't have paid they would have refunded your premium in full and you'd have had no say in the matter.
I can only assume that whatever other claims you've had must have been pretty dramatic to cause cancellation of buildings insurance. Normally an increased premium is sufficient. ANy further details ?
It is curious that they are "offering" a pro-rata refund. As opposed to what ? It would be more usual for you to be told what was happening, not given a choice.
Who insured the Buildings previously and can you go back to them ? Having insured cancelled and/or declined is a pretty big issue for future insurance.
All in all, if you can force them to retain the policy for the first 12 months to avoid you having to admit cancelled/declined insurance in the future your life will be a lot easier.
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Sorry about the lack of detail earlier: I had a visitor just arriving and had to finish quickly. The full story is:
I arranged bulidings insurance for a house I have just exchanged contracts to buy. When I got the policy details they had some errors which I phoned to correct. During this conversation they checked a few facts, especially the claims history. When I arranged the cover I was asked if I had made any claims in the last 3 years and I said yes. The bloke did not want to know the details, which I thought odd. After consultation with their underwriting department, decided that they would not insure me. The house I own is also insured for buildings by the same company and when I arranged that cover they only asked me about buildings claims, of which there was one. They now say that they should have considered all claims and having taken these into account they are now cancelling my cover. A pro-rata refund will be forthcoming when I return the documents. I was not offered any choice They accept it was not my fault and put it down to 'agent error'
Now, those claims:
1. Accidental damage to garage door £250
2. Loss of specs £110
3. Loss of specs again £110
Not too bad really. I guess the company involved cherry-pick people who don't claim on insurance and 3 in 3 years, no matter how minor is a big no no.
Since it was not my fault and they are saying that if the correct questions had been asked in the 1st place do I have to say I have had insurance cancelled? It was their bungle, not mine.
I guess I need to find out if they would have paid a claim or not. If not, I will be after a full refund.
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Robin,
I'm a bit rushed. I'll reply fully later.
However, there is something funny here. Ask for a letter detailing the circumstances, detailing the reasons for cancellation.
Also ask that the letter details that it was their fault.
Also ask, would they have declined the insurance if they had known about this things on day 1 ?
Also, get friend/relative with different address to get quote for insurance from the same company, to admit to a similar claims history and if he gets a quote, to ask for it in writing.
Presumably you can work out why.
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Mark,
Thanks for the reply. A late response because I could not log in at home last night for some reason.
I have now sorted it all out. I will be getting a full refund for both the policies. The reason they will not insure me is simply that I have made too many claims and do not meet their criteria. They would not have insured me if they had asked me the correct questions in the firat place. I did find out that they do not insure properties if you do not own them, even if you have exchanged contracts to buy the property. So the guy who sold me a policy for the house I am going to buy should not have done.
I have been told (and for obvious reasons am willing to believe this!) that since it was their errors that lead to the policy being cancelled I do not have to declare 'insurance cancelled'. It is more like 'insurance sold in error' I think I will demand, as far as one can, that they out this in writing though.
The company who I dealt with strike as a bunch of cowboys and the lesson I have learned is that just because a company is advertised on TV, has a big ad. in the yellow pages and are cheap does not mean they are any good. I have now gone back to my original insurer who are very good and not so pricey.
One thing in your post puzzled me: getting a friend to phone up. Actually, I cannot work out why. What are you getting at?
Cheers
Robin
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If they told you that they would not have insured you were they aware of the full facts, yet a friend of yours disclosing the full, and similar, facts could get insurance, then you would be in a position to demand that they continued with your insurance.
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A friend has moved into a rented house in the middle of nowhere in Wales that has 2 coal fires to heat 2 of the 3 downstairs rooms, and 3 night storage heaters for the upstairs rooms, one of which will be used as an office. This is a rather miserable prospect!
Flicking through Exchange and Mart, I noted that you can buy a boiler and 9 radiators for about £500.
It didn't take much to realise that paying somebody £5k to put CH into a rented house would be silly, but that about £500 and a couple of days' work would be money well spent and would keep me off the streets.
It would have to run off bottled gas or heating oil. (Bottled gas seems cheaper, otherwise have to install fuel tank, bund it etc. etc.)
Would I be mad even to think of it as a DIY job? And what legislative hurdles (CORGI, building regs) would have to be overcome? Assuming likely landlord's consent.
To me, the project would appear to involve:
1. Knock 2 bricks out of wall & bolt 'boiler' to wall.
2. Drill hole to put gas supply through wall, and another for water overflow drain.
3. Attach water supply.
4. Drill 2 holes in each of 2 downstairs walls for in- and out- water pipes.
5. Drill 2 holes through downstairs ceiling to put hot water upstairs into office.
6. Attach Radiators to walls
7. Fill in gaps between boiler and radiators with copper piping. (Easy fit joints with olives, where required say a dozen(life's too short to fiddle with solder).
8. Fill system with water & rust inhibitor, bleed radiators light ignition.
Any comments?
Thanks as ever
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Domestic Hot water? If a stored hot water cylinder this now comes under building regs.
Control system for CH....must have thermostatic control of CH and HW (part L building regs).
Pump for CH and HW system, cost of all valves etc.
Landlord might not be happy with a gas installation.....legally he has to supply a gas safety certificate as a result of a formal inspection every year.
£500 seems rather cheap, is this one of the gas systems that will become prohibited for new installations as it is of low efficiency?
If I was the landlord I would not want to take on something with poor maintenance support for the future.
Can of worms....leave well alone.
regards
Ian L.
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You're a braver man than I am!
Immediate thought - does bottle gas installation come under same Corgi rules as natural gas?
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Not that brave... whisky fuelled thoughts before dropping off to sleep 2 nights ago. Wales can be a chilly & damp place, you know!
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Hi
If the house is under around about 1000 sq ft (100 sq M) then a combi system may suit.
£500 does seem cheap for the package you mention. It will almost certainly be natural gas only, which means you would need to get it converted to run from bottled gas, if this is possible for that boiler.
In case you don't know, a combi system heats the hot water straight from the boiler, rather than using a hot water tank. This is simpler to install than a conventional system as there are fewer components.
The plumber I use recommends a Chaffataux Britony 80,000 btu boiler. I got mine via him for around £430 inc VAT for a renovation. The rads will normally cost you around £20 to £70 each depending on the output needed for each room. Then of course you've got the cost of the pipes, valves, controller and clock for the boiler etc.
My system with 4 rads cost around £600 including materials and £100 for the plumber to fit the boiler. Everything is sourced from reputable sources so I know it's top quality. In a rented property you need to be sure it's not going to let you down.
I had the boiler fitted by the plumber because this got around the CORGI regs and I was so busy with everything else it just made sense. A colleague actually fitted his own boiler and just got a plumber to make the gas connection and certify it.
If you're serious about fitting a good system, then check the details of these ads very carefully. You would probably need to budget for around £800 for the bits and the pipes, assuming you can get a good discount through a trade supplier.
I would suggest you go onto the Wickes site and have a look at their Good Idea leaflet on Central Heating. This gives a good guide for working out the size of each rad you'll need. Then go form there and work out a price.
If it's owned by a landlord, why not suggest he meets all out of pocket costs so that it's just the labour your friend is supplying?
H
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Thanks, Hugo. www.diyboilers.com will offer you a 80k btu combi boiler, plus 9 radiators, valves for £507 + VAT.
An alternative (simpler, less effective) suggestion is converting the Rayburn to being oil fired. Any ideas on what that might cost?
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Just one thing to bear in mind when working out rad. sizes the thermal output figures are quoted according to two different measurement standards, depending on manufacturer etc. etc. The difference between the two methods is around 35%, so isn't trivial!
When I was looking on the Myson site for a rad a few weeks back they actaully had figures quoted by both methods on different parts of the site, just to confuse non-plumbers like me!
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How is HJ going to know? Fairly obvious with Growlette & one or two obviously female monikers (like those containing girl. Some others occasionally let slip evidence of membership of the fairer sex. But I should suggest that many posters appear fairly asexual.
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>>But I should suggest that many posters appear fairly asexual.
You\'ve met Alan then ?
Read this quick, he\'ll moderate me in a moment.
:::Drums fingers on desk:::
Nah, I\'ll leave that as it is and get you back in person.
ND
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Good point.
But don't worry about it too much. With any luck the thread will fall into oblivion in a day or two through lack of activity.
Anyway, now we're into discussion in the question thread so I think it's best left alone.
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I am in the process of renewing planning permission for a house in part of my garden. Last time I renewed in 1999 I signed a deed called a section 106 agreement which said that when I started development I would pay some money to the local council to maintain recreational open space. This is fine, if more folk move into the area because of a house I have built, there will be more pressure on recreational areas.
However, this section 106 agreement is a deed which I thought lasted forever but the planning people say I have to have a new section 106 agreement each time I apply to renew planning permission. This is quite expensive especially as the council want me to pay their legal costs. I am trying to seek legal advice but my solicitor is away. Can anyone offer any advice? Does a deed last forever if there is no expiry date on it? Is there anything I can do other than pay up?
I've got this nasty feeling I'm being stitched up.
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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Hi, I am thinking of looking about and testing the water for a new job. Since I have been in my current one for 8 years or so, I have kind of lost track on the correct "etiquette" for layout of a cv.
Can anyone point me to a website that has a typical layout? I am sure this was discussed before but my CV search on the forum didn't come up with anything non motor related!
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You may find this site useful.
www.i-resign.com/uk/home/
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Not long bought a food in a container cant mention supplier.bought in a pack of three happens to contain 1 very clean capped nut ie the mild steel type mixed with syrup any ideas where I go from here.Ps my Daughter 10 is the only one that eats this fruit.I hate to think what would have happened if eaten.can I do much about it? Ps have taken photos of the nut in full view.Never come accross this before.any ideas
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Take it back to the supplier.
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Report to Environmental Health Department of your Local Council.
DVD
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Is there a customer helpline on the back of the packet/tin?
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I will have to take it back as no contact details on the pack or reciept.
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Hi,
1) DVD is bang on, I found the local env. health very helpful and professional with similar problem.
2) Re complaint to supplier, it could be useful, depends on whether they are reputable. Possibly a letter of complaint/information (+photo) to chairman's office may yield some results and possibly some goodwill vouchers.
3) Nut does sound like manufacturing/ packaging problem. Could contact them. Same result as 2?
So you keep copy of receipt, photo, can + nut and write 1 nice letter to 1 or 2 or 3 but make it clear that you have copied it to the other two organisations.
With respect to risk if eaten, there are Drs on this site who might respond. My personal view is possible choking risk and some lacerations to gut. (depending on nut size etc. However, with any luck, hopefully none of the above and it would just come out the other end.
Good luck
Vercin
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If your daughter is 10, then I'm sure she is capable of getting into a lot more trouble than eating a nut! I really shouldn't worry about it. (If it is daughter no. 10 (unclear from posting) then your breeding has done us all proud!)
If you go to environmental health, you run the risk of it being deemed 'acceptable' to have 1 nut per 10,000 tins. I'd take it back to Tescbury's or Asrose, and gratefully accept the £20 of vouchers they throw your way.
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