floydraser

How many liveaboards on the Broads are there because it's cheap living and how many are there for the alternative lifestyle?

If you want any cheap stuff from here: https://wilmslowaudio.co.uk/ I can fetch it over for you. I don't know them although they're two minutes walk from my house. I don't speak the same language.

Dad, what are these people talking about?

"about the only option" is different to "the only option". Having nearly been made homeless with two kids in the early nineties I don't believe that in this day and age anyone is forced to live on a boat; it's an option. And I don't believe local authorities dealing with these people in East Anglia would encourage it, especially on the broads.

The bumper is held by two 10mm bolts and two plastic rivet things where you push the plastic pin through and then hope you can find it afterwards. Then unclip the panels from each other with a trim tool. Or bit of old plastic cutting board with chamfered edge in my case.

Volvo washers packed up the other day, here's why: All this was "growing" in the washer bottle. Apparently there are various reasons for it and just as many cures. Looking on Youtube to see how to get to the washer pump I was amazed to find it takes just a few minutes to remove the headlights and bumber: Cures: Use winter strength additive all year round - add bleach - add meths - don't mix brands of additive. Any more? I was surprised not to vinegar in the recommendations?

Welcome to the forum. I've never hired but in that situation I would ask the hirer if it were possible to go along, have a look and discuss it with them. Looking at some of the un hired boats on the webcams I would have thought it possible for a trial run? Or don't they do that?

Beware: this the basis of the saying, " A boat is a hole in the water into which you throw your money!"

I seem to be having one of those retirements where you never get any free time. Anyway, further to Vaughan's observations here's the flue from the outside: Remove the four bolts and: Oo look, there's the top of the heat exchanger. Mr Henry's been in there and cleaned up the detritus now. So what is more dangerous: playing with the boiler or standing on the top of a step ladder using a Henry? I was wearing a hi-vis vest, goggles, hearing protection and I had notified rospa of my intentions. Honest!

Had a quick look. Is it me but the dimensions are given as 6.09ft wide but the pics make it look wider??

I have no idea what the crack is with boats but a while ago a car was abandoned in a field next to and belonging to, a garage business for about 25 years. Garage owner wanted rid of it as he wanted to sell the land for houses so he put a notice on the car and left it there for a fixed period. I can't remember how long but at least 6 months I think, then sold the car. Of course, then the bloke who left the car there suddenly decided it was worth a couple of grand and went after the new owner. No joy. I remember because a laptop was 2 grand at the time (how things change) and the guy said he would settle for one of those! The new owner shoved it in a lock up for another 12 years before I came along and bought it. That's it in my pic.

Our first and only other boiler was fitted by the previous owner of the house around 1975. It failed in 1992 when I was unemployed, on "supplementary benefit" and just about avoiding reposession. I stripped the boiler to find a cast iron manifold joining two cast blocks. All had coroded causing leakage. I cleaned up all the surfaces as best I could, applied bodyfiller and put it back together. When we were back on our feet we put some aside for when it failed again. What did I put above... 2007! I thank my dear old late Dad for allowing me to go and play in his garage as a child, to make whatever I wanted with whatever tools. And I still have all my fingers and most of his tools!

Blimey, is the anything this man hasn't done!? Fair comments Vaughan, I'll have another look later, just trying to fathom out how to get to the washer bottle on the Volvo.. any experience? I fitted the boiler myself with the help of a strong mate, to lift it onto the mounting, then brother in law made the connections and checks etc. it's been checked over several times since for instance as part of a safety review when we had cavity wall insulation done. Never been lit with a match, can't think why anyone would. I can't see any yellow in the flame now it's back together so maybe it was upset by not having it's shroud and casings fitted? Fair point on the flue. It's a balanced flue and goes directly to an outside wall. Four bolts and I can get into it. This thread was about the pilot but I'll check the flue later. I appreciate your comments.

Agreed again but in the name of balance I think the majority of tradesmen are honest and set out to do a decent job. The problem is avoiding the less motivated ones. I find word of mouth still the most reliable method.

That's what I was thinking, then the son started: Son: "I have to inform you not to use your electric shower until I've changed your consumer unit and installed the correct type of circuit protection." It already had the right protection. OK right. As they had wasted my time and were clearly a pair of cowboys I told them to carry on with their quote. When it came through we cancelled the kitchen altogether, putting in a complaint about them. We had a new cooker from Currys last year. The gas safe engineer who fitted it checked the gas pressure and asked if we had any other gas appliances as it was his duty to check those as well. I mentioned the incident with the other guy and he agreed, Cowboy.

Regulo - I agree, they would probably check for CO but I'm not sure. I have a CO alarm positioned between the cooker and boiler. Wussername - what would you do: Around 7 years ago we odered a new kitchen and the suppliers sent round their fitting contractors to asses the kitchen. A father and son team, dad was a gas safe engineer and the son a qualified electrician. Our cooker is fitted where the gas supply pipe comes up through the concrete floor like most of our neighbours with similar houses of the same vintage and builder. Our cookers have always been there and were to be so in the new design. Dad: "I'm afraid the first thing I have to do is advise you not to use your cooker until I have had time to come round and move it to a different position, it's too close to an opening window." Me: "It's always been there." Dad: "Ah, but if you had the window open when using the top burners they could blow out and cause a gas leak." ???

Some time ago I think it was Grendel who had a problem with a domestic boiler and I remember trying to describe a problem I had encountered which had similar symptoms. Well yesterday I had a repeat of the very same problem so I thought it may help others to relate the tale here: I had no hot water and presumed we had used a lot so set the HW to boost for 2 hours. Still no hot water as the boiler failed to light. I checked the tank thermostat – ok – then the pilot light – ok – so it could still be a faulty thermostat, wiring fault or boiler. Turn up the central heating thermostat to trigger the boiler – nothing doing. Ah, so it's the boiler but the pilot light is still there. Do we call Julius Caesar and checkatrade? No. I've only ever had two boilers, both conventional gas types. On both, the pilot lights have been bi-directional; part of the flame points to the main burner and the other part to the Flame Failure Device (FFD). If either part fails you get nothing. Another of my valuable brother in laws is a retired gas fitter, having spent his entire career working for the East Midlands Gas Board. He started my plumbing education when I was a newlywed in the late seventies, just after I drove a nail straight through a central heating pipe late one evening! He used to service domestic boilers and he told me there were two main parts to a service: checking the gas pressure and hoovering the dust, muck and ash from the boiler casing and burners. The ash is from cremated spiders and other bugs who thought they had found a nice, warm place for a kip on a winter's night, until your heating fired up in the morning... Is this dangerous? Yes. So is driving a car but we still do that? Because we are educated to the risks and drive accordingly, so read on.. My boiler is an Ideal Gloworm from around 2007. The casing is held together with a mixture of wingnuts, self tapping screws/clips and captive bolts/nuts. Easy stuff. Pic 1: case front removed revealing the slopey flue at the top, then the cast iron heat exchanger, then the heat chamber with white thermotiles and the main burner. I have also removed a panel from the front of the heat chamber which has a 4th thermotile on it, so I can get to the pilot. Pic 2: The main burner with the pilot covered by a shroud. Just one nut to remove. Pic 3: Left to right – Pilot jet, piezo electrode, FFD thermocouple. The FFD needs a flame on it all the time to keep the gas valve open, or it will just shut the gas off. Have a look at the hole in the pilot jet and you can see a lump ash/muck. Pic 4: From the top you can see how the pilot flame is directed in two ways. Pic 5: Bingo! Compare the photos to see how it cleaned up. All I've done is to use an ordinary Henry with small nozzle to clean out the dust from around the pilot, go along the jets of the main burner and then inside the bottom of the casings where all the muck gathers. No gas joints disturbed so no need to worry about leaks. If you are ever worried about leaks just ring British Gas and they'll be there like a shot, you don't have to tell them you've just had your boiler to bits! I'm fairly confident at plumbing but I would never touch a gas system. The only way to check for leaks is by pressure check and I don't have the equipment for it. The green sticker on the boiler is the price tag: £345.00 in 2007. Knowing a service is just a hoovering, I never have it serviced and this is the first problem I've had with it. The gas pressure was checked last year when we had a new cooker.

Before starting the engine, how about trying the same in top gear with a few people "rocking" it backwards and forwards?

G1 above lives in Gloucester and stayed with us over the weekend. It's fairly easy to put the stresses in the past as to look at him you wouldn't know any of the above; he looks like a normal, lanky streak, annoying teenager with a permanently runny nose due to the PCD. At home in the evening he had the hump because I would let him have sole control of the tv remote. Thanks Grandad.

My day Saturday: I was reminded of the arrival of our first Grandson in 2005. He had all sorts of problems including a heart on the wrong side which caused his blood to circulate the wrong way, and something I can't pronounce known as PCD, a lung problem. At 18 months old he had an 8 hour operation where they reversed his bloodflow by snipping the main arteries and reconnecting them reversed. Unfortunately his heart couldn't stand the strain long term so he had to have a pacemaker fitted. We were told that he would depend on the pacemaker for life and should it fail, that would be that. At 5 years old he collapsed at school when one of the pacemaker wires detached but that wasn't that, because as he was laying down his little heart had just about enough in it to keep him going until the paramedics arrived. He was re-connected in hospital. He was later diagnosed as being mildly autistic with Asperger's. Anyway, I was reminded of all the above stress because yesterday (Saturday) I went with him to Birmingham University Open Day as he wants to study Geography. A day we thought we would never see and what a day! I've never been in a place with so many happy, positive people. I'm sure there are a few of you who have had the same experience and I wonder if you thought the same? Plenty of students on hand who were more than happy to talk about life at uni and the courses, and even one of the professors gave his time to talk to my Grandson as an individual, who came away very motivated. So we have to hope this new enthusiasm results in decent qualification grades.

Yep, more info needed. Evidence in the last photos shows it in the yard with a brick by the wheel to stop it rolling away??

They mostly get £80 - £100 at auction in my experience, the rest will be the cost of repair, dealer profit etc.

And the other end: And the middle bit: As you can see, a rat may have chewed the leather but I doubt it could weald a hammer to do that damage! The two nuts holding the mounting spigot were loose but the pivot is solid. What has moved, has done so freely and I'll not be trying to move anything else until more history is known. As I hinted at before, it may just be a piece of junk but if it represents lives that were lost then it's a memorial and will be treated as such. I have emailed the Royal Navy Museum as a first step and await their reply.

My brother in law is into militaria and it was he who taught me to look for the broad arrow to signify military artefacts. He also buys stuff at auctions and likes to research the history of medals and reunite them with the family if possible. Anyway, he also lives near Dereham and collects my stuff for me and I do likewise when he buys from an auction local to me. This is usually once a fortnight. So he collected the telescope and inspected it briefly. Gently pulling out the eyepiece to reveal what I have pictured below.

Patience.... I'm "babysitting" three teenagers this evening so away from home. Yep, makers name, date and the broad arrow. Pics tomorrow.