maude

Bought ours in UK ,weed wand but I now need a direct connection to petro chemical plant as it gobbles gas at about 7 euros a can.Cheaper tohave gas central heating,and leave the weeds !!!! Maude

Hi folks.I am receiving 2 or 3  email scams daily, telling me Ive won millions in various lotteries and some asking me to "invest" their money and mine in various other dubious ventures.With my french email address,how do they know to write in English? I might warble that most of these scams seem to be originating  from Nigeria,surprise,surprise!Is there anyway of stopping this traffic ,other than changing my email address? P.. off,broke,miserable,and no wine! maude

T clarify my earler post re the fitting of 8 windows-the price quoted was for fitting only @1200euros,the windows with roller shutters incorporated was for 5230 euros inc.fitting and tva at 5.5%.Local menuisiers have quoted between6200 and 7800 euros.   Maude

Can some kind person tell me what could be leaving 30mm diam holes in the garden? Not moles I dont think, no hills,just the undermined holes everywhere.And the cure?   Maude

Also just had a quote for replacement windows-1200euros fitting for 8 large windows-but tva at 5.5% and the possibility to claim back someof the material costs from the depot D,Impot, if fitted by "professionals" which is why the reduced TVA.Obviously some form of political " keep em in work" form of subsidy.   Maude

We have 2.No problems in use except noise and when visitors children obviously thought the noise good fun,filled the bog and hence macerator with 15 miles of paper!not a pleasant job to unblock-where does one empty the thing,in a bathroom that has to use small bore pipework?Had many French contractors tut-tut quoting for a repacement fosse.They said that the small particles greatly increases the carry over and fouling of the filter bed,and therefore wouldnt quote!!!!!Nuff said!     Maude

Dunno!However it seems to be here in S.E Vendee that unless it conforms in looks like all the other "ton pierre" boxes which are going up in the thousands,it causes local concern.Conform,conform,conform!People we know,who already own a plot,wanted to build a log house,from kits,French supplied,only to be told ,that they dont fit in!could this be  because 6 months later the commune put on the market 7 building plots for bungalow boxes,at the astonishing price of 7 euro per m2!!!! Same mentality I suppose when permission has to be sought to repair house rendering with the same material and colour.Papier,papier,and jobs worth seems to prevail.Gud Luk,       Maude

Could be dangerous if using air as the test medium.The release of energy if failed is frightenning to say the least.fill with water and use hudraulic pressure only.    Maude

door on the " wrong" side is not an issue.The glass v perspex windows  cant comment on,but look at the ancienne French caravans--many still have glass windows!Re registered my Luna caravan,no thanks to the makers,but twas a hassle due to lack of makers info.took about 8 months altogether.Still worth it when I have looked at French caravans!    Maude

Non! reputabele CT testers will not allow stickers if the car is registred in France.There is a regulation, but cant find the reference.This has been answered before.  Maude

You have to pay!Albeit 2 euros or so per month.The only "hassle" is the lack or repeat prescriptions which means a visit to the doc. every 2 months and about 3 blood tests a year .Our doc. says it is illegal to prescribe drugs for more than 2 months.Our friend 2 miles away-different doc. gets her thyroxine tablets prescribed for 4 months-but this is France!  The doctors visit for the prescription and also the blood tests do have to be paid for-even though we get the percentage reimbursment.    Maude

We have 2 grape vines growing up a pergola which have thrived over the last 2 years,This year they started well,many grapes,lush leaves.now recently the leaves are drying up,the grapes are not filling and are also withering.They are growing in well drained gravel.Anyone any ideas as to the cause? Maude

Hi Folks.We are thinking of extending  into a sloping roofed utility room,but need to raise the roof to the same height of the main inner division wall to give a much more satisfactory head height.However  it would be advantageous to us to have a very slightly sloping roof.What is the normal French method of creating these type of roofs-- zinc?any ideas on cost? aprox 15 m2.  Thanks ,Maude 

In almost the same position.Forget agents pricing,its a case of thumb in b-m,brain in neutral.yes there are difficulties,but we have had so much poor marketing/photographs,do it yourself at the price you can afford.There seems to be no rhyme or reason with agents,when you want to sell,the market is flat,drop the price 50000 or 500 million euros!!!! when you want to buy---mais oui everyone wants the same house,and the price is accordingly high!!I thought UK was bad but here,its so un proffessionally incompt,I,m going to try my own thing-only history will prove any success.I am going to use some agents as well-but no one is going to have exclusivity.The agents are supposed to do the selling,which means selling in the true sense,not just attaching a few badly taken photgraphs to a measly incorrect,usually,description and leaving it up to anyone else.Then they may be able to justify a portion of their exhorbitant fees.We are looking to move areas,not leave France,but one of the problems we find are that properties are only advertised in the region of____,which means that exporatory visits to the area are impossible to make before persuing any interest.Some of the addresses we have shown interest in are not even in the same department by 20 miles-just a waste of everyones time and money.Good luck anyway,wish us the same.Feel better with that off the chest Agents!!!          Maude

Hi Folks.dont know whether this is the correct section,but here goes.I own a Laguna 1.9 DCI of 1999 vintage,for which I am charged 450euros insurance per year with full (50%) no claims .I think this is extortionate,and have just been quoted £165 for the same cover at my last address in UK,albeit 5 years ago.This seems much more realistic,and wondered if anyone can explain why the cost is so high(French registered,Controle Tech good,everything else legal).Seriously coming to terms with the myths of being cheaper to live here,as apart from the lack of road tax,everything else does not seem to be cheaper running a vehicle which is definately a must in France.Even car spares of a Renault seem to more expensive,without even thinking of tyres.  Confused, Maude

Our local dentist said that in his opinion dentistes anglais, drill far too deep and too near the nerve!He works alone with no assistance with a rotating working Back and Decker trolley type gizmo with all his tools.Very good!Try holding his bits and say "we,re not going to hurt one another are we"This usually works wonders! Maude

They also dont hear their dogs barking all night either!Quieter in the suburbs.Maude

Can the costs of fitting and the initial consultants fees of required new fosse septiques be off set against the  relevant years taxes?Is TVA for these set at 19.6% or 5.5% as in the case of renovation new double glazed windows,insulation etc?Any thoughts out there!    Maude 

No-but you would need the apropriate planning which the French absolutely love.My friend had to apply just to replace lumps of crepi which had fallen off his gable end-and to be done by a local "artisan"!Alors,donc,mais oui!   Maude

Bricodepot,Leroymerlin,Mr.Bricolage. Maude

hi folks!we need a fairly sensible valuation of our house here in france.Had 3 agencies to look-but about as much use as double pneumonia!Their figures varied by over 50% which is complete rubbish.I have heard that Notaires are the ones to ask for a valuation.Has anyone gone down this route,or I might as well dream up a figure and stick out for it.The agents all said that it was difficult to sell older houses so bottom prices,and yet when visiting to purchas all of a sudden the prices skyrocket!.I know business is business but my last 5 years experience with agents and their apparent lack of decent marketing skills and very poor photography-   which starts getting people interested in the firstplace,leaves me reaching for the red stuff!!!!Or even Hashish!Any experiences welcome.thanks   Maude

Doubtfull!!!Maude.Beaten by the earlier reply .We have noticed around our area of SE Vendee the proliferation of new build-but they all look the same- even the crepi is the same colour-ton pierre or ton pierre!Its going to look awfully characterless in a few years with no differing architecture.At least in the UK on the lotisements,the houses generally have differing features of brickwork etc -but with all new houses being built of crepi,d blocks,then rendered to hide the quality-- very boring!However talking to the locals we know,due to the low wages generally and limited budgets-they prefer new build.At least they know their outgoings.Trouble is they all move onto the lotissements then ,a)build a dog kennel for their outside living dog,followed by a chicken house!The countryside is not as quiet as we dreamed of-just dont want to see France covered in beige boxes.Meanwhile cant get any interest in our house sale due to the low prices of the new builds,compared to what we paid for this place nearly 5 years ago.C,est la vie!!!Maude 

We use Lidls mix in the bread maker but only on the dough setting.Then we leave to prove/rise in the lightly greased bread tin-  then in,t oven for 30 mins   -----DELECTO !!     Maude Real bread, not fluff in a crust which keeps 5 minutes!

Why are these not available in France-even tried health food shops.Do not want salted,sugared,vanilla flavoured,moule flavoured, just goddam plain brazil nuts.Can only think its cos they dont grow in French ex colonies!Can find almost every other type of nut,including nuts and bolts-but these are evading capture! Help-  Maude

A 12 bore!--- not for the dogs  but the owners!Maude-fellow sufferer