Charlotte3

Ford Anglia, Lime based plaster question:     It's actually the same thing, assuming you mean polyurethane paint (not varnish). Don't thin too much though, just enough to make the paint workable. If you have had flaking don't forget to fill and sand down first. When you are finished the above DO NOT SAND DOWN or you will break the seal. The thing with lime based finishes is to seal them in completely so the lime can't get out! Gloss paint:    Try to avoid gloss finishes outside because the weather here (though apparently not in the Pas de Calais) will take out the gloss and leave you with a tired, flaky finish in no time. Masonry paint:   Always use a primer on new surfaces. Again, there could be lime present so seal it in and paint over with at least two coats of masonry paint. (If your BBQ is in a subterranean tunnel, apparently you could use Leyland pliolite based masonry paint to great effect LOL) Good luck, nice to know you're all getting the spring decorating bug....maybe summer isn't too far away when we can all relax and enjoy the results of our endeavors! Aly

JR is right, you really need to use an undercoat to seal the old surface. If you don't want to go to the expense of buying a dedicated product, you could use any thinned oil based paint - any old thing will do, but remember if you use a strong colour it will be harder to cover later! You could even try using a coat of thinned down PVA, if nothing else it would provide some slip. He is quite right about the adhesive as well, it is just a form of PVA...in fact any (cloudy) decorating adhesive, glue etc. is actually a form of PVA. A little tip for you....when hanging toile de verre, use a large size metal scraper and press very firmly, the stuff is virtually indestructable. I hope you have help, it's really difficult to do a ceiling singlehanded! Well done JR,  and good luck M Maddock, Aly

Hi there, A friend has asked me to try to find out if there are any yoga classes in the southern Manche, northwest Mayenne,southwest Orne area. Any ideas appreciated. (I have asked at several Mairies locally, but nothing doing at present) Many thanks Aly

Sorry Gluestick, I'm bored now. My own ex spraypaint specialist/armchair expert decorator needs me more than you do. Have fun, Aly

Gluestick,  You said ...."New pine shutters (BricoDepot, trimmed to absolute size); these we treated with a Leyland stain/preservative as we wanted to achieve  the local colour ambience: cream/yellow tinged masonry, dark stain shutters, similar to Sadlins." Did your French neighbours use Leyland products then? What is Sadlins?... do you mean Sadolin? Pliolite based masonry apints are available in France ass well. Have you no comment on my last posting re. Pliolite and Johnstones paints? (Like, I'm right!!!) For emergnig resin use knotting compound and for rough end grain use enduit, followed by one coat undercoat and two coats topcoat. If you want technical data suggest you check the relevant websites, we're too busy decorating to have all the tech. data to hand! Are you a spray painter? ( because of your references to metal, paint etc.) I ask because my OH is a specialist spray painter, but knows b----r all about decorating. I want you to know this is all in the spirit of a bl---y good debate, nothing personal. Have fun with the shutters, Aly  

Gluestick,  You said ...."New pine shutters (BricoDepot, trimmed to absolute size); these we treated with a Leyland stain/preservative as we wanted to achieve  the local colour ambience: cream/yellow tinged masonry, dark stain shutters, similar to Sadlins." Did your French neighbours use Leyland products then? What is Sadlins?... do you mean Sadolin? Have you no comment on my last posting re. Pliolite and Johnstones paints? (Like, I'm right!!!) For emerging resin use knotting compound and for rough end grain use enduit, followed by one coat undercoat and two coats topcoat. If you want technical data suggest you check the relevant websites, we're too busy decorating to have all the tech. data to hand! Are you a spray painter? ( because of your references to metal, paint etc.) I ask because my OH is a specialist spray painter, but knows b----r all about decorating. I want you to know this is all in the spirit of a bl---y good debate, nothing personal. Have fun with the shutters, Aly  

Here goes, Gluestick: Masonty paint.....Pliolite is a Eliokem patent. Eliokem used to be a part of Goodyear in the USA, nothing whatever to do with Dupont! Due to the climate etc., I would use French (or indeed Spanish) masonry paint in France. Given the climatic conditions etc. the French version would be more suitable in mediterannean (?sp) climates. Trade Paint.....Johnstones is NOT now Leyland (paint). Leyland Paints is owned by the same group that have now bought Johnstones Paints. They are owned by a group called SigmaKalon. Leyland has been owned by them for quite some time, about 15 years (maybe more). Johnstones is a more recent aquisition. I know this because I know the Johnstone family both personally and professionally. I don't know if there is a difference between French and English plasterboard (I'm a decorator not a plasterer!). There is however a huge difference between building methods and more importantly climatic conditions,  in the two countries and decorating products in France are designed with this in mind. Incidentaly, French houses are not plastered, only the joints in the plasterboard are. Therefore they have no drying out time and normally walls are undercoated immediately with an oil based undercoat thinned out with white spirit. It is of course possible to coat with a water based undercoat but the finish is inferior. PVA is never used by a French professional for this (or any other) job. I don't understand why the English insist on adding PVA to other products to make a mixture they feel will do the job, when there is a perfectly good product available on the market which has been designed to do the job in question. Fact:  to blot out marks on a ceiling, wall etc. DO NOT COAT WITH PVA AND THEN DECORATE! Paint with one coat of oil based paint (matt or undercoat) and follow with emulsion of your choice. Fact: to get the most long lasting finish on shutters, windows etc., DO NOT COAT WITH GLOSS PAINT BROUGHT FROM ENGLAND, paint with one coat undercoat followed by 2 coats oil based satin (not gloss) finish bought in France. It is designed to cope with the extremes in temperatures found on the European continent. Ford Anglia,  If your paint  flakes off, it is NEVER the fault of the new paint, but the substrate. Was the BBQ prepared properly, what was it painted with before? If it was painted with a product containing lime ,like distemper (for example) you will have to completely remove it or else paint with a neutralising primer first. The lime will eat through any new finish you care to put on and make it flake off. In decorating, preparation is everything! Anything else I can help you with? Aly

Tomorrow is the day! Visited the doctor for my last check up on my leg today, received my cover note from the insurance company, bought the protective knee pads, so everything is ready to go tomorrow for my first outing on the small but perfectly formed cm125. Wish me luck, Aly (Sorry to be such a wuzz, but I'm really really nervous)....OH hasn't helped, he's planning to take his test  because his bike's "far too small"..yadda yadda yadda!

  French paint is not a rip off...you have to know what you need and where to get it at "french" prices! Dulux (yeuch!!!) is aimed for the BRITISH diy market,and really not very good just well marketed. Leyland i(love it) s a trade paint so is much better quality, but again manufactured for the BRITISH market. French paint is manufactured for the French market to be used with French materials, not British, so is more suitable for your house in France.....easy!! Learn the lingo and buy French, it's what we professionals do! I have over 20 years experience both in the UK and here in France, so I do know! Good luck Aly

According to ANPE in Mayenne the legal requirement is 2 months for anyone employed by an employer for more than 3 hours per week. If you work less than 3 hours no notice is required. Because I left my cleaning job (2 hours per week) giving 2 weeks notice, I received a letter from my former employer (a headmistress) slagging me off and telling me how much she had done for me. (Basically how she had taken me from the gutter and put a roof over my head!). You should have seen it, pages and pages of ranting and raving. The woman didn't even pay me minimum wage! But then, the French are never wrong! Good luck with everything, Aly

Rumzigal, actually, yes I do. RMI etc....been there.  Comfort of years of British earnings behind me? Er, no. What I was really getting at was that in the UK if you earn a low wage it is virtually impossible to survive without government handouts. It is possible in France (certainly here in Mayenne). Zeb, my point exactly.... an "annual holiday" of course is a good thing if you can possibly afford it. Hardly the same thing as popping over to a foreign country every few months AND having at least one exotic holiday every year! I know some very wealthy French people and none of them has more than 2 short breaks per year. (Maybe they're too busy making money!). Of course it could be just a Mayenne thing, we're hardly the most affluent part of France. I was wealthy once, never brought me health or happiness. Now I just enjoy being borderline poor ( and unhealthy and unhappy...nah only joking!) Aly

Londoneye, So the damage is being done perhaps by a feral lady who won't take no for a answer......the poor old fellow! My OH won't let me look at any sites or visit any animal (or human, for that matter) shelters. He just knows what would happen.... He still remembers when I wanted to join the "Adopt a Granny" scheme! Well it's not my fault I don't have grandparents! I'm so glad he's on the mend, perhaps you can relax a little now as well, Aly    

Sharkhunter, "I feel that too much work and no play makes someone a dull boy...............We come here for a better way of life, not to be slaves to the work regime we left behind, salut." We came here to enjoy the challenge of entering the workforce in a foreign country, mastering the language, learning about the culture etc. etc., not to skim the surface like tourists who say they know a foreign country when they have no conception of what it is like for the local people to live there. We have a better way of life. We do an honest day's work for a days pay, no family credit, housing benefit etc to shore up poor wages, we have the same life as our French colleagues, not visiting Brits. We love it!!!! In another 5 years or so, we hope to go to India to live in a village where we will help the local community and in return we will receive our food (what the villagers eat) and lodging (with a village family). We will have nothing by western standards, but we will be SO happy! Some of us don't need money.....had lots of it once - happy? No way! Aly PS. Don't quote the six month rule, know all about it!         Holidays? You must be kidding, no time! Aly

Nick, He's probably somewhere in limbo with me, feeling lonely!!!! Sorry, old joke......like, really old. ( like Syd Barratt, been over the edge for years) Red stuff again, Aly

Hi there Shimble, Hope this helps..... Montant maximum de l'allocation depuis le 1er janvier 2007 :    Nombre d'enfants  Personne seule  En couple  0  440,86 EUR      661,29 EUR     1  661,29 EUR     793,55 EUR     2  793,55 EUR     925,81 EUR     Par enfant supplémentaire  Plus 176,34 EUR     Plus 176,34 EUR     If you have more than this coming in per month, you get nowt, if less you get the difference (assuming you qualify, of course) Aly

Tenniswitch, We have all those as well and a 6kw supply. We don't have to juggle all that much (really just the kettle, 2 rings on the hob AND the tumble dryer thing). Everything else works just like it did at home.....not thinking, just turn it on! Aly  

A thought........don't forget that income tax is not deducted from your net salary. You will have to pay that direct to the tax office yourself when you receive your first bill. ( next year). Good luck in your new job, Aly

Just a thought, My daughter is doing her BAC next year and is finding all the studies required very difficult, as are her French friends. We did talk about her going back to the UK to do her A levels, but SHE decided not to.  She has achieved a hell of a lot considering she did'nt speak a word of French before arriving here 6 years ago. As she says, here she will have the equivalent of A levels in 10 subjects, not 3 or 4 which makes the British kids seem a bit like wuzzes, doesn't it? She watches English TV (her Dad and I find the French version to be anything but relaxing of an evening) and is horrified by the lack of education exhibited by many English youngsters. She cannot understand how they have been at school for so long and cannot speak the language or understand basic maths.  ( Not only youngsters, but reporters etc.)  She maintains that she would prefer to have lots of work now and achieve a decent level of education rather than opt for the "Easy Option" that a British education would be. Incidentally, she will not go to a French university, again her decision. We know too many young people pushed to the brink by the pressures involved here. She will be either doing another 2 years at the equivalent of College of Further Education studying tourism, or perhaps spend a year in Germany as an au pair before searching for work in Germany. ( She speaks fluent German). She leaves the house at 7am and arrives home at 7pm every day except Wednesdays when she has a half day. She studies for at least 2 hours every evening and also on Wednesdays. Is life hard.....you betcha! Is she fulfilled....yep! Does she live it up at the weekends with her friends from lycee......oh yes! That, my friends, is the reality of life for young people here in France, and very wholesome it is too! I'm sorry for waffling on, but my daughter is sexy gorgeous and smart......just like her Mum! And she is just SoooooFrench! Give them the support they need and watch them blossom, Aly

Just curious, But why do you need to raise the capacity? We are on 6kw and have an amazing array of electrical gadgets, heating, tumple dryer, electric hob etc, etc. We very rarely trip out ( like about twice per year). Think cost! Aly

We bought 6 years ago and had a really antiquated board with ceramic fuses. EDF came out and said it would be ok so long as we did'nt run more than 2 heaters. They connected us there and then. Always ask the experts (in this case EDF), that way you know for sure. Aly

Here in Mayenne it's ALWAYS a typed CV and handwritten letter,  oh, and a photo with the CV Aly

Hi Emma, Here is some advice from someone who has been employed as a gardener, but now is'nt (if you see what I mean).. If you are registered as working on the land eg. gardening, farmer, nursery worker etc you have no choice, your healthcare is with MSA. It does'nt matter if you are self emlooyed or salaried, it's MSA.  CPAM is for everyone else. ALL landworkers in France are with MSA. You say he registered as an artisan, who is he registered with, Chambre de Commerce or Chambre des Metiers? It acually won't make any difference, it's his tax regime that might make a difference ie. micro commerce etc.? You don't have to sign as unemployed to claim RMI, and you don't register as unemployed at the jobcentre anyway - you're being pointed in the wrong direction here. How good is your French? If your earnings are below a certain level and you can prove this, then you are entitled to apply for RMI. You have paid in to the system and you are certainly entitled to claim something back, so don't feel bad about it. You would be doing exactly what every French family would do in the same circumstances! I could go on and on, but without knowing your (very) personal circumstances  it's difficult to help. I understand it's difficult to bare your soul to strangers, but we've all been there and there is certainly no shame in needing help sometimes. Send me an email if you would prefer, I will try to help. Aly  

Well spotted Nick!   (as opposed to spotted Dick) Sorry,  too much of the old red stuff. Aly

Well spotted Nick!   (as opposed to spotted Dick) Sorry too much of the old red stuff. Aly

The same thing applies.....a good rub down with standard (80) and then fine(120) sandpaper, a coat of undercoat and then 2 coats of a decent oil based paint. We always use a satin finish, never gloss. I'm not very familiar with retail makes of paint, but I have used Nuance (from Bricomarche) , Gedimat and M.Bricolage in my own house. My personal favourite is Nuance Satin Finish, I have used it successfully on all our exterior wood and it has lasted very well. It's worth remembering that these paints are made with French weather in mind, rather than English so will wear better here. Hope this helps, Aly