napoleon

Although I have only installed one system in France, with the support of other forum experts, I would expect that your best action is to wait till you get back to France and buy a cheap satellite system from Bricomarche. This will give you a 60cm or 80cm dish with a single or double LNB and a digibox. You could try to use the existing dish but at 30cm it is likely to give poor reception from the Astra satellite cluster. Also there may be a mismatch between the new box and the old dish/LNB.     You will definitely need to re-direct the dish and to do this it is best to know beforehand the exact angular position relative to your house. There are online calculators to first find your geographic position (longitude and latitude) followed by the angular direction of the satellite. If you are involved in adjusting the dish it would probably just as well to change it for the new one which will be certainly compatible with the digibox. The old dish and new digibox may not work well together.   It is worth the effort and you will be rewarded by most UK channels coming through. I am constantly chasing Ch4 and Film4 but the other main channels are stable. Good luck, Alistair

If you are over 60 you simply book your ticket in the normal way but select "age 60" on the on-line booking page. The savings can be substantial but the reductions are limited in number so book early. The savings are not as great as for the "carte senior" but there are no up-front fees. You are expected to carry proof of age during the trip so I usually have my passport. I have never been asked for proof of age (bad sign!) Alistair

Within the scope of viewing a photo and my own limited experience, I would regard the slate roof as being in a good state. There are no slipped or missing slates and the under cladding looks in very good condition. The roof timbers appear surprisingly true and the roof line looks uniform. I wish our roof looked as good but it is weather-proof and stable. I have no intention of replacing the roof materials in the forseeable future. We bought the house eight years ago and there has been no discernable change in the condition of the roof. Obviously your slate roof is not perfect but it is probably in keeping with the valuation and the selling price. Good luck, Alistair

Steve,          I expect you are feeling rotten about the behaviour of the seller. You could spend many years chasing him/her for compensation that would probably never materialise. Alternatively you could  put all that energy (and money) into sorting out the problems to create the wonderful chateau that you imagined you were buying.      We certainly found undisclosed problems when buying our house in France and also had to come to terms with the fact we were lied to by the owners and the Notair. After the initial shock we adjusted to our mistaken trust in others and discovered the joy of living in the house and getting to know the local community. We are very pleased with the results.   I hope you are able to enjoy your chateau in Allier.  Alistair

I have learnt a lot from the replies to an interesting question. The responses typifies the depth of knowledge and general helpfulness of forum members. Unfortunately the OP seems to have vanished without visiting since asking for help and advice. I would like to know how he feels now after reading all the discussion points.

This thread is proving to be very informative (for me at least). Thanks everyone. Does anyone know if it is possible turn off the broadband connection via the internet but leave the normal phone active? I need the phone for a security link but could do with not having to phone each time to ask for the broadband to be reinstated or pay for it all the time. Alistair

Can anyone direct me to a source of the detailed route of the Tour (stage 10, I think) from Limoges to Issoudun on Tuesday 14 July? I have read a few notices about this stage but need to plan a good viewing point. It looks like it will wend its way through some of the smaller villages near us. Thanks, Alistair

I notice that you are based in Bracknell while in the UK. Bracknell has one of the few "mobility" shops in the area, selling a wide range of wheelchairs. They may be able to supply or give advice about wheelchair hire. Alistair

[quote user="powerdesal"]I still maintain that a non-solid fuel AGA is a yuppy fake  [:P] [/quote] You are surely right about the solid fuel AGA but, although I fail the yuppy test on all but one of the test questions, I am happy to stick to the convenience of our gas Aga and leave the logs and coal for the multi-fuel burner in the next room. Alistair

I am not sure of the answer but here is a possible explanation. In the UK it is convenient to specify "13A" so that the appliance can be plugged into any 13A socket which is part of a 30A ring main. In France there is no such socket available (or needed). The appliance is therefore specified for connection to a standard 16A radial circuit with its own MCB at the consumer unit. Without knowing for certain, it would appear that Aga simply rebadge the same cooker so that it is recognised as usable in the two countries. Alistair

The vet should weigh your dog or provide the machine for you to get a precise measurement. The vet will use the weight to determine how many worming tablets to use. The more tablets, the higher the cost to you. Alistair

Thanks for the many replies. I will use the information when we finally get back to France at Easter. My wife will be impressed (once more) when I demonstrate how clever I am - with your help. My satellite set up is a cheap one from Brico but it works really well. I am glad we bought it before stirling became so unpopular. Thanks, Alistair

Some time ago, Martin posted this useful information regarding Channel 4 on FTA. "If anyone's at a loose end and only has an FTA sat receiver (as opposed to a Sky box) they can watch what appears to be a test of channel 4 TV free to air on 10729 MHz,  Vertical,  22000 kbps,  FEC 5/6   Astra 2D Quite a joy finally to see ch 4 without Sky's encryption fetters round it,   it may be a one off though. Incidentally,  it's labelled as 8350,   presumably to throw people off the scent. No guarantees that it'll last long,   but it's a VERY good omen for ch' 4's early inclusion on Freesat." Last summer I tried it out successfully but by November it had changed. I would like to find it again at Easter. I would be grateful if someone would give me the new data (if it is available). Thanks, Alistair

When our dog's passport was full we asked the vet for a new one and also for us to retain the old one. He said that DEFRA prefer to have the old one but he was allowed to cut the corner off and let us keep it. We now have the new passport in operation. We keep the old one (without the corner) in reserve in case it is useful to prove or confirm any facts that any existing or new regulations might require. Alistair

[quote user="sweet 17"] Don't know about electric.  We used about  €500 of logs last winter. Edit:  maybe it was £500, can't remember! [/quote] It won't matter soon!! ..but seriously, I think that logs are definitely a lot cheaper than our LPG. Probably cheaper than electricity at the standard rate. Alistair

I can only tell you what happens to our online reaadings. Because we only use small amounts we receive a bill twice a year. There is a two week "window", just before the bill is due,when we are able to enter the latest meter reading. Set up the internet account and try to enter your reading. It will state when you can make a valid entry. When you have made a successful entry your bill will be calculated and any rebate paid into your account. Alistair

Hi Nick,              I was too lazy to respond to the incorrect units earlier but now you have woken me up. We should use kW (not kw or Kw) and it approximates to kVA. This would rarely affect anyone outside engineering and/or education. I consider it to be rather like spelling; sometimes it is important and needs care, othertimes it probably doesn't matter. For my final year students it means marks. It's still raining here in Surrey and I won't go to work!! I have checked the Meteo and it is hot and sunny where we are in France. Only one more week and we will be there again. Alistair

I think you should look at the DEFRA site and study the details regarding the Pet Passport. Also you should check that your PP is up to date and all sections have been completed correctly. Sorting out the treatment on the way back is only one of the hurdles to be jumped. Alistair

The 2m limit applies to the "reserve" lane which will have a height limit barrier hanging down at the entrance. If your vehicle exceeds 2m you must use one of the other lanes that also displays the "T" for telepeage. Just drive past the card/money machines and you will hear the usual beep at the exit.  Alistair

If there is some doubt about the height of a vehicle, with or without added equipment, I resort to measurement. Park on a level surface, position a rigid beam at the highest point of the vehicle, use a spirit level to help balance the beam  horizontal (or just do it by eye) and measure the height of the underside of the beam to the ground on both sides. If you set it up symmetrically then the average of the two measurements will be a good answer to the problem. It is a bit fiddly but at least I was happy about getting through the barriers with 1cm to spare!! Remember that loading vehicle will change (reduce) the height slightly.

[quote user="sid"][quote user="Gluestick"] ....Also remember that there is no wind chill. [/quote] Gluestick I was under the impression that only living creatures are affected by windchill; isn't it just a sensation we have that it feels colder than it it actually is? [blink] Sid [/quote] Sorry Sid, I have only just spotted your posting (and the following one). Your impression concerning the term "windchill" is absolutely correct. Windchill describes the physiological effect of an increase in loss of body heat due to forced convection. It gives the subject the sensation that the temperature is lower than it is. Alistair

When are you going? I will be there (and back) this weekend so I could look out for something suitable. Alistair

Yes, the prices do seem more reasonable ...... except for the 150% increase in the price for taking a pet from UK for France. We have been paying £10 for the one way trip. This has been increased to £25. There is no special service provided for this fee although I recognise that there are hidden overheads. I wish that LD would increase their ferry service out of Portsmouth and improve their accommodation. We already use them for the return trips but there is never a cabin available when we want to travel for the outward leg.   Alistair

Just to finish this thread, I would like to thank all of you who provided me with advice and sources of useful data. We finished up with a superb system that allows us to watch most of the UK channels (not Channel 4 or 5) and as a bonus we can listen to noise free, UK radio programmes. I have developed a good  understanding of what is possible and discovered a few likely sources for initial failure. The dish has now been moved from the lawn, just outside the salon window, to the top of my workshop at the back of the house. The TV pictures are better than anything we usually watch back in Surrey. I am now considering a second dish to improve the quality of our French TV reception which is currently from the chimney mounted aerial. During the installation of the first dish I sampled the dozens of European channels from Astra19 and Hotbird. Thanks everyone!  Alistair

I believe that the UK microchip only carries a number. This number is used to identify an animal and can be cross referenced to whatever data is held by any interested organisations. Are there other versions? Alistair