Alcazar

We had these in the bathroom here in the UK. I used a heat gun, (paintstripper, hot air gun, call it what you will). What you do is to use the gun on it's lowest setting, and NOT too close to the offending blob.....about 150mm was OK for mine. If the one you use has NO low setting, increase the distance accordingly. DO NOT use a naked flame heat gun, they aren't controllable enough. You work on ONE blob at a time, working always in FRONT and above you, rather than diectly overhead. Gently warm the blob...........and I MEAN warm it, waft the hot air over it until it's warm to the touch. Then use a wide wallpaper scraper to scape it off. It DOESN'T drip, It DOESN'T catch fire, and doing one at a time is safe. Bag the remains, and work in a well ventilated area, (otherwise the room gets awfully hot!) It took me about two hours to do the bathroom here, which is about 20 sq m in total. I was left with a ceiling that needed a light sanding, then it got painted, and has been OK since. Alcazar

We have one. Well, "have" is a bit strong really: it lives in the garden at the French house, and WILL NOT stop perching on the handle of the rear glass door, messing everywhere, and attacking it's image in the glass. I've fixed a VERY wobbly bit of conduit to the handle, bright yellow in colour. No effect. I've put criss-crosses of masking tape on the glass. No effect. How can I dissuade the stupid thing? I'd thought of a large pic of an owl on the inside, but a twitcher friend says it won't work. Wife doesn't want the "handle conduit" made into an anti-bird perch with stiff wire spines, for obvious reasons. Any suggestions? Alcazar

As Anton says, but what you CAN now do, (or so I believe), is use UK sourced single cored cable in the proper colours, and fitted in a conduit.Bought from Screwfix, they are cheaper. Alcazar

Contact the Mairie at the place it was issued? Alcazar

[quote user="Miggimeggi"] So Frances, what did you do about the snake? Anne [/quote] I'm afraid that if I ever see one in that sort of place, I won't know WHERE it goes to, as I'll be too busy changing my boxers.........[:'(] Alcazar

I'm on my third Citroen, a Xantia 2.0HDi, and I definitely would NOT have another. My first was a ZX, nice enough, but the suspension was suspect. My second was an early Xantia, my wife wrote it off, (and walked away from it without a scratch). This last one was bought off my dad when he stopped driving, to replace the written off one. It's first fault was a fuel leak when filled to the top. Turned out that the neck on the tank where the sender fits, had gone oval, a KNOWN fault, but would Citren even help me with the repair, (new tank), ? Nope. It's second fault, a blown foglight bulb at the front n/s. Apparently it's dealer fit, bumper-off job, and costs nearly £100 to do, plus VAT! Ridiculous![:@] It can do without! Now the suspension is hard, and bangs about. It's had new spheres on the rear, but is no better. There's an annoying bumping rattle from the tailgate area, and the brakes squeak. It's only done 65000 miles in 6 and a half years. Never again. Alcazar

You HAVE put "Eparcyl" down the loo, haven't you? From what you've said. it sounds as if the tank you have isn't big enough. Is the fosse now tous eaux? (All water into it?) If so, it needs a tank of at least 3000 litres, IIRC. I'd be inclined to get a specialist to have a look before the sand filter needs replaced too[:(] Ask at the Mairie who to contact. Alcazar

It's piggin' hailed, snowed and a mixture of both here in sunny Scunny today, and the temperature was weel down, chill factor took it below zero.[:(] Alcazar

[quote user="Dick Smith"]I,m here in france... [/quote] Oh I love it........that could only be Dick. Alcazar[:D]  

My wife put on in a couple of years ago, and it didn't do too well the first year. We were a bit worried about it, but our neighbiour pointed out that they often grow wild on the side of roads, and frost, pollution etc seems not to harm them there. Sure enough, it came better the next year. Alcazar

Thanks both. As I've treated myself to an overnight stay this journey, instead of travelling through the wee small hours, I'll call in at the first peage and try to charm a new holder out of them. Now, what was the French for "frog"...............[:D] Alcazar

Well, I've got mine, and will be using it for it's first time on April 12th. I have two questions: 1. It doesn't need priming, charging or anything else, before I use it, does it? 2. Can I buy, beg, etc another holder for it, so I can use it in both cars? Thanks for any advice, Alcazar

I can see no reason why you shouldn't use cement to stick them down. I'd be inclined to use proper outdoor grout though, or be very careful when grouting and sticking down, not to get cement onto the faces of the tiles. Alcazar

[quote user="chenauds"] Since french water heating systems are under mains pressure, you can situate the chauffe eau anywhere you like bearing in mind that the heater + water will be quite heavy. Ours is on a tripod stand AND fixed to the wall as belt and braces. www.leschenauds.com [/quote] I think that's the accepted way to do it: the tripod stand takes the weight, (NOT in considerable, once full of water!), and the wall fixings steady it, and stop it tipping off the stand. Alcazar

I had a water leak in one of our cars, water managed to find it's way into the boot. I actually spent 10 minutes lying on the folded down seats, with my head in the boot, while youngest son "rained" on the car with a hosepipe, but could find no evidence of where the water was coming in, even with a torch and a roll of tissue. Eventually, I did find it, and it had nowt to do with boot/rear door seals. In mine, it was coming across the top of the rear light unit on the n/s, as the sticky stuff used to bed the lights had picked up muck over the years, and gone hard, eventually failing. Cure was to remove rear light unit, remove all old sticky stuff, and re-seat light unit in a new bed of that awful grey stuff like non-setting mastic, that they use on caravans. I WOULD recommend you get into the boot area, though, and try and watch where water is coming through, while someone simulates rain for you..........although round here at the mo, we don't need to simulate it, the real stuff is here often enough. About 4 inches last week. Alcazar

IIRC, the type AC RCD is for most things, the type A is for washer, dishwasher, tumble drier, and large electric, (induction? halogen?), hob, although NOT the oven. I THINK it has something to do with whether the device has a large elctric motor, so can generate accidental DC voltages, but don't quote me on that. I'd recommend buying "L'electricite pas a pas", available in paperback from Lerclerc, among others, and a mine of info and easy to follow diagrams, all for around €5. Alcazar

[quote user="nom de plume"]I sent mine in several months ago but have not heard anything yet. diana [/quote] They'll be doing them alphabetically, so "Alcazar" comes before "nom-de-plume".[;)] Alcazar

My earth spike, a full four feet of it, replaces a useless one I found in the cellar, and is driven to it's entire depth, barring about 4", into an earth floor. It's a Screwfix copper rod with a clamp on the top for the earth cable, and the end of my earth cable is soldered into a ring-tag, and bolted to it. The barette de mesure is on the kitchen wall, just above floor level, where the main earth wire comes down to the cellar. My plumber, who is also an electrician, gave both the thumbs up, although he did say he would have used 16 mm sq cable for earth, not the 10 mm sq that I used.........now changed. Alcazar BTW: if anyone wants some earth connectors for bonding pipework to earth, (equi-potential bonding), let me know. I'm coming over around the middle of April, and will galdly bring a few, and post them to you in a jiffy-bag.

It's called spin: if there is some bad news, you release it when it will "disappear", if there is an ongoing situation, do something that'll make the average nationalistic Frenchman be proud of you. Is Chirac realted to T.B.Liar, by any chance? Alcazar

[quote user="Tresco"] Is Alcazar in France at the moment? It keeps raining [st] [st] [st]   [/quote] Nope, he's here in the "normally" relatively dry north midlands, and it keeps pouring. Over two inches since friday! I keep talking about coming over for a couple or three weeks at Easter to try and get some work done, perhaps it's just getting ready for me, so the front of my house can already be a quagmire when I arrive? Alcazar

[quote user="Russethouse"] Goodness, On the DVD/VCR we recently bought you can copy videos, (commercial or not) easily, that was the main purpose of buying it. Video tape deteriorates, DVD doesn't as far as I know. If you are still stuck tomorrow Tag, I'll ask my son, he is our techie [/quote] If you're banking on ANY digital media, once recorded, not deteriorating, buy the BEST material you can to record ON TO. Just my two penn'orth. Alcazar

Oh, and my understanding of the "sent to Coventry" as being ignored, was that the citizens of Coventry ignored the naked Lady Godiva when she paraded the streets on horseback, out of deference to her goodness. Alcazar

[quote user="Iceni"] [quote user="Harley"] Happy bunnies once more[<:o)][/quote] Is it true that bunnies are only happy as they spend every waking minute engaged in fornication ? John not [/quote] Hence the ditty: "Rabbits have a lot of fun, because there are a lot of them. Why are there a lot of them? 'Cos rabbits have a lot of fun"[:D] Alcazar

[quote user="KatieKopyKat"]Thanks Tresco.  That makes me feel a little bit more normal but it really is a lovely little world on here.  Anyway I am going to ban myself for one month and have some therapy and catch up on two weeks of cleaning and ironing.  See you in the spring xxx[/quote] Bet you're back b4 that? Alcazar

Can't understand this.........why don't forum users , as adults, either IGNORE people who post insults, etc, or give back as good as they get? I recently had some abuse from an idiot on e-Bay........he got some the same back and was nearly apoplectic with rage, while I just continued to poke fun. Eventually he stopped.[:D] On another tack, a different forum that I use far more than this, (having well over 8000 posts there), has software that allows users to "Ignore" a certain user simply by adding them to their "ignore" list. No post from that user will then be able to be seen, nor will PMs arrive etc. Could this site not have that? Alcazar BTW: if users want to leave the forum, and announce it, OK, but could they then leave, please? To say you're going because..........., then post later again, saying you're going now, then later to say, no, you REALLY are going now, etc, just makes you look childish. Either go, or don't threaten[;)]