marc62

Hello   Would anyone know the approx cost of the car train from Calais To Narbbone on a Friday night at the end of June this year? I am trying to work out a budget for next year but the web site does not open until November.   Many thanks in advance for your help   Marc

Hi All   We have a holiday property in the Vendee but are looking to spend a week in another region next year. Could anyone advise / recomend a gite or mobile not to far away from the beach please. The dates we require is 7 nights from 4th July. We require 2 bedrooms for my wife & I as well as our daughter, we have been to Sete before & would be happy to return. Cost is a key factor, we are looking to try to keep the price below £350   Many thanks in advance for your help   Marc

Hi All   A question that I am fully qualified to respond too! does not happen very often. As the general manager for one of the largest kitchen manufactures & fully responsible for installations (installed 32,000 kitchens in 2007) I would not recomend the method which has been suggested. I reccomend that a masons mitre is used to make a good level joint, a jig is to be used (trend is the preffered choice but they can be hired) any decent kitchen fitter will have one. A router is to be used to cut the tops, a blade with a double cutting edged is better choice. The cut edges are to be sealed, silicone is to be used to seal the edges, do not use PVA glue, varnish or paint as the board will act like a sponge & it will create a ridge in time. Three bolts are also to be used to pull them together even. If you follow the guidelines you will achieve a perfect joint which you should not be able to feel. I fully agree with the suggestion tho practice on the offcuts first as you only get one chance to get it right. Remember the old saying "measure it twice - cut it once". One final word of advise would be to use 40mm worktops, with 30mm tops leave you very little room for error when cutting the keyholes & bolting up. Hope it helps   Marc

Just re read my own reply - I am not having a go at anyone & fully agree that those who work for cash in hand should not get away with it. I am afraid though that as long as people are prepared to pay for a cheap cash in hand job it will continue. I work with in the kitchen / bedroom industry & have some 77 employed staff & over 200 sub contract labour. Whenever I speak to the sub contract labour about additional weekend work, a large proportion will alway's have a "private on at the weekend".   Marc

It is serious but I have to chuckle as to what the French may say about the jobs which the Brits have taken from them. I bet there is a chat room tucked away with exactly the same being said about the British taking the French jobs & how can they do it for less. Just think of all the extra biz that Amanda Lamb & co have generated buy selling France to the Brits amongst others, as you quote, 70% of your income is generated from the Brits anyway In the UK at present there are many people saying the same thing about the Polish, but when you look into it the hard fact's are they are prepared to undertake a job for less (competative market place) than another person - who is in the wrong as long as they are legal & able? Best way is not to assume they are not legal but to get the hard fact's, get them to give a quote for a job, it may be that they are just more competative in a hard market place - but then again?   Marc

Hi All   In Kent here (Nr Sittingbourne) & also very windy, got the local sailing clubs weather details on line www.iossc.org.uk/weather at present top gust 65mph with a force 9. Our little place in France is in the vendee, I have been looking at the web cam's out there also www.vendee.fr/meteo then follow the web cam links. They look like they are enjouing the tail end.

Well you made me laugh Cabman   Hey, Ron - I bet you also have a black cat which is blacker?   Let's smile out there   Marc

Hi All   I am looking for a B&B or a gite for one night in early May. We are planning a trip from our holiday home in the Vendee to visit Langlois Chateau vineyard owend by Bollinger. Would prefer somewhere in a village as opposed to in a town, maybe by a river or on a working farm or vineyard.   Many thanks in advance for your ideas   Marc 

Hi Paul   I will be on the A28 myself & can confirm that they will be open as they have been in the previous two years   Marc

We have a lille home near Apremont which we have not been out to since early September. Whenever I want to check out life in the Vendee I look for the web cams, the best I have found is on the weather page http://www.vendee.fr/meteo/ Only four weeks until we are out again! Marc

Hi All Can anyone recomend a B&B or Gite in or very near to Apremont or Mache. We have a mobile on a local site & our parent would normally hire a mobile on site when they visit. We have just tried to book up & have been told no rentings this year!,   Many thanks   Marc

[quote user="woolybanana"] I thought mdf had been banned. Ply does not warp in kitchens owing to the cross grain. [/quote] Hi Woolybanana I can only quote from the years experience & from examples seen in the past. If it is very thick & flooring grade then no it will not, but that grade will not make for a decent finish. Anyway, it is all ideas & opinions, I have seen many a "Home Made" kitchen far better than some which have cost thousands, but then again I have seen some bad ones.   Marc

Hi DC Twice in a week my area of knowledge can come in handy! (26 years in the kitchen industry) If you are on a budget use mfc board cut to size & re-edge. The board must me minimum 18mm thick up to a maximum of 22mm, this is to allow for the hinges. If you have a little more money, use MDF & router to size. Once again note the thickness. I would not use ply as it will give the appearance of a home made door & the edges will not finish very nice. The ply will also be prone to warp.   Hope this helps   Marc

Hi BP   Sinks have traditionaly been placed under a window, the main thought is due to looking outside whilst at the sink. However, most wastes (external) are for some reason close to the window, this would then be a good position to place sinks & washing machines to ensure a waste drop of 1 in 4 is achieved with ease. These day's with the use of dishwashers & prepared foods, the time required at the sink is a lot less than times gone by. People now spend more time cooking so the reason for looking whilst working still applies. Dependant upon budget & the type of hob required, there are now direct extractors set into the work top which are the most effieceint available. Like all things they come with a price   Regards   Marc

Hi BP The rules of design are more practicle than visual, but the more money you have & the bigger space to work in design flair comes into play. The two most common rules are 1, If it fits it's right 2, If it works for you & you are happy it's fine   If you have a large kitchen or a space with many windows it is perfectly acceptable to place a hob in front of one window with the sink in front of another. The only down side to a hob infront of a window is that it will steam up very easy & you will forever be cleaning the window & washing down the paint work. Work on the basis of rule 1 & rule 2 remembering that it is your kitchen, your views & your requirements are the most important.   Marc PS Wish I could find a job in the kitchen industry in France!

Hello Katie I like yourself must be getting very bored with this 1, Yes we have a lovely holiday home in the Vendee where we spend approx 50 nights per year 2, Yes my French could be a lot better but I try very hard & refuse to speak English or even read from an English menu 3, Yes I have a French Bank Account 4, Yes I took the easy option after returning home from holiday & finding that I had to get a cheque in the post immediatly. Is asking a crime? 5, Who do you think you are trying to judge people who work hard & try there best. Why do you think I cannot speak French? Whose level of French should I speak to? Why do you assume it must be very difficult for me & what has it got to do with you anyway?   I have not picked or looked for this debate, all I have done is to ask a question & then thank the person who supplied the answer

Hello Squidge Having spent the past 26 years within the kitchen industry I have at last found a subject I am qualified to reply! Unless to are extracting via an outside wall, the re-circulation method is as good as useless. In order for it to work effieciantly the unit would have to be switched on for a period of time prior to cooking (in order to create an air flow) & then left on after cooking to complete the cycle, this would have a minor effect on the cooking smells. It would also need to be set at 760mm above the worktop to the underside of the extractor to have any effect. Any higher & the motor would not be strong enough, any lower & you will be to close to the gas hob. They will take some of the solid particles in the air to the outer grease filter, but this also has a down side. The air flow that will be created will also spread, behind the gas hob you have a window, this will turn into a grease trap that will require constant cleaning. The best use for a re-circulating extractor are the lights! I would suggest no extractor at all & just wipe down after use. The best method may be for a ventair set in the window.   Marc                                                      

[quote user="sweet 17"] Cat You gave the required information.  If people cannot say thank you nicely, then it's their problem.  You just carry on being the helpful person you are and, as they say, let the devil take the hindmost! [/quote]   Hi There If you take a look you will clearly see my reply to thank the person who repied with the answer to my question. It is after I had said "thank you nicely" that the cheap shots begun. Yes I saw & read it in jest but the final comment "How do you function?", this was the straw that gave the hump as there was no need for the comment & it has nothing to do with the writer. As I am sure you are aware, a question mark is placed when a reply is required (question being asked), if the reply given is not to the liking - do not ask. Yes I found these pages very usefull & I have spent hours on them being helped, helping others & having good banter. However, some people do take things to the extreeme & appear to have little else to do than pick holes. That is the reason for the hump & my reply.   Marc

[quote user="Just Katie"][quote user="Cat"] I see your insurance has gone up then Marc, it was 102 euros last year. http://www.completefrance.com/cs/forums/803329/ShowPost.aspx That link to the tool that writes out french numbers is a good one http://www.leconjugueur.com/frnombre.php  Save it on your computer and perhaps you won't need to ask the same question in 2008 [:)] [/quote] I really cannot believe that Marc.  In the period of one year you have learned diddly squit of the french language.  One hundred lines and detention next week.  How on earth do you function? [/quote]   I am sure this is written in jest but I now have the hump What have I done in the past year? worked damn hard to provide for my family & pay enough tax for others to sit on there backsides & pick holes. Yes I could learn more & yes if I sat down I would have worked it out. The reason for this web site is to be helped & to help others. I have just returned home & found a pile of mail & took the easy option. Guilty as charged but do not need others to take cheap shots when all I want to do is to get a cheque in the post. Sorry if I offended & if people have little else to do except look at what others have asked in the past & pick holes - I will give this a miss in future!! Marc

Many thanks for your help   Marc

Hi All Could somebody tell me how to write the words one hundred & eight Euros in French please. We need to send off a cheque for our home insurance!   Many thanks   Marc

Hi Not sure if it is this, but I & a few others have spoken about & use moneybookers to transfer funds. They are very cheap & you get a good rate!.   Hope it helps   Marc

[quote user="RumziGal"][quote user="marc62"] I would adopt to the French way of life as that is why we like it so much anyway. [/quote] What do you see as "the French way of life"?    Will you start taking anti-depressants, for example?   They're very popular.   [:)]     [/quote] Ha Ha Living in the South East & spending my working life traveling around the country from traffic jam to traffic jam, shops open 7 days a week selling trash for a high price, no values, dirty smelly enviroment, potential to die younger. I will take the ant-depressants please anyday Cheers   Marc

I am very sorry as this must be the first negative reply I have written - But, we are all entitled to an opinion. Are those people who state that there are too many (non French) people in the village, willing to act upon the statement by selling up & leaving? I doubt it. As long as it is legal, the sellers sell (remember that they were all French once), the buyers buy (it is only supply & demand which dictates the price) the only other matter to be discussed is the moral, which brings us all back to opinions. I for one would do anything to move out full time to a country which I love (yes I am english), but by doing so I would adopt to the French way of life as that is why we like it so much anyway. Like it or not the EU is here to stay which gives people from all member states rights to live or to work & more important, to contribute to the economy & live your life in the way of your adopted country. For those who do not like it you have a choice - move. Regards Marc

Hi Marina   I agree, as I said it is all about timing & the last time I drove down the A14 Cambridge was still in the Eastern part of England (lol). I have never travelled on the dreaded black day's due to the reasons which you have given but I have travveled on a Bank Holiday many of a time. Before the A28 I never had a problem with Caen & the only problems I have with Rouen is when I catch it during rush hour, it can take 40 mins to get from the tunnel to the A28. We also enjoy waving at the queues at the peages now for those who pay in cash & use the CB, it is one of the best reasons for having a French bank account!. If it is any interest to anyone, we have just booked up for my Son & his Girlfriend to fly from Gatwick to Nantes on a Saturday in June with British Airways - £10 each plus the dreaded tax.   Marc