Vienne_Billygoats

My wife had chosen a large quantity of specific apple, pear and soft fruit trees, on specific root stocks, all from an excellent fruit tree nursery in the UK.  Which we really need to order now for the autumn availability. Should we go through with our order & collect in our covered trailer, or can we make a similar order through French channels? Does anybody have any websites showing French fruit tree dealers etc - as we want to buy either specific known varieties and or root stocks or reliable serious fruit trees, not just the types sold in supermarkets etc. We are supplementing & replacing our elderly/defunct orchards, so your advice is most welcome.  We are in dept. 86, and close to the border of 16. Many thanks Mark    

I'd really would like some advice on the options for fly screening our farm house windows.  We are in a major sheep area, and whilst familiar/comfortable with all things country, I hate so many flies getting in each time a window is opened. The childrens food presents us with the biggest problem & attraction for the flies, at the moment, and this weekend was a real pain.  Today, there is more breeze, so its easier... What options are available?, what do people recommend?, where do you get them from & what do they cost? I imagine, that in order to be able to open & close the shutters, some sort of roller-type screen must be available, this sounds good in principle, as they could be retracted easily for window cleaning & when not needed in the winter. OK so if they exist, what and where are they? Many thanks in fly-free anticipation. Mark & Kay  

Hi, We have owned our house/farm in Dept 86 for nearly 2 years, and move there permanently in 4 weeks time. After various working holidays, etc we are about £1,500 (pounds!) in credit I reckon, having paid all of the small 100 euro EDF bills that come along every 8 weeks or so. Will they ever read our meter?, or is there some way we can get them to take a reading via internet, postal card etc etc?. The meter is in the atelier, which is locked when we are away, but we have never had a card left - and I do not think we could use this much power too quicky. Should we notify them of the overpayment, or let it sort itself out over time?, I do not want them saying the meter didn't work or something similar. Any suggestions...? Thanks Mark & Kay  

Chrissie, Thanks for that response. Was there much hassle on and more importantly off the ferry? I hope not. Cheers  - mark  

 Hi, My wife & I are about to take the 3 No. shotguns & 1 No. .22 Rifle(FAC) to our permanent home in Dept 86.  We both have full European weapons permits applicable to these guns, along with our Sussex Police certificates - that we will surrender once the guns are safe in our new home. My question is - has anybody actually applied for, received and used, let alone been asked to use the (UK) DTI (Dept' Trade & Industry) licences that the UK Police force say we need to apply for? I cannot imagine the French Customs asking for them, let alone knowing what they are intended for. Has anybody had any recent experience of taking their guns for permanent export across the Channel via Brittany Ferries for example? I am concerned in potentially being delayed in Caen, as we have two infants and two spaniels who all have a six hour drive ahead of them, before I attempt to delve in to unforseen French Customs bureacracy! Is it easy, will we be dealyed, what are the pitfalls we will face, and do we need those blessed DTI export licences? Assurances required please - this scenario is causing me more worry than the complete permanent move. Many thanks, and please no pious threads on the ethics of shooting - we own/live on a working farm and target shoot also. many thanks, Mark & Kay

Hi, We have a Belgian registered LHD Citroen, with all of the required export paperwork etc, just ready for us to present to the Prefecture in Dept 86. Will we only be able to do this in August, as our export licence, for this second hand car, expires at the end of August, and we move permanently over on the 30th July. We do not need a French CT, as the car is only 2 years old, and so we presumably do not need to get a certifcate stating that VAT is due either, as we have a full Belgian invoice to prove payment was made in full etc. Will there be anybody present in the Prefecture's Office to process this re-registration, or do they shut-down for the annual summer holiday? I hope the answer is agreeable! Many thanks, Mark      

Hi, My wife & I are about to take the 3 No. shotguns & 1 No. .22 Rifle(FAC) to our permanent home in Dept 86.  We both have full European weapons permits applicable to these guns, along with our Sussex Police certificates - that we will surrender once the guns are safe in our new home. My question is - has anybody actually applied for, received and used, let alone been asked to use the (UK) DTI (Dept' Trade & Industry) licences that the UK Police force say we need to apply for? I cannot imagine the French Customs asking for them, let alone knowing what they are intended for. Has anybody had any recent experience of taking their guns for permanent export across the Channel via Brittany Ferries for example? I am concerned in potentially being delayed in Caen, as we have two infants and two spaniels who all have a six hour drive ahead of them, before I attempt to delve in to unforseen French Customs bureacracy! Is it easy, will we be dealyed, what are the pitfalls we will face, and do we need those blessed DTI export licences? Assurances required please - this scenario is causing me more worry than the complete permanent move. Many thanks, and please no pious threads on the ethics of shooting - we own/live on a working farm and target shoot also. many thanks, Mark & Kay              

Fantastic Pippa, there is no more information that I could ever need now! I feel more confident, so roll-on 1* LPG (LHD) Land Rover, 1* Diesel (RHD) Land Rover, and who knows what else - my Ginetta G15 and Clan Crusader?. I will never get CoC's for them... Many thanks once again mark B

MeOWp000, Thanks for that advice, I will try that approach.  Silly question - The controle technique is obviously granted initially on the UK number plates that your car rolls up in? Right? So does the Prefecture then amend this document to reflect your new French registration number thereafter? By the way, which department are you in?, I am sure that this is not a critical point, but useful info nevertheless. Do the Prefecture keep very many of the documents that you have to present? Thanks for your confirmations so far, Mark B

I thought that "crepi on ply" was a posh sandwich from Pret a Manger!! Sorry to be flippant, I just cannot handle all my fellow workers in London, paying extortionate money for over rated sarnies and buckets of coffee! See ya

Now this is an interesting point! "Why are you going to the DRIRE if land rover have given you a certificate of conformity??? Just get a controle done on it and go straight to the prefecture" Can anyone else confirm that this is a valid route that has worked for them aswell?? DRIRE spell hassle for me too, and I have a full house of CoC's, so the CT and the Prefecture should be satisfied on this count... Any further experiences/advice gratefully received. PS, Washy, why not go to another DRIRE? and avoid that awful chap? - Good luck & keep the 4*4 Mark B

I have just had my new Land Rover Discovery Series II 4.6 HSE (US Spec) converted to LPG.  So next step is to secure  "La Pastille Verte", so that will help me run this incredibly useful workhorse at cheap GPL prices around both the countryside and in city centres. I just have to get the UK installation validated through the DRIRE/MINES process - oh heck!!  So you can run large capacity vehicles with lower emmissions and using a by-product fuel for 50% of the price of petrol.  If only the GPL conversions were carried out by the 4*4 manufacturers on the production run, life would be easier and we wouldn't lose so much dog space in the boot!! Happy motoring,   Mark b  

Hi Tony2p, I have left a message either in your personal mailbox, or directly in your email account - I can't remember which, Sorry!! as all the buttons have changed on the new Forum! But I would like some more details please. Cheers, Mark B

Hi, Can somebody pls tell me where to get Frontline from, (as we use it a lot on our UK dogs - soon to be French dogs) and I have always been told that it is really cheap in France?. We have not visited a vets as of yet, so I imagine that will be the obvious answer. Does anybody have any comparative prices & sizes etc - as we have lots of gun dog owner/breeder friends in the UK who may be interested in my bringing some back for them. many thanks, Mark

To CHALAIS in Department 86 (Vienne)- Nearest town - L'Isle Jourdain - Nearest village - Millac. Chalais is a commune of one Chateau, two farmsteads (One is Ours!!!!!) and two gate? houses to the Chateau. We are moving the whole family out there just after Xmas, in 2005. The billygoat family comprising - wife & mother (40yrs), husband & father (38yrs), daughter (4 yrs) & son (2 yrs). To be accompanied by one Field Spaniel dog, one English Springer Spaniel bitch, a ginger moggy and hopefully a Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy.