rog... in france

Thank you Gluestick, Gyn-Paul and Nick Trollope for responding. I have read and noted all your comments. IMPORTANTANT POINTS Firstly I am not going to proceed with this instalation if it was felt to be un safe. I have re-wired a four bedroom house in the UK and had the complete project passed by the elecricity board but I have not got involved with storage heaters. So I am a bit new to this. In my house in France I already have installed by EDF the meter for cheap rate electricity. This switches on at 12.00 to 8.00. So this does not need to be changed. The storage heaters are a spanish make and only 18 months old, they may be acceptable in France. I may not install all of them. I may only install the 2.4 kw, 2.4 kw and the 1.9 kw. So the total kw will only be 6.7kw therefore I may only need to increase the power supply to 9 kw with EDF. The proposed storage heater for the bathroom is in zone 3. Questions Gluestick, You advised that the normal way to connect such equipment is via a pulse switch to get the cheap rate electricity. Do I need an additional one for the dedicated storage heater circuit as I am already on the cheap rate tarrif and have the meter and equipment installed. Paul ( Gyn-Paul) , Thanks for the link. You recommended that if the appliance is in Zone 3 it needs to be supplied via a 30 MA DD, please explain what this is. Nick ( NickTrollope) , You suggested that the heaters should be connected on a dedicated circuit fed back to the tableau. What are the contactors for? and what is a deselecteur for?, please give as much info as possible.  If any of you know where I can get circuit diagrams for your suggestions I would would really appreciate it. The way I see this project working, Without having any Technical drawings or information in front of me at present is : - Connect each heater seperatly with 2.5m wire to a seperate tableau , each heater fused to a 20 A disjoncteur with a switch that will turn the power on at 12.00 and turn off at 8.00. Please advise me if I am wrong. If I connect these heaters , it is no different to having my water heater, rated at 2.4 kw, my washing machine, rated at 2.4 kw and an electric cooker  and electric hob ( Which I Do Not Have because I use gaz for cooking), approx rating 6kw going at the same time. These items would be drawing the same power. Thanks for your help, Best regards. Rog          

Can any body help, I have 6  UK storage heaters that I want to install in France. Rating of each storage heater - 2.4KW, 2,4 KW, 1.9KW, 1.9KW, 1.9KW, & 1.9KW To use all heaters I know I will have to increase the wattage of my electricity supply There have been some messages posted in the past concerning this but thay were back in 2004. One message said that they plugged the storage heater into a normal wall socket with a timer to get the off peak electricity, is this possible and is it safe?  I have rewired my kitchen and bathroom with a new disjoncteur box. INITIAL INSTALLATION ( to be done to test the heaters)  The bathroom has 3 wall sockets, wired with 2.5m wire and protected by a 20 A disjoncteur. I have been told by the manufacturer that the heater uses 11 amps so I would think this is safe to plug the heater on a timer into one of the sockets. (Also Is it legal to have a storage heater in the bathroom. The bathroom is very large and the heater would be on the back wall well away from the bath, wash basin and toilet) The kitchen has 2 wall sockets, which I designated for a washing machine and for a heater, wired with 2.5 m wire and protected by a seperate 20A disjoncteur. The aim is to plug the heater into one of the sockets on a timer. The rest of the 4 rooms of the house are run off the main fuse box which I aim to replace with a new one. So I do not know what the quality of the wiring is yet. I may do the above to get heat into the bathroom and kitchen and to test that the heaters are working correctly. MAIN INSTALLATION OF THE HEATERS Can any body tell me the approved way of installing the heaters from the main Fuse box/Power supply. I have told to run a seperate cable from each heater back to the main power supply and some how connect it the the off peak electricity. Either by having a seperate Taille du tableau for the 6 heaters and possibly a timer. Any help or links to sites would be appreciated.   Many thanks Roger           

My 2 cat are soon to have a long holiday in France (all though they dont know it yet). Due to passport rules they will have to stay in France for the next 5 months. So I may need some one on a regular basis to feed them and change their trays every 2 days for 2 weeks out of every month. I will obviously pay for someone to do this, to be discussed. Many thanks, Roger    

I have a field next to my house, Is any body interested in cutting it for a fee. Or does any body know a friendly farmer to cut it for a reasonable cost. The prices I have been given so far are a bit high. The field is about 0.6 of a hectar. Many thanks Roger.

I live 1 mile from St Sulpice. Can any body help :- Does any body have or know where I can buy second hand French interlocking roof tiles or the French peg tile type. I do not want new tiles. Any idea of the cost? Are there any reclamation yards for second hand tiles and building materials/oak beams around St Sulpice area.   Many Thanks   Roger

Hi all, Many thanks for all your replys, sorry I have not responded sooner but I went to France 2 weeks ago to take a builder friend to look at the property i am buying and had a nasty car crash on the way back, we rolled the car, wrote it off and ended up in hospital being stitched up and x-rays. Ok now, but due to kneck problems I have been a bit out of it since I got back. Thanks for the private messages and e mails. Rog.      

Sue, I will hopefully be completing on my house in Limosine area in a few months and intend to commute on a fortnightly basis by car & air. I run an Insurance business in the UK. If you, or you hear of any body else intending to commute regulary, It has given me an idea to suggest, in the Central France forum, of car share to share the cost. Obviously people would have to be in a perticular area or on the route back to the ferry. Any ideas your welcome to contact me.   Roger

If any body can give me information on some of these items it would be greatly appreciated. 1, Money Transfer What is the cheapest way to transfer/pay the 5% deposit and the balance of purchase for the property i am buying. I am going to france to sign the compromis in a few weeks, I am buying direct from a Notaire,  Is it best to pay in Euro notes, English cheque, Euro cheque or any other way? When the balance is due in a few months, to arrange a Bank transfer from Lloyds TSB, will they charge a high fee to do this, I have spoken to the bank but they have advised me they charge £30.00, the exchange rate will apply on the day of transfer & it will take 1-3 days to complete, but I have yet to clarify it with the correct dept., is this correct? I was advised that the French receiving Bank may also charge a fee, is this correct?   2, Fosse/septic tank I have a septic tank that is out side the house but it is positioned right next to the outer wall of the bathroom. Under the new laws they are aiming to inforce within the next year or so does this pose any problems for me in regard to the positioning of the tank. ( the tank is about 150 metres from the road and there are no immediate neibours in the area for 1500 metres. I am assuming it is a septic tank and not a fosse septic tank because it was installed in approx. 1996/97 although the Notaire promises it is a fosse! Did fosse septics come in to use that long ago? Also being a new purchaser of the property will i be contacted by the appropriate dept. to check the tank? 3, Planning requirements for an extension I am planning to build an extension in the future but want to put a planning application in for it asap. I aim to put it in before the completion of the sale, I understand this is possible? I have been told that there is not a fee for doing this, (only if it is passed) is this true? I can draw up plans and drawings myself, do they need as much detail on the drawings as in English. The property and gardens are not over looked by neibours, is surrounded by woods and fields and the nearest neibour is about 1500 metres away. The extension will be approx. 150 metres away from a lane (not a main road). I was told by the Notaire that they can see no problem in getting the permission. Any tips for this would be of help.   Thanks if you've had time to read this. Roger            

Hi Isobel, Thanks for your reply. Its a beautiful medieval village and the people are very friendly. We have finally agreed the price on the property and its been accepted. I'm hopefully flying out the week after next to pay the deposit on the house and sign the compromis. My aim is to spend as much time during each month (mainly in the summer) to work on it. Do you have much work to do on your daughters property? Best regards Roger    

Hi Janetandmartin, Thanks for the info. on the friendly bar, I will look it up when I get out there, If all goes well with the offer I have put in on the property it would be great to meet up and have a chat. St Benoir is a lovely village, you must of been into the Hotel De Centre, when I'm out there I spend a lot of time relaxing outside the bar and have stayed there a few times, the daughter of the hotel speaks English and has been very helpfull (she keeps on saying "you have to learn French!") Hope all goes well on your property completion.   Widnesbob, I agree with what you said, Its nice to meet up with English people as well as enjoying the french way of Life. Ab, I totally agree with integrating in the French way of life, but its nice to meet up with like minded people aiming for the same things and way of life in a different country to your own. I can not speak French, Yet! So the more friends in an area where you live is very important. Speak soon all, Roger...in france (Hopefully)        

[quote]I have put an offer in on a property in the St Benoir area, near Argenton, Limosin. If it goes through, I will be moving out in April 2005, I am an Insurance Broker intending to work 2 weeks in the U...[/quote] Does every body eat kebabs in France!!!! , that wasn't what I was thinking of, but thanks for the input everybody. Thanks for the information Me0Wp000, sorry I don't know your name/s. Suprised to hear that there are so many English in the area. On my travels this year I only came across tourists. May have a few more questions in the next few days. Thanks all, Roger  

I have put an offer in on a property in the St Benoir area, near Argenton, Limosin. If it goes through, I will be moving out in April 2005, I am an Insurance Broker intending to work 2 weeks in the UK & 2 weeks in France each month.  I would be interested in communicating with any body in the the area. I have been out 3 times in 2004 house hunting and its a fantastic area. Any information on Good French Restaurants, Clubs of any kind, Indian restaurants! ( I understand that there are 2, not too far away, Limoges & Chateauroux), friendly drinking establishments!, etc. would be appreciated. Best regards, Roger