powerdesal

Up until a few years ago I used my RAF service number as a password, on the basis that I would never ever forget it ( no ex serviceman ever forgets his number ) and I thought it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for any stranger to guess it or to find it anywhere.

I think Angela and the ECB will ''blink first''. Maintenance of the Euro and the EU will trump any and all other considerations.

We thought Mike Brown should have been Man of the Match. He has a fantastic work rate and popped up everywhere. A very good game, clean and good play by both teams. Wales obviously started brilliantly but lost ultimately to the better team.

We have just received '' Avis de Premier acompte 2015 Impot sur les revenus de l'annee 2014'' Now we have not yet submitted a tax form for the 2014 income, and as the amount to pay is 1/3 of the amount paid last year for the income of 2013 I assume that the tax office have assumed that my / our income will be the same and hence will bill us for 3 payments of 1/3 each time. Am i right in assuming that, after receipt of our tax return for 2014 income they will adjust / balance etc the payment required against the payment made ( in either direction )

Yes they are the same company, but they make different types and looks of models. Mrs PD does like the look of the AGA, it has nothing to do with who makes what.

Q, ''So why does the French installation instructions show it with radiators as well?'' Are you cracking up Q ? The 345W is wood fired, ie the boiler. It has no relevance to having or not having radiators. It simply means it can't / shouldn't be used with coal products.

The 345W is a wood fired only Rayburn, as opposed to solid fuel / wood. All the Rayburn models look the same more or less ...http://www.rayburn-web.co.uk/products/rayburn-300-series The French installation manual is very very similar to the English one apart from the ( IMHO ) very strange piping diagram. The open vented 28mm copper primary circuit to the F & E tank is the same of course but the idea of having a heat leak radiator ( radiateur de décharge ) with a motorised valve on it is certainly contrary to the normal safety aspects of a gravity circuit as protection in the event of a power failure. Whilst I appreciate the fact that it is power closed / spring open its use relies on the proper operation of the opening function after power loss. My interpretation of a gravity safety circuit is that there should be nothing at all to impede the flow, that's why heat leak rads do not normally have valves like TRVs. Inlet and outlet must be open all the time. Similarly it is why the inlet to a heat leak is always at the top with the outlet at the bottom, to assist in the gravity circuit. The heat leak rad shown is 3kw minimum, this is a huge radiator. To get a 3kw T22 double panel / double convector would mean 600mm high and approaching 1800mm long, that's big by anyones bathroom standard. A new style T33 would be shorter but they are 160mm thick !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and are not that readily available - yet. Convention states that the heat leak capacity should be not less than 10% of the boiler output. In the case of the 345W that would be 900w, Some say 20%, ie 1.8kw which is more realistic I believe. However, given that radiator outputs are quoted at a delta T of 50 degrees, based on an inlet of 70 deg and an outlet of 20 deg, should a boil situation arise the actual delta T would be 80 deg not 50 and the rad heat discharge would be considerably more. My design has 17% heat leak at Delta T of 50. I may in the end increase that to about 20%. The existing electric only DHW cylinder will be retained for the moment. Regarding brazing the copper joints, I will be using compression fittings instead. I have more confidence in my ability to fit those than to adequately and safely braze joints. UK plumbing advice tells me that modern high temperature plastic F & E tanks are OK, fitted with metal ballcock of course.

Théière , Yes the Walltherm is a very efficient unit, it also has the right boiler output and it's cheaper than the Rayburn but...............you can't cook on it and, because of that we have no place to install it. TBH, if we are going to use wood for central heating it makes sense to also use the heat for cooking as well. Another minor factor is that we can foresee a day in the not too distant future when our existing LPG fired range cooker will need replacing due to its age and ''infirmity'' so to speak. As our kitchen and its granite work tops are designed around the size of a range cooker it seems logical to replace it with a cooker of the same size, ie a Rayburn at 900mm long (ish)

Q, the Rayburn model numbers are, as far as I know, the same in France as in UK, ie the 355SFW is the same. The other models ( all SFW ) just indicate different size of output. The 370SFW was released by Rayburn in June last year and is the highest output solid fuel / wood unit they make. Rayburn France have told me that they expect it to be available in France later this year. The stove seller that you linked to does not list the 370SFW , with the 355SFW being the biggest listed. We did seriously consider a Wamsler but eventually changed our minds, primarily because we could not find a Wamsler dealer who had one in stock that we could look at. We were not prepared to order on the basis of a photograph and description. The dealers were equally not prepared to get one unless it was against a firm order. Another point against the Wamsler is that the boiler is actually too powerful for our demand. It does have a 'wind up' firegrate that could mitigate the output issue but we still wanted to see one. As far as I know AGA do not do a solid fuel version with a boiler. It's a bit academic anyway as Mrs PD will not consider an AGA under any circumstances - personal preference. I researched French manufacturers and, as far as I could see, none of them produce a central heating cooker with the required boiler output. Most are in fact wood fired cookers only.

Q, Thanks for your comments, I have already downloaded the Rayburn files. I have spoken to Rayburn UK and am in contact with a Rayburn installation technician on a personal basis. The 370 SFW, as all the SFW Rayburn models does require an open vented Feed and expansion tank, together with a specific pipework arrangement to give a gravity circulation capability. The pump system is for driving CH radiators and an open vented indirect DHW cylinder. The gravity circuit in effect hinges on the incorporation of the injector tee shown on the rayburn piping layout together with 28mm piping and minimised flow restrictions. The heat leak is part of that circuit. The gravity circulation would only come into play if the CH pump failed to run for whatever reason. The pump is normally switched on by the built in high temp thermostat ( replaces the use of a 'pipe-stat' on the older models) even if the pump is selected off by a control system. The use of an open vented F & E tank is part of the safety requirements of all solid fuel fired water boilers. UK regs I know ( part G if I remember correctly ) but they are the regs I am familiar with. Regarding wood, we already have a wood shed which generally has a stock level of 18 stere, with a minimum re-order stock level of 6 stere. Our existing logs are 330mm long to cater for the sitting room woodburner. We order wood yearly to ensure that it has additional drying time above that done in storage by the log supplier. I am not relying on the guesswork of forum members but rather am asking for opinions and experiences. Knowledge gained by others and passed on can be a valuable feature. I believe the tax refund system is dependent on having the installation totally installed by a registered plumber. Any work done outside of that professional work does not count. As all the radiators and piping have been / will be done by me means that cost is not counted.

A few comments, Summer cooking, we will have a summer-use cooker and will not be using the woodburner, that's what we did in Wales as well. The runaway fire / overheating boiling issue is conventionally addressed by the installation of a ''heat leak'' radiator which should be sized at not less than 10% of the boiler output, our will be 17% as it happens. Some sources recommend 20%. The primary pipework is arranged to give a gravity circuit in the event of a pump failure (for whatever reason) with nothing interfering with the flow from the boiler output, through the heat leak and back to the boiler, all in 28mm copper with 'slow' bends to minimise restrictions. This is 'industry standard' installation. That's why heat leak rads are usually in a bathroom upstairs with the boiler on the ground floor. Putting out the fire in a boiler. Never, ever, use water. As someone said, you will possibly / probably crack the unit. Sand is probably the best or ( I believe) salt can be used but I can't confirm that. Obviously totally shutting off the air supply will also reduce and eventually stop the burn. In the case of a CH cooker, opening the cooker top lids will dump heat via the hotplate, as will selecting heat to the oven.

Wooly and GS. What is this ''elderly'' bit ?????? Stacking, cutting and moving logs keeps us fit. We also have a hydraulic log splitter and two chainsaws. Should the day ever come when I can't move a barrowload of logs from the wood shed to the house we will 'possibly' convert to another method of heating, but by then this house will probably be too big to be manageable and we would move. If mains gas was available we would jump at its use, but it's not. Oil is not going to get cheap in the long run ( forget the present 'blip' in oil prices ), LPG ( GPL ) ditto. Electricity would need an upgrade in supply. Pellets were seriously considered but a cost analysis showed they are not, at the moment, an option.

Idun, I suppose it's all down to the individual lifestyle. We ( only the two of us ) are retired, we do not go out to work and, apart from being out for a few hours on the odd occasion, we spend the vast majority of our time on the property. Hence keeping the stove stocked up is not a problem. When we go away for holidays / short breaks ( caravan) we do not leave any heating on. Being that the CH would be for winter use and we don't tend to go on holiday in winter anyway it would not be a problem. Our existing wood burner in the sitting room will stay lit for many hours, it stays in all night after being banked up at 10 PM until being 'flashed' back up at 6 AM. Going out for lunch / shopping / whatever for a few hours in the day is not an issue for us. The Rayburn 370SFW is said to be capable of overnight burning when banked up, albeit at a 'tick-over' rate. Gluey, We are rapidly coming round to the decision to just have the Rayburn for CH ( and cooking ) on an open vented F & E tank and retaining the existing electric DHW system. Our hot water use is quite low due to there being only the two of us, using showers not baths ( Haven't had a bath for years and years !!!!!!! ) and having a cold fill washing machine.

Q, Mrs PD will have no cooking problems, neither will I, we had a Stanley wood fired CH cooker for many years when we lived in Wales. It replaced a very old Rayburn which cooked well but was not big enough for CH, which is why we replaced it with a Stanley.

I am sure there must be members of the forum here in France who have wood fired central heating. Mrs PD has set her heart on a Rayburn 370SFW central heating cooker. I have no problems in agreeing. However, the 370SFW is not (yet) available in France according to Rayburn France, but may well be later this year. ''IF'' we get one it will probably be by buying it in UK and bringing it ourselves. Our main problem at the moment is designing an appropriate CH system. Technically this is/ was not difficult until the question of domestic hot water cylinder is addressed. As everyone knows (?) the standard French system is a sealed DHW cylinder with a GdS to vent any overpressure. Such a system does not seem to compute when it comes to solid fuel systems which, I am told by all and sundry, require an open vented cylinder with the necessary head tank, a la UK old style systems. Such a system, I believe, contravenes French Normes, but does it really ????? I can hack the feed & expansion tank requirements of the solid fuel boiler but I don't really want to go for a head tank driven hot & cold domestic system with the potential for low water pressure to the shower, even if it was ''legal'' to do so. Another issue seems to be locating 28mm copper pipe in the Brico sheds, it doesn't seem to exist. So basically, I am looking for feedback from anyone who has had, and overcome, these problems. Any comments ?????????

'' Yes 3042 Brits claiming in France (where the benefits are a % of the last wage, so usually much higher than in the UK) as against 2810 French claiming in the UK.'' Presumably the Brits claiming in France were previously employed in France in order to receive a contribution based benefit. Or is there some sort of minimum payment in France for someone who has never actually contributed ( unlike UK where, I believe, no contribution history is required at all )

We have just received a form from HMRC which seems to be a 'proof of continuing existence' type of thing. It must be counter-signed by an official-type of person Doctor, Maire etc. Is this a new thing as we have never had one before. Is it relevant to overseas pensioners only or do all UK pensioners get one?

''........then we have to respect their individual ideas, mocking doesn't win friends .....'' Surely they also have to respect our ideas, it's a two-way street. Killing those who disagree with your version of faith doesn't do much in the friend winning stakes does it ?

easy-peasy Jewellery stand, earings and things

Thanks JJ, it's now quite obvious.... It's a ''thingy'', otherwise known as a ''forum talking point'', a bit like certain 'coffee table books'.

Q said '' For me I prefer to stick my finger up at the murderers and carry on as normal '' To a very large extent I agree with the ''Keep calm and carry on'' approach. Whilst armed troops on the streets won't help the next victim(s) because they can, realistically, only be re-active, not pro-active the political side of being 'seen to be doing something' is a driver in this situation. If such troops make people feel more safe, even if they are not actually any more safe then it may well have a calming effect on the population. As has been said above, there is the point of a faster reaction time which, whilst not helping the next victims ( and there WILL be more victims) may well reduce the total numbers of such victims.

JJ, to make an educated guess ( and still get it wrong ) we need to know what size it is. Is it likkle, or HUGE. Put something alongside it to give scale - please.

'' My fear is that by putting the army on the street rather than increase police presence could been seen by some as an 'over the top' reaction especially as most of them have been placed in or near areas highly populated by Muslims.'' No doubt an increased Police presence would be better, but, do the Police have 'spare' bodies that are readily available to provide that increased presence, I somehow doubt it. The Army are readily available, trained in weapon handling and are otherwise relatively unoccupied, unless actually doing the 'war-fighting' for which they exist, or training for it.

''Exactly and if you were a Muslim how would you feel? I don't think putting troops on the street is a good idea. Firstly it smacks of fright and desperation and secondly it is antagonistic.'' Why would a Muslim feel any different than a non-Muslim about troops being on the streets ? When the (supposedly Catholic ) IRA were bombing the UK I didn't feel any different, as a Catholic, than anyone else. When I had to inspect my car before driving away I didn't feel that the rules were getting at me because of my religion. I wasn't singled out for an under car mirror check when driving into camp, everyone was treated the same. Armed troops on the streets is a reaction to armed attacks by terrorists, it's how it is. If it makes the population feel safer then it can't be a bad move. It uses available assets and focuses attention on the problem.

It would be pretty pointless to have troops on the streets if their weapons contained blank ammunition. Equally pointless is if the soldiers were told not to use their weapons.