steve

tresco, they really dont bother me while i am clearing stuff in the garden. i did have to have a close look at the old tree they were nesting in. so took the brave step of driving up to the tree in my van it was quite warm and they seemed to come go from every direction. ther is no way i would disturb their nest, especially while they are still so active.

we have a hornets nest in the field at the bottom of the garden and there are allways a lot of them around, but they dont really seem to bother us at all when we are out in the garden. i allways thought they were really aggresive ?

in england there is a product called bonding (plaster) if you can get that here it will do the trick, its very sticky when mixed correctly and will stick to any thing. best to fill the hole abit at a time, working from the outside edges untill  you have filled the hole completely. then just go over with some filler or finish plaster. there will be a similar product here in france, havent had the need to look for it, so dont know what is available !

pete, if the conversion is  going to be habitable room, then plasterboard is generally used so it can be taped and jointed, or plastered to give a finish ready for decorating. ply will not give you a very good finish for painting on.whatever you use be careful when nailing anything especially if you have oak rafters. you will have loads of slipped tiles 

don, you being a chippy, where do you get your stairs from that have  a thicker top tread that would be enough to compensate for the split loss of 50 mm. if it is 5 mm thicker will that really make a difference to the amount needed to be lost on the bottom. ? 

there has to be someone on here with an answer. are dogs more likely to pick up ticks by roaming through long grass than just garden area short grass. what is the best way of removing them once found. thanks for any helpful advice

Please, no one be offended by this post, but I have to say something. Why is it that a certain few members take over a perfectly reasonable thread and hijack it, turning into their own? It happens often and does get annoying especially when the thread starts off as informative , and then you get the stupid little comments made, and thats it the informative post gone, and all that remains are the stupid little comments. It is annoying, and I am sure that is why admin decided to put in a seperate area, namely the lounge for people who want to say things that are off topic. Emma Steves other half.

for you that have never just a tiny little bit crept over the speed limit. be thankful you have not had to join the list of criminals. it is also a great feat that you have all achieved by having your speedo checked to ensure that it gives the correct reading. i am not personally affected

how does anybody in their right mind come to the conclusion that speeding motorists are criminals. i have read the post over and it baffles me. am i missing something ?

we went out our house last bank holiday weekend (move out permantently next weekend) and after the previous visit decided all we had time to do was to cut the grass. friday afternoon was fine , as was sat morning.  stop at lunhtime for neighbours benefit only to find that the whole family of our one and only neighbour would descend on them a short while later listening to me strimming away in the front garden. (they use their front garden as  their garden area with patio, gazebo etc..so out of guilt and the hope of building a respectful relationship with them, decided to put the all gardening equipment away. next day sunday. only one neighboor, not worth the risk. that left about 3 hours monday morning to strim away, quickly pack up , head for calais and away. being new to an area as well as a different country to me means that you should have respect for other people as the only way to gain respect for yourself ! in my opinion.

same rules apply as in the uk regarding installation, gas or oil. probably worth getting a registered plumber to fit the boiler and make the connection to oil. nothing stopping you fitting the rest of the system which is as you will know the majority of the work. not probably i meant definately requiring registered installer. i dont personally know of the penalty for doing it yourself but has got to be the same as in the uk. quite severe when caught

being a relatively new member to this forum, i still think that i have learned more on here than in the last 3 years trying to read up on issues about living in france. most of the information given is based on other members experiences, surely that has to be what most people are looking for. most of the feedback i have recieved has been worthwhile and educational. my questions answered and something else i have learned, then again some of the replies i have recieved have been a complete waste of time and more of what seems like a personal insult to what i may have asked. must admit though nothing bad from teameup, but i can see no reason why anybody who has suffered a backlash shouldnt state their opinion. it is after all the natural thing to do. i had a couple of replies to posts only to think, why bother you are only insulting me, so surely if teameup wants to leave then there has to be people that have been on the recieving end of derogatory remarks then they will see her on her way, surely we all want a pleasent reply to our posts and not a kick in the teeth . basically if someone doesnt have anything good to say in reply to someones post, why bother, all it does is wind people up. if a helpful reply is given then it is appreciated, i know that all the good advice i have been given has very much appreciated and i do thank everybody. end result is when someone announces they are going to leave sure the people that have been aggravated by them are going to add their opinions and they then get slated by others is this what this place is really about ? i dont think so. it would a much better place if posts were kept on track, although the humorous side is very much needed and does add  to the interest.

i should have said the holes are about 1 inch or 2.5 centimetres, so qiute small 

i have nothing against voles or snakes but a bit concerned about5 year old boy looking into them

came across a couple of beetles whilst cutting the grass. if they came from the holes they didnt go back down. will have to get the expanding foam out.

perry como. now that would work . .

i have seen the old fashioned fly paper stuff, its just the look of a few dozen flies stuck to it, and maybe the odd long hair when o/h stands too close. fly zapper sounds better. its quite a sattisfying sound !

across the lawn area of our back garden there are lots of holes, i know that these would not have been made by snakes but have been told to be carefull of snakes appearing from them. is this true?   and what would have made the holes, there are no signs of any moles ?cant think of anything else small enough

but, is there an easy way of keeping flies out of the house. on the edge of a village with only about 30 or so sheep around and with one of the back doors of the house in the kitchen which is permanently open it is a nightmare trying to prepare food. i would appreciate any tips other than keeping the door shut ! thanks

dick, the way i read the post it appeared rude and the same as being spoken down to, hence my comment regards steve

what a nice reply from teameup

use dry wall fixings, redidrivers, also available for heavy duty stuff. i have used them hundreds of times without any problems. also a couple of blobs of gripfill on the back . wont do any harm as long as you dont want to take the units back down again, and in my experience you only take them back of the wall when it is time for renewal. i dont know what the french name is though !

why not get a decent chippy to put the roof on traditional style (cut and pitch). being a chippy myself , i would allways avoid trussed roofs, purely for the amount of loft space you lose. whatever loft space is left is practically useless. personal opinion. maybe you have no other option ? steve

the use of copper pipe to an experienced tradesman is to me as easy as using the now easy to use push fit systems.(a lot of  do it yourselfers want to have a go , and why not. if you can do it yourself, why pay somebody else to ) the one disadvantage i have experienced is that you need to secure plastic piping more frequently and when connected to valves etc (ie washing machine) they are still quite flexible, whereas in copper they would be rigid and easier to connect to flexible hoses. i think that there is an amount of self satisfaction looking at some soldered pipework, neat and tidy. a job well done and there to stay. thats not saying that copper will outlive the plastic,thats debatable for the next how ever many years but if you put the two side by side, i am sure that the majority of  tradesmen will prefer to use copper. after all, not everybody can do it . hence plastic pipe and fittings ! good luck to everybody using it and dont get too close to the boiler ! ! !

unsure about a number of things on this one, before starting work on a renovation project, ie, repairing roof, walls, adding roof windows, etc, is it best to inform the local mairie of all intended work or seek permission as you go. i have read that anything that alters the appearance of the building requires permission. what is the procedure of obtaining permission ? i dont know whether the local mairie has an active office where you can just turn up and take the revelant forms? or is it expected that you go along and introduce yourself and tell them which property you have just bought ? or is everything done by post ?