Gluestick

I have, philosophically, pondered for quite some time, Steve, that it would be technically possible to build a dwelling where the first and critical bit was a massive undergound "Utility Services" section. Here would be a complete water and sewerage processing unit, recycling used water and reprocessing into two discrete systems: potable and the rest. Additionally one would have a massive rainwater storage tank, storing all the precipitated water from roof, outbuildings and land drainage. The sewerage processing would process out methane (which has been achieved for a number of years in India, e.g. and produces sufficient low-pressure gas for cooking.). Another section - depending on geographic location - would "Store" cold, by virtue of using huge freezer blocks filled with various liquid chemicals, energy sourced from solar collectors and acting like a gas, kerosoene or electrically powered 'fridge using heating coils instead of compressor. Solar air conditioning on demand! After all, the places where one needs it the most tend to have the most solar energy potential! Heat would be stored using either solid or liquid medium. Energy would be captured from solar radiation and wind source, as well as a heat pump from geothermal source/s and stored. Ergo, pretty cheap to run! But, as you say, the amortisation period would be pretty excessive. [:(] I am sure, however, that such approaches on a group, rather than sole basis will be increasingly used in new builds; sewerage processing and water in particular.  

The of these Electric Boiler "Wet" Systems is a very large (depending on volume of house to be heated) water storage tank with a "Floating" inner tank. The idea is that the tank -  which is super-insulated - is heated at night on cheap rate to circa 85 C. The hot reservoir of water is thereafter circulated on demand via radiators and of course, for DHW. The main problem is that to provide central heating throughout the day, in cold periods -  which after all, is normally when you want it! - the tank needs boosting as it's core temp drops beneath circa 50C. Expensive! Most ethical manufacturers and specifying authorities admit straight off that users would normally require some form of back-up heating, such as a log burner, in main living rooms for the evening: at which time the core temp has reduced drastically. I suppose if you could provide a simply massive storage tank then this would store sufficient heat energy for the day. Like so many innovations, these systems work best with underfloor heating, as once the thermal mass of the floor is overcome, it sorts of ticks over. Any efficiences also assume a pretty high standard of insulation and thus heat retention. Unfortunately, the real beauty of oil or gas is that this is if you like an "On Demand Stored Latent Heat at any time" system; hence their popularity and universal appeal and use.    

Without wishing to be gloomy, my best friend, who has a lovely renovated farmhouse 35 minutes from us had fosse problems.............. All the neighbours came round: they all knew the house, allegedly. After consulting experts, blokes with metal detectors, another UK chum who was a building inspector and assorted bods, the conclusion was, under the terrace: which is all nicely tiled with old red exterior tiles! He is now the proud owner of a sparkling new fosse septique ; they left the old one there and simply cemented up the stink pipes and feeds. On a more positive note, your best bet is a local who knows which farmer or whoever emptied it for the previous owner.  

Well, I was always taught at Grammar School whereat I dutifully studied French language for five years - not with much success then I thought, but it did stick, strangely -  that this is because the French language has far fewer words than English for example and uses combinations of words to mean differing things. Same with Spanish, of course. Having made that comment about the English language, one wouldn't have thought this true, if Jade Baddy is any example! [:D][6]  

Oh dear Will , never be a director of an offshore tax avoidance vehicle! One approach is ownership of the trading company through a Lichenstein Anstart, which owns say a Swiss corporation held only through bearer shares. Could be a Luxembourg corporation. The "Directors" are the lawyer and accountant on whose wall the brass plate appears and classically two of their junior staff! As I said before, depends on the profit/gain, since thje set-up and annual maintenance costs are not for the faint hearted. It's why the rich become richer and the super-rich become supra-rich! Or, as Leona Hemsley said (before she was arrested for tax evasion, of course!) "Taxes are for the little people!"  

If the profits (gains) are significant, then set-up an offshore jurisdiction limited company and keep the profits/gains there. Appoint yourself a working representative and award yourself a salary, thus allowing you to import funds legally. Using the various benefits of the right offshore jurisdiction, most tax can be negated.  

A personal perspective. I rather like reducing forward obligations to known quantities where possible. If one takes a Euro mortgage on a floating rate deal - I understand that earlier fixed-for-term deals are now not too common - then a whole series of potential downsides come into play. The main reason Laker airlines crashed was that he had borrowed in the USA - to buy his fleet of 'planes in US $, but his core revenue stream was in £s. The pound hit almost equity with the US $. Goodnight Laker. (It was far more complex than this as political undertones came into play between the UK and US governments and the 'plane's suppliers, however, the core reason Laker hit cashflow and thus liquidity troubles was his borrowing in US$). If your personal income stream and therefore ability to debt service (pay interest) and reduce capital is based in £s sterling and your mortgage is based in Euros, then you are exposed to the vagueries of the forward exchange rate, each and every time you transfer funds. If and when you sell and repatriate (bring back) the released money, then you have to convert Euros to sterling in any case, unless you elect to leave the balance on deposit in France. Thus, whether you borrow in France or the UK, you have exchange risk exposure when you sell the property. Whilst a UK sterling mortgage will mean a higher effective interest rate, at present, probably, the potential forward exchange costs make it about even: furthermore, if the French lender stipulates a floating rate mortgage, then if and when the French interest rate rises - as the ECB (European Central Bank), raise Euro rates - this cost advantage is soon lost. At present, the Euro rates are being held down by the ECB, mainly due to pressure from the large Euro-manufacturing and exporting corporates like BMW, Chrysler-Mercedes et al. The underlying economic indicators, however, point up a trend, forward, which will probably mean a Euro rate rise. Conclusion: if borrowing in Euros go for a fixed interest for the term deal. The extra Front-End costs will be offset by the lower interest charges. One caveat, however: do work our, carefully, the additional extra costs of life assurance, which tends to be mandatory amongst French lenders. If not available, then base in sterling.

Which, of course, a decent condensing boiler would partially capture, GP. With a wood-fuelled burner, the same waste applies. However, with judicious use of the flue, then much of this "Waste Heat" can be employed to radiate heat into the building before it finally vents into the outside. Using electricity, though, yes, you are absolutely correct: once the heater has raised the core (heater) temp to its working temp level, then it will radiate far more than any indirect heat-exchanging system. That's why straight Cost/Kw comparisons can be highly misleading.  

I'm sure the Mods will forgive me for going slightly off topic. Being a practical sort of bloke, there aren't many things to do with engineering and building work that I haven't tackled at some time......................little success with glass cutting, though. Even though I did sport out and buy a diamond cutter. It has always amazed me to watch glaziers chucking large sheets of glass around with gay abandon. Whiz the cutting tool along a line to score one tap and cut. One of my major clients is a large glazing company: I love to watch their guys making leadlights. Now if I put a gas blowlamp near the glass it would shatter into ten thousand pieces! I have no problems with lead: used to be able to wipe a joint and also used to be a demon at lead filling car bodies. But I guarantee if I tried to solder in leadlight bits...........................[6].  

Words of wisdom , Cas. Must have been fun to watch your attempt at cutting toughened glass! I would probably use acrylic, as already stated earlier. Easier and simple. Perspex is now far too expensive!  

Mine is made from safety glass (cabinet), like a car windscreen. I know 'cos the idiot plumber dropped one and it took hours to sweep up all the tiny bits of glass. Unfortunately, it is impossible to cut safety glass of that type, as it is tempered after sizing and any attempt to cut it results in the whole thing shattering. Can be done with laminated glass, though.  

One day on fora, we'll have contextual filters which might prevent this problem. Since posting the "Cockle" my mind has been marginally exercised by other thoughts............ For example, it is common to refer to a large course cut file as, well a Ba****d file. Bound to be a problem! [6] And then, of course, we have a male chicken.................shall we call it, say a Cocklerell? And next has to come a Weather Cocklerell. If a newby poultrey keeper wants to know how to decide whether a chicken is male or female, I suppose they would have to write, " Can anyone tell me how to tell if a chicken is of the male or female gender?" Rather than, "How does one S** a chicken?" Disgusting! And finally - you'll be delighted to know! - for the novelty gift searcher, "Where in France can I buy a set of Newton's object in a frame for the desk, with large chrome plated steel spherical things hanging on bits of string, which demonstrate Newton's First law of Motion?"  

As a minimum, the water supplier simply must have some method of isolating their supply in order to service/replace their meter. Having recently had a new supply fitted - at the syndicat's expense: it was their pipe that was leaking! - Phew! - there is an isolating cockle immediately after the meter  and a turn off cockle immediately outside the house in the road with a typical small, square cast iron cover. Once you have turned off the supply, thereafter it is merely a matter of changing the faulty valve. Edit: How silly; the filter prevented the use of the word C**K. I have thus substituted the word "Cockle". Probably I will now discover that this is an obscene insult in French!  

Jessycat: Once you answer the various questions I posed earlier, I will be able to provide some First Level advice, as I am accountant, in public practice in the UK. Any advice, of course, will be pro bono and no liability attaching etc. If I feel you need to consult a professional adviser, then I would, of course, recommend this course of action. Serendipidy (or summat?[blink]) that I  finalising a fairly complex CGT case today. As has been stated, CGT can be a very complex issue: once a taxpayer crosses a border then potentially, it becomes even more complex.  

Before you left the UK what was the status of your  UK property? Your principal residence? What was the date and year on which you permanently left the UK? Did you thereafter move straight to France? After you moved to France, was your UK house let for market rental? Or was it empty? Did you instruct agents or make other robust moves to sell the UK house prior to and/or immediately after you moved to France? From what date were you tax resident in France? (Date of registration with ALL French authorities, fiscal, CPAM)?  

BJ: I looked very carefully into the various options three years ago. Yes, a heat pump using either slinkies, borehole or water source can be very effective and cost-efficient. Problem one; it is not well suited to rads: it only really works well if used to provide underfloor and even then, will simply maintain an ambient temp well beneath most people's expectations (e.g. 22 C in the main living area). During the Winter, some additional heating source is required: = more capital and fuel cost. Retro-fitting underfloor to old buildings is normally not on, apart from (e.g.) a barn conversion or restoring a wreck. Retro-fritting to newer buildings is also a significant problem. The significant capital cost has to be amortised over say ten years: at which point, the extra capital cost (using a technique such as DCF) is lost in the fuel cost difference, in many cases. The key secret, of course, is insulation: unfortunately, again, with established houses in France this can prove a huge problem. Lack of cavity walls means one real choice: to dryline the interior, thus losing interior space and creating visual eyesores around windows appertures. Unfortunately, one simply has to accept heatloss as a reality: which means throwing into the building significant heat: much of which heats the atmosphere! Focusing on waste at the point of heat generation is one way to reduce costs: using a condensing boiler helps to reduce costs. Sadly, these are only now beginning to be readily available in France. Every comparative analysis I have seen, lists electricity in terms of cost of heat/BTU or /Kw as more expensive than either gas or oil. Personally, since oil is probably the most widely used for heating in France and since Total and ELF fall marginally under government control, I feel eventually, the French government will stabilise the prices to avoid an inflationary economic cycle. Most of the price rises were sheer exploitation, as oil major buys on a 6X6X6 contract: thus their porices are fixed for six months and rotate. Their prices don't zoom up overnight! It's an oil industry rip off! We shall see. BTW bulk heating oil peaked at circa 65 cents and is now already down to 50 cents. Nuclear: yes; obviously the true cost has never been passed on to the consumer. Same as Concorde Syndrome.  

Mrs G is an ex Midland HSBC staff member and still has certain staff rates and preferences. Their rate for Forex varies, rather like their service! Basically it means a fee-less transaction. If I use Hifex, e.g. with whom I have an account, I have to pay a UK fee of circa £20 for completing telegraphic transfer. (barclays). In either case CA have still be charging me circa €8 to actually receive the funds in their regional money centre (Lisle) and transfer to my branch in Hesdin. Having spent far too many years involved at various levels with international bankers, I believe that a retired US general's (met him in the late 70s) descriptor of the whole bunch was and still remains apposite: financial pimps! John-Eric: Yes I do agree. Selfish interest: same here.  

It would have also made your life much more expensive! Handing over sovereignty of the B of E's control to the ECB would have caused all sorts of dire fiscal probs. And since a transfer of funds between states (Cross Border Transaction) still means a transfer of value they would still charge you! After all, the exchange costs are born by the UK dealing bank or visa versa and charged to you: I am charged twice: once by UK banks and once by CA for receiving the funds!IN addition to the exchange costs................................ Don't you just love banks?  

Will the gradual privatisation of EDF mean that prices are bound to rise? Dunno.......... Oil should come down to a more stable price after this Winter, since the oil majors have to adjust their prices in line with falling crude prices. Should: who knows? I have always considered electric heating expensive: unless it is storage running off cheap rate. But storage heating runs out at the very point that one needs it: 4-5.00 PM until bedtime! Black Iron Pipework: I am reliably informed that the reason France originally adopted this was to use up musket barrels after a major war: honest! And it sort of went on from there............ Horrible stuff to bend. Used to use 3/4 galvanised water barrel for airlines: a pig to thread! Black iron was usually used for gas feeds. All copper and plastic now.  

Each to his own, Wilko. Nothing too wrong, environmentally, in my mind with pure natural wool carpet on hessian backing, for example: or natural timber or stone floors. I do agree with Coop. My own experience with all these natural fibres used as floorcoverings is that are the very devil to keep clean. Whilst I am very conscious of the environment (and have been something of an ecologist since 1973), one of the keys, in my mind is longevity. Tiled French floors last almost forever, as do stone and slate. Planned obsolescence is in my mind probably the greatest causer of environmental overload and strain. My wife and I are not conspicuous consumers: we tend to buy good quality and keep it. I have leather shoes, for example which are 30 years old One of the things I really liked about Karndean flooring was that if looked after it will last for perhaps 20 years, thus the environmental impact for myself isn't too excessive.  

Well actually, for me, I prefer my Karndean Redwood.............. However in a flat which is rented, whatever one fits it is wrecked over time. Tenants, sadly, don't normally exercise as much care with other people's possessions as they would with their own. I have to disagree about the appearance: the light oak effect looks as good as if not better than the majority of the MDF base synthetic. And the seller warrants it for heavy domestic usage. If it fails, quickly, then we will have words with a cheque on the end coming in my direction! Probably all synthetic materials are adverse, environmentally: as is most intensively produced food. As are cars, ferries, 'planes etc. I do wish I could swim the Manche with all the things we seem to take each time we cross. Sadly I can't What do you have on your floors, Wilko, as a matter of interest? Rushes? Straw? Very environmentally friendly: personally I am not over-happy about the bugs! [;-)]  

Gastines: Totally agree about cheap laminate floor. The "Click Together" has a  synthetic layer of circa one micron! Obviously, the best solution is Amtiko or almost as good - but not quite! - Karndean. And if the surface don't scratch or chip the MDF will blow! A very cost-effective solution is Wickes Vinyl: circa £8/sq M; self-adhesive looks nice. Usable for bathrooms, utility rooms and kitchens. Have just used it in upgrading an Edwardian flat we rent out. Looks good. (Oak effect). Did use exterior quality ply as substrate in the bathroom, however. One major benefit is that being self-adhesive, it doesn't suffer from movement or creep and can thus be fitted right up to skirting, thus negating the dust prob. Loved the "Can you restretch it......................." bit! Do they never listen?  

Yes, J-E, I quite agree. Also more hygienic as skin mites can't live on tiled floors either. Heidi: The body of knowledge, militates heavily agains fitting carpets over tiled floors. If you must proceed, consider resin poured sealing: however, this may well drive moisture into the walls. French houses are constructed to be sort of self-conditioning between floors walls and etc. Proceed with caution, perhaps?  

Happy days, John-Eric. It constantly amazes me how many people lay carpet or even laminated floor over tiles with no thought for what happens next............. In fact my chum's biggest major problem with major projects his company work on, is persauding the client (huge contracting and construction companies who ought to know better!), to let "Green" concrete dry out sufficiently before his teams lay floor coverings. Obviously, they always test the humidity level first; however site agents often disagree, as time is lots of money on these major projects and they are invairiably running behind schedule............................. He has helped me lots with sound advice on our house. The rule of thumb seems to be with old French properties, leave the carpets out: the odd rug is fine, provided you move it around from time to time. At first, come the Spring, I thought we had major probs with rising damp in all the floors. Not so.The ambient humidity is particularly high then and as soon as people start breathing, taking showers, boiling kettles and well, living, then the floor collected buckets of water, 'cos it's cold and therefore acts as a wonderful condensor! Solution: a large dehumidifier and I was staggered at the volume of water it extracted from the inside air! I have also fitted skirting-level wall vents in three key areas which has helped considerably.  

Many thanks Michael. Have emailed Trojan.