Jump to content

tracteurtom

Members
  • Posts

    353
  • Joined

  • Last visited

    Never

tracteurtom's Achievements

Newbie

Newbie (1/14)

0

Reputation

  1. [quote user="WJT"] My question is; one of my favourite memories of visiting the Swiss Alps at Christmas was the wonderful smell coming from peoples homes of burning pine from chimneys. How do the Swiss get away with it? I know they are surrounded by mostly pines so perhaps they have adapted something to make it safer? [/quote] I think you've just proved the point, its utter bunkum to say you should not burn pine.  Yeah, its not got the energy of oak per kilo, but who cares !  Only problem I see is it burns quickly, but in doing so its very hot, burning off those resinous residues we keep reading about.   If you read the sales brochures of say Jotul, no where does it say not to burn pine, it justs comments that its got a lower calorific value and that all wood should be dried.  If you've got it (and I've a forest full) burn it, I say.  In my caseits free apart from the cutting/stacking/moving/more cutting/more stacking/more moving eek !  Its true what they say, wood warms you many times before you even set fire to it !
  2. Wots going on - is the Forum playing up ???????????? There was a post on here from last night, its just disappeared - no trace ?  Them mods up to no good again ? To the poster re Wii Fit, you got ripped matey - 90€ from Amazon.fr inc free delivery !
  3. [quote user="DerekJ"]cowoman posted a link to Quality Tools where he got his Husqvarna brushcutter.  I followed up on this and ended up getting a Stihl FS90 brushcutter through them. Got it for a very good price and it's a great bit of kit. It appears I got my order (and delivery) in just in time as they are now in liquidation.  That was a close one [:)] [/quote] Coor blimey talk about digging up old posts ! Hope you and the FS90 will have a long and happy life together. Just be aware that the FS90 is very much in the amateur range so treat it carefully - long rests between tank fulls and no blades.  Warranty ????? 
  4. What price are these things going for ?  At our local SNCF station there is a mountain of them - it really is huge !  I'd love to get may hands on a trailer load or 5 as they are so useful and have a beauty all of their own that can't be matched with some new made version.  The tar etc leached into their structure is essential for a long life.  Forget new ones made specifically for gardening purposes, you'll be lucky to get 10 years out of them.
  5. Rhubarb leaves are poisonous, even for hens.  They've probably eaten them because they are bored and run out of other things to peck at or have a deficiency in their diet somewhere..  What are you feeding them ?  They should have free unlimited access to good quality layers pellets and you should feed a small quantity of wheat every night before bedtime.  I assume they are free ranging ?  Does your ground give them access to grit ?  You also need to supplement their diet with crushed oyster shell (sprinkle it around their territory once every few weeks).  If they insist on eating the rhubarb, you're going to have to move them or the rhubarb.  Fencing it off may be a fix but hens are extremely determined creatures and will no doubt work a way around your fencing if they can ! At 5 months - 20 weeks they should be just coming into lay.
  6. If you can get the parts and its something that you really want to do then go for it.  But I suspect parts will be hens teeth and in the end what do you achieve ? It it were me, I'd swap it for a little Mazda.  MGs are just crap by comparison (seriously  !).   But then, this is the French Forum and not the MGB owners forum, so you asked for it LOL !
  7. We've been picking cherry toms for 2 weeks now, get a basket full every day.  All grown outside, non of this under glass nonsense !  The taste is sensational, kids eat them like sweets, you can only get that sweet taste from the sun.  If you force them, they just dont have any flavour - AKA supermarket ones !   OP, I'd chuck the bad tasting ones and see want the next lot taste like.  Any blight ?  If so, get them sprayed or you'll loose the lot.
  8. Lets face it, 2 countries separated by a strip of water that neither can agree a common name for , there are bound to be differnces in building techniques.  Just'cos its done like that in Angleterre, doesnt mean its better.  Taking advice from an English "expert" on "foreign" building techniques is like asking a Frenchman does he drink Austrailian wine or drive a german car ! I have yet to see any reason why a concrete block constucted house is inferior to brick.  Its just different.  There is many a brick cavity filled with insulation material of one sort or another, negating the main reason for the cavity in search of better insulation.
  9. Sounds like you still don't have prime if the pressure switch is not switching off.  Fill the tank with mains water and pressurized it, pump motor should stop.  Doing this will not put water into the lift pipe from the well, you'll just have a column of air I guess in that pipe.  Try running a tap, to remove the pressure from the mains water and start the pump again at the same time, might help.  Its just a trail and error thing to cajule the pump into priming !  Ideally, you need to remove the bung on the pump body and slowly trickle so water into it. I wouldnt mess with the pressure switch until you are sure its the problem.  It'll have 2 settings, kick in and drop out, for want of better terms.  The kick in setting will be lower than the drop out so as the motor doesnt stop start every time you run a tap.  Mine are set at aprox 2 bar drop out and 1.5 (ish) kick in.  Just remember to be careful when messing with 3 phase stuff, you will not have a 2nd chance if you get across 2 phases.  Use the old TV / electronics repair tactic of keeping one hand in you pocket and wear rubber soled boots. 
  10. Same here, block construction houses going up all opver the place.  Another angle to consider is the climate.  In Angleterre, the damp drizzly rain must be a major reason why brick / cavity walls are used, whereas in France yes it rains (boy can it rain !) but then it dries up very quickly.  Just a thought. The French new builds dont seem to have DPCs as normal practice I've noticed, just from from a casual look mind.  Any builders / Surveyors / Structural Engineers  like to comment  ?
  11. [quote user="ErnieY"] Suffice to say that I'm still on the original engine and crankshaft and have 50lb+ pressure on hot tickover ! [/quote] Well Ernie, that means diddly swat.  Its oil FLOW that you should be thinking about not oil pressure.  Its similar to blood flow in your body, a high pressure at rest is not good - is it ! Fit a modern oil of the weight that suits your motor, and change it every 12 months, you wont regret it.  Have you got rid of that silicon brake fluid yet - tut tut [:)]
  12. I think 8k GBP is not a bad price for a pro diesel 27kVA fully auto genset with UPS and bunded 500 l diesel tank.  Fully installed and conmissioned I trust [:D]  and if the figures of 2hrs running for 50p are right ([;-)] thats getting close to utopia LOL ! Yes a tractor would not run anything like as reliable as this setup but if all you need to do is provide power to run the muck conveyor or milking machine should the EDF supply fail then thats all you need.  It wouldn't surprise me if many non techie farmers would be happy to leave the tractor running for hours on end - before the recent price increases in diesel fuel that is ! To the poster with no power in 87, check out the Bricos and garden machinery shops.  That little diesel gen set I saw back in the spring was the business for 600 €. Post edited by the moderators. Comments or questions regarding the general administration of the forum should be made by "private message" or using the "Report" link to the moderators or direct to Forum Admin. Such comments or questions should not be posted in the open forum.
  13. Ha, practically neighbours ! To help get prime you need to fill the big pipe that runs into the well with water.  Look at the plumbing and suss out a way to fill this pipe.  You should find a plug on the pump body that allows you to fill the system with water.  Do it slowly to aid bleeding air.   Its just a case of keeping the system full of water and running the pump and it will prime.  Thats assuming there is water in the well covering the lift pipe inlet ?  When it does prime, you will here it.  If it still doesnt work, then maybe there is a fault ?  You will have to start taking things to pieces to find the problem.
  14. I was interested until I saw the price and thats in GBP !  But, realistically, thats expected for the kit you're talking about.  What many farms do around here is simply have a generator that can be connected to a tractor PTO, cost 1000 - 2000 € buys you quite a large unit, just ready to lift on the 3 point and away you go.  I saw recently a 5kVA diesel genset for I thin k 600 €, not bad, not quality, but as an insurance for the freezers, its fine.  Just my take, those with big swimming pools may have different views.
  15. The problem with being "green" (I think the french term "bio" is much neater!) is that you must have a through understanding of plants and their needs.  Fine you if just have a small patch, and are willing to put in the time to learn.  But once you start to cultavate a larger area you simply dont have enough time in the day to check each plant individually and cater for its needs like a baby.   I think our mistake was setting off with too large a patch, - in excess of 1500m2, complete with weeds in year 1.  We had in over 500 potatoe plants and it simply was impossible to keep control of the doraphore and the weeds.  This year, we are running 2 patches, one of  800m2 the other is 300m2, still alot, but we now know a lot more about proirites (hoeing hoeing and more hoeing) and use sprays to keep the bugs and mildew at bay.  We have also limited the potatoes to just 100 plants and found this to be more managable.  Lets face it, even after some limited spraying, your own produce has 10 times the flavour and goodness of any supermarket stuff, even that that is passed off as "organic", whatever that means. So yes be Bio when ever you can, but be realistic and dont put off spraying should the need arise. anyone for a cabbage or 5 ....
×
×
  • Create New...