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Steve

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  1. Hi Last year was a record year for us & this year we have beaten it by 3 weeks across two Gites. Bookings arrived much later including 3 individual bookings for September over the last couple of weeks. We open 6th Jun - 19th Sept only so very happy with 95% occupancy. I feel next yr will be good because of the Brits who got wet feet staying at home this yr. Steve
  2. [quote user="dave21478"]Why would I make this up? seriously - think long and hard about this steve.....what possible motivation would I have to make up a years worth of comments about imaginary gites? You misinterpreted something I wrote several months ago and have never managed to get past this fixation of me not owning these gites. I have never once claimed I was the owner and am perfectly happy to tell people that I run them for someone else, but you just cant accept this for whatever reason. Bear in mind steve - I dont particuarly care what you think. Some random on the internet doesnt like what I write! well boohohohohoo. Im hardly going to be crying myself to sleep for the next few nights. You say you arent jealous - maybe so, but your last paragraph there, to my mind, makes you sound like a sad, bitter sarcastic old fart who doesnt like it when someone else does something popular. Get over it steve. Read my posts, or dont, Im not bothered either way, but quit your whining. [/quote] Not too long and hard I'm afraid dave....... no idea but sadder things have happened. No fixation at all, you did several months ago state you were the caretaker for the Gites you write about. There was no misinterpretation prior to that. You clearly do care what is thought of you  otherwise why get so touchy and irritated. When you write your book you will need to prepare yourself for the poor reviews as well as the applause. The last paragraph was a parody of your posts paragraph, you know Sarcasm & irony, the stuff you write about all the time. What do they say, if you can't take it don't etc etc etc. Incidentally, we actually have had a record year but the rest, I admit, was made up,.... apart from the great guy thing! Sad, no your getting me mixed up with someone else, bitter, no,  sarcastic, em YOU are accusing me of being sarcastic!!! OK yes, when pushed I admit it I can be sarcastic but I think I cover it up quite well. Old fart, well no, not really. There you go mentioning your popularity again. You really do feel important don't you. Ranked 128 on number of posts.I'm helping you break into the top 100. How many of your 520 posts are about you ? Steve  
  3. [quote user="dave21478"]Dry your eyes steve - Nobody is interested in your whining. Spit it out - whats your problem? 43 posts to your name since 2007, and probably a third of them have been whinging and nit-picking about me and what I write. This is either some excellent deep-cover Troll work, or you really just have a decent sized chip on your shoulder - jealousy perhaps?. I neither know, nor care. Go on steve, enlighten us. [/quote] Jealous?? You've lost me............ Of you pretending to be a Gite owner? or you constantly getting cheap "laughs" from taking the ---s out of the people who pay the Gites owner who then pays you? Enlighten me dave . & please, please, make it witty. There does seem to be a fixation about the number of posts people have done on this forum. A rounding on anybody who dares to question the reality of what is being posted or perhaps that doesn't matter. It is not nit picking about a persons posts if that person accepts that they had been misleading in what they had written. Absolutely  no chips on my shoulder. We've had a record year with our Gites, we are solidly booked through to March 2011 including Xmas & New Years and we are so popular and I'm such a great guy that they all agreed to pay in full, upfront. My book, entitled Truths half truths and darn right Lies comes out next year and the retainer alone  will allow me to buy a hotel on Mayfair & Park Lane. Steve.
  4. To GD.... I'm with you GD, as are quite a few others. Dave21478 is a dreamer and has amused some, with very little else to do, over too longer period. He believes he is a legend in his own lifetime. This thread as he says is, from page one all about him and how he runs the Gites he manages for someone else. Earlier in the year he announced he was leaving his caretaker job to move to new pastures(a loud cheer was heard) but of course due to "popular" demand he didn't, as suddenly he was offered further "couldn't refuse it" work and we have to continue to suffer his brilliant style of sarcasm as he makes us "all laugh" with his boring fictional anecdotes The Gites he is caretaker for are always "full" just about all year round in spite of.........etc etc. Now, various people will come on  and say how wonderful Dave scribbles are and of course that's there opinion. Sarcasm grinds after a while so I'll kept this post short. Steve
  5. We got ours from cash piscine at an excellent price with excellent quality. It is called Securit Pool Littoral Luxe. This is the metal pole type and fully conforms. I would personally avoid floating shutter covers as they collect garden debris etc and of the two I have seen in situ they move in the wind. This causes it to rub on the liner at its water line. This has ended up doing permanent damage to one of the the liners in question. They also seem to keep the water at a lower temperature in the summer. Oh yes and they are expensive. Hope this helps Steve
  6. Guests break items from plates through to beds(Clair) whether they be "lower quality than at home" or not. These cost money to replace and in a lot of cases guests do not tell you about any damages if they think they can get away with it, so that cost is left with the owner. Hence Ikea comes in handy. I'm afraid it is, for us anyway, unrealistic to put high end gadgets in our Gites as they would break or get broken in the same time frame as similar items at a reasonable price. They both make the same cup of coffee & play the same music at a good standard. As I read this thread through and see what everybody offers as free extras I wonder how nett monies are made. I'm just waiting for someone to post that they run a free tucking in at night service or a  brushing sand out from between guests toes free offer!!! and then try to tell me that its their USP and it gets them repeat bookings. Steve Charente Maritime
  7. Clair... I agree with your points of view, this being based on past experiences. We actually only sell to the British market and have only ever offered linen & end of let cleans as an option. Take up on linen is around 75% of clients and cleans around 50%. Over the last two years we have had a pool but still don't offer towels as an option or as standard. Bookings are good, this year being the same number of weeks as last, which was a "record". In our first three years with Gites we offered a welcome pack which was never verbally appreciated nor was it ever written about in our visitors book. So we stopped it and booking numbers never went down.. We decided that the quality of the Gites, our grounds, position etc were far more important than a bottle of Pineau etc and I believe our clients agree. We get around 25% repeat bookings and as importantly around the value of a further one weeks rent from the linen & clean options. It is a business after all! So, as regards the charges, they are 10€ a bed for linen( pillow cases, duvet cover, top & bottom sheet & 40€ for a standard clean. Steve Charente Maritime
  8. [quote user="Poolguy"]Yes your right John But As I've been attacked by one of the above posters for commercial activity on the forum I have agreed to restrict such messages to PM. Its cumbersome and more time consuming for me as well, but hey at least 2 people out of the 000's on the forum aren't offended by this news which is of a commercial nature. So thanks for your question John I've PM'ed you   Andrew   [/quote] Why not just suggest to those wanting to know that you can go to any pool shop in town & buy a water line cleaner. Various brands various prices. The orange/yellow stains can't be got off totally by anything you want to sell them or anybody else for that matter. It's unfortunate but fact. In that way you are offering your "vast" knowledge for free without the twist of a possible sale at the end. I repeat, I have no problem with you passing on your knowledge, its the trade off for a sale that IS against the code of conduct on this forum & of course the others you ply your trade on. I wonder whether you would be interested in passing on your knowledge if there wasn't the chance of a sale at the end of it? You have a website, which is the right place to trade, not here on a forum. Steve Stands back and waits for the bang!  
  9. [quote user="g8vkv"]Blimey - I never realised that there was so much interest in baking soda[;-)] So, given that, here's what I've discovered so far .... Firstly, my measurement of 'Total Alkalinity' (TAC). I've got a Scuba+ which I use as the primary instrument for all measurements. On this particular one, it shows 'Lo' - which, according to the specification, means it must be less than 10ppm. However - the error bar on the TAC measurement is +/- 50ppm - so it could be as high as 60ppm while still showing 'Lo'. I also have some dip-strips which measure (among other things) the TAC. Now I know colour-comparision testing is prone to a host of subjective errors, but this test shows it's at the bottom of the OK range - about 80ppm. So my guess is that it's probably about 60ppm-ish. It's my intention to concentrate some pool water by evaporation and test the concentrate to get a more accurate measure. I had intended to do this today, but got distracted by F1. Secondly, the price/availability of baking soda. It's not widely available - just one of the local Bricos had a single tub, gathering dust, at €50 for 5Kg[:P]. Phoning around indicates that this is about the 'going rate'. It's also available off t'interweb at about €25 for 5Kg, but when you factor in the cost of delivery, it comes up to about €45. The cheapest I've found is at Carrefour, where they have 400g pots (for use in baking) at €2.15, making it about €25 Kg. This is probably what I'll end up using. What _is_ more available is combined pH+/TAC+ (NaCO3 and NaHCO3 at 25€/5Kg) - but raising pH in order to raise TAC and then having to lower pH again seems a bit, well, daft. Finally, does it matter? I spoke to the very nice lady at the local pool shop, who assured me that so long as the pH isn't jumping around all over the place (which it isn't), then don't worry too much about the TAC. So - there you go. [/quote] Nice one G8 Steve
  10. Andrew I'm sorry you have taken the objection so poorly, perhaps you have underlined my point by your reply. Some emotional blackmail in their and couched personal insult. Is quality judged by the number of posts you make ?? Don't understand that one. I don't believe I have questioned the useful information you have posted or others either. This is purely about the code of conduct of the forum. I also don't believe that the length of time you have been posting on a forum somehow makes it right. Steve
  11. Scooby..... Agreed. Forums are about passing free advice & comment that in some cases may help the readers, not as a way of swopping this information for a potential sale or 2. Steve
  12. Teapot..... "You get a far better response than from the majority of pool shops in France." I haven't managed to get into the majority of pool shops in France to be able to post  such a "correct" piece of information as yourself!! "What is your area of expertise"? What ?? The point being ? Steve
  13. Baz..... I don't think I am nit picking.... A code of conduct is just that........ A code of conduct. Putting a link to your website at the bottom of each post is  not overt at all then? Informed information is what we get not necessarily always correct information. There are always two opinions eg mine & yours on this particular point. Steve
  14. Teapot..... Try reading the code of conduct for this forum. Very much like many others it has this line.. Please do not advertise or post your personal details, products or services on the message boards. Any advertising without permission will be removed. Poolguy, has and does sometimes offer up useful info but its mainly so that he can "net up" some possible sales. Forums are for discussion and debate( just as you & I on this subject) not for selling services. Steve
  15. [quote user="Poolguy"]Yes  I can help you. Pm me your contact detials and I'll do my best to get you the Bi Carb Soda Andrew [/quote] Aren't the words sell you Andrew, not get you ? Steve
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