Stereo

Bit off topic but figured most people here are pretty handy. Essentially we had a Gledhill Torrent heat store put in a couple years ago and it was hooked up to our gas combi as a back up source through a coil in the tank. The fitting for this is a protruding pipe with a male thead which the plumber who fittied it all up managed to bork up the thread on. It's been weeping since it was done and the boiler keeps cutting out as the pressure in the loop falls too low. This morning I decided to pull it to bits and have a look. Essentially, the thread is the same size as standard 22mm compression joint (3/4 bsp?). But, I cannot replace the nut with another in order to re-do the joint as the end of the thread is knackered. What I think I need to do is file off the first 5mm of the thread and get a much deeper nut as there is plenty of thread behind the damaged bit. If you see what I mean? I considered cutting the end of the protrusion off to get back to clean thread but the inner is reamed to take an olive inside. Any ideas?

Dean Forge down in Buckfastleigh are pretty good. We got our Esse w23 off them and got a good service inc fittng which was done to a good standard.

That's what you want. Old grey hardwood with all the shakes opened up. Will burn like a dream and no mess.

Hyundai Santa Fe is a good old truck. Again, looks are not the best.

Good tip, missed it the first time around. So thanks, hope I never need it!

Have a look on ebay for seconds etc. Or join your local freecycle. There's usually somebody giving away a few sheets or bats every now and again.

I too have found that hardwoods like oak can season fully with no cover at all. Just exposure to sun and wind and rain. On the other hand, leave pop or alder logs out in the rain and you will have soaking wood in no time at all. I did read once that a good way to quickly season hardwoods is to net them and leave them in a stream for a day or 2. This washes the sap out of them and they dry much quicker afterwards. No idea if there is any truth in that but if you see an old oak log that's been left out in all weathers, it's usually bone dry to the middle. I like to stack mine with the miniumum cover. Just enough to stop rain water from running down through the stack as the middle logs will take forever to dry again. Main thing is wind, as mentioned. I've got a field that the wind cuts across like crazy and I'm thinking that a wall of pallet crates stacked up wit covers over the top would dry in no time at all.

Isn't there a problem burning coal and wood together? We used to do it but were advised it was a bad idea. Can't remember by who.

You can do this but hmrc take a dim view of it. You are effectively the same person and it can be seen as tax evasion. Those who say it's fine probably never get checked. Best thing is to speak to a good accountant. As for re-registering, if your turnover is going to take you over the threshold true. You have to re-register. If it's voluntary then you will have to make a case that you are going to go over threshold soon. Just getting the vat back on a load of kit is no good reason In their eyes. All IMHO of course. Speak to an accountant or hmrc.

The big problem I find with just burning softwood is that you get far less embers. So you nod off for a couple hours and the fire has gone completely. So I like to mix in some ash or sycamore which provides a good ember bed. Other than that I'm all for it. Dries super quick.

I guess a cloth would be better than paper as it doesn't last long. Will try it next time. The wood ash is the key. Fantastic abrasive.

Just wondered if anyone had any good tips for this? Here's mine. A lump of scrunched up newspaper. Get it wet and clean the glass with that. You can make it more abrasive by dunking it in the ash in the grate as well. This is really effective. Try it if you don't believe me. Sometimes you need a second page to clean off all the gunk.

I second the comment about the bark. Same with alder. If it comes off easily enough it's worth taking few minutes more to remove it when splitting.

Business is tough these days. Cash-flow is a problem which affects many companies. However the first rule of employing is that you pay your staff first. That's the way we work anyway.

It has to be super dry or you get bitter smoke.

One of the best things about Poplar and Alder is the ease of splitting. Makes it an easy job to split and stack and it dries much quicker than ash or oak. If it's not dry it smoulders and smokes like a bugger but if it's bone dry it burns hot and clean. Yes it burns away faster but the harvesting and seasoning time makes up for that and the speed of growth. I burn a lot of alder and have burnt a few big old poplars in the past and they are very similar.

Thanks. The ash was rotten inside the trunk when we felled it so I think it was a gonner. I will get the beech looked at. The oak is not a big problem where it is.

Yes. Poplar was used for matches. It's ok as a firewood. Dry it well and keep it out of the rain or it will soak it up again. Bit like alder or willow really. Worthwhile if used properly.

When me and my brother were kids we found a nest under an old elder tree, right in the root, probably down an ex rat hole. We decided to get a length of glass pipe about 12ft long from the milk parlour, pour some petrol down it and deal with them. Unfortunately we didn't reckon on the effect of igniting a gallon of 4 star in a confined space. We chucked in a match and ran. There was nothing for about 10 seconds then a dull thud which we felt through the ground and the tree must have gone 20ft in the air. Funniest thing I've ever seen. Worse, there were still wasps flying out on fire when we went back. They were a little dazed. Terrible really but there you go.

Thanks, the oak looks like someone has taken a giant hatchet to it from about 6ft up and hacked it down. It seems OK but is very one sided now and all the weight is on the side of the lean. Will it survive with that much bark missing? The timber left looks sound. The problem I have with the beech is that the wound is deep, there is signs of rot and there is an awful lot of tree above it. Plus the wound is natural water trap so I fear water is just going to lie in there and rot it further. In the limb which fell off there was plenty of what I think they call spalting? Does this mean the whole tree is likely affected? We took down a big old ash right next to it this summer due to what looked like a fungal infection causing all the branches to drop one by one. No other trees around look to be affected but I wonder if this is some kind of disease?

Pics

I've got that on my iphone, will have a go.

Down in South Devon. I'll try to post some photos if I can work out how to get them off my iphone and onto here.

We don't sell the Clarke stoves at the moment, more welders, compressors etc. I might get some down to have a look at.

Way down in South Devon!