tcar

Have a look at the Lomo website, good kit and prices. Some of the boxes are out of stock, but worth calling them as they get new stuff all the time Dry Boxes for marine use in kayaking or sailing etc.

If it is purely for SOS emergency situations the PLB is far superior (stronger signal, both satelite GPS and radio homing signal) and gives you the best chance of being found. If you want it mainly to reassure family that you're fine or running late where there's no phone signal, then InReach paired with a smart phone is the way to go and in an emergency you would be able contact emergency services. Good review here: http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/Personal-Locator-Beacon-Reviews

I've had a Spot 3 for about 18 months, initially very pleased with it, but recently I've found that it can take hours, sometimes even days for messages to be received, so I've lost confidence in it for use in an emergency. Currently looking at Delorme InReach, uses a different satellite network to the Spot 3 and is said to have better coverage. Also allows 2 way texting which is a lot better than the pre defined txt that you set up with a Spot 3.

Out of curiosity is there anyone out there who is objecting to fracking but was in favour of keeping coal mines open? Trevor

We've a Perge 30KW log boiler with 2500lt accumulator which is situated in the garage; its a new 4 bed room house with UFH downstairs and radiators upstairs & an unvented HW tank in the house feed from the accumulator. During the summer one burn every 4 days was sufficient for hot water, currently burning once a day (a full load then a top up) for all hot water and heating. Very happy with the system, house very warm and loads of hot water, but we buy in cord & process all our own logs, otherwise it would be expensive. Supplied by Cairngorm Stoves in Grantown on Spey, very good service. TC

Just wondering why you're needing hardwood, we burn nothing but softwood (0.5m logs) in our boiler (similar size) and they're ideal (and cheaper!)?

Are you sure it wasn't one of these from Tamworth?? Deadly Brazilian spider found in Tamworth warehouse - BBC News

I have a Spot Gen3 that I use in remote areas. Can track location, send OK or need assistance messages to predefined numbers / email addresses and in an emergency sends an SOS which will be directed to emergency services. Messages have to pre programmed. Yellow brick would be another one to look at; it allows you to compose messages & txt , but a bit more expensive. Trevor

Stay positive, take it one day at a time, don't rush it and you'll get there. The NHS are brilliant. All the best.

Same here, as long as I take the omeprazol no problems. I believe weight, smoking, drink and spicy food can aggregate it, but I don,t think it ever clears up by itself.

:lol:

As has been said oversupply and a fall in demand are the main issues. China's rate of growth has slowed and the EU is still on the brink of recession, in the medium term a lower oil price will help kick start economies round the world and so increase the demand for oil. Oil supplies have recently come back on line from Libya and we are just starting to see the impact of shale oil and gas from the USA. The high oil price over the last few years has led to the development of unconventional oil and gas in the USA, traditionally these were too expensive to produce and were therefore not developed. They are still expensive and require continued investment to drill new wells, as each well has a very short life before it is depleted. A lot of the fields will be uneconomic below $75/ bbl; over the next 6 months production from the US will tail off, this will be temporary, as they can easily start drilling and fracing again if the oil price makes it economic. A lot of people in the industry expect the oil price to stay around $60/bbl for the next six months and then settle around 80$/bbl. Lots of jobs will be lost in the NE of Scotland over the next few months, with the oil price already below the break even cost for a lot of the older platforms. And new projects will be cancelled or put on hold. A low oil price my be good for world economies but could be a disaster for the environment - there will be less incentive to develop alternative energies and more CO2 will be released into the atmosphere. I think all the talk of punishing Russia or Iran are just conspiracy theories, it is just the market adjusting to changes. Personally I think that Russia becoming unstable is highly dangerous and the Russian people are likely to back Putin against the world if they are backed into a corner. All the above could change if IS continue to spread across the Middle East and into North Africa. happy new year ;o)

The Darien Scheme....maybe if we have to have our own currency we could call it the Darien Dollar!!

We've a Perge 30KW log boiler with 2500lt accumulator which is situated in the garage; its a new 4 bed room house with UFH downstairs and radiators upstairs & an unvented HW tank in the house feed from the accumulator. Roughly 13K for the boiler, accumulator and installation, no VAT as it was a new build. During the summer one burn every 4 days was sufficient for hot water, currently burning once a day (a full load then a top up) for all hot water and heating, using approx. 1 1/2m3 per week of SW. Very happy with the system, house very warm and loads of hot water, but we buy in cord & process all our own logs, otherwise it would be expensive. TC

Thanks forall the advice, I'll try some of the suggestions and let you know how I get on. Cheers TC