Steven P

The website looks legit, am guessing it is a real person - unless scammers have suddenly got an attention to detail. Suspect he is in over his head promising sales he can't deliver rather than just out to take money. Still, for a decent business you would expect a dialogue and some guilt on their part

This is true, they are only good if it is a benefit to you - for the OP a 30 mile round trip it might make sense if there is a drive, a nature place, or similar you can tip onto 5 miles away - save 20 miles and about an hour of time (on a Friday, an early dart...). Running about to drop half a load of logs here, chip there and green waste somewhere else doesn't make a lot of sense. Still left needing somewhere for the green waste and anything you can't get rid off on the day so yes, paying a farmer sounds the best option West coast of Scotland.... if you are ever passing East Kilbride with a tipper full..... (probably the wrong part of the west coast of course)

I'll also go for the sealant melting. Very unlikely with a chimney swept in November to be getting tar leaking down like that - unlikely if it was 3 years ago too! Even more if the liner was brand new, and clean a year ago. As far as I can tell the tar kind of settles on the chimney, all the way up, doesn't drip down, so if you get a chimney fire the fuel is all up the chimney. which is where the problems start. Have to get it proper hot for it to melt in this kind of quantity and you'd notice it on the register plate, and also into the fire which would be doing funny things too. Going by your history, installed about a year ago so this is probably the first winter when you have been using them fully? and the first winter when they have been getting proper... and so the first winter you will have noticed this going wrong. Ask the same question this time last year and everyone will be saying sealant.

Lidl do everything eventually Not seen the moisture meter yet - which means it will be there this week!

Nothing wrong with that, we are all guilty as each other. Yup got some netting in the wood, but it needs collecting and bringing back to her house (could also be used as a bit of a wind break where I want The Boys to have their 'camp fires') - if it was a no go then I'd save myself a job. Overhang on roofs? is that a thing then?

It's quite a lot too isn't it, about £30k? Must be trashed and need it after al the parties!!

Unusual for me to say this... but how is the tip sites for your area? Its usually the other way around. Should be able to dich the logs quick enough, maybe even the chip. Dealing with an extra level of the general public adds a hassle though (by the way if you are ever passing mine, tell me to move the car, tip and go....chips + logs OK). Left with just the green waste? Apart from that it sounds like the farmer is the best bet, hire them to load the lorry if you can.

It's gong to get a solid roof, needs to be hinged 'backwards' so I can open it from my side of the wall to fill it up for her. I think I have something suitable for the edges hanging about, but wondered if it was going to be worth getting it Based up in Glasgow... all rain protection is good

That's what I was thinking, even if some water gets blown through, it is going to hold off a lot I reckon. I'll look for the recommendations. What sort of hole size is in the mesh? couple of mm?

When was he last in the news before then... oh yes, wasn't there something about "the least socially distanced party ever", and then there was a loan the head of the BBC was middle man for (before being appointed by Johnson). He has previous for going overseas when the press gets a bit nosey, can't handle the door stepping (remember when his ex wife locked him out when news of another affair leaked to the press?) So why did he go there? Last time he got some good PR out of it. This time an afterthought on the evening news

This is just a thought The background is that I 'killed' my neighbours wood store over the weekend, it had a 30 degree lean to it, and piling next winters logs on it has given it a 90 degree lean now..... So a job for me next weekend.... My thought here, if I put some fine mesh at the ends of what I rebuild, would that be enough to stop most of the rain and yet still allow an air flow through. My guess is yes, if I get the right size?

Had a Stihl one that I guess worked OK - I never compared it to anything, think the batteries died but it had shown what I was drying out was dry enough before it did

Not something I've ever done you see, interesting to know.

To go a bit further to Trigger_Andy. Looking at the costs and your suggestion it might be better as firewood - can you rent a mill, might be if it is all going to go for firewood the OP is only loosing a rental fee and time to have a go themselves? Might be rubbish, might get a gem, but be good experience any way

My take, bark is the trees protective layer, it keep the moisture in (remember that when making firewood - split everything so there is wood exposed to dry), bark keeps the insects out and also some fire resistance... so the more bark I think the harder it will be to burn. Am sure we have all seen big old trees where the insides has been burnt, the outside is OK leaving a hollow core

Maple trees need a certain conditions to get good sugary sap - think also has to do with temperature at certain times of the year as well

The also take everything out out the leaves that are useful and shed them - smaller surface area to get cold - or they have fat round spikey leaves (generally) with a smaller surface area to the volume. They shut down a lot, don't need so much water in the trunk (see the leaves which lose a lot of water) again helping (chop a tree down in winter, it will be drier than one cut in the summer) After that the memory fades from school lessons many many years ago

How much kindling will you need for personal use for a season? To me a machine is a bit excessive for what I use but each to their own. My kindling machine was about £10 from the large DIY warehouse*. Softwood logs at 200mm, hand axe, happy days. Pallet, saw with an old chain, and a hand axe, nearly as happy. (* other large DIY warehouses are available) (serious question though, how much will you need will give us an indication of what you are looking for)

The right thing to do - I'm not a legal expert Client / Customer - different line of work to you, but yes understand the distinction.

Here is an experiment, outside, have a fire in the garden and place a sealed tin of beans on it. Puncture a tin of beans and place that on at the same time. Stand well back and wait as they heat up. If it is sealed. or can become sealed in use then I believe it becomes a pressure vessel and subject to all sorts of other regulations. Does capped mean sealed though, or just protected so that hot air expanding out of it isn't directed to a person standing nearby? Legal requirement for a liner? Not such a thing (see below), unless it forms a part of a sales contract with you and a stove supplier. Nearly all manufacturers of anything will recommend stuff but not demand it (legal issues on both sides, if they tell you to spend money doing something and turns out you don't need to, you can claim on them you see). Recommended though, but if you chimney is in good condition then you will be OK. What is the chimney at the moment? If it is lined you might get away with just a stove install. I'd be tempted to take it out at a suitable time and get it replaced. Removal could be a DIY job - the boards are - but the stove will be heavy and need a couple of you to get it out the house. Get the sweep back though - I'd recommend that for a first time sweep anyway - tell them the stove is being replaced and you want the chimney swept and inspected (they will more than likely put a smoke pellet in, check all the way up for leaks, check the chimney pots and chimney). Do that in advance of the stove being installed - just in case you need remedial works doing, be a shame to watch a brand new stove doing nothing while you wait for a builder to do works. If you have a chimney liner just now and if the sweep says it is good to go then I'd get the installers to remove the old stove... they will know how to do that without damaging the liner if you tell them to reuse it. Final couple of thoughts, does it work OK as it is? and from above, sweeping it yourself, can be a DIY job. Wood Burning Stove Building Regulations | Direct Stoves WWW.DIRECTSTOVES.COM Are you wondering what building regulations there are for installing a stove in the UK? Find out about flues, hearths and more on our expert blog >>

Your sticks are more stickier than mine, just -4 here

Sorry, being blunt, you can do as the insurers say, and do a shit job. Or you can do a good job, Sounds like you need all 3 insurers to talk together and all 3 of them to all agree that your quote is the best for the job, and then all 3 to coordinate giving you the go ahead and then coordinating with all 3 owners to do the work. Suspect this will add to the cost of course. Remove what you have been given approval for and you are leaving site with half a tree on a neighbours house? Wonder if that will happen quickly? You could work backwards, top to bottom as it were, do the neighbours first if their insurers approve, then the clients garden another time if necessary (or wait till neighbours get their half done) In my view (I have made very few insurance claims though), householders tree,. fell damaging neighbours property, client is liable for that damage and their insurance should pay up. Neighbour isn't liable for any of it and should be claiming on the tree owners insurance.

If you have them in a bag, where is the moisture going to go? My thought it not very far, it will pop out the logs, look about and pop back into the logs again. Drying logs is simple: Air flow Keep the water off Heat in roughly that order, no air flow in bags, no drying.

If the building collapses that loses you an hour or more sorting that? All manual labour. Suggest go back to the customer and say you are concerned about the low price, accepting that you have lost the job, suggest they get a third quote and check you are all quoting like for like. Might be the 3rd is £300 - £500 mark which means you are way out, might be the 3rd quote is nearer yours - but then you can't say you didn't warn the customer that something wasn't quote right

Depends if your system can give a date of when it is expected to be in stock. 'This week' is usually OK with me, 'Unknown' and I'll look somewhere else. Of course good customer relations would suggest to keep this accurate