Muddy42

I’d love to see a diagram of a hot water and radiator system back boiler from a stove if possible? I’m helping renovate a rental cottage which I think has such a system, but the former occupiers didn’t use it. I'm doing the heavy lifting/woodwork and organizing the other trades like plumbing and electric. It’s a small two story cottage without any obvious heat pump. I think I understand the concept that (unlike gas/oil central heating) it needs a vent/pressure/heat release in case the stove gets too hot. The person who lived in the property 10 years ago says it used to work fine – lots of hot water and warm radiators. If the system got to hot, he said you could hear it boiler off in the attic. But who knows what has happened since then. The attic is very hard to get into and had bees in it (!), so I haven't been up there yet. I am concerned that it might be too much of a ‘hands-on’ system for modern millennial tenants, who want guaranteed instant heat and hot water. So the system would need to work in tandem with electric. But if its working, I am loath to remove the system, purely because it would be so hard to replicate.

I'd wait until you have your tickets, PPE and a saw. Then try calling some farmers or people in rural areas. They always have trees falling on or hanging over fences and everyone needs firewood.

I agree with this. A small amount of wood burning furiously is more efficient than jamming the stove full of wood and letting it slumber. Plus this causes premature wear to the firebricks. Some modern eco design stoves for smoke controlled areas even prevent you closing the stoves down completely - either holes at the rear or some fixture in the vent that stops it closing fully. I'm not sure I am 100% comfortable with this, as there may be a safety reason to clamp the stove down completely if it got too hot for example. I struggle with my Esse One Eco design stove to be honest. There isn't enough metal between the top of the door and the flue, so it smokes back into the room when it is being lit, or the fire is cold or the window is closed or its windy. Yes I can make it smoke-free with a few tricks, but its not ideal. I feel its designed by scientists for perfect laboratory conditions. I'm going to try replacing the liner, adding a suspended cowl and insulating the flue. If that doesn't work I chuck it and buy a second hand clearview. I've never had problems with clearviews - I even swapped in my clearview from a different room - totally fine! Before anyone asks, its Scotland where the rules on DIY work are different.

Thanks all. I'm nervous that if I apply too much lifting power I'll just rip the fence out of the ground. I think I'll attempt the easy ones first (straight one-for-one replacement of sections) and then I'll have some smashed sections to play with or even scavenge metal from.

Hi All. I've gathered that a few forum members work on estates where 'estate fencing' might have been used so might be able to give me some advice. I have some of this fencing that needs attention. It looks quite like the below except much older (probably 80 years) and in shorter three-piece sections that look bolted together. Given its age its in fantastic condition, the damage looks fairly minor - for example where trees have fallen over the fence causing bending. For the minor re-bending, I was thinking of making some angle iron jigs that I can clamp on in situ, to straighten things out also with a hammer and a torch. For the major damage, I have access to some spare sections, that I will just replace one for one. However I've never worked on these before , so any advice or tips would be appreciated.

Please keep it rather than pour it down the drain - its still harmful to fish/rivers/septic tanks. for most applications, even downpipes you can reuse it many times.

No problem at all. Some sweeps or drainage people will only use the lock fast ones. Most require use of a key or spanner to lock/unlock every rod. It comes down to personal preference.

True, but the lockfast ones slow you down if you have to do repeated passes. With tricky flues I might go up and down three times (with progressively wider brushes). I've only had a 3/4 inch threaded one separate once and that was simply user error.

A long time ago I made the ‘no turning’ mistake. The draft seemed fine so I ended up just burning as usual. A half burned plastic fireball emerged a few weeks later. I learned my lesson and no problems since. Dont try this at home, i do not advise this technique, open fires are nasty, hot and dangerous etc etc.

I'm glad for you. Mine is a similar age and type of property. I have tried every trick up my sleeve with no success so far! First off obviously if you burn dry wood creosote is less likely to develop. However in reality most old properties will have some tar or creosote from years of use. This is flammable and can cause chimney fires. There are some aggressive brushes you can use, but I am nervous that these will cause harm to mortar and clay liners. One of my flues is pretty bad, so I am currently using this stuff. You sprinkle it onto the dying embers last thing at night once a week. Chimney and Flue Cleaner reduces tar, soot and creosote | VITCAS SHOP.VITCAS.COM Vitcas® CFC Chimney and Flue Cleaner is an excellent cleaning product for eliminating creosote, soot and tar deposits from chimneys and flue linings. Can even be used on... This is what I do. Its best to replace the bricks/panels before they crumble into pieces. I buy vermiculite of the same thickness and then draw round the old panels.

Yes I get the sweep in occasionally to keep the insurers happy, but I still think any reasonable proficient DIY-er should have their own rods. Open fires or older clay or brick flues can benefit from sweeping twice a year. Plus it keeps the professionals on their toes to know you have a set. My sweep doesn't go on the roof for insurance reasons so I do that just before he turns up. Plus you can quickly respond to jackdaw nests, clear gutter downpipes, drains etc. I'm also tempted to buy those thinner more flexible rods for the AGA and the stove flues.

I use the time tested 3/4 inch screw in drain rods. My record in a tall house was 21 rods. They are perfectly fine for lined brick or clay chimneys, but too stiff for narrow metal liners.

I like Clearviews, they are strong and look nice. Personally I have had bad experiences with modern ‘eco design’ stoves in old houses. These are designed to burn well at full pelt in perfect laboratory conditions NOT old houses with long/windy flues. I have one and its pants - hard to light and smokes back into the room. My clearview with an identical flues (same stack) lights easily and draws like a steam train.

Agreed, its making me sore just thinking about it!

For that type of abuse, I’d go for the either of the petrol husqvarna or stihl 40 or 50 cc options. The 50cc versions are amazing but heavier. I think they both have forestry versions with slightly shorter reach to help with sawing trees. You’ll want saw blade attachments not mulching to get through 3 inches of 12 ft gorse.

Totally agree, there is a shortage of charging capacity and queues as it is without all this anti-competitive nonsense. How was tesla ever allowed their own proprietary charger? So shortsighted. Mobile phones have been around for 40 years, have we not learned anything about the benefits of a standard charger.

There are a few 50mm Meteor piston, cylinder and ring kits on ebay? To the point about pistons fitting well, it may be best to replace both at the same time.

I've never heard of Ama, but all the Alkalyte fuel I have used seems pretty similar. I presume when they say "ready mixed" it means ready mixed to 50:1. If you have any doubt, you could top up the oil with a known high quality brand, just calculate the small amount to take it from 50:1 to say 40:1. I still use pump fuel in a saws if I'm desperate (and then flush it through with aspen afterwards).

If it was felled from green, chopped, split and stacked in rows the sun and wind before say February 2023, you might just be able to burn it this winter. The sap will have been washed/evaporated out and any moisture will be skin deep and you can simply wait for 2-3 dry days and bring it indoors. That said a moisture meter is really useful. Split a log and test the inside. And the drier you get wood the better. Some people say you can burn wood at 25%, but I don't like it. Im not sure how, but I (we!) ended up with some greenish 25% wood in the logshed this year. It is difficult to light, hisses and doesn't really give off much heat. This is more noticeable in open fires than stoves. Whereas the well seasoned, 'crumbly-at-the-edges' 17% moisture logs are a dream to burn

I always use a flat file and a small square for chainsaw bars. For mower blades I use a big angle grinder to remove any dings followed by a flapper sanding disk on a smaller grinder to refine the edge.

Great, Im genuinely glad you have this sorted and isnt it so satisfying to fix things yourself. I feel sad for every broken but repairable chainsaw. You won’t miss the extra displacement. I think this thread has run its course. White flag / pitchforks down / get on with lives!

The main thing is I hope you can get your saw going again. Hopefully the dealer is friendly, however in the worst case it sounds like you can work on saws, so at least you'll be ahead by the labour costs.

Can you not offset the flail to one side? I havnt really done much research yet. But some of my grass gets waist high, I was thinking that to cut it Id need a tractor with a fair amount of puff focussed on a narrow flail. Thanks

Personally I find a rotary gives a better finish but I find a flail is more tolerant of hitting things - stumps/branches. I keep an ancient 1990s ride on Bolens mulching mower limping along. When it dies, I'll probably go for a 50-70 hp 4WD tractor with a 5 ft PTO driven flail.

The most consistent way to test with a moisture meter is to split a few logs and then test the inside. I imagine if you turn up at a firewood supplier with moisture meter and a full sized axe, they will soon get the message that you mean business! I find that logs at 25% moisture can still hiss, below 20% is best.