A few minutes repairing and testing the 44 year old Christmas Tree lights, it’s a yearly event, after bringing the Christmas Decorations down from the attic.
It did not take me as long to fix this year, only four bulbs needed replacing to get them working again!
If your telephone master socket, looks like this example, it could be the problem!
UK BT Master Telephone Socket with many extensions
try removing a few extensions, and just connect your Broadband Modem or Router!
(this example provided by a friend, it did have more extensions, that have since been removed! The ADSL Broadband Router light did not light )
My BT Master Socket - New ADSL faceplate
If you fancy some DIY, you can change the BT Master NTE5/5A faceplate, for a modern NTE2005, (ADSL faceplate) which has a connection for telephone and Broadband USB Modem or Router, and then there is no need to use an additional broadband filter. NTE2005 (ADSL faceplate) are readily available on eBay and Online.
I’ll set the scene, at the beginning of September (September 5th 2011)
Diagnosing the fault with the backyard lamp, I noticed and reported to Boot Ferrule Man, (a qualified Electrician) and my neighbour, the mains voltage coming into the house was 256v AC! (which I suspect had blown and damaged the electronic X10 switch). Boot Ferrule Man stated that was far too high, and out of tolerence, but when I checked on the internet, I was confused by the reported tolerences of AC voltage supply in the UK. At this time, I had not associated this “possible fault” with the other items 1-3 above.
Saturday 8th October 2011, a neighbour in the shire, knocked on the door at 11.00am, asking if we had, had any damage the previous night (7th October 2011) at 9.00, because a few properties in the shire, had items which had stopped working, lightbulbs, Freeview STB, Washing Machines, Central heating pumps, Sky Boxes, television mast head amplifiers etc
We had not noticed any, issues that evening. they reported the fault to YEDL, later Saturday afternoon (3.15pm), a YEDL Engineer visited our house, and disconnected us, because they found the electrical impedance to the property was at 1.3 ohms, the maximum impedance allowable is 0.35 ohms, and stated that they had tested that day 280V AC, at a few properties, the fault lay in the common neutral to all the houses, and their was a fault outside of the property, possibly due to water ingress into the underground cabling. I asked the YEDL engineers, what time did they think service would resume, and they stated, the Digging Team was scheduled to arrive at 6.15pm, and they could not do any work, until thy arrived, so they tidied their YEDL VANs! They gave me a time of 10.00pm! I noticed that the YEDL, are going through a re-branding to CE Electric UK. These were some of the labels on the VANs, although they still had YEDL uniforms!
So I decided to power-up the petrol generator for the fish house.
Coincidence you may think, because in April 2010, they were fixing a joint underground, see here.
The YEDL engineers arrived on site, to fix the fault, but had to wait for the “digging team” before they could start work, the digging team eventually arrived at approx 7.30pm, because I just come back from the Chinese with our dinner, to eat in the dark with our headtorches, and my NEW ZEBRALIGHT!, which of course I purchased from my friendly Boot Ferrule Man. ZEBRALIGHT! Review coming soon!
Our electricity was not re-connected and tested until approx 2.30am, so with hindsight, it was a good job, I connected the petrol generator for the fish house, and this is the longest runtime, I’ve had it running 11 hours@3000Watts.
New Impedance tested to house is 0.29 ohms.
A few photos of the event!
What a morning and afternoon, Lindsey woke me up this morning at silly o’clock, complaining she couldn’t have a shower because there was no cold water!
If you look back in the archives, here, if you examine the photographs carefully and look towards the rear of the photographs, you can see some “loft insulation” that’s been used as lagging around the copper hot and cold water pipes, and also the hot and cold water header tanks.
It would appear that the temperature dropped overnight to something ridiculous which froze the ball cock in the cold water header tank, and also froze one of the pipes.
So, after taking off the cold water feed to the shower unit, and there was no water, putting a 3kWatt fan heater in the attic/loft to warm the loft up, which thawed out the frozen ball cock, eventually combination of fan heater and sun shine on the roof thawed out the pipework.
The only difficulty was connecting the pipe back up, with water coming out of it under pressure from the header tank, and no way to stop it, so I had to let the tank drain, before re-connecting, so I got a bit wet!
So it looks like loft insulation isn’t up to the job of insulating pipes!
That’s another DIY job sometime!
Merry #@!? Chrimbo!
It all started when my Father visited us in March this year. I forgot to mention to him, not to touch the porch, he’d only been standing outside the house for less than 30 seconds, and said “this isn’t looking very good”, and continued to pull off a lump of wood off the porch”
This is the damage he caused
My Dad broke my Porch
So in August over the Summer, we called in the joiner to remove the rotten wood, and rebuild the porch. It’s almost but finished, but needs the door gloss-ing with white paint.
Here are the photographs from start to finish of the repair. Use the new slideshow option, it might be quicker!
My Father did contribute a generous £10 towards the repairs!
I’ll upload a final picture of the exterior all painted, apart from the door!
Chim chiminey
Chim chiminey
Chim chim cher-ee!
long overdue check on the Chim chiminey! These are for you Lindsey!
The old Electrolux Contour
Well it finally had to happen our Electrolux Contour vacuum cleaner which we purchased in 1989, has finally gone to Vacuum Cleaner heaven. It’s typical after just purchasing replacement bags and drive belts, but it would appear that the motor is worn out, and it no longer sucks! When this was first advertised on the TV circa 1989, they showed it holding a dinner plate it had that much suction - not any more! It’s been repaired countless times, and it broke three years ago and we went and purchased an in-expensive Electrolux Cyclone bagless vacuum cleaner- this was rubbish, the filters were always blocking and needed cleaning under a tap every time it was used, so we stopped using it, and I fixed the Electrolux Contour again!
So, we are no longer Dyson virgins, as I purchased a new Dyson DC20 Stowaway later this evening, before taking the Contour vacuum cleaner apart earlier, and in the process damaged one of Lindsey’s ornaments in the lounge. The Carved Gourd now has a hole in it! (and you cannot bring anything home without the cats inspecting it!)
Dyson DC20 in box (Angus)
Dyson DC20 in box (Tilly)
The amount of suction this vacuum cleaner has got is unbelievable, the carpets get sucked up, off the underlay, and it looks like I’m Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator!
Dyson DC20 out of the box!
“I thought my carpets were clean until I purchased a Dyson”
so thumbs up to another James!
Toilet 'vintage' cistern with old ball-cock and valve
This all started about three and a half years ago, when we first purchased the house, the first DIY job I had was to fix the dripping overflow from the toilet in the bathroom. The toilet cistern is rather narrow, and possibly vintage (or old) because it contains a very large porcelain flush, the disadvantage of this is, there is not much room in the cistern for a replacement ball cock and valve.
After searching in various DIY stores, I couldn’t find replacement part that would fit the cistern, so I just “modified” the brass ball cock arm by bending it slightly to stop the dripping overlow.
close-up of old ball-cock and valve
Many months later, I found some replacement brass fittings, so I purchased three of them, and stored them in the garage until it needed replacing for good.
New brass ball cock valve
Well this DIY bodge job came back to haunt me, because it started dripping again a few months ago. So it was time to replace with the parts in stock in the garage.
New part fitted
The only problem with the new ball cock and valve fitted, was the shaft was too short, and I couldn’t fit the ball cock to it. Back to the drawing board, so I removed the old shaft, and connected it to the new valve. This worked and stopped the dripping valve, but when the toilet cistern filled, it was horrendously noisy! I later discovered it was the venturi action of the valve that was causing the noise under high pressure. So back to the drawing board and Google. I then discovered Fluidmaster a quiet fill small footprint fill valve, but there isn’t much room in the cistern, so off to Screwfix for the part.
Fluidmaster Quiet Float Valve
When was the last plumbing part your purchased, comes in a nice box? with instructions on the back of the box, and an A4 sheet inside!
It didn’t take me very long to fit this new Fluidmaster part, and there was just enough space, a few millimetres clearance from the flush mechanism and walls of the cistern, must make sure there’s enough clearance, and regularly check or will have another flood!
Oh yes the flood, following the instructions, Step 7. IMPORTANT ALWAYS CLEAR ANY DEBRIS FROM WATER LINE TO COMPLETE INSTALLATION. So I shut off the water as instructed, removed the cap, went downstairs, and under the kitchen sink, turn-ed back on the water…… oh #@!? when I returned to the bathroom, water under extreme pressure was hitting the opposite end of the cistern, and water was then travelling vertically, and hitting the ceiling, and then dripping off, I had to run back downstairs and turn off the water! I think it would have been best if the instructions had stated to place the top back on the cistern!
The bathroom was flooded!!! (didn’t have time to take pictures, mopping up the water!).
Anyway pictures of the Fluidmaster installed…
Quiet Float Valve by Fluidmaster
Quiet Float Valve by Fluidmaster
Quiet Float Valve by Fluidmaster
It does what it says on the tin or box in this case, it’s quiet! So no more nosiy toilet! (when it’s filling anyway!).
The thermal fuselinks obtained from http://www.storageheater.co.uk/ have fixed the night storage heater. Just in time as external night temperatures plument to below -7 degrees C. We walked to the local town again yesterday to obtain coffee for Lindsey. The local roads are no better, and are worse with the overnight snowfall.
the long walk home in a blizzard
But we were lucky, because a nice man in his 4×4 Mercedes Benz with snow tyres gave us a lift back to the hamlet!
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