Turvey's New House Troubles

[Turvey]

Hope you don't mind Lenny but I copied all/most of the posts regarding boiler etc in the new house over to this post just so I could find them and to stop cluttering up the 'I don't like' thread 😉

 

Turvey:- I don't like our oil boiler breaking down/locking out at 9.30 at night!

Call out tomorrow morning I think. 

 

Lenny:-Doesn't usually be much wrong with kerosene boilers unless the fuel pump or injector nozzle is at the end of it's life, 

The thermostat on the boiler itself may just need to be reset, 

I put Dipetane in the kerosene of ours last fill to clear it out, I think it has made it heat up a bit quicker, 

When is the last time the system was flushed? 

I've fitted Aladdin auto bleed valves to all radiators and put a bottle of endotherm in the system, well worth the spend.

 

Turvey:-Hoping it'll be an easy fix, I'm guessing nozzle, filter or photocell thingy. 

We just moved in last week and knowing the history of the house, I would nearly guarantee that it hasn't been serviced for at least 2 years, so your guess is as good as mine as to when the radiators have been flushed. 

I'll investigate the two products you mentioned Lenny, thanks for that. 

As I said we've just moved and I'm in the middle of ripping out built in wardrobes etc  in our bedroom and could do with this like a hole in the head 🙄

 

Lenny:-🎉Congratulations on the new home mate,🎊

Here's some links to the items I've mentioned from a UK supplier;

I'd give the system a good flush out with water to remove sludge and maximise the benefits from the endotherm as once you pour it in, you want to keep it in there

Link to endotherm: https://smartgreenshop.co.uk/endotherm-central-heating-additive-500ml.html 

Link to a to bleed valves: https://smartgreenshop.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/?q=aladdin 

The boiler always goes at a bad time, 

I've got Climote coming out today to fit a heating control unit which can be controlled by app or asking Alexa to turn on the heating.

 

Turvey:- Well that was, thankfully, an easy fix! 

No oil! 🙄 😆

Tank lifted at one end to enable bleeding of the system, delivery sorted for this afternoon. Heating off until after delivery, I'll lower the tank before delivery

 

Lenny:-Stinking job bleeding the pipe, 

Had to bleed ours yesterday morning for the same reason, takes a lot of washing to clean hands of the smell, 

I usually put a bin liner over my arm when bleeding the pipe from tank to boiler. 

 

Turvey:-I left it to the engineer, well worth the £10 and a cuppa tea and biscuit that it cost 

 

Lenny:-I've replaced the Allen head bleed valve on our boiler with one of these plunger style bleed valves 

Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Rough-Plumbing/BoilerBleed-Boiler-Bleed-Valve/B01N228X4E/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1544250738&sr=8-2&pi=AC_SX177_SY255_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=boiler+bleed+valve&dpPl=1&dpID=21uJACsjbdL&ref=plSrch 

You push in the plunger to release the air, The nozzle is focused towards the ground which makes it easy to contain the excess in to a bottle then pour in back in the tank saves me around 60ml per bleed and makes the procedure much cleaner.👍

 

Turvey:-Wow! So simple, yet effective. It's amazing what's out there. How do you come across these items? I wouldn't even think about looking for something like that. 

 

Lenny:-I wish I didn't find things sometimes as I become flat broke because of all the finding ☺

I initially made up a shield using a long Allen key from an Aldi set and a 500ml plastic coke bottle, 

I asked an adult to help me Cut the bottle in half, 

Then drilled a hole in the cap; inserted the Allen key and sealed with silicone, 

The bottle acted as a 360° shield from the spraying kerosene 👍

Then a few years later I began improving the house and I googled around in my spare time to find if things were available such as the bleed valve for the boiler and a PIR sensor for the television which turns it off when the kids leave the room, 

I'm not being a "Victor Meldrew" about things, I like to enjoy life and comfort but little things like that save money without compromising on the fun, 

Vasectomy is another good modification I've had done, saving me potentially half a million across the remainder of my life, with no compromise on the quality 

Stainless Steel soap is great for removing kerosene from your hands too, well it's not actually soap it's just shaped like soap never reduces in size but removes smells due to reaction with the iron ions in the stainless steel link: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Stainless-Steel-Soap-Remover-Kitchen-Hand-Odour-Eliminating-Smell-Easy-Fast-UK/372470993548 

 

 

 

 

 

[Turvey]

Another job to add to the list, one of the twins complained that his room wasn't very warm even with the radiator turned right up. 

After checking it seems quite slow to heat up and heats from the top and doesn't really get hot on the bottom. 

Seemingly it's probably full of sludge and needs to be flushed 🙄

If only it wasn't a big rad, probably an 1800! Ah well, the joys of old houses 😀

 

[Turvey]

Spent the best part of 3 days pressure washing paths and the drive! Looks like it hadn't been done for years. Very therapeutic cleaning paths, I would nearly volunteer to do it for free for other folk! Nearly 😉

Boring job was defrosting the built-in fridge 😲

The house has been used to house workers for a store that was being built, they thought it was cheaper to buy a house than pay for B+B! Anyway, the Icebox was in dire need of defrosting and remove all the bachelor type food. We've got an American fridge-freezer and a normal undercounter fridge as well, so this one is being cleaned out and switched off as 3 fridges is a bit much. 

 

Also to be done shortly is change all the light fittings to normal pendant lights. Last count there were about 20 to change 🙄 lots of weird 80s style fittings and flowery shades! Also to be changed are the brass lightswitches and sockets.

[Turvey]

Wee update for anyone that's interested. 

 

We took advantage of an offer to get our two upstairs bedrooms insulated for free! Under an incentive funded by the power companies(begrudgingly I would imagine) 'rooms in roofs' are eligible for updated insulation. This involved laying 2 inch insulated plasterboard over the existing outer walls, replastering and painting and replacing skirtings. Because both rooms had radiators on the outer walls they had to be removed before the insulating.

 

This involved draining the heating system. I took advantage of this and got the plumber to install a magnetic filter, that I had bought, in the pipe work. He added a cleaning agent one week, drained it the next and then added the filter and inhibitor. To say I'm impressed with it is an understatement! Even after cleaning it the amount of magnetite in the system was unbelievable. 

The radiators now heat up nearly instantly as well. I would totally recommend anyone who has a boiler (oil,gas... whatever) and radiators to seriously consider installing a magnetic filter.

 

First pic was 4 hours after refilling system, I then cleaned it and refitted it and the second pic is 48 hours after that. Getting less so obviously catching all the crud. Hopefully going to be spending a bit less on oil in the future.

 

If Lenny reads this (I've not figured out how to tag folk yet) I've not forgotten about the things you recommended 😉

 

Bedroom and ensuite next. Bathroom been ordered, arriving next week hopefully and fitted shortly. 

[zain611]

@Turvey you tag someone by putting the @ in then it'll generate names as you type in 👍.

That pressure wash made a difference on the walkway and driveway. It's surprising how dirty the floor gets. Might pressure wash my drive when I clean the car 🤣

[Turvey]

@zain611

👍

[WES180]

9 hours ago, zain611 said:

@Turvey you tag someone by putting the @ in then it'll generate names as you type in 👍.

Well, ive learned something new today too! Thanks @zain611 🙂

[Turvey]

Old bathroom ripped out, currently sitting on the drive awaiting it's final trip to the dump. 

 

And a wee side project I knocked together with scrap wood I took out of the bedroom and ensuite. A man's got to have a hobby [emoji16] [emoji482]

 

 

[Lenny]

On 3/1/2019 at 9:58 PM, zain611 said:

@Turvey you tag someone by putting the @ in then it'll generate names as you type in 👍.

That pressure wash made a difference on the walkway and driveway. It's surprising how dirty the floor gets. Might pressure wash my drive when I clean the car 🤣

 

On 3/1/2019 at 10:02 PM, Turvey said:

@zain611

👍

 

On 3/2/2019 at 7:40 AM, WES180 said:

Well, ive learned something new today too! Thanks @zain611 🙂

And you still didn't bleeping tag me to this thread 😂 I'm only seeing this entire thread today, Very interesting read mate and I look forward to following from now onwards, 

20 pendants must be a massive house, LED are all the rage now mate, we got all of ours from Next so far, except for the downlights in the hall there from JCC 

My thread is here for those interested in viewing more home improvements: https://www.fordownersclub.com/forums/topic/80864-living-room-project/

 

[Lenny]

1 hour ago, Turvey said:

Old bathroom ripped out, currently sitting on the drive awaiting it's final trip to the dump. 

And a wee side project I knocked together with scrap wood I took out of the bedroom and ensuite. A man's got to have a hobby

Thats the Research and planning department where all strategic planning and epic journeys begin. 

[zain611]

1 hour ago, Lenny said:

Thats the Research and planning department where all strategic planning and epic journeys begin. 

Yep sitting down in a bath tub in warm water stimulates the brain 🛀. Been years since I've had a bath

[Lenny]

1 hour ago, zain611 said:

Yep sitting down in a bath tub in warm water stimulates the brain 🛀. Been years since I've had a bath

I was referring to the bar area he made 😅

I haven't used the bath for around three years now, I use the shower daily though,

I have 6" speakers in the ceiling of the bathroom linked to the stereo in the bedroom, can play music or radio, 

[Turvey]

3 hours ago, Lenny said:

 

 

😂

20 pendants must be a massive house, LED are all the rage now mate, we got all of ours from Next so far, except for the downlights in the hall there from JCC 

 

Probably sounds grander than it actually is 😀 seller called it a 6 bedroom but I would call it a 5 bedroom with an office (which our son is using as a bedroom!) Including bathrooms there's 17 rooms, all of which need dragging into the 21st century. 

 

The room we started on, our bedroom and ensuite, was only needing a carpet when we moved in but it had horrendous built in wardrobes which we took out and the ensuite was needing attention so we just ripped out everything and started again 😀

 

Zoopla link to the sellers listing https://www.zoopla.co.uk/property/45-scapa-crescent/st-ola/kirkwall/kw15-1rl/11976468

[Turvey]

22 minutes ago, Lenny said:

I was referring to the bar area he made 😅

I haven't used the bath for around three years now, I use the shower daily though,

I have 6" speakers in the ceiling of the bathroom linked to the stereo in the bedroom, can play music or radio, 

The rest of the bar area 😀

[Lenny]

13 minutes ago, Turvey said:

Probably sounds grander than it actually is 😀 seller called it a 6 bedroom but I would call it a 5 bedroom with an office (which our son is using as a bedroom!) Including bathrooms there's 17 rooms, all of which need dragging into the 21st century. 

 

The room we started on, our bedroom and ensuite, was only needing a carpet when we moved in but it had horrendous built in wardrobes which we took out and the ensuite was needing attention so we just ripped out everything and started again 😀

 

Zoopla link to the sellers listing https://www.zoopla.co.uk/property/45-scapa-crescent/st-ola/kirkwall/kw15-1rl/11976468

Looks great and fantastic price mate, I paid much the same for our house back in 2006 bought for €285,000 

Interior is a bit out dated looks to be 80's early 90's design with wardrobes spanning over the beds, 

Its mad what the auctioneers say in description; there's a house in our estate for sale at present, it hasn't got network cables in every room like ours now, it doesn't have television's upstairs.

But the description says meticulously contemporary mode

Property Description:

We are excited to bring to the market this impressive two storey modern home in the very popular Development. Spread out over two floors this stunning property extends over 90 sq m approximately and is immaculately decorated throughout. 

This meticulously contemporary home boasts quality fixtures and fittings throughout, is presented in excellent decorative order and ready for immediate residence. 

It has an open fire in the living room how is that modern or contemporary, The fire surround looks like a secondary school woodwork project, it has kerosene boiler heating radiators but the system isint zoned atall: how's that modern? 

All switches and sockets are standard basic aswell as the aluminium radiators, what would be said about ours considering the investment in upgrades 

[Lenny]

6 minutes ago, Turvey said:

The rest of the bar area 😀

I'm guessing you don't drink then 😂

[Turvey]

4 hours ago, Lenny said:

I'm guessing you don't drink then 😂

Never touch the stuff, 'tis the devil's juice! 😇

[Turvey]

The side project has had a wee update 😁 

Welcome to The Piston Broke Garage Bar 🍺

[Lenny]

1 hour ago, Turvey said:

The side project has had a wee update 😁 

Welcome to The Piston Broke Garage Bar 🍺

 

Looks excellent 

How did you do that on screen?

And the no spitting sign is excellent 😀

[Turvey]

The TV is hooked up to an old laptop just for now, until the next phase of 'Project Piston Broke' and is just the background picture. I found the skull and pistons image on the internet and found the software to place the text around it. 

It's a bit clunky, but I can play YouTube and my music through it for now. I do have plans for a touchscreen jukebox/YouTube player type thing but I'm still gathering the parts. 

I can't remember where I found the No Spitting sign, probably in a skip 😀 but the brass match scratcher next to it came from the pub in Aberdeen that I worked in 30 odd years ago. 

[Turvey]

On 3/15/2019 at 4:36 PM, Lenny said:

 

Its mad what the auctioneers say in description; there's a house in our estate for sale at present, it hasn't got network cables in every room like ours now, it doesn't have television's upstairs.

But the description says meticulously contemporary mode

Property Description:

We are excited to bring to the market this impressive two storey modern home in the very popular Development. Spread out over two floors this stunning property extends over 90 sq m approximately and is immaculately decorated throughout. 

This meticulously contemporary home boasts quality fixtures and fittings throughout, is presented in excellent decorative order and ready for immediate residence.

All switches and sockets are standard basic aswell as the aluminium radiators, what would be said about ours considering the investment in upgrades 

@Lenny I know what you're saying mate. Having bought and sold 5 houses and looked at umpteen others it never ceases to amaze me how selling agents describe properties. I suppose they have to concentrate on the positive side of things and are doing their best for their clients. 

Having a wife who watches Homes Under The Hammer etc I also kinda get the fact that although a house may have had more time and money spent on it, it may not be worth that much more than next-door. To paraphrase Estate Agents, it will be more saleable, just maybe not worth what was spent on it more. And then there's the whole negative equity thing ie swimming pools can actually lower the value of your home! Not that there's many houses with pools up here! 

I find the whole property market thing quite fascinating, I just wish I had the money and skills to find old houses and do them up and flog them on or rent out. 

Your house is looking good and will be a lovely family home for you all for many years to come 😉

[zain611]

18 hours ago, Turvey said:

The side project has had a wee update 😁 

Welcome to The Piston Broke Garage Bar 🍺

Looks like a nice cosy place 👍. For some reason I imagine a pub in a rural area such as Dorset or Yorkshire. Never stepped foot in one 😂. I'm sure you don't get people spitting in your place for you to put that sign up. 

[Turvey]

First rooms done.... eventually!

 

Master bedroom and ensuite.

 

Before pics.

 

[Turvey]

After pics.

[Turvey]

Oldest son's bedroom has been started, everything ripped out, stripped wallpaper, filling holes etc

Painting tonight and/or tomorrow, skirtings and facings etc hopefully being done Tuesday. Got a sparkie coming to add and move a couple of sockets and add a TV point. 

 

Before...