HOUSEHOLD TIPS NOT FOUND IN WOMAN'S WEEKLY

[Stanley]

If your Zippo lighter is getting hard to light, pull all the padding out of the interior and raise the wick, cutting off the old burnt part. It will improve the situation!

[Stanley]

Even the toughest cuts of meat can be made edible by long slow cooking.

[Stanley]

A friend commented the other day on how clean my kitchen sink was. That pleased me because as you know I have a bit of an obsession with clean sinks and lavatories! My point is that people notice these things and it makes such a difference even if you have a cluttered, run-down kitchen like mine! (I'm too old to do a Wendy, Sue or Kev!)

[Stanley]

Don't worry if, as you get older, your bladder demands more attention. This is evidence that it is still working well. The time to worry is when it stops doing that!

[Stanley]

I was once told that there was a get-out clause in Common Law which allowed a carter to micturate in public at the near side of he vehicle if he was caught short. I never tested whether this was true or not but it could be worth bearing in mind if you are ever charged with Public Indecency.....

[Stanley]

When you are under stress, beware of 'comfort eating'!!!

[Stanley]

Strings of onions are usually the best quality and I like to see one hung in the kitchen. They keep well hung like this.

[Stanley]

I am a fan of the Brussels Sprout. The very best way to cook them is to put a large pan of salted water on the stove and just as it is coming to the boil, go down the garden on a hard frosty morning, harvest the sprouts and pull the outside leaves off in the garden. Don't bother with the canard about cutting a cross in the base. As soon as you get back in the kitchen drop the sprouts in the boiling salted water and wash your hands. By the time you sit down at the table the sprouts are cooked. That's how Mrs Gleed used to cook them when I was at Harrod's Farm and I can tell you that nothing beats them! (our own butter on them as well....)
However, when they are put in a stew they are different animals altogether. They go soft and buttery and I like them just as much that way. I have never been able to understand why some people violently dislike them.....

[LizG]

Love brussels sprouts.

[David Whipp]

I have never been able to understand why some people violently dislike them....

TAS2R38 Stanley.
Have a look at this link.

[Stanley]

I never knew about that David and so in this case ignorance is bliss. I love 'em!!

[Julie in Norfolk]

Inherited my dislike of Brussel Sprouts from mother, father loved them. Interestingly, because of her deep knowledge of genetics, I also knew why we didn't like Brussel Sprouts.

[Stanley]

I was lucky then Julie.... nobody told me they were harmful! Mind you I do have my personal hang-ups about snails, frog's legs and squid. So today's tip is don't over analyse dislikes, just go with them. That way you will never come to any harm!

[Whyperion]

Most veg and fruits are either from genetics desired to be eaten, or not eaten (from the plant's perspective) so dependent on quantity there is a variation of toxicity- either of acidity or alkalinity. Its probably a good rule not to eat anything more intelligent than yourself.

[Stanley]

When your mind is troubled concentrate on the normal and mundane, it can be very soothing. Bad news travels fast and all will become clear if you wait patiently.

[plaques]

Its probably a good rule not to eat anything more intelligent than yourself.

It looks like potatoes are out for me!!

[PanBiker]

Ha

[Stanley]

When the CH boiler goes AWOL. Try switching it off, disturb all the settings and switch it on again. The brain inside will usually reboot itself.

[Tizer]

Very rarely our CH fails to switch off on the timer. It's only happened a few times and works perfectly afterwards. We've no idea why and nor has the plumber!

We had a strange glitch with electricity last week. We'd changed most of our light bulbs to LED by early in 2016 but there were a few incandescent bulbs in fittings that we use only rarely. Last week we bought four bayonet LED bulbs to replace these. One is the hallway ceiling light which isn't used often because we have a table lamp on a timer doing the job. The ceiling lamp gets used briefly when someone comes to the door in the evening to give extra light. I checked the light was switched off, took the old bulb out and put in the LED one - and it immediately started flashing about twice a second. I took it out and then put it back but it still flashed. The fitting is on a two-way switch but throwing either of the switches made no difference, it still flashed. I tried the old bulb and it worked as normal. Then I took a similar LED bulb from one of our table lamps that works OK, put it in the hallway fitting and switched on. Normal, no flashing. I put the offending LED bulb in the table lamp - and it worked as normal with no flashing! I haven't got any explanation other than it must be a combination of the characteristics of both the LED bulb and the light fitting.

[Tripps]

"We've no idea why and nor has the plumber!"

How much did he charge to tell you that?

I've just had a bill for £200 for two visits which failed to cure the problem. They charge £1 per minute after the first hour! which is fine if they fix it, but a bit dear when they don't. The third engineer diagnosed the fault in 2 minutes, and fixed it within an hour, including travelling to obtain the part. They did the honorable thing and gave me a credit note for the first two visits. All's well that ends well - but a bit stressful at the time.

[Big Kev]

I replaced a 12v gu4 halogen bulb with an led equivalent, it stayed on for about 5 minutes and then started flashing. Worked fine in a different lanp...

[Stanley]

Beyond my pay grade..... I have a service contract with BG for the boiler. I've had it ever since I moved in and the boiler was installed. I couldn't tell you what it costs a month and don't care. All I know is that if something goes wrong I ring them, they come out immediately and fix it and it doesn't cost anything for parts or labour. I like that, no worries!

[Tizer]

I replaced a 12v gu4 halogen bulb with an led equivalent, it stayed on for about 5 minutes and then started flashing. Worked fine in a different lanp...

At least I assume yours was switched on. Mine was switched off and flashing!

"We've no idea why and nor has the plumber!" How much did he charge to tell you that?

Luckily he was here to do a job and checked our wiring at the same time.

[PanBiker]

LED lamps each have a small DC power supply in the base usually based on switch mode circuitry, as such it will have both smoothing and storage capacitors built in as part of the design. Switch mode PSU's are oscillating designs and provide more or less instant on (and off) parameters. I have lots of different envelope LED lamps now and have never come across the same symptoms which I suppose could be produced with a dodgy or high resistance contact type scenario in the lampholder. No real retention of charge though when switched off so I have no answer for why the lamp should flash without power applied.

[Stanley]

Earth leakage?