WHAT ATTRACTED YOUR ATTENTION TODAY?

[Tripps]

"The area is prone to magnitude 3 - 4 events "

I read there was a magnitude 3.3 on the Richter Scale event only 25 miles off Fleetwood in the last few days. Barely made the media.
Probably due to fracking in Surrey, or climate change - everything else seems to be.

[Cathy]

Thanks for the map PanBiker.

[Stanley]

We had a long discussion on the old site (t'other Barlick' I think) They call their Barnoldswick 'Barnewigge'.
Hudson's History at Settle published 'Quarries, Coal, Clay and Cloth' by Muriel Humphries (Ewecross Historical Society) in 2003. It has quite a bit in it about the other Barnoldswick.
There is an article in the Lancaster Guardian December 7th 1872 which describes Bracewell's collieries.

[PanBiker]

Boiler not working this morning so unexpected cold shower for me this morning! Powered down, reset and cycled, fires up but trips out after 30 seconds with fault lights flashing like Blackpool prom. Time for an engineer visit:
Tried logging on to my account on the BG website but it can't process my request suggests I try later, no problem, do it the old fashioned way and ring them up. A dozen button presses later I am told that British Gas are experiencing a higher than normal level of calls and are unable to connect me to a service representative at this time, they suggest that I might like to try booking my service online!

[Big Kev]

Finally got my quote from Yorkshire Water. To connect my new supply will involve digging a 3m trench 750mm deep, connecting the new pipe, I bought and laid, to the 110mm main is £1735, I have to pay this up front and then arrange, with Yorkshire Water's contractor, to come and do the work.

[Pluggy]

Boiler not working this morning so unexpected cold shower for me this morning! Powered down, reset and cycled, fires up but trips out after 30 seconds with fault lights flashing like Blackpool prom. Time for an engineer visit:
Tried logging on to my account on the BG website but it can't process my request suggests I try later, no problem, do it the old fashioned way and ring them up. A dozen button presses later I am told that British Gas are experiencing a higher than normal level of calls and are unable to connect me to a service representative at this time, they suggest that I might like to try booking my service online!

Sounds like par for the course.

One of my own, haven't bought something from Amazon in a while



Are some people so bl**dy sad that they'd want to put "ooh look, I just bought a cartridge for my printer" on Facebook or Twitter ?. I thought I was a bit short in the life department.....

[PanBiker]

Well I can now log in on the BG site, but it won't let me go to my account which is "currently unavailable" although they can tell me how much I owe them! Suggests I ring the helpline, it's going to be a long day.

[Tardis]

A mural that makes you think. Painted in a shelter set aside for those who like to smoke:

[hartley353]

An article in the press today. As little as two teaspoons of Chlorpyrifos a pesticide found its way into the River Kennet and wiped out all micro life forms up to shrimps and aquatic fly life. The damage extended over ten miles of the river, it is unbelievable in a so called civilised country that chemicals like these are available to all to do with as they wish. It is possible that action will be taken at high level because this happened on a river available mostly to the elite. Presently public awareness is high at the use of chemical weapons on human beings directly, maybe some will realise at the way chemicals are used in our food chain and the long term damge that is being done insiduously. Strike two for the scientists, one wonders how they sleep.

[Stanley]

So, it was a scientist who poisoned the river?

[Tizer]

Ask farmers and agronomists how they sleep, they are the ones who use chlorpyrifos to prevent disease in their orchards in order to meet the demands of supermarkets for apples free of all signs of disease. Ask supermarket customers how they sleep, they are the ones who drive the demand for unmarked apples. According to the agriculturalists: "Chlorpyrifos is the last of a generation of broad spectrum insecticides. It’s used for controlling a wide range of pest species, including damaging caterpillar species as well as the rarer but highly destructive mussel scale and apple blossom weevil, as well as capsid bugs. If chlorpyrifos was not available it would need to be replaced with up to three additional sprays of more selective insecticides, for every one chlorpyrifos treatment. That would see input costs escalate and in time we may find that ’old’ pest species that have long been consigned to bygone books of orchard problems, make a return." Quoted from this Farming UK web page:
http://www.farminguk.com/news/Changes-t ... 23122.html

[Tardis]

The piece of tarmac between the Town car park and Co-operative Street at the top of the steps was being repaired by Lancashire County Council workmen

Hurrah, maybe there will be no puddle now.

[hartley353]

Whilst Cameron follows correct procedures and recalls parliament, whilst UN sanction is obtained, for three days now warplanes have been flying into Cyprus, to an onlooker it appears the plans are set and regardless of permission it was going to happen War on Syria.

[hartley353]

Ask farmers and agronomists how they sleep, they are the ones who use chlorpyrifos to prevent disease in their orchards in order to meet the demands of supermarkets for apples free of all signs of disease. Ask supermarket customers how they sleep, they are the ones who drive the demand for unmarked apples. According to the agriculturalists: "Chlorpyrifos is the last of a generation of broad spectrum insecticides. It’s used for controlling a wide range of pest species, including damaging caterpillar species as well as the rarer but highly destructive mussel scale and apple blossom weevil, as well as capsid bugs. If chlorpyrifos was not available it would need to be replaced with up to three additional sprays of more selective insecticides, for every one chlorpyrifos treatment. That would see input costs escalate and in time we may find that ’old’ pest species that have long been consigned to bygone books of orchard problems, make a return." Quoted from this Farming UK web page:
http://www.farminguk.com/news/Changes-t ... 23122.html

You cannot defend the indefensible.

[hartley353]

So, it was a scientist who poisoned the river?

I think he's got it.

[PanBiker]

BG Engineer here at 11am, quickly traced the fault to a hole in the flue just after the U bend out of the top. The hole was on the internal angle of the U bend. The boiler was in trip mode and inhibit due to an imbalance in the pressures. On removing the first length of flue pipe which mates with the U Bend it became apparent that the reason for failure was built in from the day it was installed! Each flue section is a push fit with O ring seals on inner and outer pipes of the double lined flue which is basically a plastic pipe within a metal outer jacket. The problem was that the inner O ring on the female inner plastic pipe was missing. Under normal operation the condensate generated as the flue gasses cool within the flue pipe runs back and is then run off from the boiler. The condensate is basically water vapour but does have some exhaust gasses mixed. The missing seal has allowed some of the condensate to drip out from the inner pipe and has eventually corroded the outer jacket of the flue.

The boiler was serviced less than a week ago and the flue was passed as safe and fit for purpose, which looking at the state of that section of pipe when removed was a highly dubious statement to make by the engineer that did the service. Parts were sourced, (new U bend and first 1 meter of flue pipe). Parts delivered by engineer who specialises in flue fitting. He looked at it and came to the conclusion that the seal has been missing since the flue was originally installed and it was only a matter of time until it failed.

The standard flue supplied with a boiler only includes the section to span an average cavity wall. Extension flues like I have are not normally covered by the BG maintenance agreement.

I pointed out that the boiler and flue were fitted by BG from new and obviously incorrectly. I also asked why the engineer that called and serviced it last week signed it off as fit for purpose.

A few phone calls were made and it was agreed that the flue would be replaced at no charge. The guy that did the service and signed it off last week was a contract engineer and not a BG employee but I pointed out that he was acting as their agent so no get out of jail free card there. I was told that he would be taken to task.

The two guys that sorted it were very good and obviously knew what they were doing which was reassuring. I'm waiting for my request for customer feed back phone call now which should come in the next couple of days.

[chinatyke]

Ask farmers and agronomists how they sleep, they are the ones who use chlorpyrifos to prevent disease in their orchards in order to meet the demands of supermarkets for apples free of all signs of disease. Ask supermarket customers how they sleep, they are the ones who drive the demand for unmarked apples. According to the agriculturalists: "Chlorpyrifos is the last of a generation of broad spectrum insecticides. It’s used for controlling a wide range of pest species, including damaging caterpillar species as well as the rarer but highly destructive mussel scale and apple blossom weevil, as well as capsid bugs. If chlorpyrifos was not available it would need to be replaced with up to three additional sprays of more selective insecticides, for every one chlorpyrifos treatment. That would see input costs escalate and in time we may find that ’old’ pest species that have long been consigned to bygone books of orchard problems, make a return." Quoted from this Farming UK web page:
http://www.farminguk.com/news/Changes-t ... 23122.html

You cannot defend the indefensible.

Pour a gallon of milk into a waterway and see how that kills all the aquatic life for hundreds of metres. Should we ban milk also?

As a point, more people are killed each day by water than by other chemicals. It is called drowning.

[Stanley]

What a good read Stephanie Carter's latest book is. Definitely one for the bookshelf....

[hartley353]

Thankyou for reading the post Chinatyke. There are many ways of polluting a watercourse to kill the largest or the smallest of its inhabitants, and in my time as a custodian of the countryside I have seen the effects of many of them. Some of the pollution was accidental some deliberate, The chemicals I have spoken of are extremely toxic, and should not be available to just any one. The men and women who invent them have to take responsibility for their use, and make sure that they are used with proper constraints by licenced operatives, if their guidance is not followed then stop manufacture. Not following a proper path makes them culpable.

[Cathy]

50 years ago today Martin Luther King's historical speech.

[Tardis]

On twitter, a news gatherer called @TheBarlicker

[chinatyke]

Thankyou for reading the post Chinatyke. There are many ways of polluting a watercourse to kill the largest or the smallest of its inhabitants, and in my time as a custodian of the countryside I have seen the effects of many of them. Some of the pollution was accidental some deliberate, The chemicals I have spoken of are extremely toxic, and should not be available to just any one. The men and women who invent them have to take responsibility for their use, and make sure that they are used with proper constraints by licenced operatives, if their guidance is not followed then stop manufacture. Not following a proper path makes them culpable.

Hi Hartley 353. With your background you will be aware that agrochemicals are strictly controlled. The more potent ones can only be bought and used by licenced operators, for example for amenity use, and are not on sale to the general public. I was employed in the Chemical Industry and involved in the manufacture of some extremely toxic and potentially damaging products. The industry that produces these products takes its responsibilities extremely seriously, as do the professional people who use them and many products have been withdrawn voluntarily by the agricultural industry.
As was said earlier, it is the public who demand unblemished fruit and insect free vegetables on their supermarkets shelves, but the same public decry the use of agrochemicals. They probably also shy away from the fact that it is necessary to kill a beast so that they can have meat. Personally, I believe having these products available is beneficial to humankind.
Graham

[PanBiker]

With yesterdays tussle with British Gas I thought we were out of the woods but that would appear to be wishful thinking. Boiler has just tripped out again, I have reset it 3 times but it will not deliver any hot water. It fires up but then trips out, the same symptoms that it had the day before yesterday. The first engineer I had yesterday traced the fault to a pressure switch that was not kicking in on demand. Following this he found the fault with the incorrectly installed flue. Once the replacement parts for the flue were fitted the pressure switch became operable so the pressure switch was left alone. It would appear that it has failed leaving me without hot water for a third day.

I tried logging onto my account again today and was again denied access. I rang the help line and was given a twenty minute wait time to speak with someone. I elected to have an automatic ring back. I have to say that this came within ten minutes rather than the twenty but not in time for someone to call today. Earliest I can get is tomorrow afternoon despite relating my tale of woe from yesterday and the fact that we have two grandchildren in the house, a 3 and a 4 year old. No bath for them tonight then.

I have always held BG in reasonable regard as I have always had good service in the past but my recent experiences are beginning to put a dent in that. During my feedback call that I gave yesterday I only scored them half of what I normally give for the service (as the fault was waiting to happen since install) and only 1 on a score of 0 -10 for communication.

A repair slot tomorrow afternoon screws up our plans to take the girls up to the ice cream parlour, good job it was a surprise so we can get away without a load of disappointment for the kids. Grrrrrrrr-

[Stanley]

Hope they sort you out.... Mind you, no bad thing if the girls discover that you can get clean with a stand-up wash with cold water! I know I'm hopelessly old-fashioned but I don't think the human body needs to be boiled once a day....
The fact that I can see light at the end of the LTP tunnel and it isn't a train coming the opposite way!

[Tizer]

Graham/Chinatyke, thanks for your support on the topic of agrochemicals etc. In Hartley's world he wouldn't even have a computer because he wouldn't allow the use of all those chemicals needed to make it! And the biggest threat to fish worldwide (and a threat to us via the fish we eat) is the mercury being deposited in the oceans from the pollution derived from coal-burning power stations. The north Pacific is particularly bad due to the increasing burden of coal burning emissions from Asia as I'm sure you're aware.

Ian, you have my sympathy, dealing with big businesses is getting increasingly fraught!