The grumpy thread

[Metal Guru]

Aircon f@cked again. Only got it fixed on 10/10/23. I bet they say it’s a different part failed.

[ruffgeezer]

3 hours ago, maxxo said:

Just down at my parents today 

i realised the bi annual oiling of the doors was overdue by 2 weeks so decided to do it

of course I dropped the bloody thing on the carpet didn’t i

the lid fell off but I put it back on for the photo

can I hell get the oil slick off the carpet

 

 

[High Jetter]

7 hours ago, barefoot said:

Incidentally, when it's apparent that it's a scam call. ie. It's not from my mother, or my mother in law's number, I've taken to lifting up the receiver and replying with the words, "Hello, Saint Mary Mead Two Three Six". It doesn't seem to fit the script and 90% of the fuckers hang up.

Battersea dog's home works well too.

[somewhatfoolish]

Home for the perpetually bewildered, Shoeburyness

Society for people of reduced seriousness, Giggleswick, North Yorks.

 

[High Jetter]

49 minutes ago, somewhatfoolish said:

Home for the perpetually bewildered, Shoeburyness

Society for people of reduced seriousness, Giggleswick, North Yorks.

 

Yes but not real, obs!

[sheffcortinacentre]

Best I've heard was a guy in America who convinced them they'd phoned an ongoing crime scene.

It was available online.

[goosey]

So it turns out the house over the road from us is a cannabis grow the couple left in a rush early hours of this morning, it’s a shame as they both seemed so nice 

[High Jetter]

2 hours ago, goosey said:

So it turns out the house over the road from us is a cannabis grow the couple left in a rush early hours of this morning, it’s a shame as they both seemed so nice 

Did they get a police escort?

[Stanky]

10 minutes ago, High Jetter said:

Did they get a police escort?

I think most forces retired them a while ago now, chap

 

[High Jetter]

3 hours ago, Stanky said:

I think most forces retired them a while ago now, chap

 

I set that up and wondered who might hit it into the back of the net! 🤣

[maxxo]

So I’m moving again in the coming weeks

i gave the flat my best shot, but between drug addict violent neighbours, furry fluffy mould in the larder, an infestation of flies, defective not fit for purpose boiler, fly infestation and lastly perhaps my favourite a fucking huge wasp nest in the kitchen loft 

i am deathly afraid of wasps, to the point I can’t even look at them without panicking due to falling in a nest as a child (I don’t care about therapy I am happy avoiding them and never revising it) 

ive given up, 

ive been accepted for a lovely little 2 bed house a mile or so away in Horden, I can’t wait! 

[High Jetter]

Sounds an improvement, hope it suits.

[maxxo]

Think this is the day of grumps

time now is 3:40am, I have just said bye to an emergency engineer from northern gas networks

really strong smell of gas in the flat, yet apparently no leak 

he said he couldn’t smell gas, I can smell gas and it’s only appeared a few hours ago

i know for an absolute fact I can smell gas, why couldn’t he?

i have turned the gas off myself, and opened all the windows, I’ve been awake for 24 hours now and I’ve got a now mild headache

the only difference is I’ve had the heating on for a while today, I’ve got both windows in the bedroom wide open and the door closed, as I suspect co poisoning

He did check and there was apparently some co in the air, so that’s fucking great

thankfully, I’m feeling a lot better than earlier 

I really am absolutely fed up of this flat now, I knew the boiler didn’t smell right that’s why I’ve bared used the heating since I noticed

im utterly fed up

[maxxo]

Turn out to be even more exciting

not just a gas leak but a decently sized leak of carbon monoxide and products of combustion from the boiler

owing likely to the fact the flue seems to have a join where it exits the wall and had become detached

im glad I’m pedantic and notice things instantly or else god knows what would have happened 

[High Jetter]

There should be a CO alarm fitted in same room as boiler, legal requirement for rentals.

[Dyslexic Viking]

I'm so glad we don't have gas in our houses.

[Spiny Norman]

33 minutes ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

I'm so glad we don't have gas in our houses.

One of the main criteria I had when buying a flat was that the building be gas free. Boilers, pumps and radiators seem no end of bother to everyone I know who has gas heating fitted and despite assurances to the contrary I don't think having a highly flammable gas piped in thin copper pipe round a building full of morons with power tools is particularly safe.
My opinion, YMMV.

[maxxo]

there is a CO alarm, mains powered and pulled just far enough out from it's base so the pins weren't making contact

i have told the housing association to just cap the gas off as i'm leaving soon and i'll just live without heating etc

first time anything like this has happened to me, not keen on it

 

[MikeR]

13 hours ago, maxxo said:

Think this is the day of grumps

time now is 3:40am, I have just said bye to an emergency engineer from northern gas networks

really strong smell of gas in the flat, yet apparently no leak 

he said he couldn’t smell gas, I can smell gas and it’s only appeared a few hours ago

i know for an absolute fact I can smell gas, why couldn’t he?

i have turned the gas off myself, and opened all the windows, I’ve been awake for 24 hours now and I’ve got a now mild headache

the only difference is I’ve had the heating on for a while today, I’ve got both windows in the bedroom wide open and the door closed, as I suspect co poisoning

He did check and there was apparently some co in the air, so that’s fucking great

thankfully, I’m feeling a lot better than earlier 

I really am absolutely fed up of this flat now, I knew the boiler didn’t smell right that’s why I’ve bared used the heating since I noticed

im utterly fed up

we had our boiler changed and in the process the cooker was found to be leaking gas ... replaced , the gas fire was leaking gas ... removed ..

fast forward  a few months and I ask the plumber to do a check up because of musty smell ( my nose dont work properly ) and it turned out to be another leak 

or in fact leaks , one on the boiler and the actual test point on the gas meter , so any way the gas board man recommended getting the under floor pipe to the old fire removed , and we did , so all our gas , water , boiler is now in the kitchen , all gas pipes now outside ...

which is on top of the main supply pipe to the house leaking years ago which meant a mass call out of gas board vans , diggers , grab trucks to dig up the front garden , suck all the gas out of the ground and re line the pipe to the meter ..

so I think we have had  pretty much everything replaced !!!

[horriblemercedes]

2 hours ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

I'm so glad we don't have gas in our houses.

My parents have just moved house and one of the things they wanted was mains gas. 

 

Having lived with and without mains gas, I prefer to have it. I have an electric cooker but plan to replace it with gas when it's time. I find gas generally so much better (and cheaper) 

[myglaren]

We have lived in three houses since 1978 and all have had gas boilers.  No problems with them.

They were rented properties, housing association, and the boilers were changed regularly.

Bought this house as they were replacing the boilers so they ignored us.  I paid for a new one three years ago when the pressure vessel in the existing one packed up.

The only problem we had was when moving into this house, I connected the gas cooker and there was no gas.  As the boiler worked it wasn't a supply problem.  Seems that when the house was built the builders had cleverly bunged up the cooker supply with cement.  They installed a new pipe and all has been well ever since (that was 1987).

[Lord Sterling]

On 24/10/2024 at 18:00, Metal Guru said:

Aircon f@cked again. Only got it fixed on 10/10/23. I bet they say it’s a different part failed.

Story of my life. Both of these refuse to work on Air-con. Both condenser related. Vectra is more complex due to the modification of one for the pipes. The Jag just needs either a new condenser or some condenser sealer.

[Spiny Norman]

When I got my 2001 CRV I went and checked to see whether or not it was exempt from Glasgow's ULEZ zone and was quite surprised to see that it was.

Checked it again the other day and now presumably because I've put a private plate on it, it's coming up as not allowed.
Not that I'm ever in the ULEZ zone but since they're doing major fuckage with both the M8 and M73 motorways just now it's quite possible that I may have to divert through the city centre coming back from my mate's place in the east end.

[Metal Guru]

6 hours ago, Lord Sterling said:

Story of my life. Both of these refuse to work on Air-con. Both condenser related. Vectra is more complex due to the modification of one for the pipes. The Jag just needs either a new condenser or some condenser sealer.

Both times mines been a pipe. Thought that would involve a length of copper / stainless stock being cut and shaped to fit, but apparently no, it’s a Subaru specific part £150 plus an hour plus to fit plus gas refill plus VAT = £350.

Unless it’s the same part failing and they agree to do it FOC (a year and 2 weeks ffs), I’ll do without. The compressor and condenser will be 20 years old , so living on borrowed time. 

[iainrcz]

I've been doing the 13 hour shift every year for nearly 20 years, still fucking horrible every time it comes round.

[Lord Sterling]

9 hours ago, Spiny Norman said:

When I got my 2001 CRV I went and checked to see whether or not it was exempt from Glasgow's ULEZ zone and was quite surprised to see that it was.

Checked it again the other day and now presumably because I've put a private plate on it, it's coming up as not allowed.

Yes, it happened to me but the other way around for my old Jag. That used to have a private plate on it so wasn't allowed, when I sent an email to the council, theu just updated my records and suddenly I was allowed. 

I suppose getting a screenshot of a similarly reg'd car and yours will show them that you have a private plate in your car and they should just update their records to allow your car to go into the zone.

Both my current fleet are exempt but I never go into the zones, although both cars have been into Brussels, none have yet seen the inside of Birmingham City Centre under my ownership. I suppose though it's only a matter of time, but then I won't need to worry about extra charges.

[mercedade]

The ex @NorfolkNWeigh S211 has been doing a sterling job for my sister over the last year, chewing up the miles between Cardiff and Basingstoke for fun, right up until last week when it flashed up an ABS light and shuddered to a fairly aggressive stop. Luckily, she was just pulling on to the slip road of the M4 at the time, so managed to grind to a halt in a lower-speed hard shoulder. But it doesn't sound like she had much warning or control over it! 

The usual garage seem convinced it's autobox related rather than brakes/bearing etc so it's being recovered from their premises to a specialist a few miles over. 

Is this a likely scenario, are they a weak point? Tagging @SiC as I think you had one too. 

I'm light on details because she can't really tell me much, and the garage haven't been particularly communicative. All I know is that she loves the car (totally smitten, right from the get-go - @NorfolkNWeigh really set the bar high, fantastic fella) and will almost certainly be getting it fixed.

[SiC]

9 minutes ago, mercedade said:

The ex @NorfolkNWeigh S211 has been doing a sterling job for my sister over the last year, chewing up the miles between Cardiff and Basingstoke for fun, right up until last week when it flashed up an ABS light and shuddered to a fairly aggressive stop. Luckily, she was just pulling on to the slip road of the M4 at the time, so managed to grind to a halt in a lower-speed hard shoulder. But it doesn't sound like she had much warning or control over it! 

The usual garage seem convinced it's autobox related rather than brakes/bearing etc so it's being recovered from their premises to a specialist a few miles over. 

Is this a likely scenario, are they a weak point? Tagging @SiC as I think you had one too. 

I'm light on details because she can't really tell me much, and the garage haven't been particularly communicative. All I know is that she loves the car (totally smitten, right from the get-go - @NorfolkNWeigh really set the bar high, fantastic fella) and will almost certainly be getting it fixed.

Is it the 5 speed or 7 speed auto?

5 speeds are tough boots where as the 7 are more fragile.

However the ABS light coming on is a red flag and suggests that has got unhappy. I wouldn't expect that to flash up ABS failure warning if it was gearbox related. ESP flashing maybe if the box locked the wheels out or caused a lot of drag. 

Have they said what codes are stored?

[mercedade]

7 minutes ago, SiC said:

Is it the 5 speed or 7 speed auto?

5 speeds are tough boots where as the 7 are more fragile.

However the ABS light coming on is a red flag and suggests that has got unhappy. I wouldn't expect that to flash up ABS failure warning if it was gearbox related. ESP flashing maybe if the box locked the wheels out or caused a lot of drag. 

Have they said what codes are stored?

No, it's been very frustrating getting much out of them at all by the sounds of things, and then I'm getting things third-hand, filtered through my sister who doesn't have a huge amount of knowledge about cars. Part of the challenge I think is that they've been a bit pissy with her because the car was delivered back to them with no notice (the breakdown happened at just before 5am, recovered back at 8.30am). My sister is extremely gentle, she absolutely appreciated that they're busy and this wasn't booked in, so left them to it with no pressure. When she called them after 9 days to ask them if they'd had chance to take a look, apparently the receptionist was a bit crabby about it. Bad day maybe. 

Anyway, I wonder if 'ABS light' really was 'ESP' - I doubt she can accurately recall.

The RAC recovery guy thought it was 'maybe a wheel bearing', but I'm probably not going to get too carried away by a diagnosis made with 18 wheelers inches away from his head.

No idea which box this is - I'll go back and see if the original thread says. I know the box had been serviced (fluid and filter) within the last two years. 

[mercedade]

Edit -

5-speed box