Cold draughty roof

[Penners]

I'm very surprised that Mr Google wouldn't come up with the goods on Roland Emmett (as his name was often mis-spelled).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Roland_Emett

He was a worthy successor to the famous W. Heath Robinson.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heath_Robinson

 

[tobydog]

Feltwell - thanks for the input. I did try opening up the gaps between the felt but it's rather tight. Will try again. I take your point on the future benefit of the felt when the thatch starts giving up. It can probably add considerable life to the roof. Surprisingly, one thatcher I spoke to said I should cut all the felt out as it was bad news. The thatch has been there now for 30 years with no obvious problems underneath so the felt will stay. To be honest, the reason I cut two small holes in it was to take a sneak front and back to make sure all was okay.

Joce - the chickens are spending their first night with the door shut and I'm sure they are very happy. It's blowing pretty rough outside at the moment. I saw your chicken house on my PC at home. My work PC tends to remove photos. Looks good and snug.

 

[JoceAndChris]

:lol: love Penners' postings and the Heath Robinson pothole closing - I need this ingenious solution!

Toby, good the girls are in such kind hands, do shut them up at night as quite apart from the draught thing it's an extra layer of protection against Mr Fox.

To all those of you who make your chickens wait until you get up - I approve - Mr Fox likes the hour of sunrise but you don't see him so much later on in the day. Can't believe I'm up a whole hour and a half before I dare let them out at 7.30am.

 

[skier-hughes]

Good grief, your foxes are as lazy as me........ We ahve them here at all times of the day, I've shot one at 1.30pm!

 

[JoceAndChris]

Ooh well done. The foxes are lazy here, they have a lot to eat and can choose McDonald's, Chinese, or fresh rabbit as the mood suits. The nearest group ( a mile away) are fed by the man who bought the field next to our house - he shoots rabbits here and gives them to his pet foxes. :roll:

I'm on the bunnies' side. I don't like this man shooting our rabbits for his foxes, but don't want to fall out with him over it.

 

[Penners]

Why don't you reciprocate? Shoot his foxes and feed them to the rabbits. :twisted:

 

[LadyArowana]

I'm on the bunnies' side. I don't like this man shooting our rabbits for his foxes, but don't want to fall out with him over it.

I think that's easily sorted.

 

[JoceAndChris]

:lol: love it! That would certainly spice things up a bit.

 

[tobydog]

We live in a small village but townies would call it in the sticks. We have been here two and a half years and I've not seen one single fox. We have owls and deer in the garden and all sorts of other fauna but thankfully no foxes. Our neighbour was overrun with rabbits and has a huge rookery. He's just sorted the rabbits which was big help to us but he's stuck with the rooks. He's also sorted the mole issue. I know they all came to an untimely end because he has a 3 acre garden and they wouldn't leave when asked nicely!!

Chickens couldn't wait to get out this morning even though it was still quite dark when I left for work. Now back hime as trains are totally stuffed. I think our house is now more draughty than theirs.

 

[Penners]

Nah, Toby, the foxes are all in Ipswich, feeding off the rich pickings from rubbish bins!

 

[JoceAndChris]

I hope you're never visited by Mr Fox Toby but it's a mistake to assume the fox population in your environment is a fixed thing. Round about now, I'd imagine, young summer cubs get booted out of the family group to fend for themselves and mark out their own territory. Shrinking natural habitats have made them used to going quite long distances to establish themselves, and many die.

But sooner or later every poultry keeper is foxed, if you never are, fantastic, but you'd be the only one I know! Nothing is fox proof over time. They figure out a way. They watch to see for that one night you forgot to switch the fence on, or close the pop hole, or let them fly out of the garden, or, or...

This, coupled with the fact that dogs are ten times the nuisance foxes are, and the sparrow hawks are also eyeing up your birds, as well as badgers, stoats, weasels and ferrets, not to mention rats and cats for the chicks, makes it extraordinary any chickens are alive at all!

Mine come shooting out of the pop hole at 7.30 too. But it doesn't seem to do them any lasting damage.

 

[Flyfisher]

Absolutely right Joce; 'tis the way of things. We lost our first two hens to dogs and it was a couple of years before Reynard paid us a visit. I wouldn't say we have a particular problem with foxes but the danger is always there and once they put their minds to it they can be quite resourceful.

Mind you - and I apologise for yet another digression - when it comes to resourcefulness in the pursuit of a meal, this is one of the most astonishing pieces of wildlife footage I've ever seen: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/15308790

 

[tobydog]

Wow - I'm arming my girls. Seriously though, all points taken. As for the killer whales, if foxes ever get that clever I'll give up. Amazing footage.

 

[JoceAndChris]

Oh good grief, I thought whales were nice until watching that. So so mean. I agree though, it's an astonishing bit of film.

 

[Penners]

this is one of the most astonishing pieces of wildlife footage I've ever seen

Wow - me too! A pre-planned, co-ordinated tactic, use of camouflage, rethinking the strategy.... that all shows a truly remarkable level of intelligence.

 

[LadyArowana]

this is one of the most astonishing pieces of wildlife footage I've ever seen

Wow - me too! A pre-planned, co-ordinated tactic, use of camouflage, rethinking the strategy.... that all shows a truly remarkable level of intelligence.

So long, and thanks for all the fish.......... I know that was actually dolphins, but they are smart too and I never like to see them kept in tiny tanks for our amusement.

 

[Flyfisher]

Although it's an astonishing example of cooperative behaviour, I was left wondering how the sharing of the unfortunate seal was handled. Perhaps this was shown in the full programme.

 

[Penners]

When it came to that part, I suspect it was probably every orca for himself.

 

[tobydog]

Yes. I sensed that when Sir David said that the whales drown the seal first, he was giving it a 'happy' ending

Seals can hold their breath for some time too and I can imagine the whales getting rather impatient. That poor fella on the ice flow looked like he had definitely given up.

 

[Chris1roll]

To be honest I've never found rockwool remotely itchy - the old yellow glass fibre stuff is hideous though!
When we were doing the farm we used rockwool flexi between the floors, after a while I took the gloves off, and never had any itchyness at all.
With anything like that, make sure you wear a decent mask though.

Last Sunday evening I installed 8 rolls of the rockwool @ £3 a roll from been and queued in the edwardian section of our house. (The victorian part has already been done). I wore a pair of disposable nitrile gloves because of the couple of inches of the old glass fibre stuff that was already there, a long sleeved rugby shirt, and a valved FFP2 mask.
The rockwool itself was fine, but the dust and filth that was already up there was incredible. The loft hatch, and thereby the site lamp is at one end. when working at the far end, some 15 metres away you couldn't see back to the entrance for the dust. When I had finished the FFP2v mask I was wearing was literally black, I don't think I have seen one so dirty before!
Took about 2 1/2 hours, including unclippng the cabling to make sure it laid on top. Started about 5pm intending to just do a couple rolls, but it was so hot sweaty and dirty up there I knew that if I stopped I'd be unlikely to get the enthusiasm up to start again so forced myself to finish the job.
So, insulation all set for this winter now. If the next quarters gas bill is £625.00 I'll be a quid in!