More shed problems

[JoceAndChris]

I've got this week and next week to make this a fitting residence for Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal, my new baby peacock and his bride to be!

Is the lean-to asbestos? Is that dangerous for chicks do you think?

Might this shed have been a toilet? Does it look older than 1930? (that's when the cottage got a loo, I think) The blue paint is the same as the paint I found in the bedroom, under the 30s buff paint.

I don't whether to try to dismantle that kind of covered bench thing, or to leave well alone. Any thoughts gratefully accepted, as ever.

 

[worms]

Peacocks?!!

Turkeys would have been quieter and more useful!

 

[JoceAndChris]

That all depends on whether you'd like a farm or a zoo - zoo please!

 

[Gareth Hughes]

Noisy, lousy gardeners, and they don't even taste nice...

 

[worms]

That all depends on whether you'd like a farm or a zoo - zoo please!

Farm please! If you are buying, I'll have this one - a snip at £3.5m!

 

[Cloudscape]

Might this shed have been a toilet? Does it look older than 1930?

Doesn't look like one to me*. It looks like it could be 60s-70s. Materials from your house were scattered round the garden and re-used. There's no saying it isn't built where a toilet used to be though.

*Although it does look a bit of a sh*thole.

 

[Penners]

Even if those materials are asbestos, they're not going to do any harm to your peacocky-wockys ( :roll: ). Not unless you start sawing or abrading them, which causes dust.

If you want the mini-palace to be extra safe for the little darlings, give the materials a coat of oil paint.

I hope you enjoy your Christmas dinner. :twisted:

 

[Flyfisher]

I'd guess it is cement-asbestos sheeting, which is the least problematic form of asbestos in the grand scheme of things. Basically it's fine if you don't do anything to it that might cause it to relase any dust and, thus, asbestos fibres, e.g, drilling holes, sawing or snapping it. There's loads of info on government HSE websites, just google.

If you are going to dismantle it, wet it thoroughly first and wear an FFP3-rated mask. It's all outside so that's safer than indoors. Most municipal dumps will allow you to dispose of such sheeting but check your council website first. Most just seem to ask that you double-wrap the sheets.

As for peacocks though, bl**dy noisy things. Good luck!

 

[MdB]

Looks like cement asbestos sheet to me too. Its free to get rid of domestically but if you get someone in to remove it, they get charged to dump it so the fee is passed on to you.

Only danger I can see is if you peacocks decide to start scratching at it for some reason. I doubt it would harm them as they don't live long enough but it would make removing damaged sheets more problematic.

 

[Cloudscape]

they're not going to do any harm to your peacocky-wockys ( :roll: ). Not unless you start sawing or abrading them, which causes dust.

And you don't want peacock dust everywhere. :shock:

 

[JoceAndChris]

Thanks for all the kind replies. :roll: :lol:

Peacocks must once have been eaten, you will of course remember Volpone's magical seduction speech to Celia written in 1606.

"The heads of parrots, tongues of nightingalles,
The braynes of peacocks, and of estriches
Shall be our foode: and, could we get the phoenix,
(Though Nature lost her kind) she were our dish."

But possibly, as he goes on to offer her "The milke of vnicornes, and panthers breath" it is mere hyperbole, and peacook brains did not make up a typical Renaissance feast. Any resident food historians?

Anyway, first you lot cussed my chickens (who, by the way, are angels) now you cuss my peacocks. That's deeep man.If you aren't careful, I'll cuss yo mum! They're great birds. They need to be kept captive for 6 weeks to get the notion this is home, after that they'll conveniently move to a tree in the garden, so no mucking out. They'll take 3 years to reach sexual maturity and get those glorious tail feathers, no noise til then. And then they aren't noisy all the time - only when mating, surely forgivable? They can live up to 20 years. And during that time you can sell their babies and get rich.

Thanks for the reassurance about the toilet and the asbestos. If a nice juicy bug lands on there they'll peck it up. They'll probably land on that roof with their sharp claws too, so I think we'll have to assume the surface will be disrupted over the years. If though, I could paint it and maybe just put a big sheet of wood or something in front and over it that would make life a little easier. The underside of the roof is unlikely to be pecked.

Peacock interior design to follow. It's going to be soooo cool to paint it that peacocky blue, to make the beds of peacock feathers and serve them their dinners on blue glass dishes! I'm so excited!

 

[JoceAndChris]

That all depends on whether you'd like a farm or a zoo - zoo please!

Farm please! If you are buying, I'll have this one - a snip at £3.5m!

Gosh that's beautiful. Perfect.

 

[Penners]

peacook brains did not make up a typical Renaissance feast.

Having a rough idea of the IQ of the average peacock, I imagine that you'd need to sacrifice a considerable ostentation* of peacocks to produce a feast.


* NB impressive knowledge of collective nouns. :wink:

 

[FamilyWiggs]

they'll conveniently move to a tree in the garden, so no mucking out. They'll take 3 years to reach sexual maturity and get those glorious tail feathers, no noise til then. And then they aren't noisy all the time - only when mating, surely forgivable?

Joce - I used to live in a house with a group of visiting peacocks and peahens. I speak from bitter experience and can definitely assure you:

a) they are noisy - in an ugly, loud and unappealling way.
b) no one seems to have told the peacocks only to make noise during mating season - they did it all day and every day;
c) they may well move to the trees and avoid you mucking out your shed - but you will have big turds (bigger than the average dog) all over your garden... this is not nice.
d) they do indeed look nice and are a great talking point for visitors (until they discover a-c above).

I am a country lad, I love animals, I don't mind noise or smell. However, peacocks and peahens are the spawns of Satan. Evil, noisy and probably not very tasty either.

I would go down the turkey route - the best turkey we ever had were "Christmas Day" and "Boxing Day"* - the 2 we raised from chicks ourselves.

Named in accordance with their life expectancy - remember kids, "A turkey is just for Christmas, and not for life"

 

[FamilyWiggs]

peacook brains did not make up a typical Renaissance feast.

Having a rough idea of the IQ of the average peacock, I imagine that you'd need to sacrifice a considerable ostentation* of peacocks to produce a feast.


* NB impressive knowledge of collective nouns. :wink:

Not wishing to be a pedant Penners, but I understood it was a "muster" of peacocks.

I sense a great schism here - between the mustering and the ostentatious. :shock:

 

[FamilyWiggs]

That all depends on whether you'd like a farm or a zoo - zoo please!

Farm please! If you are buying, I'll have this one - a snip at £3.5m!

Gosh that's beautiful. Perfect.

My favourite part of the world. My in-laws live in Ullapool, and I drive that road north a few times a year. Wish I had £3.5m... If you're in Ullapool or up that way, www.pointcottage.co.uk is the best B&B in the UK (but then I am biased)...

 

[Inspector John]

and they like perching and pooping on roof ridges

 

[Gareth Hughes]

but you will have big turds (bigger than the average dog)

Now that is big.

(I could have said, "that's a load of s... and you know it," but I'll leave that to Penners)

 

[JoceAndChris]

:lol: I can always count on you all to make me laugh

a) they are noisy - in an ugly, loud and unappealling way.
b) no one seems to have told the peacocks only to make noise during mating season - they did it all day and every day;
c) they may well move to the trees and avoid you mucking out your shed - but you will have big turds (bigger than the average dog) all over your garden... this is not nice.
d) they do indeed look nice and are a great talking point for visitors (until they discover a-c above).

a) I love that wild, high cry. I'm missing a bit of noise. Besides,I sing opera and choral music and I have a very loud voice. We can be noisy together. Everyone will be deafened- maybe they'll stop walking their foul hen murdering dogs up here?
b) Let them make their noise whenever they like, I'd rather hear that than neighbour's TVs and London buses, which is what I'm used to.
c) The garden is big, it'll take a couple of birds doing giant turds - you can't tell me they're going to be messier than a flock of geese, who are also on the pets to buy list.
d) I have too many visitors.

You won't talk me out of it you know! But it's funny you trying. xx

 

[Penners]

Not wishing to be a pedant Penners, but I understood it was a "muster" of peacocks.

A muster of peacocks is only for the bourgeoisie, who can't afford a full ostentation.

Personally, I'm amazed that such poverty exists.