CitroJim's AX, C3 Picasso, Cycling and Running Tales

[CitroJim]

That's a lovely stove Steve - a real work of art and beautiful to look at

Simon, if you've never seen an Aga then here's what I would really like: a Rayburn, just like an Aga but a bit less fancy and fussy... The Aga was for the toffs (posh people) and Rayburns were for the rest of us

Rayburns were in all old houses where I was brought up and considered superior to an Aga because they could burn even more things than an Aga could without blocking the flue! In those days the dustman had a very easy job as if rubbish could be burned in the Rayburn and converted into heat then it was... Basically anything vaguely combustible

I have happy memories of Rayburns I see they're now made by Aga; once they were their fierce competitor...

[RichardW]

Simon: The water leak sounds like the expansion chamber air pressure is not set right - there should be a schrader type valve on it somewhere - stick your tyre pressure gauge on it and see what it says - should be 0.5-1 barg. Lighting at full load doesn't sound right, perhaps they have installed the wrong board. If there is no diagnostics on the board, difficult to tell why it won't light. It might be that the ignitor gap is set wrong (mine does this, gap closes up and then it won't light - have a new one to stick in, not got round to it yet, but have had to re-set it last two mornings....!). There should be a re-set function somewhere - often another position on the control knob, or maybe a separate knob - anything in the instructions about it?

Jim: AGAs and Rayburns are quite different really. An AGA has a small burner (3kW in a gas one), but is designed to store a lot of heat (they weigh something like a ton and have to be assembled on site), which is used for cooking - which is AGA's primary function. They can also be fitted with small boilers, to run a couple of rads, but this is secondary. A Rayburn is much lighter (they are installed in one piece), have a bigger burner, and are design primarily as CH boiler, with cooking on the side. Rayburns are much more amenable to stoking up a big fire to generate high heat for cooking, whereas with an AGA you need to give it written notice if you want it hot Mind you, either will become the centre of your kitchen! Mind you, the cost will make you weep - a 2/3 oven gas AGA will be the thick end of £10k installed We had an old oil fired AGA OB (A rather odd design from the early 70's with square lids), and my parents have now got a gas fired one in their house (which they installed when they rebuilt it in 2003) - I'm rather a fan, but SWMBO isn't - and anyway - TEN GRAND

Stoves: we've got a Charnwood Cove in our house - I installed it in place of the back boiler I took out in 2007. It's great! Interestingly (well to me anyway....!) Charnwood are Isle of Wight based, and we had a stove from them when we lived there a bit over 30 years ago - then it was one guy knocking them out in his garage effectively - they are somewhat larger now! It's an excuse to have a chainsaw anyway!

[Northern_Mike]

It's an excuse to have a chainsaw anyway!

I have always wanted one of them. An excuse to own a chainsaw that is.

I know nothing about AGAs, Rayburns, boilers or stoves. Apologies for jumping in. I just want a chainsaw.

[KP]

And for those that dont have them apparently good fire wood is getting harder to find these day, even in unprepped log form

Sign of the times really as its a good cheap source of fuel thats not harming the enviroment at all.

I think back boilers will be the future with current fuel prices and i can't wait to get a house where i can get one installed and save a small fortune. Plus i dont mind playing with fire and cleaning up afterwards

[myglaren]

Indeed, a Baxi open fire with a back boiler is a wondrous thing, haven't seen one for many a year but they were very impressive.

[addo]

Sign of the times really as its a good cheap source of fuel thats not harming the enviroment at all.

You've got to be pulling my leg. The wood smoke strips my throat raw terribly; if that's what I can personally notice it cannot be environmentally sound.

[KP]

Enviromentally i mean the CO2 you put out is only what the wood has taken in over its life and any chemicals as well. So if you planted a new tree for every one you cut down then you would be carbon neutral in effect. The enviroment isnt just for humans you know

[addo]

It's bushfire season here, coupled with the overzealous volunteer firies and their "hazard reduction burning" this means weekends are invariably subject to a degree of wood smoke in the air. Hurts your eyes and throat after a while; on bad days the asthmatics are strongly urged to stay indoors.

While you don't get this standing inside a room heated by a properly drawn wood fire or flued stove, if a whole region burned wood thusly it would make the effects known to you. Most of Australia doesn't get that cold really, anyhow - it's frequently a J Arthur to run a wood fire.

[Rhothgar]

We've got a big old clunky Potterton Netaheat MkII F. Dates to 1983/84. It'll never break down but it less than 69%

I've considered upgrading to 96% boiler (not sure there is 98%) but I know it will break down every year.

It's a tough call but we would approx. £800 a year a gas if we switched.

It would pay for itself in 3 years. Bloody plumbers would charge £2000 to supply and fit.

[CitroJim]

Well, touch-wood my system, after the repair, is now seemingly OK thank goodness.

Wend down to see dad on Wednesday in the V6. On the way back I called in to see Rattiva_Mike and on the way to his place in the wet I splashed through a puddle and the ABS light came on. It cleared for a while but it's back on again now. Lexia says Front Nearside sensor...

Not been able to look at the ABS properly yet as the day of driving took it's toll and I took a good two days to recover I'm a bit better today but still far from right...

It's happening every time now after a day of driving so it looks like I'm going to have to seriously curtail how much driving I do unless I can manage having two full days completely written off as a result... And even then after the latest two long drives I seriously question if I'm actually safe toward the end of the drives and that really is the clincher. Two days of wipe-out is one thing but feeling dangerous on the road is quite another...

At this rate expect to see me only at the Little Horwood rallies next year

[Chris570]

We've got a big old clunky Potterton Netaheat MkII F. Dates to 1983/84. It'll never break down but it less than 69%

I've considered upgrading to 96% boiler (not sure there is 98%) but I know it will break down every year.

It's a tough call but we would approx. £800 a year a gas if we switched.

It would pay for itself in 3 years. Bloody plumbers would charge £2000 to supply and fit.

We've got one of those, British rip-off (i mean gas) want £3300 for a straight swap, surprisingly the salesman looked shocked when i told him where to shove the quote! I've a feeling btw that they are more efficient that 69%

[CitroJim]

I've a feeling btw that they are more efficient that 69%

They might have been when they were new Chris but now and especially in our neck of the woods with water as hard as Scrooge's heart I'd reckon, due to the scale, you'd be under 50% now...

[Chris570]

I've a feeling btw that they are more efficient that 69%

They might have been when they were new Chris but now and especially in our neck of the woods with water as hard as Scrooge's heart I'd reckon, due to the scale, you'd be under 50% now...

Noooo, don't say that.

[CitroJim]

All I can say Chris is that comparing my before and after gas bills there is a big improvement in efficiency...

[DickieG]

I've a feeling btw that they are more efficient that 69%

They might have been when they were new Chris but now and especially in our neck of the woods with water as hard as Scrooge's heart I'd reckon, due to the scale, you'd be under 50% now...

Bung some Fernox F3 in the system, clears out scale like nothing else.

My old boiler (gas not wife) keeps going whereas everyone I know of who's had a new Carlos Fandango boiler lowers their gas bill but pays out far more in getting the blasted thing repaired on a regular basis, they may be more efficient on gas but arguably cost far more to run overall.