BL Domestic Goddess & Amoeba Thread

[kingme]

How come "Botanical gardens" never got shortened to "Bot", as "Zoological gardens" got shortened to "Zoo" ? And why did no manufacturer call their VCR a "telecorder" ?

i think because botanical gardens got called that after the zoological gardens appeared. they were just gardens before, surely?
also, zoos were once menageries, right?....

since we re on the subject, whats up with "stone gardens"?

 

[BigG]

since we re on the subject, whats up with "stone gardens"?

Stone gardens? Is that where you find the Stone Roses?...haha!!

Sorry I know that's terrible I just couldn't resist.

 

[Erikmen]

As far as I understand it, you just cut them to length and they "clip on" to the pipe. You don't need to cut the actual pipe.

I'd just listen to the g/f and do what she tells you, if you're only after an easy life.

Can we discuss these things freely here in BL?
If so I want to give my opinion..

 

[BigG]

Can we discuss these things freely here in BL?
If so I want to give my opinion..

Ermm I think they're talking about a different kind of "pipe"...

Have you read the previous page?

 

[felix]

Erik: I sometimes wonder which planet you're on.

 

[Erikmen]

I see..
Very far from Scotland

 

[koneko]

KATE KATE KATEEEEEEEEE...I have purchased 5 litres of white vinegar...it seems you can clean anything and wash ahumm pretty much everything with it according this http://www.rd.com/home/150-household-uses-for-vinegar/...gonna need some drugs and a day of doing them all..

Flo - vinegar is your Mr Gleeem clean it all gem of a chipppy m'lady %) Then you get a bottle of star drops and play chemist :D.

I use white vinegar instead of:
fabric conditioner
stain removal
pet sick
general antiseptic spray
glass cleaner
fridge cleaner
tap sparkler
it goes on....etc etc

Between it and a tiny bit bleach and star drops you do not need t buy any other commercial cleaners. You can get yer essential oils out, honey, oils, etc and have your own home chemistry domestic goddess set Fluffy edged plastic gloves are optional.

Vinegar cleans everything, the pong goes quick/

Now you've put me in the mood of chips

You'll need nice spray bottles an pinnies at the ready. Want pixz

 

[BecomingJulie]

Just re-hosed my shower! Living ih a hard water area, every three or four years, the hose from the mixer to the shower head gets stiff with limescale (Severn Trent, more calcium than the Co-Op Dairy) and then springs a leak somewhere inside the metal spiral wrapping stuff, resulting in water I've paid to heat going straight down the bathroom wall and not over me. And being all nakey is less fun without the warm and wet bit.

This time around, I had a 'mare getting the hose off the threaded stud under the mixer. I honestly thought at one point that I was going to need a whole new tap because there seemed no way it was going to come off without the use of cutting tools. So I have smeared Vaseline over the threads of the stud before screwing on the new hose, in the hope that it might make removal in future a little bit easier. Of course, if any of the Vaseline got on the rubber seal, then I'll be needing to unscrew it sooner rather than later anyway .....

 

[kingme]

Its moments like moving house when you realize just how much you care about some things and other you couldnt care less.

The order of business is:
Install computer and internet
scrub bathroom clean, change showercurtain and toilet seat.

Ehm, thats it?
Oh yeah maybe vacuum and i dont know change sheets. Or whatever.

 

[koneko]

Just re-hosed my shower! Living ih a hard water area, every three or four years, the hose from the mixer to the shower head gets stiff with limescale (Severn Trent, more calcium than the Co-Op Dairy) and then springs a leak somewhere inside the metal spiral wrapping stuff, resulting in water I've paid to heat going straight down the bathroom wall and not over me. And being all nakey is less fun without the warm and wet bit.

This time around, I had a 'mare getting the hose off the threaded stud under the mixer. I honestly thought at one point that I was going to need a whole new tap because there seemed no way it was going to come off without the use of cutting tools. So I have smeared Vaseline over the threads of the stud before screwing on the new hose, in the hope that it might make removal in future a little bit easier. Of course, if any of the Vaseline got on the rubber seal, then I'll be needing to unscrew it sooner rather than later anyway .....

Well impressed Julie %) Did that cost you a lot to do, or was it more swearing time! Can you advise about my mixer taps / shower. We're 2nd floor, up a hill in a town centre, soft water. You can put the full warm tap on but its too hot, the minute you add cold it gets scalding. So we have to play around with it and the temperature is never constant. It's either freezing or scolding. Nae bother running a bath or the like, its fine then its just up that bloody hose / shower Any ideas?

Its moments like moving house when you realize just how much you care about some things and other you couldnt care less.

The order of business is:
Install computer and internet
scrub bathroom clean, change showercurtain and toilet seat.

Ehm, thats it?
Oh yeah maybe vacuum and i dont know change sheets. Or whatever.

Clean the kitchen, fridge and oven to an inch of its life - oh and the floor. Doing windows, door tops and door handles and skirting also helps :D

Buy new sheets, duvet and pillows fuck knows what's gone on on the last lot 8(

Open windows and air!

 

[kingme]

thanks kate! I ll remember to wash everything, as per usual with extra antiseptics too...

any idea how to air out a matress well? The previous owner was a bit of a smoker apparently and Im not, so im quite perceptive of the smell of tabacco. I think I ll just leave it outside on the balcony for a few days and if that doesnt work Ill get a new one.

Bluelight sure loves its duvets

 

[koneko]

thanks kate! I ll remember to wash everything, as per usual with extra antiseptics too...

any idea how to air out a matress well? The previous owner was a bit of a smoker apparently and Im not, so im quite perceptive of the smell of tabacco. I think I ll just leave it outside on the balcony for a few days and if that doesnt work Ill get a new one.

Bluelight sure loves its duvets

If you can get a box of soda crystals and some essential oils, you like say lavender - mix this up and sieve over the mattress, give it a good rub in, then air it like you say. Don't let it get damp. Then hoover it (vacuum it). This should freshen it up and remove some of the old smells. You can buy mattress covers you put under your sheet - maybe that would feel nicer too.

If you can't get hold of soda crystals, should be in the laundry / cleaning aisles at a push use talcum powder with essential oils. Not as good as the soda though.

You can use this on any carpets too that pong. Soda crystals are fab

 

[kingme]

hmmm.. id need to use some gloves right? Maybe a big brush to rub the powder or crystals in?

Also, what would you recommend for the bathroom (tub and sink)? General dissinfectant and leave it work for a couple of hours?

 

[koneko]

hmmm.. id need to use some gloves right? Maybe a big brush to rub the powder or crystals in?

Also, what would you recommend for the bathroom (tub and sink)? General disinfectant and leave it work for a couple of hours?

Rubber gloves definitely. Just any wee household brush so you can get in about it, but its more about letting it do its stuff then you remove it. The vaccum / airing bit is just as important.

Bleach for everything else. I know its not eco friendly, but it'll work and sanitise, stain remove everything. You can leave a solution to work overnight or just get in there and scrub. (an old toothbrush is good for getting into all the crevices and around taps etc) Remember it'll "bleach" your clothes too so wear old things you don't care about. And rinse it off. Wear your rubbers

Don't mix bleach with other cleaners (like toilet cleaner) as it gives off poisonous gases. Nice eh :D

If you pay for my flight tickets I'll come over and do it for you

 

[kingme]

I have a strange feeling id have an easy time convincing you
Nah its good to get my hands dirty cleaning up every now and again. There is great satisfaction in it really.

What i do dread is the look of utter uncomfortableness of the two inherited armchairs left over from previous tennants. The owner wasnt keen on throwing em out so ill have to find a way to make em work.

I think ill post pictures o that trouble when i come round to it.
thanks for the great ideas!

 

[koneko]

^
Get throws, blankets n' cushions for the arm chairs.

You can pay someone to professionally clean upholstery, carpets etc - but its pricey.

You'll be really pleased once you got it to your liking and all clean. Get some house plants and new lampshades too!

If you don't I'm sure your girlfriend will when she visits!

 

[BecomingJulie]

Well impressed Julie %) Did that cost you a lot to do, or was it more swearing time! Can you advise about my mixer taps / shower. We're 2nd floor, up a hill in a town centre, soft water. You can put the full warm tap on but its too hot, the minute you add cold it gets scalding. So we have to play around with it and the temperature is never constant. It's either freezing or scolding. Nae bother running a bath or the like, its fine then its just up that bloody hose / shower Any ideas?

What sort of water heater have you got? Flow heater (includes electric showers, combi boilers and gas multipoints), gravity-fed immersion heater or mains-fed immersion heater?

The new hose set me back about a fiver, and I already had the tools. There was indeed a fair bit of swearing involved, including some words I didn't use very often before I began transition. But I eventually managed to screw the stud into the valve tightly enough to get the hose nut off using Mole grips to hold the short section of metal tube that passes through the nut, and an adjustable spanner on the nut itself.

 

[koneko]

What sort of water heater have you got? Flow heater (includes electric showers, combi boilers and gas multipoints), gravity-fed immersion heater or mains-fed immersion heater?

The new hose set me back about a fiver, and I already had the tools. There was indeed a fair bit of swearing involved, including some words I didn't use very often before I began transition. But I eventually managed to screw the stud into the valve tightly enough to get the hose nut off using Mole grips to hold the short section of metal tube that passes through the nut, and an adjustable spanner on the nut itself.

That's a bargain for something that's going to make life soooo much more pleasant. You're far too clever you

It's a combi boiler (housed in kitchen, about 5 years old) with mixer taps in the bath.

I'm dreading the cost of having to get an electric shower / plumber in

 

[BecomingJulie]

You could try turning your mixer to full hot, and using the domestic hot water thermostat on the combi boiler to set the temperature. With the boiler in the kitchen, though, an assistant is useful in this phase

If that makes things worse, not better, then you could try replacing your shower mixer with a thermostatic one -- about £120, but it will be worth it and will fix your shower woes (if not your shower hose and shower rose) for good. A thermostatic mixer continually adjusts the proportions of hot and cold water so even if the pressure or temperature vary, it will always try to maintain the same temperature at the outlet.

The spacing between the inlets on modern shower mixers is standardised, so it should be a simple enough replacement job -- turn off the main stop valve (with a flow heater or combi boiler, this will also cut of the hot water, as this valve also supplies the water heater), unscrew the union nuts from the old mixer, replace the seals (buy new ones from the same plumber's merchant as you got the thermostatic mixer, if there isn't a pair in the box), offer up the new mixer and tighten the unions. While the water is off, take the opportunity to install a screwdriver-release isolating valve in each of the feeds to the shower, so if you ever need to work on it in future you can turn off the water just to the shower without affecting anything else.

Electric showers: A typical combi boiler puts out about 30 kW of heat, and can reduce the power almost to nothing. An electric shower heater puts out about 10 kW (if you have a 45 amp breaker) or 7 kW (if you have only a 30 amp breaker), and always delivers that amount of heat to the water -- you adjust the temperature by adjusting the flow rate; faster flowing water undergoes a lower temperature rise. It takes 70 watts to make water flowing at one litre per minute, one degree hotter. Suffice it to say that with a combi boiler and a thermostatic mixer, you will be able to enjoy a hotter shower at a better flow rate than an electric shower.

 

[koneko]

^
Thank you Julie. Felix and I will have a talk over your suggestions as the current set up isn't working at all.

K
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