La Darnoire

The carer telephoned us in the late afternoon. The aged FIL has no electricity again. We drove over to investigate.

Using my multimeter to trace the fault, it appeared that during his attempts to restore power to the aged FIL’s premises after the recent fire-and-power-failure, the electrician had dislodged a piece of trunking leading to a plug in the kitchen (the one which powers two electric heaters – don’t even comment), and the cloth-wrapped wiring had shorted out. I replaced the fuse wire in the ceramic fuse, using the very last piece of fuse wire, and put a piece of duct tape over the plug socket to prevent it being used. The heaters were transferred to the washing machine plug socket, which is the only other electrical outlet in the kitchen. (I’m not counting the other two plug sockets bodged into the 10-Amp lighting circuit).

Today’s post included a receipt, indicating that HSBC had received the recorded letter requesting the closure of my bank account.

The bunnies finally appeared. This time they were much easier to count; we have ten. Seven black ones, and three like their mother.

Their names? Mustard, Prunes, Left Slipper, Right Slipper, Waistcoat One, Waistcoat Two… Only kidding. No, they haven’t been given names; after all, they’re not pets but food.

It rained pretty much all day today. In the afternoon, we had lightning and thunder (with more rain of course). And in the evening the aged FIL pushed his emergency button. This time LSS was home to take the call. He was once again without electricity. It wasn’t a neighbourhood power cut this time, but his mains box had tripped. LSS checked all the old ceramic fuses (which were all fine) and finally in desperation gave the festoon of wiring around the old mains box (did I mention his electricity needs upgrading?) a shake. This seemed to resolve the problem. I have a feeling it’s temporary…

In the morning I fitted the solar panel tubing into the frame, having first inserted a layer of glass fibre for insulation. I now need to drill some holes in the end of the frame for the exit of the tubes.

We then went to the aged FIL so that I could pump up the three spare tractor tubes. I think the reason they are going flat is that they have punctures; but when testing for leaks I had not inflated them sufficiently. Having pumped them up using the ancient compressor in his garage, I discovered I was correct. Each one had a tiny puncture. These have now been repaired, and I’ve asked LSS to feel around the inside of the actual tyres to see if there are any thorns, as her hands are more sensitive than mine. I couldn’t feel anything, but there must be a thorn through the casing somewhere.

Now, if you remember correctly, I have mentioned several times in the past that the aged FIL’s house is in sore need of electrical rewiring. However, he has refused, saying that a) he does not have the money (“If the house needs rewiring, YOU can pay for it. I’m not paying a cent!”) and b) it’s not necessary anyway. “It’s worked fine since the electricity was first installed in 1946. I don’t care if standards have changed since then.”

Well, today was the day that our predictions came partially true.

At 6 p.m. LSS received a phone call from one of the carers. “I’ve just arrived to give him his dinner, and I’ve called the Fire Brigade; the garage is burning down.”

We dropped everything and dashed over. The Fire Brigade arrived some ten minutes later; the village fire engine is apparently in for repair, so they had enlisted the help of the next village, Brinon. The entire building had collapsed, burying the compressor, welding machine, and heavy-duty lathe. Fortunately we had removed the aged FIL’s car from the garage several months ago, as it was getting covered in owl droppings.

The police were there as well. Apparently when there’s a fire, they have to attend to determine whether the cause was accidental, or arson. The mayor turned up too, as did the Garde Champêtre. The reason they attended was because it was a domestic fire, and they needed to ascertain whether the occupants needed to be re-homed if the building turned out to be uninhabitable. Rather a good system, I think.

It seems that the ancient wiring had finally given up the ghost. Fortunately the ancient ceramic fuses had given way as well, so the entire main building was also without electricity; otherwise there could well have been a chain reaction which would have burnt down the main farmhouse too, with the aged FIL therein.

Although I had unplugged the compressor from the mains (as I usually do after using any of his equipment), the strain on the ancient, cloth-wrapped wiring had obviously finally proved to be too much. The silly thing is, although the aged FIL wears an emergency aid button on his wrist, he didn’t think of pressing it. “I heard loud bangs, and saw lots of smoke,” he said sheepishly, “But I didn’t want to bother M&O.” (The way the emergency button works, is that the central control station telephones us first, then M&O, then one of the carers, and if no response is forthcoming from any of these, the fire brigade. As luck would have it, the last two times he has pushed the button, we were unavailable, so on both occasions M&O responded.) LSS drily pointed out that M&O had volunteered to be on the list, and would not have done so if they had not been prepared to help.

The loud bangs he heard were exploding paint tins, as these were stored on a shelf above the electrical cabinet. Well, I call it a cabinet. It was a piece of wood with wires draped around it.

Because of the electrical danger, the Garde Champêtre had called a local electrician to ensure that when the fire department sprayed the smouldering roof beams with water, there were no unpleasant electrical surprises. The head of the fire brigade then held an impromptu meeting with the other officialdom present viz. the electrician, EDF, and the police. The conclusion was that the wiring was unfit for use, and if the aged FIL does not upgrade it, his house will be declared uninhabitable.

The local electrician then looked in horror at the electrical installation, but dug out his miner’s LED head-torch and got busy in the gloom to ensure that at least the kitchen and bedroom had a temporary electricity supply for the aged FIL’s heaters.

On Monday LSS will be busy on the telephone, getting estimates for the electrical upgrade, speaking to the insurance company etc. etc. Unfortunately (or fortunately) this is the last straw; if the aged FIL refuses to have his electrical wiring upgraded, LSS will have no option but to contact the police and EDF in order to declare the building officially uninhabitable; and the aged FIL will then be re-homed to a retirement house in the village whether he likes it or not, for his own safety.

The solar panel frame painting is now complete. We also visited Neighbour J to pick elderflowers, for this year’s batch of elderflower champagne and elderflower cordial. In the afternoon the two newest hens were allowed to exit the chicken coop to join the others. They are now roosting with their elder companions so they know where their home is!

We have decided to close my bank account and convert LSS’s bank account into a joint account. The reason for this is twofold. In the UK, banking is free. In France, you’re charged a monthly fee of approximately €8.50 for the privilege of having a bank account. By having a single joint account, we’re saving one of these monthly fees. Also, my nearest HSBC branch in Brinon has now closed, and the banking facilities have been moved to a town called Argent-sur-Sauldre, several kilometres beyond Brinon. As LSS is the one who tends to do the shopping, and is the one currently receiving payments for giving English lessons, it makes sense that her account is the one to be kept.

LSS called HSBC on my behalf and asked what they required in order to close my account. They replied that all they needed was a letter signed by me. “What about the chequebook and bank cards?” LSS asked. “Oh no, we don’t need those back. Once the account is closed you can destroy them.” We are by now, of course, thoroughly suspicious of any official information received (due to the fiasco of the Quittus Fiscal paperwork in our first year of residence – for further details, read the book!)

So LSS drafted a letter for me, requesting HSBC to close my account. It will be posted on Monday by recorded delivery.

I returned to the dentist for my second appointment. The bill came to a grand total of €62, which to my mind is incredibly cheap when I compare it to the cost of dentistry in the UK. Apparently in France the government has set a fixed tariff for things like fillings. Supposedly one should have a dental checkup every six months. I’ll try and compromise, and make an entry in my calendar for the next visit; perhaps in two years’ time.

I installed the remaining two brackets on the roof. This time I rigged a safety harness using a thick polypropylene Land Rover towrope with a shackle. I clipped the shackle to the roof ladder; and the eye at the other end of the towrope was threaded through a shorter length of rope, still in my possession from my army days; it’s called a “Tokkel Tou” (utility rope). This was fastened around my waist. Well, it was better than nothing, and I felt a lot safer! Now I just need to paint the metal frame I made last week, and then that can be fixed to the roof. The solar panel simply rests inside this frame and will be fixed to it with screws.

Further work took place for the solar panel installation. I set up the scaffolding and roof ladder, and managed to install two brackets using lengths of builders’ band. This is a very versatile invention; and sees a multitude of uses. If you’ve never heard of builders’ band, it’s not a musical group. It’s a length of galvanized perforated steel tape, usually around 1mm thick: Builders’ Band

I had decided builders’ band would make better brackets than trying to fabricate something by using rusty bits of metal. And although I no longer have a tremendous fear of heights (this was cured by doing some skydiving during my university years!), I didn’t feel very comfortable on the steeply-pitched roof; and work was somewhat limited as one hand was occupied with clinging to the ladder! I need to devise some sort of safety harness.

I found some bits of scrap metal which I think can be fabricated into brackets for the solar collector. The bad news is that the tractor front tyre is once again flat. And it’s the new inner tube! I don’t understand it at all.

The details of the Secret Project can now be revealed; it’s a book. Now available online from your favourite bookshop; and it will be in brick-and-mortar bookshops within the next week or so. See the website for more information!

Eight eggs this morning! Well, actually seven, because one was broken; I don’t think the newest hens had been getting enough calcium. Last night they were both pecking at the pile of crushed oyster shells as though their lives depended on it.

The copper tubing on the solar collector received another coat of paint. It’s important to paint everything matt black as this absorbs the most solar energy; gloss black would reflect some. I had originally intended drilling holes through the roof tiles to mount the panel; but after a bit of careful thought I have instead opted to make some brackets. These will be fixed to the rafters, and by following the contour of the tile, no drilling will be necessary. Of course this means I need to pay a visit to the aged FIL’s workshop to see if there is any suitable scrap metal. I think the panel itself will need a bit of reinforcing on the underside, as the plywood box seems a bit flimsy. Once it’s in place it should be fine, but I don’t want it to fall apart as it’s being hoisted onto the roof!

Despite the rainy weather, I have now completed the soldering of the tubes for the solar collector. I connected it temporarily to the Horse Field water supply pressure vessel with a hosepipe, in order to test for leaks. I don’t want to install it on the roof and then find it’s dripping! The Horse Field tank holds some 300 litres of water at 4 bars pressure, so this is four times the pressure required by the solar collector when in operation. (When installed, the solar collector will contain propylene glycol at a mere 1 bar, as it will be an open vented system). I was pleased to find there were no leaks, so it would appear my joint soldering was up to scratch.

The pipework was then fixed to the backing plate by using lengths of copper wire salvaged from the old electric wiring I ripped out when I upgraded the household electricity. I then fixed the temperature sensor in place using thermal glue. Once that was done, I painted the pipes matt black. After giving it another coat of paint tomorrow I can then start putting it all together.

In the late afternoon we bought yet another two hens; that makes a total of eight. Well, we have the room. Of course putting the new occupants to bed was interesting; they’d never seen a perch before!

Unfortunately this means the hens’ profit and loss account is in the red again, but I calculate we only need another 35 eggs to reach the new break-even point.

Although it was difficult to make an accurate count because of all the wriggling, it would appear that there are seven or eight little bunnies. They’re all dark grey, and emitting high-pitched squeaks. Mood is consuming vast quantities of food. We haven’t actually bought any rabbit food; she has some wheat (courtesy of the hens), and particularly likes clumps of grass. She is also eating kitchen vegetable scraps – although she is not very fond of leeks. As the late MIL kept rabbits, LSS is fairly expert on which plants to feed rabbits, and there’s a lot of rabbit food growing wild around the place!

In the late morning, we had an unexpected visit from Friend L; she had left her village on May 1st with her bicycle to take a scenic camping tour along the Loire river. She stayed for lunch and then headed home.

As planned, I laid some sheets of polythene around the borehole, and covered these with a layer of gravel; hopefully this will keep at least some of the weeds in check. I also took advantage of the sunshine to cut some more wood for the woodshed. Several weeks ago I had recovered several large branches which had been brought down by some high winds, and these had been stacked near the saw-horse waiting for a day when it wasn’t actually raining. I intend finishing this lot tomorrow, and then recovering some more from the aged FIL’s farm.