OK, the Hatton Gardens heist it ain’t… but we did get an idea these last two days what it takes to fit a new boiler flue into a cottage with two-foot thick stone walls.
The plumbers were particularly unimpressed by the way the installer of the previous boiler had chosen to drill a pipe right through the centre of one of the stones, rather than go through the gaps between them, forcing them to remove a substantial chunk out of the side of the house to replace it.
But now, after two days of banging noises and a kitchen turned upside down, we have a shiny new boiler which, as I discovered this evening, sends rather alarming clouds of water vapour drifting past the sitting room window when it’s running (I was alone in the house and I just caught the movement out of the corner of my eye).
No chance to stay home and enjoy it, sadly, as the Brompton and I will off again tomorrow, heading to York for this, where I will be chairing a round table (I don’t get to dress up as a knight, disappointingly) on teenage girls and cycling, a topic for which my sole qualification is that I once was a teenage girl who cycled, albeit a terrifyingly long time ago. However, having talked to a few of them by way of research, I have discovered that mainly teenage girls don’t cycle for the same reason most people don’t cycle: because the roads are scary (and, yes, helmets are uncool). And hence the answer is more of this, which will require me doing more of this.
Bet you can’t wait
Our builder built a ‘cat tunnel’ to accommodate a new cat flap, because we didn’t want a hole in our new draft and waterproof door. It was not an easy job, the cats took to it in a flash, the dog doesn’t like it though because he can’t stick his head out of it
Definitely need to see pictures of the new boiler. Just saying.
have you now got the Hive control system, works via the internet? This allows you to turn on the heating when you are away. or allows your other half to turn it off when they are away, leaving you frantically looking for log in details before you freeze to death….
UHDD – cat tunnel sounds fab, I’m sure the cats would love that.
Bob – I’m not sure my readers could stand the excitement
Charles – we’re just excited to have a thermostat at all