Preparing for winter III

ifonlyitwaseasier

prepareathome wrote: »

I think you still need a TVL to use iplayer as its BBC but not for the other channels.

I just watch the odd programmes I want to see on laptop, but we do have a TVL as hubby does watch the TV

you only need a tvl if you watch the programs live, you can watch them later or the day after on iplayer and you do not then need one.

prepareathome

ifonlyitwaseasier wrote: »

you only need a tvl if you watch the programs live, you can watch them later or the day after on iplayer and you do not then need one.

Thanks I thought you had to have one even if you watched a programme after it had been broadcast, but I see from the site its only if you actually watch a programme online as its being broadcast - handy thing to know if things every get so bad that tv has to go. If I was on my own I wouldn't own a TV and going to mention it to a friend who is struggling to make ends meet it might be worth sorting her out with a pc and pay as you mobile dongle - she only watches tv about two hours a day at most, preferring her radio and at 69 not old enough to get licence free.

I know it has not be actually cold yet, but I have noticed a difference in temp in downstairs toilet since putting up the bubble wrap on the window, no heat in there, but heat that does get in there is staying much longer, so hopefully using it when weather does get bad will not make me feel I need to dress for the artic to use it ( I keep a fleece in there to throw over me when urm using the facilities).:o:rotfl:

[Deleted User]

rats!! I saw one today, outside and one two days ago running up the side of my neighbour`s house. We are rural and there is a wheat store a field away. I have spuds in the shed :eek:and yes I know they get hungry in winter

what food are they after and what do we do? I don`t have a dog or a cat

Fruball

kittie wrote: »

rats!! I saw one today, outside and one two days ago running up the side of my neighbour`s house. We are rural and there is a wheat store a field away. I have spuds in the shed :eek:and yes I know they get hungry in winter

what food are they after and what do we do? I don`t have a dog or a cat

Hi Kittie

When we were rural and had a small stream at the bottom of the garden, we used to use poison but made sure it was right inside a long pipe so no birds got in. We kept hens so lots of food for rats and I saw a few bigguns too - borrowed a neighbours rifle but was scared I might shoot the neighbour by accident :rotfl:... Thats not funny really is it?!!! No, seriously, I am a good shot but rats are hard to hit and they were frighteningly close to his greenhouse!

You can get rat poison stations that birds can't get into - not really sure how I feel about poison as mice (the nice ones, dormouse FE) could easily find it too...

TBH, rats are such a nuisance that, to me, poison was the only sensible option, esp as said neighbour caught a rat spread disease (not sure what its called) so rat control was priority over anything else.

Or you could get a trap and contain it inside a large wooden box of some description with holes from them to get in and out - they can get thru the smallest of holes so make sure its too small for a hedgehog...

They are mostly after grain, cooked food, anything smelly whatsoever - they don't care if its rotten. Basically a rat will eat anything, but spuds in the ground.... I doubt unless they were starving and that is unlikely as they are real scavengers.

Not sure if that helps at all

ETA - sorry, i read it as spuds in the ground (durrr)... there is other food, ie rubbish, that they would choose in preference over raw spuds.

prepareathome

kittie wrote: »

rats!!
what food are they after and what do we do? I don`t have a dog or a cat

They eat everything and anything so you need to make sure they cannot get to your potatoes, a cardboard box will not do they will just chew through it, so needs to be wood, not sure if metal like a metal bin would do. Even though you are rural you have a council, contact them and tell them you have seen a rat, each council has a department that deals with them. Rats are not only a danger to food supply but to health so councils must act to remove them, not that they can ever get rid of them fully, I think now there are more rats than humans in the UK or nearly as many, read a report a while ago and cannot remember now exactly.

Make sure they cannot get into your home - they think nothing of biting a human, children and babies especially must be protected from them, I will not tell you some true stories I knew of about children and rats ( one happened to a friend). So check your home and make sure there is no way they can get inside through a wall, pipe etc. They can get through the smallest gaps, its not give them an inch more given then a quarter of a milimeter:rotfl:

The wheat store will attract them, but the farmer will know about the perils of rats and have that properly protected and if he hasn't then he will not have much wheat left come spring and what is left will not be fit for consumption for man or beast - their wee can give you a not very nice infection.

I think all councils are open 24/7 so give them a ring tonight and explain. Yes they will put poison down but with rats its a case of them or us, no room for sentimentality I am afraid . They should not charge for this service as rats are vermin and that should be covered by your council tax, same with mice.

[Deleted User]

thanks frugal and pah, food for thought here. I`m going to do as much research as possible now. Re the council, I think it would be difficult for them as we have no sign of rat damage anywhere, I think it was looking around. I`ll be going to the farmers shop on monday to see what they say and then I`ll be looking at purpose made bait boxes. We are surrounded by fields here and they`ll be looking for food, shelter and water

Baileys_Babe

prepareathome wrote: »

They should not charge for this service as rats are vermin and that should be covered by your council tax, same with mice.

Sadly ours do and they had a very long waiting list when we had need of pest control a few years ago we called a national pest control company and they came out within the hour, were very attentive and charged us the same as the local authority were quoting, we were very impressed with them. I was very shocked by the local authorities set up.

prepareathome

Frugal wrote: »

- not really sure how I feel about poison as mice (the nice ones, dormouse FE) could easily find it too...



In cities especially even the lovely little dormice are classed as vermin, as people have died due to mice chewing through electric wires causing fires. We have a battle with them every winter, as they come into the house, and dogs almost welcome them. At first I just trapped them and let them go in the fields round the corner, but then dogs took ill oh about 8 years ago and turned out it was due to the wee from the mice in their water so now I hate to say it poison goes down in the house, usually behind things like washing machine, dishwasher out of reach of dogs, but this year I didn't realise the guy put a box down behind downstairs toilet and a week later I found youngest dog with the box, one very worrying night, and trip to vets first thing next morning and 15 mins wait for blood tests to come back before we were sure box had been empty by time she found it. So far no more dormice so far, but its so mild, if it turns cold they might come back. I keep straw in the plastic greenhouse each year especially for them to use and stay out of it till spring and they do use it and we do see them in the garden and that is fine they can stay there, just not in the house. I know when they are back even if I do not see them, droppings on the kitchen sides.

I do not think you need to see rat damage to contact or expect help with the council. So far rats are something we haven't had, but then Jack Russell Terriers - of which I have 3 are ratters, but as they don't bother with the dormice I doubt they will go after the rats, to spoilt my lot.:) My previous dog went after them with a vengance, once years ago there was a binmen strike and I ended up lending her out to neighbours to get her smell in their gardens as we had fields within 5 mins walk where people were dumping their rubbish and it attracted rats. I so far have never actually seen a wild rat thankfully just the dormice, I admit they are so cute, just tame white rats, ones a friend had.

I would expect Farm shop has had to deal with them so they will know what you can do, but before you pay out for anything check if council will do anything, so many people pay out money for poisons for rats and then they find out council will supply it and put it in place for free.

Good Luck

singlestep

kittie, I hope your rodent issues get sorted out as quickly as possible.

I've just finished some of the work I've brought home for the weekend and noticed the time . I'm about half way through but think that I'm only going to do the most pressing part tomorrow and try to have some time off. I didn't think it was quite so late! The plan was to do some cooking after I was done but I suppose it will need to wait. I got my mum's present on the way home from work yesterday - went for a fabric bag in the end. I'm going to get her some smaller things but the main part of the most tricky gift is done and so the rest of the Christmas prep will not now seem so daunting (I hope).

Before any bad weather sets in I need to do a bit of updating:

- stock up with various things from the chemists'.
- any changes/revisions to the public transport timetables and routes I'd be likely to use.
- last big internet supermarket shop of the year.
- some new things to wear for Christmas nights out etc. (Not going mad, though!)
- get mobile fixed (the bit the charger goes in to is broken and it only charges if I'm holiding it).

tugrin

Last night I realised I had left my fleecy pjs on the line too long and they would probably be wetter than when I put them out due to the high humidity - so I had to resort to a t-shirt material pair. This is when you realise when the guy who invented fleece should be king of the world because there is no comparison! Getting into bed was chilly (room wasnt that cold) but waking up and getting that Sunday am cup of tea to take back to bed was TOTALLY wrecked due to having a chilly torso! Thank goodness for Primarni - needless to say fleece pjs are safely in and dry ready for tonight.