Preparedness for when

Margaret54

So nice to read that all is well with Fuddle Lyn. I had been wondering how she was as I always enjoyed reading her posts about herself and her little family. She always sounded a strong young woman and hardworking.

nuatha

tessasmum wrote: »

I am quoting Lyn's comments on my OH's death nearly two years ago and I have finally got round to giving you the update - I've been reading and not saying much lately! There just hasn't been the hours in the day to read as much as I used to even, but things are going well, and I wanted to echo the thanks I offered back then.

Thank you for the update, and its wonderful to see its so positive.
I often admire Lyn's words, that time she was particularly eloquent.
I hope to read further updates down the line and that you all continue to do well.

[Deleted User]

How lovely to log in this morning and see you posting TESSASMUM and even loveier to read how brilliantly you are all doing!!! How wonderful that your DDs (and you) are living and thriving and making such a superb success of your lives, you must be so very proud of your girls. They in return must thing 'what an amazing Mum' you are and so do I!!! You are, if I may say so, still an inspiration to ALL of us in a world where often people feel so hard done by and incessantly complain of their lot in life but do nothing to change it, you have just got on with making the best of things, making what you DO have and know work for you all and from your post seem to have arrived at that beautiful point of balance where you are all not just content but contented and it shows so very clearly in your post. I say WELL DONE to all of you for your fortitude and sense under crushing circumstances, to have reached equilibrium in such a short time is a huge achievement, bless you all and thank you for updating us, long may it continue!!!

tessasmum

Thanks, Lyn - I'll try not to leave it so long! This is a lovely community and I have missed it so I shall try to be here more often x

mrs-moneypenny

Morning all
A gardening question for you GQ if you don't mind.
we fitted a waterbutt to the house down pipe we followed the instructions exactly apart from the hole was already in the butt as it was a preused one we had been given. Instructions said hole should be 10cm from top but ours is about 2cm. We cut the pipe exactly to where it said but it overflows. Can't understand this as the water seems to be flowing up hill and against the flow of pressure. But in heavy rain the waterbutt overfills and spills out of the top. Can you think of an obvious mistake we've made. I've even jiggled the connector on the down pipe so it's angled slightly lowere than the opening on the waterbutt but it still overflows in heavy rain. It's one of those connectors that in event of butt being full it should redirect straight back down the drainpipe. I'm confused.
Thank you in advance.

GreyQueen

I haven't any experience of this kind of waterbutt, unfortunately, but hopefully someone else will be able to assist.

The waterbutts I do have are two huge food grade barrels, one on either side of the allotment shed, which are filled from house-type gutters fitted on planks on the shed walls, with a short length of downpipe attached to a Y junction (probably not what they're actually called, but descriptive).

Gotta go to w*rk now, laters GQ x

jk0

mrs-moneypenny wrote: »

Morning all
A gardening question for you GQ if you don't mind.
we fitted a waterbutt to the house down pipe we followed the instructions exactly apart from the hole was already in the butt as it was a preused one we had been given. Instructions said hole should be 10cm from top but ours is about 2cm. We cut the pipe exactly to where it said but it overflows. Can't understand this as the water seems to be flowing up hill and against the flow of pressure. But in heavy rain the waterbutt overfills and spills out of the top. Can you think of an obvious mistake we've made. I've even jiggled the connector on the down pipe so it's angled slightly lowere than the opening on the waterbutt but it still overflows in heavy rain. It's one of those connectors that in event of butt being full it should redirect straight back down the drainpipe. I'm confused.
Thank you in advance.

I had the same problem. It's because the diverter allows a head of water to build up inside it which may be higher than the lip of your water butt. Unless you can bung up the hole, you need to regard the hole as the new lip, and make a new hole 100mm below that.

Edit: (Also obviously you need to lower the diverter relative to the butt. Perhaps you could raise the butt.)

FTA: Another problem I had was very old soakaways. The water drained very slowly, and so built up quite a head of water in the downpipe. Of course this found a way out via the top of my water butt.

mrs-moneypenny

Thank you jk0, that makes sense. We know the down pipe is clear as we had to clear a blockage in the storm drain pipe prior to fitting the waterbutt onto it.

[Deleted User]

An item on the news at lunchtime is saying there is going to be a problem with brassicas and major shortages in the colder months because cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower are being decimated by a continental moth that has been blown in on these warm winds from Europe. It is resistant to insectisides and there is nothing to treat it with, it's apparently going to wreck the entire crop across the country. We're going to fill the polytunnel with as much cabbage as we can and some kale too as it's been successful in there before. It's got butterfly netting across all the doors so we stand a chance of keeping the pests out. I always seem to be the one bringing bad news these days don't I? but forewarned we might be able to cover with fleece etc. and hope to get some of the hard worked for produce that we all try to grow.

mardatha

Probly the moths have all drowned now and it wont happen.... !