Yzzy Posted April 9, 2018 Author Share Posted April 9, 2018 3 minutes ago, lizzie said: What a great looking house and well done on all the clearing. Mammoth task! Thank you.... it's been a hard task and much more to come but now all the crap is going we can actually imagine living there again..... I'm actually excited!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted April 9, 2018 Share Posted April 9, 2018 That's starting to look nice now you can see it. To make you feel better I did a rewire on a bungalow last year, that when I first saw it looked way tattier than yours, and had rotten collapsed floors, rotten windows, no kitchen etc. In the space of about 2 months the owner had it all repaired, decorated, new kitchen etc and it is now a cosy home once more. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jml Posted April 9, 2018 Share Posted April 9, 2018 Must be about 8 months ahead of schedule. ??Most plaster, coving and floor boards look good condition. ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gone West Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 14 hours ago, Yzzy said: That's a substantial looking house and I'm sure you'll get it back to how you you want it. Looks like you've been working hard over the last few weeks, well done. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yzzy Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 13 hours ago, ProDave said: That's starting to look nice now you can see it. To make you feel better I did a rewire on a bungalow last year, that when I first saw it looked way tattier than yours, and had rotten collapsed floors, rotten windows, no kitchen etc. In the space of about 2 months the owner had it all repaired, decorated, new kitchen etc and it is now a cosy home once more. Oh goodness we have our fair share of nasty in the house It's only really the main red brick building that is ok... there are some horror stories in other parts.... But it does make me feel better, thank you ..... :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yzzy Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 13 hours ago, Jml said: Must be about 8 months ahead of schedule. ??Most plaster, coving and floor boards look good condition. ? As carpets and wallpaper are coming off I hold my breath and am then really happy to see a lot of it is actually ok to just sand down and decorate!! It's just the rubbish extension that is all gnarled up and rotten... meh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yzzy Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 (edited) OOhhh meant to update you all on the fig trees and cant remember if I did... Anyway, my darling brother came down with his petrol chainsaw and spent te day with hubby chopping most of the beasts down. We now have a huge pile of wood and branches in the garden. Good job we all thought.... Next day both hubby and brother developed blisters and chemical burns on them... brother was worse as he was the chainsaw user. Turns out the sap in Fig Trees is really toxic and now brother is on steroids and strong anti histamines ... has HUGE yellow blisters on his arms, forehead and back of neck ... PLUS... nobody can have the wood as burning it releases ARSENIC! Edited April 10, 2018 by Yzzy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdinand Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 13 minutes ago, Yzzy said: OOhhh meant to update you all on the fig trees and cant remember if I did... Anyway, my darling brother came down with his petrol chainsaw and spent te day with hubby chopping most of the beasts down. We now have a huge pile of wood and branches in the garden. Good job we all thought.... Next day both hubby and brother developed blisters and chemical burns on them... brother was worse as he was the chainsaw user. Turns out the sap in Fig Trees is really toxic and now brother is on steroids and strong anti histamines ... has HUGE yellow blisters on his arms, forehead and back of neck ... PLUS... nobody can have the wood as burning it releases ARSENIC! Shred + compost for a year or two? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gone West Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 14 minutes ago, Ferdinand said: Shred + compost for a year or two? Think I would want a full decontamination suit on if I was going to shred that lot! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Harris Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 The sap from fig trees is a phytotoxin, and as you've found, some people are very sensitive to it, some aren't. There's no problem I'm aware of regarding arsenic, as the only possible way arsenic could get into a plant of any kind is if it was growing in contaminated soil. As arsenic is a pretty effective herbicide, soil that is contaminated with it tends not to have much, if anything, growing on it. So, put on some rubber gloves, pile the cut debris up, leave to dry and burn it. Normally I'd be dead against having a bonfire, especially in an urban area where the pollution could be a real nuisance, but I don't think that shredding this stuff is really an option, because of the hazard posed by the sap. BTW, if you do accidentally get the sap on bare skin, washing it quickly and keeping the area that was exposed out of the light (i.e. covered up well) should minimise the effect. The toxin tends to be a lot more effective when exposed to light. I believe that applying a high SPF sunscreen before touching the stuff should also work as an added protection layer, as the toxin needs the UV in sunlight, even diffuse sunlight, to be effective. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yzzy Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 Thank you JS...... It was a REALLY sunny day the day they chopped it all down, they removed their hard hats and jackets I insisted they wear too saying "Ahhh we're ok!".... hmmmm.... I think burning is going to be the only way... I totally LOATHE garden bonfires but it's a grey day so hopefully everyone will be either at work or windows shut tight. I will knock on the neighbours' doors and let them know what's happening too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yzzy Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 Is a week long enough for it to be dry? It isn't is it... I keep reading 2 years and then it also mentions how toxic it is... grrrr.... bloody fig trees!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Harris Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 7 minutes ago, Yzzy said: Is a week long enough for it to be dry? It isn't is it... I keep reading 2 years and then it also mentions how toxic it is... grrrr.... bloody fig trees!!! It depends a lot on whether the trees have really started to "come alive" from winter, with the sap rising up from the root system. From your description there seems to be a lot of sap, which suggests that they have and could take some months to dry enough to give a relatively smoke-free bonfire. How quickly the cut branches dry out really depends on how thick they are. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdinand Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 (edited) The technique is probably to do it on bonfire night if there may be neighbour complications and you have to wait for it to dry. Just don’t let it get rained on in the autumn . Ferdinand Edited April 10, 2018 by Ferdinand 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triassic Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 (edited) I took our fig tree branches to the local council recycling centre and put them in the green waste bin. Edited April 10, 2018 by Triassic 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yzzy Posted April 11, 2018 Author Share Posted April 11, 2018 20 hours ago, Triassic said: I took our fig tree branches to the local council recycling centre and put them in the green waste bin. sadly we sold our big car a few weeks ago and only have an Aygo! lol... drat!!! Someone quoted us £150 to take it all away yesterday, wish we had kept the car now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triassic Posted April 11, 2018 Share Posted April 11, 2018 55 minutes ago, Yzzy said: sadly we sold our big car a few weeks ago and only have an Aygo! lol... drat!!! Someone quoted us £150 to take it all away yesterday, wish we had kept the car now! An ex-neighbour used to walk the mile and a half to the local recycling centre with his green waste bin rather than pay to have it emptied by the council. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreadnaught Posted April 11, 2018 Share Posted April 11, 2018 4 minutes ago, Triassic said: An ex-neighbour used to walk the mile and a half to the local recycling centre with his green waste bin rather than pay to have it emptied by the council. Laudable. I do the same with plastic recycling. Its good exercise and I get to listen to podcasts on the way. I am big fan of daily walking (with podcasts). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterW Posted April 11, 2018 Share Posted April 11, 2018 42 minutes ago, Triassic said: An ex-neighbour used to walk the mile and a half to the local recycling centre with his green waste bin rather than pay to have it emptied by the council. Couldn't do that round here as there are signs stating that you cannot walk waste on to site. Stops the builders walking on with tubs of plasterboard waste and not paying for it ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Harris Posted April 11, 2018 Share Posted April 11, 2018 1 hour ago, PeterW said: Couldn't do that round here as there are signs stating that you cannot walk waste on to site. Stops the builders walking on with tubs of plasterboard waste and not paying for it ... The latest move here is that they seem to have now banned cars with trailers from using the recycling centres. They are also bringing in a requirement that everyone arriving at the recycling centre has to prove that they are paying Wiltshire Council tax before they will be allowed in. So far, Dorset doesn't seem to be imposing such draconian restrictions, and so I can easily just nip over the border at use one of their recycling centres instead......................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newhome Posted April 11, 2018 Share Posted April 11, 2018 13 minutes ago, JSHarris said: They are also bringing in a requirement that everyone arriving at the recycling centre has to prove that they are paying Wiltshire Council tax before they will be allowed in. Yes I have that issue here too so can no longer use the nearest recycling centre. I have to drive miles in the opposite direction to use the nearest one in my council area. It’s a complete pain in the arse, and not very green either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted April 12, 2018 Share Posted April 12, 2018 I was stopped from walking into my local tip with one small bag of rubbish. Mentioned it over at the other place and our old mate Damon HD said he had the same problem. As it was Damon, he organised a mass 'walking in with rubbish' though his local contacts. Rather than a bonfire, you could make a small brazier burn smaller amounts. Tends to smoke less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted April 12, 2018 Share Posted April 12, 2018 That reminds me of the argument my BIL had many years ago. He drove into his local tip and proceeded to drag the 1 ton builders bag of garden waste out of the back of his pick up truck and start emptying it into the skip. At this point the manager came storming over saying he can't tip that here. The argument hinged on the sign saying "garden waste, 1 car, 1 bag" and my BIL:'s insistence that he indeed only had 1 bag. The argument ended when my BIL said I can either empty the contents into the skip, or I will just drive off and leave it on the ground (it was out of the truck by this time) I don't think they hand ANPR cameras then but I suspect he was unwelcome after that. It is absurd that they make it difficult for people to dispose of their waste responsibly. And then they wonder why there is so much fly tipping that will cost them more to clean up than if they just let people take it to the tip. It annoys me as it's my council tax money they are wasting with policies like that. It also makes me feel even more, the "bottom of a wheelie bin" is a damned good place for all sorts of stuff to go. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roundtuit Posted April 12, 2018 Share Posted April 12, 2018 On 10/04/2018 at 11:12, Yzzy said: Is a week long enough for it to be dry? It isn't is it... I keep reading 2 years and then it also mentions how toxic it is... grrrr.... bloody fig trees!! No real need to let it dry, unless you're burning it for fuel. I've burned loads of brash the same week as it's come down, often on rainy days so I could be sure neighbours didn't have washing out! Just need some dry wood to get an intense 'core' going, then feed in the rest, smallest branches first, thickest end first into the centre. That'll be gone in a couple of hours! Of course, pick your time, do it safely, respect your neighbours etc etc. ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterW Posted April 12, 2018 Share Posted April 12, 2018 54 minutes ago, Roundtuit said: Just need some dry wood to get an intense 'core' going, then feed in the rest, smallest branches first, thickest end first into the centre. Agree to this - also worth getting a bag of smokeless coal from the local garage and adding some of that when it’s going as it keeps a good core to the fire. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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