Bath or shower after a muddy walk: thinking through a tub swap in an old cottage
Thinking of swapping a bath for a walk-in shower in an old cottage? Notes on hard water, awkward floors, safe access and what to ask an installer.
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Customs, foraging, food and the odd thing noticed on the way home.
Pieces
The fuse box that puzzled me: wiring questions for newcomers to an old cottage
A newcomer's notes on old country wiring: storms and power cuts, warning signs in an old cottage, and what to ask an electrician about the fuse box.
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What a hilltop winter teaches you about the water heater
Hard chalk water and cold hilltop winters wear a water heater down. The signs to watch for, and when repair gives way to replacement.
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Keeping an old bathroom dry through a hilltop winter
A walker's checklist for damp and steam in an old cottage bathroom: weather, solid walls, ventilation and what to ask a builder before a refit.
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Sloes, blackberries and good manners: hedgerow foraging on the chalk
Picking blackberries, elderberries, sloes, rosehips, hazelnuts and crab apples from the hedges, with the lookalikes to avoid, the law and simple etiquette.
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