It ain't half hot, mum.

[Doggy]

Finally finished the cursed guttering, (so we could be in for a spell of dry weather).
Next time my bro tells me there's 'nothing to it' I will grab a sizeable pinch of salt.
He seems to have overlooked the fact that when he was doing this on a regular basis, he was a tad younger, (about 40 years).
....and the labourers took the cast iron stuff down for you first.

Still, at least it's finished and we're both still in one piece.

Anyone else having a relaxing holiday?

[robb]

LOL I used to do cast iron gutters ,downspouts and soil pipes on Mills in the 70s and 80s .I wouldnt even dream of doing it now bloody heavy stuff .Mind you the weigh in at the end of the job wasnt too bad

[Welly]

My modern-ish house (built 2003) was built to the standards we expect from today's British professionals (i.e. sh1t) the Black PVC guttering loves expanding and contracting in the sun.........because the plumbing operative couldn't be arsed (or didn't think/care) he boshed in nice full-lengths of gutter...consequently there's not enough joints/couplers to take up the expansion one of the few joints loves to 'open up' by 20mm just above the back door so when it rains there's a torrent of water slap-bang in the door way

*adds fixing said gutter (again) to list

*remembers to ask neighbour to borrow ladders again

[Welly]

LOL I used to do cast iron gutters ,downspouts and soil pipes on Mills in the 70s and 80s .I wouldnt even dream of doing it now bloody heavy stuff .Mind you the weigh in at the end of the job wasnt too bad

Do you remember the 'Lead Rope' for caulking the joints from Hoppers and Downpipes? last time I saw that used was on and old property back in the early 90's. I'm sure you had to use something else along with it too? some kind of hemp? I remember the Plumber saying the Lead can 'pop' when molten and splash up at you

[steve_earwig]

They probably used hemp* to stop the lead disappearing out the bottom...

No experience of lead plumbing, apart from soldering copper pipe. Oh, and removing lots of lead joints from the old GPO cables from the days when they used lead sheathing and paper insulation

*ah yes hemp, that wonderful stuff more-or-less internationally banned under pressure from the major pharmaceuticals, the Catholic church, the wood pulp paper industry, the cotton producers etc. etc. and namby-pamby idiots who think one toke on a reefer turns you into a ravening drug addict

[steve_earwig]

Oh yes, holiday you said

I got a letter from a friend the other morning
He says it's hot down by Montego Bay
I got the point and now I think it's finally dawning
Yeah, yeah, I got to get away
I got to take myself a permanent vacation
The sky's the limit but my plane won't fly
My nose is clean lordie don't need no sedation
Yeah, yeah, and that's the reason why
I really need it, really, really, need St. Tropez
I want a tan where the sun it never shines
I really need it, really, really, need St. Tropez
You best believe it that I got to get away
I got a sister man she really got a pin head
She think she kinky but she can't get straight
She say she livin' but I kinda think she brain dead
Just excess baggage on a late night freight
I gotta take me on a permanent vacation
The girl's be cummin' down in Cayman Brack
I gotta hand it to a firm situation
Yeah, yeah, I got to cut me some slack

M ybro's coming next month and the wife has decided to completely redecorate the house. Which means she chooses the colours while I do all the actual work

[Doggy]

....the weigh in at the end of the job wasnt too bad

Yes, I've got that to look forward to this afternoon, (turned out nice again, hasn't it)?

Thinking I was on a roll, I attacked the final gutter issue when it cooled down yesterday evening. There's a little bit of flat roof, with only a downpipe and hopper, which are still sound. Problem being the hopper, which was sporting about 18" of sycamore tree, fluttering defiantly in the breeze.

Now I'm not good with ladders - heights don't really bother me on solid structures, cranes, silos etc. but wobbly ladders I struggle with. Anyway, feeling a bit guilty about my bro doing most of it, I resolved to sort this one myself.

After a farcical 5 minutes extending the ladder, I get up the first two treads when the younger of our cavaliers appears at the bottom....
Returned dog to back garden, investigated canine escape route. Concluded we'd pulled the fence down low enough by repeatedly stepping over same, adjusted accordingly.
Ascended the ladder again, while marvelling at its abiity to oscillate with steadily increasing amplitude the higher I went, only to find it's still not high enough.
Extended it a bit more and up I went again. My "oscillation theory", (which posited the previous height to be a critical factor), was clearly wrong.....
Anyway, this time I was able to just see over the top of the hopper at the extreme extent of my ladder / bottle combination, when....
- A sudden flash of reddish brown in the corner of my vision announced the reappearance of Rufus, the intrepid exploring cavalier.
Needless to say, I got down the ladder a bit quicker than I got up, whistling and yelling pointlessly at the radiply disappearing ruby rascal.
Dogs safely inside the house, I gritted my teeth for the final assault.
This time I got to grips with the obstruction.
The hopper was completely full of what I assume started as moss, but now resembled ther most fertile of soil, clearly able to support.....

The sycamore is a survivor. A hardy immigrant to the British Isles, it can withstand salty sea spray, cold winters, shady conditions, almost any type of soil and usually flourishes wherever it grows. It is not known when Acer pseudoplatanus was introduced to Britain but suggestions range from Roman times until as late at the 17th century.

Survivor? We'll see. I yanked the mini-tree c/w root system and ball of earth out and cast it away - to land with unerring precision in the uncovered sink waste below.
Cleared the hopper out and returned gratefully to terra firma by the preferred, (non-express), method and vowed never, ever to do this agian.

Must remember that soddin' tree in the sink waste.

[Welly]

brilliant

I hate ladders too, especially what I call 'the let-go' this is where you assume a confident stance in the 'death range' of the upper section ready to let go of the ladder to do the actual work. Guttering is just-that-bit too far out of comfort reach on my house and if all went wrong all you're left with is a length of flimsy gutter to grab hold of

[Bailes1992]

Welly, have you thought about stand up comedy?

I remember being on an aluminium scaffold in Cardiff prison.
We had to build it around a heating coil in the loft space. Although it was safe it was a little wobbly.
I tried to pull a bit of old Pyro cable off the ceiling and it fell slightly onto its outrigger.
I went white, froze and had to be rescued much to the amusement of my colleagues

[dirtydirtydiesel]

They probably used hemp* to stop the lead disappearing out the bottom...

No experience of lead plumbing, apart from soldering copper pipe. Oh, and removing lots of lead joints from the old GPO cables from the days when they used lead sheathing and paper insulation

*ah yes hemp, that wonderful stuff more-or-less internationally banned under pressure from the major pharmaceuticals, the Catholic church, the wood pulp paper industry, the cotton producers etc. etc. and namby-pamby idiots who think one toke on a reefer turns you into a ravening drug addict

Hit's from the Bong!

[Doggy]

I remember being on an aluminium scaffold in Cardiff prison.

I know the law's strict in Wales, but that's a bit harsh for upsetting the neighbours.

[robb]

LOL I used to do cast iron gutters ,downspouts and soil pipes on Mills in the 70s and 80s .I wouldnt even dream of doing it now bloody heavy stuff .Mind you the weigh in at the end of the job wasnt too bad

Do you remember the 'Lead Rope' for caulking the joints from Hoppers and Downpipes? last time I saw that used was on and old property back in the early 90's. I'm sure you had to use something else along with it too? some kind of hemp? I remember the Plumber saying the Lead can 'pop' when molten and splash up at you

yep remember the lead and the hemp rope ,wooden bobbins, and the big nails to fix em plus I had to mix red sand and linseed oil to point the collars