Derekl

I have a Lidget Compton concrete shed on a poured concrete base. The shed comes without insulation. I fitted a laminate floor over insulation, used Gyproc Thermalite insulated wallboard and fitted a thin ply ceiling above which I pushed loft insulation. There are three modest windows and an ordinary door. It has been up since early 2020 and the layout installed since around mid 2020. I use an oil filled radiator (2kW, I think) to heat and a fan to cool. The short answer is that unless you maintain the temperature in winter, it will cool down, and similarly it gets warm in summer, the fan being a modest alleviation. The floor insulation seems to have worked as the floor is never particularly cold, but the cost of maintaining temperature in the depths of winter would be high (I just bring projects inside at that time, and don't run many trains). Without aircon, it is impossible to keep it fully cool in summer, but it is more or less similar to house temperatures for most of summer.

I have a (roughly) 20' by 9'6" shed with effective3ly and oval with fiddle yard on one long side, through station on the other, (very) loosely inspired by the Midland line from Derby to Manchester through the Pennines. I decided on long trains, 8 or 9 coaches as expresses and the platforms are to length - about 9 feet. I have got as far as track and platforms, no station buildings or similar as yet. I was a little taken aback by how the platforms dominate, as obviously they more or less fill the straight (in fact slightly curved) section between the end curved sections taking the tracks back to the fiddle yard. I decided on 4' and 3' radius curves so these take up a bit of space, but also enable fairly close coupling, which i like. A 3 coach local with a 4MT or similar on the front does look a bit lost, but then it should. The point I making (perhaps badly) is that it is worth considering the overall look within the scenic envelope as well as the length of the trains. Had I realised how dominant these platforms would be, I might have worked out another compromise. I am persisting, though, and perhaps ( as noted above) once some furniture is attached to the platforms and some background scenery is in place, it may be different, but I have my doubts. i should mention this is in 00.

Not exactly unknown - near me, Leylands Road passes under Wivelsfield station platforms, although the building is at the roadside.

I agree hat sounds like a lot of panels - I have 6 with a 4.5 kWh battery - on a dull day produces about enough to charge a toothbrush, but today which was quite bright it has done 4.4 kWh, which covers my consumption. My concern with 11 is that you are going to be making quite a lot to pump into the system at not a great rate of recompense (we, 20p to sell, 31p or so to buy). I paid £8,000 June last year for the set up, so the price quoted seems to be what you would expect. If you are selling, I am not sure that you would recover the cost of the installation, but it may have an influence on buyers.

Err, 29 day month this year.

I get the new state pension (born post April 1951) plus a "protected payment". I have the full 30 years contribution. I was contracted out for a period, but there is no reference to that, unless the "protected payment" is something to do with that. The protected payment increases at the same rate as the basic pension, that is, in accordance with the triple lock. I confess I don't understand it, but seem to be getting much the same or slightly more than others I have spoken to, so haven't worried unduly.

The lever frame looks like the standard DB manual lever frame. There was a video on here a while ago dealing with one of the DB museums which showed it. I can't see it likely that it was used in the UK

You get access to the back catalogue on a print only subscription - you don't have to take out a digital sub.

And perhaps someone could confirm whether credit cards will be accepted at the door.

Seems to be reasonably freely available in a wide range. Mayfair stationers have a wide range of white (alone - many others) at £7.94 a sheet. I have no idea whether that is expensive, since it is a while since I bought any....

There is a "Settings" Menu accessed via a gear shaped wheel in the bottom left corner of my screen. That seems to access all the likely options. If you can't see it, there should be a tiny right arrow right at the bottom left. Clicking that reveals it. I hope that helps.

The OP refers to a hinged bracket on which the wiring is mounted - I seem to remember this is the method used bty Charlie on Chadwick Model Railway - I am pretty sure it is an episode entitled "Wiring..." or similar

I travelled on them on occasion between Manchester Piccadilly and Altrincham. Those were 3+2 seating. I didn't find them particularly uncomfortable, although the ride was interesting, the noise on bends even more so. A little more comfortable than standing squashed in a Metrolink tram. Ian Walmsley in Modern Railways suggested that they in fact saved no money on them - once all the various alterations to sort out problems were undertaken and paid for, you may as well have had 150s (he said).

Yes, we are looking at different reports - those numbers are from very early reports prepared shortly after introduction of the scheme, and cogent, prepared by Imperial College, but apparently not representative being from the very early stages of the scheme. Also, incidentally, not lies. The February 2023 report shows NO2 levels down by 46% in Central London and 21% lower in inner London. The re4port is peer reviewed by Imperial College and appears cogent. Probably not lies, and personally I would hesitate to describe any study as "lies" without some cogent evidence to support the slur.

Sorry, this is not correct - in areas of London where ULEZ already applies, motor pollution levels are lower and GPs report fewer complaints of breathing difficulties - okay, that is anecdotal, but is what we have to date. It might be correct to say that there has not yet been an in-depth study of the effects, but what is apparent to date shows a positive effect.

Pullman was under the tender care of the BTC by 1958 - the British Pullman Car Company was nationalised in 1954. Although the company operated as a separate entity under the direction of the BTC, it was nevertheless part of the nationalised industry.

There is a high degree of police expertise in the investigation of road accidents - very apparent when dealing with complex or multi-vehicle accidents. I am not sure that this would transfer easily to another body.

According to Philip Larkin, some did and some did not. I am not sure that there was any principle as to which as the years wore on, but I think the idea was that those assigned to express or named trains had the emblem, others not, but I can't imagine that the differentiation would have lasted very long as coaches got shuffles around.

They are the same company. Avast acquired and merged with AVG in 2017. I use AVG with little difficulty - I had that pop-up which I simply ignored.

If there is an insulating rail joiner at the frog end of both the points on the outer loop (as there should be) then power will not go beyond the points. You need a separate feed for the part of the loop that is dead.

I simply don't think so - a step is not a complicated piece of machinery, the hazard (falling off) is patently obvious. The child is not at work, so the complexities of employment legislation (where training requirements may be found) don't apply. The duty is the common law duty or (possibly) the similar duty in the Occupier's Liability Act. Neither impose the requirement you suggest.

Sure, but I think that is then their responsibility, although I wouldn't like to be any part of that, legal liability notwithstanding.

The "Measuring worth" calculator gives the cash value of 5/- in 1901 as £28.87 (in 2021), so not that far different. But, there are other ways of comparing the value - the labour value of the 5/-, that is the multiple of average earning required to purchase the ticket as £109.90, suggesting that rail fares have become more affordable (not that i necessarily feels that way when buying a ticket).

I am not sure that legal liability would arise from an accident following the provision of a step to enable a child to see a layout, provided there is nothing wrong with the step and that it is provided for use under parental supervision. Effectively, that transfers any duty of care to the parent. That said, maybe you don't want to take the chance.

I have a new system (installed 15/06/3023) with 2.5kW panels and a 4.5 kW battery. I have noticed, if the monitoring is correct, that the panels can generate a little more than 2.5 kW. Mostly, much less. The battery runs down to about 75% overnight and recharges in a few hours in the morning. That "run-down" includes cooking which is usually later than any significant charge. My hob and oven are electric, so there is some evening use. I have taken to using washing machine and dishwasher latish morning or afternoon when the solar is generating, although I am not sure whether it has any effect one way or the other - if charged, the battery "pays" for it. For some reason the system imports small amounts of grid electricity - I am not sure why, so while the solar generation and battery seem to cover my use, the imports amount to about 0.5 kWh per day. It is exporting quite generously, but I am not getting any advantage (yet) as the system is not registered. That should be sorted in the next week or so. So, in summer, and with the battery, it seems to cover use. I will have to see what happens in winter.