Sir TophamHatt

Cheap-ish silicone mats: £11 https://www.amazon.co.uk/AMZNOVA-60cm×40cm-Waterproof-Anti-slip-Silicone/dp/B06XXJWK58/ I use these to stop screws jumping about all over the place on a bare desk / table. The lip is very useful.

I have also learnt as a buyer to select something like "defective" or "wrong item sent". Selecting something completly honest like "does not fit" will give the seller a way out. I purchased some wheels from a link the seller specifically sent. The seller then said I had purchased the wrong ones. I sent them back - seller deducted the return price from the refund. Luckily PayPal reimburst me (another reason to use them to pay for things instead of ebays managed payments options), so nobody was out of pocket but had the seller been a little more diplomatic, I would have puschased the correct item from them. I was honest and chose the refund option of "does not fit" - had I chosen "wrong item sent", I wouldn't have had to faff about with PayPal, especially considering the seller sent me a link to the item I needed, which turned out to be wrong.

My new e.On Next tariff requires me to have a smart meter. They keep sending through reminders every so often saying I need to book in but so far, nothing has been forced. But then again it's only just clicked over to the new tariff as I got them to delay switching me until the 1st of April.

I feel the time is coming closer when I may get a Smart Meter. I think the little gadget you get would be interesting from a stats point of view to see how much I'm using per day. I think under the new prices, I'll be at about £1600 a year - maybe slightly less due to much less use in the summer.

Luckily in my case, it's a genuine "why do people decide to stick with what they know instead of trying something new" Comfort is likely to be the answer and the grass isn't always greener on the other side but sometimes, it might just be.

I'm sorry you read my post in that way - this isn't a t*t for tat sort of thing. What it is about is not taking your own account and deciding something is worthless based on that. The language you used, such as "being conned" suggests you think there has been some sort of swindle with smart meters, but I also understand when someone has it in their head that they're bad, that's it - no amount of debate or even in some cases, clear evidence will change their mind. But people all too often are blinded, hell even me in many things. Has your mother lost money that she won't be able to get back? No. Has she lost money by someone who meant to take that money and not reutrn it? No. The whole "save you money" idea has come about as someone in Government has decided because you can SEE the amount you're spending, you could decide to turn off lights more or whatever. That's not exactly a con or deception as for some (although very limited I expect) that could be the case. But you should investigate why our country is even bothering with smart meters. That will help you understand why there's a big push to get them into as many homes as quick as possible. I expect there will be one with gas boilers in the next 50 years. The analagy about a smart TV doesn't fall over. Lets compare like-for-like. The first generation of them didn't do as much as they do now. The first generation (and even the 2nd) of smart meters send readings automatically (yes, I appreciate this has gone wrong in your experience). In 10 years, I wonder what else they may be able to do... just like smart TVs 10 years after the launch of them are a world of difference to the ones that came out in the beginning of digitalisation. That's the main reason to delay having a smart meter for as long as possible. If the smart meters worked as they should, the benefit is not having to submit meter readings. For some people, it's worth the risk changing as in the end, it'll be sorted out and working correctly. For some, heartache getting there, for others working from day one. Remember, we're on half the same page here - I am not bothered about a smart meter being fitted to my house. But because some people have had problems, I wouldn't say the whole idea is absolutely stupid. Imagine if someone said the same the first time a person died of electocution... More than happy to discuss more through private messaging though.

We went: Leicestershire - Birmingham - Tywyn (stopped at Aberdovey overnight as Tywyn places wanted minimum of 2 night stay). Next day: Aberdobey - Porthmadog - Ffestiniog (via the narrow gauge railway) - Llandudno. A couple of days later: Llandudno - Crewe - back towards Leicestershire. Barmouth looked pretty good and we passed another couple of railways that I'd like to go back to but was a pretty good railway holiday in disguise. We'd certainly look at doing it again - all by train.

I have one like the jewllery one above but wouldn't say it's really helped or done anything exciting.

Well, pre-ordered my GA 745 today. In this day and age, I sort of feel like a lot of models are here today, gone tomorrow, so even though I am happy to wait months after release, I also don't want to miss out.

You MUST remember though that this isn't plaguing everyone. No I don't have any details but I highly suspect the successfully operating Smart Meters dwarf those that are having problems. But then people generally shy away from changing anything from the status quo, even if it's for the better. Not sure why that is. Remember, people didn't have a NEED for a smart TV, but that's all you can get now and millions enjoy the benefits. Yet the beginning of digital saw pixelated pictures and generally awful reception. Rare to get that these days. And it's not a con. Being blinded because of your distaste gives does not give you a balanced view. And yes, I don't particularly want to fit a smart meter... yet. But I don't really care if I have one or not.

But built in means no extra component. The smart plugs I have aren't small enough to fit side by side in certain extension / 4-bars. Plus, it's also about plugging into Google Home and Alexa. Yes, that brings with it privacy concerns but I'd also like to be able to schedule my washing machine or dishwasher. Yes, both have timers but that means being switched on for hours before hand. Imagine having your phone set up so when you are driving into your street, the kettle automatically flicks on and it's boiled as you've come in the door. Or being able to change the temperature on the oven if you're running late. or turn it off completely. So much tech that's all readily available now but is clunky to install / operate or simply not available as an option. While I'm no fan, Elon Musk has it right with the Tesla cars. Apparently, you can set them to pre-warm before getting in. While combusion engines work differently, there is no reason why a separate heater couldn't have been included with any engine to warm the interior of a car before getting in or defrosting windows or whatever.

Like any other device that requires batteries, that could get knocked on the floor and broken. And any new phone - after the initial "woo, new phone" it just becomes like any another smart phone. Also not sure why they thought there would be a reduction in bills? Just because you can see how much you're using, doesn't mean you'll automatically reduce. We use the minimal we can but the kettle still needs to boil, the washing machine still needs to go on. I doubt knowing a washing machine run costs me 20p will make me go out and buy a more efficient machine - it's only 6 years old now so I doubt newer machines will be any better. Remember, ~10 years ago there was in influx of similar devices where you clamped something round the main electric cable and it showed you what you were using in pounds and pence. I remember I had one from nPower: This new marketing about these little devices are nothing new. They didn't take off in 2010 and won't now as people simply don't really care. Interestingly a BBC news article from 2011 suggested "Users will be able to monitor the cost of their electricity and gas consumption in real time, and eventually see how much power individual appliances are using" 10 years later and fridges, freezers, washing machines, kettles still lack any sort of proper innovation of technology built in, yet smart home devices have been around for over 5 years now.

Hello Do you have plans for the recently announced Class 175, 180 and 745/ 755?

Good info! I wonder if such schemes were easier / better back then (sorry if that makes you feel old!). But another question is who are most in need? Middle earners are always overlooked as they earn too much for any credits, but not enough to be able to insulate their houses or whatever the case may be. I wonder how many people fall from middle-earning into poverty. I guess that's a topic for another thread though. So far, E.on haven't pushed the smart meter on me as yet (despite my tariff requiring one). I thought they'd message as soon as to get me booked in. They've messaged every few weeks saying I need to get booked in (urgently!) but will continue to put them off for a while.

To be fair, he didn't say it was... just that it sounded like it was.

Home Covid Test. 1: Open a can of beer and try to smell it. 2: If you can smell the beer, drink it to see if you can taste it. 3: If you can taste it and smell it, this confirms you don't have Covid. Last night, I did the test 15 times and all were negative. Tonight I am going to do the test again because this morning I woke up with a headache and feeling like I am coming down with something. I am so nervous.

A vacuum cleaner salesman came to my door, poured a bag of dog s**t on my carpet and said, "Sir, if this vacuum can't clean it completely, I'll eat whatever's left." I said, "I hope you're hungry 'cause they cut off the electricity this morning."

Which is great for those people that can get on those schemes. Whenever I have looked, unless you are in receipt of some sort of benefit, it's largly full price. Having to spend best part of £1000 a month on nursery fees, £500 on a mortgage (our 3-bed house was bought for £140k a few years back) - leaves little left for insulation indulgences. We already use less electric than many our age, as well as trying to heat our living room using the fire only but a 2 year old needs a warm bedroom to sleep in, so it's not as easy without heating. I appreciate we're just at an expensive stage in our lives but it's not as simple as paying £50 and it's done.

Only just discovered this is in production. I'm glad but my wallet is certainly not.

Although I did get a relatively good deal from e.on next. Was forced on to them after my previous company folded. However Martin Lewis tweeted they had a good deal (1yr or +£100 more for 2 yr fix) that was just above the price cap coming in April. That means if you took the deal, any further price increases in October (likely), you'd be protected from. Took the 2 year fix, which is exit fee free anyway. Still double the amount I was paying nye on 6 months ago though However as part of the deal, they want to fit a smart meter. I don'd mind having one, despite putting it off for quite some time but the "I can see my usage in pounds and pence" is lost as about 10 years ago, loads of companies gave away free energy monitoring equipment anyway - they didn't catch on. I don't mind reading the meter every month - mine are both in the house so takes less than 2 minutes to do. Will put them off still as I want to make sure the smart meter I am getting is the best available.

Not sure how people get estimated bills... I read the meters (that are in my house) once a month, send the reading through the app, I get a bill and that's that.

I also recommend Heathocte Electronics boards. When you get a few in combination, they're really handy for automation of signalling. You need a MAS-Sequencer as the "master", which comes with a timer on the board, so you can set it to change the light from red, through yellow. double-yellow to green automatically after X amount of seconds from the train passing. If you add some (any number) IRDASC-4, the MAS-Sequencer will communicate with these and change the lights in the right combination. Well worth the investment. Start with a MAS-Sequencer to see how it works.

Flux? It's like grease.

Forgot about the Class 755 until I saw the announcement about the Class 175 and 180. I can imagine Hornby putting the motor in the motor car, but would prefer it in either end as I don't really like pushing things around. Although the Bachmann Voyager seems to do okay. But then I wonder if Hornby don't see the need to use electrical couplings (like Revolution's Class 180 will have), as people will buy whatever they produce. I also worry a little about availability. Happy to wait if/when prices drop a little - certainly at these RRPs - but with the latest trend of (very) limited editions, I also don't want to miss out or pay inflated prices via ebay. There's a few places online that are selling less than the RRP so will look at those keenly.

What's the best size of solder I should get? I think my current one is 0.8mm. Does that also mean I should look at getting rid of the current solder (0.8mm 35G 60/40 rosin core tin lead roll) and flux (mercury 703.003 solder flux tin)? Sorry no actual links as they were both bought in 2017 - no active amazon pages any more.