Jason Salkeld's Weblog Jason Salkeld's Weblog

This will be the 2nd pair of Asics Gel Cumulus 10 I've bought while I've been training for the London marathon 2009. I've clocked up almost 300 miles on the first pair I bought way back in Oct 2008. Best price I could find was on Sport World direct for £64.99 + Quidco. Hopefully they might help ease my aching calf's (wishful thinking)!!!

If like me you've been struggling to bet the battery case off I'd suggest the follow method:

- remove the air filter
Undo the four screws in each corner, and loosen the jubilee clip, then swing out to the left.

- disconnect the battery
Remove the earth first then the positive terminal

- remove the battery cover
Lift up the battery cover from the front an angle back towards the car (and wiggle it like mad), once removed throw it over your shoulder.

- remove battery
Undo the 10mm bolt to the left of the battery securing it down, then lift battery out.

Have a cuppa!!!

TVU networks brings you programs from around the world that you can't get from your local cable and satellite providers.


download:
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TVU Player version v2.3.2beta10
Released on Jan. 5, 2007

The Gadget Show on channel 5 are campaigning for free national WiFi in the UK....

Please support there campain, and register at their website....

http://gadgetshow.five.tv/campaign/wifi/

This will run the perl file (which prints out an html table) and email as an html attachment....
echo "to:onlyme-AT-whatever-DOT-com\nSubject: test\nContent-Type: text/html\n\n"`./somePerlFile.pl` |/usr/sbin/sendmail -t

1. Turn on the ignition
2. Within 10 seconds hold the original plip pointed at the sensor, about 8" away from it and press either button
3. Within a further 10 seconds do the same for the new plip. (you see you need a spare key - or remove the blade)
4. Turn off the ignition and test plip.


I've not tried this myself, yet!!!

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Bought one of these yesterday with the idea of watching telly on my laptop in any room in the house. A day later and I'm now wise to the fact that the aerial supply with the unit is near useless and so are most (if not all) indoor aerials. Unless that is you live at the base of your nearest transmitter.

Oh well I'll have to get some cabling from the outdoor aerial to the various rooms.

Anyone else had any luck with indoor aerials on dvb-t devices?

Looking for a party venue for my Son's birthday.
Not too sure whats Southampton and the surronding areas have to offer?
Any ideas/venues would be appricated......

A Devon criminal mastermind has been given a two-year community supervision order after pleading guilty to a burglary during which he attempted to make good his escape with a wheelbarrow - only to be cuffed after a two-hour, 2mph dash for freedom with his victim in low-speed pursuit.

Dairy farmer Chris Lees was out milking his cows in Nadderwater when, as he told the Times: "My neighbour ran over to me and told me that someone was in my house. I ran 200 yards back from the parlour and I saw that the front door had been smashed open.

"There was glass all over the floor and the door was wrecked. My two children had locked themselves in the bathroom upstairs because they thought the man was still inside... He must be the stupidest villain ever."

Stupid, yes, because 23-year-old Jethro Smith had scarpered with the booty in a wheelbarrow, hoping to hot foot it to Exeter in the pouring rain. Lees and his teenage kids piled into the car and, three miles up the road, found Smith and his getaway vehicle "loaded with Mr Lees's belongings".

Before Lees could confront the ambulatory blagger, Smith asked for a lift to Exeter. Naturally reluctant to offer assistance, Lees then decided to call in local law enforcement, following Smith from a safe distance.

The cops, however, told Lees they could not attend for "some time" and didn't actually arrive for another two hours, by which time Smith had managed to cover a further five miles. Lees said: "I rang them half a dozen times as we were following him down the road. The police told us to keep following him at a distance and promised that someone would come out and help, but two hours passed before anyone came."

A Devon and Cornwall Constabulary spokesman explained: "We were not told that the incident involved a burglary. We actually had reports of a male acting suspiciously with a wheelbarrow outside a domestic property.

"The local officers were unable to attend immediately because they were involved in a serious case elsewhere. We then received another call saying that a door had been broken down and we dispatched a unit to the address to deal with the incident."

The spokesman also confirmed that the force's chopper was grounded due to the bad weather. A pity, because the helicam footage would surely have made a terrific The World's Wildest Wheelbarrow Pursuit - Ever! TV special. ®

Drivers side car seat is worn, due to entry/exit. Not too sure what to do:

ingore the problem

buy a 2nd hand seat

buy seat covers

repair the seat

What to do with too much sand.
Recently had some building work done and as the builders were going to dump the excess sand in the skip, I said I might find a use for it. But 8 months later we need the space in the garage.
I've tried scattering some around the garden but that has only made a small reduction.
I might dump a shovel full a week in the dustbins. This might take some time to clear though....

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Don’t be fooled.  Unlike prior claims, neither the AA nor the RAC are the ‘fourth emergency service’.  Actually they’re subsidiaries of big companies  whose aim is to make money.  This week’s Deal is avoid their over-expensive policies using the UK’s cheapest roadside recovery services, possibly saving you over £100 a year.

 

Forget the Big Beasts

 

There are two types of breakdown assistance policies, and it’s the one most haven’t heard of that can really save you cash.

 

• Automatic service (the usual system).  Here, quite simply, you call them and they send their patrols and sort it out.

 

• Pay and Claim (cheap but not nasty).  When there’s a problem, call them and rather than their own patrols, they utilise a local recovery firm (either selected by you or them).
   
  At this point you pay for the repairs, and after send in receipts to claim the money back.  If you don’t have cash, they’ll ensure the recovery firm sent offers a credit card or debit payment service or can invoice later.

Which is better?

 

Automatic service is more convenient, but it’s also costlier.   In terms of ‘call out time’ there’s little difference between the two.

Pay and claim’s main drawback is some people forget to claim.  Yet this is one of the factors that helps bring down the cost.  If that’s likely to be you, forget it; stick to the ‘autoservice’ type instead.

 

The UK’s Cheapest Policies

 

The Overall Winner. 

Top is AutoAid, a UK-only pay and claim service.  This is a little known subsidiary of large insurer Boncaster, which also runs the AutoNational breakdown recovery service.  AutoAid doesn’t do any active marketing, so it has no brochures.

However the price is stunning.  For £29 a year, it insures the person not the car, meaning vehicle age, mileage and reliability are irrelevant, plus caravans & trailers are included. It also includes free cover for a spouse (must be married not just cohabiting). 

While most budget policies only fix the car at the roadside or tow it to a garage, AutoAid provides transport for up to 6 people to the required destination, plus home start cover up to a limit of £45.  However, like most policies, it only pays for labour and recovery, not parts.

Its stated average call out time is 40 minutes (roughly on a par with others) and it promises to pay back the cash you lay out within 14 days.

 

AutoAid was my recommendation last year too and many MoneySavers who took it out have reported good feedback.

BIG BONUS! Tesco Clubcard Holders Do It Cheaper!

If you’ve Tesco Clubcard vouchers, never spend them in store.  They’re worth much more when used to buy non-Tesco goods.  When it comes to roadside recovery policies the value is quadrupled, so for vouchers with a face value of £11.25 worth of spending in Tesco, you can get the RAC’s £45 basic policy.  Yet, much better if you’ve £30.75 worth of vouchers, you can get the full policy which has a normal cost of £123.

 

Cheapest ‘Autoservice’ Standard Cover

 

If ‘pay & claim’ doesn’t work for you, then for standard cover (ie if you break down while out, they’ll fix or tow your car) it’s sometimes the RAC.  Only sometimes because normally it’s expensive.  Yet buy on the web at the right time and its standard policy can be as low as £22.  Otherwise forget it as Gem’s Roadside assistance policy is £28.

 

Cheapest ‘Autoservice’ Full Cover

 

Internet based price comparison service Insuresupermarket* has an exclusive deal with EuropAssist for £36.25.  After that the next cheapest is First Call.

 

Cheapest European Cover

Phone and web broker Quotelinedirect has an exclusive deal with Europ Assistance for a £59 annual ‘AutoService’ policy covering any individual vehicle (less than 20 years old) for a year. 

This includes home-start, and onward travel for passengers plus up to 90 days a year cover in Europe.  However, those not going to Europe regularly should stick with a UK-only policy and take out separate cover if needed for a single trip.

 

Single trip, special needs, covering more than one car/person

Website Insuresupermarket* offers a roadside recovery price comparison service and although it misses many of the very best deals above, so its results aren’t cutting edge best price, it produces a reasonably competitive result quickly.

I travel around 500 miles a week to and from work and if the fuel saver does what is claims I could save £££'s over a year.

Heres some of the advertising blurb.....


A. With financial and environmental pressures, it is hard to believe this technology is not used by everyone - Hopefully in time it will be. However, millions of units have already been sold in over 70 countries. With petrol and diesel prices at their highest point since the early 1970's the product is now selling very rapidly. We are offering you the opportunity to save money and help the environment every time you drive.

Q. What is a hydrocarbon ?
A. It is the hydrogen and carbon content of the fuel.

Q. Will the Fuel Saver Max increase my vehicles performance ?
A. Yes, customers world wide have reported higher performance on their vehicles.

Q. Is the Fuel Saver Max easy to fit ?
A. Yes, The device will take less than 2 minutes to fit. Most vehicles have two fuel lines running in parallel between the fuel tank and the engine, a supply line and a return line. The Fuel Saver Max must be fitted to the supply line, as close as possible to the carburetor or fuel injection system.

Q. What type and size of fuel pipe can the Fuel Saver Max be installed on ?
A. It will work with all types of pipe ! - Metal, plastic or rubber. The Fuel Saver Max will also fit any diameter of pipe.

Q. Do I need more than one Fuel Saver Max for fuel injected systems?
A. Only 1 unit is required per engine.

Q. Do I need to adjust my carburetor, or make any other engine adjustments ?
A. No, you do not have to make any adjustments.

Q. When should I check my mileage and when can I expect results ?
A. Make sure you check your mileage before you install the Fuel Saver Max.  Mileage is the sum of the total miles driven divided by the amount of fuel used. We suggest that you drive 500 miles and then make your before and after comparisons.

Q. Why 500 miles ?
A. This allows the Fuel Saver Max to do it's job of removing the carbon and varnish deposits. Remember it took thousands of miles to build up these deposits in your engine.

Q. How much improvement can I expect ?
A. This depends on the size and type of the engine, mode of driving whether city or highway, and the weather conditions. Fuel savings of up to 27% have been reported. In addition, increased performance and a lower operating temperature of the vehicle will be noted.

Q. How does the Fuel Saver Max clean the engine ?
A. Your engine builds up carbon and varnish deposits because of Incomplete combustion (improper burning). Molecules that are non homogeneous are found in both Petrol and Diesel Fuel.  As these molecules begin to cluster and grow, some molecules become trapped during combustion, air is unable to reach the trapped molecules and they do not burn completely. Instead they are expelled into the atmosphere or are retained as carbon / varnish deposits inside your engine. The Fuel Saver Max literally breaks the cluster of molecules apart allowing more Oxygen to reach the individual molecules and produce a more complete combustion.