I may have completely misunderstood the original question (in which case I'm sure I'll be put right), but wouldn't an old manual focus 'film' lens mounted on a DSLR provide fixed infinity focus? I've got a pair of Nikon D600 camera bodies and a box full of old film lenses that I have no...
This morning at around 10 am the cylinder temp was showing as 30 deg C, a 20 degree C loss overnight, which is a little more than I expected. Having said that, some hot water was drawn for washing and the last 3 or 4 metres of 15mm pipework to the cylinder has not been lagged/insulated, so it's...
The tubes are mounted on the roof and have 15mm copper flow and return pipes back to the DHW cylinder. The 12V DC pump (driven by a small solar panel) is on the return leg right by the collector. The DHW cylinder has two internal indirect coils, one for solar thermal, one for the wood burner...
The DHW cylinder has an internal (indirect) coil for solar and also another for the wood burner I am (very slowly) installing. It has two temperature probes and the reading on the panel is taken from the top one. I checked at 10:00 am French time and the temp readout was 28 deg C; the temp at...
Thanks for all the (very detailed replies). I probably should give a little more detail about mu setup.
First of all, I do still have the 230V pump that came with the kit and if something terrible happens with the DC pump then I may consider fitting it. But for the moment the DC pump is working...
Thanks! That's just the kind of thing I was after; a knowledgeable outfit that can supply me with the bits I need and tell me how to bolt it all together.
I'm keen to keep it as simple as possible, which is why I chose a solar-powered low voltage pump. The pump is fine and is doing its job, it's...
I have a holiday home (fixer-upper) in the south of France and last year I completed the installation of a solar thermal system on the roof facing Southwest. The solar thermal array consists of 30 x 58mm diameter evacuated tubes
The tubes, mounting frame and hot water cylinder came as a kit...
I didn't know about the Cruiser Skylift, smart bit of thinking there, and ideal for all/any bikes with cradle frames and/or twin frame rails under the engine. When I got my Skylift, before I built it up I took the main upright to a local engineering firm and asked them to drill holes at 50mm...
I'm a bit of an evangeliser for the Abba Skylift. I bought one about 5 years ago as I was sick and tired of grubbing about on my knees trying to fix bikes. Since then I've been so grateful (and so have my 74 y.o. knees) for the ability to sit on a stool and work on my bikes. I'd definitely have...
The obvious thing is to use the drain screws on the carbs (if fitted) to drain the last drop of fuel out of the float bowls. My 350LC and VFR750 both have these and it's the work of a few minutes to drain the carbs before winter layup.
You do need to make sure the fuel tap is switched to the...
Yes, the more I think about it, the more it seems rather unwise to use them. I don't know the answer to the case hardening question, but I guess they were compromised from the moment they got rusty.
The cam acts directly on the back of the shim which sits in a recess in the bucket top, the valve stem is in contact with the underside of the bucket. A special tool is needed to press down on the edge of the bucket and compress the valve; the shim can then be removed or replaced. Not sure what...
I recently acquired a mixed set of valve shims for my Lancia Beta and around two-thirds of them had varying degrees of rust. I only paid a tenner for them and knew this was the case, so sorted out the rusty ones and dropped them into citric acid solution in my small ultrasonic machine. After...
I think it depends who your supplier is - Severn Trent Water cover most of the Stafford area, but there is a small area served by the South Staffs Water company. I believe their supply is a lot softer than that provided by STW.
I've just tested our Sheffield tap water with one of the readily available water hardness testing kits and it's come out at zero (0) ppm in terms of hardness. The next step up is 40ppm and it's nowhere near that. By comparison I've also tested the Stafford water and that came out at around...
Up to what ppm value of carbonates in water can be present and the water is still regarded as 'soft'? And at what ppm value does scaling of kettles, showers, water heaters etc. become apparent?
I've recently installed a water softener in our French fixer-upper property,as the water in our...