Wednesday 28 February 2018

Well who knew!

I'm sure that this will not be the last post I write with that heading but this one concerns French post boxes.



French front doors rarely have letter boxes, everyone has a post box. The Notaire's House didn't have a box and our kind postman would either bring the letters to the front door or stick them in the gate but we felt bad so went out to get a post box. I confess I wasn't inspired, they're nearly all the same and dull colours. We decided to put ours on a post as I didn't want it to go on the wall or fence. We read the instruction, just as well as it had to be at an exact height.

Uninspiring selection of post boxes

Anyway it was installed just before Christmas and we had a few cards and presents. The first time we opened the box we were impressed at the orderly pile of letters, French postman must be trained to get the letters through the slot in a tidy manner we jested.

It wasn't until the first large box arrived that it dawned on us that French postmen must hold a master key. Now we knew why all post boxes were the same. It's actually a good system as we rarely have to wait in for a delivery and there is less signing for goods. French companies seem to think about their packaging as the Nespresso coffee box was a perfect fit - just enough room on top for a few letters.

Monday 26 February 2018

Perfect timing

Bernard delivered more logs this morning, which we managed to get stacked before the final load arrives this afternoon, so we can laugh at this week's cold spell. We have two cords or eight steres which equates to about eight cubic metres. It's nicely seasoned oak with some birch and hornbeam. Just as well as apparently when we get up tomorrow it will have a real feel of minus sixteen. Now that's cold!

Update!  Bernard miscalculated and brought another load. I have moved about 2000 kg of logs today. I deserve a large glass of something tonight and probably a hot bath!


Newly delivered logs

Andrew's favourite view

Wednesday 21 February 2018

A little bit of sparkle

We can always hear the Correze river at the Notaire's House, it's part of our soundscape. We can't see it apart from when the sun is out and at the right angle, then you catch a tantalising glimpse of sparkling water. Conditions were right this morning. I suspect that as the trees come into full leaf we won't see it at all, but it's beautiful when we can.

A glimpse of the Correze

Sunday 18 February 2018

A week of two halves

One of the things we liked about the Old Notaire's House was that it had central heating and a relatively new boiler. We knew that with the condition of the house it wouldn't be really toasty but at least we would have some background heat and piping hot water. The seller said that the underground oil tank held 2500/3000 litres and was over half full so I was a bit shocked when, three weeks in, the boiler stopped working and I couldn't see any oil in the sight glass. When the oil was delivered the tank would only take 1000 litres so we were concerned that there was a lot of water in there. Last weekend it happened again.

Correze in the winter
Sunday morning, with an outside temperature of minus four, the sight glass emptied and we had no heating. We went for a long, snowy walk and made sure that the fire was stacked high and things weren't too bad (possibly we were cheered by the mulled wine). First thing the following day we went to the oil company in the village only to find they were closed (that's France on a Monday for you!) so I had to make a phone call in French which I find daunting but managed to arrange a delivery for Tuesday afternoon. Temperatures were low over night and despite an additional electric heater the sitting room temperature was at six degrees when I got up. And no hot water. The oil arrived that afternoon but the house had got so cold that we struggled to get to fourteen degrees. We appear to have some issue as Andrew managed to dip the tank before the delivery and we did have about 1500 litres of oil but it just isn't making it to the boiler. The pump is fine so Andrew thinks it's something to do with the flow and return so we'll get that sorted in the spring. However it was really frustrating spending just short of 900 euros on oil knowing that you had so much sitting there.

I'm not going indoors - it's way too cold!

Thursday 15th February was the day that we had been waiting for since before Christmas - the wood burner was arriving. Because of the previous week's bad weather I had been expecting a call to say that installation had been delayed but at 9.30 on the dot they arrived. Andrew had to do a quick dash to Gamm Vert to get some salt as the drive was too icy for the van to get down. I have to give praise to Sam and his team at the Invicta shop in Brive la Gaillarde. From the beginning they have been courteous, punctual and have excellent customer service. Sam speaks English which has helped us as well. We have another one, possibly two, more stoves to install and we will certainly be going back there.

The two guys cleaned up the fireplace, put a great wedge of insulation in, making sure that all the edges were sealed and then put fireproof plasterboard on top. We had seen many installations where the chimney hat had been broken but they were very careful. They even got tape measures out to make sure that the stove was exactly in the centre of the hearth. We have a traditional fireplace which is quite large at almost three metres wide, but went for the Fifty Arche design which is quite contemporary.We wanted it to make a real design statement and think it works really well. We then got instructions on how to use it and what dire consequences would befall us if we put anything else other than logs on it.



Since then it has been bliss in the house. The new stove, coupled with the 400 mm of insulation that I'd put in the attic, has made such a difference. Not only is it much warmer (we had friends round yesterday evening and we reached 24 degrees) but we can light the stove and leave it going, something we couldn't do with the open fire.

Our new Fifty Arche Invicta stove

Friday 9 February 2018

Baby it's cold outside!

It's been a cold week, sleet, snow and three days at below freezing.

Correze in the snow

I knew that it was going to be pretty chilly this morning when Radio France Bleu Limousin woke me at seven with phrases such as 'vigilance orange' 'phénomènes dangereux' and 'routes glacées'. My French isn't brilliant but even I could tell that they were quite concerned about the cold weather. Once up I checked our weather station feed from the garden, it was minus 7.8! The house didn't feel too bad and the insulation (finished on Monday) must be working as the last time we got this cold I had ice on the inside of the windows in the dressing room.

Dressing warmly was easy but I confess to having a grovel in my make up drawer looking for a Clarins product that might protect my face from the cold, couldn't see anything. Where is Rebecca when I need her?

At least it was dry on Mortimer's walk, who by the way loves the cold. As soon as he gets outside he rolls in the snow and frosty grass.



Despite the cold morning there were several houses in the village with windows flung wide open. Apparently the French are advised to open them for at least ten minutes everyday, regardless of the weather. It freshens the air in the house and helps get rid of condensation and stale air. Also in a country where wood stoves and fires are a main source of heating it helps get rid of the dust and ash which inevitably gets in the air (don't I know it!).  I'm a big window opener but when it's below freezing outside I draw the line.

I think we are in for a some more snow before the weather starts to warm up, at least Mortimer will be happy!

Saturday 3 February 2018

The attic

Winter walk in Correze
I know that this isn't a photograph of the attic, nor sadly is it the view from there, however I knew that if I went straight in with photographs of my week I would lose many of you.

Work has been progressing in the Notaire's House. Andrew has been working hard in the barn, with help from a new friend and I've been in the attic. I think I've mentioned before that we have a lot of space under the roof with either none, or minimal, insulation. Laying insulation is not a skilled job so I decided that it was something I could tackle on my own.

First I had to sweep through, not to make it immaculate but at least to remove some of the centuries old dust and cobwebs. I didn't think I would fill three black sacks of the stuff! Fortunately there is no sign of vermin or birds.The first day and a half were the worst because I was kneeling on the rafters, stuffing insulation in between. Despite inbuilt trouser pads I still ended up with sore knees. I was wearing a proper face mask for the dust and the fibres that drifted about when I was sawing through the rolls. It's brilliant but my glasses kept steaming up. The section over the sitting room was much easier as it's oak flooring and I could roll out complete sections. Stuffing under the eaves was fun and I did get stuck at one point when I was lying on my stomach, head under a beam and trying to balance on the rafters. I was quite pleased at my last minute decision to wear an old baseball cap - can you imagine what my hair would have looked like?

In the attic

I've nearly finished, probably just another couple of days. We're not sure if it's psychological but it does feel warmer in the kitchen and sitting room.

I feel that maybe that the images may stay with you, so here's another pleasant one for you.

Correze evening

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