First time out with this topper since buying it last autumn,I’d changed the wheels then bushed them,also an oil change yet forgot the drive belt,so after checking the tension off to go for 20 minutes,then smoke,severe,stopped,the belt was broken,lifted the engine off and it’s cracked all over and hard,then I noticed the driven pulley,blade one had major rust,so ran the 3” wire brush around it ,should help it’s lifespan,quick search but I failed to find a replacement of the correct size,anyway should be good to go thistle and nettle cutting in the week,as despite the drought they’re getting out of control.
- Thread starter qwakers
- Start date
Captain Pugwash...
Ongoing saga backpack sprayer Gardena: this was in april and I use it every week now.
Liquid didn't pass through the valve, So turned the brass part a bit slimmer.
Of course it fell apart due to my poor brazing first time (or incompat ability silver and alcohol vinager?), so had to braze it again.
Also replaced the hose because it was partially blocked.
Had to spray in the dark again.
Today it failed againI arranged a new spraying nozzle for my Gardena 12 liter backpack sprayer.
View attachment 395099
After fitting I discovered the onoff hand valve didn't shutoff anymore so pulled it out.
View attachment 395100
The spring sits in the seal but that seams original
View attachment 395101
Problem was the seat on the brass plunjer (on the right in this picture) was eaten away by the vinegar alcohol mix I always use in it.
View attachment 395103
As luck has it I had a piece of material.
View attachment 395104
So soldered it on the turned down piece.
View attachment 395105
Made new seat.
View attachment 395106
Assembled.
View attachment 395107
And found out I did not have enough action left so instead of talking everything apart again (afraid the seal wouldn't survive) made a 2.5mm disc and glued that on for the handle to press onto. Now waiting for glue to set and test everything again.
Liquid didn't pass through the valve, So turned the brass part a bit slimmer.
Of course it fell apart due to my poor brazing first time (or incompat ability silver and alcohol vinager?), so had to braze it again.
Also replaced the hose because it was partially blocked.
Had to spray in the dark again.
Smallfry
HE's Spartacus.
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- Kent UK
Eeek. Mind your fingers !
I spray with a vinager alcohol mix, wouldn't know what to clean it with.
Wonder if water left in the pump would be less harmfull?
The_Yellow_Ardvark
https://www.death-clock.org/
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- Going Away.
Last saturday, when cleaning the bathroom. I found a small puddle of water. no bigger than 2" wide.
Investigation showed the seal between the cistern and toilet was weeping.
I also found out that it was cheeper to buy a new toilet, than buy the parts to fix it.
I got it ready to be removed and found this.
The leak was a old slow one. So out with the floor, the toilet, the sink, the tiles. All but the bath.
New plywood floor, Backa Board, new tiles, new toilet. All the plumbing from the new issolaters was replaced.
Just waiting to get some White faced board to box the toilet in.
Investigation showed the seal between the cistern and toilet was weeping.
I also found out that it was cheeper to buy a new toilet, than buy the parts to fix it.
I got it ready to be removed and found this.
The leak was a old slow one. So out with the floor, the toilet, the sink, the tiles. All but the bath.
New plywood floor, Backa Board, new tiles, new toilet. All the plumbing from the new issolaters was replaced.
Just waiting to get some White faced board to box the toilet in.
500e
Always buy fire insurance a flood is a hard start
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- 8,975
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- South West
Covers to go on.
Hanging offense to use punch and not have the guards down on shear positions
Promoted, eh. I suppose he's now in charge of Roger the Cabin Boy.
dobbslc
Member
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- 12,156
- Location
- Hertfordshire UK
Today I fixed my water butt into place by making a small plinth to level it up. Had to ponce a bag of cement off a neighbour as what I thought was cement was actually postcrete 
Nice little job in the shade after work.
Happy days.
Nice little job in the shade after work.
Happy days.
Last edited:
droopsnoot
Member
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- 1,130
- Location
- South Cheshire, UK
^ I did a similar thing last weekend. I've recently replaced the plastic water butt stand (the one that came with it) because it was starting to split, but I used bricks and it took about 50 to make a solid base that was large enough. I've gathered enough breeze blocks to replace them, so while it was almost empty I took the opportunity to get my bricks back and replacement them with six old blocks. I had to use six (four "vertical" and two lying flat on top) as I need to get a watering can under the spout - it's a bit of a balancing act to get it high enough for that work fit, but low enough for it to run properly off the greenhouse guttering. I presume it's filling up now, as it was slatting it down a few minutes ago.
My water butt has old fire bricks under it (they were free), same tap placement as @dobbslc . The shed which it catches the run off is under a Yew tree so at the weekend I put a lower "total drain" tap in it as the old water in the bottom was a bit smelly, after the weekends' rain it is now full again!
dobbslc
Member
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- 12,156
- Location
- Hertfordshire UK
I filled mine up last night while I had the hose out just to make sure it wasn't leaking, it's now ******* down with rain!
I set it quite low as I don't want it wobling around on a tall plinth, the tap has a hose lock fitting that allows me to fill a watering can with a short bit of hose.
I set it quite low as I don't want it wobling around on a tall plinth, the tap has a hose lock fitting that allows me to fill a watering can with a short bit of hose.
droopsnoot
Member
- Messages
- 1,130
- Location
- South Cheshire, UK
I just checked the levels in my two water butts, to find that one is completely full and the other has hardly got any more in than at the end of last week. When I replaced the bricks with breeze blocks, I split the water between the two so they were roughly half-full each - took me ages because I did it by filling a can from the tap, I didn't think of removing the lid and using a bucket until hours later. I've just done the same split again, and at some point I'll have to see why one isn't filling much. One roof is larger, but it's also a poor replacement roof job which leads to any heavy rain running off and missing the guttering altogether. On the other greenhouse, there's no end stop in the far end of the guttering, so that won't help.
Can you not do a low level connection between the two? Or is that too simple for the situation?
Dcal
Member
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- 3,967
- Location
- Antrim Northern Ireland
Today I fixed some more rust.
I bought an Alfa 159 SW a year ago and it's mot time.
I've been doing bits piece meal, and decided to sort the rear suspension.
Took the wheels off and found a broken spring.
Also very rusty suspension arms and frame.
Took everything out to have a better look.
Mostly not completely horrible for a 15 year old car, but certainly needs attention.
The suspension was much worse and is possibly too far gone but we will see.
Decided to sort the wheel arches and underside first.
Pressure washed the worst of the crud off but left the diesel tank in place.
Quick grit blast to remove the worst of the rust and a sweep blast over anything that still has paint
The paint is very thin in places but where there is underseal it seems to have held up pretty well.
Where the paint is failing it comes off easily so certainly worth doing.
Then a coat of Jotamastic 90 applied with a brush and some seam sealer applied to the bits the factory missed.
Not perfect, but this is as far as I intend to go with a daily driver shed.
However, I might keep this for a while so it should be a good test bed for the products and methods I use.
I'll let this cure and will apply another coat of 90 tinted a darker colour so I don't miss bits.
It's an awful lot of work for an 1.9 oil burner.
I bought an Alfa 159 SW a year ago and it's mot time.
I've been doing bits piece meal, and decided to sort the rear suspension.
Took the wheels off and found a broken spring.
Also very rusty suspension arms and frame.
Took everything out to have a better look.
Mostly not completely horrible for a 15 year old car, but certainly needs attention.
The suspension was much worse and is possibly too far gone but we will see.
Decided to sort the wheel arches and underside first.
Pressure washed the worst of the crud off but left the diesel tank in place.
Quick grit blast to remove the worst of the rust and a sweep blast over anything that still has paint
The paint is very thin in places but where there is underseal it seems to have held up pretty well.
Where the paint is failing it comes off easily so certainly worth doing.
Then a coat of Jotamastic 90 applied with a brush and some seam sealer applied to the bits the factory missed.
Not perfect, but this is as far as I intend to go with a daily driver shed.
However, I might keep this for a while so it should be a good test bed for the products and methods I use.
I'll let this cure and will apply another coat of 90 tinted a darker colour so I don't miss bits.
It's an awful lot of work for an 1.9 oil burner.
Did the rear arms on my 159 Q4 the first lockdown summer when I found a bust spring on each side - and then that only one of the springs was off a Q4! Cheaper to buy four Eibach springs than two Alfa rears!
I only started out to sort the handbrake - but the cable outer snapped . . . half the flippin' interior has to come out to change it! Rebuilt the calipers.
I really should have blasted the rear subframe then, but couldn't face the exhaust, prop etc. I've thought about it each summer since . . . and once again, I've put it off . . . I might apply a good dose of underbody wax again - pretend to myself the rust isn't getting any worse on it
Blasting the arms and applying epoxy paint, then a coating of 3m shultz and a good dosing of noxudol inside seem to have survived well the winters since.
I had to make a tool to get the eccentric bearings out of the upright/arms (can't remember which now) - unobtainable (for the Q4?) so I needed to save them.
When you separate the arms from the carriers that bolt up into the body, make careful note of the angle of dangle between them - you have to tighten the bolt through the bush off the car as you can't get to it once fitted.
I can't remember if you've mentioned before that you've done the front subframe already? If not - take a look quick . . .
Piccie attached linking Alfa with our shared interest in another Italian classic (which was making me smile out on the rain today after accompanying my mum to a hospital appointment to make sure when she forgot her name, her address, why she was there . . . she made it back to the care home)
I only started out to sort the handbrake - but the cable outer snapped . . . half the flippin' interior has to come out to change it! Rebuilt the calipers.
I really should have blasted the rear subframe then, but couldn't face the exhaust, prop etc. I've thought about it each summer since . . . and once again, I've put it off . . . I might apply a good dose of underbody wax again - pretend to myself the rust isn't getting any worse on it
Blasting the arms and applying epoxy paint, then a coating of 3m shultz and a good dosing of noxudol inside seem to have survived well the winters since.
I had to make a tool to get the eccentric bearings out of the upright/arms (can't remember which now) - unobtainable (for the Q4?) so I needed to save them.
When you separate the arms from the carriers that bolt up into the body, make careful note of the angle of dangle between them - you have to tighten the bolt through the bush off the car as you can't get to it once fitted.
I can't remember if you've mentioned before that you've done the front subframe already? If not - take a look quick . . .
Piccie attached linking Alfa with our shared interest in another Italian classic (which was making me smile out on the rain today after accompanying my mum to a hospital appointment to make sure when she forgot her name, her address, why she was there . . . she made it back to the care home)
