Originally Posted by dpb (Post 11948412)

Is it a crime ?

Originally Posted by dpb (Post 11948444)

Benefits without NI number ?

Originally Posted by JTaylor (Post 11947655)

P.S. In Skiathos at the moment. Took the brother-in-law's boat over to Arkos yesterday, threw the anchor in and pitched ourselves at a rather exclusive little taverna. Sharing the shade with us were the owners of an impressive yacht. Clearly new money, their faux posh accents occasionally betrayed their roots and did so with more regularity as the glasses of wine despatched increased in number. Quite how I bit my tongue I'll never know, but the attitude of these people towards, and I quote, "the lower classes" was nauseating. Oh, and that "bloody grubby lefty" Corbyn would "kill us off". That the working classes would vote to maintain this is, as I said on another thread, absurd.

Fwiw the in-laws made their money in construction. Unashamed, beer swigging, football watching, sweary, working class folk who, in their words, "got lucky". Nothing wrong with getting a break, everything wrong in hating those who didn't.

Originally Posted by hodgy0_2 (Post 11948535)

lucky you Greece is magical

we go to Greece most summers, an island in the Cyclades

I don't think you can beat it tbh, the people are the most friendly and welcoming I have ever met - not false or forced, just sincere human warmth

the Tavernas on the beach, so so easy and you don't get that daft "beach" tax as in France & Italy

we are gong for three weeks in July/August - with extended family and other friends (we holiday in big numbers) and lots of toys - boats etc

and yes that rabid entitlement is nauseating

Originally Posted by dpb (Post 11948446)

Anyway , its a drop in the proverbial ocean , relatively

Originally Posted by dpb (Post 11948731)

Hotpoint , the most ubiquitous Standard for white goods country wide...

Wouldn't be at all surprised

Originally Posted by ALi-B (Post 11948936)

The next question: is the polystyrene insulation in the fridge flame retardant?

Fridges/freezers shouldn't catch fire. I had one make a fizz and bang (starter attached to compressor got water on it and shorted out, but did so in a "safe" manner - blew the fuse). And one where the capillary tube blocked up just caused the compressor to bang about until the thermal overload kicked in (then repeated every 15mins when it self-reset, again fail-safe).

Unless its a frost free unit...

They DO catch fire, because of the defrost heater element (something that gets very hot sat next to insulation and plastic). Beko were notorious for this.

Surprise surprise I googled the model number and "heater element" is listed as a spare part :rolleyes:

Maybe fire standard for home appliances should be looked at as well?

Originally Posted by tony de wonderful (Post 11949032)

The Hotpoint fridge issue is still a side issue here. It might have been the source of the fire but it isn't THE reason the tower block was gutted by fire and 79 are missing. THE reason is a failure of the building's fire safety systems, the main one which seems to be the addition of combustible cladding.

Originally Posted by ALi-B (Post 11949041)

To me it's relevant though; I have frost-free freezer in a kitchen full of MDF particle cupboard units (excellent kindle to accelerate a fire).

Pretty certain it was labelled as having Pentane insulation which is highly flammable. So really, it affects every household with these appliances.

It's not like you can turn them off when you leave the house like the Creda/hotpoint dryers catching fire...I have never run a clothes dryer when I'm out the house or in bed for this reason as dryers do have this risk. Difficult to avoid with a fridge or freezer.

Originally Posted by David Lock (Post 11949620)

I am hearing a lot of comment about the shoddy standard of British workmanship. Hundreds of fire doors missing, badly renovated bathrooms leaving access to adjacent flats, boilers not working properly etc etc and of course the bloody cladding f,uck up.
Not once have I heard use of the words "fire extinguisher". I wouldn't dream of living in a property without at least a couple of extinguishers and a fire blanket.

Originally Posted by trevsjwood (Post 11949492)

it's odd, the insulation for Grenfell and it seems lots of other tower blocks, RS 5000, ( is it polystyrene?) which I understand is supplied by an Ipswich based firm, Celotex and passed BR135 for buildings above 18metres, is now failing all the tests now being carried out. The company were confident in their product but have now, understandably, withdrawn it. How can a product which, ok was cheaper, but satisfied at least some conscientious scrutiny, they can't all be cowboys or criminals, now be shown completely unfit for purpose?
Trev

Originally Posted by tony de wonderful (Post 11949625)

Sure but the fire safety of the whole building can't rely upon residents fighting fires with their own private fire extinguishers.

Firstly, the are only use on small fires, secondly, you need training in their proper use, thirdly someone needs to be in the flat to use it.

Originally Posted by David Lock (Post 11949671)

In my non-expert but common sense opinion the key items are proper fire doors which are checked regularly, alarms that work and perhaps a decent sprinkler system in the main body of the block. And rip the cladding off and have a serious rethink about what, if anything, to replace it with. It would help if the elderly and disabled could be accommodated on the lower floors.

David

Originally Posted by ALi-B (Post 11949748)

I'm wondering if the cladding was really needed. Or was it on the whim to satisfy some environmental/eco target

I'm often told that concrete structures have excellent thermal properties compared to other construction materials yet these are often the first to be wrapped up in polystyrene during renovation :wonder:

Originally Posted by dpb (Post 11951600)

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/www.ind...481.html%3Famp

Disliking this government more and more , May is turning into the iron lady