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maltrab

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From a couple of days visiting family near Haworth,our usual B&B was fully booked,so after some searching tried a new place to use called Pondon Hall, the B&B side was fully booked but they offered us a nights stay in the Holiday rental cottage,access to Pondon hall is via a track road with many potholes and the hall is about 3/4 of a mile from the main road.

The holiday cottage is separate to the hall and part of a old barn, the 2 bedrooms are downstairs and each bedroom has a bathroom, the bedrooms are small with a tiny window,we had problems getting much sleep,one reason for this is the underfloor heating was on and we could not find any control for this, so the small room just got hotter as the night went on,the walls are about 2 feet thick and trying to reach the small high window to open it at 2am was great fun, there is a large farm right next door and we were woken at 4am by a great deal of farm activity and movement of vehicles

A great location but not to good if you like a decent nights sleeps,I suspect the B&B side is a better place to stay, and if you are a Bronte fan you are in the best spot possible

Terry
 
track road with many potholes

Apologies for using this thread but it was the most appropriate to discuss the state of our roads in the UK . The pothole crisis like other issues has exponentially deteriorated to a point that I shudder to think the numbers that are out there causing misery for drivers an cyclists alike , whilst it can cause expensive damage to your vehicle the risk of physical injury in addition to damage to the bike is all too apparent for cyclists.

There is a great article in the Which Magazine this month which lays all the ails with British Roads for all to see. There is a sub column in the article which is headed "It isn't all bad News" a couple of examples of innovative actions by councils are highlighted . Suffolk allows its Engineers to not only repair a reported pothole under the maintenance scheme but if they spot some potential issues nearby then they can repair them on that same visit clearly without the necessary paperwork normally required to effect a repair.

The most innovative solution which grabbed my attention was two examples one in Fife , Scotland and one in Holland and both involve the scourge and highly publicised issue of plastic waste. In Fife they have found a bitumen substitute MR6 which is mix of waste plastic turned into pellets that can then be used to repair holes .

In Holland they took it further and from 218,000 plastic cups they have installed a thirty metre long plastic road which yes is not a great length however , where I live that would cover innumerous potholes and I'm sure you could all find stretch of a road that would be similar. Surely investing in either method is worth trialling countrywide because it offers two solution to two discreet major issues plastic waste and road damage,

I would be interested in understanding what the state of the roads in the US and Oz are like from our members in those countries and what their repair programme is like .
 
Sounds like it could have been a very nice place to stay. I am curious about the heated floor. Had heard of them and they sound like a neat idea. In this case with the thick walls it seems very effective at keeping the place warm. Did you notice if that was the only or main source of heat? Meaning no central heating or forced air system. With thick walls (brick?) I imagine it would be tough to run ventilation ducts within them. I take it the floor would not be so warm as to be uncomfortable in bare feet.

Interesting way to re-use excess plastic, captain.
 
Sounds like it could have been a very nice place to stay. I am curious about the heated floor. Had heard of them and they sound like a neat idea. In this case with the thick walls it seems very effective at keeping the place warm. Did you notice if that was the only or main source of heat? Meaning no central heating or forced air system. With thick walls (brick?) I imagine it would be tough to run ventilation ducts within them. I take it the floor would not be so warm as to be uncomfortable in bare feet.

Interesting way to re-use excess plastic, captain.

Yes it was the only heating source, I suspect it was electric underfloor heating due to it's location, a nice idea until something goes wrong and you have to dig up a solid floor to get to it
 
I had not thought about tearing up the floor to get to the heating if something went wrong. Wondered if electric or hot/warm water pipes were used. Seems like a grand idea using the floor as a radiator for the heat to rise off of. No matter where in the room you are you have heat.

Hmm, I wonder if the opposite could be done with ceilings for cooling. Condensation might be an issue with chill plates in the ceiling though.
 
Yes it was the only heating source, I suspect it was electric underfloor heating due to it's location, a nice idea until something goes wrong and you have to dig up a solid floor to get to it

I lived in a more astonishing house for a short time where it was ceiling heating so any issues would be fixed by bringing the ceiling down on both floors plus even an infant school attendee would know heat rises . There were cold days where your head was a balmy cauldron of heat and it felt like your feet belonged to a Penguin , needless to say I did not live there very long.
 
A great location but not to good if you like a decent nights sleeps,I suspect the B&B side is a better place to stay, and if you are a Bronte fan you are in the best spot possible

Sorry to hear your trip was marred by these issues, Terry. Did you mention them to the owners? Sounds like they need to make it possible for visitors to control the heating themselves, and also make those windows easier to open.
 
Haworth is a wonderful place been on a few trips in recent years by coach which drop you right at the top of the Hill but thankfully they arrange to collect you from the station because while its great going down the really steeply sloped main street coming up it is quite and effort . There are some wonderful quaint shops , the station is a must to visit and of course the Parsonage. The attached picture gives a perspective on the steepness of the slope.

There is a cafe at the base of the Hill which has a very ornate small garden with a bench where you can have tea in the sunshine which we duly did . My tranquility was disturbed by screeches and shouts from within the cafe itself, on investigating a couple of wasps had invaded and the staff and some of the customers were panicking. After humanely trying to ushering them out sadly I had to result to brute force to bring the siege to an end . Whilst appreciation was shown by all there was no discount on my purchase but the satisfaction that people could settle down and enjoy their food and drink was reward enough.

haworth.jpg
 
Haworth is a wonderful place been on a few trips in recent years by coach which drop you right at the top of the Hill but thankfully they arrange to collect you from the station because while its great going down the really steeply sloped main street coming up it is quite and effort . There are some wonderful quaint shops , the station is a must to visit and of course the Parsonage. The attached picture gives a perspective on the steepness of the slope.

There is a cafe at the base of the Hill which has a very ornate small garden with a bench where you can have tea in the sunshine which we duly did . My tranquility was disturbed by screeches and shouts from within the cafe itself, on investigating a couple of wasps had invaded and the staff and some of the customers were panicking. After humanely trying to ushering them out sadly I had to result to brute force to bring the siege to an end . Whilst appreciation was shown by all there was no discount on my purchase but the satisfaction that people could settle down and enjoy their food and drink was reward enough.

View attachment 2984

As you do the final walk to Haworth station,with the park on your right, you reach the railway footbridge, my daughter lived in a cottage at the bottom of that hill, just before the bridge, it was great to watch the loco's from the comfort of a armchair in the lounge, sometime before that she lived in a cottage in Oakworth just before the station crossing gates, my Grandson was about 7 years old and thought he had gone to heaven.
 
Yes it was the only heating source, I suspect it was electric underfloor heating due to it's location, a nice idea until something goes wrong and you have to dig up a solid floor to get to it
The Romans heated their public buildings with underfloor systems that circulated hot air and smoke. The construction is visible in many of the Roman ruins that I've toured in England. Great idea except that I wouldn't want flue gasses in such close proximity to spaces where people congregate!

For Americans, if you've watched This Old House on PBS, you've probably seen underfloor heating installed. It's usually electric, and the ground floor system is readily accessible in the cellar. The upstairs floor system is less accessible, but it's well protected from damage, so the floorboards would rarely need to be taken up to access it.
 
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