Member postings for Samsaranda

Lionel, I don’t have any exposed pipe work, it runs underground or enclosed in the filter chamber which is gravity fed and located in a large covered chamber set into the ground. The filter chamber is quite large as it houses a Nexus 220 with automatic control. I think the lowest winter water temperature that I have recorded is 4 degrees. I had thought about some method of heating the water during the coldest months, a heat exchanger off a gas boiler would be ideal but I have to tread very carefully our energy consumption is pretty high already, contributed to by 2 pumps, 2 UVs and 2 air pumps running 24/7 365 days a year. I recently installed a wood burner in the lounge which meant that our gas consumption has dropped dramatically when the wood burner is in use, even so I don’t think higher authority is yet ready to sanction heating the Koi pond, perhaps if I got solar panels on the roof that would offset the extra cost with savings on our electric consumption, something I think I will have to work on.

Dave W

Neil, most fish don’t like being frozen. Depth of pond at a foot is a bit shallow for a hard winter survival, I know I live in the tropical south east, (East Sussex), but my Koi pond has never suffered any ice in winter, my goldfish pond at three feet deep has frozen over, particularly this last winter. The Koi pond holds such a large volume of water, 3,000 gallons, and is continually absorbing ground heat so stays ice free. I feel for your fish if you get any more!

Dave W

Lionel, a very true statement, water quality is paramount, without good water quality there are no fish.

NDIY, as an experiment to satisfy my own curiosity I lowered the thermometer to the bottom of the pond, six feet down, and took a reading of the temperature there, it was exactly the same 24 degrees so at the moment no temperature gradient in the pond.

Dave W

NDIY, my Koi pond circulates the water from a bottom drain and then passes it through the filtration system and returns it to the surface of the pond, so I would think the temperature gradient between top and bottom in summer is no more than one degree. Probably a bit different in winter, the filtration system still operates but heat is lost at the surface of the pond, and the fish all cluster at the bottom because at six feet deep the pond absorbs ground heat making the bottom slightly warmer and the fish recognise that.

Dave W

Ron, thanks for the calculations, yes an awful lot of energy required for 3,000 gallons. Yes Koi are a cold water fish, in their homeland of Japan they experience very warm summers and very cold winters, the winter is though of short duration for the extreme cold temps, the Koi prefer a very short very cold winter so that they can go into dormancy and then when winter is over they are better suited to a steady relatively short transmission from winter temp to summer temp. It is during this transmission period when the temperatures are warm enough for pathogens and parasites and too cool for the fishes immune system to be fully activated that they are most at risk. Our weather in the UK is far from ideal for Koi because we now have generally mild winters and mediocre summers so the temperature favour pathogens and parasites. Koi can withstand fairly high water temperatures, there are many avid keepers in hot locations such as Oz, the warmer areas of North America and places in the Far East such as Malaysia and Singapore, they successfully keep Koi in very warm waters. The climate in a Japan must be ideal for them as they have recorded ages of 120 for some specimens, the Japanese are however fanatical about Koi it is almost a religion to some.

Dave W

Just taken the water temperature in my Koi pond, currently reading 24 degrees, it takes an awful lot of sunlight to raise 3,000 gallons to that temperature. If I wasn’t feeling so lazy I could get out my calculator and work out how much energy is needed to raise 3,000 gallons by one degree, it’s too hot to think straight at the moment, very humid as well we have had a yellow weather warning for imminent thunderstorms here in East Sussex, feels like one is brewing, at least I might not have to water the garden this evening as a bonus.

Dave W

John, service numbers work very well, no matter how old you get you are very unlikely to forget your service number because it was who you were, works for me.

Dave W

I was around for the winter of 47 but don’t remember it having been born in 46, remember my parents would recall the tales of hardship during that icy winter.

Dave W

Summer of 76, I was in my reckless youth then, and a group of us did the Lyke Wake Walk on the North York Moors, a walk of some 40 odd miles across the moors to be completed inside 24 hours. It was absolutely scorching, we were drenched in sweat when the sun came up at 4.00 am, we started early hoping it would be a little cooler no such luck. 76 was a scorcher of a year and yes we completed the walk having to skirt round areas on fire where the peat was burning underground.

Dave W

For those who desire to check thread measurements you don’t need the Marlco items, any size threads can be be measured using wires of the appropriate sizes and calculating the micrometer readings that need to be achieved, a lot of maths involved but a very accurate way of sizing any thread, only male threads of course, no it’s not discriminatory it doesn’t work for female threads.

Dave W

John, I had an Ariel Leader, mechanically the same as the Arrow, in the 60’s and used to commute on it regularly at weekends when I was in the RAF. Probably the best bike that I owned for roadholding and the performance was also good, bit slower than an Arrow with all the extra tinware. I agree the performance of the front brake was far from good but just about adequate, I had a frightening experience with the front brake to blame. I was cruising two up when I braked gently and the front brake locked solid and the bike pivoted around the front wheel, throwing off myself and the friend on the pillion, we both escaped relatively unscathed but the bike needed a replacement set of front forks and a new front brake. The cause of the brake locking solid was down to wear of the phosphor bronze bush where the front wheel spindle passes through the brake plate; because of the wear the brake plate moved enough on the worn bush to allow the brake shoes, when applied, to bind on the drum and jam solid, hence dumping us onto the road. I would check your front brake plate bush for wear, it is a seemingly innocuous part of the braking system but can have dangerous if not catastrophic results. Apart from that enjoy your Arrow, certainly wish that I had one now.

Dave W

I think the term stretching is perhaps used out of context because I would imagine that all the “stretching” process is doing is just pulling the rail into line, and effectively takes up any slack. You would need a really powerful piece of kit to actually “stretch” a section of carbon steel such as that used for rails, I may be wrong with my assumption but am sure they are just taking out any slack.

Dave W

Back in the early sixties I was working underneath an aircraft floor in the freight bay, it was a big transport aircraft, and I felt something fall into my eye, no wasn’t wearing safety goggles it was pre health and safety days and before my eyes became too knackered to manage without specs, anyway my eye was really sore and it didn’t get any better, in fact everyday it seemed to get more sore. This went on for a couple of weeks and I decided that I would have to see the doc, he pronounced that he could see rust forming on my eyeball and promptly despatched me to hospital. There the eye specialist found a long steel splinter had embedded itself end on in my eye, he used local anaesthetic, a tiny scalpel and a magnet and managed to remove the splinter. I was lucky, I learnt from that how valuable but vulnerable our eyes are, be careful when turning, milling or drilling we only get one pair of eyes.

Dave W

Just a suggestion, I also keep Koi Carp as well as masquerading as a model engineer, for feeding fish regularly when you can’t be there to do it you can get fish feeders which will dispense set quantities of pelleted fish food at intervals that you can set. If set up with hedgehog pellets it could dispense at set times through the night and therefore the spread of feeding times could ensure that perhaps all comers could be satisfied. Shouldn’t be difficult to set up to feed the hedgehogs instead of fish, the feeders are available via the internet.

Dave W

Thankfully not yet encountered Apple “pentalobe” but probably will at some point.

Dave W

With so many errors apparent from initial assembly you have to laugh at the accuracy reports that suppliers give with their product when sold from new, have they any value at all, I don’t think so.

Dave W

I was surprised when I read this posting as only recently you were able to obtain sulphuric acid easily from both eBay and Amazon so I checked the web this afternoon and sure enough the only way to purchase now is if you are licensed, seems that the change in legislation is being observed rigidly, as it should be.

Dave W

Went to repair a UV unit that I use on my Koi pond with a new ballast unit and found that the screws holding the compartment panel for the electrics, had been changed on the later model from what was used before. Previous unit had just ordinary torx screws, later version had Secure Torx screws, which for the uninitiated are the same but have a pin located in the centre of the opening which takes the torx bit to unscrew it. The tool to remove them has a corresponding hollow to accommodate the pin in the driving bit, went on eBay and obtained the necessary driver bits but certainly frustrating, I know why they are used, it is so that manufacturers can frustrate anyone from tampering with or even repairing their units meaning that you buy another new one. Who keeps dreaming up all these oddball fasteners?

Dave W

Neil,

I like you your anologies.

Dave W

My IMac, 2011 vintage has a removable panel on the underside for access to 4 ram sockets, have upgraded mine twice since I purchased it. If in doubt whether you can upgrade your IMac go on the Mr Memory website and input the details of your model, including the year, and it will list any memory available for your model, even gives a demo video of how to do it on each model. Mr Memory website is very good and a mine of information, and no I have no connection with them other than very satisfied with their service and products.

Dave W