Capo Boi's activity

I think they are taking a different screening feed now....one where they are using Italian commentators at more games so that this now becomes the default setting. Not to worry, the Chels. still sound good in whatever language.

Or here..... http://www.italymag.co.uk/community/post/sealing-traditional-cotta-tiles I'm afraid maintaining cotta tiles is really hard work, expensive and in my opinion a complete pain in the a**e. You are brave having them layed. In new build houses today, terra cotta floors are becoming a bit of a rarity. Modern lifestyle...these Italians know what they are doing.... If I was starting over again I would go with a different flooring material but thats only my personal opinion so does'nt count for much. That said, (I'm getting there), I've seen tiles treated with a similar product to the one you mention. The floor is in a friends house and the tiles were treated in the spring of this year. It may be too early to say but they seem happy with the result. They are definitely easier to clean and I've not seen any staining. I would add,  however, that I think the finish looks slightly artificial...a bit too glossy for my (traditionalist! not) taste but as I said they are happy with the finish. Why don't you treat a few spare tiles and see if you like the appearance and spill a few things on them to see how they clean? Also have a look at the range of fila products: http://www.filachim.com/it/prodotti/filalonglife.html?materiali= The company is generally considered to be at the top end of the market. Very best of luck.

Hello moruzzo, If your floors are terra cotta check for white calcium deposits as I said above. Also check for very thin layers (almost like a really thin skimming stone) coming away. If neither are present then there is a good chance that your floor is watertight. Fingers crossed. After that its up to you whether you have them cleaned and sealed and by what method. If there is a problem, however, after making your floor good ( liner, screed, cement, I'm afraid), I would seriously consider replacing your cotta tiles with ceramic or internally sealed cotta tile substitutes. In my opinion maintaining hand made terra cotta tiles is a real nightmare. (I have lots and wish I did'nt). If you want a really good finish (one that does'nt mark when you drop a cup of coffee or drip olive oil) then you have to go down the professional cleaning route. Its simply not possible to achieve a longlasting sealed finish by hand applied products whether this is linseed oil, rose oil or something different. Unfortunately you need to use applications administered by machine. Its up to you what finish you are happy with but professional cleaning, sealing and polishing will set you back something around €20m2. and will need to be repeated every four to five years. Good luck on your new adventure and I hope everything works out for you.

Clay plasters will absorb internal moisture. If the problem is damp permeating externally then similar to pretty much all plasters (cement, gypsum etc.) cracking and failure are likely to develop. In older houses one of the biggest areas of damp penetration is through the floor. In houses with traditional terra cotta tiling you can see this by the white calcium deposits present on the tiles. Dehumidifiers can really help by absorbing and transfering moisture back outside but the real crux is to make the external structure (including floors) completely watertight. May not be an easy task though....

I am slightly confused by the above link. Seem to be selling property to me.

If I can address your post from a slightly different angle and I am assuming that there are no Italian tax credits available to you. In Sardinia a 3kw pv array will generate around 4000kw's per year and cost around €15,000. If you don't use a single kw of electricity and put it all into the grid at approx. 45c per kw, you generate an income of €1,800 per year. From this deduct an average annual borrowing charge of around €450 on a €15,000 reducing loan. Your net gain is therefore, €1,350 giving a break even term of 11.11 years. This is pretty much a best case. I don't want to offend anyone, but in Abruzzo there is less sun, so your payback period is going to be longer. But aside from that, lets say that you actually use all the electricity that you generate (fair assumption) and this is sold back to you at 25c per kw. You now receive an income of only €800 euros per year. Sure you have not paid anything for your electricity but the cash dynamics have changed. Paying back the same loan at a net €350 per year will take you over 40 years. Clearly this is unrealistic so you will have to come up with extra cash to pay down the loan in a timely fashion. Your break-even term does not really change as you are saving on not paying on electricity costs but your cashflow vis a viz your bank loan has significantly changed. Sagraisolar said above he was asked to make a €10,000 deposit in an investment fund. This is quite standard, It enables the bank to have security over non payment of the loan. They could also do it as a charge on your house. Either way, at the outset, you owe the bank €15,000. There are also implications if you decide to sell your house at a later date. (can the loan be transferred to the new buyer or do you have to pay it off from your sale proceeds). It may sound like it, but I'm not knocking pv. Tax incentives, higher electricity prices, lower interest charges etc. can really change the numbers. I guess all I'm trying to say is the old cliche...."there is no free lunch".

Lisa, this is the advice that I would give to you. Open an euro account with one of the big European banks. It can be UBS, BNP, HSBC, Intessa or whoever else you like. (that way you should sleep easy that your money is safe and you will also be protected up to around €100,000 by European deposit insurance). Forget about receiving any significant interest on your euros. ( 6 month Euribor is 1.13% and expect to receive 0.25% to 0.5% less than this). Then use a currency broker to transfer money into the account. A broker should be able to obtain a better rate for you than a mainstream bank. Now do one trade. No matter how small. This will set down your marker rate and test that the transaction stream functions efficiently. From there, its up to you to transfer more dollars when and if you please. No-one has a crystal ball but you are right to plan ahead. If you are dollar based and view the dollar as your home currency then movements in the dollar-euro rate will probably be the biggest determinant of the actual "real" price that you pay when you come to purchase your house. Good luck.

I've got to say that I completely agree with the comments of sebastiano, adriatica and fillide. Many people after spending large sums of money on a renovation project are in denial of the resale value. Not because the renovation was done badly but because the relative isolation of many of these properties makes them unattractive to the wider (Italian) market. This may offend some people on here as well (and I apologise in advance) but ask yourself why a ruin became a ruin in the first place.

I think the partnership split recently but Pini Bingham and Partners were always considered one of the best UK / Italian firms. (not cheap though). Offices in the city in St Johns. You could also try Leplaws. www.leplaw.co.uk based in Haymarket.

Hello Maureen, Who actually advised you that there should have been a ring fitted? The comune?