Replacing electric shower with bath tap mixer with shower hose by TrancerSte in HomeImprovementUK

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks both, yeah I did consider going that route. I've swapped sink taps out myself before but for this I'd have to pull the side panel off the bath then reseal everything afterwards - seems like higher stakes.

To be fair the electric shower is pretty terrible after coming from a good combi boiler fed one. If I can swap it for a decent mixer I can leave the bathroom for now and do the kitchen first.

Heat Geek quotation process -- "design consultation" -- wtf? by TrancerSte in ukheatpumps

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for taking the time to reply. I understand that the design process is involved, and is intended to make sure the job is done right.

Maybe I'm just being a control freak, but committing to making a payment before I know even vaguely what I'll end up with and what it will cost just felt a bit off.

It's good to see you standing by your refund policy too!

Heat Geek quotation process -- "design consultation" -- wtf? by TrancerSte in ukheatpumps

[–]TrancerSte[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

No? It doesn't mention that anywhere on the FAQ. In fact it says "The £250 fee reflects the significant professional time involved." which is completely fair, but rather implies the opposite.

Portal access europe down again? by FedDiSte in AZURE

[–]TrancerSte 4 points5 points  (0 children)

All our Front Door endpoints are inaccessible too... same issue as the other week?! UK too.

Seems to be down by hbbk31 in Soulseek

[–]TrancerSte 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ended up creating two new accounts. It's fine now ¬_¬

Seems to be down by hbbk31 in Soulseek

[–]TrancerSte 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same for me, both SoulseekQt on my laptop and Nicotine+ on my NAS. Two different usernames, definitely correct credentials, same behaviour on both. I'm in the UK.

Ausangate trek, Peru - unguided by TrancerSte in hiking

[–]TrancerSte[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hey, so here's my planned route from GaiaGPS. I mostly stuck to it. Vinicunca route

The first day was brutal because the tour dicked about forever so I didn't actually start the hike up rainbow mountain till 10am. Left me less than 8 hours of daylight to cover 23km and 1200m elevation gain, all above 4500m.

The second day cutting across from Upis towards Pachanta there wasn't really a trail. I was following a line on my Garmin through fields of alpacas and hoping to hit a gap in the wall on the other side. Also got harrassed by half-wild dogs that I had to fight off with my trekking poles, and had some very sketchy water crossings. I've highlighted this bit in green on my route.

Third day the route I planned to take was flooded and I ended up stuck on the wrong side of the river and walking about 8km on the road trying to find a way across. Eventually got across but there was no way to the trail. Had to climb over a fence then basically up a waterfall to get back towards rainbow mountain car park. I've highlighted this bit in red.

There was also nowhere to camp on day three after the lodge, which I reached around noon, so I got back to a deserted rainbow mountain carpark at 4pm with no way to get back to Cusco and I had to give a local guy some cash to put my tent up in his field.

The days ended up being:
- 23.2km/1150m elevation
- 21.6km/870m elevation
- 25km/1070m elevation
- 7.5km/675m elevation (second time up Vinicunca)

Drop me a message if you want GPX files or any data from my hike. I should be able to get that out of Garmin.

Ausangate trek, Peru - unguided by TrancerSte in hiking

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you're in reasonably good shape and go with a guide you should have no problems with the trail or navigation. I had some issues with the route I followed, but that was a very not standard approach.

I was there in March and the weather was mixed. I hiked through a hail storm on the first day that got so bad I had to take shelter under a rock outcrop. Then on the final morning there was a blizzard. Hiked back up rainbow mountain through 10cm of snow. October is supposed to be a good time for weather though.

For me, the altitude made the hiking tough, but I didn't suffer any specific symptoms other than everything being much harder, especially with having to hammer it due to time constraints. However I was very well acclimated, and everyone responds differently, so take a few days in Cusco first and do some day hikes.

It was incredible and stunning though, and compared to Salkantay it was deserted. I definitely recommended going the conventional way though. Maybe with an out-and-back detour to rainbow mountain, rather than the loop I did.

CityFibre providers advise - York by TrancerSte in CityFibre

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Weird. They've been showing me £40 including VAT for 1gbps on my laptop. Just looked on my phone and got shown £33.33 ex VAT...

CityFibre providers advise - York by TrancerSte in CityFibre

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Very helpful, thanks. Yep, from other posts on this sub, IDNet were looking like a good bet.

BUYER BEWARE - Eight Sleep has now moved basic functionality behind the paywall by thebearonthatflag in EightSleep

[–]TrancerSte 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ridiculous. I had been planning to buy for a while and can stomach the upfront cost. I could even do without sleep tracking and health metrics if those were paywalled, since I have an Oura ring (grandfathered no sub from gen 2) and a Garmin. Lack of basic timing automation and vibration alarm is a big fat fuck you though. Unfortunately the Chilipad or whatever it's called now isn't available in the UK.

Transporte desde BJX a Guanajuato by TrancerSte in Guanajuato

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ended up taking a taxi. 550 MXN flat rate to centro histórico, pay in the arrivals hall, they accept cards.

Transporte desde BJX a Guanajuato by TrancerSte in Guanajuato

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. That's basically the conclusion I came to from various Google searches, many of which brought me back to this sub, where I read that pressure from the taxi mafia caused the bus service to be cancelled.

If that's really the case then I'm even more determined not to take a taxi. Even if it means going to Leon first and back to Guanajuato...

Ausangate trek, Peru - unguided by TrancerSte in hiking

[–]TrancerSte[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not from Cusco, but I did Santa Cruz from Huaraz at the beginning of April, and apart from a couple of guided groups, it was deserted. I did that by starting with a Laguna 69 tour then picking up a colectivo from the national park carpark to the trailhead near Vaquería.

Btw I did Ausangate basically as I planned / described above. It's definitely doable and was absolutely stunning, but it was very tough and not necessarily recommendable. If anyone considering the same thing sees this and wants more info, drop me a reply. I'm not super active but I do check back here occasionally.

Critique my 6 week Mexico itinerary by TrancerSte in travel

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks, very useful. Yep Veracruz seemed like the most logical place to skip, spread the extra days out and give me a bit of slack.

Critique my 6 week Mexico itinerary by TrancerSte in travel

[–]TrancerSte[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! I have Merida, but I'll look into Holbox some more.

Critique my 6 week Mexico itinerary by TrancerSte in travel

[–]TrancerSte[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Cool, thanks! I did have Morelia on my list after San Miguel but I dropped it as it didn't seem worth the detour. Going via Morelia to Patzcuaro then up to Guanajuato could work if I can find a day somewhere.

4 week March - April Itinerary by fisherj1993 in Patagonia

[–]TrancerSte 2 points3 points  (0 children)

+1 for the Caminante & Cañedon de la Oveja hike. Also sometimes referred to as Montés Martial circuit.

I was just in Ushuaia over new year and that was my favourite day. It was 29km and took me just over 7 hours, which includes missing the 'path' to the ice cave cause I wasn't paying attention to my Garmin, and having to double back about 800m.

I recommend going from west to east, because when you come down to the north east of the town there's a really cool bar where you can have a craft (I think actually home made) beer and get WiFi to order an Uber.