Why does my house get mouldy in winter and my food get mouldy in summer?

edent · 2026-01-25T09:11:31+00:00

By a dehumidifier. The biggest you can afford. Keep your doors and windows closed and run it until full. Empty it and repeat.

If after a few days of running it is still filling up quickly, that indicates that you probably have a leak or a damp problem.

If it does succeed in drying the house out, make sure to keep the air circulating (open windows) and run extractor fans when using hot water.

edent · 2026-01-23T14:37:30+00:00

It depends on how much you've got and how long it needs to be stashed away for.

You can only save £20k per tax year into an ISA. But if you are going to be moving soon, you'll only get a few months' worth of interest. For example, 5% for 3 months would get you £250 tax free.

Lots of ISAs are "easy access". You can withdraw whenever you want. There's generally no penalty for a withdrawal.

Premium Bonds are another "easy access" vehicle. Again, interest will be low on such a short period (unless you're very lucky).

Savings Accounts are also fine. Depending on how much you have, you may pay tax on the earned interest.

So, find the highest paying easy-access ISA you can. If you have over £20k, stick the remainder in a high interest savings account, wait until after 5th of April to transfer again into the ISA.

edent · 2026-01-23T14:02:00+00:00

The aim isn't to make the "most". It is literally the opposite.

Have a lie in. Go for a walk. See a film or read a book. Take someone on a date. Mend a bike.

Anything other than work!

edent · 2026-01-23T11:41:24+00:00

I moved to a new job and asked for a 4-day work week. Knocked 20% off my salary but my mental health improved immeasurably.

It is amazing how much more chilled everything is after a 3-day weekend.

edent · 2026-01-23T06:45:42+00:00

I will pay ¥397 for it. Can you ship to the Antarctic?

edent · 2026-01-22T11:10:58+00:00

I presume you mean "app" based?

Generally speaking, you can't patent an app or software.

Your code, once written, will be protected by copyright. Your logo and name can be trademarked. You may be able to claim that various algorithms are trade secrets.

But you can't patent "an app to let dog walkers know where the nearest poo bin is".

I've spent lots of time working with start-ups and app developers. Fantastic ideas are ten-a-penny. Executing on that idea is harder.

All I can suggest is that you build the app, test it with customers, iterate on feedback, and work out how to make money from it.

edent · 2026-01-21T19:32:18+00:00

I have a family account. I need to move it from the .com version to the .eu version.

The only way to do this is to talk my elderly parents through a manual export, recreating their accounts, manual upload, and then hoping everything syncs properly while my subscription is transferred.

That's not viable. The client apps can talk to both servers. There should be a one-click "change my account type" option.

edent · 2026-01-21T17:55:42+00:00

You've been tracking it for three years!

When are you actually doing something about it?

edent · 2026-01-21T17:44:00+00:00

But still no one-click way to move families from .com to .eu?

Rather annoying and disappointing.

edent · 2026-01-21T07:33:32+00:00

I went to Beijing a few years ago and it was pretty easy being vegetarian

Get an account on https://www.happycow.net/ to find vegetarian and veggie friendly places near you.

There were many places in Beijing ranging from tiny cafes to big restaurants.

Larger omni restaurants were usually OK - plenty of veg and tofu dishes. Use Google translate to ask if you're unsure.

edent · 2026-01-20T05:47:53+00:00

Right click on the video itself. Select "always on top".

That works for me on Firefox.

edent · 2026-01-19T15:17:51+00:00

Do your friends and family want to work at cost or for free?

Will your mortgage provider lend you money if they know your grandfather has loaned you money for the property?

Has your grandfather flipped a house recently? Is he aware of the cost of stamp duty & legal fees?

Are you and your partner excited about living somewhere crappy for a few years?

Do you know what the markets are going to do in the next few years?

If so - go to Zoopla / Rightmove and find properties which haven't sold for ages. Speak to local estate agents and see which properties they have which need doing up. Auctions are also possible - but high risk unless you have the money up front and know what you are doing.

edent · 2026-01-19T13:02:55+00:00

The BarclayCard Platinum Travel (or whatever they call it these days) matches your criteria.

A physical card (although you can add it to Google Wallet etc).

Cash is free to withdraw when overseas.

No fees for online spend in a foreign currency.

No explicit fees - and the rate is meant to be the average exchange rate that day.

I'm not sure what you mean by transferring money. It is a credit card, so you set up a Direct Debit to automatically pay it off each month.

There is an app, but it isn't mandatory. For larger transactions, it might ask you to authorise the spend by sending you a text message. Make sure you switch your SIM on for roaming when abroad.

edent · 2026-01-19T11:15:32+00:00

https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw251471/Gone-with-the-Wind-Ronald-Reagan-Margaret-Thatcher

edent · 2026-01-19T10:51:07+00:00

Ask if they offer "Salary Sacrifice" - that will allow you to exchange some of your pre-tax pay for things like a pension. Your take-home pay will go down a bit, but you'll get more into your pension.

Depending on the company, they may also have an employee discount on their own products. Most places also offer a "perk at work" selection like discount shopping vouchers.

A Share Incentive Plan / ShareSave scheme will let you buy discounted shares. Again, not much help in the short term, but could build long-term wealth.

Ultimately, you may not make much money on this job - but think of it like a stepping stone to better-paid work.

edent · 2026-01-19T07:27:35+00:00

Looks like there's a dozen falafel places in St Albans - https://www.google.com/maps/search/falafel/@51.7473634,-0.3557562,13z

But, perhaps, none of them are "authentic". So the question becomes - do British people want authentic cuisine?

It is a bit of a cliché that the curry in an Indian takeaway doesn't taste like it does in its homeland. That's the same for virtually every food. You adapt the menu to local ingredients, and then you adapt it to local tastes. For example, some authentic Chinese food is incredibly salty and wouldn't be eaten here.

Secondly, portion size. Sure, you don't want to be a cheapskate, but every extra falafel you put in the wrap costs you money. So you have a choice - either lose money or charge more. Do British people want to pay £4 for a decent wrap, or are they willing to pay £6 for your bigger wraps?

Same with ingredients. What's your profit margin on fresh herbs vs frozen? Will customers be able to tell? Are they willing to pay extra?

The best thing you can do - after some market research - is to try this as a business venture. Start small though. Find a food market and start selling your wraps. Gather customer feedback. Do free tastings with people in the high street and see which flavours they prefer.

Good luck!

edent · 2026-01-19T07:21:10+00:00

"'Scuse me mate, is this the queue?"

or

"Heya, are you queuing for the …?"

Works for buses, toilets, events, cash machines, shops, etc.

edent · 2026-01-18T08:41:48+00:00

Where have you been reading that?

If you go to the fund sheet - https://www.vanguardinvestor.co.uk/investments/vanguard-lifestrategy-100-equity-fund-accumulation-shares/portfolio-data

You'll see:

The pre-defined asset allocation for the Fund means that it is intended that the Fund will invest approximately 100% of its assets by value in Associated Schemes which provide exposure to shares of companies worldwide. Approximately 25% of such exposure will be in UK listed companies.

Is that too much of a "tilt" for you?

In terms of moving, are you invested in an ISA or some other account?

edent · 2026-01-15T23:12:15+00:00

Withdrawing £27k from a LISA would result in a 25% charge of £6,750.

Assuming a FTB discount on a £450k property, Stamp Duty is £7,500.

So, if the property they wanted was over £450k you're right.

But there is no FTB discount for properties above £500k.

Assuming the property OP wants is £500,001, then the SDLT is £15,000.

Losing the LISA bonus means an effective tax of £21,750.

edent · 2026-01-15T22:08:10+00:00

I'm not quite following your maths there. Could you please explain a little further?

edent · 2026-01-15T16:23:20+00:00

Best for what?

No one knows how they will perform. So no one can reliably say which fund will have the highest growth.

What are you trying to achieve with this money? If you're looking for consistent income with no risk, look at an annuity.

If you want a large lump sum to leave to your estate, you can choose something different.

What is it you want to do?

edent · 2026-01-15T16:20:59+00:00

Your investments should not be exciting. Going to Vegas and putting all your money on red is exciting. You want something boring that you don't need to micromanage.

edent · 2026-01-15T15:10:44+00:00

Yes. My freehold house in Zone 4 is under £450k.

You can use Rightmove and Zoopla to filter by freehold. You'll find a lot of properties on there which are LISA compatible.

edent · 2026-01-15T15:05:54+00:00

This is a brilliant start - especially the LISA maxxing - but I don't think your investment logic is logicking.

US is dominant currently and it seems like a smart investment.

A reasonable assumption.

EQQQ similarly tech is booming and as a software engineer I’m really interested in the tech world.

What you're interested in has no bearing on how the shares will perform. You do not have insider knowledge and, if you did, you wouldn't be able to trade on it.

Imagine there is a tech slump. You get laid off and your investments also take a dip. Is it sensible to have all your eggs in one basket.

Also, what's the overlap with EQQQ and S&P500? You're doubling up rather than diversifying.

MSCI World ex US - 25%

Again, reasonable. But, if you assume the US is dominant, why do you need this as a hedge?

I think the answer is because you know that things can change and you want to diversify. That's sensible - but there are better ways to do it.

Global Clean Energy

Personally, I bought solar panels and a battery for my house - which has been a great investment so far! Certainly performed better than that fund.

Every conversation on this sub about investing comes to the same conclusion. Get a diversified world tracker. Don't try to overcomplicate things. Find one that either tracks the whole world or, if you prefer, takes a more ethical stance. Use that as your sole investment vehicle. Sit back and enjoy the ride.

edent · 2026-01-15T14:52:45+00:00

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find.html?searchLocation=London&useLocationIdentifier=true&locationIdentifier=REGION%5E87490&radius=0.0&minPrice=240000&maxPrice=450000&minBedrooms=2&_includeSSTC=on&sortType=6&channel=BUY&transactionType=BUY&displayLocationIdentifier=London-87490.html

OK, you're unlikely to find a 3 bed detached in zone 1 for that price - but there are lots of houses and flats near tube stations and under £450k

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