Gardening

[mjmooney]

.

Edited April 25, 2016 by mjmooney

[mjmooney]

24 minutes ago, chrisp65 said:

Avoid the brand name Sovereign.

In my experience, every stereotype about cheapo chinese tat applies to sovereign. Weird non-standard unavailable parts, rubbish build quality, overheats whilst dripping petrol. So dangerous I bent it and threw it away rather than give it away. Other than that, fine.

We've currently got a bottom of the range Qualcast petrol strimmer which does the job ok, nothing special and nothing bad to note.

 

Thanks Chris. Although I've read some seriously bad reviews of Qualcast stuff. 

[chrisp65]

Yeah, I think unless you are going to go for something like Stihl as a brand there's an element of pot luck.

We're on a Bosch roll at the moment, they appear to be pretty decent in everything from mowers to washing machines. But we were a bit financially embarrassed when we needed to replace the strimmer, so beggars couldn't be choosers.

The Qualcast strimmer is 'ok', it takes a bit of fiddling to change the cable, it vibrates a bit, it's loud. But it starts easy enough, it doesn't leak petrol all over the boot of the car and it cuts the grass, so there's certainly no reason to buy a replacement, even if I'm not exactly in love with it. But agree some Qualcast can just be junk. The trouble is, you need to justify the spend somehow, call it a keep fit regime or social thing, or you end up trying to justify spending hundreds on kit to grow carrots and spuds with a total value of £30 or so.

 

 

[Paddywhack]

I've decided to grow a few things this year, I picked seeds pretty much at random. I have no idea what I'm doing and I have a feeling my neighbours are giggling watching me aimlessly digging in the garden, but I'm enjoying it.

I don't think I'll do onions ever again, I didn't realise how much work was involved.

Runner beans are great though, they're still in pots in my dining room and they're about 2-3 foot high. They caught me off guard, I haven't built my wigwams yet.

[mjmooney]

4 minutes ago, chrisp65 said:

Yeah, I think unless you are going to go for something like Stihl as a brand there's an element of pot luck.

We're on a Bosch roll at the moment, they appear to be pretty decent in everything from mowers to washing machines. But we were a bit financially embarrassed when we needed to replace the strimmer, so beggars couldn't be choosers.

The Qualcast strimmer is 'ok', it takes a bit of fiddling to change the cable, it vibrates a bit, it's loud. But it starts easy enough, it doesn't leak petrol all over the boot of the car and it cuts the grass, so there's certainly no reason to buy a replacement, even if I'm not exactly in love with it. But agree some Qualcast can just be junk. The trouble is, you need to justify the spend somehow, call it a keep fit regime or social thing, or you end up trying to justify spending hundreds on kit to grow carrots and spuds with a total value of £30 or so.

Turns out Qualcast IS Bosch: 

Quote

I needed a strimmer, but I wanted it to have the ability to cut brush as well. Look; let’s be honest here, my gardening approach does result in some dense weed banks forming, so I wanted something that would breeze through the undergrowth.

I looked at the options. There were many. Unfortunately, my time was running short and I wanted something I could just pop around the corner, buy and use. I opted, albeit with little research, for a Qualcast. How could I go wrong? A good British brand, I thought, forged from the sweat of honest gardeners, I guessed, made to last a lifetime (or at least a few years) I suspected.

Wrong, wrong and wrong again!

First off, the Qualcast brand is a part of the Bosch Group, and the brand is licensed to Home Retail Group for sale via the Argos and Homebase outlets. Now, I’m not privy to the license agreement, but whether it be that the product design is licensed and the Home Retail Group has it manufactured by an independent, or whether Bosch has it manufactured under an OEM agreement for Home Retail Group, in my mind – and the minds of many consumers – that makes the Home Retail Group the manufacturer, in terms of liability, doesn’t it?

The products are made in China. When I say they’re made in China, I mean they’re badly made in China. Didn’t know Bosch/Home Retail Group made cheap crap products in China? Well, they do and they’re branded Qualcast!

The GDB30B is a two-stroke machine. Now, some folks may dislike two-stroke engines, but having come from an age where kids spent their formative years tear-arsing around on two-stroke motorcycles, constantly rebuilding and tuning the living shit out of the machines, it held no fear for me. However, the GDB30B has an engine that has been specifically designed to not be adjustable.

That’s right; if it goes wrong you’re screwed. You either have to suffer the torment of dealing with a non-existent manufacturer (it’s just a Bosch brand licensed to Home Retail Group), or you chuck it in the bin and buy again. I think they like the latter approach as it earns them more sales revenue! Sod the customer; think of the earnings!

Here’s the thing; the GDB30B has a well documented fault. It’s totally unreliable. Because the engine is built as cheaply as possible (for example, the rear of the cylinder is made of plastic and the carb is sealed and cannot be adjusted, none of the housings fit together well and handle vibrates loose if you even look at it) it simply gives up and stops working. This is because two-stroke engines need servicing. Qualcast (that’s Bosch licensed to the Home Retail Group really) have made it unserviceable, so you need to pay them to do it. More income from the long-suffering customer.

Foolishly, they’ve also given it a two-year warranty. I think that’s a red herring. You’ll spot it when you buy, but soon forget about it. After 12 months most people will assume they’re out of warranty and skip the bloody useless things. Not me.

In truth, I discovered it had a two-year warranty while trying to buy a replacement carb on t’internet! I contacted Argos (one part of the Home Retail Group who have licensed the Qualcast brand). They agreed with me that the products were known for various problems, but passed me on to the ‘manufacturer’. This isn’t the real manufacturer, because Argos/Homebase have licensed it, so I suppose they’re really the manufacturers. No; they passed me on to a very poor ‘helpline’.

After a 30 minute wait on the ‘helpline’ (the recorded voice telling you to wait is extremely irritating and sounds like she hates you for daring to call) I was given a wide range of advice on things to try (all of which were obvious) before they finally agreed to collect it and do a warranty repair. In truth they seemed pissed off that I had the gall to know what I was talking about!

So, what has owning the GDB30B been like? Well, when I wanted to strim, it would for a few minutes, then it would stop and refuse to start again. If I wanted to cut brush, it would for a few minutes, before cutting out. Sometimes it just wouldn’t start at all. Each time it did start, I was one step closer to the thing being unusable. Two-stroke engines need adjustment, and without the ability to do that the end was inevitably nigh.

Was I unlucky? No, apparently not. The fact that the Qualcast GDB30B is a badly engineered and unreliable piece of junk is well documented. Even the customer services person at Argos told me they had records of numerous reports of similar issues. The only people not to be aware of it are Bosch – well, those Bosch people who have a badge reading Qualcast. If you buy a GDB30B, you’ll soon also be aware of how badly made they are.

I need to strim and cut brush at present. I can’t, because the chunk of shit is awaiting collection. I don’t know when – if ever – they’ll come and get it. It’ll probably still end up in a skip, because I suspect the customer service will be atrocious.

It does make you question whether the product and service would be as shit if more people knew that Qualcast was a Bosch brand. That’s right, Bosch, the same Bosch that makes much of its reputation for quality. That very same Bosch is selling cheap Chinese shit to the masses by hiding behind the Qualcast name. Bosch, peddlers of cheap unreliable crap if they can put another brand on it. Think about that when you pay over the odds for a Bosch product. It’s just a Qualcast bit of kit really, isn’t it, but with a different name on it. Would you pay a premium for a Qualcast fridge of dishwasher? You probably already have…

I give the Qualcast (from Bosch) GDB30B a rather generous 0 out of 10.

0 out of 10 for a Bosch product, albeit one hidden behind a different name and built in China for the DIY market in the UK. It is made by Bosch. Like those allegedly good quality power tools … and fridges, washing machines, automotive parts, industrial solutions, AV ranges, etc..

UPDATE: The GDB30B was collected, and then 10 days later, with no communication, it was returned without any of the accessories, and with the safety cut-out wires torn out. I contacted the laughable helpline again, and was told the unit had been repaired with replacement parts, but they didn’t know which ones. I asked whether the helpline was part of the Home Retail Group, and whether they were the manufacturer. They put the phone down on me!

I then contacted the retailer and asked if they were the manufacturer. They said they weren’t; Qualcast was. I pointed out that Qualcast was a brand licensed by Home Retail Group, and therefore surely they were the manufacturer. They put the phone down on me.

I’ve contacted the CEO of Home Retail Group (John Walden) by email, so he can’t put the phone down on me. I doubt very much I’ll hear from him. After all, I’ve had nothing but terrible service and a refusal to discuss who is liable as a manufacturer from them so far. Why would the man at the top care about customers? He can’t if he allows us to be treated so poorly.

So all I can say is this: don’t buy Qualcast unless you want to chuck away your money and hit a blank wall with regard to anyone shouldering their legal responsibility. I’d avoid Homebase, Argos and any other Home Retail Group business to until they give some indication that they take customers seriously.

ANOTHER UPDATE: It seems that the Home Retail Group (Argos and Homebase) is indeed the manufacturer, according to Bosch who have licensed the brand to them, and therefore the Home Retail Group is legally liable for issues with Qualcast products. This means that the manufacturer of the product deliberately lied to me (and anyone else who was told to go to ‘Qualcast’) in order to mislead and avoid liability.

Their actions can only be considered to have been taken deliberately to evade their legal responsibilities under warranty. This could turn out to be a very interesting case…

The Idiot Gardener

[chrisp65]

24 minutes ago, Paddywhack said:

I've decided to grow a few things this year, I picked seeds pretty much at random. I have no idea what I'm doing and I have a feeling my neighbours are giggling watching me aimlessly digging in the garden, but I'm enjoying it.

I don't think I'll do onions ever again, I didn't realise how much work was involved.

Runner beans are great though, they're still in pots in my dining room and they're about 2-3 foot high. They caught me off guard, I haven't built my wigwams yet.

I wouldn't bother with onion seeds. Buy a bag of onion sets (small onions), stick them in and they'll grow in to big onions. No, seriously.

 

@mjmooney ouch, he's not impressed is he. Interesting that Bosch have a hand in a cheapo range they only flog through Argos. Churn out crap for the bottom end of the market without jeopardising your good name. Qualcast wouldn't be a brand I'd automatically go for, that post only reinforces that. It does appear it's for when you're on a budget and willing to take a punt. My dad once bought an Austin Allegro and he never once had a day of trouble out of it. So I guess we're just lucky sometimes!

 

[lapal_fan]

Why not hire one for the big job at the front end, and then just use a cheaper one for maintenance?

[Dante_Lockhart]

I moved in November and the house we're at now has about 20ft of garden behind the current fencing that is ours. It does slope down after about 10ft, but we wanted to reclaim it all and then fence it off at a safe point. It backs onto Warrens Hall Reserve in Netherton.

Spent the weekend cutting trees, hacking brambles and digging up tree stumps. It was so overgrown and so much stuff had been dumped over the fence. Made a clear path now to the bottom of the slope so all the branches and stuff are being chucked over the back as it will all comp down over time and the brambles will be burned in our makeshift barrel fire pit. Once it's all clear the plan is to make the slope safe and fence it off as we don't want the slope to make it's way further down the garden. Hopefully some deep concrete posts and stuff will support the soil so it doesn't fall away.

Busy bee. Tiring work.

[Paddywhack]

10 minutes ago, chrisp65 said:

I wouldn't bother with onion seeds. Buy a bag of onion sets (small onions), stick them in and they'll grow in to big onions. No, seriously.

I've been trying to construct a joke for a few minutes now, insinuating that that could work on my penis, but the best I got was, 'THAT COULD WORK ON MY PENIS.'

[lapal_fan]

30 minutes ago, Paddywhack said:

I've been trying to construct a joke for a few minutes now, insinuating that that could work on my penis, but the best I got was, 'THAT COULD WORK ON MY PENIS.'

And even then, you'd be wrong

[mjmooney]

41 minutes ago, lapal_fan said:

Why not hire one for the big job at the front end, and then just use a cheaper one for maintenance?

The really big work is already done. After a bit more research I've swung back to the idea of a cordless electric - but a more powerful one than I have now. Ironically the best bangs per buck looks like Qualcast (see above), but I guess there's less to go wrong than there would be with a petrol model. 

[Paddywhack]

42 minutes ago, Dante_Lockhart said:

I moved in November and the house we're at now has about 20ft of garden behind the current fencing that is ours. It does slope down after about 10ft, but we wanted to reclaim it all and then fence it off at a safe point. It backs onto Warrens Hall Reserve in Netherton.

Spent the weekend cutting trees, hacking brambles and digging up tree stumps. It was so overgrown and so much stuff had been dumped over the fence. Made a clear path now to the bottom of the slope so all the branches and stuff are being chucked over the back as it will all comp down over time and the brambles will be burned in our makeshift barrel fire pit. Once it's all clear the plan is to make the slope safe and fence it off as we don't want the slope to make it's way further down the garden. Hopefully some deep concrete posts and stuff will support the soil so it doesn't fall away.

Busy bee. Tiring work.

That sounds like a nightmare. I felt aggrieved having to take out a small bush when I moved in.

(And no, not on a date)

[blandy]

41 minutes ago, Paddywhack said:

I've been trying to construct a joke for a few minutes now, insinuating that that could work on my penis, but the best I got was, 'THAT COULD WORK ON MY PENIS.'

The whole Onion/todger comparison is a bit wierd, but cut either and it'll bring tears to your eyes

[Paddywhack]

3 minutes ago, blandy said:

The whole Onion/todger comparison is a bit wierd, but cut either and it'll bring tears to your eyes

Hmm. Something about about a leek/going for a leak..?

EDIT: I feel like I'm ruining one of the few remaining nice threads on VT.

Edited April 25, 2016 by Paddywhack

[Dante_Lockhart]

Here's me celebrating after digging out this monstrous tree stump. Took me the best part of an hour.

[Dante_Lockhart]

This is the area behind the fence partly cleared. Still gotta clear all the brambles on the right of the photo.

[mjmooney]

19 minutes ago, Dante_Lockhart said:

Here's me celebrating after digging out this monstrous tree stump. Took me the best part of an hour.

I've dug up a few like that in our garden. My main gardening skill is heavy labouring - I have zero clue about flowers and shrubs. 

[chrisp65]

I've just searched my phone, only currently got the one photo with my garden on it....

[mjmooney]

The back garden (all credit due to Mrs M)

 

[Stevo985]

On 4/30/2014 at 09:10, Stevo985 said:

THREAD NECROMANCY!!!!!

 

 

So, nearly a year after I said I'd do it, I've cleared the bottom of my garden.

I've gone from above, to this:

 

 

So it's tidy now, but looks a bit sad and bare.

 

 

2 years after taking this picture my garden looks... well it looks more or less exactly the same, just with some nicer fence panels (cheers @Jimzk5)

Third time lucky, I'm determined to make something of the garden! I'll be selling/renting my house soon so a decent garden will help massively, but at the same time I don't want to spend a fortune.

So, my new plan is to cover the crap half of the garden (the half furthest away in that picture where the grass is really poor) with bark chippings, something like this:

So bark on most of it with a path down the middle (I'll probably go for a few slabs as stepping stones) leading to the concrete area at the bottom of the garden (can't be seen on the pics above but it's there) and stick some patio furniture on there, job done.

Friend of mine has just had it done to a large area of her garden and it looks good and seems like a quicker and cheaper option than others (I got some quotes for turfing the area and they ranged from £1000 to £1500 which is way more than I want to spend given I won't be there for long).

 

So originally I was going to weed kill and rotavate the area, then lay down a permeable membrane to stop stuff growing through and then cover with bark chippings (plus some edging round the sides but that's not important)

Now what I'm thinking is do I really need to bother with the rotavating? If I've done my weedkilling to kill most of the grass/weeds, and I don't want anything else to grow through in the future, can I just lay the membrane over the top of what I have and then stick the bark chippings on top?

Any thoughts? Would I benefit from rotavating? The only benefit I can think of is it might leave the ground a bit leveller and maybe give me more of a dip for the chippings to lay in, but nothing massive. Am I missing something?

Edited July 8, 2016 by Stevo985