Manual
deutsche Fassung
Manual |
deutsche Fassung |
The keys for the house can be picked up from Michael Fadden, Killadoon, Louisburgh P.O., Co. Mayo (tel. 098-68664). Your time of arrival should be roughly arranged in advance (either with me or with Michael). He usually works on the field and can't be expected to stay at home all day long. So it will help to give him a clue of the approximate time of arrival.
Leave Louisburgh towards Leenaun. At the end of the village, the road to Leenaun goes to the left at the crossing, for Devlin go straight and follow the directions to "Silver Strand". Approximately 8 km (5 miles) behind Louisburgh the road reaches a crossing with a church on the left side. This is Killeen, and you have to follow the road straight on. Another km ahead, you pass a filling station with phone box and shop on the righthand side, the Killadoon Post Office. On the top of the hill, one km ahead, Michael Fadden's house can be found on the left side (key!), it is the first occupied house on the left side behind the post office. About 1-2 km further on, a mobile home is parked on the right side of the road. Immediately before the mobile home, a small road is leading down to the beach. Take this road and pass a few houses, after a sharp left and a turn to the right, the road is taking you straight towards the sea. At the beach, the road is forking to the left and right, take the right turn along the shore. 100 meters onwards, a smaller road is going to the right, from here you can see the house already.Taking the left turn at the T-crossing will take you to the houses of some neighbours.
The main fuse for the power supply has to be switched on. The fuse box is located on the ground floor in the hall above the door to the bedroom facing the hill. Usually, a chair should be standing there to make sure you can reach the fuse.
The valve of the gas bottle has to be opened (open it counterclockwise, close it clockwise).
Furthermore, the main tap for the water supply needs to be opened. This tap is located outside the house under a metal lid to the left of the entrance. The tap further away from the door has to be unfastened with a wrench-key size 11. As soon as the tap is open, the house is connected to the public water supply. IMPORTANT: Never ever may both taps under the lid be open at the same time. Sometimes, the stop-cock in the adjustment tank may be tied up to block the water supply completely - if this is the case, you have to untie the stopcock at the tank on the first floor. The second tap under the lid belongs to the back-up system for the water supply. It should only be used if the public water supply is disrupted and the first tap is closed.The black waste bin can be removed fromt the hall and stand outside the house. Make sure that the lid is carefully closed with a twist or tied to the bin - otherwise the lid will be blown to America (or wherever). Under strong winds, this may even happen to the complete bin.
The main fuse for the power supply must be switched off. The fuse box is located on the ground floor in the hall above the door of the bedroom. Leave a chair behind for the next guest to reach the fuse. The valve of the gas bottle must be closed (close it clockwise, open it counterclockwise). The main tap for the water supply needs to be closed. The tap is located under a metal lid outside the house to the left of the entrance. Please make sure that both taps are completely closed. And please empty the tank as far as possible (e.g. by opening a tap in the bathroom). Please move the waste bin inside the house to keep it from being blown all around the world, make sure the bin is emptied completely (see waste disposal)
The fridge MUST be empty, and its door should be left open. Do not leave any perishable food behind. If the house will be immediately taken over by other guests, different arrangements can be discussed. Please close all the curtains and blinds
By opening the tap at the kitchen sink, you can check if the public water supply is operating correctly. This tap is not connected to the main tap of the house and not to the tank on the first floor. The water for the tap at the kitchen sink is coming directly from the public line. If the open tap stays dry, the public water supply is disrupted. In this case, you may contact John McGreal in Roonith (tel. 67615) as soon as possible. He is the responsible mechanic for the Killeen Group Water Scheme.
The water in Devlin is drinking water, even though it may look greenish due to the bog ground. Water from the kitchen tap is the freshest because it is coming from the pipe directly and did not rest in the tank.
The voltage in Ireland is 220-230V˜. Sockets and plugs are the same as in England (3 pins), adapters for appliances from mainland Europe can be found everywhere in the house. The local office of the ESB (Electric Supply Board) is located in Westport, Bridge Street, in the "Electric Shop". The customer number for Devlin South is 8068-51-219. For supply disturbances, please contact the Service Centre in Castlebar (tel. 094-25022).
All appliances in the house which are running on batteries are equipped with rechargeable batteries (clocks, torches, etc). A charger for these batteries is located in the cabinet beside the kitchen door. A charging time of 14 hours should not be exceeded. Before charging the batteries, make sure they are actually empty. Non-rechargeable batteries should not be purchased for the house, and rechargeable batteries should not be thrown away, even if they seem to be ultimately dead.
A stereo with radio and tape deck is in the sitting room. A portable CD player can be connected to the adapter cable installed to the stereo.
Three TV programmes can be received: RTE1 (Button 1 on the remote control), Network 2 (Button 2 on the remote control), and Telefis na Geilge (Button 3). Unfortunately, the transmission quality is not too spectacular (due to the spectacular surronding hills). Please do not try to improve the transmission quality by experimenting on the aerial. The current setting of aerial and TV frequency is the best you can have, and it took some time to find it.
Next to the washing machine, you will find a summary overview for the machines's programmes. The valve for the water supply to the machine is located under the sink in the bath room (the valve is open if parallel to the water pipe, closed if transversal to the pipe). After the washing is finished, the valve should be closed. If the water is not running inspite of an open valve, the filter at the water inlet of the machine may be blocked. In this case, disconnect the pipe directly at the machine and clean the filter using a finger. Due to the low water pressure, the washing detergent should be given directly into the drum.
For any damages of the roof, the roofer must be immediately notified, Michael McNally (Building contractor) from Feenone (tel. 098-67649, his house is located on the Leenaun road approx. 1 km beyond Killeen church ).
If water is leaking in through any of the windows, please identify the spot clearly for future sealing. The south window in the sitting room must not be opened at all because it is completely sealed.
Believe it or not, since 1994, a waste removal scheme is operative in Killadoon. The removal truck usually comes on Thursdays (give a day or two, deviations from this schedule are to be expected in Ireland). The black waste bags must be taken up to the road (where the mobile home is parked). If you want to use this method of waste disposal, you should notify me in advance because the truck must be ordered for the extra stop and the monthly fee of £ 6 must be paid. The contact person for all problems concerning waste removal is Padraic O'Malley (pronounce it "Porric" or something that sounds similar) at the Killadoon Beach Hotel. Nevertheless, waste should be avoided and disposed of separately as far as possible. Glas and cans should be taken to the Bottle Bank in Westport, located on the main parking lot . Organic waste (including tea bags, coffee filter, orange and banana peels or newspapers, but no cigarette tips, ashes or slags) can be disposed of on the (right) compost at the wall in front of the house. When lighting a fire, combustible waste can be burned in the fireplace. Remaining waste, however, can be put in the black waste bags that should be in the house or can be purchased from any shop. The black bag is kept in the waste bin until removal date. If your departure date and removal schedule are difficult to harmonize, you still can make use of the Lousburgh waste removal scheme. In order to do so, a "waste badge" must be purchased at Durcan's shop in Louisburgh (£ 1.20). After wrapping the black bag with a string, attach the badge and put the bag on the roadside at the crossing below the bridge. The bag will be picked up on Tuesday morning, it should be at the roadside latest Monday evening. One waste badge is valid for two waste bags.
The central heating is operated by a socalled backboiler via the open fire. The open fire is heating up the water for the heating system, and a rotation punp distributes the hot water to the radiators in the house. The control for the pump is located in the kitchen under the boiler.
There are three settings: 0, I, and II. The pump is switched off if set to 0, at II it is set to maximum performance. If you have the open fire going for the atmosphere only and you do not actually need the entire house to be heated, the pump should be switched off. Usually, the setting of the pump is pre-set and there is no need to change it.
The water tempereature at which the pump operates can be set with the thermostat (see picture). Minimum temperature should be 40°C (50 °C even better), otherwise cold water will be pumped through the system, which leaves the house cold and wears out the pump. The most efficient way to warm the house is a roaring fire in the fireplace.
Standard fuel for the open fire is coal. Coal can be purchased at the distributor in Louisburgh. The shop is located approx. 1km outside Louisburgh on the right side of the road that leads to the right from the top of the town (coming from Devlin). A bag of 50 kg is priced between £ 7 and £ 8. Ask specifically for polish coal, the alternative (coal from Texas) is quite dangerous because it chips and sets off sparks flying through the room and the remainders are much more voluminous than those of the polish coal. The coal is stored in plastic bags in front of the house, here you can leave your leftover coals behind. Be aware that the briquettes that you may see outside shops or filling stations are not coal briquettes, they are made of compressed turf and are called peat briquettes. Their heating efficiency is by far not as high as that of coal. In case the distributor in Louisburgh is closed or out of coal, you can purchase coal from the Fuel yard in Westport, near the Octagon on James Street. Before shopping for coal, put a black bag or other protective cover in the trunk of your car, smear and dust from coal are a real nuisance and practically not removable from fabric and plastic. A good protection is one of the yellow bags from the kitchen, cut open to a blanket.
Hot water is available independently from the heating system. In the summer, this is useful for having hot water without the need to heat up the entire house, in winter time it might take too long to wait for hot water heated by the open fire. For heating water, the coercion in the kitchen must switched to on, the switch is located beside the boiler. The position of the right switch has no meaning whatsoever. Hot water is available from all taps in the kitchen and the bath rooms, no matter in which position the right switch is. As the water is heated by electrical means, it is recommendable to switch off the coercion overnight or if hot water is not needed for some hours. At certain temperature conditions, the water pipes in the house are giving strange noises, as if they were singing. The reason for this are vibrations of the inlet gauge at the reservoir, modulated by the pipes. The cause is harmless and the noise can be ignored (if you can, that is...). Draining water from any tap brings instant (temporary) relief.
An empty gas bottle must be transported to Louisburgh and exchanged at the Spar shop (cost for one exchange is £ 30 and will be refunded). Before removing the empty bottle, the bottle must be closed (clockwise) and the pressure gauge must be taken off (open the connector clockwise, close it anticlockwise). For malfunctions or problems with the gas supply, contact Jim McGrath (tel. 35266). He is living a couple of miles outside of Westport on the Ballinrobe road, opposite a car repair shop.
On your departure, you can leave the used sheets and remaining used towels behind unwashed. Nevertheless, the beds should be stripped and the unwashed items should be put in the bag in the bathroom - do not close this bag absolutely tight. It is the customary task of the next guests of the house to wash the leftovers from their predecessors, therefore you will find items there yourself and you are kindly asked to wash them.
A basic variety of food (like salt, sugar, spices, noodles, rice, flour, tea, var. cans, etc.) is on stock in the kitchen at all time. Please feel free to use whatever you like. Before you buy any food of your own you should check if the specific item is already present. I do not expect that you resupply everything you used, but it would be a good idea not to leave the shelves empty. Of course only food which is not going to rot should be left behind.
The gate at the ground's entry drive must be closed at all times - otherwise you will have a hard time driving sheep and cattle from the land, not speaking of the souvenirs, they leave behind... On departure, the gate should additionally be fastened with a rope to keep the wind from rattling the gate open.
Every now and then, a farmer will come to cut the grass on the land.
The closest shop is at the filling station in Killadoon which is at the same time the local post office. Opening hours of the shop are not necessarily the opening hours of the Post office. The distance from Devlin is 3 km (2 miles). More extensive shopping can be done in Louisburgh or Westport. Westport has a fully equipped supermarket. The closest Pub is the Killadoon Beach Hotel. There is a shortcut via the beach but the first try to find the way should be in daylight. It is easy to misss the way up from the beach, especially at night. Walking time along the beach is ca. 25 minutes.
If anything gets broken in the house, please do not replace it, and do not 'forget' to tell me about it. We will talk about it .... I might not want to replace the item, or I want something else as a replacement, or.... However, tell me about the accident, and we will find a way to deal with it.
The telephone in the house is at your disposal. Your deposit (if any) is mainly used to cover eventual telephone cost. As soon as the phone bill has arrived (it is issued every two months), we will balance the account. The remaining deposit will be refunded or you have to pay the additional amount. Of course you will only have to pay something at all if your bill exceeds the minimum fee as agreed in the contract. The phone bills are detailed and precise; date of call, called number, and the numer of units are recorded. Therefore, it is very easy to make a fair and correct settlement. The cost per unit is 18p. If somebody wants to call you in Ireland, the phone number in Devlin is 00353-98-68626 (inside Ireland 098-68626). Problems can be reported to the Service number 1902. The customer number for Devlin is 22078417. For calls from public phones, phone cards are recommended. Especially for lang distance calls they are very convenient, as you do not have to deal with millions of small coins. The cards are available almost everywhere. They can be purchaed at £ 2, £ 3.50, £ 8, and £ 16. The higher the value of the phone card, the less expensive is each single unit on the card.
Calls are charged per unit. The following table gives you the length of a unit.
| Local | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Mo-Fr 8.00-18.00 | Mo-Fr 18.00-8.00 Sa, So, public holiday | ||
| 3 min | 15 min | ||
| National | |||
| Mo-Fr 8.00-18.00 | Mo-Fr 18.00-8.00 | Sa, Su, public holiday | |
| Local charge group (ca. 56 km) | 66,7 s | 100 s | 10 min |
| Long distance | 25 s | 37,5 s | 10 min |
| International | |||
| Mo-Fr 8.00-18.00 | Mo-Fr 18.00-8.00 | Mo-Fr 22.00-8.00, Sa, Su, public holiday | |
| Britain | 19 s | 29 s | 29 s |
| FRG; France.; Benelux | 15,9 s | 21 s | 21 s |
| USA; Canada | 8,28 s | 9,68 s | 10,8 s |
Of course, the following is not meant to be an exhaustive listing, but only an indication of possibilities - let your phantasy wander!
Naturally, all the ring forts, standing stones, promontery forts, cairns, crannógs and megalithic tombs in the immediate vicinity of the house have to be mentioned as first in the list. The closest one can be seen from the kitchen window. All of the monuments are in easy walking distance, most of them are indicated on the map.
From Roonagh Pier (near Louisburgh), there is a daily ferry service (11:00 a.m.) to Clare, the (former) island of the pirates, and Inis Turk. Clare Island is famous for ist lobster, and it is a beautiful spot for walking or even serious hiking. The return ferry to the main land leaves in the afternoon, you can ask for the time table unter tel. 26307 at the Bay View Hotel where you can also arrange a reservation for an overnight stay on the island.
A walk of 6 km one way (4 miles) from the house along the road (or along the shore) to the mouth of Killary harbour passing sandy beaches, is definetely worthwhile the effort.
On a clear day, you may be tempted to climb the reek of Croagh Patrick. The effort will be highly rewarded with a spectacular view over Clew Bay, but you need good hiking shoes and a fairly good physical condition.
Close to Westport, in Aghagower, a Round Tower and the ruin of an abbey, allegedly founded by St. Patrick can be visited.
A day excursion to the Kylemore Abbey in Connemara can be extended to Cifden, or even to the Connemara National Park close to Clifden.
On a trip to the beautiful Achill peninsula you might take the opportunity to pay a visit to Heinrich Böll's dwelling. Heinrich Böll was a german writer who won the nobel prize for literature and lived some years in Ireland in the fifties. During that stay he wrote a famous book about Ireland: "Irish Diary"
A drive of 1,5 - 2 hours will take you to Galway, one of the oldest seaports of Europe. Via Galway, the trade with Spain was operated for many centuries. Galway is a very lively town, ideal for shopping.
More points to visit in Connemara are Cong Abbey or any other of the many ancient sites.
In 1993, Mayo has celebrated 5000 years of settlement in the county. Since then, there is a contemporary "sculpture trail" in North Mayo: TÍr Sáile. Detailed information and a map of the trail are available at the Bord Fá¡lte office in Westport. The celebrations in 1993 were based on the excavations at the Ceide Fields. The Ceilde Fields are indeed worth a visit, a visitor centre has been set up and a lot of background information is provided here.
Downpatrick Head (Dun Briste), a crag in front of impressive cliffs is one of the places you should see in Mayo North.
Moyne Abbey, close to Killala demonstrates the power and wealth of the clergy in Ireland before the monasteries were destroyed.
In case of any problems, you can contact me by telephone under 0049-69-884522.
(an irish blessing)