aussiebrian

Presumably the pool has a salt water chlorine generator (SWG)? Correct level of salt is normally 3000-3200 ppm. Your pool service people should be testing this.

Don't know if raising the salt level will deter pigeons, but it might damage the SWG.

I have a Zodiac Tri SWG and the manual says that I should maintain a salt level between 4000 and 7000 ppm, as below 3500 ppm will damage the chlorinator cell.

And yes I have also the pigeons come drink at the pool.

Can you post a photo of pigeons drinking out of a swimming pool?

Instead of making useless comments, can you enlighten why the water level should be below the top of the skimmer.

I am sorry, I don't think they are useless comments. I used to race pigeons, having owned up to 500 pigeons, and I can't imagine a pigeon drinking out of a swimming pool. I have had friends with pigeons and pools, it was never a problem. I can imagine an occasional poo ending up in the pool, especially when they are flying. I can give you some suggestions how to get rid of the problem when you can convince me they are pigeons drinking out of the pool.

Not sure why I can't bring the link of the page below up properly, it is 1/2 way down the page..my first link.

What Is The Proper Water Level In My Swim Pool?

Ideally you should keep your swimming pool water level between one third and one half the way up the opening of the pool skimmer. Why? Among other reasons, this is the level at which the swimming pool skimmers operate most efficiently.

http://swimming.about.com/od/poolandspamaintenance/a/pool_waterlevel.htmIdeally

If your pool looks anything like this below, how the hell can a pigeon drink out of a pool?

and http://www.google.co.th/imgres?client=opera&hs=64U&sa=X&channel=suggest&biw=1366&bih=645&tbm=isch&tbnid=iZd2zG3D34ZMHM:&imgrefurl=http://www.guardz-it.com/&docid=uqQHZAQfOwaD2M&imgurl=http://www.guardz-it.com/index.13.jpg&w=1041&h=579&ei=OKe4UbLUMIHprQf4kIDQDw&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:5,s:0,i:94&iact=rc&dur=1778&page=1&tbnh=164&tbnw=270&start=0&ndsp=16&tx=186&ty=64

Presumably the pool has a salt water chlorine generator (SWG)? Correct level of salt is normally 3000-3200 ppm. Your pool service people should be testing this.

Don't know if raising the salt level will deter pigeons, but it might damage the SWG.

I have a Zodiac Tri SWG and the manual says that I should maintain a salt level between 4000 and 7000 ppm, as below 3500 ppm will damage the chlorinator cell.

And yes I have also the pigeons come drink at the pool.

Can you post a photo of pigeons drinking out of a swimming pool?

I don't understand how a pigeon can drink out of a swimming pool!! Is it full right up to the brim? Ideally you should keep your swimming pool water level between one third and one half the way up the opening of the swim pool skimmer. This is far to low for the pigeon to drink out of. I am getting a visual picture of a pigeon lying flat on its keel bone (chest) stretching down carefully to get a drink, with another pigeon holding it's legs so it wouldn't fall in. Do they fly into the pool and scoop up the water with a bucket? I doubt it. Pigeons can't swim like a duck. How about put some bowls of water around for them to drink out of that would be easier for them to get to, and taste better. Are you sure they are pigeons and not some type of water bird?

I have a ground floor studio condo, in my name, at Nirun Residence3 Moo9 Khwang Dokmai Khet Pravet near Bangna and close to Ramkhamhaeng2 University. There are always some for rent or sale. It is just one room (28sq metres) and a bathroom. I love it there. Lots of food and shops nearby. Mostly Thais live there but also a few farang. I lived there for about 1 year before moving to Phuket. Now it for when I am in Bkk and for somewhere to put my things if I have to return to Australia. I can even take my bike inside as it is ground floor. Buses are only about a 10 minute walk away and Skytrain Bangna station only about 15 minutes by motorcycle taxi. Security will get you a taxi if needed. Cost me 350000 baht 5 years ago. Heard now about 300000 Baht. There is a swimming pool and gym that you must pay for if you want to use them. Most Thais there are very friendly and helpful. Security and fees are 200 baht a month.

You can get ones cheaper not on ground floor. I have my own transport and about 30 mins into central Bangkok by motorcycle.
My ex once even left the keys in the door and security locked it up when they noticed it had been left like that. I think it is a very safe area.

lol sounds like they can be trusted for accurate non biased information..http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Human_Rights_Watch

Asiantravel, on 05 May 2013 - 16:00, said:
" (Gaza City, December 20, 2012) – Four Israeli attacks on journalists and media facilities in Gaza during the November 2012 fighting violated the laws of war by targeting civilians and civilian objects that were making no apparent contribution to Palestinian military operations, Human Rights Watch said today, after a detailed investigation into the incidents.

The attacks killed two Palestinian cameramen, wounded at least 10 media workers, and badly damaged four media offices, as well as the offices of four private companies, Human Rights Watch said. One of the attacks killed a two-year-old boy who lived across the street from a targeted building"

http://multimedia.hrw.org/distribute/iopmljzweq

OH good you found some useless propaganda, I guess they removed the Rocket launching pads just in time

Hope, next you will not be quoting Goldstone reports

Mine was 500 baht for one unit including gas. I am in Kathu, he doesn't live far from me.

You can get thai bank account easy and if you convert your money into thai baht, you can keep it in there but you don't like cards so no good.. Not sure why you don't like cards.. As suggested travelers cheques sound like an easy option. I have a citibank debit card from Australia, money converted from aussie dollar to thai baht in Thailand, better rate and no fees to take money out on Australian side only fee of 150 baht in Thailand from Thai atm. Most cards have large fees, so check. Maybe you can get something like that in the UK. Never had anything stolen from my ROOM here or any other country, but you can always be unlucky. Must have been an inside job if your friend had something stolen from the safe. More likely as it was Pattaya, may be it was the story he told his wife and everyone but really lost it another way. Still easiest use cards.

I am an Aussie and live in Phuket. I had to apply on-line with a very detailed form, they wanted to know even when I last visited India, my previous visa number, where I visited, a reference in India, reference in the country where you are applying, my parents name where they were born, etc etc etc and then they give you a choice of dates for an interview min 3 working days after you fill out the form. At the interview you have to take in printed copy of the forms you filled in on-line, your passport, photocopy of passport, photocopy of visa, 2 passport photos 2 inches square. After the interview if everything is ok, they will tell you to pick it up in 3 days.

As I didn't want to wait in Bangkok or CM for 3 days, I did mine in Cambodia with the same procedure. It used to be very easy the last time I had got an Indian visa but now it has changed. They asked me my traveling dates and I was stupid enough to tell them that I was going for 1 month. So instead of a 6 month double entry visa that I should have got, they only gave me a single entry visa for 6 weeks. http://www.ivac-th.com/important.html

Unless there is food left in the nest, left in an ant trail, or it is dead, ants shouldn't bother it. Put it in a bowl with something like straw as a nesting material. Put the bowl in a cardboard box and maybe you can keep it inside or somewhere where another animal eg cat or dog can't get it. If you can feed it for the next 10 or 15 days then when it can fly it will stay around and can be very tame.

Racing pigeons can come back to their home from 700 miles or more in 1 day. It will have a homing instinct but not as refined as a racing pigeon will. So may be hard to get rid of it when it can fly. You may end up with a friend for 15 years. Message me if you want any more information,

It is a pigeon not a dove. Never seen a picture of a baby dove, so I can say it is a pigeon. Pigeons and doves are almost the same but doves are smaller. The yellow fuzz is called down, as it gets older it looses it but some will stay with it till it is about 4 or 5 weeks old.

After breeding racing pigeons for 15 years, I can guarantee it is a pigeon and they may have some diseases but all living creatures may carry diseases but nothing like a would rat carry. One I know of is Coccidiosis, but unless you are breathing in the dust from it's poop over long periods of time you won't catch it, especially from touching it. Most pigeon diseases aren't transmitted to people. I wouldn't worry about wearing gloves, there is much more chance of catching a disease from "I like Thai" than from the baby pigeon.

Of course wash your hands after you have been handling it just like you would if you had been touching any animal or shaking hands with "I like Thai" or any one else. I can tell you that the previous poster may like Thai, but doesn't like pigeons. He would tell you that a pigeon is a flying rat, that is why they have similar diseases to rats..

If he is going by the size of it's beak, which is a normal size for a feral pigeon there are many fancy breeds of pigeon referred to as being short faced with almost no beak. http://www.google.co...iw=1366&bih=645

There are pigeon fanciers in Thailand who not only have racing pigeons but fancy breeds.

Pigeons don't nest in trees, unless there is a hollow or very secure place to lay eggs and bring up young so if you put it in the tree, it will fall out.

It is a baby pigeon or dove, most likely a pigeon. It is about 8 to 10 days old. They eat grain and are normally vegetarians but at that age it is still being fed a mixture of grain and pigeon milk whiuch is made by both parents.

Pigeons don't build nests like other birds, normally the nest just consists of sticks , and grass places in a hollow of a roof or any place usually out of the way where it feels safe. .

Normally there are 2 young so look around for a pigeon flying into anywhere that it may have it's nest. You should be able to also hear the other squeaker making noises when it is being fed. The nest will be very close to where you found it as it can't walk. It won't be in a tree.

They are fed by the adult opening their beak and the young bird (squeaker) putting their beak inside their parents beak and their parents pump the food into them. The only way you can feed is would be opening its beak and putting the food in or it will starve to death. Maybe you could try bread moistened with water. Once you get the food into its beak it maybe get it down. You may be even able to stick some grain in its beak and down it's throat. It won't start to be able to start eating on it's own for at least another week. It will start to fly when it is about 4 weeks old.

Pigeons like, dried peas, wheat amongst many other grains. But here in Thailand they will eat pretty much what ever it can.

The beak looks a bit small to be a squeaker, but the rest of him does look like one. I would suggest that the op be very careful, as feral pigeons have similar diseases to rats, so wear gloves. As for advise, the OP already stated not to give the advice that I would give, so better not to give it.

It is a baby pigeon or dove, most likely a pigeon. It is about 8 to 10 days old. They eat grain and are normally vegetarians but at that age it is still being fed a mixture of grain and pigeon milk whiuch is made by both parents.

Pigeons don't build nests like other birds, normally the nest just consists of sticks , and grass placed in a hollow of a roof or any place usually out of the way where it feels safe. .

Normally there are 2 young so look around for a pigeon flying into anywhere that it may have it's nest. You should be able to also hear the other squeaker making noises when it is being fed. The nest will be very close to where you found it as it can't walk. It won't be in a tree.

They are fed by the adult opening their beak and the young bird (squeaker) putting their beak inside their parents beak and their parents pump the food into them. The only way you can feed is would be opening its beak and putting the food in or it will starve to death. Maybe you could try bread moistened with water. Once you get the food into its beak it maybe get it down. You may be even able to stick some grain in its beak and down it's throat. It won't start to be able to start eating on it's own for at least another week. It will start to fly when it is about 4 weeks old.

Pigeons like, dried peas, wheat amongst many other grains. But here in Thailand they will eat pretty much what ever it can.

I just did a search and found this.

I have a Garmin Nuvi 550 on my Harley. Had it a few of years now. Software isn't too bad but like all gps software, sometimes you wonder why it is sending you a strange way to your destination. Sometimes it tells you to turn somewhere and as soon as you turn it tells you to make a u turn. No blue tooth It is designed or motorcycles and the best thing it is waterproof . It finds satellites quite easily. Comes with a hardwire kit and is waterproof and also has a bracket for motorcycle handlebars. I don;t trust the bracket setup 100% as it has popped off the bracket over bad bumps, so I have now made a cover for it with extra security in case it pops off again.. It works ok but was dropped and now switches off when I hit a bump. I broke the screen on it a couple of years ago and had to send it to Garmin Taiwan for repairs. They will fix any problem you have for $99US plus postage. Have software for Thailand and most countries including Australia, Cambodia, Malaysia and downloaded Indian software which was useful traveling around there on a Bullet last month.

I also have got Sygic software on my smart phone. That of course will work with blue-tooth and I like the software much better than the Garmin, I used it in India in a tank bag and was easy to follow with clear instructions, But it also sometimes would say you have arrived at your destination a long way from it but still kept directing you. The Garmin software is more user friendly, but sometimes hard to tell where bridges are and where to set yourself up for turns. Hope that helps.

TrueMove have an Inter SIM which apparently offers 365 days validity with a 10 baht top up, assuming you want to go with a crap provider?

Why do you say they are a crap provider...??

Never had any issues with calling and the 1 Baht international landline rate is good by any standards....??

The 1 baht international is great, but they don't have as wide coverage if you are traveling around Thailand as AIS. But they do have a great H service which is like 3G.

On ething i learned was to never use the front brake, hit that on sand and your gone.

Lol you have to use front brake, that's certainly because of this way of thinking that honda introduced combi brake on all their bikes.

You should use 70% on front brake and 30% on back break to get most efficient stop.

There's a reason why big bikes have better front breaks.

If you don't use your brakes right you can end up with many breaks both in your body and your bike.

Big bikes have better front BRAKES and back for that matter because they are heavier.

The front brake is your most efficient brake. On a good dry road, use front/rear about 80/20. On a wet road, about 50/50 and on a gravel/dirt road about 20/80. If you don't use your front brake, best you don't ride or you will wish you never tried to ride.

Many people learn to ride in Thailand, some make it, others don't. Motorcycles can be dangerous at the best of times, but trying to learn in an environment that you don't understand can add further risk.

Get in a large area with no traffic, practice throttle control, set up some 8 or 10 plastic bottles about 2 metres apart and try riding between them without hitting them. Practice countersteering. If you don't understand this term, google it.

Practice braking, but don't jump on your brakes, squeeze them. Read as much as you can about riding and good luck. Best to learn how to handle a bike before you jump out onto the road. Trail riding is a great way to start, but not sure where you can do that here. There are some good videos on youtube. One of my favorites is a twist of the wrist. Great for riders of all levels.

It amazes me how many people say just get on and ride. Many people that try that approach would not suggest that if they were still here to tell you that.

Make sure you are insured at least for injury. Many travel insurance policies won't cover you for riding motorcycles, others won't cover you if you are on a bike over 250cc, most won't cover you if you don't have a helmet on and none will cover you if you don't have a licence.

If you still really want to ride start on something small. And of course, wear good protective gear and a good helmet, preferable a full face if you like the look of your face.

Honda does have a riding school in Bangkok, but how good it is, and how often they have classes, I don't know. They have a homepage, but looks like it is in Thai. http://www.aphonda.co.th/hondasafety/riding_center.asp Learn to ride properly, then you will enjoy it the most.

Kathu closes around midday too.

Don't know about the UK but always much better in Australia, to get the policy before you leave your home soil or you have to look at one from somewhere else, usually dearer and less cover for everything.. Mine costs only $730 from Australia, with unlimited medical and dental, $2 Million indemnity, etc.They have even covered me for some crowns on my teeth. 2 years ago, I needed some rabies shots with a total bill around $3000. My main concerns are it needs to cover me for riding a big bike, (some policies limit your cc's you can ride) and for SCUBA diving. If you do any extreme sports always check if it covers you.

I was booked in Bangkok for having mine trimmed minutely, less than in your picture. Everything was still there including the DLT Emblem, I think the OP is referring to the old style number plates that are 1/2 the size with no trimming. I think the answer would be, only if you buy an old bike with an old number plate.

Why do you want to do Scutzhund training with them? Have you done it before? Have you had German Shepherds before? German Shepherds normally will protect their family when it is necessary. Why not just do obedience training with them? Go to a good school, with

them, but don't leave them anywhere for training, You must be trained with the dogs. Then work daily with them yourself.

If they are pups now, make sure you socialize them early, but only after they have had their shots and will be protected.. Lots of distemper around.

When you have them trained to a high standard of obedience and then if you feel they are too friendly with everyone and if they wouldn't protect you or your family, seek out a professional trainer. Not sure where you live but there are many dog trainers in Thailand.

I had 2 German Shepherd bitches living together for 13 years. This is not normally recommended, as they can fight. Always better to have a dog and a bitch. Luckily they only had 2 fights. Very hard and dangerous trying to separate them.

But too late now, so best of luck.

Have a look at these. They do just about everything Android 4, 2 sims and Igo Thai and world GPS maps large screen and supports a 32 GB card etc http://www.aliexpres.../108597499.html

Hope not too late for you but there is a quite new shop in Phuket town, in the same road as and not far from Vachira Hospital. 158/9 Yaowarat Road, Phuket Town, They have a pretty good selection of mesh armored Jackets , pants, boots helmets etc..It is called Phuket Riding Gear (sing) 0876251531, and he is friendly and speaks fairly good English. www.phuketridinggears.com/

I know my neck hurts this morning from it.

I am sorry to hear that. Hope you feel better soon. You should go to the police and tell them about your neck pain, they will write a report then take it to the doctor and that will be covered by his insurance.

Ok, I will suggest you could possibly be at fault from what you have now said. I asked you what the speed limit was and you say you were traveling at 60km/h to 70 km/h. Maybe the speed limit was 80km/h or even 90km/h but that really doesn't matter in Thailand as you know. Maybe you were even slower than the 60km/h, even if only by the speedometer error. What I am suggesting is that possibly you moved into the right lane, on a wet road in front of a big truck traveling much faster than yourself or at the least swapped lanes with a big truck coming up behind you traveling at a much faster speed than yourself, blocking his only path to avoid you. Did you see him in your mirrors coming up at a much faster speed than you when you swapped lanes? It takes a truck much longer to slow down than it does a car. I have had what I am describing to you happen to me many times when a vehicle moving slowly in the left lane doesn't check his mirrors properly, and do a head check or just fails to see me approaching at a much faster speed than he is traveling, and then moves into the right lane in front of me, causing me to brake hard to avoid him.

I am not saying this is what happened as I wasn't there and haven't spoken to the other party. It is just a possibly scenario as to why the truck ran into the back of you, from your description of the events, when you were traveling along as you said ‘’at the speed limit’’ when you obviously don’t even know how fast you were traveling or what the speed limit is.

If I am wrong, please accept my humble apology.

Keysey, there is nowhere in the op's description to say if the truck braked or not.

I was over-taking. I was going the speed appropriate for this type of road. I've lived here for 20 years. I know full-well that speed limits mean nothing. I was doing between 60 - 70 kph on slightly wet roads.

The truck came up behind the slow lane car (the same one I was passing) and apparently didn't look in the lane he was entering.

Failing to give him any punishment means there was no lesson learned. The only party suffering any monetary damage is his insurance company. He learned nothing. Perhaps the next time he'll hit someone and send them spinning. I was lucky.

It's nice that folks assume I was somehow at fault. Thanks to those who said nice stuff. :-)

I nor anyone else suggested you were at fault. Obviously your weren't. I was merely pointing out that it could have gone much worse, and often does. How many times have you heard the adage "You are farang, you must pay." That's not the vast majority of peoples experience, at least not anymore, but it can still happen.

I am not sure if in Thailand cops area allowed to write people traffic tickets for incidents they do not witness. I have only heard of this happening in cases which end in death. From where I am from in the states they can when it is obvious a traffic infraction caused the accident. I'm not even sure there is a reckless driving law in Thailand, but if there is and if it is similar to the U.S. laws then it will likely contain wording similar to: "willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property" which is very hard to prove without seeing it. A guy running into the back of you because of inattention is not reckless driving. It would have been nice for the cops to cite him for something though, even if it was for following to close.

In the end you kind of have to let it go. With the amount of time you have spent in Thailand you know the way this guy drives is how most people drive in Thailand. You also know that the police here are not really police in the way we understand the word.