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Strangest thing you have found in a property?

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Gavin John Hyde

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just reading another thread where somebody joked about using midgets to run cables and it got me thinking whats the strangest or most unusual thing you have found in a property?
Mine would have to be a pile of WW2 stuff under a floor.

Was working with a team rewiring a house in Swindon. When we pulled up the groundfloor floorboards we found some metal cases. We lifted them up and after a bit of banging and leverage discovered a collection of WW2 weapons, a couple of grenades a gas mask and few bits and bobs we didnt recognise that would be useful if you were looking to cause havoc. It was a one man army stockpile.
The owner said he recalled being told by his late dad that he hid stuff in the floor during WW2 in case the Germans invaded and had forgot all about it since his dad passed away a few years beforehand. His dad had been sent home after being injured at the start of the war and then was an auxiliary tasked with a sort of resistance type role in the event the Germans landed.
Having been a weapons technician in the forces myself prior to leaving through poor health I took it all into the back garden, i took the view we had just battered the boxes to open them up so it was quite stable. The Lee Enfield rifle, (cant recall which version) was rusty but the pistol was covered in an oil rag and looked fully operational, as was the shotgun. The ammo looked pretty good nick too. only slight discoloration on the casings and around the primer area. My colleagues went out the front whilst i carried it out back... not sure why? it was only a few grenades:eek:
When it was phoned in all hell broke loose. I got a right telling off by the police when we called them for moving it but the Royal Logistics Corp C/O just laughed when i told him my past career. Not sure what happened to it all after that - hopefully in a museum but the ammunition and grenades were destroyed elsewhere. but we were not popular with the neighbours for having them evacuated for a couple of hours! Most likely the only exciting thing to ever happen in Swindon..

Whats everybodys unusual discovery in a property?
 
The lady said her ex was stocking up for armegeddon and the wild roving gangs inevitably found at such times. .
You laugh about these things but there is an active prepper scene in the west country, they get together and practice survival skills and have kits prepared in case the proverbial hits the fan to survive. One bloke was interviewed in the paper, he lived out near Glastonbury and was adament he could survive and protect his family.
 
once did some work in a flat for a pair of lesbian girls. in the bedroom were 4 vibrators and a stack of dead AA batteries thrown all over the floor.
The Lady who was our office manager was a looker, Pete any chance you could fit me a shower in my house , which I have just bought with my partner, sure no worries, gave her a price, she gave me the keys, anytime she said, so one morning roll up about 09:00 open the door tramp upstairs,open what I thought was the bathroom, oops, twas the bedroom, there was my office manager, in bed with her partner who was of the same orientation ie both Ladies, well I never did look at her in the same way ever again.
 
Working on a main street property, I remember being called upstairs and found a hole in the wall. Labourer was sinking socket box in the wall when it turned out to be single brick and went straight through to next door..........Barclays Bank.
The bank manager called us 'the hole in the wall gang'.
 
Working on a main street property, I remember being called upstairs and found a hole in the wall. Labourer was sinking socket box in the wall when it turned out to be single brick and went straight through to next door..........Barclays Bank.
The bank manager called us 'the hole in the wall gang'.
They don't like it up em Mr Mainwaring
 
Working on a main street property, I remember being called upstairs and found a hole in the wall. Labourer was sinking socket box in the wall when it turned out to be single brick and went straight through to next door..........Barclays Bank.
The bank manager called us 'the hole in the wall gang'.
Imagine that happening today and they would panic... i would have quoted the money to strengthen the wall on the otherside to protect the bank. I worked on a refurb once where a closed bank was becoming a well known coffee chain shop. where the walls were thin and joining the book shop next door they had put metal plate on the walls and then rebar grid welded on. this was boarded over then plastered - we discoverd this when trying to chase the wall for new cables, the place was like a metal box. We had to put a new lot of plasterboard and timber up but with a 2 inch gap behind for cables and stuff. They also had rebar and metal in the ceiling and roof space. biggest downside was you couldn't get a phone signal inside unless right by the window!
 
I was working in audio on a Gibraltar marina in the 80’s and a guy spent a packet on a new sony hifi system and wanted the speakers fitted all round his huge yacht. Said I could not do it until the weekend, guy says fine, come round Saturday, having a bit of a party but you can crack on.

Turned up, unboxed and started laying the cables in this massive lounge below deck, just looked up through one of the portholes and was met by a triangle of minge, everyone on deck was starkers – I made a mess of that job….
 
I was working in audio on a Gibraltar marina in the 80’s and a guy spent a packet on a new sony hifi system and wanted the speakers fitted all round his huge yacht. Said I could not do it until the weekend, guy says fine, come round Saturday, having a bit of a party but you can crack on.

Turned up, unboxed and started laying the cables in this massive lounge below deck, just looked up through one of the portholes and was met by a triangle of minge, everyone on deck was starkers – I made a mess of that job….
Minge, what's Minge?:rolleyes:o_O:D
 
Found this innovative way of installing a ceiling rose. Don't know how they managed to screw the cover on but they did. On the ceiling, it looked normal until unscrewing, with difficulty....wondered where the cables where....dumbfounded.

latest photos 071.jpg
 
Went to a house where they were getting shocks off sink unit. Not using dno earth, 34 amps to earth. Complained he couldn't keep up with pre payment meter,
"Oh, and about my cold water"
"What about it"?
"It's hot"
Was using old cast iraon water pipe as earth electrode.

Other one was Chinese restaurant complained about flickering lights. Found cut-out fuse replaced with copper water pipe in the fuse holder, so hot couldn't touch it, and they had a fan on a chair blowing cold air on it to cool it down. They were really upset when I told them I was disconnecting supply until cut out could be changed!
 

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