Mutterings for the Minority

Ok before I start describing how I went about changing the pollen filter on my 04 plate Vauxhall Meriva, I just want to make it clear that I’m a web developer by trade – not a car mechanic!

So if my descriptions are somewhat non-car-mechanic speak I apologise, but at least the pictures should help everyone.

Firstly the reason for changing the filter was simple – the misting in the Meriva had become almost unbearable and having tried all of the other suggestions muted on the Vauxhall Owners Network forum, I was left with only one choice.

Spurned on by the purchase of the replacement pollen filter for just £7.20 (including delivery) from VauxWorld on eBay and the thought of saving myself some ‘labour’ fees at the local garage I started my task.

Replacing the pollen filter should take no more than 20 to 25 minutes at most – this included the time for me to fumble around to find where everything was and to take these pictures!

The first step is to locate the pollen filter – so open the bonnet and take a look at the passenger side of the Meriva just behind the battery and on a ledge below the windscreen wipers. Here you’ll see a plastic flap which lifts up.

When you lift the flap up, you’ll notice an oblong shaped box which I think houses the electrics for the windscreen wipers.

You’ll need to unclip the box by simply lifting it up towards you. When you have done this, try and position it as far over to the right hand side as possible.

Now if you look to the left of where the box was, you’ll see the outside cover of the pollen filter compartment.

[UPDATE] The other thing you’ll need to do to get full access to the pollen filter is bend back the perforated piece of scuttle panel next the to access flap (as shown in picture 2). The plastic is quite flexible and bends back easily.

You now need to remove the cover by slowly lifting it up so that it unclips from its seating and then you can pull it away to reveal the pollen filter. The above can be tricky if like me you’ve got big hands!

As you can see from the picture this filter was well past its best! The darker the filter in colour the less efficient it will be.

Pull the filter away from the casing and pull it out through the gap – leaving an empty casing behind.

OK now it’s time to put your brand new pollen filter in – remembering to fit the pollen filter with the grooves in a vertical position.

When you had put the filter back into the casing, the tricky bit is actually putting the pollen filter cover back on. This is done by slowly sliding the cover down over the casing until you feel it clip back into position.

Don’t be put off by the fact that the pollen filter peeps over the top of this outer casing – that’s the way it’s meant to be apparently.

Anyway, I hope that those of you who have a need to replace a Meriva pollen filter find this post useful. For the experts out there who spot any glaring mistakes, please let me know and I’ll update the post accordingly.

Thanks for reading!

It’s now been two whole weeks since set our weight loss targets and today was our first progress weigh-in.

Thankfully it was good news with both Mrs DDWT and I shedding 3lbs each – taking our weight to 12st 9lb and 17st 3lb respectively. It was a welcome surprise and lifted our spirits quite considerably on what was proving (mentally) to be a tough weekend.

After I’d spend the morning doing a bit of landscaping work in the garden – removing some lawn and replacing with chippings (in readiness for some large flower) pots – it was time for a family get together at ours.

I think it was just the tonic the whole family needed in light of the events of the past couple of days. DDWT Junior and I kept everyone amused with our water antics – which was great fun and Baby DDWT was all smiles especially for my Dad, which lifted his spirits no end.

So all in all it’s been a nice end to what’s been a thought provoking couple of days. I think that we’re going to need as many of these ‘days’ as possible over the coming months.

Phew what an eventful day I’ve had – which is the complete opposite to a normal Saturday whereby I don’t do much at all.

My first port of call was my Mam and Dad’s who needed a piece of roof fascia board replacing and a leaky window sorted. I must confess to having been a touch nervous about undertaking the task – I’m not a lover of ladders and the bit that needed replacing was literally right on the edge of the house.

After a bit of trial and error I managed to get the ladder in a safe position – the narrow pathway below was safer than the embankment further back! It was then time to start fiddling with the replacement wooden fascia. After what seemed a ‘grand old duke of york’ time going up and down the ladder – I finally got the ideal fit. It was then time to add a cement finish! I was glad to see the back of job number one, but pleased with the result nevertheless.

The leaky window fix was a darn sight easier and straightforward I can tell you. I was even afforded the luxury of having DDWT Junior supervise in his new found role of foreman!

It had been a good start to the day and my parents were happy with the jobs I’d done.

We decided in the afternoon to take a trip into Swansea to get a few jobs done rather than sit around the house and garden. These ‘jobs’ included a visit to Toys ‘R’ Us where DDWT Junior finally got another Playmobil Dinosaur which he’d been promised and Baby DDWT got a small gift for her pushchair too.

Tea time quickly arrived and as it was such a lovely afternoon/evening I suggested that we took a nice stroll from Blackpill down to West Cross – well Dick Barton’s chippy to be precise. Dick Barton’s is legendary in these parts and I don’t think I’ve set foot inside the place in over 20 years, until tonight that is.

It was actually quite nice to take the family there as my parents had done with me when I was small. So the house of DDWT can now say that they’ve all experienced Dick Barton’s – well all of them except baby DDWT.

With our tummies full it was time to make our way back to the car, but not without taking a few snaps and having a pit stop at Blackpill lido.

So all in all it’s been a busy, but very enjoyable day. I’ll have to remember days like this when I’m next lounging around at home on a weekend!

Contrary to some of the b*ll*cks spouted on Planet Swans about the Swans League One Review DVD and its quality, I was impressed. It had all the Swans league goals, Roberto giving his review throughout the seasons and finished off with some interviews with the players.

I’d gone for the t’internet order option (£19.95 all in) – so got the Swans v Leeds DVD chucked in for free – rather than visit the club shop. Granted the Leeds dvd wasn’t the best, but the season review dvd was fine and showed that at least the club had listened to the fans in light of previous video/dvd productions.

Was it worth the money? Well for me yes it was and it will be a nice dvd to play when wanting to recollect a great Swans season. If you’re not a big Swans fan then I’d recommend you spend your money elsewhere.

After enjoying reliving the Swans championship winning season, I put up DDWT Junior’s new La Redoute ‘toy box’ furniture. Well he’s got to store his mammouth collection of dinosaurs somewhere!

As a member of Swansea Council’s Junior Park Rangers, DDWT Junior headed off to Coed Gwylim park in Clydach today for a fun session on building a beetle castle and general bug fun! He thoroughly enjoyed himself and so did all of the other kids – learning a lot about the world of insects at the same time.

The club is free to join and I’d recommend anyone with kids below the age of 7 to join (which you can do online). They have events dotted around the Swansea area, so there are bound to be some near you. Besides, it’s a great excuse to get the kids outside having fun and learning at the same time.

The gloriously sunny and warm weather (this is what spring should be like!) made my lunchtime run along the beach all the more pleasant. Obviously judging by the number of sunbathers about (kitted out in bikinis I hasten to add!) I wasn’t the only one enjoying the weather. Anyway, I did a 20 minute 16 second stint and am pleased thus far with my progress to get back to full fitness – whilst shedding the pounds!

After work I also decided to give the lawns their first proper crew cut of the season – partly because they needed it and because the weather for the weekend promises to be wintry! So much for spring eh *sigh*