Behind the scenes... Boarded exciting times..

I haven't written a blog for over a month now, and this is a direct result of how busy we've been on the build. Without doubt the last month has been the toughest and most intense we've had during the build process and just to make it that little bit harder to identify with - most of the hard work has now been hidden behind the plasterboard!!!

Still on view however are window sills, door linings, cupboard door linings, bathroom shelves and that's about it - behind the scenes have been noggins, lots of noggins (to attach the plasterboard to)! Insulation finally finished, more stud walls/frames, sound deadening insulation between walls and floors. I dread to think how many hours we've put into the house over the last month. It's been really tough because this has been combined with our normal working lives.It's amazing how much work has to happen that is invisible after the plasterboard is up.

Stud wall built to hide bathroom soil pipe

Under Eves Cupboards upstairs frames out for plasterboard

Stud wall to create service gap between internal brick wall and hallway

Oak window boards, cut and fixed - and covered to protect them!

Knauf Earthwool Acoustic sound deadening insulation in stud walls between rooms

Knauf Acoustic sound deadening between ground and first floor

Vapour barrier between Kingspan K18 37.5mm insulated platerboard and frame

Upstairs Bedrooms enveloped in Kingspan 37.5 Thermal Plasterboard

The May day bank holiday, we set ourselves a target of what we needed to do by the end of the Monday (make the Eclisse pocket door frame and install it complete with plasterboard, make the cupboard door lining downstairs by the back door, cover the window sills to protect them, tape all the oak that beams and linings that have edges against the plasterboard, remove the kitchen temporarily from the house and have a really good clean up) - for the first time in ages we managed to complete everything we wanted to do and before 6 pm!

Moisture resistant plaster board in bathroom

Eclisse pocket door frame made & fitted

Pocket door boarded ready for drylining

 

Hallway looking into bathroom / Knauf Aqua Panels for tiled areas in shower room (and shower)

Under eves cupboards boarded out - the frame I made obviously did the job!

Throughout the house we've used as much sound deadening as possible to try to reduce the noise transfer. This has included using Gyproc 12.5mm sound deadening plasterboard on all stud walls between rooms and 15mm on the ground floor ceiling. On external walls and upstairs ceilings, we've used Kingspan K18 insulated plasterboard (25mm insulation mechanically fixed to 12.5mm plasterboard), in the upstairs bathroom we've used moisture resistant boards and in the downstairs shower room we've used moisture boards and in the shower/tiled areas we've used Knauf aqua panels. Herefordshire Drylining have done our boarding and are also doing the drylining. 

Drylining - taping & jointing 1st coat underway

Liv's bedroom (still don't understand why we haven't got the biggest bedroom!!!)

So there we are for now. This weekend will be really exciting because Saturday I am helping to fit the stairs (guess what the next blog will be about)!! Next week the tape and jointing will be finished and sanded ready for painting, the window opening/catching issue will be resolved and subject to that being OK, they will be re-decorated. 

It really feels like we are on the home straight now, still plenty to do but we have a house taking shape!

Preparing for plasterboard

Well it's been nearly 5 weeks since the last blog and this has been a result of slower progress on the build as things are being are being tidied up prior to plasterboarding and also being very busy coming towards the end of financial year in work (www.oldfieldsgarage.co.uk). I've also been back to the 90's on a friends Stag do. We also visited the Homebuilding & renovating show at the NEC last weekend, but I will write about that in another blog - some interesting ideas gained (some we wish we thought about earlier) and we've also found a few finishing products.

The slower progress I've just mentioned however, might not be as slow as I thought because I've just scanned through the last blog photos and actually we have done quite a bit (it has just felt slow).

We are very pleased with how level the screed finish is - which is exactly what we were hoping to achieve! It still won't be completely dry, but you wouldn't know from the how it feels on the top.

The external weatherboarding is completely finished - and we love it.I did underestimate the number of board slightly and we were 3 boards short. Fortunately because we used a local supplier (Powell & Co, Kingsland) we got it delivered as we needed it so it didn't hold us up. The only downside is that it isn't painted so we'll need to do this when we touch up the rest of the boards.

 Weatherboarding finished!

Oops a few boards short

We've also had the handles fitted on the windows and doors - again we are very happy with the look of them. The only drawback is that fitting the handles has uncovered a problem with some of the handles catching the frames (but this is going to be resolved middle of next month and then they'll be re-finished to rectify the paint finish issues straight after).

 Pewter door handles

Matching window furniture

In the last few weeks we've started and completed the insulation downstairs (a lot easier than the roof, which still isn't quite done) and it's now ready for the vapour barrier to be fitted. We've again used 100mm Kingspan Kooltherm, with the exception of a few areas where wiring made that difficult to get a good coverage and we've used Knauf frame insulation. Wherever possible we've topped the Knauf with  40mm Kingspan Kooltherm - it might be a bit over the top but as I've said before we aren't planning on ever moving so don't want to skimp on insulation.

If me doing any work makes it on't telly those 4 panels were what I was doing when it was filmed - anyone would think I saved some easy ones for filming purposes??!

My workshop by night

We've also taken delivery of the kitchen, not ideal timing - it either means we're a little bit behind where I thought we would be now or I was a little over enthusiastic on timescales! We'll need to work around it until the plasterboard is done, which isn't perfect (but at least a delay isn't going to hold us up when we need it I suppose?!). The kitchen delivery man told me "our house looks sick" which is a positive!

Kitchen in the bedroom

We've got the plasterboarding and drylining scheduled for the fortnight from 28th April, so just need to finish the insulation upstairs (I've left the worst bits until last), make sure all the noggins are in place ready for plasterboard and anything we need a good fixing for on the walls (like wall mounted TVs). We've also got to fit the sound deadening between the floors and in the stud walls. The stairs are due to be fitted on the 10th May - which is really exciting as well.

In the next week though the internal brick wall will be built, we've loaded the bricks out ready to go and we'll also have the plumber doing the final bits of first fix. We are also starting to organise the external waste/drainage and a bit more moving soil around in the garden. 

Progress - in and out

Another very productive two weeks inside and outside, which has seen Neil Smillie on-site doing more external weather boarding, NRL Plumbing & Heating with the underfloor heating and Acorn Construction installing the flowing screed. We've also paid a deposit on the stairs and seen a ply drawing on how they will work.

The external weatherboarding is really taking shape now, with good progress being made. Starting with the gable ends and then the front and finally around the back, it's been really good to see this transformation to the look of the building. We are both delighted with how it looks.

From this...

To this...

Then this...

We decided to pre-paint the boards with 2 coats of paint, which meant that all we would have to do is touch up as and where required, however after shuffling 85 boards backwards and forwards inside the house it appears that the paint is thin on a few boards, they have only had one coat... well Fliss was in charge of painting so it's obviously her fault! We also however found that there were 5 boards with the back painted (again I will blame Fliss, even if I was sorting the boards so they were right side up for painting ;)).

Whilst this has all been happening outside loads of work has gone on inside. On the ground floor we've built the level to floor level. We've put 50mm of polystyrene insulation in and then 100mm of Kingspan Kooltherm K3 floor insulation on top and then finished the top by taping a membrane to separate the insulation and the screed.

50mm polystyrene and 100mm Kingspan Kooltherm on top.

Floor insulation installed and inspected by building control

Separation membrane taped on joints and edges to stop screed penetrating to the insulation.

Underfloor heating pipe circuits clipped in place

Underfloor heating manifold - located under the stairs

 Flowing screed delivery arrived

 Flowing screed being poured

 Screed encapsulating the pipes as it fills

 Getting closer to the front door...

 Dappling the screed to level and remove air

Finished job, looks like glass before it dries

We decided to go with a flowing screed after speaking the Shaun at Acorn Construction. The aim was to give us a smoother finish as we harbour for our screed/polished concrete/polished concrete effect floor finish. It was amazingly quick, they arrived onsite at just after 7am to carry out the final checks on the surface prior to the pour, the screed arrived just before 9 and they were pretty much wrapped up by 10:30. We've poured 50mm screed which meant that we needed to increase polystyrene insulation  from 25mm to 50mm to bring it to finished floor level. Within 48 hours it is dry enough for foot traffic but we've tried to stay off it for as long as possible to allow it to dry/cure. 

24 hours on, our bedroom (if Fliss gets her way)

And with that, I'll leave it for now, Tim

Windows, doors, boards, heating, screed, more insulation and paint

It's been 2 weeks since my last blog and there has been some pretty big changes in that time. 

We've now got windows and doors fitted (albeit with some paint issues, but I'll explain that later), the weather boarding preparation has started (and a few boards are on), our paint factory has been de-commissioned after the 2nd coat of paint on the boards being complete (with most of them stacked around the outside of the house ready to go on). First fix electrics are done (barring a couple of little bits now the boards are out of the way), we are awaiting the next delivery for Kingspan Kooltherm Insulation for the floor and walls, we have confirmed a date for the underfloor heating to be installed and also for the flowing screed to go on top of it. 

Windows and doors installed!!

A view from the inside

It's hard to believe that the weather during the 3 days prior to this picture whilst the windows and doors were being fitted was awful - wind & rain!

Fliss and I are both delighted with the windows and doors, we're just waiting for the pewter handles to finish them off. The colouring against the Oak, bricks, tiles and the weatherboard is exactly what we were hoping it would look like when we were planning! The delight of them going in has been a little muted because of an issue with the paint finish on them. We ordered pre finished timber windows so we didn't have anything to do on them once they were installed, but there are patches on all the windows which are lighter grey to what they should be. Whilst it is disappointing the resolution has been quickly dealt with and they are going to be re-painted on site.

We had a visit from my niece on the weekend, it was only right she helped out with a bit of sweeping up... it only cost me a packet of buttons! A fair swap I thought as the minimum wage isn't applicable?

Fliss finally gets the saw out to help with some insulation...

As I mentioned all the boards are now painted with 2 coats, which means that we should only have to do a little bit of touching up once they are on the house. It has amazed me as to the amount of preparation required before the boarding even started. Damp proof course was used to close the brick cavity, lead has been dressed around the top and bottom of all windows and doors, timber finishing to frame the windows were fixed, lead has been dressed on the top of the brick work and batten was put on - before it even got close to putting boards on. Upright finishers on the corners and end of boards around doors and then to boarding could start to go on.

Corner posts, lead dressing, window finish frame and first weather board on

Batten and blue skies

Normal skies resume...

This week we've got our next Kingspan delivery coming and we've got the architect coming to do his next certification visit. The under floor heating in being installed early 4th & 5th of March, which gives me just over a week to put the insulation in the floor and the DPC on top so the pipes can go on. Luckily it looks a lot easier than the roof so we should be fine for time... famous last words!

Finally we have decided to go with Flowing screed through Acorn Construction rather than semi dry. It is a bit more expensive, but it has better thermal value for the underfloor heating and it will also have a smoother (more level) finish. I'll come back to that once it has been done!

Thanks for reading, Tim 

Our Luxton love in and a sawfinger

Meeting up with Charlie Luxton this time was an altogether less stressful experience, I'd even go so far as saying it was great fun and provided some more very useful ideas and food for thought...

After last time, when we were a few weeks away from starting our build, the suggestions Charlie made were a lot easier to digest and comprehend (and didn't make me feel angry this time!) The days filming started with a cup of tea and then followed with a walk through the house and a chat about which ideas from the first time we met we had decided to go with. We talked about how the build was progressing and the ideas we had for the stair and balcony area (which was one of the major suggestions we took forward into the building) upstairs bedroom storage and flooring.

Once we had finished filming at the house, we headed off down to the Corners for a spot of lunch and Charlie sketched of few of the ideas and suggestions he had. The main suggestions were around the stairs/balcony areas. The suggestion for the stairs half kite steps for the first 4 rises is likely to save a bit of money and will remove the need for a handrail at the bottom and gain a little bit of headroom on the stairs. We were planning on having a glass balcony, but the suggestion that we used only glass to form the barrier, without the need for a handrail is something we hadn't thought about previously and we will be looking into this some more.

We were both quite impressed with the 3d drawing of the stairs

A frameless glass balcony... could it be done?

This weeks progress has seen GRM Electrical first fix electrics moving on nicely, which should be finished next week

 Wiring for the lighting in the main living space

1st fix wiring

... but the one we really have been waiting for THE WINDOWS & DOORS ARE DUE TO BE FITTED, starting on Wednesday.

Please insert windows here!

Whilst we have been busy with the house, we've got a bit of local news today regarding the weather, we've had flooding in Kingsland and just 700 meters or so from us, the river has burst it's banks which we haven't see to this extent previously. Thankfully, we're quite a bit higher up so with the exception of potentially being cut off we won't be affected. 

The river just down the road from us

This should be a wooded field... 

The other end of the village

Finally, work this weekend has been slowed by my inability to use a saw correctly... I had been making good progress with the second coat of paint on the weatherboard (33 boards of 85), To enable us to fit them all in the house while doing so we have been stacking them with spacers to enable air to flow through the boards, allowing them to dry. I'd run out of spacers and decided to cut some more... but I managed cut a large grove into my index finger and finished the job off with a bit more lacerating on the backward stroke. So a trip to A & E and my finger was taped up and bandaged to allow it to heal, with strict instructions by the nurse to rest my finger and don't get it wet. 

"Sore Finger" with enhanced pointing ability

So to summarise it all, we have warmed to Charlie's ideas at the point of hearing them (rather than after a few days of reflection), I've learnt to ensure I concentrate on whilst I am doing jobs and I've also learnt that you can't do anything to control the weather (hopefully it won't delay the windows & doors again!)