Day 75 (104) - The Final Straight

Well it's been 4 weeks since my last post, mainly because there has been so much going on both on and off site that I just haven't had the time to update on a daily basis.
In my last post (20th June 2013), we had the last remaining steel lifted in to place and this marked the last of the "heavy" structural work needed allowing for the completion of our roof at the rear.

Rear gable end roof and existing roof showing
breathable membrane and battens

Our roofing work was carried out by Portrait Roofing based out of High Wycombe, and who are members of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).
As the front of our house would be more visible to both neighbours and passers by, we used the existing tiles from the central rear section to tile the side extension roof at the front. We then sourced recycled tiles matching our existing contrite tiles for the remaining roof area.

Tiles on the left hand side blend in seamlessly with existing roof tiles

Whilst the roof was being tiled we also decided to take advantage of the scaffolding to replace the front fascia and soffit to which new guttering would be affixed. The result was a crisp, white finish which will require very little maintenance in the years to come.

New soffit and fascia detail

Once the roof was finished off, the next stage involved the installation of the windows. For now, only the additional windows to the rear and side extension would be fitted; the replacement of the existing windows would be done at a later stage as the priority was to weatherproof the property.
Our contractor sourced the windows from Seven Day Windows and for the rear of the property (where 2 of the bedrooms will be) we opted for Pilkington acoustic glass to cut down on noise and improve on thermal insulation.

Rear Elevation showing installed windows

Once windows were installed by Glenn and Ryan, they then moved on to laying down the flooring in the rear and side extensions. Nowadays, unless the floor is being exposed as a final finish, traditional floorboards are now replaced with chipboard. We opted for Caberfloor Chipboard Tongue And Groove Moisture Resistant Sheets (18 x 2400 x 600mm) which is FSC certified. The main benefit of this material is that its quick and easy to install and adds to soundproofing.

Once the outside was secure, the next phase was in knocking through from the new part of the house into the existing. This would prove to be quite a slow and delicate process, not to mention a dusty one!

Half of this will be part of our new master bedroom
the other will be part of the new 4th bedroom

By far the most exciting day though, was this last Wednesday (17th July 2013) when we had our bi-folding doors installed at the rear of the house in what will be our kitchen diner. 

4-panel bi-fold doors leading out to the garden

We had sourced our doors independently from a local manufacturer called Origin Easifold Doors based in High Wycombe. The main reason for choosing these premium doors is that they carry a 20 year guarantee.The installation was carried out by an approved local installer called Cookham Conservatories based in Marlow and was carried out expertly by Charlie and Bob in temperatures exceeding 30 degrees centigrade!

The finished result!

The week ahead will see some real progress internally as the stud walls separating the bathrooms and bedrooms upstairs will be built and then the walls dividing up the existing kitchen and dining room will also be removed. We will also see the beginning of the first fix for electrics and plumbing.

All very exciting!!

Day 53 (73) - All Hands On Deck!

Today (Thursday) was going to be amongst the most challenging of the build so far; the team had to get the last remaining steel beam, weighing approximately 250 kgs, from the ground to the ceiling height of the 1st floor.

Without a crane.

It was going to take a bit of lateral thinking and a lot of manpower to get the beam from it's temporary resting place inside the garage to it's permanent abode up on the roof. The beam itself will replace the existing supporting wall upon which the roof sits as this wall will be demolished. Rather than type up what happened, it's easier to follow with the photographs which were taken during the morning.

L-R: Steve, Darran & Ryan

L-R: Steve, Darran, Clive & Ryan

L-R: Steve, Darran, Clive & Ryan

L-R: Darran, Clive & Ryan

L-R: Darran & Steve

L-R: Richie, Darran, James & Clive 

L-R: Steve,Richie, Darran, James & Clive 

L-R: Clive & Ryan 

Beam in position

Its new home for the next 50 years or so...

I'm told that tomorrow the roofers will definitely be on site to weather the side and rear roofs (felt & batten). Let's hope it doesn't rain in between!

Hasta mañana!

Day 52 (72) - The Last of The Mohicans (...ok, Bricklayers)

Since my last post (Saturday 15th June), there has been a flurry of activity.
Due to the delay in the remaining bricks being delivered, the emphasis was on the bricklayers to complete the brickwork on the side gable and the rear gable as well as the porch.
Monday morning (17th June) and Paul, Aidy and Ian arrived shortly after 7am and started prepping on the side extension as this was their task for today. Aidy is a man possessed once he gets going and before long bricks were carried up to the roof height and mortar was duly mixed. Ian concentrated on finishing off the block work at the rear so that all three could then crack on with laying the bricks the next day.

Side Extension - Before (05 June 2013)

And by 3.30pm yesterday...



Side Extension - After (17 June 2013)

Just as Paul, Aidy and Ian were due to leave for the day, we had the delivery of the last remaining steel beam which will be placed atop the existing rear wall to support the roof. As it is a supporting wall and will eventually be demolished, the beam has to be strong enough to support the existing roof and new roof.

 

The beam itself is a bit of overkill as it has been over-spec'd by the Structural Engineer (approx. 250kgs). So although the roof won't be collapsing anytime soon once in place, it's going to be a bit of a bugger getting up there as you can see from the images below:

 

L-R Clive, Richie, delivery dude, Aidy & Darran

On the ground from L-R: Clive, Ian, Aidy, Darran, Paul & Richie

And finally laid to rest in the garage out of harms way:

 

Callum, Richie and Steve laying the steel to rest

So that was Monday done and dusted.

 

Today, Tuesday was all about getting the final brickwork completed at the rear and adding a steel lintel and soldier course of brickwork above the doorway on the porch.

 

Rear Extension Gable End With Loft Window Opening

 

And a better view from the ground showing the entire rear elevation:

 

 

 



And finally, not forgetting our porch:

 

The porch roof will be "cut in" to the neighbours roof

I have also taken the opportunity to add pretty much all the images taken so far, both using DSLR camera and smartphone camera.

 

Tomorrow, the roofers arrive on site!

 





Day -- (69) - (Sledge)Hammer Time!

Taking advantage of there not being anyone on site and having access to a sledgehammer and pick-axe, offered me the opportunity to break up the concrete at the front of our house.

Of course it would have been a lot easier using a breaker but there was something quite therapeutic using brute force on an immovable surface. Or so I thought at the time. 

After the first few swings, it was evident that the concrete slab was a lot thicker than anticipated and it was going to take a bit longer than a couple of hours. After 3 hours of back breaking hammer wielding, this was the end result:

In some places, the concrete was 6 inches thick and embedded into the larger pieces of hardcore in the ground. 

This morning though, my body isn't feeling half as stiff as I had expected to feel, so weather permitting I may just crack on with what's left.

Happy Saturday. 

Day 50 (68) - Interlull. Not much going on

This week has been a quiet one and we're not due to have any trades on site until next week. This has been primarily due to a delay from the brick suppliers but also because the weather has been somewhat unpredictable. 

Where progress has been made though is on the side extension as we now have the roof framework up together with the soffit and fascia. 

Below is a close up of the framework as seen from roof level. 

Next week we will have delivery of the final steel beam which will go in the roof space to support the new gable end roof. We will also have the bricked in to complete the remaining brickwork for the rear gable end and the side gable end. We should also see the roofers on site to complete the structure with the laying of the roof tiles. 

Day 44 (59) - The Only Way Is Up!

Yesterday was a great day on the build. The scaffolders arrived bright and early to raise the scaffolding up to roof height so that the roofers could do their thing.
The one, common thread that all these tradesmen have in common is just how deft they are at their trades. They make everything look SO easy and uncomplicated. Obviously, their skills have been honed over many years of doing the same job day in and day out, refining and improving with each year gone by until it becomes second nature.
Our two roofers, for example, walk around the top of the scaffolding lugging great big lumps of timber as if though they were down on the ground. I'd have trouble doing that ON the ground!! To put it into persepctive, the longest pieces of timber we have on site measure 7.2 metres in length by approximately 20cm in width and 5.5cm thick. Each one weighs around 40kgs. Or, looking at it another way, a couple's checked baggage allowance. With one roofer on the ground and the other atop the scaffolding (2 storeys high), they are passing these up by hand. No winches. No ropes. No assistance whatsoever. Amazing.

Looking more like a roof now

With all this activity taking place, it gave the bricklayers a day off as they would only get in each other's way.

As the roof floor joists had already been laid the day previously, the lads got on with cutting and affixing the ridge beam, rafters, purlins and trusses.

Roof architecture

Once the framework was completed, they then set about affixing the soffit and fascia:

Soffit and fascia - the new guttering will be affixed to this

Once the guys had left, it gave me the opportunity to take in the view accross the Green from a brand new perspective. I'm really lucky to live in such a lovely place, don't you agree?

Today...more bricks to continue building up the side extension so we can get the roof on that next week!

Day 43 (58) - Wood, wood and more wood

Well today was a mixed bag of emotions. On the one hand we had 6 tradesmen on site; 4 bricklayers and 2 roofers. On the other, I was made redundant from the company I'd been working for the last 10 years.

Anyway, I'm not going to dwell on that as this blog is about the build, so the good news is I will have plenty of time to keep this blog going and take lots more photographs as it progresses.

The timber for the new roofs was delivered yesterday; 18 lengths of 8" X 2" measuring 7.2 metres each. These would be used for the roof joists at the rear and side of the house. A further delivery was made this morning for what will become the rafters.



I have wood!

...and even more wood!

As the bricklayers continued at pace to bring the walls up to roof height on the side extension, the roofers proceeded to strip away the old guttering, fascia and soffit and the central section of the concrete roof tiles to make way for the new gable ended roof above the rear extension.

Where did I leave my hammer?

Cross Section of Roof

The roofers then proceeded to cut and affix the ceiling joists across the width of the rear extension as shown below:

Tomorrow will see the roofers continue with cutting into the existing roof and then laying the joists for the side extension.

Let the good weather continue!

Day 38 (51) - Rained Off

No updates today due to the consistent downpours throughout the night and into this morning.

A bit disappointing as the brickies were due to come yesterday, bank holiday Monday, and it was a dry sunny day. Very different from today and the outlook for the rest of the week. Perhaps it'll be slightly better tomorrow.

Fingers crossed.

Day 35 (47) - Water, water everywhere...

Today was pretty much a washout.
The brickies laid as much aircrete blocks as possible at the rear and then as many bricks as they could in between torrential downpours of rain.
The scaffolders also came and raised the scaffolding up to 1st floor level at the side - in torrential rain and high speed gusts of wind.
In the end we called it a day at 3pm.

On the upside, they'll be coming back on Monday, even though it's a bank holiday.
Will try and post some more pics tomorrow when the sun will hopefully be shining.

Hasta mañana, amigos.

Day 34 (46) - The Only Way Is Up!

Apologies for not blogging yesterday but I was a little sidetracked.
Anyhoo...just a short update today.

Yesterday we had the pleasure of both Clive and Darran laying the floor joists to both the side and rear 1st floor. These are laid at 400mm intervals and will support the floor.

Darran starts positioning the joists on the rear extension

The finished result.
The soil stack on the left hand side will be removed and re-positioned on the side extension.

By the end of the day, Clive and Darran had completed laying all the floor joists for the side and rear extensions, and a bloody good job they did too.

Side extension looking out towards the Green

 



 

 

 

Today (Thursday 23rd May), was a short day due to persistent downpours throughout the day. However, the brickies managed to put up a fair few aircrete blocks to the rear 1st floor (see below). Hopefully tomorrow we'll have better weather and we may even see some bricks being laid.

 

Until tomorrow!

Rear blockwork going up on the 1st floor rear extension

Day 32 (44) - A marvellous erection...of steel beams!

Darran, Callum and Steve on site today to get the steels up for the side extension.

After a fiddly bit of masonry work on the existing side wall and then a bit of bricklaying of engineering bricks at the far end of the extension, all was ready for the first of the 5 steel beams to be hauled into place.

Although the 'Lift Genies' would bear the brunt of the work, the 450kgs of steel still had to be man-handled onto them before they could be cranked upwards.

Steve (L) and Callum (R) positioning the first of the steels onto
the engineering bricks 'pad' within the existing wall.

The first two of the smaller steels were lifted into place; one at the rear of the side extension, the other at the front above the entrance to the garage.
To these two steels, the main steel would then be bolted into place. The positioning of these steels could not be more that a couple of millimetres out and of course had to be level.

Callum making sure the positioning is just right.
You can see the two 'Lift Genies' supporting the centre of the steel beam.

To the front and back steels another steel is then bolted into place with spacers in between to allow for the insulation to be inserted.

Lined up and bolted into place. Lovely.

Just as the boys were finishing of bolting the steels into place, the delivery of timber for the floor joists arrived. The floor will be cut-in tomorrow.

Steel beams with spacers bolted into place

Day 31 (43) - More bricks, block & beams

True to form, Paul, Aidy and Ian arrived bang on 7.15am as has been customary when they are on site. They're a funny breed, bricklayers. Not that I'm one to stereotype, but they just get on with the job in hand. No idle chat, no messing about. They know what they have to do and they just get on with it.
The three of them are all very different personalities; Paul is the big friendly giant who doesn't say much but is leading from the front. Ian is also pretty quiet, keeps himself to himself and just cracks on and is very particular about having just half a teaspoon of sugar in his tea - no more, no less. Finally there's Aidy. He's a like a dynamo; very industrious. The way he moves around the scaffolding with a fully laden hod of bricks is an impressive sight to behold by anyone's standards.
By 3.30pm they had done their bit finishing the brickwork up to the level where the steels will fit in to support the 1st floor both for the side and rear of the house.



Inside of garage with WC & Utility room at the rear







 

And talking of steels...

 

...Shortly after 4pm the final batch of steels arrived...

 

Blatant product placement. Nothing like a bit of  free publicity, is there?

This last batch of steels would be supporting the first floor side extension and roof which is why the main steel, just shy of 6m in length and half a tonne in weight, is so big. This steel will sit on the wall of the side extension and then bolted to this main steel will be 4 other steels running along the width of the side extension which will then support the floor joists.

 

Q:How many men does it take to unload a steel?
A: Four - and one to take the photo

Tomorrow we'll have Callum and Steve back on site to prep the walls and position the steels before Clive and Darran come on site later in the day to hoist them into place.

 

Looking forward to tomorrow.

 

Sleeping giants