# Home improvements - time the house had some TLC!



## JhnBssll (31 Jul 2020)

We had our house on the market for around 7 months last year and for one reason or another the right people didnt walk through the door, so we're still here. Rather than sit on our laurels we decided to put a planning application in, to see if we could make the house work for us for a while longer. In Feb this year the planning was granted, along with permission to drop the kerb at the front and make a second driveway to complement the existing one to the rear by the garage.

COVID has caused some headaches, but I've finally got my arse in gear 

The plan:

Refresh/repair woodwork around the eaves
Paint soffits and fascias
Install air conditioning to master bedroom
Replace existing windows
Build small single storey front extension (1m x 3m)
Knock through existing front wall in to the extension and re-partition the new, larger hallway to give us a downstairs toilet.
Move exisiting soil stack and drain inc. inspection chamber to suit new downstairs toilet, plus make way for a conservatory in phase 2 

So far we have ticked off items one to three and we have had the first 3 windows replaced for item four. We've gone with grey UPVC frames and laminated acoustic glass to minimise road noise. There have been fairly frequent diversions past ours overnight recently which send articulated lorries heading for Felixstowe thundering past which isn't ideal but the windows have made a massive difference  This means we also have to have the windows closed in summer, hence the air conditioning unit, which has also made a massive difference. We're getting a better nights sleep now than we have for years 

Anyway, this week I've had building control out to check my plans and a structural engineer to do the steel calculations. I've started digging the foundations and generally making a mess, so of course now the weather has got red hot  I aim to dig more out tomorrow, but there are three layers of concrete to go through so it's slow going  Under the assumption that one day I'll have them ready, I brought this little beasty home with me today 







Should make a good project, I just hope I don't make my house fall over


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## classic33 (31 Jul 2020)

JhnBssll said:


> We had our house on the market for around 7 months last year and for one reason or another the right people didnt walk through the door, so we're still here. Rather than sit on our laurels we decided to put a planning application in, to see if we could make the house work for us for a while longer. In Feb this year the planning was granted, along with permission to drop the kerb at the front and make a second driveway to complement the existing one to the rear by the garage.
> 
> COVID has caused some headaches, but I've finally got my arse in gear
> 
> ...


You manage that, and you can just add it to your "to do list".


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## raleighnut (1 Aug 2020)

Sounds like a plan


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## Drago (1 Aug 2020)

I love watching someone else working.


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## JhnBssll (1 Aug 2020)

Heres what it looks like now before I start for the day - just a small test pit that the building inspector viewed on Thursday  Today i'll be breaking up the rest of the concrete and slabs up to the edge of the front door, where the new extension will be going  I'll leave the rest for now to try and prevent the hole collapsing too much before I get a chance to pour the concrete  Its only little, but because our front hall is already quite large it will give us plenty of room for a decent sized downstairs loo 

Once the extension is up i'll have to take the rest patio up, front and back, so i can update the drainage and prep for the new driveway


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## screenman (1 Aug 2020)

I love playing with houses, we will looking out for another one soon to mess around with.


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## JhnBssll (1 Aug 2020)

Its bloomin' hot out there, I've made some progress with the breaker and retreated to the air conditioned bedroom to cool down for a few minutes 






I've got 4x 500ml bottles of coke zero in the fridge, but judging by the fact I've lost about a litre of sweat already that might not be enough  Now putting some suncream on and going back out


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## JhnBssll (1 Aug 2020)

I'm down to approx full width and depth for the first side and corner, now making my way along the front  Well, actually I'm cooling down in the bedroom again with another bottle of coke from the fridge 






I'm going to be able to build a mighty fine dirt castle once I'm done digging


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## JhnBssll (1 Aug 2020)

I'm done for the day  In fact I might be done for the week 

The digging is nearly finished, its hard going in places with lots of rubble buried in pockets so the breaker has been getting some use 






I've shifted a decent amount, no wonder my arms ache - I'm used to an air conditioned office 






I might carry on tomorrow but it rather depends how I feel in the morning


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## Levo-Lon (2 Aug 2020)

Fair play to you, it's not easy learning to dig in hard ground.


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## Levo-Lon (2 Aug 2020)

Do you have a asphalt cutter / spade for the breaker?
Get one if you haven't,makes life a hell of a lot easier


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## JhnBssll (2 Aug 2020)

No I've just got a spike and a chisel, might look into it - thanks for the heads up


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## JhnBssll (3 Aug 2020)

Finished the trench off this evening  I've just emailed building control so they can come and check it before I fill it in again  The phone line will end up coming up in the cavity so shouldn't need moving. The clay pipe is a section of rainwater drain that's now redundant so I'll wait to see what building control want me to do with it. I presume they'll want it cutting and capping.

You can see under the pipe the different layers of debris I've been digging through but fortunately the bottom of the trench seems to be back to the normal sandy gravel thats common in the area, and why we have so many fishing lakes nearby 











Ive just ordered up a load of ballast and cement, should arrive on Friday ready for the next phase where I get to try out my mixer


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## JhnBssll (14 Aug 2020)

Unfortunately the weather has been holding this up - it's just been far too hot for me to contemplate mixing and pouring the concrete for the footings. Until today that is 😊 I have been keeping an eye on the weather and booked the day off work. I started setting up at about 8.30am morning and by 12pm I had the concrete in place and everything tidied away again  I got through just under 2 tons of ballast and 8 bags of cement in the 16 mixes that were needed to fill the trench to the right height  After the 3rd mix I started to wonder if I'd bitten off more than I could chew, but fortunately the aches didn't get any worse as the morning went on 

I'm absolutely knackered now though 

I've just ordered some bricks and blocks to get up to damp course level, they'll be here on Thursday so I've got some time to rest until then


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## Beebo (15 Aug 2020)

JhnBssll said:


> Unfortunately the weather has been holding this up - it's just been far too hot for me to contemplate mixing and pouring the concrete for the footings. Until today that is 😊 I have been keeping an eye on the weather and booked the day off work. I started setting up at about 8.30am morning and by 12pm I had the concrete in place and everything tidied away again  I got through just under 2 tons of ballast and 8 bags of cement in the 16 mixes that were needed to fill the trench to the right height  After the 3rd mix I started to wonder if I'd bitten off more than I could chew, but fortunately the aches didn't get any worse as the morning went on
> 
> I'm absolutely knackered now though
> 
> I've just ordered some bricks and blocks to get up to damp course level, they'll be here on Thursday so I've got some time to rest until then


Brave man. 
did you look into getting a ready mixed delivery? Was it much more expensive? There is a reason why builders get ready mixed concrete.


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## Drago (15 Aug 2020)

You are a brave man. I good, maybe even a genius, with machines, but when it comes to anything like this I'm a master bodger. My entire hose5 is held together with PU adhesive and silicone sealant!

Watching with interest though.


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## JhnBssll (15 Aug 2020)

Beebo said:


> Brave man.
> did you look into getting a ready mixed delivery? Was it much more expensive? There is a reason why builders get ready mixed concrete.



I did consider readymix but never got a quote as the amount I required was only a smidge over the minimum load they would deliver so assumed it would be pricey. After discussing with a builder friend he said he would hand mix footings this size and I should be fine doing it, so that was my decision made  I later spoke with another friend who told me I was mad and he would go ready-mix every time, but he's also the laziest person I know 

I hosed the concrete down earlier to help it cure, it's also been rained on a few times so it's keeping nice and moist. Seems I timed it rather well in the end, as much luck as judgement 😊

Some more groundwork prep to be done in the evenings during the week before the bricks and blocks arrive on Thursday - my front garden is only small so I'm having to do things in a seemingly random order as and when space is available  I found the remains of a brick wall under the lawn, so I need to investigate how far it extends and dig up what I can of it before the area gets covered in more building material


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## JhnBssll (18 Aug 2020)

I've done a decent amount of digging over the past few evenings  I'm pretty knackered now, plenty left to do though  basically dropping the ground level across the whole front garden to minimise the slope when I come to lay the new driveway  I think im nearly ready for another grab lorry visit 












Its due to rain tomorrow evening so I might get a day off from digging


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## classic33 (18 Aug 2020)

JhnBssll said:


> I did consider readymix but never got a quote as the amount I required was only a smidge over the minimum load they would deliver so assumed it would be pricey. After discussing with a builder friend he said he would hand mix footings this size and I should be fine doing it, so that was my decision made  I later spoke with another friend who told me I was mad and he would go ready-mix every time, but he's also the laziest person I know
> 
> I hosed the concrete down earlier to help it cure, it's also been rained on a few times so it's keeping nice and moist. Seems I timed it rather well in the end, as much luck as judgement 😊
> 
> Some more groundwork prep to be done in the evenings during the week before the bricks and blocks arrive on Thursday - my front garden is only small so I'm having to do things in a seemingly random order as and when space is available  I found the remains of a brick wall under the lawn, so I need to investigate how far it extends and dig up what I can of it before the area gets covered in more building material


Any further news on the wall you found. Is a proper "dig" being conducted to find out where it came from?


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## JhnBssll (18 Aug 2020)

classic33 said:


> Any further news on the wall you found. Is a proper "dig" being conducted to find out where it came from?



Fortunately the wall seems to have been the border for an old flower bed - it was only a couple of courses deep and sat on 50mm of concrete so came out pretty easily 😊 No more suprises so far, lets hope it stays that way  My neighbours young granddaughter has started trolling me when they walk past, asking when the digger is going to arrive and why its taking so long


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## Milkfloat (18 Aug 2020)

JhnBssll said:


> My neighbours young granddaughter has started trolling me when they walk past, asking when the digger is going to arrive and why its taking so long


She has got a point.


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## JhnBssll (18 Aug 2020)

Milkfloat said:


> She has got a point.



Thats what makes it such high grade trolling... She must be about 7, genuinely impressive


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## Ian H (18 Aug 2020)

All I'm doing is repairing & painting the woodwork. We have scaffolding up.


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## JhnBssll (24 Aug 2020)

Had some bricks and blocks delivered on Thursday. I've managed to stack a few bricks on top of each other but its pretty slow going  Still, it's my first brick wall and since it'll be painted below damp course I've got a chance to practice  I made a bit of a mess of the bottom few courses but I'm getting neater with the mortar now  Soon be up to damp course, then I'll build the internal block work up and partially infill the cavity with concrete 






Once the insulation and slab is in I'll have a platform to work off to remove the existing porch canopy, then onwards and upwards with the face brickwork 😊 No need for wall ties yet due to the concrete in-fill and it being below ground level but I'll put some in the first course after DPC - I just hope I remember


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## JhnBssll (26 Aug 2020)

I had a few hours free after work today so I mixed a quick load of mortar and stacked some more bricks 😊 I'll get the block work built up next but waiting on another delivery after the Jewsons driver dropped half of the first batch and smashed them to bits


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## JhnBssll (31 Aug 2020)

Had a bit of free time between work and awful weather so I've made some progress on the build. Outer skin of brick is now up to damp course all the way around, and I've built the inner skin up to 225mm below damp course and filled the cavity with concrete. The rain has made a mess of the brickwork but it'll only get dirty again if I clean it now so it'll have to stay that way for the foreseeable 😄






Next I will block up to damp course on the inner skin before infilling with aggregate and an insulated concrete slab 

It'll be a week or so until I get to that point though, as I need to dig more of the front garden out and get the rubble cleared before I have enough space for the next delivery  I'm really pleased with progress so far, it doesnt look half bad for a DIY job


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## Drago (31 Aug 2020)

Top work. I didn't know that you were also a skilled brickist!


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## JhnBssll (4 Sep 2020)

I finished work at lunchtime today and did some more digging, approx. 5 hours of it in fact  I haven't quite finished, there's the last small corner of paving to break up but I'm very nearly there now. I'm hoping to get a ride in tomorrow morning but may finish the digging in the afternoon if my arms have recovered enough from todays efforts 






I'll try and book in a grab lorry to take all the spoil away early next week then I can get some more building materials delivered and get on with putting the floor down in the little extension 😊

The neighbours grandaughter trolled me again - "Seriously, when are you getting a digger?"


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## JhnBssll (22 Sep 2020)

I havent made much progress in the last few weeks but I'm hoping that changes in the next week or so. I got the last of the patio dug up and the spoil removed - another 14 tons lifted away, taking the running total to 21 tons I've dug out so far 






I've also put another course of blocks on the inner wall to bring it up to damp course level, and started cutting some bricks out of the original wall so I could put the damp proof course down and lay the first few facing bricks...











I got a delivery of aggregate a few days ago, so I've now brought the ground level up inside and compacted it ready for damp membrane and insulation.






The building inspector is due round on Friday to check it over before I pour the concrete slab, then onwards and upwards with the walls!


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## JhnBssll (16 Oct 2020)

I've been away on holiday for 10 days, I got back earlier in the week and have managed to find a gap in the rain to get some more bricks laid 











I've also torn down the old porch canopy, onwards and upwards! Not bad for DIY brickwork, im pretty pleased with my efforts


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## Drago (16 Oct 2020)

Good lad for doing it proper and cutting the new bricks into the old brickwork.


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## Ian H (16 Oct 2020)

We were going to get someone to do this as it seemed too daunting. But somehow we got it started. Just the actual door to strip and paint now, but perhaps not till Spring.


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## Gunk (16 Oct 2020)

Drago said:


> Good lad for doing it proper and cutting the new bricks into the old brickwork.



I agree, very impressive


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## raleighnut (17 Oct 2020)

JhnBssll said:


> I've been away on holiday for 10 days, I got back earlier in the week and have managed to find a gap in the rain to get some more bricks laid
> 
> View attachment 552804
> 
> ...


Looks good but why not a double course of 'Blues' to match the existing ?


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## JhnBssll (17 Oct 2020)

raleighnut said:


> Looks good but why not a double course of 'Blues' to match the existing ?



I thought they were blues for years - they're not  They're the same LBC heathers as the rest, but have been painted black a few decades ago and left to fade  I'll be painting everything under damp course grey, new and existing


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## raleighnut (17 Oct 2020)

JhnBssll said:


> I thought they were blues for years - they're not  They're the same LBC heathers as the rest, but have been painted black a few decades ago and left to fade  I'll be painting everything under damp course grey, new and existing


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## JhnBssll (19 Oct 2020)

Bit more brickwork yesterday, getting higher now! Might start on some internal blockwork soon before I work out how to get higher - stepladder or tower 🤔











Fingers crossed for some half decent weather next weekend, I won't be doing much in the evenings now its getting dark so quickly unless I pop a floodlight up somewhere 🤔


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## bikingdad90 (19 Oct 2020)

Get a tower up, put the bricks on one side and you on the other. Save you having to constantly go up and down a step ladder to get bricks.


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## JhnBssll (23 Oct 2020)

Bit more progress this afternoon  I've now got a floodlight so I can work in the evenings 😋






Hopefully get more up tomorrow, will be ready to put the insulation in and block work up soon


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## JhnBssll (31 Oct 2020)

I've made a bit more progress since the last update, but free time and brick laying weather don't seem to be lining up very well for me at the moment  I'm now only a few courses of bricks short of lintel height, and I've started on the insulation and blockwork  I was hoping to get up to lintel height with the brickwork at least today but with rain due this afternoon I didn't want to push my luck so stopped at 11ish... It's now starting to drizzle so looks like I made a good call 











I've now had two people stop their cars in the bus stop opposite and walk over to ask if I can quote them for some building work  They're obviously not in a hurry to get it done 🤔


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## jowwy (31 Oct 2020)

JhnBssll said:


> I've made a bit more progress since the last update, but free time and brick laying weather don't seem to be lining up very well for me at the moment  I'm now only a few courses of bricks short of lintel height, and I've started on the insulation and blockwork  I was hoping to get up to lintel height with the brickwork at least today but with rain due this afternoon I didn't want to push my luck so stopped at 11ish... It's now starting to drizzle so looks like I made a good call
> 
> View attachment 555553
> 
> ...


Some top work there......


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## JhnBssll (31 Oct 2020)

jowwy said:


> Some top work there......



Cheers  I'm pretty pleased with how its coming on, quite enjoying the challenge - both the building side of it, and planning the various elements. I'm in the process of ordering up the roofing materials at the moment, hoping the new lockdown announced today won't impact supplies too badly.

The weather cleared up around 4pm so I got the floodlights out and laid some more bricks and blocks. Dangerously close to lintel height now, just 12 more bricks to be laid and some blockwork which shouldn't take long 😊


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## JhnBssll (1 Nov 2020)

Some nice progress today, with the lintel going in this afternoon and the final course of blockwork on top of it. Thats now ready for the wall plate so it's nearly time to build a roof 😊






The lintel is 23kg - not too heavy, but lifting it above head height and maneuvring it into position was interesting 






I'm glad I'm back to working the desk job tomorrow, i'm exhausted


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## postman (4 Nov 2020)

Great work.If you have a few mins spare.Do you fancy a few hours work in Chelsea.A bit of loose brickwork.Tidy job six to eight million.Should get you a few cool colas.Drop me a line and i'll put you in touch.


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## JhnBssll (8 Nov 2020)

I've been at it again this weekend  A bit more brickwork done, the front wall is now at full height so just the ends to bring up to meet the eaves now. My main focus however was the roof - I had targeted getting the rafters in this weekend and I've achieved it with a few hours to spare  There's a bit more roofing timber to cut and nail in place but not far off felt and batten time now which is quite exciting 😊 Next job is to contact the window and door people to get them back round to measure up to get watertight


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## JhnBssll (9 Nov 2020)

Door and window now specced, unfortunately they won't be manufactured until January which has rather messed up my schedule  Never mind, I can take my time getting the roof right and perhaps make a start on the driveway and garden 🤔


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## Archie_tect (10 Nov 2020)

Did you remember the inner leaf dpc, wall ties and the cavity insulation John?


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## JhnBssll (10 Nov 2020)

Archie_tect said:


> Did you remember the inner leaf dpc, wall ties and the cavity insulation John?



I've got dpc membrane under the slab, all sitting on 4" of insulation board. The dpc membrane comes up and through the inner block work wall, so yes all dpc is present and correct  Wall ties are present in the required places including every course around the openings, and I've made sure they all slope down to the outer leaf. I've used full fill 100mm rockwool for cavity insulation 😊 The building inspector will be round again once the roof is on, he's been keeping a close eye on my efforts


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## Archie_tect (10 Nov 2020)

I thought you were doing a professional job from the pictures!


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## JhnBssll (15 Nov 2020)

I've done a bit more work on the extension this weekend, plus updated my CCTV with a posh new camera at the front thats full colour even in the dark. I don't know how it works but its very impressive! I've also moved the original front camera round the side to cover where the car and car charger will eventually be, when I have a drive


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## JhnBssll (17 Nov 2020)

I finished the brickwork under floodlight this evening 






The soffit boards have gone missing in transit so need to chase those up. Hoping to get the fascia boards up on the sides next then it's ready for the tiles. I need to re-double my efforts on sourcing those as I'm really struggling to get a match - I've got the local reclamation yard contacting me later in the week as they supposedly have some coming inso we'll see what they're like and go from there. I will probably build the steps up to the front door once the roof is sorted


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## JhnBssll (22 Nov 2020)

Weekend progress on my build - I picked up some reclaimed tiles finally. They're a different colour, grey compared to the original terracotta/orange, but the same brand and style. I think they're a close enough match given how dirty the original tiles are  I've still got some bits to finish on the soffit and fascia then another coat of paint before the guttering can go up but progress none the less!











I've also got the new house sign and porch lights up and wired in  I've snuck a photoelectric sensor up in the eaves so they turn on at dusk and then run on an a timer so they won't stay on all night. Heres the sensor, not yet screwed up as I still need to paint the soffit 






And here is the first photo with the lights on. They came on a bit early, might need to adjust the lux dial on the sensor but I'd already put the ladder away 






I'm really pleased with it - there are a few bits I think I could learn from and do better next time, but overall it's coming on rather well  My wife is pleased with it and she's usually my greatest critic so that speaks volumes


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## Archie_tect (22 Nov 2020)

John, might be worth moving the rwp downcomer round the corner or even move to to the party wall so that you aren't collecting the whole of your neighbour's roof and your main roof run-off down onto the porch roof- it'll run straight over the porch gutter otherwise.


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## MontyVeda (22 Nov 2020)

Staggering considering this is your first brick wall


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## JhnBssll (22 Nov 2020)

Archie_tect said:


> John, might be worth moving the rwp downcomer round the corner or even move to to the party wall so that you aren't collecting the whole of your neighbour's roof and your main roof run-off down onto the porch roof- it'll run straight over the porch gutter otherwise.



Thanks, this was a temporary fix until I sort the drainage. The original surface drain ran under where the porch now sits so I cut and capped the drain off underground when I poured the footings. Since I've also lowered the ground level I haven't got the depth to run it back round the extension so suspect I'll have to drop the downpipe down the middle of the house rather than at the end. Bit of a nuisance really


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## Archie_tect (22 Nov 2020)

With any luck the gutter lengths and existing joints can be re-jigged to not have to replace them- hopefully you'll be able to get a decent fall on the gutter down to the relocated drop on the rwp... you only need 1 in 80 fall possibly Building Inspector may let you use 1 in 160. from the central rwp'strapped gulley.


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## JhnBssll (22 Nov 2020)

Archie_tect said:


> With any luck the gutter lengths and existing joints can be re-jigged to not have to replace them- hopefully you'll be able to get a decent fall on the gutter down to the relocated drop on the rwp... you only need 1 in 80 fall possibly Building Inspector may let you use 1 in 160. from the central rwp'strapped gulley.



Yeah, I think I have some space to play with to raise the end enough to get a good fall. My main problem is the extension roof which now prevents me getting a ladder up to the bit of guttering I need to adjust  D'oh!


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## MontyVeda (22 Nov 2020)

JhnBssll said:


> Yeah, I think I have some space to play with to raise the end enough to get a food fall. My main problem is the extension roof which now prevents me getting a ladder up to the bit of guttering I need to adjust  D'oh!


Fit a Velux... you might be able to get the ladder through


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## JhnBssll (22 Nov 2020)

MontyVeda said:


> Fit a Velux... you might be able to get the ladder through



Cracking idea


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## JhnBssll (13 Dec 2020)

I've not done much lately as I've been mega busy at work and the weather has been crap  I have managed to clear the front garden of a lot of the building supplies and rubbish that had built up in the last few months. This meant today I was able to dig up the rainwater drain and plan my next move. I was pleased to find a join almost exactly where I had planned to cut the pipe so that's saved me a job, I can simply cut the join out and remove the now redundant short length that runs to the footing and replace it with a few bends to pick up the downpipe once it's in place 






You'll notice I've also started painting below the damp course - the original building had these bricks painted black although they were very faded. Once they're all done it should be pretty hard to see where the old building finishes and the extension starts 






Unfortunately an unscheduled rainshower is now washing some of the paint off again so I'll need to go back out shortly for a repair job - fortunately it's only the first of two coats


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## JhnBssll (19 Dec 2020)

Productive day today  I've worked out how I'm going to build the steps up to the door so dug out the footings and laid some concrete earlier  Once I'd finished and cleaned up I realised I still had some daylight left so whipped the breaker out to smash some of the old footings out around the drain. Again I was quicker than antipated so managed to get the new groundwater drain connected ready for the new guttering 












Digging was tough again, so much rubble and ashphalt under the surface Oh well, at least I feel like I've had a good work out for today  I need to do some reading now to find out what to backfill around the pipe, whether to bed it on sand or concrete or something else 🤷‍♂️


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## Goldenretriever (19 Dec 2020)

Should be bedded and covered with pea shingle


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## irw (19 Dec 2020)

Of course, this is where you now discover that pipe wasn't just doing the guttering, but also the bathroom...!


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## JhnBssll (19 Dec 2020)

irw said:


> Of course, this is where you now discover that pipe wasn't just doing the guttering, but also the bathroom...!



Or worse, next doors bathroom


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## JhnBssll (20 Dec 2020)

Bedded and backfilled the drain today, then spent some time on the soffit and fascia. I've finished and painted down the front and left eave now, right eave will be done another day. Importantly though I've done the bits that are hard to reach once guttering is installed, so that can go up next 😊 It might have gone up today if someone hadn't forgotten to order it


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## JhnBssll (23 Dec 2020)

With plenty of rain forecast over the next few weeks I decided it would be wise to spend the first morning of my holidays putting the guttering up 






The current plan is to leave the original downpipe where it is, discharging on to the new porch roof, but add a second downpipe between the two top windows. This new downpipe should take the majority of the water, leaving the original one to deal with about 25% of its current load. I'm hoping this will prevent it from overcoming the porch gutter in heavy rain but if this isn't the case it will be relatively easy to remove it entirely and invert the fall to just use the new central downpipe.






I'm short one length of downpipe so I haven't actually cut in to the existing gutter yet but I've left an open end to connect it to. I'll pick up some more downpipe shortly and may get a chance to finish it off later if the weather holds 

Next job will be to build the steps but that is also weather dependant - laying bricks in the wet is never a great plan  This morning the postie left me a present - a box containing 6 LED half brick lights that I'll be building in to the steps at MrsBssll's request  I'll connect them up to the same circuit as the wall lights so they all go on and off together, and I've made sure they're all the same colour temperature - 3000K - so they should match up nicely


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## JhnBssll (26 Dec 2020)

I've had a play with the new lights. I decided it would be a good idea to connect them up and check they all work before I make them a permanent part of the new steps  They came fitted with a cheap and nasty IP54 connector box, one of which was deformed and clearly not watertight, so I've removed all these. They've been replaced with IP67 in-line connector which should make swapping them out easy when they begin to fail. They've supposedly got a 30,000 hr lifetime but thats only 10 years at 8hrs a day, and thats assuming they really achieve their estimated life. I'm guessing I'll be swapping them out before then and will be swearing if I've made it difficult for myself 

Since the new connectors need a round cable to seal properly, and since I'm trying to make it easy to replace them in future, I've wired them with outdoor rated flex cable rather than standard twin and earth. I've crimped bootlace ferrules on to the ends of each cable so am confident they will stand the tests of time  I've ordered a big IP rated junction box to house the chocblock connectors to keep them out of the way, this will end up above the new ceiling in the porch.






I've temporarily wired a plug on the end just to check them out 😊






Happy that they all work I then ran a cable outside and layed them out on the ground to look at them against the new downlighters...








Hmm. Not quite the same colour, at least they're not in the photo  In person they're closer, but I'll try some yellow filter film behind the lenses to see if it improves things. They're the dimmest I could find, only 1W, but since they shine straight out they could do with dimming down further. The filter film should help with this too but I can play around with it until I'm happy... I'm hoping to run the cables tomorrow and start laying some bricks although I'm aware I don't have enough to finish the job so have just ordered another 40


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## JhnBssll (27 Dec 2020)

It was cold out there today  I had to put my little gloves on to keep my fingers warm  Anyway, I got the cables run through the wall this morning. I pulled the down behind the vertical cavity closer in the doorway, being careful not to disturb the insulation, then popped the closer back on...






I then drilled a few holes through one of the mortar joints and opened it up in to a slot and ran 4 of the 6 flex cables through. This was the lowest I could easily make the opening as the cavity is filled with concrete below that level, but it's low enough to be within the structure of the steps so will be completely hidden when they're built.






The other two cables I've left coiled in the cavity - I'll have to chop a couple of bricks out of the course directly below the DPC to fit the top two lights, I'll fish the cables back out then.

Next job was to clean the mud off the new footings and set out the brickwork. I used 3 spirit levels and a tape measure to get it square and an old screw driver to scribe the lines in to the concrete. With that done I mixed a barrow of cement and put the first course of bricks down 😊






I've called it a day there as the damp conditions combined with the non-porous engineering bricks mean the mortar will take a while to go off - I'm not skilled enough to prevent it turning in to a sloppy mess  This course didn't matter as it'll be below ground level but the next 4 courses will be on show, albeit painted black to match the surrounding brickwork. Hopefully I'll get more done tomorrow


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## JhnBssll (28 Dec 2020)

I'm glad I chucked a couple of slabs of 4" rockwool over the fresh mortar as everything else was frozen this morning  After I'd defrosted the remaining bricks in a bucket of hot water I used the then luke-warm water to mix some mortar. Hopefully this extra bit of warmth will help it cure, although temperatures aren't due to drop too low tonight. I've now run out of bricks, more due tomorrow so I'll try and get the steps finished over the next few days.


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## Gunk (28 Dec 2020)

Even professional brickies stay at home in these temperatures


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## JhnBssll (28 Dec 2020)

Gunk said:


> Even professional brickies stay at home in these temperatures



Sounds pretty sensible to me  I figured worst case scenario is the mortar spoils, in which case I have a few bricks to knock down and rebuild. Worth a shot in my book


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## JhnBssll (28 Dec 2020)

I've just been back out and jointed them up. The mortar is definietly harder than when I laid them which can only be a good sign  Back on with the insulation, I might chuck a couple of bricks in the oven on a low heat later and throw them under to keep things toasty


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## JhnBssll (29 Dec 2020)

I had a delivery of bricks this afternoon which allowed me to finish off the brickwork for the steps  The "half brick" lights aren't half a brick wide, of course, so required some consideration and careful cutting of bricks to get them placed sensibly. I also had to chop out a few bricks under the damp course as I couldn't see an obvious way of cutting them in-situ without damaging the dpc membrane... Anyway, here are a few bits laid out before I mixed up the mortar...






I wasn't convinced the plastic housings would stay in place as the plastic is highly polished and the sides are angled so they had nothing to key them in... I decided to pop a few screws through the sides, after checking they wouldn't foul anything, to give the mortar something to grab hold of.






Then I mixed up some mortar, again with hot water as the temperature has been hovering around 3 degrees which isn't quite warm enough for the hydration process to work properly without a helping hand. Eventually I was left with this...






With temperatures dipping again tonight I put it's little coat back on, and this time chucked 7 hot bricks in to the voids to radiate some heat... I'll warm them up again in a bucket of hot water later 😊






More tomorrow if the weather holds 😊


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## Gunk (29 Dec 2020)

That light doesn't flatter the brickwork John! however good for you I don't think I would have been brave enough to try.


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## JhnBssll (29 Dec 2020)

Gunk said:


> That light doesn't flatter the brickwork John! however good for you I don't think I would have been brave enough to try.



No it doesn't  my bricklayer friend likes to point it out when he goes past as well  Apparently it's a sod to get brickwork to look good under a downlighter but it does irk me a bit, if I build a wall again I'll try harder 😋


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## Gunk (29 Dec 2020)

I’m only pulling your leg, you’ve done a great job 👍


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## JhnBssll (29 Dec 2020)

I felt a bit better when I realised the window sill will throw a big shadow over a lot of the 'problem area' once installed in a few weeks


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## JhnBssll (30 Dec 2020)

I still need to paint the brickwork and bed the slabs in mortar but the steps are at least functional for now  I did manage to knock one of the bricks off before the mortar had set so I'll need to fix that when I've got another barrow full mixed. I also need to cement the roof tiles down on either side but these jobs can wait for slightly warmer weather.

















Just the rest left to do now


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## Gunk (30 Dec 2020)

I think we need a night time shot!


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## JhnBssll (30 Dec 2020)

Happy to oblige 







Not sure I'd want to live opposite


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## Gunk (30 Dec 2020)

Very posh!


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## Gunk (30 Dec 2020)

You need to have a word with your neighbours to up their game!


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## Drago (31 Dec 2020)

Jhn woke up tomfind a jumbo jet outside his bedroom door. Turned out he'd left the landing light on.

I'll get my coat...


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## Goldenretriever (2 Jan 2021)

I've seen worse on new housing estates, bricklaying looks easy, untill you try it! Timber is far easier to use, well done for even having a go. You should be proud of your efforts.


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## JhnBssll (15 Jan 2021)

The new front door and window finally went in today which means I now just need to get the flashing sorted before I can knock through  Pretty exciting, I'm really pleased with how it's turning out 






Should look even better when the steps are finished and painted and the brickwork below damp course has had another coat to cover where it was washed off


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## straas (15 Jan 2021)

Looks good! Is it just the bricks, or do you have a leak on the right hand side? It sort of appears that the bricks on that corner are all damp?


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## jowwy (15 Jan 2021)

straas said:


> Looks good! Is it just the bricks, or do you have a leak on the right hand side? It sort of appears that the bricks on that corner are all damp?


paint washed off in the rain before it was dry


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## straas (15 Jan 2021)

jowwy said:


> paint washed off in the rain before it was dry



Im talking about the ones above the DPC


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## JhnBssll (15 Jan 2021)

straas said:


> Looks good! Is it just the bricks, or do you have a leak on the right hand side? It sort of appears that the bricks on that corner are all damp?



I'm not sure, I'm keeping my eye on that too. Before the guttering went up we had a few days of pretty heavy rain and the downpipe was discharging down that end, spilling down the wall and washing the paint off in the process. I suspect it's still wet from then as the weather has been cold and humid ever since. Theres no sign of leaks internally so I'm expecting it to dry out eventually but if not I'll investigate further


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## Gunk (15 Jan 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I'm not sure, I'm keeping my eye on that too. Before the guttering went up we had a few days of pretty heavy rain and the downpipe was discharging down that end, spilling down the wall and washing the paint off in the process. I suspect it's still wet from then as the weather has been cold and humid ever since. Theres no sign of leaks internally so I'm expecting it to dry out eventually but if not I'll investigate further



I wouldn’t worry, they do take a while to dry out and it has been very cold and damp, a couple of warm sunny days and that corner will dry out.


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## JhnBssll (6 Mar 2021)

I've not done much to the extension for a while for various reasons, 10" of snow being one of them, but today I have finally made a bit of progress 😊 Our phone line had a fault which required an openreach engineer to come out - he found the problem quite quickly, some knackered old copper cable, and during the course of fixing it we took the opportunity to route the cable in through the new wall as I had intended to do. Once he had left I fitted the cable covers I had purchased, one small job ticked off the list 







Next job to tick off was the soffit and fascia on the end wall, it was the last bit that needed finishing so I was happy to spend a few hours getting it done...






Next time I'm mixing mortar I'll stick some under those end tiles, same on the other end. I need to finish the flashing too but I'm putting that job off as I don't want to climb on the roof - I'm rather hoping my friend can do that bit for me when he's here to knock through 

With it getting dark I moved inside and whipped the old door off it's hinges then started removing the frame. This is as far as I got today, tomorrow I'll carry on sawing through the bolts and cutting the mastic out until the frame is free - I had planned to use a bit more brute force and ignorance but a neighbour has asked if they can have the old door for their daughters garage so I've had to change my approach 






Once the frame is out I need to strip some more plaster along with some of the ceiling to uncover the joists in prep for a visit from the structural engineer to finish off the steel design  It'll then be a week or so wait for it to be made and delivered, at which point my friend will spend a weekend propping, smashing and installing it for me


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## Gunk (6 Mar 2021)

So what are you gaining John? Are you squeezing in a downstairs loo?


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## JhnBssll (6 Mar 2021)

Gunk said:


> So what are you gaining John? Are you squeezing in a downstairs loo?



We currently have a hall that takes up almost a quarter of the ground floor, and no downstairs loo. This little extension will allow us to partition the corner of that hall off to create a decent size downstairs loo and a small entrance hall. I'll then knock the remainder of the old hallway through, increasing the size of the open plan lounge/diner 👍 By adding these 3 square meters we'll be getting at least 6 square meters more usable space


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## JhnBssll (7 Mar 2021)

I've just fired an email off to the structural engineer to arrange the survey  I managed to get the door frame out intact today, it was a bit of a wrestle but we got there in the end  I have a sneaking suspicion it wasn't installed professionally - I realised towards the end that someone had put fixing bolts straight down through the damp proof membrane  Once I had managed to get those free and remove the frame I realised they'd actually cut the membrane out entirely for the full width of the door frame  The mind boggles...






Anyway, once that was out of the way I chopped some ceiling out and exposed the joists and knocked a bit of plaster off in a few places, then cleared away the bulk of the debris. Despite the internal doors all being closed we'll now be dusting the entire house for a few days


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## Hicky (8 Mar 2021)

Any work done in the house.....dust arrrgghh.
I've been following this thread for a while and the brickwork is superb for a none brickie, I can't wait to see it finished.


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## JhnBssll (9 Mar 2021)

Hicky said:


> Any work done in the house.....dust arrrgghh.
> I've been following this thread for a while and the brickwork is superb for a none brickie, I can't wait to see it finished.



Thanks  It's coming together slowly, I've got the structural engineer coming over this evening so that's another step forwards 😊 Hopefully I'll have a date for the knock through within the next day or two 😊


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## JhnBssll (9 Mar 2021)

So the survey is done and the steel will now be manufactured  Delivery will be a few weeks then we're just waiting for a gap in my friends diary for the installation  The structural engineer is going to attempt to size the beams down from 4x8" to 4x7" if the numbers allow to try and counter the fact that steel price has apparently risen 18% since he last quoted me  That suits me fine though as the joists are 7" so this would allow the ceiling to be flush all the way through without losing any height (which was my initial request)  We're also having a 100mm square steel post set in to the wall down in to the footings on one side so there will be no pier poking out in to the room when it's all done - it's costing a bit more but I think it will be worthwhile when done 😊 I've saved a lot by doing the bulk of work myself so didn't make sense to go with the cheap option here.

Pleased with progress, need to save up some pennies to finish the driveway and think about buying some materials to start the internal partitions now 😄


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## JhnBssll (7 Apr 2021)

Minor update, hopefully a bigger one in the near future  The steel arrived last week and we're pencilled in to install it and knock through on Monday and Tuesday next week, all being well  Once thats done I can crack on with the internal work and whip some stud walls up  Exciting times!


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## JhnBssll (10 Apr 2021)

I've been stripping out the cables from the wall thats coming down in a few days today and have found some classic DIY blunders  First this bit of cable routing - I'm not convinced this is exactly what they mean when they talk about straight horizontal or vertical cable runs 






Still, I guess the bonus of running the cable like that is it means you can drill a hole directly above the switch without having to worry about hitting a cable... If only they'd done the same on the other side of the door, where I found this beauty under the top layer of plaster... 






Not quite understanding how the electrics worked at all with a hole drilled through two cables I investigated further to see if it was a glancing blow and had missed the conductors...






Nope  Straight through both copper cores  I traced them back and found that through shear dumb luck these are both switched live conductors and, presumably, both were off when they drilled the hole and plugged it  Unbelievable really... Presumably the same skilled tradesman had added the extra cable to this wall box and pushed the grommet out, damaging the insulation against the sharp metal edge 






I wonder how much of my house is built like this  Oh well, I've ripped out all the dodgy stuff and made good so it's all working again but with no cables in the way of progress 😊 We're going to have to make do with a fancy floating light switch for a week or two 😄






Next job is to pull more of the floor up around the base of the wall once I've had a bit of a tidy


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## irw (10 Apr 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Still, I guess the bonus of running the cable like that is it means you can drill a hole directly above the switch without having to worry about hitting a cable... If only they'd done the same on the other side of the door, where I found this beauty under the top layer of plaster...
> 
> View attachment 583179
> 
> ...



Oh dear! Was there a touchable screw associated with that rawl plug then?


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## JhnBssll (10 Apr 2021)

irw said:


> Oh dear! Was there a touchable screw associated with that rawl plug then?



Fortunately not, I didn't even know the plug existed as it was buried under the top layer of plaster. Any associated screw had long been removed


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## Gunk (10 Apr 2021)

I’m sure most of our houses are hiding the odd horror.


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## JhnBssll (12 Apr 2021)

A successful day of demolition today  I did very little of the work which made a nice change  The front of the house is currently sitting on acro's and the wall beneath is now a pile of rubble in the garden  We've just bolted the two beams together so first thing tomorrow we'll lift them in to place and prop them, then install the pad stone on one side and post on the other. The post will need to have concrete cast around its base, then its just a case of waiting for it to go off before the props come back out 😎


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## JhnBssll (13 Apr 2021)

I had my friend over again this morning to finish off installing the steelwork - he's done a cracking job, really pleased with the outcome.

We finished yesterday with the old wall out and the two beams bolted together ready to lift in to place. We started this morning where we left off, by slowly hulking the 140kg of steel up above head height with the use of a couple of trestles and some weetabix  With the beams up flush with the floor joists and the mortar bed above it nicely squished on both leaves of the wall the brick padstone was built up to support it - note the neat brickwork, suggesting rightly that it may not be my handiwork 






We then turned our attention to the other end, where a steel post will transfer the load down to the original foundations - we had to dig out the brickwork to get down to concreteand make an opening large enough for the 100mm2 post base to fit down in to it, then cast and pour concrete around the fixing bolts. In a day or so I'll nip them up to make sure everything is solid but I honestly can't see it going anywhere in a hurry now it's in and bolted together 










I've still got a decent amount of rubble to clear up  Also the post isn't yet tied in to the existing blockwork - I'll nibble it out in 4 or 5 spots then have some tek self drilling bolts to screw in to the post before back filling with a resin anchor. Once thats done I'll have to finish the floor and blockwork before getting the building inspector back in to check out the progress  You never know, we might have a downstairs loo this year at this rate


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## JhnBssll (16 Apr 2021)

The props came out this afternoon  Hope to do a bit of work over the weekend, see if I can start speeding things up again now the structural hurdles have been cleared 😊

The building inspector popped in yesterday afternoon and signed the steelwork off, his next visit will be to inspect the new drains once I've got them in 😊


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## Gunk (16 Apr 2021)

Looks really good, it’s a nice big space


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## JhnBssll (17 Apr 2021)

Gunk said:


> Looks really good, it’s a nice big space



Thanks, it's surprising how much bigger it looks with only a meter added to the length of the room! It was always quite a big hallway relative to the rest of the house but not quite big enough to divide up, the extra meter is a game changer in that respect.

I had a few hours spare today so cut some mortar out of the wall next to the post and fitted some tek screws to the post through the slots.







The slots and screws were then backfilled with resin to tie the post to the blockwork.






With this done I fixed up the insulation behind the post making sure there were no gaps then marked and screwed the other side of the post to tie it to the new blockwork. I had some time left so mixed a barrow load of mortar, sorted the damp membrane at floor level and laid a few blocks.






Nice to be progressing on this project again 😊


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## MichaelW2 (17 Apr 2021)

My victorian terraced house is suffering from old age. We spent last week removing plaster from the downstairs passage external wall to uncover some serious cracking. 10 helibars later it is OK. We fitted 10mm insulated board and a local plasteter finished it nicely together with the cracked, now repaired ceilling
It looks neat and should insulate OK without the walls being any thicker than before.


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## MichaelW2 (17 Apr 2021)

MichaelW2 said:


> My victorian terraced house is suffering from old age. We spent last week removing plaster from the downstairs passage external wall to uncover some serious cracking. 10 helibars later it is OK. We fitted 10mm insulated board and a local plasteter finished it nicely together with the cracked, now repaired ceilling
> It looks neat and should insulate OK without the walls being any thicker than before.


The wall was an external wall but insulated on the inside. You can't make the shared access passage 4" thinner with external insulation. 
The usual internal insulation is either batons, insulation and plastetboard total 4" thick, or insulated plasterboard total 2" min thickness. 
We needed to retain the internal wall position so used 10mm Marmox Multiboard applied to brickwork then skimmed for total thickness about 1" or just a fraction thicker than original wall.
I used 20mm multiboard in my bathroom and the insulation is really good. This should be good enough.


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## Hicky (19 Apr 2021)

I thought all steel work had top sit on padstones, or it could just be our councils inspectors being overly arsy, either way the progress looks good!


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## JhnBssll (19 Apr 2021)

Hicky said:


> I thought all steel work had top sit on padstones, or it could just be our councils inspectors being overly arsy, either way the progress looks good!



Yeah you're absolutely right. In this case the padstone on one end was specified to be constructed from engineering bricks stacked 3 high as their compressive strength was sufficient. The post at the other end has a concrete padstone cast directly on top of the concrete foundation  This was all detailed by the structural engineer based on the site survey and calculated loads.


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## Gunk (19 Apr 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Thanks, it's surprising how much bigger it looks with only a meter added to the length of the room! It was always quite a big hallway relative to the rest of the house but not quite big enough to divide up, the extra meter is a game changer in that respect.
> 
> I had a few hours spare today so cut some mortar out of the wall next to the post and fitted some tek screws to the post through the slots.
> 
> ...



If there is a loo going in below that window should you not have put in a soil pipe?


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## JhnBssll (19 Apr 2021)

Gunk said:


> If there is a loo going in below that window should you not have put in a soil pipe?



The sink will be below the window, the loo will be in the existing bit so I'll have to smash some stuff to get the waste pipe in


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## Hicky (20 Apr 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Yeah you're absolutely right. In this case the padstone on one end was specified to be constructed from engineering bricks stacked 3 high as their compressive strength was sufficient. The post at the other end has a concrete padstone cast directly on top of the concrete foundation  This was all detailed by the structural engineer based on the site survey and calculated loads.



Brucey bonus, I love it when things are made easier.


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## JhnBssll (24 Apr 2021)

Super busy at work at the moment so progress has been slow, but I've put a few hours in today and got some small jobs done 

The blockwork wall at one end is now finished - a fiddly job with all the cuts and ties but I got there in the end 











Next job I wanted to get right was the damp course. I'd left plenty of spare membrane when pouring the new slab but didn't really know how to actually connect the two bits at the time. Once the wall was out it allowed me to work out which bits of wall and floor were 'dry' and which were 'wet' and therefore where the damp course has to be. It didn't help that someone had previously cut chunks of the damp course out so I wasn't starting from a good place  The end result meant I had to smash out some old brick and concrete that had been bridging the old cavity below the floor in the doorway. I then pulled the membrane over the cavity and flush up to the old block and beam floor, patched it in the few places I'd put a trowel through it (oops) and filled it with sand and cement screed up to just below the current slab level in the new bit. There's another 40mm or so of screed to go on top to bring it to the same level as the blocks in the old bit so I'll level it all at that point 






While I had the lump hammer out I cleaned up the end of the wall on the other side ready to tie in the last of the blockwork. I had to knock a few whole bricks out and replace with half bricks while fixing the damp course to prevent bridging, might get a chance to stack some blocks on top of it tomorrow afternoon, if not one evening in the week 😊






Note my sparkly building shoes in that last photo


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## JhnBssll (30 Apr 2021)

This afternoon I spent a few hours building up the blockwork on the other wall and tidying up the electrics.






As you can see I'd left plenty of spare cable when connecting the porch lights which was now in the way. Since the steel is now in I had the opportunity to tidy it all up...






Little bit neater now! The weatherproof junction boxes were temporary before the roof was watertight but figured I may as well leave them in. As such I screwed them to the wall and shortened all the cables to suit their new permanent location. The coiled cables to the right are all the spares I ran before the steel went in - these will likely all be used for lighting circuits but they're tucked out of the way for now 

This allowed me to get the blockwork a little higher before I stopped for the day, hope to get more done over the weekend.






I've got some more sand arriving Tuesday to allow me to do the screed along with some timber to start putting the stud walls up 😊 I should really finalise the internal layout soon  It feels good to have that mess of cables out of the way 😊


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## JhnBssll (7 May 2021)

I've had a productive afternoon 😊 Finished off the blockwork wall and then mixed and laid the screed 











Wickes called me last weekend to apologise that the sand I'd ordered didn't exist. Since then they've somehow managed to send me 10 lengths of free timber, I'm not going to complain  Unfortunately I had ordered some anyway, so I now have twice as much as I need


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## JhnBssll (11 May 2021)

I've just drained the rad and taken it off the wall. First time I've done it and I'm pleased to say it was easier than I antipated 😄 I opened the bleed valve then cracked the first Union open a quarter turn....






I drained it pretty slowly but once the water stopped coming I was able to move the valve far enough away from the rad to fit the cap and seal. Same again on the other side, I tipped the rad slightly to get a little more water out then put a cap on the valve. The rad then lifted off easily and is now in the front garden. I wonder how long it will stay there 






There used to be a decorative cover over this rad, I suspect the previous owner had put it there to cover their awful attempt at skirting 






Oh well, should be nice when it's finished


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## raleighnut (11 May 2021)

i always get my next door neighbour Scott to come and take Rads off when I need to, he's a Plumber.


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## Gunk (12 May 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> This afternoon I spent a few hours building up the blockwork on the other wall and tidying up the electrics.
> 
> View attachment 586550
> 
> ...



just noticed your Gucci loafers, you are clearly a man of sartorial elegance!


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## JhnBssll (16 Jun 2021)

The new company car will be arriving within the next 6 weeks or so; with the arrival of the van this means the pressure is now on to finish the new driveway out front as otherwise there won't be space for it  We have the dropped kerb being done in early July so I've got to get my arse in gear again 

Yesterday evening after work I dug a trench and filled it with concrete; once the storms have passed in the next few days I'll build a small brick raised bed here.







I've just ordered some black slate slabs to lay the footpath and steps to the front door then I'll be able to dig out the remaining area ready to block pave  Need to finalise the new drain route and lay that before the driveway goes down otherwise it'll be coming straight back up again


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## JhnBssll (17 Jun 2021)

Once again impending rain has prevented me putting any mortar down but I've done some work this evening regardless; The bricks have all moved back in to the front garden from their storage area out back, and I've laid some out ready to go once the weather is playing ball  I've also managed to bag an elusive tip slot tomorrow afternoon, so I spent an hour or so sorting through the big pile of rubble to get rid of what I could, its now all loaded in to the van so I don't have to do it in the rain tomorrow 






I'll pop some wall starters in at either end to hold the new wall to the old, dont want my new flower bed subsiding afterall 😄

The new slate slabs are arriving on Monday too


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## bikingdad90 (17 Jun 2021)

Have you got a permit for the van as some tip providers are a bigger for this?


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## MontyVeda (17 Jun 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I've just drained the rad and taken it off the wall. First time I've done it and I'm pleased to say it was easier than I antipated 😄 I opened the bleed valve then cracked the first Union open a quarter turn....
> 
> View attachment 588245
> 
> ...


Excellent!

I always figured I'd need a plumber to remove a radiator... and now I know I don't.


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## JhnBssll (17 Jun 2021)

bikingdad90 said:


> Have you got a permit for the van as some tip providers are a bigger for this?



Yeah, I've had to book a van slot which seem to be harder to get hold of, even when you state its only household waste. On the plus side they give vans 30 mins to unload as opposed to the 15 mins a car gets


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## icowden (17 Jun 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> Excellent!
> I always figured I'd need a plumber to remove a radiator... and now I know I don't.



My top tip for this is to get an old plastic bottle cut in half, take the top half and cut into a scoop shape. Then you can shove the plastic between the valve and the radiator and all the water gets neatly directed down the neck of the bottle rather than splashing the wall / floor / carpet.


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## neil_merseyside (17 Jun 2021)

Just be aware that the contents of the radiator is likely to be akin to permanent marker in liquid form, have lots of rags and old towels underneath and all around the draining bowls.


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## MontyVeda (18 Jun 2021)

icowden said:


> My top tip for this is to get an old plastic bottle cut in half, take the top half and cut into a scoop shape. Then you can shove the plastic between the valve and the radiator and all the water gets neatly directed down the neck of the bottle rather than splashing the wall / floor / carpet.


Mr Bssl's quarter turn and drip trick appeared to work rather well... no sign of splashing on the wall, floor or carpet in his pictures.


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## icowden (18 Jun 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> Mr Bssl's quarter turn and drip trick appeared to work rather well... no sign of splashing on the wall, floor or carpet in his pictures.



True, but it never works for me. Water usually ends up missing the tray. Hence the bottle trick !


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## icowden (18 Jun 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Oh well, should be nice when it's finished



What's the weird red stuff on the wall?


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## JhnBssll (18 Jun 2021)

The weird red stuff on the wall is paint, but seems to be localised in that area only... Very odd, but by no means the only odd thing I've found in this house


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## fossyant (18 Jun 2021)

Don't go getting that van project all mucky now


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## JhnBssll (18 Jun 2021)

fossyant said:


> Don't go getting that van project all mucky now



I kept the old ply floor for this occasion, popped it back in over the top of the new one  that too has been thrown away now though so next time I'll need a tarp or something 😋


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## JhnBssll (19 Jun 2021)

No rain today! This has enabled me to stack some bricks  Not all of them mind, I wouldn't want to actually finish a job now would I 😄

I was thinking of using wall starters, but for such a short wall I figured a better option would be to drill some mortar out, pump the holes full of resin and push some wall ties in. So thats what I did  Two at the short end - these will be in tension once the wall is loaded.






And 4 at the other end - these ones will be in shear so I put one in between each course.






Then I got to work stacking some bricks  Not much more to go, but decided it wasn't worth mixing a 1/4 load of mortar just to finish these off and I'd wait for another day when I had some more mixed for other jobs. Shouldn't take long now to lay the last few since the corner is up and it's all level.






I've left two of the perps free of mortar in the bottom course to allow water to drain if needed. They shouldn't be needed as there is a decent gap between the house foundation and the small wall footings but thought I'd feel silly if I didn't put them in and they were needed... They'll likely be below the finished driveway level anyway but I'll sleep better knowing they're there


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## jowwy (19 Jun 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> No rain today! This has enabled me to stack some bricks  Not all of them mind, I wouldn't want to actually finish a job now would I 😄
> 
> I was thinking of using wall starters, but for such a short wall I figured a better option would be to drill some mortar out, pump the holes full of resin and push some wall ties in. So thats what I did  Two at the short end - these will be in tension once the wall is loaded.
> 
> ...


Top job all round that……….


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## JhnBssll (21 Jun 2021)

I spotted a break in the rain and finished the wall this evening after work 😊






The slate arrived today too - looks nice! I've ordered some more custom cut bits today to give a bullnose lip to the steps and to cap the raised bed wall, should look good all being well 






I've got to collect some stone sealant from screwfix tomorrow so I can give the slate a couple of coats, then I'll start painting the new wall and steps black 😊


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## JhnBssll (22 Jun 2021)

Bit more progress this evening, I've unpacked the slate ready to wash and seal and I've painted the brickwork below dampcourse  Amazing the difference a bit of paint can make!

I started with the new wall...






Then carried on across the front of the house. I still need to do down the other side but I've got some soil to shift before that can happen 






Nice to have some visible progress again, it's been slow going recently what with all my other projects and the flooded kitchen  Speaking of kitchens, we have contractors in on Thursday to tear it all out - I wonder how long we'll be without for


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## jowwy (23 Jun 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Bit more progress this evening, I've unpacked the slate ready to wash and seal and I've painted the brickwork below dampcourse  Amazing the difference a bit of paint can make!
> 
> I started with the new wall...
> 
> ...


will you putting more lead across the top of that porch roof??


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## JhnBssll (23 Jun 2021)

jowwy said:


> will you putting more lead across the top of that porch roof??



Certainly will, I still need to put mortar down the edges of the tiles too. The lead up there is re-used from the original porch canopy, eventually I'll extend it to the ends of the new roof. It would be urgent if it was leaking, but it went through last winter with no problems so will get done when it gets done


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## jowwy (23 Jun 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Certainly will, I still need to put mortar down the edges of the tiles too. The lead up there is re-used from the original porch canopy, eventually I'll extend it to the ends of the new roof. It would be urgent if it was leaking, but it went through last winter with no problems so will get done when it gets done


its been a top job so far........but still want to see the mancave/garage job being completed as well, you set yourself very high standards and targets


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## JhnBssll (23 Jun 2021)

Mancave may need some attention soon, simply because i have nowhere to store the insulation while I lay the drive  Would be good to get it done to be honest, I really didnt need the kitchen flood


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## jowwy (23 Jun 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Mancave may need some attention soon, simply because i have nowhere to store the insulation while I lay the drive  Would be good to get it done to be honest, I really didnt need the kitchen flood


i was going to re-do my mancave this year, but to be honest i have done so many garden projects i just want to stop and enjoy it all now


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## JhnBssll (25 Jun 2021)

I've only had a few spare hours over the last few days but have made a bit of progress by digging a hole and filling it in again 






Here's the hole, complete with rather large unidentified concrete lump in the middle. Fortunately its lower than the slabs will be so I don't need to remove it 






Here's the hole after I'd filled it in again  I filled it with ballast then a layer of sharp sand, all tamped down as I went. I hope to get the chance to mix up some mortar tomorrow and put some slabs down  I've bought some black dye for the mortar, should look better against the black slate.

We also had the wet floor stripped out of the kitchen yesterday, so the subfloor is now drying. Once that was out a friend popped over and replaced the stopcock and questionable pipework 






Once the fabric of the building is dry the rest of the kitchen and floor will have to come out ready to be replaced, that should be fun


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## JhnBssll (26 Jun 2021)

I laid the slate path today  All went well until I rain out of sand with 2 bit of slab left to put down  Had to tidy up and nip out for more  I used black dye in the mortar as a bit of an experiment, looks nice wet but will have to wait and see what it looks like dry... This will all be underground anyway of course, hence being useful for an experiment 

The custom cut bits of slate are still a few weeks off so the temporary concrete slabs remain on the steps for now but they will match the path, as will the top of the raised bed wall 😊











Lots more digging to do now


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## Profpointy (26 Jun 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I'm done for the day  In fact I might be done for the week
> 
> The digging is nearly finished, its hard going in places with lots of rubble buried in pockets so the breaker has been getting some use
> 
> ...



When you said "lots of rubble buried in pockets" on first reading I thought you'd been emulating "The Great Escape" for getting rid of the spoil to avoid paying for a skip


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## Gunk (26 Jun 2021)

So will you park the van on the front John?


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## JhnBssll (26 Jun 2021)

Gunk said:


> So will you park the van on the front John?



Occasionally yeah but it'll mainly be used for the Tesla when it arrives - the charging point will be on the side of the porch 😊


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## JhnBssll (29 Jun 2021)

These arrived today, two more pallets to come in a few weeks time. Doesnt give me much time to lay these then clear and prep the other side  I best get digging


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## bikingdad90 (29 Jun 2021)

If you can’t get any bricks from Marshall’s, I’d recommend Brick Services Company 
https://www.brickservices.com/free-brick-matching/


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## JhnBssll (1 Jul 2021)

I spent a few hours last night loading the paving blocks in to the wheel barrow and carting them round the back - 808 of them if you're asking  Ended up being quite a good workout  Here they are all stacked up in their temporary home...






With them out of the way I had somewhere for my spoil heap so I could start digging 😊 I spent about an hour and a half at it this evening with several rest stops as it's bloody hard work  The clay soil interspersed with lumps of concrete, flint and bricks make the mattock a necessity  I managed to get this much shifted in around 90 minutes and I would guess I'm about 40% across the first section so I should finish digging this bit tomorrow afternoon. Once it's dug out to the right depth I can mix some concrete and start laying the perimeter blocks 😊


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## bikingdad90 (1 Jul 2021)

Top tip @JhnBssll if it’s rock hard clay/soil then drench it with water and it will soften it and make it easier to shift.  Also works in gardens when you need to dig a plant 🪴 out.


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## JhnBssll (2 Jul 2021)

I did some more digging this afternoon, nearly 4 hours of it  Again interspersed with numerous breaks, I ache a lot now  The good news is that one side of the footpath is now pretty much ready to start the next phase of works - concreting the edge blocks in to place 😊 There is a bit of soil still to dig out around the edges, but with torrential rain forecast tomorrow I didnt want the water washing the sand out from under my new slates so figured I'd leave some soil there to protect it 







As you can see I've created myself a rather fine pile of soil and rubble, good job I moved all the paving blocks round the back really  I'm unlikely to make any progress for a few days now as the forecast is a bit grim, but once things dry out I'll crack on


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## Gunk (3 Jul 2021)

Wow that’s impressive work John, a mini digger would have made it much easier!


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## JhnBssll (9 Jul 2021)

Yeah but a mini digger wouldn't have been as good a workout 

I started laying the drive today - I've been checking the forecast for days and today was the first dry spell for a while so didn't want to miss the opportunity! Out came the mixer then 4 mixes of concrete later the heavens opened  I managed to cover what I'd done and get the electric mixer back indoors before any damage was done fortunately but how frustrating 






Once the rain had stopped I took the covers off again to check, seems we've avoided catastrophe 






It's due to rain tomorrow but Sunday is looking hopeful for another day of concrete mixing and block paving


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## JhnBssll (10 Jul 2021)

I've been doing some groundworks and measuring up in the rain this morning  It's due to stop in the next few hours, so hopefully if there aren't too many puddles I can spend some time this afternoon and evening mixing and laying 

I've trenched for the edging along the back and marked the end slab where it needs a bit nibbling out of the corner...






Also knocked a peg in to the ground to mark the finished driveway height at the back, then used it to work out the first edging slab cut for the side...






As you can see, if I were to lay the blocks with no edging you'd be able to see the earth under next doors boundary slabs - not ideal  I knew this would be the case so bought some 915x205x50 edging slabs to cover what I can. The first slab I've marked up to cut will follow the top profile of the neighbours slab until it gets to 140mm above my finished drive level. At this point I'll just bed the slabs onto the same concrete bed as the paving blocks so they cover most of the mess. Depending how it looks when it's done I might have a word with the neighbours and ask if they mind me painting the side facing us black but we shall see, plenty to do before that becomes a priority 😄


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## JhnBssll (10 Jul 2021)

The rain stopped around 3pm so I got back out and cracked on 😊 I've just come in, pretty pleased with the days progress 






I didn't quite get all the way around but decided to save some for tomorrow, my feet are killing me  If the weather holds tomorrow I'll finish the perimeter off and cut some blocks to fill in the corners 😊

I'm really pleased with how the boundary edge looks now - I don't think I'll need to paint it, seems fine as it is! The time spent measuring and marking out in the rain this morning was time well spent, the cuts went as planned and everything slotted together nicely  Heres the corner nearest the path where I followed the top profile of the neighbours slab at first then followed the line of the drive:






And heres the back corner where it meets the raised bed - I'll fill the gap between the drive and the bed with some sort of aggregate at some point, either shingle or crushed stone to match the drive.






Hopefully the rain holds off long enough for the concrete to go off a bit so I don't have to run out and cover it later


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## jowwy (11 Jul 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> The rain stopped around 3pm so I got back out and cracked on 😊 I've just come in, pretty pleased with the days progress
> 
> View attachment 598396
> 
> ...


Top job again……


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## JhnBssll (14 Jul 2021)

Bit of a nuisance, the new blocks have been delivered in rather an unfortunate place 





In other exciting news, the custom slate pieces should arrive tomorrow! Hopefully after work I'll get a chance to finish the steps and raised bed off 😊

Since the working area of the driveway now has blocks in it I'll turn my attention to prepping the other side, digging some more soil out and getting as much of it taken away as I can... That way I can start laying blocks on the other side using these new ones first so I dont have to cart them all round the back like I did the first lot


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## JhnBssll (15 Jul 2021)

So the slate has arrived 😊 It's raining so I've not been able to mix any mortar up and lay it, but I did place it in position to see how it looks...






Pretty pleased with that! The new stuff is a bit dusty from being machined, I expect it to darken up a bit once it's been rained on but my wife says she quite likes the different shade so we'll see 

What I have cunningly hidden in the photo above is the fact that, actually, it doesnt fit  The capping around the raised bed has been cut 150mm wide but I ordered 120mm... This means you have to shuffle it all along and cant have any mortar joints in order to get the corner in the right place. In turn that leaves a bit of a problem at the other end...






Bugger  I've emailed the company - the simplest solution would seem to be for them to cut a small piece to fill the gap, rather than waste the lot and cut it all again. I'd be happy with that and would likely get it resolved sooner so we'll see what they say


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## bikingdad90 (15 Jul 2021)

Probably a good thing having a joining piece as it can be sacrificed through expansion and contraction and be replaced on the cheap instead of having to do the whole capping.


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## Drago (16 Jul 2021)

Come on, get this house finished pronto so we can get more installments on the van!


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## JhnBssll (17 Jul 2021)

Slate company are very sorry, and grateful I'm prepared to keep the slate they've sent. They're cutting the small bit and will send it asap 

I decided I may as well lay the bits I've got today since the weather is rather pleasant, if a little warm for laying black slate - it got rather hot in the sun 

First job was to cut the tiles to size - I had decided on a last minute whim to make the front strips of slate wider than they needed to be and cut the tiles back down to give the thinner strip a larger bed, I was worried them coming loose over time or causing a trip hazard. I found out my old cheapo electric tile cutter had a deep enough cutting depth to whiz the 15mm tiles through which was handy! Here they are all measured, cut to size and layed out...






I took around 20mm off the tiles so its clear from this view that there wouldn't have been a lot of the front strip to bed down otherwise - glad I made that decision when I ordered them 

Next job was to mix up some SBR slurry as a bonding layer - slate is non-porous and doesnt like sticking to mortar, as I discovered when a few of the tiles I laid a few weeks ago started moving  I added SBR to cement in a ratio of about 1:2 and mixed it in to a thick brushable liquid slop 😄 Great fun, but you have to be careful with this stuff as it sticks like the proverbial  I wore gloves and set out the slate before I started so I didnt have to touch it with potentially messy hands once I'd started applying it. It also goes off super quick, you've got about 10-15 minutes before it's gone off so I had to mix 3 loads in the end to get it all done  Here are the slabs with the bases coated...






I also did the wall capping slate pieces at the same time...






With that done I whipped the mixer out and made up some mortar, also adding the black pigment I'd experimented with before to try and achieve a dark grey mortar. We'll see how succesfull that's been when it has finished curing in a few days  The slabs and wall strips went down easily enough although I took my time getting it right. Still needs a wash down once the mortar has had a few more hours to go off but looking pretty good I think 😊






I had enough mortar left to cap the wall too 😊






It's nice to be putting finishing touches to some areas now


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## Gunk (17 Jul 2021)

Why are lower courses of bricks painted black John?


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## JhnBssll (17 Jul 2021)

Gunk said:


> Why are lower courses of bricks painted black John?



Everything was painted black below damp course when we moved here. I probably wouldn't have chosen to have it painted otherwise, but this was the easiest way of blending new and old 😊


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## Gunk (18 Jul 2021)

You’re doing a first class job John, I can see a change of career for you. The chap who did our building work a couple of years ago was an engineer in a previous life, that’s why his finish was so good


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## JhnBssll (18 Jul 2021)

Thanks mate, very kind of you  I dont think I'd be able to make any money as a builder, I'd take far too long 

I spent an hour or so out in the sun today shifting around a ton of shingle and sand from one side to the other to make a little space  I'll potentially do a bit more digging next, maybe lay a few edges of block on this side, before I get a grab lorry in to get rid of the spoil. It would be good to get it all gone in one, but that in itself is a logistical problem because I need to dig down under the spoil pile  Its not just a case of letting the grab lorry to the work this time, as the gas main is down there somewhere and I'm not feeling all that lucky 

I hosed the steps down yesterday afternoon, I think they look rather splendid when they're wet 😊







And here's the current state of affairs...






I'll get the insulation and some of the other detritis moved in to the back garden this afternoon hopefully so I can plan my next move... I have several slate tiles left over so I am considering working them in down the side, potentially at the back of the drive by the new fence/gate that I'll be building.

I can see the back garden being the next project, because I've positively ruined it  Most of the patio needs to come up anyway to extend the drain for the new loo, but the lawn is also wrecked and the decking has seen better days  It was last overhauled about a decade ago so it's probably due some attention


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## Milkfloat (18 Jul 2021)

I have very similar slate, albeit with a lot more ‘rust’ in it. Be very careful in the cold - they are lethal with even a tiny bit of frost. I laid 50m2 of it and had to re-lay a couple as you are completely right, they don’t like staying in place.


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## JhnBssll (19 Jul 2021)

I spent a few hours out front after work this evening. First dug a trench down the other side of the path then mixed some concrete and laid some blocks. I managed 3 mixes before I had to call it a day in time to shower and go out for dinner. I seem to be living life perpetually exhausted at the moment  Good to be making progress though, however slow


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## DaveReading (19 Jul 2021)

I'd have laid them in a curve.


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## JhnBssll (19 Jul 2021)

DaveReading said:


> I'd have laid them in a curve.



Far too advanced for me I'm afraid  straight lines are hard enough 😋


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## Drago (20 Jul 2021)

Too advanced for me too. I hit things with a hammer, and then hide the mess bynusing silicone sealant to glue something over it.

It works, but its hardly craftsmanship! 

I doff my hat to the skills and committment of Jhn 'Darcy' Bssl.


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## JhnBssll (22 Jul 2021)

I had a bit of a tidy and did a bit of digging after work this evening. I've booked the next muck-away for Tuesday so plan to get as much rubble on the pile as I can before then to minimise the next load  Digging was tough going today as I had a couple of big lumps of concrete in the way and some old tarmac to get through  I'll be glad when I can hang the mattock up for a while!!






I cant remember if I've already mentioned it, but a recent chat with the neighbour revealed the fence is actually ours and isn't in the right place - I've marked our real boundary with a red line along the edge of the wall in the bottom right. I reckon I can get an extra 6" all the way along the fence-line when I replace it, valuable extra room for opening doors when there's a car parked there! The neighbour is happy with this as the boundary is at the top of a retaining wall, he isn't losing any useful area by putting the fence back where it should be, only gaining a new fence  Win win!

I'll be painting the bricks along the side below damp course soon too, the insulation had been in the way before now.


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## MichaelW2 (23 Jul 2021)

Installing new skirting board over my insulated and reconditioned floor.
We chose the most wiggly ogive shape in MDF. For inside joints you use profile cut not mitre. Cutting the profile of the wiggly shape at the end is a pita. MDF does not cut as cleanly as wood. I fired up the dremel to do fine shaping.
I might have to strengthen the cut shape with pva glue.
Youtube is not much help


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## Drago (23 Jul 2021)

What paint will you use to paint below the damp course?


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## jowwy (23 Jul 2021)

Drago said:


> What paint will you use to paint below the damp course?


Black lol


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## JhnBssll (23 Jul 2021)

He's not wrong 😄

I've been using Zinsser AllCoat, seems to do a decent job and gets good reviews


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## raleighnut (23 Jul 2021)

MichaelW2 said:


> Installing new skirting board over my insulated and reconditioned floor.
> We chose the most wiggly ogive shape in MDF. For inside joints you use profile cut not mitre. Cutting the profile of the wiggly shape at the end is a pita. MDF does not cut as cleanly as wood. I fired up the dremel to do fine shaping.
> I might have to strengthen the cut shape with pva glue.
> Youtube is not much help


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## ClichéGuevara (23 Jul 2021)

I've just read through this thread, and it's very impressive, well done to you.

I need a nap just from reading it.


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## JhnBssll (23 Jul 2021)

I did some more digging today, my mound of earth and rubble is getting mighty impressive 






You can just make out the new buried wall I found this afternoon too...  So many layers of development in such a small area - concrete, tarmac, walls... Who would have thought it in such a small area 






If the weather holds I'll do a bit more in the morning  Excited to get this lot taken away, it will feel like the home stretch when all this digging is done  Well, for the driveway at least... Then there's just the kitchen, the hallway and the downstairs loo to sort...


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## JhnBssll (24 Jul 2021)

With lots of rain forecast over the weekend I thought I'd get out early and repair an error I made last week... In my haste to dig around the footings I'd forgotten to expect the incoming service ducts and put my mattock through the electricity duct 






I didn't touch the cable fortunately, but didn't like the idea of the duct filling with water and causing problems in the future so figured I'd repair it with some fibrefix wrap. The plan was to dig around the duct a bit and create some room, then find a few more of the broken shards of plastic and put them back where they should be before wrapping with fibre fix.

That plan very quickly changed when I dug a bit further and found this...






Nevermind 

Back to digging then!! I've continued my trench alongside the fence - the plan here is to remove the fence at some point and build up a concrete block retaining wall alongside the original retaining wall to sure it up a little. The original doesnt go as high as the ground level on my side of the fence which is odd, so my new one will give the driveway something to perch on and prevent it ending up on next doors lawn in a few years time 😄

I smashed some of the old wall out first then dug along - the wall continues along the fence line just below ground level so I'm smashing a bit out here and there as I go 






I though I'd found trace of an animal tunnel at one point...






Closer inspection found a decayed bit of timber heartwood in the bottom and lots of rotten timber around it, and a flash photo in the hole seems to show its a cavity rather than a tunnel... Presumably some builders waste buried. Hopefully not too many more cavities down there as I want a decent base for my wall 






Anyway, I finished my day's digging with only a few square meters left to go down the side. The driveway will finish between the meter cupboards and the aircon unit - nearly there now


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## MontyVeda (24 Jul 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I did some more digging today, my mound of earth and rubble is getting mighty impressive
> 
> View attachment 600659
> 
> ...


I can't see the mound of earth & rubble you mention... is it behind Skiddaw?


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## JhnBssll (27 Jul 2021)

Skiddaw has been removed  The grab lorry made short work of it, 8 tons removed this time  Well over 20 tons has been taken away to date and all dug out by hand; no wonder I ache  With the spoil gone and no rain forecast until later tomorrow I took the opportunity to paint some more brickwork down the side wall this evening 😊 I really ought to finish the flashing and gutters...


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## JhnBssll (31 Jul 2021)

The weather has been unpredictable for the last few days so I've resisted doing any outdoors work, instead choosing to make some headway in the kitchen. The insurance has agreed to pay out so I'll be ordering a new kitchen in the next few days, looks like it should be about a 6 week wait. Before then the floor needs to come up and be replaced and there are some plumbing and electrical works to be done to prep for the new layout 😊 This is complicated massively by the fact we want to keep the kitchen usable for as long as possible 

Today I planned to remove the floor and see what it was like beneath so started by making some circsaw cuts through the chipboard. I set the cutting depth carefully as there are various copper pipes just below 






With the chipboard up I was confronted with a real mess of insulation and pipes  This was clearly not a professional job 






With that mess out of the way the next job was to move the washing machine and tumble drier in to the larder cupboard, their new home. This meant both mains water pipework and waste pipework needed extending, my first foray in to plumbing  I did the waste pipework first and built a platform to sit the tumble drier on.
















Next job was the bit I hadn't been looking forward to, but it did mean I got to play with my new blow torch  My friend had replaced the stopcock and left a blanked off valve for me to connect in to, so thats just what I did, after improving access by butchering the remains of the sink unit 😊






The new bit of pipe going off to the right is currently blanked - I'll extend it round the room to replace the current cold feed to upstairs and also to feed the new fridge freezer as it will have an ice dispenser and water cooler 






I made some new legs for the worktop - I'll continue to do this all the way round, replacing the units for legs and adding some cross bracing to hold the worktop up. This way I can keep the hob and sink useable, but have access underneath. I'll put lots of legs in so I can temporarily remove some while I fit the new floor, shorten them and put them back as I go. Here's the washing machine now plumbed in to its new home 😊






And here's the current state of affairs... Mrs Bssll is not going to be best pleased when she comes home later 











I'm a little concerned I might be fighting on too many fronts at the moment


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## Gunk (31 Jul 2021)

I can sympathise, this was ours a couple of years ago.


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## Gunk (31 Jul 2021)

Worth it though!


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## JhnBssll (31 Jul 2021)

If I can mine half as nice as that I'll count it as a win 

I'll be buying some extra unit doors to hide the washing machine and drier. I will have to modify the size of the opening to suit but the area above the current opening is plasterboard so should be straightforward


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## JhnBssll (3 Aug 2021)

A few more hours were spent smashing up the kitchen this evening 

I'm actually really pleased with progress; I've now managed to remove all but one of the units and the entire floor, leaving the worktops in place along with the sink, oven and hob. It's not pretty, but technically it's fully functional 











I've also started levelling and screwing down the battens - the number of spacers I'm having to use is varying wildly, between 0 and 12mm so far  it's pretty important I get this bit level though otherwise the other bits are going to prove tricky 






I'm hoping to get some insulation and ply arrive over the next few days so hope to have a floor back down by the end of the week all being well


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## JhnBssll (4 Aug 2021)

This evening proved expensive - we've ordered the new kitchen units  Due for delivery week commencing 20th September - a way off as yet but at least a date in the diary to aim for 

I screwed a few more battens down after work and cut a load more, currently laid out but will need packing and screwing down so several hours of drilling and screwing for another day 






The insulation and tile backer board arrived today, waiting on some more batten and the ply before I can put the floor down  Once that's done it'll be time to think about buying some floor tiles 

Once its tiled I'll plumb the new dishwasher in temporarily, we should be fairly tidy then until the new kitchen arrives in about 7 weeks time so I can switch back to the driveway


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## JhnBssll (5 Aug 2021)

More progress with the battening this evening, the end is in sight now  The ply is due on Monday so I should be ready for it by then 😊


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## JhnBssll (6 Aug 2021)

Another drilling and sawing session this evening 😄 I'll be glad when its done, hopefully should finish the battening tomorrow  I've got about 70% of it down now and have started cutting insulation to fit so steady progress again. I've also taken the oven and the last unit out, the worktops look quite precarious now


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## JhnBssll (7 Aug 2021)

I've done about as much as I need to before the ply arrives now - to finish off the battens I'll need to take the washing machine and fridge out again but I'll leave that until everything has arrived so it can go straight back in again 






At some point I also need to remove the radiator in there and move the pipes as I'll be installing a plinth heater to save some space. Besides, the fridge being right next to a radiator isn't really a long term solution  Hopefully the subfloor will be done within the next week or so, then I can tidy up in there and think about the next jobs...  If the weather improves a bit I need to get back on to the driveway


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## JhnBssll (11 Aug 2021)

Frustration today. The ply finally arrived just before lunch, so once I was done with work for the day I moved the fridge freezer out and took up the last corner of insulation and damp membrane. Underneath I found a damp, mouldy patch  We've been losing pressure in the heating system for a while with the odd top-up needed so I knew it was going *somewhere* so its a relief to find out where, just unfortunate that it now means I have to wait for the kitchen floor to dry a second time  The leak itself was due to a very loose compression nut on the rad valve, god knows how long it's been leaking  Anyway, here's my damp patch 😄






As mentoned before that rad will not be going back in, so with the leak fixed I decided now was as good a time as any to move the pipework.





I've now started putting some timber battens down in this corner, I'll carry on tomorrow 😊






I'm not overly keen with where the valves have ended up above a socket, but they're definitely not leaking now and I've capped them off so even if the valves fail there'll be no water lost. I'll drain the heating system down at some point soon, at which point I'll cut these two pipes off above floor level and fit a couple of lockshield valves ready to plumb in this little beauty...






Its a Smith's plinth heater. The cheapest one they do as its only a small space, but still fully automatic. It senses the temperature increase when the heating comes on and turns the blower on automatically, and off again once it cools again. There are two fan speeds to select and theres also a cooling option which just circulates air when the heating is off 😊 I've got a couple of flexi hoses on the way to connect it so it can be slid out from the plinth if needed for any reason  I havent decided how to wire it in yet, I'll probably have to put in a switched spur somewhere but I'm sure I'll work it out 

I'm now just willing the floor to dry quickly, I can't put anything over it until then


----------



## JhnBssll (12 Aug 2021)

I had the afternoon off today so spent some time in the kitchen. I focussed on the end opposite the damp spot and will work towards it to keep it uncovered until it's fully dried out. I worked in strips preparing to put the ply down. First I had to finish the battening where it was incomplete, then cutting and fitting the last squares of insulation board before making it vapour tight with foil tape.






It was then ready to board so I cut the first bits of ply to shape, then marked up where the pipes were on the right hand side. They are raised above the battens in a few places, so I had to mark the board up and get the router out to make clearance slots in the underside of the ply. I forgot to take a photo of it, so you'll have to take my word for it, but it took a long time  Previously the floor sat high in the corner and the pipes are all showing signs of flattening where they had been squished by the old floor, that shouldn't happen anymore 






With the first strip of ply down I repeated the previous steps, finishing off the battens and insulation...






Then down went the second strip of ply 😄






I'll get another chance to play tomorrow afternoon, hoping to get most of the floor covered by the end of the weekend and get the new dishwasher plumbed in temporarily 

The corner block is still visibly wet 






It will be nice to get the kitchen to a point where we can use it again without having to tread carefully and worry about walking mess through the rest of the house  I'll be able to get back on to other bits of the build then too


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## jowwy (13 Aug 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I had the afternoon off today so spent some time in the kitchen. I focussed on the end opposite the damp spot and will work towards it to keep it uncovered until it's fully dried out. I worked in strips preparing to put the ply down. First I had to finish the battening where it was incomplete, then cutting and fitting the last squares of insulation board before making it vapour tight with foil tape.
> 
> View attachment 603875
> 
> ...


is it wet john or is it just very stained from the constant water leak??

nice job again by the way


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## bikingdad90 (13 Aug 2021)

@JhnBssll how come you went down the batten route as opposed to self levelling scree and then insulation? I need to do something similar in mine when the kitchen is renewed.

It might be worth puttting some sealing oil based paint over the damp patches to stop any residual damp from rising up and rotting your ply and where the wet appliances will go putting water resistance treated timber down instead of normal ply so it’s a bit more resistant.


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## JhnBssll (13 Aug 2021)

jowwy said:


> is it wet john or is it just very stained from the constant water leak??
> 
> nice job again by the way



It's still wet unfortunately. No obvious change this morning either, I expect it will take a week or two to dry out at this rate 



bikingdad90 said:


> @JhnBssll how come you went down the batten route as opposed to self levelling scree and then insulation? I need to do something similar in mine when the kitchen is renewed.
> 
> It might be worth puttting some sealing oil based paint over the damp patches to stop any residual damp from rising up and rotting your ply and where the wet appliances will go putting water resistance treated timber down instead of normal ply so it’s a bit more resistant.



There are loads of gaps between the blocks, a self leveller would have ended up on the dirt under the house unless I went around and sealed it all first but I did consider it. The main reason I went for pressure treated battens was to minimise flex as we're going to tile the floor. I've levelled and screwed the battens down in to the blocks then screwed the ply to the battens so it's a pretty solid structure now compared to the old floating floor which was a bit like a trampoline in places  The downside was it took a bloody long time to do, a self leveller would have been far quicker of course. Re. sealing, the foil tape and foil faced insulation board should keep anything from coming up from below. I've got some 5mm cement board to screw down over the ply which I'll then paint with diluted SBR - the cement board will stiffen the floor further and the sbr will waterproof it to minimise anything getting to the ply from above


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## bikingdad90 (13 Aug 2021)

@JhnBssll great, make sure you take plenty of pictures of key areas as then it will save anything getting ripped up/off by insurance co if anything does happen again! Great job


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## fossyant (13 Aug 2021)

Gosh, some work there. Who the heck did the central heating like that - i.e. under the floor ! Some right bodges you've had to sort from previous owners.


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## JhnBssll (13 Aug 2021)

fossyant said:


> Gosh, some work there. Who the heck did the central heating like that - i.e. under the floor ! Some right bodges you've had to sort from previous owners.



I think its fair to say some of the work wasn't done professionally  I wonder what the next owner will make of my handiwork 

I made some more progress this afternoon, most of the floor is now down. The corner block is still noticably damp so that corner won't be going down for a while yet I'd imagine but other than that there's just the bit under the washing machine left to do now  I would have done it today but Mrs Bssll decided she needed to do some washing and of course it couldn't wait, who was I to argue 😄

Here's the state of play as it stands this evening:

















Tomorrow the washing machine will come out so I can batten, insulate and board the cupboard floor. Next I'll start with the cement board, laying it in the opposite direction to the ply and screwing it down with lots of screws to try and make it as rigid as possible. It's already a huge improvement over the old floor, much to my relief - if it had still been springy after all this time and effort I'd have been pretty gutted 

Right, those photos have reminded me I still haven't done the dishes  I best pop down and do those now, else I'll be in the dog house


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## fossyant (13 Aug 2021)

Fair Play, you've done an astouding job already. Righty, what about the Van....

I just groan at extra DIY... Painting a ceramic floor this weekend before the bloody cats come back. All four of them and MrsF.....


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## jowwy (13 Aug 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I think its fair to say some of the work wasn't done professionally  I wonder what the next owner will make of my handiwork
> 
> I made some more progress this afternoon, most of the floor is now down. The corner block is still noticably damp so that corner won't be going down for a while yet I'd imagine but other than that there's just the bit under the washing machine left to do now  I would have done it today but Mrs Bssll decided she needed to do some washing and of course it couldn't wait, who was I to argue 😄
> 
> ...


Just one question….

once you fit the concrete boards and tiles to the floor, will the back door still open??? It looks like it could be pretty tight


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## JhnBssll (13 Aug 2021)

jowwy said:


> Just one question….
> 
> once you fit the concrete boards and tiles to the floor, will the back door still open??? It looks like it could be pretty tight



I hope so 😄

The finished floor level will be slightly higher than it used to be but the back door will still clear it. I'm expecting to have to plane a little off the bottom of the internal door


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## neil_merseyside (14 Aug 2021)

If you're not going to get every piece of ply to match then please don't take pictures of those pieces that don't match, though to be fair the graded spirit levels is so nice it nearly compensates .


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## JhnBssll (14 Aug 2021)

With Mrs Bssll out for the weekend on a stag do (true story) I took the opportunity to whip the washing machine out again today. First job was to correct a mistake I made when fitting the appliance connector valve - by putting it neatly flush to the wall it was very tricky to screw the hose connector on  A simple fix, I isolated the water, loosened the compression nut slightly and rotated it 90 degrees so it points out from the wall now 






I then turned my attention back to the floor. I've got this down to an art now, so quickly had it battened...






Then just as quickly it was insulated...






Then double boarded - ply then cement board.






Its all connected up again now, won't have to come back out until its time to tile the floor. At this rate thats a way off, as the chief worktop and tile chooser keeps changing their mind 






I also spent some time fitting a few other cement boards, I'll carry on with it tomorrow and hope to get the new dishwasher in and temporarily connected 






The wet corner block is still wet  It does seem to be getting lighter in colour though which is encouraging


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## JhnBssll (15 Aug 2021)

Quick update this evening. I have done as much to the floor as I can for now, at least until the last corner is dry. I've also got the new dishwasher temporarily fitted and plumbed in and the fridge back in.
















I need to have a think now and plan what to attack next


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## JhnBssll (17 Aug 2021)

The corner was dry when I checked at lunchtime and with no meetings in my calendar for the afternoon I booked some last minute holiday. Managed to get the floor all finished, nice to tick something off the list!





















Mrs Bssll is away for the weekend so I will have a chance to make a mess - might be time to drain the heating down if I'm feeling brave


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## Gunk (17 Aug 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Mrs Bssll is away for the weekend



she seems to be away most weekends, is your DIY driving her out of the house?


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## bikingdad90 (17 Aug 2021)

Nah, get outside and finish that extension as your other projects are lacking!

Have you got time to ride that swish Bianchi of yours!


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## Gunk (17 Aug 2021)

bikingdad90 said:


> Nah, get outside and finish that extension!



and that bloody van!


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## JhnBssll (17 Aug 2021)

Gunk said:


> she seems to be away most weekends, is your DIY driving her out of the house?



I tell people it's the DIY that drives her away 

I've got far too many jobs on to know where to turn next, can't remember the last time I had a day off work or projects - it's starting to take its toll


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## jowwy (17 Aug 2021)

Gunk said:


> and that bloody van!


Yes the van…..we all want to see the finished van


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## GM (17 Aug 2021)

....and the garage!


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## cyberknight (28 Aug 2021)

fossyant said:


> Fair Play, you've done an astouding job already. Righty, what about the Van....
> 
> I just groan at extra DIY... Painting a ceramic floor this weekend before the bloody cats come back. All four of them and MrsF.....


how did it go ? we tried the same with stuff that was supposed to be hard wearing especially for floor tiles and within 6 months it looked crap .


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## JhnBssll (29 Aug 2021)

With the van away with Mrs Bssll I was left at home to do more jobs  I've got some fencing bits arriving in the week so decided to do some digging in preparation.

First job - take down the old fence. This was pretty easy, and actually took itself down in a few places 







Whilst taking it down I came across a problem I had feared I would find. A long section of the neighbours retaining wall isn't really retaining anything  As you can see in this photo, ivy had grown all the way through the mortar bed in places, and these places were dotted all along the wall. It was visibly moving while I took the fence down so it was fairly obvious it needed a closer inspection 






I'm pretty sure this wall should be more than a single skin of lightweight concrete blocks anyway so I knocked on the neighbours door and had a chat. Turns out he built this section of wall 30 years ago as a temporary measure  We've agreed that I'll knock it down and rebuilt it properly - my original plan was to build a secondary retaining wall inside my boundary so the cost will be similar but may as well get it right, despite it being a little more work. Originally I was going to leave the existing concrete posts in situ and re-use them, but with the wall coming down they had to come down too so I got digging 











Once down I couldn't budge them so had to get the breaker out to knock the concrete off the bottoms  I was then able to drag them out of the hole and lift them on to the pile - the grab lorry can take them from there 






I decided to dig until I'd reached the end of the retaining wall and get the last of it knocked down before I packed up, finally got finished about half an hour ago  Tomorrow I have a work call first thing, then I'll get back out do hopefully get the last course of blocks up and get a foundation trench dug for the new wall. I've then got an appointment at the tip in the afternoon to get rid of the old fence bits - or as much of it that will fit in the van  This is the current situation 😊


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## Gunk (29 Aug 2021)

Bloody hell John you are a machine, your posts make me feel bone idle


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## JhnBssll (29 Aug 2021)

I intend to have a very long rest when I'm done on my current projects - 18 months or so should do it


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## JhnBssll (30 Aug 2021)

Accidental rest day from digging today as it has rained most of the day  I did manage to load the van up and take the old fence and some bits of kitchen to the tip though so not a total loss 😄






Bloody handy these vans 😋


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## jowwy (30 Aug 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Accidental rest day from digging today as it has rained most of the day  I did manage to load the van up and take the old fence and some bits of kitchen to the tip though so not a total loss 😄
> 
> View attachment 606835
> 
> ...


You left the tv in there with all the rubbish…..lol


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## JhnBssll (31 Aug 2021)

Nothing like 3 hours of digging straight after work to keep you busy  I've made some progress but its slow going at the moment! I've taken out the last course of blockwork for a short stretch of the wall then broken up the concrete footing and dug down to about where I want the bottom of the new footing to be. I'm slowly working my way back towards the road, I reckon I've done a little over a third of it so far but am hoping this was the toughest bit - the digging should get easier as the ground gets shallower 






These two post stakes were a pig to get out and theres at least one more of them I've found so far 😄 I'm a glutton for punishment!






I'll try and spend another few hours on it after work tomorrow and see where that gets me, then consider getting another muck away booked before my pile gets too big again 

Once I've got the trench at the right depth all the way along I'll widen it up and get it nice and straight, then think about mixing some concrete  It's pretty depressing knowing I'm basically gonna fill this all in again very soon and that the finished wall won't even be mine  Oh well, needs must - It not like I can do much else until it's done!


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## fossyant (31 Aug 2021)

cyberknight said:


> how did it go ? we tried the same with stuff that was supposed to be hard wearing especially for floor tiles and within 6 months it looked crap .



Stuff hasn't dried properly yet after 2 weeks.


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## JhnBssll (1 Sep 2021)

I'm down to final depth for about two thirds of the run now and have taken down the majority of the wall, just a couple more meters of footings to break up 






Unfortunately there are also 3 lumps of concrete to break out and 2 more metal post stakes to dig out as well, so several more hours of graft to go before it's ready for concreting. Still, progress is progress


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## postman (2 Sep 2021)

We have ripped open the mattress and taken a few sheckles out,going to have four windows replaced,the wind whistles through two of them so much so the blinds rattle.The bay window is going to be changed in design completly. Local chap five streets away is going to get the job,as they say you don't sheet in your own,whatever.Backyard.


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## JhnBssll (3 Sep 2021)

I gave myself an evening off yesterday and attacked it again this afternoon - the strategy seemed to pay off as I made better progress than I'd hoped! My goal was to get the trench complete and the concrete lumps and metal stakes removed ready to spend tomorrow mixing concrete so I started by getting the breaker out and tacking the last bit of wall and the concrete lumps. These put up less resistance than I'd feared which was a great start  Once they were out I moved on to the two metal stakes - these were stubborn like the last two but came up eventually  With them out of the way it was just a case of extending the trench  Unfortunately I quite quickly uncovered metal stake number 5 hiding just below ground level 






I was encouraged to find the soil easier to dig in this area so the stake come out a little easier than the previous four, and the last few meters of trench were fairly easy digging  With the trench dug full depth along its length I put a line up to check it was straight, then went along and nibbled bits off the edges to get the sides relatively parallel along its length. I also roughly went along the bottom with a spirit level to check it wasn't too far off level and adjusted the depth to suit.






At this point it was about half past three so I figured I may as well just push on through and mix some concrete  I'm pretty knackered now 








Thats an 8" thick slab so a fair few mixes went in to the hole, I used a whole bulk bag of ballast up 

You may also notice I've had a fencing delivery  It would have been perfectly timed had I not had to demolish and rebuild the retaining wall 😄


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## JhnBssll (7 Sep 2021)

I figured I'd milked the concrete curing time as long as I could and got back to it after work this evening. I didn't have a lot of time, but just enough to mix a barrow full of mortar and lay the first of the blocks 😊






Hope to get some more done tomorrow evening


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## Hicky (9 Sep 2021)

I'm tired reading this thread


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## JhnBssll (9 Sep 2021)

A few more blocks laid this afternoon after I'd finished playing with my bicycle wheels 😊







There are some storms forecast tomorrow afternoon but I will get some more done given half a chance.


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## Colin Grigson (10 Sep 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> A few more blocks laid this afternoon after I'd finished playing with my bicycle wheels 😊
> 
> View attachment 608395
> 
> ...


Did you remember the Damp Course John - shame to let such a beautiful wall get damp


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## jowwy (10 Sep 2021)

Colin Grigson said:


> Did you remember the Damp Course John - shame to let such a beautiful wall get damp


Damp course on a garden wall????


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## postman (10 Sep 2021)

Hicky said:


> I'm tired reading this thread


No that should be tyred is reading this thread.


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## newts (10 Sep 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> A few more blocks laid this afternoon after I'd finished playing with my bicycle wheels 😊
> 
> View attachment 608395
> 
> ...


Are you incorporating a couple of pillars into that length of wall?


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## Colin Grigson (10 Sep 2021)

jowwy said:


> Damp course on a garden wall????


I’m not sure Jowwy … here we put a flexible DPC membrane in garden walls too - but I can see the folly of my comment looking at the differing ground levels on either side of the wall - John‘s side would broach the DPC any way … I’ll shuffle back out muttering to myself …


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## jowwy (10 Sep 2021)

Colin Grigson said:


> I’m not sure Jowwy … here we put a flexible DPC membrane in garden walls too - but I can see the folly of my comment looking at the differing ground levels on either side of the wall - John‘s side would broach the DPC any way … I’ll shuffle back out muttering to myself …


Im just curious as to why they would that when it would just get rained on anyway….i mean damp course is to stop water penatrating the building, but a garden wall it seems strange.


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## Colin Grigson (10 Sep 2021)

jowwy said:


> Im just curious as to why they would that when it would just get rained on anyway….i mean damp course is to stop water penatrating the building, but a garden wall it seems strange.


Here walls are usually rendered (if you’ve seen the bricklaying here you’ll appreciate why) and the DPC prevents the mortar, render and finish being damaged by rising damp … I think


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## JhnBssll (10 Sep 2021)

newts said:


> Are you incorporating a couple of pillars into that length of wall?



Nope, but there'll be a skin of bricks too when it's done so shouldn't need any pillars 😊 I'm putting ties in every block so it should be pretty solid.


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## neil_merseyside (10 Sep 2021)

My god you are thorough! 
What do you do as a day job? 
I may not need your services but if you put anything like as much effort and ability into your paid work you are the man we might need!


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## Milkfloat (10 Sep 2021)

neil_merseyside said:


> My god you are thorough!
> What do you do as a day job?
> I may not need your services but if you put anything like as much effort and ability into your paid work you are the man we might need!


Only if you want 15 different jobs doing simultaneously with none of them getting finished


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## JhnBssll (10 Sep 2021)

Milkfloat said:


> Only if you want 15 different jobs doing simultaneously with none of them getting finished



I'd be offended if it wasn't true  Hoping to get the driveway and kitchen done fairly soon so I can get back on to the downstairs loo and hallway


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## JhnBssll (10 Sep 2021)

neil_merseyside said:


> My god you are thorough!
> What do you do as a day job?
> I may not need your services but if you put anything like as much effort and ability into your paid work you are the man we might need!



I'm a product development engineer by trade Practical stuff has always kept me entertained 😋


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## cyberknight (11 Sep 2021)

neil_merseyside said:


> My god you are thorough!
> What do you do as a day job?
> I may not need your services but if you put anything like as much effort and ability into your paid work you are the man we might need!


I couldnt do half of what he does after my job im farked !, mind you lift a couple of ton a day doing that


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## JhnBssll (11 Sep 2021)

I laid the last of the blocks today. Started around 9am and hand mixed a barrow of muck up then started laying blocks. I'm getting around 13 blocks laid to a mix, but each hand mix is half the size of a machine mix.

After I'd used up that mix I did some setting out and knocked some posts in to mark the finished driveway level before stopping for some lunch.






After lunch I mixed up another barrow of muck and set to laying the last of the blocks. I've also marked up approximately where the fence posts will be which will allow me to stagger the wall height correctly when the bricks arrive.






So here is the wall as it stands now. At the far end it'll have one course of bricks added to the top to get to full height, then as we get closer to the camera it will stagger down dropping 2 brick courses at a time approximately in line with the fence posts, to the nearest half brick anyway .











Bricks are ordered and due for delivery on Thursday. The dropped kerb guys have said they'll start on Wednesday too but we shall see if that happens or not, they've been a bit flakey to date  The car charger is also due to be installed on Friday, its all go here!


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## Milkfloat (11 Sep 2021)

It to late now, but for the amount of mixing you have done over the last year, did you think on getting a mixer? I bought a secondhand one when laying 60m2 of slate patio and then sold it in after for pretty much the same price. It seems to be fairly common for people to do this.

Mind you, with all that mixing by hand you are getting a free workout.


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## JhnBssll (12 Sep 2021)

Milkfloat said:


> It to late now, but for the amount of mixing you have done over the last year, did you think on getting a mixer? I bought a secondhand one when laying 60m2 of slate patio and then sold it in after for pretty much the same price. It seems to be fairly common for people to do this.
> 
> Mind you, with all that mixing by hand you are getting a free workout.



I own one  I find if I use the mixer the mortar is starting to go off before I can use it all because I'm so slow at laying bricks and blocks  I've used it for all the concreting though  A barrow full of hand mixed mortar is the perfect amount for the speed I work at and probably takes less time than getting the mixer out, cleaning it and putting it away again 😄


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## Milkfloat (12 Sep 2021)

Ha - I used washing up liquid as a plasticiser, but I agree you need to be doing at least 3 or 4 mixes to make it worthwhile. I guess juggling a job, family, bikes, extension, kitchen, van and garden is tricky. Talk about multitasking.


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## JhnBssll (12 Sep 2021)

I used to use pasticiser when I was mixing as a labourer during uni holidays but havent used any recently, I keep thinking of buying some but the reality is I've done most of the brickwork now so it's a bit late  I might treat myself and buy some for the retaining wall 

With the bricks several days away I decided to have a play with some fencing. I know it sounds obvious, but crikey those concrete posts and gravel boards are heavy  Shifting them around on my own is quite the workout 







I managed to find ways of propping them vertically while I poured the postcrete in the hole, really pleased with how it looks. Mrs Bssll just got home and complemented the nice new partial fence - high praise indeed  The gravel board heights might need tweaking a little, I'll do that before I pour the concrete to bed the edge blocks down


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## JhnBssll (17 Sep 2021)

The bricks arrived yesterday but due to work, weather and social commitments I didnt get to play builder during the week  Until today 😄 I had a nice electrician over this morning to install this funky little wall charger for new company car, an EO mini pro...






After lunch I set up for some brick laying - I laid out 100 bricks on the neighbours lawn, figuring I'd have done well if I got through half of them 






I managed to get through 4 hand mixes of mortar in the end and ended up with just 6 of the original 100 bricks left over, but when I stood back to admire my handiwork I was underwhelmed...






It looks a bit more impressive looking down the wall as the vast majority of the bricks I've laid today are below ground level 






I hope to lay some more tomorrow, and then perhaps on Sunday when this mortar has gone off a bit I'll think about backfilling a bit more and putting some more fence posts in  I've started some backfilling already, putting soil and rubble down behind the wall and hosing it down so it settles nicely and compacts... I'll carry on like this as it seems to be working quite nicely 😊


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## Archie_tect (17 Sep 2021)

jowwy said:


> Damp course on a garden wall????


Needs something to stop salt leaching through the wall- normally 2 or three courses of engineering brick or FL quality brick [150mm above lower finished ground level with a french drain or perforated pipe set in gravel behind to prevent water pressure build-up- though on a wall less than 600mm change in level that's probably overkill... easy alternative is to paint the back of the block wall with bitumen paint before back-filling to stop it absorbing water and staining- [you'd need a weep hole or 25mm pipe every 2m or so to let water through].

Continuous block wall without any staggers in it will need an expansion joint ideally every 6 metres [9 to 12 metres in brickwork].

As with all CC posts... best ask a local friendly engineer for advice who's seen it.

[Edit: just seen JB's photos- vertical joint between exg low wall and the new one'll allow for any movement/ expansion. John are you using galv or stainless ties to tie the block leaf and the brick facing together?]

[Edit 2: just saw the ties set in the blockwork!!- neat job]


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## JhnBssll (17 Sep 2021)

All good advice, and I did consider drainage, but since the wall slopes down I figured the water level would never be high enough for it to be an issue. Regarding staining of the bricks at least it will then match the existing wall  If it needs rebuilding again in future my neighbour can pay for it next time, it's his wall afterall


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## Archie_tect (17 Sep 2021)

You could put some waterproofer in the mix as a 10mm parge coat between the blocks and bricks... or paint the blocks with bitumen paint before you wall it up with bricks.


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## JhnBssll (17 Sep 2021)

I've got some sbr, maybe I'll water some down and paint it over the blocks. Gotta be better than nothing


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## JhnBssll (18 Sep 2021)

I laid out 150 bricks this morning, lets call it a stretched target 






I'm 1 mix and 24 bricks in so far and have just stopped for a bite to eat - getting close to the target would mean 5 mixes this afternoon which is quite achievable time-wise but I'm not so sure about energy-wise as I already ache from yesterday 






There's rain forecast tomorrow which is a good incentive to get as much done as possible this afternoon as I won't get much of a chance to do more for a while. I need to shift my attention back to the kitchen in the next week or two as the new units are due to arrive and I've got more prep to do - a floor to tile, water pipes to reroute and replace, oven electric supply to move etc etc  I don't make life easy for myself sometimes  It'll be worth it in the end


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## Colin Grigson (18 Sep 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I laid out 150 bricks this morning, lets call it a stretched target
> 
> View attachment 609795
> 
> ...


Your bricklaying is considerably better than the ‘bricklayers’ I have on site - love how thorough you are in everything you do


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## JhnBssll (18 Sep 2021)

Thanks mate, I hold myself to high standards and often fall short so its nice when others point out that actually I'm doing a half decent job of it  My neighbour came out today and told me I was doing a good job, and that his dad used to be a bricklayer so thats a pretty good endorsement  Trouble is, bricklayers lay upwards of 600 bricks a day and I have completely knackered myself today laying just 158  6 mixes in total today so averaging around 26 bricks per mix 😊

Here is the wall as it stands this evening:






By my calculations I've got 128 bricks left to lay to complete the wall, so that's another 5 mixes of mortar and another full-ish day of bricklaying before I can move on to building my own stuff again


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## JhnBssll (19 Sep 2021)

The weather forecast has been looking ominous all day but no rain has materialised as yet - I'm super glad I pressed ahead with the bricklaying as I'd be pretty annoyed about now if I had called it off 

I didn't set myself a target today, just went mix by mix to see how much I could get done before the heavens opened and I had to cover it all up 






Spoiler - I finished it 😄 5 mixes done today 😊 Here's the finished wall!
















Very pleased with my weekends work, and pleased to be back at the desk job tomorrow for a bit of a rest after approx 20hrs of bricklaying this weekend including Friday afternoon  

It needs topping off so I'll have a look for some coping stones to match those on the original wall it butts up to. It's not a priority but I'm worried if I leave it too long the neighbour will cap it off with something he finds in a hedgerow


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## Colin Grigson (19 Sep 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> The weather forecast has been looking ominous all day but no rain has materialised as yet - I'm super glad I pressed ahead with the bricklaying as I'd be pretty annoyed about now if I had called it off
> 
> I didn't set myself a target today, just went mix by mix to see how much I could get done before the heavens opened and I had to cover it all up
> 
> ...


Great job you’ve done there John


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## neil_merseyside (19 Sep 2021)

Frogs up where you live then  
Still not as controversial as jam or cream first on a scone (sc on or is that a sc own).


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## JhnBssll (19 Sep 2021)

As I understood it, frogs up is the correct way and frogs down is the quick way which also saves mortar? The wall I took out was frogs down in places but that seemed a bit silly for a retaining wall that needs to be as strong as possible  That's what I was told anyway, would be interested to hear if I've been misled


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## Archie_tect (20 Sep 2021)

Frogs up- locks the wall together... some bricklayers [usually working piece work on national housebuilder sites got into the habit of laying facings frogs down with two thin strips of mortar on a bed and two thin strips on the end joints [and hardly any if at all at all on vertical joints on internal blockwork- suppose it left a good key for browning plaster].

The worst case was a Wimpey site some years ago where internal 100 thick masonry walls had blocks laid leaving a half block gap between every block so you had a honeycomb effect with staggered 220 wide holes up the wall so each block had 110 bearing either side with holes below and above... once the plasterboards were up you couldn't tell except there was no sound deadening between rooms!


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## JhnBssll (22 Sep 2021)

I cheated a bit 😄 The guys I've hired to drop the kerb helped me out this morning with their mini-digger and dug out the remaining spoil. This will get taken away on Friday leaving me free to continue laying the edge blocks and finish the fence 😊







I've started thinking about the kitchen with the first job being installation of new 22mm mains water pipework. The current pipework is a real mess...






The plan will be to strip this all out then run 22mm from the stopcock around the room, branching off to serve the sink, washing machine and dishwasher, round to the other corner of the room. I'll then run 22mm up to the combi boiler and bathroom upstairs, 15mm to the new downstairs loo and 15mm to the new fridge/freezer for its water chiller and ice dispenser  Unless I change my mind while I'm doing it, or come across any game changers


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## Arrowfoot (22 Sep 2021)

Truly impressive. Fabulous job. Not just the hardwork and skills but the eye for design and details. I won't be surprised if there is general unrest amongst the neighbours about the inadequacies of some partners. I would avoid the local for the next few years.


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## Drago (22 Sep 2021)

I just hope Mrs D doesn't see this - it makes me look very inadequate!


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## JhnBssll (22 Sep 2021)

haha thanks both  I get moaned at for making a mess so it's not really appreciated most of the time. Perhaps if I did one project at a time instead of destroying the whole house it would be looked upon differently 

I put two more fence panels up this evening after work 😄











I'll tweak the height and level of the barge boards and fence panels before they're fixed in place when I concrete the edge blocks in place


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## JhnBssll (23 Sep 2021)

I spoke to the kitchen company today, bad news again  The HGV driver shortage has screwed up their delivery schedule so the kitchen that was originally due this week then delayed to next week has now been pushed back to the week of 11th October  Mrs Bssll isn't going to be best pleased, another 2 weeks with no kitchen and the house in disarray. On the bright side, it wasn't my fault this time


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## Gunk (24 Sep 2021)

You could always offer to collect it, you’ve got a van 🤣


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## JhnBssll (24 Sep 2021)

The last load of rubble went today 😊 Earlier I went out to walk the perimeter (doesnt take long) and couldn't believe how big the garden is looking now compared to before. OK, I know it's only little, but a year ago I was measuring up and there seemed barely enough room to park a car down the side yet now there seems to be plenty  I still had the old measurements from where I'd calculated how many blocks I needed for the drive so figured I'd check - I knew I had made a bit more space with the fence and retaining wall arrangement but was in for a small shock...

Previously I had calculated the driveway at 31.5 square meters - each pack of blocks covers 8.08 so 4 packs would have been enough for 32.3 square meters, barely enough for cuts and cock ups but I had a contingency plan using some spare slate slabs. It now comes out at 35.5 square meters, so I've gained 4 square meters since I last measured, over 10% of extra driveway  I've just had to order another pack of blocks to make up the extra 

Anyway, this is where we are this evening 😊 The end is in sight for the driveway! The dropped kerb is all systems go for Monday/Tuesday next week 😊


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## neil_merseyside (24 Sep 2021)

You'll soon have it finished and be ready to move to another house!


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## bikingdad90 (25 Sep 2021)

My bets are on @Colin Grigson finishing and moving in before @JhnBssll! 😂😂


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## JhnBssll (25 Sep 2021)

bikingdad90 said:


> My bets are on @Colin Grigson finishing and moving in before @JhnBssll! 😂😂



I don't think there's much doubt there, you wouldn't get very good odds 

We chose a kitchen worktop style and bought some floor tiles today  We've gone for a quartz worktop called Flannel - a mottled light grey with a matt finish. The majority of the surfaces were super shiny and we weren't too keen on that. We've gone for a similar finish but dark grey floor tile  I've got Monday off work so will likely try and put them down then - I'll need to pop the cement boards back up and put a bit of tile adhesive under them before I lay the tiles but now they're all cut to size that won't take long 






I spent a few hours this afternoon looking at walls and mulling over pipe routes. Mrs Bssll was very pleased to see the modification I have made to the stairs... The carpet and underlay will be going so I dont need to be too careful, it is one of the last remaining ones that were in the house when we bought it and has definitely seen better days 






I've made a start, popping a few holes through in to the void under the stairs so I could poke this bit of copper pipe through...






This gives me something to connect up to when I put the water feed in for the new downstairs loo  I'll do the same for the hot water, and will be running the heating flow and return through here too 

This is what it looks like on the other side of the wall - not much progress today, but I'll try and do a bit more tomorrow 😊






The vertical 22mm pipe in the left hand corner will eventually run up the wall, through the ceiling and directly in to the airing cupboard and will be the new mains water feed for everything upstairs, including the combi boiler. Where it reduces from 22 to 15mm on the horizontal run is where it goes through the wall to come out under the stairs. The 15mm continues all to the isolator valve on the right which will be where the fridge freezer plumbs in  I'll be modifiying the area where the cold pipe crosses the two 10mm heating pipes when I drain the heating down - I've made some little fittings to connect the hoses of the plinth heater, you can see one of them a little better in this close up...






Plenty more to do - I'll run 22mm along the back wall of the kitchen next, stopping near the stopcock for connection at a later date. Then I need to pop the floor up in the airing cupboard and work out what the hell I'm going to do up there to connect it all up, and equally important, how I'm going to disconnect the old mains feed and make good  I'm quite sure the previous owner will have left booby traps, all fun and games...


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## Drago (25 Sep 2021)

I like the load bearing Sharpie.


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## neil_merseyside (26 Sep 2021)

I'd sleeve that 15mm pipe in the wall


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## JhnBssll (26 Sep 2021)

neil_merseyside said:


> I'd sleeve that 15mm pipe in the wall



Good shout, I just read up about copper and concrete  Every day's a school day, thanks!  I'll use some bits of the 22mm pipe to sleeve the 15mm, should do the trick


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## JhnBssll (26 Sep 2021)

I sleeved it 







The other holes are, er, ventilation?


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## jowwy (26 Sep 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I sleeved it
> 
> View attachment 610963
> 
> ...


Every house needs ventilation john lol


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## ClichéGuevara (26 Sep 2021)

Here's how you build a wall.  


View: https://twitter.com/momentoviral/status/1441482079569686528


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## JhnBssll (26 Sep 2021)

Bit more progress but I've had to finish before I really wanted too as I've run out of 15mm pipe 

22mm mains cold water extended up to the first floor, terminated with a 1/4 turn ball valve just in case I ever need to isolate everything upstairs:






Mains cold water, hot water and heating flow & return extended in to the void under the stairs to serve the downstairs loo:






And then heres the spaghetti junction of pipes in the corner of the kitchen. The bottom here will be behind a corner unit, the pipes running up the wall will be boxed in again 






I've terminated the heating flow and return pipes above the worktop level, so the kitchen and worktop can go in without my having to worry about making the final connections if I've not had time to progress the downstairs loo - I'll need the floor up and internal walls built before I can finish the heating pipework.






I'll run the heating 15mm pipe up the wall when I get an opportunity, but pleased with todays progress.


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## jowwy (26 Sep 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Bit more progress but I've had to finish before I really wanted too as I've run out of 15mm pipe
> 
> 22mm mains cold water extended up to the first floor, terminated with a 1/4 turn ball valve just in case I ever need to isolate everything upstairs:
> 
> ...


How many projects you got on the go now lol ?


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## Drago (27 Sep 2021)

You building a turdis under the stairs?@


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## JhnBssll (27 Sep 2021)

No turdis I'm afraid - the new bog will be sectioned off from the now larger hall way, making use of the extra 3m2 the extension has given us 

I nearly got the tiling done today - just a little bit behind the back door that I couldn't get to without taking the door off, and since it was already dark I decided to give that a miss 

I had to pull up the backer board first and put a thin bed of tile adhesive under it, just enough to fill the voids and ensure its fully supported...






I had to work a strip at a time so I wasn't walking on any wet adhesive which frankly was a pain 











This is where I got to this evening - not many tiles left to put down, but almost all of them are cuts so it won't be quick 

I prefer this view as it looks more finished 






I'll try and get the last few tiles cut and laid tomorrow evening, then I can work out when to grout them


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## irw (27 Sep 2021)

@JhnBssll How do you intend to finish the ends of your 'metro' style wall tiles please? I'm keen to use this style in our kitchen, but any that I've seen in the 'real world' all seem to have pretty messy ends with regards to the final full tile/horizontal grout/cut tile and trim interface.


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## JhnBssll (27 Sep 2021)

These wall tiles will be coming down - I put them up 4 or 5 years ago when we gave the old kitchen a bit of a face-lift to get a few more years out of it  As you rightly point out, the ends and corners were tricky with the bevelled edge as a cut tile end will be thicker than an uncut tile end. I used plastic beading on all edges and corners and did my best to even it up when grouting. I'll take some pics when I can walk on the floor and get close


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## neil_merseyside (28 Sep 2021)

With metro tiles it's best to have exposed copper pipes/bad grout to draw the eye from the annoying edges, works in bogs as everyone always stares studiously ahead


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## JhnBssll (28 Sep 2021)

I finished putting the tiles down after work this evening. It was dark and raining while I made the last few cuts so I was fairly pleased to get it done  Tomorrow evening will be a quick wipe down and then grouting! 











In other exciting news the drop kerb is progressing well 😊 They cut the tarmac surface and dug half of it up this morning, leaving half for pedestrian access. After lunch they dug out the old kerb stones and put in the new ones then partially backfilled. Tomorrow morning they'll dig up the rest of the old tarmac then lay the new stuff 











Should be all done by lunchtime, just need to finish the kitchen so I crack on with the driveway now


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## JhnBssll (29 Sep 2021)

Comedy moment this morning as the guys realise they've lost the keys to the roller that's parked on their trailer... they rocked up at 7.05am to crack on and admitted defeat at about 9.15am when the roller finally sprung to life, about half an hour too late to collect any tarmac  They'll be back in the morning to finish off 

Despite being stuck in calls til nearly 7 this evening I've managed to get the grout in and wiped. Just waiting for it to go off a bit more before I give it a final wipe over, but I'm pleased with how it's looking. The gunmetal grout is a very close match to the light grey of the new worktop that will be going in


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## JhnBssll (30 Sep 2021)

The kitchen floor is solid now, really pleased with it  I'll start moving things back in later this evening and turn the storage room back in to a living room  Here's the floor after 3 wipe downs, still slightly hazy in places but that'll clean up with a good mopping now the grout is cured 






They didnt lose the roller keys overnight this time so the dropped kerb has now been finished 






Not the neatest of joins between old and new, but pretty tricky when you get close up and realise how bad the existing tarmac is - cracked, patched and lumpy all over  Oh well, when the council get round to doing the paths again it'll get neatened up, which might still be within my lifetime...


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## JhnBssll (5 Oct 2021)

I spoke to DIY kitchens again yesterday to check the situation regarding our latest delivery date. Irritatingly it has slipped again by at least another 4 days but is still slipping so could be another few weeks away unless they get their driver shortage problems under control  Most frustrating! I haven't had a chance to do any work on the house or drive in the last few days and won't get time for another week or so but when I do get some time I now won't have a kitchen to fit  Could be an excuse to push on with the driveway I guess


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## bikingdad90 (5 Oct 2021)

@JhnBssll might be worth checking the contract for force majeure clauses and any liquidation damage clauses to see if you can press for a price reduction and “force” them into getting the kitchen delivered quicker? If they are going to lose a few £££ it might be enough to bump you up the line.


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## JhnBssll (5 Oct 2021)

At times like this when progress is slow its easy to get frustrated, so it was nice of Google maps to give me a timely reminder of just how far we've come in 12 months with this image from street view earlier... 😄







Not far to go now 😊


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## JhnBssll (12 Oct 2021)

We've been on holiday in the fabulous Isles of Scilly for the last week or so which has meant zero progress but a very much needed break 😊 We drove back from Lands End airport yesterday and after a good night's sleep to recover from the gruelling drive I'm back at it afresh today 😊

First job was to re-do some of the plumbing that had been niggling at me all week. I knew I'd got a cold solder joint on one of the hot water 15mm tee's - I'd fitted them up and forgotten to disassemble and flux one of the joints before hitting it with the blow torch. I could tell immediately, but since I'd run out of pipe and it was late in the evening I'd left it for another day. I cut out the offending pipework and came up with a slightly neater way of routing the pipes, its now all sweated up so this little corner is essentially finished 😊






I've yet to connect the risers, the two left hand pipes are the heating flow and return and will eventually connect via a tee to the main 22mm flow and return in the corner. The third open ended pipe is the hot water which will continue up the wall and go in to the airing cupboard to connect up there.






I've fitted quarter turn valves to the new flow and return pipes under the stairs, ready to connect the new heating pipework once the downstairs loo is built 😊 Along with the hot and cold pipes this means I've got everything through to where it needs to be now so the kitchen can go in once it arrives.






In another exciting development, the block splitter I ordered whilst on my hols has just arrived 😊






Theres not a great deal more plumbing I can do until MrsBssll is out of the house as it will mean turning the water and heating off and draining everything down, so I'll likely get the mixer out shortly and lay some blocks - I've got a fifth pallet of them arriving today so I should really start getting them down


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## jowwy (12 Oct 2021)

are you not using the new pre-soldered joints john that just need heating up or are you soldering yourself??


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## JhnBssll (12 Oct 2021)

Yeah I'm using fittings with the solder rings inside but you still need to clean and flux the joint before you push them together and heat them up for the solder to flow nicely. I cleaned them all but forgot the flux on one joint so the solder melted but didn't fill properly. It might have held, but it was easier to change it now than once everything else was connected up and full of water  I've got some extra solder and had tried fluxing and adding more to the old joint to fill it up, but it started getting messy pretty quickly


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## ClichéGuevara (12 Oct 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> At times like this when progress is slow its easy to get frustrated, so it was nice of Google maps to give me a timely reminder of just how far we've come in 12 months with this image from street view earlier... 😄
> 
> View attachment 612312
> 
> ...



That looks lovely John. Is that the design you're going for next?


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## JhnBssll (12 Oct 2021)

ClichéGuevara said:


> That looks lovely John. Is that the design you're going for next?



Yeah once I've finished the drive, kitchen and garage I'll start dismantling the new porch  I'll probably bury the driveway in top soil then turf over it, so when we want a driveway again I can just dig it up...


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## JhnBssll (15 Oct 2021)

Right, tomorrow morning I shall be draining down the heating. I've made a start, so as far as I can tell all I need to do first thing is open the drain cock then slowly open the rad bleeds starting from the highest and working my way down... How long it takes to drain an entire heating system is anyones guess though 

I've turned the heating off at the mains so the pipes will be nice and cold. I've connected a hose to the drain cock. I've even got some Fernox to dose it with when I come to refill it... 

I got a little bored watching TV this evening so started cutting bits of copper to length and have cleaned the old pipes to a nice coppery shine ready to cut chunks out of them 






Once the heating has been refilled I'll be turning the water off and finishing off the mains water pipework  Once that's been rerouted I'll do the hot water pipework last 😊 And when all that's done, I'll start on moving the electrics 

What could possibly go wrong? Tune in tomorrow to find out


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## Jenkins (15 Oct 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> <snip>
> What could possibly go wrong? Tune in tomorrow to find out


It's almost worth popping up to The Crown and sitting outside with a couple of pints to watch & find out. What time do you start?


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## irw (16 Oct 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Right, tomorrow morning I shall be draining down the heating. I've made a start, so as far as I can tell *all I need to do* first thing is open the drain cock then slowly open the rad bleeds starting from the highest and working my way down... *How long it takes* to drain an entire heating system is anyones guess though
> ...
> What could possibly go wrong? Tune in tomorrow to find out



If it's a vented system, don't forget to close off the inlet valve on the expansion tank, or you might be waiting a while for it to empty...!


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## JhnBssll (16 Oct 2021)

irw said:


> If it's a vented system, don't forget to close off the inlet valve on the expansion tank, or you might be waiting a while for it to empty...!



It's not, just a very small pressurised combi system. Hopefully won't take long once I can start. Predictably it was decreed that the hot water had to come back on this morning so I'm now waiting to start


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## neil_merseyside (16 Oct 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> It's not, just a very small pressurised combi system. Hopefully won't take long once I can start. Predictably it was decreed that the hot water had to come back on this morning so I'm now waiting to start


I augmented the original drain cock with extra fast drain points, basically teed off somewhere accesible, one branch low downstairs, the other at first floor level. I used quarter turn full bore isolators, so with a bit of hose (+jubilee clip) the sections drains very quickly compared to a standard drain cock, attach hose and crack open valve, go and drink tea.
The first floor drain is just below radiator level and means I can swap a valve/trv/radiator[1] easily without having to guess how much to drop the system through a tiny drain point. The downstairs extra drain is not quite lowest point but again allows valve/rad swapping, the original drain can still be used should I want a lower level.

[1] I turn radiators off with lockshield[2] and the decorators cap on TRV to avoid draining any radiators I'm not working on [3]
[2] Do make a note of lockshield setting first.
[3] Refill is quick!


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## bikingdad90 (16 Oct 2021)

Don’t forget to bleed after you refill as there will be some air in the system that needs to be removed! Also check the amount of ferox you need as from memory one bottle does up to about 6/7 radiators which covers a 3 bed house. Most 4 beds need two bottles.

As your draining down you could unhook the radiators off the wall and give them a clean out too? Bit more work but would give you a nice clean system.


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## JhnBssll (16 Oct 2021)

bikingdad90 said:


> Don’t forget to bleed after you refill as there will be some air in the system that needs to be removed! Also check the amount of ferox you need as from memory one bottle does up to about 6/7 radiators which covers a 3 bed house. Most 4 beds need two bottles.
> 
> As your draining down you could unhook the radiators off the wall and give them a clean out too? Bit more work but would give you a nice clean system.



I'm glad I read this AFTER I'd refilled the system as otherwise I would have been tempted to accept more project creep  To be honest the system was flushed fairly recently when the boiler was replaced so there shouldn't be too much muck in there 

So it's gone rather well so far - I've drained down, cut the tee's in, trimmed the rad pipes to fit the new plinth heater and fitted the valves for that and have just refilled the system. There's no water squirting out anywhere yet! 

I'd planned my pipework to maintain access to the drain cock which was handy 






The draincock is the only one I can find on the whole system and is higher than the point I needed to cut the 10mm flow and return for the plinth heater, so I knew I was going to make a mess. I also knew that it wasn't going to spray out so I got everything ready including a big old towel and chopped the first pipe. I was easily able to stem the flow with my thumb over the open end, then quickly pop the pre-prepated (and closed!) valve over the end. Once pushed on there was hardly any water coming through so I was able to nip the nut up without too much haste. Same again for the other one, again it went well with minimal water lost.






Then on to the scary job. I marked the pipe then cut the section out with my multitool. On inspection I decided against the solder tee's - there was a pretty constant drip and I wasn't confident I could get a good joint so used the backup compression tee's I'd ordered just in case.






Same again for the other one before fitting the remaining pipe and fittings. So far I've neither set fire to nor flooded anything 






Time for some lunch now before I consider my next move


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## JhnBssll (16 Oct 2021)

I've got the heating on now, all the rads are up to temperature and there are no leaks so I'll start on the water pipework now. There are a few more bits to do before I turn the water off


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## JhnBssll (16 Oct 2021)

I had a very small drip from one of the compression tee's that I've now nipped up, hasn't dripped for a few hours so should be good. Otherwise no issues so far 😊

I've spent the afternoon doing all the bits I can to minimise the time the water is off and I plan to make the connections tomorrow - I don't want to start it this evening when everything's closed and find I need a skyhook or wotsnim from screwfix 

The main task was getting the pipework ready under the sink, so Ive extended the 22mm cold water pipework around and tee'd off for the new dishwasher suppy, new outside tap supply and new cold sink tap supply. I've also finished off the 15mm hot by bringing it up and over the 22mm cold pipe and finishing in a full bore isolator valve.






Essentially in the picture above the low level stuff is new and will stay, the high level stuff is all old and being replaced. The two 15mm pipes going vertically up near the corner at the top of the photo are the existing hot and cold risers to serve upstairs so will be defunct and capped at high level. They'll be fully removed when I do the bathroom above the kitchen as having seen the state of it I'll be re-plumbing everything in there too 

I've made up most of the pipe and fittings ready to do the changeover in the morning so it shouldn't take too long, it all depends how many leaks I've got once the water is back on 






The pipe that goes under the floor is the one I installed a while back which serves the washing machine in the larder cupboard. I'll cut it off below the capped tee and then fit a new isolator at the same height as the others. Once the new kitchen unit is in I'll mark and drill access holes so the valves can be operated 

I'm quite enjoying plumbing so far but I'll be pretty relieved when its all done and the house is still dry


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## JhnBssll (16 Oct 2021)

I've made the pipework up ready to do the connections in the airing cupboard now too 😊







The pipe going away from the photo goes up the wall and into the boiler - this is the cold supply for the hot water and the filling loop. The pipe going off to the left serves the bath, toilet and sink in the bathroom 😊 I think I might clean the debris out before I spark the blow torch up in there 

Just need to sort the new hot water pipework out now - another hole to be drilled through the kitchen ceiling


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## JhnBssll (17 Oct 2021)

I changed the supply over this morning to the new pipework - everything seems fine so thats a great relief 

Heres the new pipework connected under the sink in the kitchen:






And the old pipework cut and capped:






And heres the connection upstairs...






The flow to the bath tap is much improved but the flow to the sink tap has reduced, no doubt there's some horrible bodgery of pipework under the bath to discover next  I'll be leaving that for another day though 

Next job now that's done is to connect up the new hot water pipework to the kitchen


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## JhnBssll (17 Oct 2021)

I've had a productive afternoon  I've connected up the new hot water pipework, the shiny 15mm pipe at the back of the photo tee's in to the existing hot water pipework as it exits the boiler then runs across and down in to the kitchen to serve the kitchen sink and new downstairs loo.






I've also disconnected the old sink and redundant pipework then ripped out the last of the worktops, all of which are now at the local tip  The kitchen is looking quite empty now  I still have to reconnect the outside tap pipework but that shouldn't take long.











I've just spent a few minutes popping some cheap foam insulation over the cold water pipework where it will be next to the heating and boxed in...






So next job will be to finish stripping the tiles. I started before I went to the tip but didnt get them all down before i had to leave to make my appointment. It didnt help that the glass splash back exploded on removal, showering me with thousands of glass spears and leaving my arm looking like I'd ridden through a bramble bush  I had to clean it up as best i could then have a quick shower to get the glass off me  Next time I have to do that job I'll be stick something on the glass first 

Once the tiles are off I'll strip and rewire the electrics 😊 I'm pretty comfortable with electrics so that's an easy if time consuming job


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## newts (17 Oct 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I've had a productive afternoon  I've connected up the new hot water pipework, the shiny 15mm pipe at the back of the photo tee's in to the existing hot water pipework as it exits the boiler then runs across and down in to the kitchen to serve the kitchen sink and new downstairs loo.
> 
> View attachment 614066
> 
> ...


You'll need to check your household insurance still covers you after DIY electrics. Rewiring circuits is notifiable under part P regulations to local building control (especially kitchens & bathrooms), would need to be fully tested to get a certificate of compliance.


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## JhnBssll (17 Oct 2021)

newts said:


> You'll need to check your household insurance still covers you after DIY electrics. Rewiring circuits is notifiable under part P regulations to local building control (especially kitchens & bathrooms), would need to be fully tested to get a certificate of compliance.



Yup, we're having the consumer unit replaced by a qualified electrician after it's all done which will require testing of all circuits so we'll be fully compliant  Very good point though.


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## CXRAndy (18 Oct 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Yup, we're having the consumer unit replaced by a qualified electrician after it's all done which will require testing of all circuits so we'll be fully compliant  Very good point though.


Go with RCBO breakers. Each circuit then can have 25mAmps earth leakage. 

We had random tripping of our RCD on our 15 yr old consumer with one RCD. I checked each circuit and found no excessive leakage, but the total for the house leakage was 25mA, just enough to randomly trip the RCD and take out the whole house.


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## cyberknight (19 Oct 2021)

on our local facefluff page is someones extension that they didnt even get planning permission for and by the sound of it they were trying to pull a fast one with the materials used so they didnt have to class it as a permanent fixture


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## Broadside (19 Oct 2021)

With a decent breeze they will be proved right that it is not a permanent structure!!


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## CXRAndy (19 Oct 2021)

cyberknight said:


> on our local facefluff page is someones extension that they didnt even get planning permission for and by the sound of it they were trying to pull a fast one with the materials used so they didnt have to class it as a permanent fixture
> View attachment 614213


That looks like its been built on the rear yard wall. I bet it doesn't have more than a few inches of concrete under the original wall


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## JhnBssll (20 Oct 2021)

The new Kitchen units finally arrived on Monday evening, unfortunately several bits have been damaged in transit  Two of the base units are damaged, one of which isn't salvageable. The other is the corner unit that needs to go in first so I'll try and make do with it, it won't be visible once it's fitted and should be well away from any moisture. The unsalvageable one is the sink unit where there's a big chunk split out around a screw head, very disappointing. One length of plinth also needs replacing because the paint has rubbed off and both lengths of cornice are completely missing  The company get great reviews and I know several people that have used them without any problems so looks like we've just been unlucky but it's extremely frustrating - it'll likely delay having a working kitchen by at least another few weeks as they'll have to make the replacement units and ship them


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## JhnBssll (23 Oct 2021)

So after a super busy week at work I managed to do some more in the kitchen today. Plumbing and electrics are all sorted, the only thing left to do now is start moving units in 











I didn't have to do anything too drastic to the electrics, just move a few sockets, although yet again I have had to fix multiple 'surprises' left by the previous owner. In no particular order we have...

Diagonal oven cable routing 






In the photo above you can also see the wall is chased out for 2 double backboxes next to each other - at some point they had moved the oven isolator switch to the left and extended the cables with chocblock connectors, then buried the original right hand box behind the splashback - chocblocks and all  I'm pretty pleased I found that particular treat and made it safe 

Next is another example of fine workmanship - this is apparently how you convert a single socket to a double 






They'd also daisychained sockets so rather than a single spur off the ring in some cases there were two or three spurs off spurs  I've sorted that too 

So not only is the kitchen ready to receive its units, but it's also less likely to spontaneously combust


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## Colin Grigson (24 Oct 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> So after a super busy week at work I managed to do some more in the kitchen today. Plumbing and electrics are all sorted, the only thing left to do now is start moving units in
> 
> View attachment 614838
> 
> ...


I hope the bodges were confined to the kitchen … I’d wonder about the rest of the house too if they’ve ‘improved’ that as well - cracking work you’re doing … as usual


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## JhnBssll (24 Oct 2021)

Colin Grigson said:


> I hope the bodges were confined to the kitchen … I’d wonder about the rest of the house too if they’ve ‘improved’ that as well - cracking work you’re doing … as usual



They have 'improved' things throughout the whole house I'm afraid  I'm slowly working my way through them, there are a few other areas of concern but by the time I finish this project I should have tackled the majority of them


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## JhnBssll (24 Oct 2021)

It's amazing how quickly the room transforms once you start putting the units back in! This is todays progress...






I stopped for the day midway through fitting the plinth heater. Its connected but theres a small drip from one of the threaded joints so I've isolated the valves and will investigate again when I've got a bit more energy  I find these problems are generally much easier to solve at the start of a day than at the end  Once the leak is sorted I'll wire it to the flex outlet behind the double oven opening and when thats done I'll fit the double oven 😊 There's a single oven/microwave/grill combi job going above the double oven but that hasn't arrived yet. The induction hob will be above the drawers on the left, its a 13A 3-pin plug jobby so will be pretty straightforward to fit - I've hidden a single socket in the back of the drawer unit for the job 

I have found more damaged items today but fortunately I've been able to work around them fairly succesfully so far 

Anyway, I'm pleased with how its coming together. Plenty more still to do though


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## JhnBssll (26 Oct 2021)

I wasn't feeling top drawer yesterday so had an evening off  This evening I was back at it, taking the tall unit out and sorting the plinth heater connections. Predictably it was the threaded connections that were dripping so I reassembled them with a bit if jointing compound and they're no longer dripping 😋






I slid the tall unit back in to place and screwed it back to the wall and then connected the plinth heater cable to the flex outlet. It works rather well - once the heating gets over a certain temperature the internal thermostat clicks and turns the fan on, blowing nice warm air at your feet 😊






I'll cut the plinths to fit later once the other units are in, when they arrive 

With the heater in and no leaks I wired the oven in and slid it in to place. It's only held in with a couple of screws but seems solid 😊






There's a single oven/microwave going above that one, should be reet posh when it's done  I'm aiming for maximum brownie points with this one...


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## bikingdad90 (26 Oct 2021)

@JhnBssll, I see you still have baby locks on the fridge-freezer. Is that to keep you out the fridge and hard at work, can never open the dam things. Ha ha 😂😂


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## JhnBssll (26 Oct 2021)

bikingdad90 said:


> @JhnBssll, I see you still have baby locks on the fridge-freezer. Is that to keep you out the fridge and hard at work, can never open the dam things. Ha ha 😂😂



We don't even have kids  I fitted them about 18 months ago to settle an argument after the fridge was left open yet again and all the food spoiled... Someone was adamant that it opened itself, seemingly always after the wine had been retrieved. I fitted the child locks to prevent this magic self-opening and yet somehow it stills happens 😋 A mystery we'll surely never solve


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## Tenacious Sloth (27 Oct 2021)

Excuse my ignorance, but what is a plinth heater for?


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## jowwy (27 Oct 2021)

Tenacious Sloth said:


> Excuse my ignorance, but what is a plinth heater for?


to help with low level heat around your feet.......were a radiator cant be used, as sometimes kitchen floors are cold with tiles being used rather than nice warm comfy carpet


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## ClichéGuevara (27 Oct 2021)

Tenacious Sloth said:


> Excuse my ignorance, but what is a plinth heater for?



Keeping your plinth warm.


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## JhnBssll (27 Oct 2021)

I had to take the radiator out to maximise wall space, it's not a big kitchen. It was also right next to the location of the new fridge freezer which isn't ideal. The plinth heater just replaces the radiator and takes up dead space under the units rather than valuable wall space


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## Tenacious Sloth (27 Oct 2021)

ClichéGuevara said:


> Keeping your plinth warm.



There is always one smart arse! 

I was going to show my previous post to my wife and bet her that someone would give this reply…

But obviously I couldn’t show her one of John’s threads as she might start expecting me to do a similar level of DIY.


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## JhnBssll (28 Oct 2021)

We went out for a nice meal this evening with my parents, returning around 9.20pm. 10 minutes later a DIY-Kitchens van parked up outside and delivered the replacement sink corner unit  I couldn't help but feel for the driver who is now parking up at a local hotel only to start again in the morning... The van was full of damaged items being returned too so they've obviously got some fairly significant problems right now 

I unpacked it immediately and couldn't resist a test fit 







It's coming together slowly  The arrival of this unit means I can now do a little more plumbing over the weekend and get this bolted to the wall, with suitable holes cut in the back for access to the isolation valves and drainage etc. Exciting times...


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## JhnBssll (30 Oct 2021)

I have spent most of the day in the kitchen fettling the new sink unit  This one is a tad more tricky to get in and I'm determined to get it as neat as possible  The new composite sink arrived this morning which helped significantly as I was no longer working off drawings and had something to physically lift in and out.

The sink unit's as standard have less structure than the normal units to allow space for services. If, like me, you are wanting to install a composite under-counter sink and don't have a worktop to bond it to yet this causes a minor issue  I knew I was going to have to modify it somehow so I'd kept the original damaged unit to rob for materials 

First off I positioned the unit where it needed to go and marked/cut/drilled holes in the back to line up with the stopcock and isolation valves. With the unit in position and with the help of mrsbssll we then worked out exactly where we wanted the sink and tap to be before I started chopping the unit about  Next job was to mark, cut and route the front crossmember to support the front of the sink...






This left the crossmember fairly thin at the front above the door opening, so I cut a length of material from the old unit and glued/screwed it underneath at the top of the door opening to reinforce it. I then had to support the back of the sink - I figured the easiest way to achieve this would be to cut a strip off the shelf from the old unit and glue/screw it in across the back in the correct position, so that's exactly what I did...






And here it is with the sink test fitted...






Job's a goodun  It seemed solid so I moved on to the next phase, cutting a few more holes for access to a socket where the wine cooler and dishwasher plug in and a hole for the dishwasher waste pipe, plus a hole for the main sink waste. At this point I also extended the hot and cold pipework up above the back of the unit ready to attach the tap connectors  With this all done I moved it back in to position, levelled it and screwed it in place 😄






The sink came with a kit of parts to make up the waste system so I got to work mocking that up this evening, unfortunately I'm 2 elbows short of finishing it but pleased with progress none the less. It's certainly tidier than the old pipework +






Here it is when I'd finished for the day. I've got the end panel to cut and fit and will also try and get the dishwasher door and fill panel done tomorrow 😊


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## irw (31 Oct 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> The sink came with a kit of parts to make up the waste system so I got to work mocking that up this evening, unfortunately I'm 2 elbows short of finishing it but pleased with progress none the less. It's certainly tidier than the old pipework +
> 
> View attachment 615717



Don't forget to take into account that when you fit the worktop, the waste pipes will sit 40mm (or however thick your worktop will be) higher!

DAMHIKT


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## JhnBssll (31 Oct 2021)

irw said:


> Don't forget to take into account that when you fit the worktop, the waste pipes will sit 40mm (or however thick your worktop will be) higher!
> 
> DAMHIKT



It's ok, we're safe - it's an under-counter sink so will be bonded to the underside of the worktop not the top, it's in it's final position now 😊

I decided to fit the dishwasher door earlier so that's done now too


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## Gunk (31 Oct 2021)

Looking good John, don’t you usually fit the handle to door before attaching it to the dishwasher?


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## JhnBssll (31 Oct 2021)

Gunk said:


> Looking good John, don’t you usually fit the handle to door before attaching it to the dishwasher?



That would be the normal order of events, yes. Unfortunately our chief handle chooser has been shirking their duties so I've fitted the door without for now. The dishwasher was quite flexible without this fitted and I was concerned it would get damaged if used without for too long  Having worked with the handle chooser before I'm aware it could be some time before a decision is reached 😋


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## bikingdad90 (31 Oct 2021)

My advice would be to always buy spares for the future when you inevitably can’t find a new one as it’s no longer made!! DAMHIKT!


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## JhnBssll (31 Oct 2021)

Fitted a micro-worktop today, I think it might catch on... 






Next job filler panels


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## JhnBssll (31 Oct 2021)

I've finished the filler panel between the sink and dishwasher now  Pretty pleased with how it's come out!







The end panel by the wine cooler has been cut to length but needs cutting to height and fitting - I'll do this another day though 😊 Ready for plinths now! I'll contact the worktop place later and book a templating visit too  Once the plinths are cut and fitted I can make the filler panel for the end of the wall units and box the pipework in the get the pelmet and cornice cut and fitted 

I'm glad this tap is temporary, it is awful  The flowrate is great but it shoots out in all directions  Not ideal when there's no worktop, jolly glad I sealed the cut ends now


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## MichaelW2 (31 Oct 2021)

I had some Gutex wood fibre insulation sheets left over from an under floor upgrade. I was storing them in the loft conversion bedroom but needed them out of the way. I had sawn an access panel to the closed off loft space earlier in the year and figured that I could squeeze them through. Why not store them as loft insulation. I just laid them over the rafters, not between, mostly 2 layers of 40mm fibre.


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## JhnBssll (2 Nov 2021)

The microwave/combi oven arrived yesterday so thats fitted now 😊 I need to fit the filler panel above it to close the gap but that's not a priority right now - the worktop company are coming to template on Monday so I need to finish everything that affects their measurements before I tart around leveling doors and filling holes 😊


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## MontyVeda (3 Nov 2021)

is it the camera angle or does the cooker hood not quite line up with the unit the hob's going on?


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## JhnBssll (3 Nov 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> is it the camera angle or does the cooker hood not quite line up with the unit the hob's going on?



It's not the camera angle, it's miles out  Fortunately its the old one and when the chief cooker hood chooser has made a decision I'll take it down and replace it  It didnt line up with the old hob either but thats another story


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## JhnBssll (3 Nov 2021)

I've got the worktop guys coming over to template on Monday and there's not much more to do in the kitchen until they're done. It'll then be another week or so before they can come back to install the worktop. This, plus news of my new cars imminent arrival, mean my attention has moved back to finishing the driveway. I've got a 4.5 day weekend this week so hope to make the most of it  Ideally I want to get to the stage where all of the edge blocks are concreted in and I'm ready for the crushed stone to be delivered- this shouldn't be too taxing but depends largely on the weather  Fingers crossed its as forecast and the rain stays away until Tuesday  I've got until 2nd December to get it done, no pressure


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## JhnBssll (6 Nov 2021)

I've spent the day out the front doing driveway jobs 😊 Feels good to be making progress on it again!

First task, repair the broken and wonky footpath edging... Not technically mine to repair, but it was going to make my blocks wonky so I made a judgement call 






With the new edging cut to length I mixed some concrete and started laying blocks...






This is where I got to when I finished for the day... I've laid the blocks all along the front and I'm over halfway up the fence line, I'll pick up where I left off tomorrow morning 😊


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## JhnBssll (7 Nov 2021)

More progress today with more block edging complete. I would have finished it but I ran out of aggregate for the concrete.

I've gone up the side of the house as far as I need to go now, under the charging point and meter cupboard with a couple of cuts needed to get around the incoming gas pipe...






I started extending my way up the fence line which is where I ran out of aggregate so cleaned the mixer up and put it away and popped out to get some more ready for tomorrow morning 






Very little still to do as I'm only going as far as the fence post then across to where the edge blocks finish - about 5 meters total including a small section I'm yet to complete elsewhere.

Once the edging is all in the next step will be to get the crushed stone sub base delivered so I'll need everything out of the way - with this in mind and with some time left before it got dark I started shifting some of the remaining blocks round the back. Here's how we're looking now:


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## JhnBssll (8 Nov 2021)

I moved the last of the blocks round the back this morning then cracked on with the edging. I've got it all done now and have just arranged for 6.5 tons of crushed granite to be delivered on Wednesday morning  Father in law has leant me a plate compactor so I won't need to hire one which is jolly handy 






With the blocks gone and after a quick tidy up it's looking much neater out front now 😊 I've got to go collect a van door tomorrow but once thats done I'll be able to chuck the rubbish in the back and cart it off to the tip before the first lot of crushed stone arrives.

The sub base has to be laid in two phases, first a layer of graded 20-4mm crushed rock then a 50mm layer of graded 6-2mm crushed rock, all compacted down in stages to prevent it settling later. Normally blocks are laid on a sand bed but these are permeable so I don't need a drain between the drive and footpath - the crushed stone allows better drainage than sand would.











Pleased with my current progress, nice to see a visible improvement for once


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## JhnBssll (8 Nov 2021)

Oh, and I need to contact the dropped kerb guys about getting their sign removed - I had another chap stop and ask for a quote


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## CXRAndy (9 Nov 2021)

John, is that an aircon mini split on the side of the house?


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## MontyVeda (9 Nov 2021)

When are you gonna do the flashing, and shift that down pipe, and finish off edging the porch roof?

oh... and the van... when you gonna finish the van?


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## Colin Grigson (9 Nov 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> When are you gonna do the flashing, and shift that down pipe, and finish off edging the porch roof?
> 
> oh... and the van... when you gonna finish the van?


You’re going to make someone a wonderful wife


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## jowwy (9 Nov 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> When are you gonna do the flashing, and shift that down pipe, and finish off edging the porch roof?
> 
> oh... and the van... when you gonna finish the van?


and the kitchen, downstairs loo, the garage/man cave and yeh the van.........come in john


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## Tom... (9 Nov 2021)

CXRAndy said:


> John, is that an aircon mini split on the side of the house?



Yes it is


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## JhnBssll (9 Nov 2021)

CXRAndy said:


> John, is that an aircon mini split on the side of the house?



What Tom... said - yeah it is 😊 One of the best investments we've made for a while 



MontyVeda said:


> When are you gonna do the flashing, and shift that down pipe, and finish off edging the porch roof?
> 
> oh... and the van... when you gonna finish the van?



All in good time darling  I've spent the day doing a 350 mile round trip in the van to collect a bargain replacement cargo door with factory fitted window, so that needs swapping on at some point 😄 For now its been put to one side so I could load all the crap from the garden in this evening ready to take to the tip, which means the front is now clear ready for tomorrow's crushed stone delivery 😄 I even raked up most of the leaves but no doubt it'll be full again by morning 😊







I'm going to put an acer tree in a nice big pot in front of the wonky bricks


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## MontyVeda (9 Nov 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> ...
> 
> I'm going to put an acer tree in a nice big pot in front of the wonky bricks


I was thinking (hubby )... just remove/block off the down-lighters. The steps are illuminated anyway...


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## JhnBssll (9 Nov 2021)

To be honest the downlighters were very cheap from screwfix and one of them has started to rust already... I can see them being swapped out in the not too distant future.


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## JhnBssll (10 Nov 2021)

The crushed stone is here 😊 I've roughly levelled the smaller left hand area off already and will do the same to the larger area later. If I get a chance I'll get the whacker on it this evening, otherwise it'll have to wait until tomorrow 😊


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## MontyVeda (11 Nov 2021)

I bet your neighbours are _well jel._


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## irw (11 Nov 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> I bet your neighbours are _well jel._



I think @JhnBssll should get his own advertising board up...they're going to think that pavement company has done it all!


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## Tom... (12 Nov 2021)

Sort your weeds out


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## jowwy (12 Nov 2021)

Tom... said:


> Sort your weeds out


he didnt have any there when he started lol


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## JhnBssll (12 Nov 2021)

I've spread and whacked my sub-base this afternoon 😄 Just had a chat with the local aggregate chap (helpfully I know him from the pub haha) and he's dropping off the next lot of finer grade crushed granite on Tuesday. Once that's spread and whacked I can start laying the blocks


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## Gunk (13 Nov 2021)

You now just need to persuade next door to change their windows to match


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## MontyVeda (13 Nov 2021)

I bet your neighbours are thinking _noisy b'stard_


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## Gunk (13 Nov 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> I bet your neighbours are thinking _noisy b'stard_



more like “bloomin’ show off”


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## Drago (13 Nov 2021)

You do realise that the plant thingy in your neighbours garden indicates that they are wife swappers?


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## MontyVeda (14 Nov 2021)

Drago said:


> You do realise that the plant thingy in your neighbours garden indicates that they are wife swappers?


the Pampas grass coupled with those minging leaded windows just means they're stuck in the 70s and have no taste


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## bikingdad90 (14 Nov 2021)

Had myself and a colleague in stitches on Friday at work.
I was talking to a colleague about the office chairs. I said I prefer this chair over this chair and defo more than the silly rodeo chairs. I said “I’m a bit of a swinger”; totally innocently pointing out the lumbar back is not fixed and can swing backwards and forwards which is why I liked that particular chair.


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## Gunk (14 Nov 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> the Pampas grass coupled with those minging leaded windows just means they're stuck in the 70s and have no taste



Or they could be really nice people


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## jowwy (15 Nov 2021)

Last few comments are spoiling what is a very good thread……….


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## Drago (15 Nov 2021)

The number of likes the posts have received, including from the esteemed handyman OP himself, suggest you are very much in a minority.

Mr Bsslskahllllallssll, whats going on top? Are you actually block paving it yourself? You'll have to show us the process as you go - I'm never planning to have a go, but I've never seen it done before and wouldn't mind understanding the process.


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## JhnBssll (15 Nov 2021)

I've got a load of smaller grade crushed granite arriving tomorrow to be levelled and whacked down then I'll be block paving over the top. From what I can tell, you compact the base layer and level it with some sort of long, flat levelling device - I'll use my long spirit level - then simply place the blocks on top. Once they're all down you go over the top of them with the whacker plate again to bed them in to the base layer then sweep even finer crushed stone between the gaps, jobs a goodun. I'm hoping it goes down fairly quickly but it really depends how easy it is to get the base layer nice and flat - time will tell  I think I'll start with the smaller section on the left to get my eye in before I attempt the bigger area where there's potentially more room for error


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## Drago (15 Nov 2021)

I admire your courage. Watching with baited breath!


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## JhnBssll (15 Nov 2021)

I've just been out in the dark with a shovel and a spirit level trying to get the current layer of crushed granite as flat as possible. Despite my calibrated eye telling me it was about right it was actually miles out in places  Quite a large bulge in the middle has now been shaved back so I'm pretty confident we'll be there or thereabouts once the next load goes on top tomorrow and gets whacked down 😊


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## Proto (15 Nov 2021)

Made appointments for architects to visit next week to look at options to improve the house. We would like another bathrooom, a quiet room/snug, and an oak framed 2 or 3 bay carport.


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## JhnBssll (16 Nov 2021)

The smaller grade crushed granite arrived today so I had asked MrsBssll if I could play outside this evening. She said yes, but I had to come in for dinner at a reasonable hour which I thought was fair enough 

I raked it out as evenly as I could across the larger right hand section then went over it with the whacker plate. I then got the trusty spirit level out and a nice straight piece of timber and start levelling it out as best I could.












Once I'd got the back section as level as I could with my random assortment of tools I decided to put a few blocks down to see how they looked. Since they looked ok, I laid some more. Then a few more, and finally another couple. This is where I got to before I got told off for missing dinner...






If the weather stays reasonable I'll crack on tomorrow evening


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## JhnBssll (17 Nov 2021)

No driveway work this evening. Instead I removed a window cill in the kitchen and removed the temporary tap - the new worktop is being fitted first thing tomorrow  Exciting times...

More driveway progress tomorrow evening all being well


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## jowwy (17 Nov 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> No driveway work this evening. Instead I removed a window cill in the kitchen and removed the temporary tap - the new worktop is being fitted first thing tomorrow  Exciting times...
> 
> More driveway progress tomorrow evening all being well


At least the weather is dry for a few days john……


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## JhnBssll (18 Nov 2021)

Some good progress today  The kitchen worktop went in this morning. There are a few bits I'm not happy with so they're coming back to finish it off another day which means I can't install the tap or hob yet, but looking good for now 






We're going for darkish tiles to balance it out a bit then probably a similar colour paint to the existing grey, maybe a little lighter.

After work I set the floodlights up and did another 3 or 4 hours of work on the drive. I worked back from where I'd finished on tuesday until I reached the end...






Then levelled some more of the base and started working forwards... Here's where I've got to so far, I'll do some more tomorrow. Hoping to get all the remaining blocks down for this section fairly quickly so I can start cutting and fitting edge blocks over the weekend 






Feels great to get some visible progress finally, all that graft starting to pay off


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## Colin Grigson (19 Nov 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Some good progress today  The kitchen worktop went in this morning. There are a few bits I'm not happy with so they're coming back to finish it off another day which means I can't install the tap or hob yet, but looking good for now
> 
> View attachment 618305
> 
> ...


Dreading that first oil stain


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## CXRAndy (19 Nov 2021)

Colin Grigson said:


> Dreading that first oil stain


He's getting a Tesla, maybe battery acid if he's unlucky


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## JhnBssll (19 Nov 2021)

CXRAndy said:


> He's getting a Tesla, maybe battery acid if he's unlucky



Block paving is flame retardant right? 

I've got some more blocks down this afternoon, now having a quick break before I set the floodlights up and crack on


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## Drago (19 Nov 2021)

Amazing. I admire your wide ranging skills, your aptitude for trying new stuff and getting it right, and ability to juggle multiple projects simultaneously. 

My only concern is that you make the rest of us look bad in front of our respective significant others.


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## JhnBssll (19 Nov 2021)

Thanks Drago, much obliged  I don't always get it right first time but this seems to be going well so far 

I've finished laying the full blocks and done the first few cuts before I decided it was probably more sensible to be working in daylight so packed up for the day 

Heres the drive with all the full blocks laid









And then the first few cuts...






And how I've left it for the night. I'll likely crack on in the morning.


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## Gunk (19 Nov 2021)

Looks very professional


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## Colin Grigson (20 Nov 2021)

Disappointed to not see this finished yet … or the kitchen, van, porch guttering … slacking John


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## JhnBssll (20 Nov 2021)

Sorry Colin, I'm just not very quick 

I've been out working on it since 9am, and accompanied by MrsBssll for a large amount of it - she's been my labourer for the day  Great progress with just the cuts along the front to do now before we can whack it again and declare this side finished  I need to hire a whacker with a rubber pad under the plate before I go over the top as otherwise I think I'll mess the blocks up - once the final cuts are done tomorrow and I've brushed granite dust in to the last few gaps I'll start on the other side with the aim of getting it to the same state so I can hire a whacker just for a day and get it all done in one go


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## lazybloke (20 Nov 2021)

Just read the entire thread in one hit. My eyes hurt.

V impressive work though. Thought I was ambitious when I improved this place 20 years ago, but my work doesn't begin to compare.


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## neil_merseyside (20 Nov 2021)

Can't you use FIL's whacker with an offcut of rubber over the plate - the granite dust will take most of the impact anyway.


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## JhnBssll (21 Nov 2021)

neil_merseyside said:


> Can't you use FIL's whacker with an offcut of rubber over the plate - the granite dust will take most of the impact anyway.



Yeah possibly but I dont have an offcut of rubber. I spotted a few universal kits that require bolting to the whacker but a) I don't fancy drilling holes in FIL's whacker and b) for an extra tenner I can hire one for a day  For the £40 quid it'll cost me to hire one I don't think it's worth the hassle in this instance, although if I had some of the van flooring left over I might think differently 

We cracked on today and made some more good progress. The end of the driveway work is in sight 

Here the cuts are done on the first section minus a few in the corners and I've levelled off the granite on the next bit ready for whacking.






And here it is whacked, levelled and with the first of the blocks laid. Early finish today


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## JhnBssll (22 Nov 2021)

I got the last of the full blocks laid this evening on the other side.






Looking at the forecast I need to try and get the cuts done in the next few days and whack it all again asap as it looks like it's getting wet over the weekend and in to next week. I've been pretty lucky with the weather to date so I won't grumble if it delays things, I've still got 12 days until the car arrives


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## JhnBssll (23 Nov 2021)

The drive is dangerously close to finished now  We spent a few hours outside after work and got a lot of cuts done, just a handful more to do after work tomorrow then I can brush sand in to this bit and think about hiring a whacker 











With all the whacking a couple more of the slate slabs have come loose so I'll have to mix up some SBR slurry and stick them back down at some point  I laid them before I knew of the magical SBR trick which I used on the steps and wall coping stones, I've had to stick a few back down already so it was only a matter of time


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## Gunk (23 Nov 2021)

Looks really good John


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## Drago (23 Nov 2021)

Looking mighty fine Mr B.


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## bikingdad90 (23 Nov 2021)

Just the guttering outside to sort now and then you can move back to the hallway, downstairs toilet etc and get the kitchen finished?


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## Archie_tect (23 Nov 2021)

Don't forget that porch roof lead flashing needs extending...


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## JhnBssll (24 Nov 2021)

Archie_tect said:


> Don't forget that porch roof lead flashing needs extending...



Indeed, this is high on my list of priorities once the kitchen and block paving are done 

I had a lazy evening today 😊 I've got a rubber pad arriving tomorrow, had a change of heart about the whacker situation so will try and adapt the one I've got. It needs a service anyway before I give it back to father in law so may as well kill two birds with one stone and fit the pad at the same time, whack it all down, then take it back to him in fine fettle with a new additional feature  I'll do the last few cuts after work tomorrow too.

The worktop guys are coming back tomorrow afternoon to sort the last few bits that weren't quite right so hopefully I can fit the hob and tap very soon too


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## JhnBssll (26 Nov 2021)

The weather's been reet grim here today and isn't showing much sign of improving tomorrow. As a result I've spent a few hours in the kitchen today rather than working on the drive - that can wait for now 

First job was to fit the new kitchen tap - this was super fiddly but I'd left myself just enough room to tighten the bolt and connect the flexi hoses. If I were to do it again I'd leave a little more space  The new tap combined with new 22mm pipework means the old roar of the old tap is a thing of the past, in fact theres so much pressure available you can make quite a mess with it if you're not careful  This photo is the tap turned on about halfway 






Next job was to fit the new hob... I had to cut a little out of the units as the hob is 50mm deep underneath and the worktop is 30mm. I taped around the new worktop to protect it then whizzed around with a jigsaw 






Next job it was time to fit some door handles 😊 It's starting to look like a kitchen now for sure


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## JhnBssll (27 Nov 2021)

I wasn't expecting to get much done today but the weather is glorious here  I grabbed the opportunity and swept the finished section of drive then set about fitting the rubber pad to the whacker. I had to reach in to my metal offcuts bin but managed to clamp the rubber pad to the front carry handle nice and securely...












Time for a test drive! It worked as well as I could have hoped for really and within about 15 minutes the drive was whacked 😊










There are a couple of small peaks and dips but overall for a first attempt at block paving I'm pretty pleased with it  Just need to brush some more granite dust in to the gaps then I can park a car on it!

Time to cut some blocks and finish the other side now 😊


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## jowwy (27 Nov 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I wasn't expecting to get much done today but the weather is glorious here  I grabbed the opportunity and swept the finished section of drive then set about fitting the rubber pad to the whacker. I had to reach in to my metal offcuts bin but managed to clamp the rubber pad to the front carry handle nice and securely...
> 
> View attachment 619621
> 
> ...


Are you then fencing and gating the front or leaving it open……


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## JhnBssll (27 Nov 2021)

jowwy said:


> Are you then fencing and gating the front or leaving it open……



It'll be fenced and gated. I've got the panels and posts but am waiting until the drain is done before I put them up for ease of access


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## MontyVeda (27 Nov 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> It'll be fenced and gated. I've got the panels and posts but am waiting until the drain is done before I put them up for ease of access


I was going to mention the drain... again


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## JhnBssll (27 Nov 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> I was going to mention the drain... again



I'm still convinced given a long enough time line the trench will dig itself...


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## jowwy (27 Nov 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> It'll be fenced and gated. I've got the panels and posts but am waiting until the drain is done before I put them up for ease of access


Will look real good when all fenced and gated…..top work indeed


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## Drago (27 Nov 2021)

Looking mighty fine there Mr B.


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## JhnBssll (28 Nov 2021)

I cut the last few blocks for the left hand section today then swept granite dust in to the cracks and gave it a whack 😄






Heavy rain overnight had washed the other side nicely so the final colours were visible again, I think mixing the 3 batches of blocks was worth the hassle for the mottled effect it's given 






And then I went and spoilt it all by sweeping another load of granite dust across the whole thing to refill the gaps where the whacker had done its thing and compacted it all down... 😊











Now I just need to wait for more rain to clean it all again  I might give it a helping hand with the hose later


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## JhnBssll (28 Nov 2021)

I hosed them down


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## Gunk (28 Nov 2021)

Personally I like it open plan, with a fence and gate it may look a bit over fussy


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## JhnBssll (4 Dec 2021)

We now have a nice Acer in a pot to decorate the drive slightly 😊 We were quite pleased with how close the pot colour comes to the door colour without clashing.






Hopefully in spring it will come to life but even now the pot alone helps I think.

You may also notice there's a car parked on the drive - it finally arrived  Very pleased to say it fits (just!) and makes it look much more finished having something parked on it. Next job out front will be to get a bit more soil in the raised bed and plant some stuff up ready for spring 😊


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## raleighnut (4 Dec 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> We now have a nice Acer in a pot to decorate the drive slightly 😊 We were quite pleased with how close the pot colour comes to the door colour without clashing.
> 
> View attachment 620473
> 
> ...


Why wait til then, get some Cyclamen or 'winter flowering Pansies' in for a bit of colour.


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## MichaelW2 (7 Dec 2021)

Finally got hold of the arched hinges for my 2 garden gates. Hung one today.
The Gatemate instructions are basically "install hinge then install hinge pin."
Checked out the video by Gate Expectations.
I filed weld bumps off the bottom bearing surface of the hinge to turn smoothly.
My std gate pattern has lots of weak points that wont support screws or bolts so had to place them with care. The hinge pin can be screwed towards the edge of the post if you need to adjust the placement of hinge.

The concrete post with wood post attached started to flex under the strain and took up some of the 10mm clearance that you leave on both sides. 

The handle fitting required some reinforcement of the slat grooves in the gate. I just gorilla glued a bit of wood in place.

It seems to work as advertised


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## raleighnut (7 Dec 2021)

MichaelW2 said:


> Finally got hold of the arched hinges for my 2 garden gates. Hung one today.
> The Gatemate instructions are basically "install hinge then install hinge pin."
> Checked out the video by Gate Expectations.
> I filed weld bumps off the bottom bearing surface of the hinge to turn smoothly.
> ...


I cheated the last time I hung a gate at home, I nipped round to my next door neighbours (Plumber) and nicked* a couple of 15mm Brass pipe olives which I put between the bottom of the hinge and the pin bearing surface, still moves as freely as the day it was put up and no chance of getting grease on me as I squeeze through with my bike/trike. 


* I did ask


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## MichaelW2 (8 Dec 2021)

raleighnut said:


> I cheated the last time I hung a gate at home, I nipped round to my next door neighbours (Plumber) and nicked* a couple of 15mm Brass pipe olives which I put between the bottom of the hinge and the pin bearing surface, still moves as freely as the day it was put up and no chance of getting grease on me as I squeeze through with my bike/trike.
> 
> 
> * I did ask


It is very tricky to get both pins to be loadbearing. You can install the upper pin inverted to resist lifting the gate. My installation seems to have one pin with vertical loadbearing and the other supporting horizontal loads.


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## raleighnut (9 Dec 2021)

MichaelW2 said:


> It is very tricky to get both pins to be loadbearing. You can install the upper pin inverted to resist lifting the gate. My installation seems to have one pin with vertical loadbearing and the other supporting horizontal loads.


Yep every gate is different, for instance when I worked on Watermead Park for a year every monday during the summer I'd have to fit between 2 and 6* wooden '5 bar' field gates due to kids nicking cars and driving through them (these cars were then either driven into the lakes/canal or river Soar or burnt out in one of the car parks) luckily the 6" posts generally survived

* 6 was a bit of a record, 2-3 was common.


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## JhnBssll (11 Dec 2021)

Did some odd jobs outside today. Since the temperature is due to stay above 5 degrees for the next few days I took the opportunity to fix the loose slabs and point in between them all. Whilst I had the SBR out and some mortar mixed I also laid the last bit of slate coping to the raised bed...












I spent the afternoon bagging up rubble and rubbish from the back garden and loading the van, then went off to the tip late afternoon. I stopped off at the garden centre on the way home and picked up 15 bags of top soil and emptied it in to the front bed, along with the remains of a bag of compost I had laying around. It needs to come up a bit more, another 10 bags or so I reckon 😊






Its now raining so should settle overnight, I'll see where we are in the morning


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## JhnBssll (12 Dec 2021)

Big day today, I've finally finished the driveway and raised bed  The last few corner blocks were cut and cemented in place this morning and another 10 bags of top soil purchased to top up the raised bed. MrsBssll is currently working out which plants to fill it with but until then I can get back on with finishing the kitchen off and think about getting up the ladder to sort the porch roof 
















We'll likely start some soft of eclectic pot collection to break up the greys and blacks at some point 😊


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## Colin Grigson (12 Dec 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Big day today, I've finally finished the driveway and raised bed  The last few corner blocks were cut and cemented in place this morning and another 10 bags of top soil purchased to top up the raised bed. MrsBssll is currently working out which plants to fill it with but until then I can get back on with finishing the kitchen off and think about getting up the ladder to sort the porch roof
> 
> View attachment 621637
> 
> ...


That looks fantastic John - you can feel justifiably proud of it every time you come home …. well once the porch flashing is finished


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## jowwy (12 Dec 2021)

Top work…….but still 9 more jobs to complete before the year is out. Chop chop john……


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## JhnBssll (17 Dec 2021)

I got some plants in the raised bed today 😄 I'm not exactly a gardener so hopefully they'll survive being planted at this time of year 

Put a Clematis in to climb up a (yet to be purchased) trellis on the end wall of the new porch plus some Lavender, a Rhododendron and a couple of champagne Hebe's 😄 Better than an empty patch of soil anyway 






I'm thinking of getting a second type of Clematis to train up the same trellis so there are eventually two types of flower... I will wait and see how this one fairs first


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## ClichéGuevara (17 Dec 2021)

I reckon there's loads of blokes avidly reading this thread, that rapidly switch over to a porn page when their wife walks in to see what they're viewing before she gets any bright ideas.


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## Gunk (18 Dec 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> I got some plants in the raised bed today 😄 I'm not exactly a gardener so hopefully they'll survive being planted at this time of year
> 
> Put a Clematis in to climb up a (yet to be purchased) trellis on the end wall of the new porch plus some Lavender, a Rhododendron and a couple of champagne Hebe's 😄 Better than an empty patch of soil anyway
> 
> ...



You certainly didn’t exercise your usually extravagance when choosing the plants John


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## JhnBssll (18 Dec 2021)

Gunk said:


> You certainly didn’t exercise your usually extravagance when choosing the plants John



 I've made the mistake of filling a flower bed with small plants before and watching them grow and overwhelm each other  I'm not much of a gardener, normally just a garden tidier 😋


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## Kingfisher101 (18 Dec 2021)

The house and the windows and door are really nice. I don't like the flower bed but its personal taste, I'd worry about damp going into the house eventually.The drive way looks nice as well.


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## JhnBssll (18 Dec 2021)

Appreciate its not to everyone's taste 😊 The flower bed is actually the only bit that's still at the original ground level, everything else has been dug out. Its below the damp course so no fear of damp entering the internal space


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## Kingfisher101 (19 Dec 2021)

ClichéGuevara said:


> I reckon there's loads of blokes avidly reading this thread, that rapidly switch over to a porn page when their wife walks in to see what they're viewing before she gets any bright ideas.


 I actually know 2 women who could do that themselves no bother. One is a Technology teacher and she could do anything on a house.


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## ClichéGuevara (19 Dec 2021)

Kingfisher101 said:


> I actually know 2 women who could do that themselves no bother. One is a Technology teacher and she could do anything on a house.



I know several that don't just teach, they do that sort of thing in reality for a living, but I was more making a flippant remark than wanting to cause any gender issues.


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## JhnBssll (20 Dec 2021)

Shuffle the car on the drive yesterday to make room to park the van down the side so I could load up all the remaining paving blocks to take to a friends house - handy to know I can fit two decent sized cars out the front now! With the blocks now gone I can start to think about tidying the back garden a bit 






I've bought a small bit of trellis for the Clematis, just need to screw it to the wall now


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## JhnBssll (22 Dec 2021)

I popped the trellis up this afternoon 😄 It was getting dark by the time I'd finished work for the day so apologies for the poor photo 






I finish work for the year at lunchtime tomorrow so will have some time to spend on projects in the next few weeks 😄


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## JhnBssll (22 Dec 2021)

I finished work at 12.30 and cracked on in the kitchen. The main aim is to get the final few bits of new kitchen out of the living room asap 

First job was boxing in the end of the wall cupboards and putting a blue panel on the front to match the doors...







With that done it allowed me to start on the pelmet and cornice - the pelmet was just one length to cut and screw and went in pretty quickly...






The cornice was a bit more tricky with several 45deg cuts to do and was a bit of a bugger 😄 I got there eventually though...






Then the final job for the units, the plinths. A couple of 45deg corners here too but these were a bit more simple... I also had to cut around the heater and screw its grilel to the new plinth but again pretty straightforward, just time consuming 






Nice bit of progress today then! Here it is in all its current glory...






The next kitchen job is to get the washer/dryer cupboard finished but I need to buy some bits for that - I'll start planning it later 😄


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## JhnBssll (23 Dec 2021)

Heres the kitchen in daylight 😊






I've sent an enquiry off to a company that CNC machines melamine board to build a carcass for the remaining doors to cover the washer/dryer cupboard. I'll wait until I've heard back from them before I do much more in the kitchen so have diverted my attention back to the hallway and new downstairs loo 

This is the area I'm working with...






First job was to uncover the floor boards so I whizzed along the laminate with the circsaw and pulled it up...






Its a bit grim around one of the radiator risers but it's all coming up anyway as I need to run the pipes under the floor from below the stairs  With that in mind I readjusted the depth stop on the circsaw and took another pass at it...













As I'd found elsewhere the vapour barrier is not much use - presumably the whole ground floor is like this. I'll make the best of it but it's not going to be perfect without ripping the entire floor out which I'm just not prepared to do 

I really need to finalise the wall layout before I go much further  One bit of potentially good news is that it seems only minimal effort will be needed to re-route the two heating pipes to supply their new radiator but time will tell


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## bikingdad90 (23 Dec 2021)

Give yourself a porch @JhnBssll or at least a door between your front door as it will do wonders at keeping the cold out.

While you at it rip off the MDF under the stairs and build one of these,https://clevercloset.co.uk/under-stairs/ we built one and it’s brill.


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## JhnBssll (23 Dec 2021)

bikingdad90 said:


> Give yourself a porch @JhnBssll or at least a door between your front door as it will do wonders at keeping the cold out.
> 
> While you at it rip off the MDF under the stairs and build one of these,https://clevercloset.co.uk/under-stairs/ we built one and it’s brill.



I'll be building a couple of new internal walls and taking one down, the result will be a new small hallway/porch area as well as the new downstairs loo. The rest of the old 'big' hallway will become part of the living room 

I love the understair storage drawers, it's something I'm considering for sure


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## Gunk (23 Dec 2021)

Is the 1980’s Artex ceiling in the kitchen staying John?


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## JhnBssll (23 Dec 2021)

Gunk said:


> Is the 1980’s Artex ceiling in the kitchen staying John?



It's throughout the whole house  Short answer no, it's not staying. Longer answer, I would have loved to have skimmed it before I put the kitchen in but it's still a long way down the jobs list


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## jowwy (26 Dec 2021)

Come on john, just cause its xmas it doesnt mean you can slack on the jobs….we want, sorry we demand updates and pictures


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## JhnBssll (27 Dec 2021)

Apologies for slacking guys, you'll be pleased to know I was back at it today  The last few evenings havent been wasted though, I've been sketching layouts and now have one approved by the boss so wall construction could begin this morning 

I printed out the winning layout and taped it to the wall for reference, or rather proof, when the inevitable "that room looks too small" complaints start coming in 






I had some pipes to move first - the old gas main came out fairly easily but it's still scary sawing through a gas pipe even when you know its been decomissioned for a decade  With that out of the way I put some new bends in the heating pipework and ran it to its new location...






With that done I could start the walls, starting with the floorplates...






With those in I then measured up and marked out on the ceiling where the ceiling plates would need to be so I could cut out the plasterboard...











Things started moving a little more quickly at this point and I didn't take many photos, but I've got the beginnings of the first stud wall taking shape now 






I'm getting through timber pretty rapidly so have just ordered some more to collect in the morning then I'll carry on building the walls


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## MontyVeda (27 Dec 2021)

Looking good as usual.... but it looks rather tight... the access to the stairs.


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## JhnBssll (27 Dec 2021)

Yeah, I've left 900mm which is wider than the stairs themselves but it will restrict moving big stuff up and down them without removing the bannisters. Should be OK 99.9% of the time 🤞


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## MontyVeda (27 Dec 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Yeah, I've left 900mm which is wider than the stairs themselves but it will restrict moving big stuff up and down them without removing the bannisters. Should be OK 99.9% of the time 🤞


so long as a double or KS mattress can get up and down


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## jowwy (27 Dec 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Apologies for slacking guys, you'll be pleased to know I was back at it today  The last few evenings havent been wasted though, I've been sketching layouts and now have one approved by the boss so wall construction could begin this morning
> 
> I printed out the winning layout and taped it to the wall for reference, or rather proof, when the inevitable "that room looks too small" complaints start coming in
> 
> ...


I bet its good to be back john…….


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## irw (28 Dec 2021)

@JhnBssll It may be too late, but how about a sliding ‘pocket’ door for the loo? That’s what I did when I rejigged ours, and it looks like you’ve got the length in the wall to accommodate it.


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## JhnBssll (28 Dec 2021)

irw said:


> @JhnBssll It may be too late, but how about a sliding ‘pocket’ door for the loo? That’s what I did when I rejigged ours, and it looks like you’ve got the length in the wall to accommodate it.



I did consider it but we seemed to have enough space for a conventional door. 

I've got two of the three door frames installed now and have almost run out of timber again, I can't believe how much has gone in to it so far  Here's the first frame fitted earlier this afternoon...






And here's the toilet door frame fitted in the background...






Seems to be going OK so far


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## Kingfisher101 (28 Dec 2021)

Looks amazing all of this. Are you a tradesperson? because your doing very well if not. I couldn't do all this by myself.


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## Tenacious Sloth (28 Dec 2021)

Kingfisher101 said:


> Looks amazing all of this. Are you a tradesperson? because your doing very well if not. I couldn't do all this by myself.



No he’s not a tradesperson, just a nutter.


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## JhnBssll (28 Dec 2021)

Tenacious Sloth said:


> No he’s not a tradesperson, just a nutter.



This is a better answer than I would have given


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## CXRAndy (29 Dec 2021)

JhnBssll said:


> Heres the kitchen in daylight 😊
> 
> View attachment 623336
> 
> ...


John, you're doing a smashing (fantastic) job, renovating your home. The way you turn your hands to different tasks, bricklaying, paving, plumbing, electrical and carpentry. Just amazing.

Considering, I built a new house, did all the plumbing, ventilation system and plasterboard works, I know when I need to call in the trades I just dont have the finese to do it all well. 

What Im shocked to see, who the hell built your home, the original plumbing is shockingly bad. Ive helped a few trades over the years, plumbing and electrical seems to be invariably poorly done, with little thought to long term reliability or performance.


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## raleighnut (29 Dec 2021)

CXRAndy said:


> What Im shocked to see, who the hell built your home, the original plumbing is shockingly bad. Ive helped a few trades over the years, plumbing and electrical seems to be invariably poorly done, with little thought to long term reliability or performance.


what tends to happen is people have new kitchens etc. and pipework/wiring just get's tacked on to the existing in the easiest/cheapest way possible then hidden behind cabinetry.


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## JhnBssll (29 Dec 2021)

The house was a bit of an onion with layer upon layer of previous bodgery  By the time I've done the bathroom everything should be in good fettle again 🤞 I suspect the house was built with electric storage heaters and the central heating was added by an enthusiastic DIY'er. I believe the old kitchen was put in by the previous owners, presumably the pipework and kitchen electrics were bodged at that point. Anyway, every bodge I'm uncovering is making the work more worthwhile so I'm not grumbling too much 😊


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## Trickedem (29 Dec 2021)

@JhnBssll I have just read through this whole thread. You've done a fantastic job and clearly mastered lots of different skills along the way. Chapeau


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## JhnBssll (31 Dec 2021)

I didn't get a lot done today but did get a chance to extend the heating and water pipes from under the stairs. I've now run out of copper again to will have to collect more in the morning 

Here's the new pipework connected up ready to be turned on once the rads, taps, toilet etc are connected 







And here are the new bits of pipe coming out from under the stairs  I'll put a new sub floor down once I've finished piping up and have been able to check for leaks 😊


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## bikingdad90 (31 Dec 2021)

irw said:


> @JhnBssll It may be too late, but how about a sliding ‘pocket’ door for the loo? That’s what I did when I rejigged ours, and it looks like you’ve got the length in the wall to accommodate it.



I was going to suggest something similar but seen your reply, it looks like the door will open inwards toward the toilet, I can imagine this becoming very annoying over time as you need to close the door to get to the otherside of the loo, how about having it open outwards? Ours does and it works well, only niggle we have is that the front door hits the door if the kids leave it open but that shouldn’t be a problem for you and Mrs bassl.


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## Jenkins (9 Jan 2022)

No updates on the kitchen - I take it that accounts for the Deliveroo this afternoon 



(don't worry, I'm not stalking you @JhnBssll , I just happened to be passing as it was delivered)


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## JhnBssll (9 Jan 2022)

I wish it did, but the truth is the kitchen is fully functional we're just having a lazy day  One of these days I'll be out front to say hello when you're going past...


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## Jenkins (9 Jan 2022)

Yep - that's me on the Spa. I did wave, but the food seemed more important for some reason.


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## DCLane (9 Jan 2022)

@Jenkins - you could have stopped to help, and the kitchen _might*_ be closer to completion 

*_Might_ because if it was me there would be a pile of collapsed cupboards and a giant hole in the floor.


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## Jenkins (9 Jan 2022)

DCLane said:


> @Jenkins - *you could have stopped to help, *and the kitchen _might*_ be closer to completion
> 
> *_Might_ because if it was me there would be a pile of collapsed cupboards and a giant hole in the floor.


I didn't think he'd have ordered enough to accomodate an extra person for dinner, so didn't want to impose.

As for the DIY, forget it as my level is even worse than yours.


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## jowwy (16 Jan 2022)

Hows things going john???


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## JhnBssll (16 Jan 2022)

jowwy said:


> Hows things going john???



Slowly  No progress since last update, waiting on tiles to do the kitchen and an electrician to move the consumer unit


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## jowwy (16 Jan 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Slowly  No progress since last update, waiting on tiles to do the kitchen and an electrician to move the consumer unit


Just making sure your ok and havent been burried under the drive lol


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## postman (16 Jan 2022)

We are still waiting for our windows to be replaced,he did say December,but things could be delayed due to getting materials.Now middle of January and no sight of him.


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## JhnBssll (21 Jan 2022)

Not sure if I mentioned before, but when we ordered the kitchen I ordered a few extra doors to cover the washing machine and dryer which now live in the little pantry cupboard...







I decided before christmas that it would be nice to mimic the kitchen cupboards so have sourced identical hinges and designed a frame to build in to the opening to mount the doors on. I found a company that CNC cut melamine to custom designs and sent the drawing over to them and have just agreed a price and placed the order, the bits should arrive in a few weeks time  Here's the drawing I put together - my early years as a CAD engineer weren't wasted afterall 






There'll be 5 doors - the two machines will each be covered by a pair of doors hinged vertically and there'll be a single door at the top hinged horizontally. I'll build an extra shelf above the dryer so we can utilise the storage space as best we can. I'll need to resize the current opening in the wall, it needs to be taller and narrower, but I'll do that once the frame arrives as it'll be easier to get the dimensions right 😊

In other news, I've been in touch with the electrician - he's going to book me in to do the work in around 3 weeks time, so I'll use any time I have available between then and now to get as much wall/floor done as I can 😊


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## jowwy (21 Jan 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Not sure if I mentioned before, but when we ordered the kitchen I ordered a few extra doors to cover the washing machine and dryer which now live in the little pantry cupboard...
> 
> View attachment 627566
> 
> ...


good to see the extended xmas break has come to an end and your back at the DIY john


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## Colin Grigson (21 Jan 2022)

jowwy said:


> good to see the extended xmas break has come to an end and your back at the DIY john


Bet that lead flashing still isn’t done above the porch door


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## JhnBssll (21 Jan 2022)

Colin Grigson said:


> Bet that lead flashing still isn’t done above the porch door



It's not 

The first rule of DIY club is we don't talk about the lead flashing


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## JhnBssll (22 Jan 2022)

I've spent the day doing house buildy things and am now thoroughly knackered - I have made some good progress though 

I decided to make life a little easier by moving the end wall seperating the cupboard and toilet by 100mm - this makes the toilet a little bigger and we won't lose too much storage space, it was already a big cupboard. What this means is that the cupboard side of the new wall no longer clashes with the consumer unit so it can be built ready for the new consumer unit to be fitted to, making the changeover much more simple..






Before the studwork could be built though i needed to extend the pipework which will end up under the floor serving a radiator in the hall, a towel rail in the toilet, the toilet itself and the sink.






I noticed the other day my new concrete floor isn't level, and its unfortunately too high rather than too low in places... One of those places happens to be where the hot and cold pipes run to the sink, so I wasn't going to have enough space under the floor for them. This meant I had to cut a couple of channels with a diamond disc cutter and my trusty hammer and chisel to recess the pipes slightly... I'll level the floor up with battons and spacers as I did in the kitchen so it won't affect anything else fingers crossed.






The hot and cold water pipes are now pressurised and live with no leaks so that's all good for now... Time to build some studwork! This wall is the trickiest so far as it's a double studwork frame to make space for the toilet cistern built in to the wall, with an access panel in the back of the cupboard for maintenance.










So far I've built the toilet side up to half height, including a frame for the cistern which I've hung but not yet plumbed in. Next I need to build up the cupboard side of the studwork including the framework for the access hatch, now I know where the bits that need access are  That's a job for another day though


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## Gunk (22 Jan 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I've spent the day doing house buildy things and am now thoroughly knackered



I spent the day drinking pink champagne at the top of the Chard with Mrs Gunk. I’m now completely knackered


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## Colin Grigson (23 Jan 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I've spent the day doing house buildy things and am now thoroughly knackered - I have made some good progress though
> 
> I decided to make life a little easier by moving the end wall seperating the cupboard and toilet by 100mm - this makes the toilet a little bigger and we won't lose too much storage space, it was already a big cupboard. What this means is that the cupboard side of the new wall no longer clashes with the consumer unit so it can be built ready for the new consumer unit to be fitted to, making the changeover much more simple..
> 
> ...


Yet more great work John, you must be saving yourself thousands of pounds doing it yourself - and at least you know it’s right . I’ve got a couple of 5 minute jobs when you’re finished


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## JhnBssll (24 Jan 2022)

Thanks Colin - I'd be happy to pop over for a weekend, I'll bring the bike too 

I plumbed the cistern in this evening after dinner - it was a pretty quick job with just one soldered elbow, 2 compression fittings and a threaded joint to nip up 






I turned on the isolation valve fairly gingerly but no leaks and the inlet valve only needed some minor adjustment to get the level right 😊 Next it was time to test the flush...






Its only fair to admit that at this point I did get a bit wet... It's got quite a flush on it  Silly sod that I am I'd stood right in front of it and was leaning over so couldn't get out of the way quickly when it overshot the big bucket  Still, it works and thats the main thing  I ran it for long enough to check I'd not accidentally plumbed it up to the hot water before isolating and draining. The Electrician is hopefully popping round at some point tomorrow to quote for moving the consumer unit and putting in the new lighting circuits


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## jowwy (25 Jan 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Thanks Colin - I'd be happy to pop over for a weekend, I'll bring the bike too
> 
> I plumbed the cistern in this evening after dinner - it was a pretty quick job with just one soldered elbow, 2 compression fittings and a threaded joint to nip up
> 
> ...


as usual its top work again john......always good to see a perfectionist at work, to make his own home work better for his family


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## ClichéGuevara (25 Jan 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Thanks Colin - I'd be happy to pop over for a weekend, I'll bring the bike too
> 
> I plumbed the cistern in this evening after dinner - it was a pretty quick job with just one soldered elbow, 2 compression fittings and a threaded joint to nip up
> 
> ...



I'm even more impressed with your work having seen you're so small that you needed steps for a low level flush.


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## JhnBssll (25 Jan 2022)

ClichéGuevara said:


> I'm even more impressed with your work having seen you're so small that you needed steps for a low level flush.



Now you can see why I'm so reluctant to get up on the roof to do the lead flashing...


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## Tom... (25 Feb 2022)

A month has gone by with no updates, I can't be the only one with withdrawal symptoms


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## JhnBssll (25 Feb 2022)

Sorry 😋 Work has paused while we wait for the electrician to do his thing. He's booked in for the 7th March so things should pick up again after that 

We have decided on a minor addition while the ceiling is down; we're going to put a second aircon unit outside to run an indoor unit in the living room. The pipes can all be easily concealed now so they'll go in before the ceilings and walls are finished and the units can be installed later. Fun times 😄 This will be handy in Summer, but also gives us an option to heat most of the house without gas which could be useful in future


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## Tom... (25 Feb 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Sorry 😋 Work has paused while we wait for the electrician to do his thing. He's booked in for the 7th March so things should pick up again after that
> 
> We have decided on a minor addition while the ceiling is down; we're going to put a second aircon unit outside to run an indoor unit in the living room. The pipes can all be easily concealed now so they'll go in before the ceilings and walls are finished and the units can be installed later. Fun times 😄 This will be handy in Summer, but also gives us an option to heat most of the house without gas which could be useful in future



Why not swap out the existing unit for a multi-split, and run two indoor units off of one condensing unit? It'd reduce running costs and negate the need for two units outside.


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## JhnBssll (25 Feb 2022)

Tom... said:


> Why not swap out the existing unit for a multi-split, and run two indoor units off of one condensing unit? It'd reduce running costs and negate the need for two units outside.



Considering it, but looks like it'll work out more expensive to install and we would have to scrap the existing outdoor unit which is only 18 months old. I should really have asked for a multi-split capable outdoor unit the first time round but bit late now  there's plenty of room down the side for a second unit anyway but I'll wait and see what the installer suggests before making a final decision


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## jowwy (25 Feb 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Considering it, but looks like it'll work out more expensive to install and we would have to scrap the existing outdoor unit which is only 18 months old. I should really have asked for a multi-split capable outdoor unit the first time round but bit late now  there's plenty of room down the side for a second unit anyway but I'll wait and see what the installer suggests before making a final decision


Air con, you lucky bugger….i would have killed for that last summer. So i bought a portable one instead. Was soooooo nice when we switched it on


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## MontyVeda (27 Feb 2022)

Why sit indoors wishing you had aircon when there's a bike to ride?


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## jowwy (27 Feb 2022)

MontyVeda said:


> Why sit indoors wishing you had aircon when there's a bike to ride?


Probably because i dont ride my bike at night, when aircon would help with sleeping as it was so hot.

During the day im either in work, working in my garden or riding my bike…..at night im relaxing and getting ready for bed, which is were aircon has its advantages.


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## JhnBssll (7 Mar 2022)

Update! Finally  The electrician has been today and made good progress. The new consumer unit has been installed which required new meter tails to be fed through the cavity in to the meter box. Fortunately the existing internal wiring didn't need extending merely diverting to the new location so it all looks rather neat, certainly better than the original installation  He's run the cables for the additional circuits in the new rooms, both light and power, and moved the living room light switch from the stud wall that's coming down.

It's now up to me to put the plasterboard up in all areas excluding inside the new cupboard; this will be left off so we can run the aircon bits and bobs when he comes back to connect everything up and test the whole house.

Here are the old (right) and new (left) consumer units during the swap:







He's done a very neat job of wiring the new one up, my OCD approves 











The new unit is quite an upgrade over the original; it's got surge protection for a start so the whole house is now protected from incoming voltage spikes. With the old board there was only one RCD to protect the ring main but the new board has each circuit on an RCBO. These act as a combined RCD and MCB so each circuit is individually protected from both overcurrent and earth leakage 

Here's some of the new cabling in all it's glory, including the hole in the wall at the back there for the new toilet ventilation fan 






I now need to crack on and finish the studwork and get boarding so he can come back and finish off


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## Colin Grigson (8 Mar 2022)

Quality work again John


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## jowwy (17 Mar 2022)

Hows it all coming along john??


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## JhnBssll (19 Mar 2022)

Slowly but surely  I haven't had much spare time recently but have been planning my attack and had a few hours spare this morning to make some progress. I know what I'm like and sometimes I need a quick win with some big visual progress to spur me on so I decided to do some smashing 😄

I pulled away the plasterboard from the first end of the wall to investigate - first to check whether the beam was properly supported in the wall (which it was) and then to work out how the studwork had been assembled (badly).






It quickly became obvious that my initial assuptions that this was not an original wall were correct when I found the underside of the beam was still plastered and painted 






So I did some more smashing...






I figured since I'd already made a mess I'd keep smashing, so removed the TV from the wall and moved some of the building supplies out of the way and carried on...






It was at this point I realised that not only was the underside of the beam plastered and painted, but they hadn't attached the studwork wall to it at all so it's almost entirely intact 






Anyway, I ran out of time so this is where the smashing had to finish. There's a little more to go as we're taking the corner of the understairs cupboard out at 45degrees to make a new angled wall for the TV, I'll do that another day 😊






The living room already feels massive with the wall down, it'll feel even bigger once the piles of plasterboard have been loaded in to the van but I'll do that later as it currently has my sister in laws new fridge freezer in the back


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## MontyVeda (20 Mar 2022)

I'm presuming the wife is expecting to discover the sitting room has been trashed when she gets home 

PS. I'm loving the dedicated vacuum cleaner accessories rack


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## JhnBssll (20 Mar 2022)

More progress today with the last of the old stud wall now gone and the van loaded to the rafters with smashed up plasterboard 

I started by first stripping back the plasterboard in the living room to see what laid beneath; I knew I had lots of cabling to deal with in this area.






Next I tried to disable the alarm panel in order to remove it but quickly realised I wasn't going to be able to do that without making some noise  After trying a few methods and triggering the syren outside I called my alarm fitter friend who confirmed there are two ways to do it - 1), unplug it and set off the syren then wait 20 minutes until it stops on its own or 2), go up the ladder with your ear defenders on and tackle the problem at source  I knocked on a few neighbours doors and checked they were ok with option 1 and fortunately they were so the ladder wasn't needed 

As well as the alarm panel the under stair cupboard housed the sky box and CCTV recorder so there's a decent amount of wiring coming in to this small area...






Here's some of the kit once I'd removed it...






And here's the rats nest of cabling its left behind with the internal skin of plasterboard removed  At some point soon I'll be needing to extend all these to bring them through to their new home so theres a decent amount of soldering and heat shrinking to be done 






Next was to remove the wall under the stairs...






As you can see my piles of debris were growing at this point... Here's the last of the wall down before I started tidying...






Now the original plan had been to keep some of the understairs cupboard but it was so badly built I had to tear it all down. MrsBssll and I decided the room feels so big without the stairs enclosed that we'd rather keep it like this, so that'll save me a bit of work  I had already bought a new TV bracket so after a bit of tidying we put it up - I also refitted the thermostat temporarily as I realised the boiler was running flat out without it connected 






So there we are. Lots of progress this weekend but still tons to do. Next job will be to finish the new studwork and run some cables for the CCTV and alarm before I board and plaster 

We've got some tiles now to do the kitchen so thats another job I'm hoping to tick off soon


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## Colin Grigson (21 Mar 2022)

As fast as I’m building mine up you’re knocking yours down - nice


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## MontyVeda (21 Mar 2022)

so to summarise...

Trashed the hallway✅
Trashed the kitchen✅
Trashed the lounge✅
Trashed the front garden✅
Trashed the back garden✅
Trashed the van✅

Fixed the hallway❌
Fixed the kitchen❌
Fixed the lounge❌
Fixed the front garden✅
Fixed the back garden❌
Fixed the van❌

Shall i mention the flashing and drainpipe over the porch?


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## JhnBssll (21 Mar 2022)

You can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs 

I'm beginning to like the 'industrial' look, and it would save some effort trying to plaster it...


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## JhnBssll (26 Mar 2022)

I started putting tiles up today in the kitchen  MrsBssll chose them remember, I'm not so keen myself but she's very pleased with them 

I spent a bit of time working out where to start - We wanted the tiles to line up with the hob and extractor but that leaves a row of small triangular cuts in one corner - I tried laying out a few alternatives but decided this was the best option so got started.






Once they started going on the wall I was happy to realise they weren't going to look as awful as I'd first feared 






Once I'd got to the corner I cut the tiles and laid it all out dry to check it would line up as best as possible, given that the walls are of course all wonky 






Once happy they went up too... This is as far as I got today, I'll crack on tomorrow morning but will likely not finish as I'm off to see my mum in the afternoon


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## bikingdad90 (26 Mar 2022)

Arrgghh @JhnBssll the lack of symmetry or coloured pattern would drive me up the wall! The tiles are nice, just couldn’t be doing with the lack of sequencing. 😂😂 that’s just my OCD.


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## JhnBssll (26 Mar 2022)

Ha yeah it's not to my taste either but was instructed to follow a geometric pattern with the lines and do random colour placement, so that's what I've done! I just won't turn the light on when I go to the kitchen anymore...


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## MontyVeda (26 Mar 2022)

<misogynistic humour alert>


JhnBssll said:


> ... MrsBssll chose them remember...


this is why women should stick to things they're good at, such as driving 



I'll get my coat armour


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## JhnBssll (26 Mar 2022)

She was pretty passionate about her choice and I wasn't that fussed so seems only fair to go with her choice. I've never liked the colours she chose for our living room and I've lived with them for about 8 years so I'm pretty sure it'll be alright haha. I'm more interested in the standard of finish than the colours to be honest


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## JhnBssll (29 Mar 2022)

I put a few more tiles up this evening but a late finish at work meant I didn't have time for much...







I cut a few half tiles for the bottom row but it got too late to cut any more without risking upsetting the neighbours. They would never say anything, but I wouldn't want to annoy them and the tile cutter makes a lot of noise  These next cuts are going to be fun...






I've started marking them out so I can crack straight on tomorrow evening once I'm home from work 😊


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## irw (30 Mar 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I put a few more tiles up this evening but a late finish at work meant I didn't have time for much...
> 
> View attachment 637691
> 
> ...


Good luck with the top one! You need to keep the really thin bit, yes?


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## JhnBssll (30 Mar 2022)

I cut the two troublesome tiles at lunchtime and put them up, unfortunately killing my tile cutter in the process  I had to finish cutting the thin bit by hand with my tile saw, a rather slow process  Anyway, they fit pretty well 






I'll whizz over to screwfix later and pick up the new tile cutter then carry on where I left off  This one certain didn't owe me anything, I paid £40 for it over a decade ago


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## Colin Grigson (30 Mar 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I cut the two troublesome tiles at lunchtime and put them up, unfortunately killing my tile cutter in the process  I had to finish cutting the thin bit by hand with my tile saw, a rather slow process  Anyway, they fit pretty well
> 
> View attachment 637756
> 
> ...


That’s looking good … I like your wife’s choice of tile but they look a bit of a mare to lay - you make it look easy


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## JhnBssll (30 Mar 2022)

Thanks Colin, they're a total pig  That said I am making progress, hopefully not too many more hours of swearing left now 

I've turned a corner - actually 3 of them - and am now on to the side wall below the cupboards 






The external corner has been done with mitre cuts rather than beading, I can't stand the stuff but it does make life a little easier... What can I say, I'm a glutton for punishment  I did have to break the alignment slightly on that corner as it would have resulted in a row of tiny mitre cuts otherwise and I'm sure I wasn't capable of making it look neat - this was the best compromise I could come up with and once you stand back it's not really noticeable until you look for it.

The back wall is pretty much done now although MrsBssll has reserved the right to request squaring off of the castlated top if she deems it neccessary  I've just stopped for a bite to eat and will crack on shortly, she allows me a short rest period every now and then 






I have put two turquoise tiles next to each other in the corner tucked under the cupboard so once the adhesive is all set and they're grouted I will tell MrsBssll that I broke her rules 😄 I know how to have fun...


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## Colin Grigson (30 Mar 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Thanks Colin, they're a total pig  That said I am making progress, hopefully not too many more hours of swearing left now
> 
> I've turned a corner - actually 3 of them - and am now on to the side wall below the cupboards
> 
> ...


Agree regarding the beading - awful bodgy things - mitres are the way to make it very professional looking


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## JhnBssll (30 Mar 2022)

I couldn't quite finish in time before the self-imposed noise curfew kicked in  I have finished the wall under the cupboards but still have the external corner behind the sink to do, shouldn't take long after work tomorrow then I can grout in a few days when it's all settled a bit


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## JhnBssll (2 Apr 2022)

I finished off the tiling today  That final corner took me several hours, its a fiddly job measuring and mitring the tile so they line up just right 






Once I'd tile up to the window MrsBssll & I had a quick conflab and decided we needed to invoke option B and square the top off, so I cut 10 more tiles in half and stuck them up... I think it was the right decision and we're both pretty pleased with the results. In a few days I'll grout them then sealed the edges with silicone, jobs a goodun 😊











Still to do in the kitchen:

- grout tiles
- Install new door frame to larder cupboard to cover washer and dryer.
- Remove last few old tiles behind fridge/freezer and make good the wall.
- remove old extractor hood and make good the wall, fit new extractor hood in line with hob/tiles
- skim ceiling to cover the artex
- decorate

Getting there with this room at least! It feels like there's loads still to do but when you consider what I've already done it's actually not that much 

I'm going to go and make a start on the cupboard door frame now


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## avsd (2 Apr 2022)

Good decision on squaring of the top of tiles. The 'un-squared' tiles looked unfinished to my eye.


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## JhnBssll (2 Apr 2022)

avsd said:


> Good decision on squaring of the top of tiles. The 'un-squared' tiles looked unfinished to my eye.



Agreed, It was quirky at first but it never really looked quite right. Perhaps if they were all one colour or didnt have the geometric pattern it would have been different but I think all of those variables together was a little much 

I've assembled the new cupboard door frame - this is the one I designed and had made from light grey melamine to match the kitchen units. All joints have been doweled, glued and screwed so I'll now wait until the glue's gone off a bit before I manhandle it too much.





That said, I did lift it in to the kitchen just to check it was going to fit and I hadn't done anything too dim  Fortunately it's spot on, just need to remove a bit of the stud wall above but I knew this already.






The idea is the new frame will be recessed ~22mm in to the wall so that the cupboard doors sit flush to the wall when closed so there are still plenty of measurements I could have gotten wrong as yet


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## JhnBssll (2 Apr 2022)

I popped the hinges and doors on to have a look, so far my measurements haven't let me down 











I think I'm going to have to consider some fold-out step options so MrsBssll can reach the top cupboard - its not much use having a big storage area if she can't reach it, unless of course I keep it for my own things  It could be an indoor bicycle accessory storage area...


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## JhnBssll (3 Apr 2022)

I ripped the rest of the larder cupboard stud wall down this morning, there's something deeply satisfying about smashing up plasterboard after a hard week 






Originally I was going to leave some of the studwork in place, but it was all slightly loose and made sense to rip it all out in the end.

I put the frame in place and levelled it up, packing the left hand edge with plastic spacers then screwing it to the blockwork...






At this point I popped a couple of the doors on just to check it was all still properly square - everything checked out so I cut some timber to pack out the right hand side against the block and screwed that side to the wall too. I've just roughly hung the 4 main doors then found a problem I didn't spot last night with the top door, but more about that in sec. Here it is with the frame fully secured and the 4 main doors roughly hung, still to be adjusted and door knobs to be fitted...






So the top door doesn't line up with the hinges either horizontally or vertically  I haven't measured how far out it is yet, but I can only assume the company I bought the pre-drilled door from ignored the suggested installation dimensions of the hinge manufacturer  The distance between hinges of the door mounting holes are about 10mm closer together than the frame required, and about 5mm too high so the door would clash with those below it if it were possible to attach it, which it's not  Fortunately this combination of geometry errors means it's a pretty easy fix, I'm now going to design some spacers quickly which will fit in the holes in the frame on either side and provide new mounting points for the hinge assembly so it should then all line up properly  I'll get going on that now then fit some door knobs while I'm waiting for them to print 

I knew it was going too well...


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## JhnBssll (3 Apr 2022)

The spacers are now printing - here's one of them, the others just a mirror image...





The two pips will locate in the original location holes, then the hinges will locate in the offset holes on the other side, 3mm higher. The spacers are 8.5mm thick to correct the 17mm difference in hinge spacing between frame and door  Not a small error then 

Anyway, they should be done printing in the next half an hour or so which will give me plenty of time to have them fitted before dinner all being well. In the meantime I've adjusted all the doors and fitted the knobs 😊






Time for a little tidy up now before the boss comes round to inspect my work


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## MichaelW2 (3 Apr 2022)

We have this pattern in the porch from Wickes large tiles. For the hearth I had to do it the proper way with individual porcelain tiles cut to size with a wet saw


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## JhnBssll (3 Apr 2022)

All done for today now 😊

The spacers worked a treat, here's the first one before I fitted the hinge...





The door clicked straight on to the hinges when I offered it up, great success. here it is with the doors open and closed.











Next job when I get a minute will be to build a small timber frame above and to the right of it so I can board and plaster when the time comes.

I will need to empty the cupboard at some point so I can paint and install the top shelf - at the moment anything placed in the top cupboard will fall on to the tumble dryer, or straight to the floor  I have warned MrsBssll... 

Time for a shower now before we head out for some dinner 😊


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## MontyVeda (3 Apr 2022)

looks great but I'd have gone for hinges that allow the LH doors to open 180 degrees... the open doors look a bit in the way only opening 100 degrees.


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## JhnBssll (3 Apr 2022)

MontyVeda said:


> looks great but I'd have gone for hinges that allow the LH doors to open 180 degrees... the open doors look a bit in the way only opening 100 degrees.



To be honest I was using up some hinges that came with the kitchen - they double counted so I've got a few left still  I agree with you though, so I've just been on the website of the hinge manufacturer and have found some 170 degree opening ones that appear to have the same fixing dimensions and brackets so I've ordered some - if they're a straight swap as it would appear they should be it's an easy win, thanks for the suggestion


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## bikingdad90 (3 Apr 2022)

@JhnBssll keep hold of the spare hinges!

Our kitchen is about 15 years old, it’s a Howdens joinery one but for love no money could I find matching new hinges to replace worn out ones with the same dimensions. I’ve found myself re-drilling the fixings in the carcass of a few cupboards with the nearest standard ones I could find!

Also, if you can order some spare handles, it’s worthwhile. When we moved in there was a damaged one but we couldn’t find an exact replica anywhere but managed to find one very similar after days of searching countless shops. In the end a local shop and their spares box came up trumps!


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## MichaelW2 (8 Apr 2022)

The wife detests the stippled ceilling in the bedroom. After a bit of research I got a tub of X-Tex from Toolstation. The blue gel paints on. Leave for a few hrs. Spray with water if it is drying out. Stippled paint comes off easily with a scraper but is a bit soft and sticky. I caught most in a plastic bag but laid a good paint drop cloth and a cheap thin plastic one on top to catch bits.
X-Tex is supposed to be non toxic, foesnt smell and is safe for artex even with asbestos ie no dust.


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## JhnBssll (10 Apr 2022)

More progress on the internal walls yesterday. I've got a few bits boarded and have started constructing the cupboard door frame which I'll continue with later.






I've used acoustic plasterboard in this area, it's suprising how much road noise has already been eliminated just with a single skin with no doors fitted! Once the second skin is up with the rockwool acoustic insulation between them it should be even better  MrsBssll doesnt want to hear any toilet noises in the living room, I've told her I can at least minimise them but no promises have been made


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## JhnBssll (15 Apr 2022)

Spent a few hours tinkering with a new watering system for the front bed and pots today as I noticed a few of the new shrubs weren't green anymore  We're notorious for forgetting to water things so an automatic watering setup seemed the obvious answer and I was really surprised how cheap the bits have got!

I ran a hose down the side of the house from the tap where I've fitted a 4 branch manifold and a timer on one of the outlets. At the end I've fitted a smaller manifold for the microbore pipe and have run one to the front bed and another to the pots. I've got 3 spigots free on the manifold which I'll likely use to feed drippers in some hanging baskets at a later date.






Here's one of the little sprinklers in the acer pot...






And here are 6 more mine sprinklers in the front bed with a selection of green and brown plants 






The central plant is a rhododendron with red/brown leaves and is actually healthy as far as I can tell, with lots of green shoots visible up close. Hopefully it will recover, and the two Hebe's seem quite happy. I think 5 of the 6 lavendar have had it though  I'll see how things go over the next month or so and pop some more stuff in later 😊

Oh, and theres my reflection in the window


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## bikingdad90 (15 Apr 2022)

😂 that’s not how I thought you looked! I was expecting a receding hairline, greying hair and a rough around the edges sort of look; probably perception but that’s how every trade man I know looks like!!!


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## JhnBssll (15 Apr 2022)

My hair isn't receding too much yet but I'd say you were spot on with 'rough around the edges'  Besides, I'm not a tradesman, just a keen tryer 

I did some more prep for plastering in the living room this afternoon. I've finished the boarding on this side of the studwork and put the metal corner trims in place so the walls are ready now. I've also trimmed the ceiling back to a joist in preparation for boarding but I need to run some cables through there before I can close it up. The CCTV, alarm, router and sky box will all be housed in the cupboard so there's plenty of wires to run still, perhaps a job for tomorrow 😊











I've started putting a bit of plasterboard up in the hall now too, this bit has two wall boxes cut in for the hall, loo and outside lights plus the toilet fan isolator at the top.






I need to box around the structural steel and clad it with fireproof board before I go much further, I'll need to send photos of it off to the building inspector for signoff and will want confirmation I've done it right before I go too far


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## postman (27 Apr 2022)

Sir you are a star.That is brilliant work.


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## postman (27 Apr 2022)

Home improvement at our end the windows are being done Thursday and Friday hooray.What a difference no more howling draughts looking forward to a little warmer house.


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## cyberknight (2 May 2022)

1st coat resealing the pitted concrete driveway , im going to let it set whilst we go out and then put a second coat on later today as you can see its already drying in the middle


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## JhnBssll (3 May 2022)

Mini progress report, because not much has happened recently for one reason or another 

I've run a load of cables through the ceiling void to extend both hdmi leads to the new TV position and several house alarm cables to the new cupboard where the sky box, cctv, alarm panel etc will all be located. I had to chop a bit more ceiling out to do it but worth it for the improved access.







With all the required cables in place I boarded the rest of the ceiling...






I've spent the afternoon today chopping out the last few bits of coving in this area and doing an initial coat of thick plaster in the area's that needed bringing level. I've also started taping joints in the plasterboard but a few more to do still.






Once this little lot has cured I'll go round with a hammer and chisel and knock off the remaining high spots then do another quick coat of coarse plaster in a few places and tape the remaining joints. Then the ceiling will need a coat of PVA and I'll be ready for the skim coat of plaster  I'm not looking forward to that bit 

This little corner is going to be particularly interesting


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## Colin Grigson (4 May 2022)

Plastering too ? … is there no end to this man’s skill set ?


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## JhnBssll (14 May 2022)

I've done a bit more rough plastering today and finished all the bits that needed doing before I attempt the skim coat  I still don't have high hopes but it'll be fun trying it out  It's not like I'll be ruining anything, just might have to pay someone to do it again 

Anyway, first job was to chop a bit of plaster out and run the new phone line extension in to the master socket... I was suprised to see there's no grommet in the wall box where the BT engineer has run the line in but figured since it's only 50V and there doesnt seem to be a requirement for them I would do the same.











I then mixed up some more of the rough plaster and filled it over, then taped the corner.






Next I put another coat of plaster on the end of the beam where it had all been knocked out to try and bring it closer to flush with the remaining plaster. This is going to be a pig as there are 3 or 4 coats of existing plaster in a patchwork where previous owners have made alterations. I'm just going to have to build it up and knock bits off until it's right - I'm sure this isn't the right way of doing it but I'll get there in the end 











To finish off for the morning I used the last of the plaster to tape some more joints and fill the hole left by the old light fitting, only a few joints left to do now but I can at least get started plastering the stud walls once this has gone off a bit 






I've got some PVA now so will give the artex a quick coat of that before I attempt to plaster the ceiling, what could possibly go wrong


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## JhnBssll (14 May 2022)

I got some plaster on the walls this afternoon. Pretty pleased with my first ever attempt at it but there are some bits I'll need to revisit when I do the ceiling


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## MontyVeda (14 May 2022)

looks mint that


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## bikingdad90 (14 May 2022)

Starting to look more like a house.


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## JhnBssll (21 May 2022)

I've started 'operation artex gone' today. First a coat of watered down PVA on to the ceiling then a first coat of plaster to fill gaps between the peaks...






I've just given up two thirds of the way through a second coat as my neck and shoulder are knackered, it's hard work this  Once I have finished the second coat it should be flat enough to skim over the top so not far to go now, then there's just the other rooms to do


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## Tenacious Sloth (21 May 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I've started 'operation artex gone' today. First a coat of watered down PVA on to the ceiling then a first coat of plaster to fill gaps between the peaks...
> 
> View attachment 645643
> 
> ...



There’s a reason why Plasterers are built like brick outhouses.

Respect to you for giving it a go.


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## CXRAndy (23 May 2022)

Never use pva, better to use SBR. PVA becomes soft and does delaminate from the base fixing. SBR remains hard fixed


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## JhnBssll (23 May 2022)

I have some SBR and have used it in a few places externally but on reading up on the topic I decided to buy some PVA instead; apparently unlike SBR, PVA remains water soluble once dry which gives advantages when plastering. The only time SBR is recommended over PVA for plastering seems to be in damp areas like bathrooms, otherwise PVA seems to be preferred. I'm only regurgitating what I've read so you may well be right, but I'm not gonna peel the plaster off and start again now  If it falls off in future I'll reconsider


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## postman (1 Jun 2022)

Well I have decided I don't like decorating anymore.The eyesight is crap,just put the final coat of emulsion on the bedroom and the two ceilings bathroom and shower room.I hope I have not missed bits,the light kept changing.Woodwork next but not today,I have had enough.Then its the massive front bedroom.I need a rest,lost interest already.


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## Adam4868 (1 Jun 2022)

Plastered for 20 years sometimes for work and sometimes not ! I allways use a watered down PVA delays the setting time.Especially over something like Artex...leave the pva to go off till just tacky.Dont take too much on in one go.Looking good though.


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## Adam4868 (2 Jun 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I've started 'operation artex gone' today. First a coat of watered down PVA on to the ceiling then a first coat of plaster to fill gaps between the peaks...
> 
> View attachment 645643
> 
> ...


Not that you need any advice....looking good.
But couple of pointers 😁 When skimming allways two coats,first coat bit thicker.Let fist coat dry until you can just about see your finger print in it,don't overthink the finish.Just a quick flatten with your trowel.Second coat on leave to go off a bit....don't rush messing with it ! Then final trowel up,polish whatever you want to call it.Use a wet brush/paint brush for angles/corners to brush in.Some like to use a spray bottle with water for troweling up.You can polish plaster to a glass like finish but it's a bas#ard to paint ! 
Sorry for my two penneth worth...looks good 👍


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## postman (2 Jun 2022)

Driveway pointed,not a pro job,but it's done what I needed.A few slabs missed cos I ran out of mortar but no complete four sides maybe one side,and they are the thinnest sides which were the hardest to fill.Sadly got a bit of cement on the slabs faces,but in time that might run off.I cannot see weeds coming through now,and whoever buys the house in four or five years can put their own drive in.Finally I cannot believe how good the emulsion looks no misses all nice and solid.Praise for Wilkos rollers and not even the best one that is going to be used in the big bedroom.All in all Postman is a happy bunny today.


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## JhnBssll (2 Jun 2022)

I've spent the day working on the house and plan to spend more time on it over the long weekend to try and make some progress 

First job today was to board over the new steelwork. I've hammered some wooden battens in to the beam and used some PU adhesive to keep them in place then screwed the boards to these, seems to have worked anyway 😄











I then finished off the studwork in the partition between the toilet and cupboard which allowed me to board that wall and a bit more of the ceiling in the loo. I've also popped the vent fan in its hole ready to be connected up.





I've got a mess of wires coming in to the cupboard now so I've bundled them all up - I just need to make sure I start connecting them up before I forget which does what 






I also ran a wire for a doorbell, I've been playing around with one that connects up to the cctv system but won't fit it externally until the internal bits are done, otherwise people will stop knocking on the door 






The electrician has confirmed hes coming back a week on Monday to finish the electrics and install the air conditioning for the living room. The aim is to get as ready as possible for his visit so I'll be pushing on tomorrow afternoon after a quick ride in the morning 😊


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## MrGrumpy (3 Jun 2022)

Adam4868 said:


> Not that you need any advice....looking good.
> But couple of pointers 😁 When skimming allways two coats,first coat bit thicker.Let fist coat dry until you can just about see your finger print in it,don't overthink the finish.Just a quick flatten with your trowel.Second coat on leave to go off a bit....don't rush messing with it ! Then final trowel up,polish whatever you want to call it.Use a wet brush/paint brush for angles/corners to brush in.Some like to use a spray bottle with water for troweling up.You can polish plaster to a glass like finish but it's a bas#ard to paint !
> Sorry for my two penneth worth...looks good 👍



Nice tips ! My plastering is terrible but willing to give stuff a go. I’ve watched plenty videos and it’s made to look easy . …….


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## Adam4868 (3 Jun 2022)

MrGrumpy said:


> Nice tips ! My plastering is terrible but willing to give stuff a go. I’ve watched plenty videos and it’s made to look easy . …….


Lol...you tube makes anything look easy.Practice makes perfect....don't panic on the first coat it doesn't have to be perfect just get it on.Second coat will flat out any inconsistency.All about timing so have everything to hand clean water etc.Last allways remember it's better to mix more than you need than run short halfway through a wall or ceiling 😁
Ok sorry don't want to derail the thread any more !


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## icowden (3 Jun 2022)

Adam4868 said:


> Lol...you tube makes anything look easy.Practice makes perfect....don't panic on the first coat it doesn't have to be perfect just get it on.Second coat will flat out any inconsistency.All about timing so have everything to hand clean water etc.Last allways remember it's better to mix more than you need than run short halfway through a wall or ceiling 😁
> Ok sorry don't want to derail the thread any more !



I've always felt that plastering is more of an art than a science. 

I can't plaster.


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## JhnBssll (5 Jun 2022)

Progress update - more studwork completed, some acoustic insulation added and more areas boarded today  I also took some time to re-wire the outside lights - there is a junction box that is now inaccessible above the new ceiling so I removed all the screw terminal connectors and replaced with Wago maintenance free connectors and boxes before I sealed it in 

Here's the view in through the front door to the partially boarded hall way; loo off to the right and living room straight ahead.







These are both taken inside the loo, its a bit dark in there now the walls are boarded and there are no lights yet 😄











MrsBssll was out so I took the opportunity to make a mess in the living room  Unfortunately I failed to clear it up before she got home  Whoops! I'll try and do a bit more tomorrow as I've got the day off work  I think most of the tasks that needed doing before the electrician's return are now done though so anything else before then is a bonus


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## ColinJ (5 Jun 2022)

That looks very like the old sofa that I am sitting on! 

Has it got retractable leg rests, and if so have the cables broken from the release handles to the mechanisms? Both cables broke on this one, a year apart!


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## JhnBssll (5 Jun 2022)

No reclining features here I'm afraid, not yet at least - we'll be replacing the furniture later  How much later depends on how quickly I finish the building work haha


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## Gunk (5 Jun 2022)

Bloody hell John, if you’d have employed a builder, you could have sitting on that loo reading the paper by now!


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## JhnBssll (5 Jun 2022)

Gunk said:


> Bloody hell John, if you’d have employed a builder, you could have sitting on that loo reading the paper by now!



Certainly true, but it wouldn't have been much of a project then would it  I'm dragging this one out I know but there's no pressure to finish on a set date so I'm just having fun with it


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## icowden (6 Jun 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Certainly true, but it wouldn't have been much of a project then would it  I'm dragging this one out I know but there's no pressure to finish on a set date so I'm just having fun with it


How have you managed to square this lack of set date with Mrs JhnBssll ?!! Just looking for tips here...


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## MrGrumpy (6 Jun 2022)

icowden said:


> How have you managed to square this lack of set date with Mrs JhnBssll ?!! Just looking for tips here...



Was a keen diyer myself however now only set small projects and leave long lengthy stuff to the trades ! Currently isolating with covid and kitchen fitters ripping out kitchen . Should be done in a fortnight! Where as my last kitchen fit I did myself took three months lol !!


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## JhnBssll (6 Jun 2022)

icowden said:


> How have you managed to square this lack of set date with Mrs JhnBssll ?!! Just looking for tips here...



To be honest it's partly due to her unreasonable demands that its dragging out this long - she was adamant we had working plumbing and heating over winter for example. It would have been much quicker if I'd been able to decomission everything and live in a tent, but that was apparently a silly idea


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## ClichéGuevara (6 Jun 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Certainly true, but it wouldn't have been much of a project then would it  I'm dragging this one out I know but there's no pressure to finish on a set date so I'm just having fun with it



Once you've finished all of this, you're going to be a world expert in drumming your fingers and kicking your heels. 

You must have forgotten how to sit down and relax, if in fact you ever knew.


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## JhnBssll (11 Jun 2022)

I've skimmed the ceiling today - went pretty well so I'm feeling quite pleased with myself  Don't get me wrong, it's not perfect, but for my 3rd(?) ever day of plastering I'm more than happy with it 











The other job I've done today was to cut and fix one piece of timber in the cupboard to attach socket back boxes so the electrician has half a chance on Monday. He's primarily here to fit the new aircon unit but I'm hoping he gets a chance to finish and test the electrics too, there's not a huge amount to do.






I've got a slot at the tip booked tomorrow so I'll load the van up in the morning and clear the pile from down the side where the new outdoor unit is going 

It'll be good to get the electrics done as the ball will be firmly back in my court to finish the job... 

I heard back from building control during the week, they're happy with the pictures of the fireproofed steelwork so I can go ahead and plaster over that now too. They need to visit before I backfill the drainage, but I've yet to dig that so no hurry  Other than that and the electrical certificate I'm pretty much there with building control  There's light at the end of the tunnel...


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## Colin Grigson (12 Jun 2022)

That plastering looks great … from my house 
on a more serious note - well done for trying - I would undoubtedly make a pigs ear of it


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## JhnBssll (13 Jun 2022)

The aircon is installed downstairs now  He's made a nice job of concealing all the cables and pipework within the studwork so I can board over it in the near future 











Externally he's tagged it on to the existing installation quite nicely - the refrigerant pipework pops out of the wall about 100mm from the existing pipework so he's tee'd it in to the existing trunking, the new bit of black trunking just needs painting to match the old stuff now 






Then the pipework extends past the original condenser to the new one, identical but 2 years newer 😊






Once the drains are in and the fence is built these will be nicely tucked away and out of sight. They're both incredibly quiet so you won't know they're there


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## MrGrumpy (14 Jun 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> The aircon is installed downstairs now  He's made a nice job of concealing all the cables and pipework within the studwork so I can board over it in the near future
> 
> View attachment 648847
> 
> ...



Air con ??!! :-/ not something we need up here lol


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## JhnBssll (19 Jun 2022)

I had a few hours spare today so I've done a bit more boarding. Fairly slow progress but progress none the less concentrating on the door and window openings.

I nipped out to my local Wickes and bought some insulated plasterboard which is needed in these area's for building regs. The last bit of insulated board was damaged so I got £20 knocked off it which was a result, knowing I didn't need a full board anyway 

I've used the PU adhesive foam again as it's done a great job elsewhere, this is what it looks like when applied and waiting for it to go tacky...







As you can probably imagine if you're not careful you can make quite a mess quite quickly with this stuff 

Once I'd put it up around the door I realised I'd forgotten to run the door sensor cable for the alarm This made an easy job a little more complex but I managed to mark and drill holes at 90 degrees that lined up then used a bit of gear cable to fish the alarm cable through  I've poked a decent length of it in to the door frame for now so I can pull it back out again when I'm ready to connect a sensor up 











Here is the door and window with edges boarded...






I did another bit of boarding in the hallway before rain stopped play - I have nowhere to cut the board indoors so can only do these bits when its dry out  I was quite pleased when these holes I'd measured and cut lined up 











At current guess I'm going to be around 2 boards short so I'll need to jump in the van and collect more before I make much more progress, there's only one complete board left in the garage now. I thought I'd ordered enough to have some left over, its amazing how much you get through


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## Time Waster (19 Jun 2022)

Well carpet day tomorrow. Two bedrooms fully painted, carpet removed and furniture stashed around the house. Had to shut the bedroom doors because too much hard surfaces make the house echo badly. It will be good to put everything back tomorrow.

After a few new pieces of furniture it'll be done. Then the rest of the house, the garden and maybe something else. Never ending is the way it feels right now. Is it worth it?


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## JhnBssll (25 Jun 2022)

I finished boarding the hall and loo today 











Once that was done I decided to concentrate on the hallway and try and get it ready for plaster so set about taping the joints. It always surprises me how long this job takes 






With that done the last job was to fix the corner trims around the door opening...






Once that's all gone off I'll think about chucking some plaster up, hopefully I'll continue to improve


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## Adam4868 (25 Jun 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I finished boarding the hall and loo today
> 
> View attachment 650516
> 
> ...


Out of curiosity what is it on the tape..board adhesive ? If so why ? Not criticising just asking 😁


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## JhnBssll (25 Jun 2022)

Its jointing compound. Please criticise if its going to make my life easier, I still don't really know what I'm doing


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## Adam4868 (25 Jun 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Its jointing compound. Please criticise if its going to make my life easier, I still don't really know what I'm doing


No not at all ! For board like you've done there I only ever use scrim tape and skim finish.No real need to make extra work for yourself.But either or,still a top job ! I usually go over my taped joints with skim first,just a quick once over.
But carry on as you were....jist being nosey 😁


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## MrGrumpy (25 Jun 2022)

I’ve over boarded and ceiling before, used tape and jointing compound and sanded . Was an on finish. However for walls I’d want a skim coat . As plaster board is easily dented !


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## JhnBssll (25 Jun 2022)

MrGrumpy said:


> I’ve over boarded and ceiling before, used tape and jointing compound and sanded . Was an on finish. However for walls I’d want a skim coat . As plaster board is easily dented !



Oh I'll be skimming it too, exactly as I've done in the living room already  Using the jointing compound and tape first gives me one less step to worry about while I plaster - I'm not quick at getting it out of the bucket and on to the walls so anything I can do before I mix the plaster that saves me a little time is a bonus haha.


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## JhnBssll (27 Jun 2022)

I plastered the ceiling and around the front door after work, I'll wait for this to go off before I try and do anymore because a) I'm knackered and b) I'm quite pleased with it and don't want to ruin it  Only a single skim on the ceiling so far, I'll go over it again at some point.











I'd have carried on but I'd used the mix up, decided it wasn't worth mixing another lot and pushing my luck


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## Adam4868 (27 Jun 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I plastered the ceiling and around the front door after work, I'll wait for this to go off before I try and do anymore because a) I'm knackered and b) I'm quite pleased with it and don't want to ruin it  Only a single skim on the ceiling so far, I'll go over it again at some point.
> 
> View attachment 650723
> 
> ...


Looks good ! But I'm going to have to stick my nose in on this.Allways two coats of skim and your making your job a lot harder by leaving time between coats.
First coat just get it on and a quick flatten,doesn't have to be perfect.The second coat will sort it out.Wait for first coat to just about leave a fingerprint in when touched,then over with second coat.Leave to go off then flatten/polish/trowel up or whatever you want to call it.You can have a spray bottle of water to trowel it up.Youll be suprised how much easier it is ! 
Seeing that youve put a coat on the ceiling allready,if your going over that with a second coat anytime soon.Id give it a good coating of diluted PVA.Thats going to go off as soon as you put it on.
Right tell me to keep my nose out from now on 😁


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## JhnBssll (27 Jun 2022)

Haha yeah two coats is what I'm aiming for, trouble is always time at the moment... I'm making this all far harder than it needs to be I know hahaha.

Question on two coats though - why? Is it just to make it easier to get a flat finish or is there structurally something better about having two skims? If (big if!) I were able to take my time and get it 'good enough' with one coat would it suffice? Just interested is all, I'll be whacking another coat on anyway  I did the same with the other ceiling, left it a few days between coats and it did go off quickly so I sprayed loads of water on as I went. Ended up ok but was pretty messy hahaha


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## Adam4868 (27 Jun 2022)

The first coat is only a base coat....you need not worry too much about it being "flat" the second coat can be thinner but it's where you'll get your perfect finish ! 
You'll be suprised how much easier as a DIY er it is 😁
Try whitewashing with pva 1 part PVA to 3 water on that ceiling leaving it tacky.Then plaster it.It will give you more time,and not suck the plaster in straight away.
Alternatively if you ever want to speed up the drying of skim,either dirty water or warm water will do it.But you better be fast ! 
Either way your doing a good job....I've a spare room needs doing when you e finished.Partner says how come I'm with you a Plasterer and our house is a mess.
Patience dearest 🙄


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## JhnBssll (1 Jul 2022)

Did a bit more plastering today - second skim on the ceiling then two skims on the remaining walls  The hall is now fully plastered, I'll prep the loo next! 😊
















Two coats one after another was definitely easier


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## bikingdad90 (1 Jul 2022)

Starting to look like a house again!


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## MontyVeda (1 Jul 2022)

bikingdad90 said:


> Starting to look like a house again!



He's just being selective with what he's showing us


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## JhnBssll (3 Jul 2022)

Just popped a little radiator on the wall in the hall 😊

Brackets measured and fitted, chases for pipework cut out:







I cut the chases about 30mm deep and a little over 10mm wide so the pipes can sit fairly deep in the wall. Here it is piped up:






To cover it back over I've pushed in some rockwool insulation then used deep gap filler to cover over. It's supposed to be ok to depths of 20mm and this was only 8-10mm so should do the job. The idea of the rockwool was two fold, it'll allow the pipes to move slightly when fitting and removing the radiator but also it should prevent the filler from cracking with thermal expansion. Thats the theory anyway, we'll see what happens once I've filled this bit of the heating circuit. Hopefully the wall doesnt start getting damp 

Here it is with the first rough coat of filler applied - I'm now waiting for it to harden before I can go over it again and smooth it off 😊 If it works I'll do the same with the living room rad and towel rail in the loo 






I've bought some pipe covers to fit to hide where they come out of the wall but haven't collected them from screwfix yet. A large amount of the filler will be covered by floor and skirting anyway so should be fine.

The wall box is accessible still, I have placed the rad high enough to prevent obstruction. This is where the phone line comes in but the master socket was extended in to the living room by a BT openreach engineer last year so there'll just be a blanking plate here. I was glad when the broadband was still working after I'd fitted the wall brackets as I knew I was drilling pretty close to where the extension cable is routed


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## JhnBssll (3 Jul 2022)

Decided to start putting the floor down in the hall now to try and protect the plumbing  Didn't finish before I had to pack up but a good start 😊











It would seem I've sodded up the measurements for the doormat though, might have to make it a little bigger


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## Jenkins (13 Jul 2022)

You're not going to get much done on the house if you keep going out on bike rides (top pic)

https://www.ipswichstar.co.uk/news/cyclists-fundraise-for-firefighters-charity-9142632


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## jowwy (14 Jul 2022)

Jenkins said:


> You're not going to get much done on the house if you keep going out on bike rides (top pic)
> 
> https://www.ipswichstar.co.uk/news/cyclists-fundraise-for-firefighters-charity-9142632



He looks nothing like his profile pic lol


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## jowwy (12 Aug 2022)

its been a month now....the shakes are starting to get uncontrollable. WE need an update john?? please make the shakes stop lol


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## JhnBssll (9 Sep 2022)

I've had a nice refreshing break from DIY but decided it was time to crack on. I've decided to get the kitchen finished first so have spent the last few days working on the laundry cupboard. First job was to build the studwork and plasterboard it...






This was very much the easy bit. I'd been thinking about how to make neat edges around the doors for a while and came up with what I hoped would be a cunning plan... I cut some bits of nice straight timber to length and made a frame which I then clamped to the door frame.






The idea being I could now plaster up to the frame and use it as a form, then remove it once the plaster had gone off... The only question was whether the plaster would come away with the form, or stay on the wall  Only one way to find out...











Great success!! Here it is again with the doors refitted to check I'd made the form the right size 






I still need to make and fit the top shelf in the laundry cupboard, perhaps another job for the weekend but we shall see.

There are plenty of jobs left in the kitchen once the cupboard is finished - remove coving, replaster ceiling, remove old extractor hood, fit new extractor hood, grout tiles and of course decorating so plenty to keep me busy 

We were going to leave the ceiling in this room for now, but MrsBssll had an incident with the shower in the bathroom directly above which has forced our hand


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## jowwy (9 Sep 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I've had a nice refreshing break from DIY but decided it was time to crack on. I've decided to get the kitchen finished first so have spent the last few days working on the laundry cupboard. First job was to build the studwork and plasterboard it...
> 
> View attachment 660476
> 
> ...



Finally………the shakes have stopped. Top job


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## Colin Grigson (9 Sep 2022)

That’s a very handsome cupboard


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## Milkfloat (10 Sep 2022)

Your wife has the patience of a saint. Mine gets uppity if a project takes more than a few days, there would be no chance of a few months off mid project.


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## MrGrumpy (10 Sep 2022)

Milkfloat said:


> Your wife has the patience of a saint. Mine gets uppity if a project takes more than a few days, there would be no chance of a few months off mid project.



Problem with mine is she’s thinks it’s just like the telly with 60min makeovers  . Pictures up and furnishings in after just one coat !


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## JhnBssll (10 Sep 2022)

Bit more kitchen progress today 😄 I cracked on removing the coving and stripping loose paint and plaster. I then turned my attention to the dead lengths of pipe in the corner above the sink - The ceiling needed patching around them anyway as it was quite damaged so I decided to cut the corner out and see if I could neaten things up. Heres what I was greeted with, minus an old blue towel that dropped on me when I took the board down... Presumably someone somewhere is still looking for it 






After a short time I had created a nice pile of scrap copper...






Much neater up there now! I've since boarded over it at taped the joins ready for plastering...






Next I test fitted the new extractor hood to see what modifications would be needed to the ventilation hole and the power socket:






Oh bother  Now I knew this was going to be the case, but I had rather hoped that it would have fixed itself by now. Apparently not, so time to bring out a new toy, my 152mm core drill 






The black and decker drill is about 20 years old and it really did not enjoy itself today - I had to stop a couple of times due to the thick black smoke coming out of it but it soldiered on and got the job done 

I decided instead of creating an entirely new hole the most sensible approach would be to try and drill diagonally to meet up with the old external grill location - the new hole was also larger than the old one so getting started on the brickwork was tricky but I got there slowly but surely 





















I'm planning on moving the socket shortly then making good the holes ready for painting over 😊 I might get a chance to do some plastering tomorrow all being well, we shall see!


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## jowwy (10 Sep 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Bit more kitchen progress today 😄 I cracked on removing the coving and stripping loose paint and plaster. I then turned my attention to the dead lengths of pipe in the corner above the sink - The ceiling needed patching around them anyway as it was quite damaged so I decided to cut the corner out and see if I could neaten things up. Heres what I was greeted with, minus an old blue towel that dropped on me when I took the board down... Presumably someone somewhere is still looking for it
> 
> View attachment 660598
> 
> ...



Just as i was about to take legal action…he posts updates two days in a row.
Top work John


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## JhnBssll (10 Sep 2022)

jowwy said:


> Just as i was about to take legal action…he posts updates two days in a row.
> Top work John



Brace yourself dude, here's another update 

I've moved the socket, it was really easy in the end. I just stitch drilled an extra pocket to the right of the socket and gave the core a tap with a chisel and it dropped right out...






Then popped the power off and removed the socket and back box, refitted the cable through a different entry point and refitted the backbox in its new position...






I even treated the backbox to a grommet, which the installer had obviously deemed unnecessary  Once moved I pulled the flex vent out to approx the right length and let rip with the expanding foam 






That will have gone off nicely shortly, so I'll trim it back and whiz over it with some ready mix plaster and smooth it over. Other than that I've just spent half an hour giving the kitchen a good clean so it no longer looks like a building site and I'll soon be ready to put my feet up for the evening 😊 More progress tomorrow hopefully


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## jowwy (10 Sep 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Brace yourself dude, here's another update
> 
> I've moved the socket, it was really easy in the end. I just stitch drilled an extra pocket to the right of the socket and gave the core a tap with a chisel and it dropped right out...
> 
> ...



Now your just spoiling us……


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## JhnBssll (12 Sep 2022)

The ceiling repairs weren't dry yesterday so I've had to wait to plaster it. This evening I got my chance, first painting it with a coat of diluted PVA then a first rough coat of plaster...







Then after half an hour or so I put on a second coat... (its pretty humid today so it was taking a while for the plaster to start going off)






Then after another wait for the second coat to start going off I polished it up as best I could...






As with my other attempts at plastering its not perfect, but I'm pretty pleased with the results regardless  There's a little more filling and sanding required to the walls but once thats done and the plaster is dry in a week or so it'll get painted 

Next job is the shelf in the laundry cupboard


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## Colin Grigson (12 Sep 2022)

What’s your ‘mates rate’ per m2 please John ?


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## JhnBssll (24 Sep 2022)

I had a delivery during the week- Whilst I'm waiting for the plaster in the kitchen to dry out (which to be fair it probably has by now) I decided to make some progress with the heating system since the weather seems to be turning...






First job, drain down... This was easy with the old redundant pipework still connected so I just opened the rad valve over a bucket 






That got rid of most of the water and the rest came out when I cut that pipe off below floor level. It didnt take long to pipe up the first rad under the aircon unit (seems a strange place to have a radiator but I don't intend to run them simultaneously! haha) as the wall behind in the cupboard isn't yet boarded, for this very reason 






Whilst I was in this area I also cut out a section of another pipe and replaced it because it had been crushed, I suspect by a step ladder. For the second rad I had to take the carpet up in the corner and work out what to do as it involved moving existing pipework. As I lifted the carpet I was slightly alarmed to see someone had been there before me and I recognised the handiwork from other bodges I've fixed throughout the house 






It actually looked like they might have moved the pipework from where I want it now to the new radiator under the window, so I was intrigued to find out if I was really just going to undo what they'd done and put the house back to original intent yet again  Only one way to find out, and that was to remove the gaffer tape, screws and silicon that they'd used to patch the floor 

Just before I show you what I found underneath, check out this for professional level work... I remember now why we hid this behind a sofa 






Anyway, beneath the bodgery was yet more bodgery, as we've come to expect in this house. They had indeed modified the original pipework to move the radiator around on to another wall, I just can't quite understand why they wouldn't do it properly and hide the pipes all the way around - if you're going to go to the effort of chopping the floor out in one area why not finish the job?  Just check out the insulation too, incredible work 






I decided to do it properly this time so chased out the blockwork wall to bury the pipes...






Then modified the pipework again (its the triggers broom of heating systems!) to serve the new rad position...






I've just put the bodged floor back together and thrown the carpet back over the top for now - I'll have to fix it properly before we lay the new flooring but thats a job for another day  There is a third radiator to install (another 6 panel one like the second) at the other end of the living room but it was getting a bit late in the day and I wanted a hot shower so had to refill the system. Instead of push my luck I decided to give myself plenty of time in case something went awry...

Which was pretty lucky really, because when I refilled the system I had the mother of all leaks on the first radiator  I gradually filled and kept checking for leaks but all was fine until it suddenly wasn't, and water was spraying on my consumer unit in the cupboard  I had to dump the water out quickly to stop the leak by undoing one of the rad plugs and emptying it into a big bucket - it drained much quicker this way but wasn't quite so easy to control  Anyway an inspection of the leaking fitting found the joint just pulled apart by hand - a closer look showed there was no solder ring in one side of the fitting and I hadn't clocked it  I guess the flux was enough to hold water until the pressure overcame it and all hell broke loose  An easy fix, I cut that section of pipe out and replaced it, refilled it and hoped for the best. When nothing else seemed to be leaking I turned the boiler back on and everything got hot - great success 











I'll have to drain down again to modify the pipework and fit the 3rd vertical rad, and they'll all have to come down yet again when it's time to decorate that area of the living room  No rest for the wicked...


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## bikingdad90 (24 Sep 2022)

When fitting that 6 panel one make sure you bond it to the concrete wall, it’ll be over a ton when filled and the supplies fittings are likely to give way, just not heavy duty enough. Just ask me how I know that?!!


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## icowden (25 Sep 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I'll have to drain down again to modify the pipework and fit the 3rd vertical rad, and they'll all have to come down yet again when it's time to decorate that area of the living room  No rest for the wicked...


Just curious, but why the vertical rad in the living room?


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## Colin Grigson (25 Sep 2022)

That underfloor insulation


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## JhnBssll (25 Sep 2022)

icowden said:


> Just curious, but why the vertical rad in the living room?



All 3 vertical rads will be in the same room so we thought it would be nice if they matched. They seem to suit the planned room layout better too. I've made sure the heat output is suitable (it's actually about 50% more than necessary) so I can't really see a downside to them. Might as well make a feature out of them 



Colin Grigson said:


> That underfloor insulation



It's ridiculous isn't it... To think whoever put the floor down took one last look at that insulation and thought "yup, that'll do"... hahaha


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## icowden (25 Sep 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> All 3 vertical rads will be in the same room so we thought it would be nice if they matched. They seem to suit the planned room layout better too. I've made sure the heat output is suitable (it's actually about 50% more than necessary) so I can't really see a downside to them. Might as well make a feature out of them


Oh that makes sense. The picture just makes it look like you have a random vertical radiator in the middle of the living room!


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## JhnBssll (25 Sep 2022)

Yeah it's an L shaped room which will have 3 vertical rads vaguely in the corners so should spread the heat out nicely


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## JhnBssll (10 Dec 2022)

You'll never believe it, but I've found some time to work on the house 

I've spent god knows how many hours fixing the walls in the kitchen and prepping for paint over the last few days and today I finally managed to get a mist coat on the walls and ceiling and have just finished putting the first coat of white on the ceiling 😄






The laundry cupboard is beginning to look more finished now; I've sanded all the filler flat and will give it a coat of white tomorrow along with the other walls as a nice base coat for the light grey I'll be painting them.






Last but not least I've moved one of the lights in the living room to suit the new room layout and put a nice new light fitting up. Eventually I'll get round to skimming the ceiling to get rid of the artex but I'll try and finish a few other areas first  I've got a new fitting for the kitchen too but I'll wait for the ceiling paint to be dry before I try and put that up...






Hoping to crack on with it first thing tomorrow


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## MontyVeda (11 Dec 2022)

the artex looks lovely. Only needs that small patch finishing my the lamp shade


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## ColinJ (11 Dec 2022)

MontyVeda said:


> the artex looks lovely. Only needs that small patch finishing my the lamp shade


There is artex on the ceiling of the living room in this house. I really do not like it. I found a very cheap, quick and effective way of hiding it... 






... I don't look up!


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## Ian H (11 Dec 2022)

Some of the downstairs doors have these posh-but-nasty ceramic knobs. I have managed to snap the spindle bar on one. From the sintered appearance of the break I deduce that it wasn't made of mild steel.
(I resisted the temptation to announce that I'd pulled my knob off, though that's pretty much what happened).


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## JhnBssll (11 Dec 2022)

I've got the ceiling finished and new light up, plus the first coat of colour on the walls  Hopefully it'll only need one more colour coat but I've plenty of paint so no biggy if not.
















I need to paint the pipes in the corner and get the skirting sorted, then I need to think about finishing the small strip of wall next to the back door. Not sure what to do there yet  Skirting is a priority as I have a new american style fridge freezer arriving a week tomorrow and I don't want to have to move it around too much


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## Jameshow (11 Dec 2022)

Ian H said:


> Some of the downstairs doors have these posh-but-nasty ceramic knobs. I have managed to snap the spindle bar on one. From the sintered appearance of the break I deduce that it wasn't made of mild steel.
> (I resisted the temptation to announce that I'd pulled my knob off, though that's pretty much what happened).
> View attachment 670791



Chineseium is the correct term!


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## Colin Grigson (14 Dec 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I've got the ceiling finished and new light up, plus the first coat of colour on the walls  Hopefully it'll only need one more colour coat but I've plenty of paint so no biggy if not.
> 
> View attachment 670813
> 
> ...



The pipes in the corner and small strip of wall can wait a year or so yet John - there’s no panic


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## icowden (14 Dec 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I need to paint the pipes in the corner and get the skirting sorted, then I need to think about finishing the small strip of wall next to the back door. Not sure what to do there yet  Skirting is a priority as I have a new american style fridge freezer arriving a week tomorrow and I don't want to have to move it around too much


I'm intrigued by the requirement for a double socket just below the ceiling in the corner of the kitchen...


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## ColinJ (14 Dec 2022)

icowden said:


> I'm intrigued by the requirement for a double socket just below the ceiling in the corner of the kitchen...


Small wall-mounted TV and peripheral?


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## JhnBssll (14 Dec 2022)

TV is correct 😊

Painting of the walls and ceiling is now finished, next jobs are tile grouting and skirting


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## JhnBssll (17 Dec 2022)

I finished the plumbing for the fridge freezer today, plus cut and fixed the skirting. All ready for the new fridge freezer delivery on Monday morning now 😄


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## JhnBssll (19 Dec 2022)

New fridge freezer arrived this morning 😄






Jolly pleased with it. Now waiting on a top cupboard to go above it which I've decided will finish that wall off a treat.

The cruel irony of taking ownership of the largest fridge freezer I've ever had is that it's happened only a few weeks after my wife moved out. We seperated a couple of weeks ago after several months of (non DIY-related) emotional turmoil. It's one of the reasons I've not been so active on the DIY projects and why I've been building the gravel bike instead to try and keep my mind off things. We'd been together 15 years and married for 9 so it's a jolly sad situation, but there we go. I didn't see it coming, that's for sure.

In a way I'm quite glad I've got this project to be cracking on with as christmas would otherwise be a pretty sad and lonely affair this year 

This is what the inside of my new fridge currently looks like...


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## Colin Grigson (20 Dec 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> New fridge freezer arrived this morning 😄
> 
> View attachment 671758
> 
> ...



That’s a sad situation John, you can join our Christmas if you like … a sort of “Busman’s holiday’ . Great looking fridge by the way! . I’m sure you’ll bounce back


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## JhnBssll (21 Dec 2022)

Aww, you guys 

I've not had my scan results yet, the hospital posted them instead of emailing. I'm hoping this is a good sign and suggests they're not critical but kinda want confirmation of that. GP is checking whether they've arrived now as I asked the hospital to email a copy yesterday. I will likely pop in later and check. I don't feel like I can move on until this bit is out of the way so fingers crossed I'm not waiting too much longer.


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## SpokeyDokey (21 Dec 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> Aww, you guys
> 
> I've not had my scan results yet, the hospital posted them instead of emailing. I'm hoping this is a good sign and suggests they're not critical but kinda want confirmation of that. GP is checking whether they've arrived now as I asked the hospital to email a copy yesterday. I will likely pop in later and check. I don't feel like I can move on until this bit is out of the way so fingers crossed I'm not waiting too much longer.



Fingers crossed.


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## Tenacious Sloth (21 Dec 2022)

Bloody hell John!

You’re having to cope with an awful lot at the moment.

I really hope everything works out well for you.

Chin up mate.


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## ColinJ (21 Dec 2022)

Yes... Fingers crossed for better health news, and a happier New Year!


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## JhnBssll (23 Dec 2022)

I gave myself two easy jobs to do this afternoon. First mist coat the fresh plaster in the hall way, then put the new shelves up in the kitchen once they arrived.

I got as far as cleaning the new front door frame of stray plaster and removing the small radiator before the shelves were delivered and I got sidetracked in to fitting them. Unfortunately I was a bit too keen and made a minor error...






D'oh! Fortunately I had a spare maintenance free box and connectors so was able to fix it fairly quickly but it does mean that wall needs painting again now  Annoying but not the end of the world  Anyway, I shifted the shelves over a few inches and up they went...






I decided since I'd already made a big mess I might as well put the extractor vent cover up too, so the kitchen is looking pretty good now!
















Now I need to mist coat the hallway in the dark as there are no lights in the new rooms yet  I dont make things easy for myself...


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## Gunk (23 Dec 2022)

I went through a gas pipe last year in the kitchen, absolute nightmare and as it was decorated a few years previously I had to repaint the whole wall once it was replastered.


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## JhnBssll (23 Dec 2022)

You don't have to drop your concentration for long to do something silly, thats for sure. I've probably been lucky to get away with it for this long to be honest 

I've got the mist coat on the walls and ceiling in the hall way now  Might try and get a few coats of paint on tomorrow afternoon


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## irw (24 Dec 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> The cruel irony of taking ownership of the largest fridge freezer I've ever had is that it's happened only a few weeks after my wife moved out. We seperated a couple of weeks ago after several months of (non DIY-related) emotional turmoil. It's one of the reasons I've not been so active on the DIY projects and why I've been building the gravel bike instead to try and keep my mind off things. We'd been together 15 years and married for 9 so it's a jolly sad situation, but there we go. I didn't see it coming, that's for sure.


John, I'm so sorry to hear this. My wife (similarly we'd been together about 15 years and married for nearly 12) abandoned me back in the summer, and ran away with our little girl. (Oddly enough only a few months after me having bought a huge fridge freezer because she said the old one couldn't fit enough frozen stuff in it). It's an absolute nightmare situation she's dropped me into, but I'm (just about) coping through the help of friends, both old and new, and being able to immerse myself in various projects at work and home.


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## SpokeyDokey (24 Dec 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> I gave myself two easy jobs to do this afternoon. First mist coat the fresh plaster in the hall way, then put the new shelves up in the kitchen once they arrived.
> 
> I got as far as cleaning the new front door frame of stray plaster and removing the small radiator before the shelves were delivered and I got sidetracked in to fitting them. Unfortunately I was a bit too keen and made a minor error...
> 
> ...



Cool looking and very tasteful tiles John - much as I would've expected from the owner of the best looking bike on CC. 👍🙂

Realistically 2023 can only go one way for you and I hope you will have positive memories of it when we head into 2024.

All the best.


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## JhnBssll (30 Dec 2022)

Very much appreciated  

I took advantage of the warmer weather today and isolated and drained the vertical rad on the new bare plaster wall so I could remove it to do some painting. The plan was to get the mist coat done today and finish off with top coats tomorrow but I got far more done than anticipated... Heres the wall ready for mist coat...







And here it is again after...






Since I had lots of time I decided to have some lunch then crack on with the matt brilliant white ceiling and 'tranquil mist' walls... I forgot to take a photo after the first coat as I had to quickly shower and go out to meet some friends for a curry but when I got in I decided I might as well get the second coat on today too - no time like the present  So here we are with the walls and ceiling painted, the aircon unit reassembled and the radiator refitted...






I also took the opportunity to swap the white plastic fused spur over to a black nickel one - I've got some new trailing edge dimmers arriving tomorrow which should match and hopefully eliminate some of the LED flicker I've got going on in the living room.






Not really sure what to do with myself tomorrow now...


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## Gunk (30 Dec 2022)

JhnBssll said:


> meet some friends for a curry



One of the greatest pleasures in life


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