Week 70 - Build Complete!
We passed the final inspection and the new house is ready for us to move in!
It has been a long road since October 2019. Had I known what was coming down the track I'd probably not have started but, despite the world doing its best to fall apart, we've done it.
The end result is even better than I'd hoped. It really is a truly stunning place and I'm so pleased with the choices we made, the materials we used and the skilled trades that helped us get here.
I'd like to thank all of the trades and firms that worked on the project, with a special mention to the main players that made it all possible:
- Mark Scott financial advisor
- Potton timber frame
- Almac carpentry and joinery
- Melcon Services groundworks
- JBL Bricklaying
- Fitsall Roofing
- Richard Yardy electricians
- Eco Installer plumbing and heating
- Anthony Howes and Stronghold wood floors
- John Paul D'Arcy and Whyt & Co ceramic tiles
- Multi-finishing drylining and plastering
- Christchurch Kitchens
- Change of Style stone worktops
- Parker Howley & Co bathroom furniture
- Spectrum Stone stone steps
- The Handle Studio and Willow & Stone ironmongery
- SWD Bespoke internal doors
- Graham Duck and Paul Duffy decorating
- Grow Gardens landscaping and fencing
If you're not listed and worked on the build, you probably know why (not mentioning any names...), but if you did work for me and didn't cock anything up, I've must have forgotten you and I apologise - drop me a note and I'll get you on the list.
For suppliers that would like full high-resolution images of the completed build, please click here.
I'd also like to say a massive thankyou to Andrew, my business partner, and his wife Anna, without whose support and help financially we'd not have been able to complete the project. Thanks guys - that's two for me now - your turn!
And thanks too need to go to Rupert and all of the team at ctm IT Support who have soldiered on throughout the pandemic while I've been running around like a crazy person trying to balance work, the build and home schooling. Without them I'd never have been able to keep the project on track, so thank you guys. I'll soon be back to micro-managing you all full time.
And lastly thanks to my wonderful wife, Martha. She's looked after the kids while I've been absent in the early mornings and weekends on the site and has done a terrific job with the two little rascals. I look forward to spending this summer doing her bidding in the garden and having more time with them all.
The full address for the new house is now live to and is:
12 Upware, Ely, CB7 5YQ
So that's it for the blog. I'll post a few more follow-up images and entries as we finish off the landscaping and garden but hopefully we'll be able to welcome you all as guests this summer (or soon after) provided all goes well and the lockdown restrictions are eased.
Once we're fully back to normal we'll of course be throwing a big house warming party to celebrate the build properly, so we'll keep the champagne on ice until then.
Stay safe everyone, miss you all and hope to see you soon.
Matt
Week 69 - Ready for inspection
I've been running around over the last few weeks getting everything ready for inspection. The building inspector is due on Tuesday this week. Fingers crossed!
First up were some of the new light fittings to replace the temporary plastic ones I had installed during second fix. We had some lovely pewter and copper shades delivered for the kitchen and diner, only to discover that the copper turned the light very orange. We've since swapped those out for brass lined ones which are much better.
The house was pressure tested for air tightness and passed, albeit with some draughty skirting on the top floor which I'm going to address with some specialist mastic at some point soon.
The wonderful stone front door step was installed by the masons and looks great.
I continued with my schoolboy carpentry efforts by building a book case to block off the dangerous ledge along the side of the back stairs, and a window seat to cover the UFH manifold in the front cloakroom.
Tony and the wood flooring guys were back to polish all of the lovely oak parquet and plank and it certainly looks the part. So pleased with the way all of the wood floors have turned out.
Graham the decorator installed the undersea mural for the play room on the third attempt - the supplier kept sending us rolls that had gaps/glitches in the printing. It looks amazing and the boys love it.
Oh and I moved Martha's oars down last week on the roof rack and installed them. We certainly have enough walls big enough in this place!
Fingers crossed for tomorrow and the big inspection!
Week 66 - Completion week!
This week we will be finishing everything internally (well almost) leaving just the final tests and inspections left to do before we can move in! Here's what we've been up to over the last fortnight.
I've been busy installing the balcony floor tiles and hand rail.
The floor is 600mm square porcelain tiles suspended on pedestal feet over the single-ply roof. The feet allow you to offset the fall and have a level finished floor with rainwater flowing between the gaps down onto the felt and into the concealed gutter.
The handrail is steel fixed to each wall with toughened glass panels below. It all went in without too much drama and looks the business. Can't wait to have my morning coffee out here!
Meanwhile inside we've been busy too. The tiling is all complete with the lobby mosaic stealing the show. The kitchen "blockbusters" splashbacks look great too. We finally got the right tap for the kitchen, so the sink is back in and I can now make cups of tea in an instant. Genius.
My schoolboy carpentry was put to the test with the custom shelving to the pantry, jig-sawed brackets and all. Having come off the back of the kitchen fit I was nicely warmed up, my table saw proving a useful investment once more.
I've wired in the low voltage LEDs into the utility room and pantry so that's all of the lighting work finally complete. The continuous LED strips really do look the part; I even got a chance to break out my soldering iron so I was happy.
The thresholds between the rooms are now in so Bob the carpenter is busy this week cutting in the door stops with the decorators following on. We should hopefully have all of them in by Wednesday.
Outside the groundworkers have laid the patio which looks fantastic.
Lots of other jobs too small to mention, but its a big push until the end of this week: cleaners arrive Saturday!
Week 63 - Kitchen appliances, mosaic and groundwork
Lots of excitement over the last two weeks. We're fast approaching the finishing line now, but there is still a long list of jobs that need doing.
In the last fortnight the landscape and groundworks teams have returned to carry on fencing and begin planting hedges and laying the stone paving outside.
Meanwhile inside the kitchen paint is all on and the stone worktops are in. I spent a weekend fitting cabinet handles, installing appliances and wiring in the undercabinet LEDs. I've also installed the intercom system and the internal CCTV, as well as all of the central IT kit needed to run everything from the plant room in the garage.
Finally, jobs I'm actually qualified to do!
The tilers are busy with the kitchen splashback and the wonderful Victorian mosaic in the lobby, and the carpenter is almost done with the skirting board.
The electricians have fitted the centre piece lantern in the hall and installed the electric car charger, and the plumbers have commissioned the heating system and all of the sinks, showers, baths and toilets.
Almost there...
Week 61 - Wood floor complete
This week saw the wood flooring team wrap-up their efforts with spectacular results, meanwhile the carpenter, plumbers and I have been busy as usual.
All of the wood flooring is down now, including the show-piece parquet basket weave in the hall. It looks amazing. I'm now panicking a little about protecting it while the build continues, so we're putting some Correx sheets down this morning to keep it all safe.
Carpenter Bob is doing a fine job with the skirting which is going on slowly but surely, and the plumbers continue to second fix the bathrooms and the radiators in the attic rooms on the top floor.
I've been busy with various electrical jobs and this weekend installed the four electric towel rails in the bathrooms.
The templaters came to measure up for the stone work tops on Wednesday, they'll be back this week to fit the stone which is very exciting. The painters are making progress on the kitchen having varnished all of the interior and exposed oak, moving on now to priming the facias.
The electricians are working in the plant room to complete the commission of the heating, cooling and ventilation systems, and my other electrician is back on Wednesday to help me fix a few snags, install the electric car charger and hang the big lantern in the hall.
It's all go!
Week 60 - Let there be light!
This week I attacked the light switching and before the week was out, we had lights on throughout the house. Meanwhile, tiling, plumbing, carpentry and wood flooring have been gathering pace.
The lighting is helping everyone work in these dark days, and boy have we been busy!
The carpenter has been hanging internal doors, including the wonderful glazed doubles into the main hall. The plumbers have kicked off with the bathroom second fix, among other less interesting things, and the tilers have been busy on the bathrooms.
Meanwhile the five-strong wood flooring team arrived this week and have made a terrific start. It is so nice to finally see the wooden floor going down.
I've also been picking up lots of other jobs, including wiring in the UFH for the bathrooms and preparing the kitchen for painting next week.
Week 59 - A very busy Christmas
It has been a long time since I last posted as I've had my hands very full with the house, the kids, COVID and Christmas. The good news is I've been busy, so there's lots to see!
The main headline is that over Christmas I fitted the kitchen, utility and pantry. I treated myself to a new table saw to allow me to rip French cleats so I could hang the wall cupboards single-handed - I'm pleased to report that it worked perfectly. All of the units are now in and electrical services plumbed for the various appliances. Next step: paint!
Meanwhile lots has been happening outside with the fencing team putting in a mix of different fence panels and clearing the NW corner of the garden which has revealed a perfect woodland play area for the boys. The ground workers have also complete the pond and the hardcore levels for the gravel and paved areas, and the steel edging boys have installed the metal strips that will separate gravel from grass.
The plumbers completed the install of the Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP) which meant we could fire up the heating just in time for the Christmas break, meaning I could work in the warm which was much appreciated.
The tilers have kicked-off with the kitchen and utility tiles which look amazing. In the new year they have moved upstairs to start work on the bathrooms, laying mosaic flooring over the electric underfloor heating that I installed after I finished the kitchen (if you ever have to do it, I have a tip for you - invest in a spare pair of thumbs...).
The carpenter has done a great job on the stairs and is back now to fit the internal doors which all arrived over Christmas.
The decorators have been busy too, and we have colour on all of the walls now. They are back soon to start painting the doors and staircases.
The electricians have been back helping me with the second fix. We've fitted all of the mains sockets so far and the lights are all in, leaving me to work my way round fitting all the switches. This is a bit more complicated than usual as I'm fitting smart devices behind all of the switches to allow us to control all of the lights as a part of the house's IT system I have planned.
Oh yes, and finally we now have a garage door!
Next week we'll kick off on the second fix plumbing and hopefully the wooden floor.
Lots more still to do, but we're definitely on the home straight.
Week 52 - Second fix and landscaping
Second fix continues inside with decorators, plumbers, tilers and carpenters all working, whilst outside the diggers return to kick-off the landscaping.
It has been a busy couple of weeks to say the least.
The kitchen has arrived which is very exciting, while the decorators have really got stuck in and colour is already appearing on the walls. Bob the carpenter has been tackling the stairs and we have a spectacular new handrail in place (after we'd both worked out the correct spacing for the spindles - a long story that is bound to bore anyone unlucky enough to ask me about it).
The plumbers are back and busy installing the two air-source heat pumps and other plumbing bits needed to fire up the heating system.
The tilers have also started so we now have a beautiful terracotta-esque porcelain floor in the utility room. As of today they are making a start on the large format grey tiles in the kitchen.
Outside the groundworkers have returned. We have the new pond dug and levels going in for the various other garden features. Sam and the landscaping team have also kicked-off with the fencing. They cleared the back right corner which has always been too overgrown to explore and discovered a perfect den for the boys of low hanging tree branches.
Meanwhile I've been spending every spare hour I have putting up coving and picture rail and I'm pleased to report that as of today I'm done (except for the bits I can't reach in the stair wells - super new ladder on order to take care of those). Next I'm moving on to install the electric underfloor heating in the bathrooms, and then I'll be wiring up all the lights and sockets - the first "dry" job I've had that doesn't involve some form of adhesive, paint, concrete or mastic - yippee!
Week 50 - Second fix begins
Plastering is now complete so I have decorators and carpenters back onsite to kick-off the second fix.
Bob the carpenter is busy fixing architrave whilst the decorators mist coat the walls. We have the tough decision of picking paint colours (without ending up filing for divorce) whilst I spend my weekends putting up coving and picture rail in a vain attempt to keep ahead of the painters.
Tiles and wood flooring start next week and the kitchen arrives on Monday!
Electricians and plumbers will be back at the end of the month to start their second fix work.
Bonfire Night
We dispose of all of the waste timber from the build in the only appropriate way...
Edward and I had some fun on Friday 6 November; I asked the groundworkers to put all of the waste timber into a pile in the middle of the plot. It took a bit (a lot) of petrol to get enough heat into the damp wood before it was self-sustaining but once it went, it really went!
Week 49 - Groundworks resume
Whilst work continues inside the house, its time for the groundworkers to make a reappearance and start on the landscaping outside.
The big diggers arrived back onsite this week (much to the excitement of two certain young gentlemen) to begin clearing up and making a start on the landscaping.
Much to my relief the first job was to clean up all of the mess left by the many trades over the last year. The site is looking much neater now and, more importantly, is much safer too.
The next job was to dig the pond. After a bit of adjustment of the boundaries and negotiation around some willow trees that have grown up since the original survey was done, we're really pleased with it. It's huge! May have to get the boys a boat for it...
You can check out our plans for the garden via the links to the right/bottom of this post.
Week 48 - Plastering (almost) complete
The wet work is almost done, set to complete next Tuesday, and the decorators and other second fix trades are raring to go.
Painters arrive tomorrow to get started on the mist coat as the tackers finished on Wednesday and the plasterers only have a few days left.
Carpenters, plumber and electricians will all be back soon too to begin on the second fix.
We've also had some exciting deliveries this week: the bathroom vanities all arrived yesterday and the wood flooring (all 5 tonnes of it!) arrives tomorrow.
And we have round windows!
Week 47 - Plaster and balcony
The plasterers are up to full speed now as Chris the tacker gives each room its internal walls for the first time - and we finally have a water-tight balcony!
Walls are going up quickly now, with insulation and services all sorted. Bob the carpenter completed work on the balcony and the roofers came down last weekend to put the single ply membrane on to finally seal it in.
This week we'll be finishing the heating panels and plasterboard in the kitchen, and my round windows for the second floor should finally be installed on Thursday.
If you want something done right...
Concrete screed layers screw-up my drain in the garage, threatening criminal damage unless I paid. I got shot of them and fixed the drain myself.
When pouring the floor they knocked the trap and ended up setting it completely skew and off-level. When confronted, he (Carl Buxton, Buxton Flow Screed) first denied it was his responsibility, then blamed the ground workers for not setting it correctly, then said he didn't even notice it wasn't set correctly.
He then threatened to come and smash the floor up unless I paid him.
What a lovely person.
I had no intention of letting him back on the site as he was more likely to damage something else through sheer stupidity so I dug the drain out and reset it myself. Once grinded and painted you won't be able to see the repair.
Moral of the story: don't hire total morons.
Drone Fly-by #4
Week 44 - Plaster board!
As the last bits of plumbing go in, the tackers are on site to begin installing insulation and plaster board.
The house is really starting to take shape now as the walls go on inside. There are still plenty of small issues to overcome (not least of which the lack of a balcony!) but we are definitely making keen progress now.
It will take around four more weeks to complete the plastering after which decorating and flooring finishes will begin, then we're onto the final touches including the fitting of the kitchens and bathrooms.
Work on external landscaping should also be kicking off in a couple of weeks' time too.
Week 43 - Stairs and cherry pickers
The main staircase went in this week whilst we finished off first fix and I had "fun" with the cherry picker...
We had to fit a cable through the wall and a small guttering downpipe over the garage roof. The electrician volunteered his cherry picker, which was a great idea in theory, however it at 1.5 tonnes it took over a dozen of us an hour to move it round the house, over the rough ground, to the key spot at the back.
The work itself took less time!
Meanwhile the carpenter has fitted the main staircase which is wonderful and seemed easy compared to moving the cherry picker. I have been running around picking up odd jobs of wiring ahead of the plasterboard arriving soon.
I also managed to find time to fit the exterior lights and shiny brass bits to the front door. Looking good!
Week 42 - Glass, glass, glass
Both the sliding glass doors and the glass roof went in this week, neither without incident...
The sliding glass doors arrived last Tuesday. Three of the six large panels were broken in transit, so they are going to have to come back to refit, but at least they are in and keeping the weather out.
The lean-to roof over the kitchen and family room went in next, and despite a few snags that they are hopefully addressing today, it is looking good.
All that remains now before we're weather tight is the balcony. Watch this space!
In other news, we're in the last week of first fix now, so it is all hands to the pumps to get everything ready for the arrival of the plasterboard next week.
Week 41 - Painting and guttering
While the trades work away inside I've been dodging the rain to paint external wood work and hang guttering with help from my apprentice...
We're still waiting for the sliding glass doors and glass lean-to roof to go in, but both should be happening this week. Data cabling also went in this week so we're almost there on first fix.
Week 40 - Fix, fix, fix...
First fix is in full swing now, with electricians, plumbers and carpenters all working onsite to bring everything together.
Meanwhile I've been picking off odd-jobs, like paining the new front and side doors, and prepping and painting the garage block soffit and fascia ahead of installing the guttering.
Bob the carpenter wasted no time in throwing up the stairs, so we can now get to all floors without ladders. Hooray!
Week 39 - Front door, stairs and first fix
It's all go in a push to get everything ready for plastering mid-September.
Marvin have been back for a second swing, putting in the amazing front door among other things, the stairs have arrived and inside the carpenters, plumbers and electricians are busy with the first fix.
I've be pushing on with the guttering, completing the work at the front of the house with my new ladder that I'm sure weighs almost as much as a small car.
I'm still coordinating the multiple window suppliers and other trades needed to get the balcony and sliding glass doors in, fingers crossed come 1 September we should be done there.
Week 36 - Windows and scaffold down!
It has been a busy few weeks on the build. We have windows and just yesterday - the scaffold finally came down!
It is a wonderful feeling when you first get to see a house without the scaffold that has always been there. It'll take some getting used to.
Windows and doors are largely in and looking good. We have a few snags but that's to be expected, and the front door should be arriving next week. The roofers have also completed work on the garage now the scaffold is out of the way.
I am now slowly accelerating the first fix work to hopefully get the place wired and plumbed by the end of August, ready for plastering in September.
Dentil cornice
When I decided to make up some exterior cornice to cover the brickwork settling gap it seemed like a simple enough job. Three days and two 5am starts later and it was starting to seem like a questionable decision!
With a timber frame house you need to leave a 10mm gap between the top of the brick cladding and the soffit for the timber frame to settle over time. This leaves an unsightly and uneven (thanks to window arches being slightly lower than the surrounding courses) space that ideally needs covering with some cornice.
Various options are available but none that were both good value and good quality, so I decided to knock them up myself from timber. It took a day to build them, but the real marathon was the painting; three coats in all.
The time pressure came from the deadline for the scaffold drop - I only had a few days to get the job done and the weather was against me. With some early starts and a break in the weather on Monday evening, I managed to get them up and finished 30 minutes before the scaffolders arrived on site!
Week 34 - Trees down!
The biggest news since my last post is the trees at the front of the plot are now down, and you can finally see the house from the road - it looks amazing!
Meanwhile we've had the ground floor screed poured, so we're now ready to finish off the remainder of the first fix just as soon as the windows and doors are in. I've had confirmation today that they will be arriving onsite on Monday 20 July and take around two weeks to complete.
I've had to find a new supplier for the large glass doors at the back of the house and the round windows at the top, but they should hopefully be in place by mid-August too.
Bricks and roof are almost done, just finishing touches now, so the scaffold should be coming down in a week or two as well.
Week 32 - Ready for screed
With the brickwork almost complete, we have been working toward getting the ground floor ready to pour the liquid screed next week.
The brickwork has been the main job going on in June, but meanwhile we've been busy inside the house with first fix plumbing and carpentry, as well as insulating the floor and fitting the underfloor heating ready for the screed to be poured.
Once down, we'll need to wait a week before any heavy work can carry on, meanwhile we'll be finishing the bricks and roof outside ahead of the windows arriving mid-July (finally!).
Oh and next week we start the flint on the garage too. Exciting times.
Scaffold down by mid-July and not a moment too soon.
Week 29 - First fix plumbing
Brick work continues this week, but now we also have the plumbers on site fitting the water and drainage pipework.
With the wait for the windows and doors ongoing, I am doing everything I can to keep the build progressing by bringing work forwards, and that includes fitting the pipework and ducting for the water and ventilation systems respectively.
We are now aiming to fit the insulation, underfloor heating and pour the ground floor screed in two weeks time, with the windows and doors largely going in first week in July.
Week 28 - Bricks, bricks, bricks
The bricklayers have been busy this week. The main arch over the front door is in and they are up to first floor window height around most of the house.
The choice of bricks continues to please, and the more that go up, the better they look.
We've had a bit of drama, from the window openings being in the wrong place thanks to manufacturing mistakes with the timber frame, to a dark patch caused by poorly mixed bricks requiring individual dark bricks to be cut out of the wall and replaced with lighter examples, but nothing that we haven't managed to fix.
Progress too on the windows and doors, we should have them in by the end of June - fingers' crossed!
Week 27 - We're back!
Trades have been slowly returning to site as the Covid-19 coronavirus lockdown eases and work is slowly picking up pace again.
The bricklayers have been back for a couple of weeks now and are making good progress. The final load of bricks from the manufacturer is on its way this week and we have all the arches, half-bats and flint (for the garage block) on site now too.
The carpenters have installed the remaining rigid insulation into the sloping ceilings on the second floor, and have cracked-on with the first fix noggins and ply lining despite the windows being delayed.
Plumbers have also been onsite installing the ventilation system and will return next week to kick-off the first fix of the water and drainage pipework.
All we need now is windows and doors which are stuck in both the USA and Europe. I am on the case but the supplier is being slippery and I'm really worried we may have a problem there. Fingers crossed it will all be okay.
Given the delays we're now looking at a November finish, provided I can get the windows in at the end of June. Any later and we may well spill over into 2021.
Week 22 - Social distancing and insulation
Four weeks at home with the kids is distracting rather well from the slow pace on the build.
Not a lot happened over the last two weeks as you can imagine. The carpenters have started on a mix of snags left over from the timber frame erection and first fix items. They are both self-employed and need to keep working to make it to June when the government bailout kicks in.
This week the insulation arrived - all of it, two lorry loads. It took the carpenters and me three hours to move it all inside safely. This will cover the ground floor beneath the screed, the roof, the interior walls and ceilings and the balcony.
Week 20 - Lockdown
The week kicked-off well on Monday, than everything came to an abrupt halt as the government locked the country down to help fight the spread of the coronavirus, COVID-19
The brickwork continues to impress but the bricklayers are all now laid-off until the lockdown ends. The roofers were happy to carry on working as they only had one or two days left to do, so they have finished all they can at this stage but will be back once the brickwork is complete.
I have had an alarm system installed to protect the site but after several false alarms we discovered pigeons trying to nest in the top floor! I was down one afternoon this week to install netting over the windows to try and keep them at bay.
The delay isn't too bad, the windows were already running late by a month and there isn't really anything we can do about it, so we just have to work with what we've got.
The carpenters are still working solo so first fix carpentry is going to kick-off on Monday and I have plasterers and electricians getting ready for their stints, so things are still happening.
Week 19 - Brickwork and avoiding handshakes
The brickies have made a great start this week while the roofers are finishing off. I've been down quite a bit for surveys with follow-on trades trying to avoid getting too close to anyone as the coronavirus epidemic gathers pace.
My air bricks have made a reappearance as they are cemented into the new plinth, and it is great to finally see what the finished brickwork looks like en masse. We are really pleased with the it - Martha was secretly worried we'd gone "too orange" in our choice!
The roof is almost done and looks amazing. The combination of the slate, lead, grey soffit and black guttering on the dormers is truly smart. Definitely made the right call not to go with white on the timber there.
Hopefully we can push on without too many problems while we wait for the delayed windows to arrive in May, but who knows - as long as they keep the builders merchants open we should be okay...
Week 18 - Painting, guttering and lots of lead
I undertook my first two jobs on the house this week to help finish off the dormer windows on the second floor before the roofers slate beneath them.
First-up was two coats of exterior paint to the soffit and fascia. I decided to go with a dark grey rather than white as it would work better with the lead and slates that surround it. Now it is on I think I made the right call.
Next I installed the guttering on all six of the dormers. We've gone for cast aluminium in a hammered black finish. It looks like cast iron but is nowhere near as heavy - handy when you're balancing two stories up on the roofing battens to install it!
The roofers are cracking on with the slates and on Friday complete the lead work to the front four dormer cheeks. It is looking wonderful!
Bricklayers start on Monday!
Week 17 - Roofing, solar panels, storms and coronavirus
As the country begins to properly panic about the spread of COVID-19, out here in Upware we are slowly plugging away at the roof despite the bad weather.
The slate work is slowly taking shape, as it the beautiful lead work. It will look amazing when it is all finished. The solar panels are in on the garage and I've been up the scaffold this weekend doing my first job on the build: painting the dormer fascia and soffits.
The guttering arrives tomorrow so I'll be onsite to take delivery and then it'll be up the scaffold again for me to get it fitted on the dormers before they slate the roof below them and make access a lot more tricky.
Also, last week we closed the road for the water and power connections, which are both now in after 3 months of waiting. Luckily it seemed to go without a hitch.
Finally (and I'm personally very excited about this bit), I met some Openreach bods milling around the village last week who told me they've run some fibre to the pole opposite the plot next door and would I like fibre to the premises?
350Mb/s broadband in a village of 20 houses. Amazing!
Week 14 - Roofing underway!
The slates have arrived onsite this week as the roofers kick-off on the single storey garage block.
The carpenters are almost done with the timber frame, just remedial work to do now. The fascia and soffit is nearly all done, and the dormers are in. It is looking really great. Time to get into the detail to ensure that everything is right before I sign-off.
Week 12 - Roof Trusses On
Week 12 - Drone Fly-by #3
Week 10 - First floor going in
The crane was back this Friday to lift in the wall sections for the first floor.
The timber frame team have been working flat out this week and have achieved amazing progress. All of the ground floor walls are up, the steels are in and the ceiling joists are on. The first floor deck is down and the walls started going in on Friday.
The garage roof is almost there with the cut sections being installed at the moment too. We may be able to get the roofers out early to start the felt and baton work over the single-story section as early as next week.
Even the junior building inspector is pleased..
Week 9 - Frame Kick-off!
A new year and a bout of unseasonably mild weather means the Potton team are off to a great start with the timber frame.
The panels and joists are onsite and the four-man team have already put up most of the ground floor walls within two days. It is wonderful to finally be able to walk around the rooms and get a feel for the size. It all feels very big!
Week 8 - Supporting brickwork and scaffold
The brickies are onsite this week putting in the supporting brickwork ahead of the timber frame arrival in January, and the scaffolders have started too.
I only managed to get down to site once this week due to the pre-Christmas rush at work and the lack of light. It was 7.30am and quite dark as you'll see from the pictures.
As well as the bricks and scaffolding, we've also got our services kiosk in place now too. That will house my electricity meter, control boxes for the rainwater harvester and sewage treatment plant, and any other bits we need nearby for external lights, electric gates etc.
Week 7 - Bricks Arrive
No work onsite this week - but the bricks are here!
We've had several deliveries. The first of three of the facing bricks all the way from Barrow-in-Furness, the high strength concrete bricks to support the timber frame, and a batch of cheaper red bricks to help pack out the plinth below ground.
Week 6 - Groundworks complete
Finishing touches this week complete the work below ground ready for bricklayers in a week or so to lay the way for the timber frame in January.
It was clear and frosty this morning and the plot is looking neat and tidy following the departure of the groundworkers this week. All-in-all a job well done, and we're out of the ground without any major problems, which is a huge relief!
One slight snag - the UK Power Networks chap came down to inspect on Friday and says the ducting we have is the wrong kind, so I'll have to get them back to sort that out.
The current plan is to put a "kiosk" - a green metal box about 1.5m high - in by the Klargester and have the electricity meter and and all the connections for the treatment plant, harvester, electric gates etc run to there. Then a single high-current cable will supply the house.
Minor details in the grand scheme of things though. So far, so good!
Week 5 - Groundworks almost complete
Drainage is pretty much done now, just need to sort the return from the rainwater harvester (RWH) and tidy up the site before the bricklayers start.
Small amount of confusion this week over how the RWH should return recycled water to the house. I wanted it to, the groundworkers didn't! A quick call to the tech support team at manufacturer Graf yielded a simple plan involving 50m of green stripe 25mm pipework which will be going in Monday.
Week 5 - Drone Fly-by #2
Week 4 - Beam and block foor
We kicked off the week in a big way on Tuesday with the arrival of the specialist firm to install the beam and block floor along with their enormous crane.
The floor went in over a couple of days and looks great. Meanwhile, more work went into the drainage systems, including installing the 3,000 litre rainwater harvester.
Groundworks will complete next week then we'll have a couple of weeks off until the facing bricks arrive and we can get the splash course in.
Week 4 - Air bricks
My first hands-on job of the build; filing, cleaning and painting some cast iron air bricks for the foundations.
In order to ventilate the air space beneath the beam and block floor, you need air bricks that allow air in from the outside. The standard ones that the groundworkers provided were a not exactly classy plastic variety, so I decided to find something a little nicer.
Now these looked great, but they and others available for similar firms were around £50+ each. I needed at least 30 of them, so that really wasn't going to fly.
So a bit more research led me to a supplier on eBay and I managed to secure 30 of these beauties for under £10 each. The only downside was they came in raw cast iron, so I spent a chunk of Saturday, filing, washing, drying and painting them up ready for installation in a few weeks once the facing bricks arrive.
I'm pretty pleased with the result and can't wait to see them on the house.
Week 3 - That's a lot of s#!t
Drains were top of the list this week as the Klargester sewage treatment plant arrived onsite. Let's just say we won't have to worry about capacity...
We've managed to fit the sewage treatment plant with secondary pump chamber and the rainwater harvester all in to a space to the front of the plot next to the driveway. This will make it easy to access for maintenance and mean that we won't have to worry about anyone jumping on the lids in the back garden.
The Klargester itself is HUGE - take a look at the shots below. We couldn't get enough fall to reach the drainage ditch at the back for the outflow, so we've had to install a secondary pumping chamber to give the water some oompf on its way.
Also this week the rainwater harvester arrived, that'll be slotting into the space next to the Klargester and will give us up to 3,000 litres of recycled rainwater from the house's gutters to use for watering the garden, cleaning cars etc.
The supporting blockwork for the floor beams is also now in, ready for the beams to be installed by the specialist supplier next Tuesday.
Week 2 - The struggle for bricks
Very shortly we'll need the first load of facing bricks onsite so the brickies can build the plinth and the sections of the facing brickwork that start underground.
The only problem is getting them onsite. Bricks, it turns out, have very long lead times. The industry doesn't really have seemed to have recovered from the post-2008 shut-down and some manufacturers are taking up to 6 months to deliver.
We've chosen a lovely red blend; Furness Natural Orange (see below).
When you factor in plinth bricks and other specials, pre-formed structural arches for the windows and the need to get around 30% of them cut into two "bats" so we can do the Flemish bond required by the local planners, the whole brick order can become quite a logistical challenge.
Whilst at the moment work onsite focuses on the groundworks, most of my time is going into ensuring we get the bricks right.
Week 2 - Footings and Drains
The weather was so good last week that by the beginning of this week all of the footings were in and the concrete was set, ready for work on the drains and sub-floor to begin.
Come Friday the rain had returned and Edward and I took a very muddy walk around the plot to photograph the progress on the blockwork and drain pipes.
We had our first problem crop up this week, which given we're almost out of the ground is good going. There isn't enough "fall" from the sewage treatment plant to the drainage ditch at the back of the plot (some 90m away). After considering a few options, we've decided to add an extra chamber and pumping station in to give the outflow a shove. It is a small increase in costs but worth it for the peace of mind of knowing that the drains won't back up under heavy downpours.
Despite the drizzle the pace is still excellent and we're well on track to complete all of the groundworks before Christmas ready for the timber frame team to kick off in January.
Week 1 - Drone Fly-by
To aid with setting-out the groundworkers brought a drone onsite. Here's an example of the images it captured (I added the blue boundary line) - hopefully more on the way soon!
Week 1 - Groundworks Commence!
Nineteen months after making an offer to buy the land we are finally starting work!
The groundworkers, Melcon Construction of Soham, started work on Monday 21 October and made the most of the good weather.
They installed the highways access which required stripping back some topsoil, and that meant we had to have the archaeologists down to observe to ensure that there were no more Roman goodies lying undiscovered in the ground between the road and the plot. Luckily, we came up clear so work could press on.
With setting-out complete they began digging the footings ready for inspection by building control before the concrete can be poured. As we are on compressible clay the trenches need to be deeper than usual - 1.5m to be exact - to ensure that we don't have any issues with subsidence.
The water company, Anglian, also attended site this week to sign-off the standpipe we have installed for our temporary building supply. This will allow them to arrange the road closure needed with the council to dig a trench to lay the new water pipe and electrical ducting for the services. Hopefully we'll have water before the bricklayers start in the new year.
