20. Snow stopped play

20.             Snow stopped play, but not without an excuse for bubbles

I’m really sorry I missed the usual Sunday slot.  Not very good I know after leaving you all on tender hooks to see if we could complete the action packed week or not.

You’re obviously all thinking – NOT!  You’re right – sort of.

The week started off well with Max, Stefan and Jake flattening off the ground inside the building in preparation for the damp proof membrane (DPM).  It looks really good – the rooms look more like rooms with a flat floor, and everything looks a bit tidy.  Always fills me with delight.

On Tuesday afternoon I started cutting the large ‘radon proof’ rolls down to size.  The trade name for it is ‘Red Baron’ – so it makes the site look very bright and pretty. (So sorry I was so involved I forgot to take any photos.)  It comes in 25meter x 4meter rolls.  A reasonably convenient size for our particular floor plan, meaning a few large sheets could be cut rather than lots of little ones.  Not an easy material to unfold, but Max helped and once done the process was quite straight forward.  The Red Baron has to be laid to cover the ground and folded up the wall to meet the damp proof course (DPC) which is the strip of black waterproof sheet laid in the blockwork, or in our case often on top of the block work. The DPC sheet has to be a minimum of 150mm up from the ground level outside the building.

The Red Baron doesn’t like the cold, it can go brittle and deteriorate if the temperature falls below zero – so having cut some of it in preparation, it then had to be folded up again and stored inside over night.  You may think this sounds tedious, it is, and what's more the next day Wednesday, we had to cut the rest of the sheets so that we would have the whole site ready for the Building Control inspector who was due on Thursday.  Yes indeed, that meant folding all those sheets up again and storing inside – a much bulkier size than when they were delivered!   Not much room left inside the site office.

Thursday morning was an early start to get all the cut sheets laid out by 10:00am ready for the inspection.  One development that had occurred during the week was that the forecast had changed for the worse, and the temperature for pouring concrete was going to be far too low.  The suppliers would not take responsibility for the concrete, and so we decided to abandon this until the weather has improved.  I did call the Building Inspector to ask him if he would be happy to see the sheets in place even though (yet again) we were going to have to take them up, fold them up and store until a later time.  He agreed that this would be OK as long as he was able to take some photos to have on record.

Up early we laid the sheets, the inspector arrived, (earring in place) and he gave us the go-ahead.  This is a real help, as we will now be free to complete this stage without delay as soon as the temperature rises, and the snow is gone.  So in effect we feel we have basically completed this stage, even though we had to fold up all those sheets three times.  I’m quite conversant now on how to handle the Red Baron.  He doesn’t answer back so forcefully anymore.  He’s been locked away in the container, with some parts stuffed in the coal bunker where my tumble drier operates, leaving my office reasonable unencumbered.  I hope he survives.

Last week we had ordered the beam and block floor that is in the raised area of the living room.  The bit that floats over ground.  This all arrived on Wednesday and the concrete beams were slotted in place between the two steel beams by Stefan in his big Hi-Mac, and the concrete blocks then placed between the concrete walls.  It makes a good insta-floor.

Beams arriving by Hi-Mac with blocks in the foreground

Jake cutting the beams to size, Max and Stefan fitting the concrete beams 

between the web of the steelbeams

Some of the concrete beams in place, the concrete blocks are laid between them

On Thursday night the promised snow came and was dumped over the site as if it was pretending to be the concrete slab.  It looked pretty, but not as good as concrete for the purpose intended, so we have not approved it on inspection.  We have ordered it off site.

On Friday we received the two quotes we had been waiting for, for the windows.  One was really good – it provides the specification, and for a very competitive price – the other was way over the top.  However the second lot have provided a very good quote and specification for a front door that we had seen at their showrooms that we really like, so both parties may benefit but for different items.

We have confirmed the order with the former and so this deserves the promised bubbles.

We feel on target.

However, a slight change of plan to the schedule means that Max and I are halting the building work for a month whilst we plan for the next stage.  It will coincide with the poorer weather and we feel we can make best use of this time to prepare for the builders so that we are fully conversant with how the next stage will proceed, and exactly what materials are needed, and when. Some things will need to be ordered now so that they are ready to be delivered to site as required.  It is most important that once the builders start they have everything on site in time so that they can be fully occupied. 

So it may not be as exciting on site over the next few weeks but I’m sure there will be things to tell you to keep you interested / on tender hooks. . . .

Once the Red Baron is laid to rest, I will take photos and then more to show the concrete slab being pumped in over him.  From then on it’s upward and onward.

D-day gets closer and closer.