Month: March 2013 (Page 2 of 3)

Goodbye Astra Estate, Hello L200 Pickup

We held onto the Astra Estate when I bought a new car last year.  The thinking was that we would use the Astra while we were doing the house renovation and then sell it when we had finished. However, the Astra has turned out to be less useful than we thought.

While it has a lot of space inside, it can’t really handle the weight.  I picked up a dozen bags of sand last week and that was really about all that you could put in it.  It also isn’t that good with large bulky items (e.g. big bags of old loft insulation, old sheets of corrugated steel), so we have decided to sell it and replace it with a pickup truck.  Again, we will only keep it for the duration of the renovation, but hopefully it will be a little more practical for our purposes.

It is a ten-year old Mitsbushi L2oo pickup – 130,000 miles, 4×4, single cab, 1 tonne load.

If you want to take a pickup truck (which is classified as a light commercial vehicle) to the dump, you need to get a special permit from the council.  Many councils do not allow commercial vehicles into their refuse collection centres.  So if you own one of these vehicles for personal use, you need to apply for a special permit.  You can find the Kirkless application form here.  It costs nothing to apply for.

Now the only problem I have is that the snow is preventing me from collecting it from the dealer.  Ho hum.

Bought, just waiting for the snow to stop so we can go and pick it up.

Bought, just waiting for the snow to stop so we can go and pick it up.

Snow stops play

Well, it snowed yesterday – a lot – probably 4-6 inches and it is snowing again today.  We did manage to get out – we have 4×4’s – but the roads are pretty treacherous.  It is more to do with the other drivers who really shouldn’t be out!  Besides which I ended up having to push a couple of cars when I went out first thing – my short trip to the shops ended up taking 45 mins!

Having been out this morning, I was going to dig out the drive up to the farm, but it would be a mammoth task.  And since it is still snowing, I have no idea how long the cleared area would remain.  I tried yesteday to get onto the drive with a 4×4 but with little success.  So I decided (very reluctantly) to give in to the weather today.  No building work today.

Jo and Zep walking up to the farm in the March snow.

Jo and Zep walking up to the farm in the March snow.

View from Upper Hagg Road.  23rd March 2013.

View from Upper Hagg Road. 23rd March 2013.

Snow - March 2013.  We had around 9 inches, but it had drifted in places up to a couple of feet.

Snow – March 2013. We had around 9 inches, but it had drifted in places up to a couple of feet.

Clearing the wall adjoining Hagg Wood

The lower field has a dry stone wall that adjoins some woodland.  The woodland is largely protected by tree presevation orders (TPOs), but the undergrowth is now encroaching on our land and is starting to damage the wall.  Jo decided it was time to start cutting some of this back in preparation for the wall being repaired (not quite sure when I am going to find the time for that!). 

We haven’t touched any of the trees, but it is largely the holly that has been removed.  There are a number of dead trees, or live trees with dead branches – that also need to be cut back.  It is going to be a long job, but at least we have made a start!

All together, there is proabably 80-100 metres of wall hidden in this undergrowth.  It didn't take Jo long to clear some of it, but already there is an impressive pile of cuttings.

All together, there is proabably 80-100 metres of wall hidden in this undergrowth. It didn’t take Jo long to clear some of it, but already there is an impressive pile of cuttings.

A very old oak tree with dead branches that has damaged the wall.  This will be a case of removing the dead branches and then repairing the wall.

A very old oak tree with dead branches that has damaged the wall. This will be a case of removing the dead branches and then repairing the wall.

With some of the undergrowth removed, you can start to see the state of the dry stone wall.  It doesn't look brilliant, but we might be able to get away with not having to completely rebuild it.  The wall in the centre of this picture has a few big stones too far up the wall - it almost looks as if it is upside down with smaller stones at the bottom and larger ones on the top!

With some of the undergrowth removed, you can start to see the state of the dry stone wall. It doesn’t look brilliant, but we might be able to get away with not having to completely rebuild it. The wall in the centre of this picture has a few big stones too far up the wall – it almost looks as if it is upside down with smaller stones at the bottom and larger ones on the top!

Removing the fireplace in No. 10

Before we start, the fireplace in No. 10 is very similar to the fireplace in No. 8, so this time we know what to expect.  The fireplace surround is made up of stone blocks.  Very 1970’s, although I suspect it isn’t that old.  The fireplaces are actually small inglenook type fireplaces which have been bricked up so that the opening is much smaller.  Small enough to fit a gas fire.  So the job at hand is to remove the stone fireplace surround and then dig out all the rubble in the fireplace.  This good news is that No. 10 is closer to the skip than No. 8, so we don’t have to take the rubble as far.  The other good news is that we have some planks that means that we can barrow the rubble straight into the skip rather than using plastic tubs.  But it is still time-consuming and it is amazing how much comes out of a smaller opening.  The rubble is mainly old bricks, mortar, some rather nice Victorian tiles and a smashed up cast iron fireplace that had been put up the sides of the chimney to make it smaller.  All mixed in with a fair amount of soot.  What I didn’t inhale, I wore.  Yuck.  It took two baths on Sunday night to get rid of it all!  Still, it was a job well done and a job that we don’t have to do again – that was the last of the old fireplaces that need to be removed.

The fireplace in No. 10.  This was probably all the rage 30-40 years ago, but it has to go.  There is a TV stand constructed from the same material to camera left.  It comes apart fairly easily (with the aid of a sledge hammer) and all of the stone will make it's way into the dry stone wall in the orchard.  As long as the sawn edges of the stone do not face outwards, no one will know. Except you, of course, as you read it on this blog.

The fireplace in No. 10. This was probably all the rage 30-40 years ago, but it has to go. There is a TV stand constructed from the same material to camera left. It comes apart fairly easily (with the aid of a sledge hammer) and all of the stone will make it’s way into the dry stone wall in the orchard. As long as the sawn edges of the stone do not face outwards, no one will know. Except you, of course, as you read it on this blog.

The fireplace surround all gone and the contents of the inglenook emptied out.  There must have been 10 or more barrows of rubble in there.  All mixed up with 200 years of soot.

The fireplace surround all gone and the contents of the inglenook emptied out. There must have been 10 or more barrows of rubble in there. All mixed up with 200 years of soot.

The original fireplace revealed.  The two sides are stone slabs on end.  The top is a stone slab laid vertical between them.  The hearth is made up of flagstones.  Like the rest of the floor, although much of it has been covered up with a sort of asphalt material.  Presumably, to keep the damp out.

The original fireplace revealed. The two sides are stone slabs on end. The top is a stone slab laid vertical between them. The hearth is made up of flagstones. Like the rest of the floor, although much of it has been covered up with a sort of asphalt material. Presumably, to keep the damp out.

Finally completing the roof on the outbuilding!

Sunday was meant to be the worst day of the weekend and it ended up being the best.  Yesterday we had tried to get everything done because we thought the weather was going to turn bad.  It didn’t.  The good news though is that we have less work to do today!

In terms of the outbuilding roof, it is a case of putting on the sand and cement collars.  This is the band of mortar at the top of the wall and running in parallel to the roof line.  This is made using a very strong mortar mix (1 part building sand: 1 part cement: 1 part silver sand).  This gives a much stronger and smoother finish. This requires an expert, so this is a job for Paddy.  The pointing (filling in the gaps between each row of stones) of the end walls will be done using the same mix.  If it is different (and even if a different brand of cement is used) the finish/colour of the mortar will be different.  We add a frost protector to the mortar when it is mixed.

While Paddy is doing this, we get on with taking out the fireplace in No. 10.  During one of the breaks, Paddy gives me a lesson in how to point the wall.  Nothing fancy.  Just a flat finish.  I am going to have a go at pointing the end walls.  I will leave the front wall to Paddy.  Now all I did to do is find the time – pointing is exceptionally time-consuming.

This is the east end of the buidling.  This houses the outside toilet.  The large hole is for ventilation (a standard design in this part of Yorkshire).  You can also see the bricked up small doors towards the right hand side.  These were for scooping out the contents.  The original building dates from around 1750 and we suspect that these toilets went out of use around 100 years later.  That's alot of "scooping out"!

This is the east end of the buidling. This houses the outside toilet. The large hole is for ventilation (a standard design in this part of Yorkshire). You can also see the bricked up small doors towards the right hand side. These were for scooping out the contents. The original building dates from around 1750 and we suspect that these toilets went out of use around 100 years later. That’s alot of “scooping out”!

This end of the wall faces South-West and gets the worst of the weather.  The weather has taken it's toll on the pointing and from inside the outbuilding you can see sunlight between  the stones.  Notice the sand and cement collar along the top of the wall follosing the edge of the slates. You can see the "Water tables" right on the top of the wall - angled slightly back to stop the water from running down the front of the wall.

This end of the wall faces South-West and gets the worst of the weather. The weather has taken it’s toll on the pointing and from inside the outbuilding you can see sunlight between the stones. Notice the sand and cement collar along the top of the wall follosing the edge of the slates. You can see the “Water tables” right on the top of the wall – angled slightly back to stop the water from running down the front of the wall.

The roof now complete.  We still have to point all the stone work as well as putting up a rainwater gutter.  The felt (the white material at the bottom of the roof) will be cut when the gutter is put on.  The felt will just be tucked into the gutter.

The roof now complete. We still have to point all the stone work as well as putting up a rainwater gutter. The felt (the white material at the bottom of the roof) will be cut when the gutter is put on. The felt will just be tucked into the gutter.

Almost completing the roof on the outbuilding

The roof on the outbuilding was completed on Saturday.  At about 7:30pm – well after the sun went down.  The verges (where the sloping edge of the roof meets the wall) were mortared in after dark.  That is my excuse and I am sticking to it.  Fortunately, it was only the rough coat and the final finish was put on my Paddy the following day.

I guess we just push our luck too far today and we ran out of time.  It takes a good hour or so to clean up and pack everything away.  Getting out the cement mixer means another 30 minutes at the end of the day cleaning it out!

Anyway today, we altered the top two rows of slates so that they were closer to the top wall.  A bit of miscommunication between the guy putting on the slates and the folks building the top wall meant that we ended up with a 4” gap between the top of the wall and the top row of slates.  A couple of minor adjustments and we were done.  But it did take a couple of hours.

Next job was to put the stone slabs (called Water tables) back on the top of the wall.  These are large enough to bridge the gap between the wall and the top row of slates.  They are mortared into place and set so that they tilt slightly backwards (in line with the slop of the roof) to prevent water running down the front wall.

The main issue with the water tables is their weight.  They are roughly 1m long and 750cms wide and about 75cm thick.  Solid stone weighing it at around 60-80kgs each.  These had to be man handled 12ft into the air and placed on top of the wall.  Fortunately, we had some small scaffolding towers, but even then it was a struggle.  We repurposed a large flagstone from the top of the side wall to make up for the gap where the chimney had been.

But by 6pm, we were pretty much all done.  The light was starting to fade and then it started raining.  But we had had a good day and achieved what we had set out to.

Day 2 of reslating the outbuilding

Yesterday, the roofing felt and laths were installed. Today, the slates are going back on.  We are replacing the occasional broken, or poor condition, slate with slates off the lean to.

Biggest ones at the bottom.  Smallest ones at the top.

Biggest ones at the bottom. Smallest ones at the top.

Revealing the roof trusses

This weekend we took down the ceilings and the ceiling joists in the larger cottage.  This time we got it right and are taking down the ceilings before taking out the floor!  We have made life hard work for ourselves in the cottage next door as there now is no upper floor.  We are going to have to use a scaffolding tower inside to take the upper ceiling down!

The larger cottage is essentially two cottages that have been knocked into one.  Thus, there are two separate lofts with dividing walls and a roof truss in each.  The original ceiling is tongue and groove pine, however, I don’t think this is original to the building – I reckon it was probably a later addition in Victorian times.  This pine cladding has subsequently been plasterboarded over.  In addition, above the ceiling was around 300mm of loft insulation.  We took part of the ceiling down around the access hatch by first taking down the plasterboard, then taking the loft insulation out.  We then climbed up inside the loft (yuck) and the stamped on the ceiling below to bring down the pine cladding (making sure that we didn’t come down with the ceiling).  Once the ceiling was down, it was a case of removing the old ceiling joists.  Most of the joists came out without any trouble, some of the more stubborn ones needed to be cut through with a saw first.

Both cottages have what is called a “King post truss”.  This is has a single post from the bottom beam (called a Tie beam) to the apex of the truss.  The truss in No. 10 looks exactly as you would expect.  The purlins (that run horizontally between the two end walls and the truss) are again what you would expect for a property of this age.  However, the truss in No. 9 is very different. We aren’t quite sure what has happened to the tie beam, but it certainly isn’t beefy enough to carry the weight of the roof.  Two of the purlins have been replaced with sawn timber that is bolted to the truss – again, looks like a Victorian addition.  The woodwork in No. 9 is going to need quite a bit of attention!

With the ceiling and the ceiling joists removed, you can now see the King post truss and the purlins that make up the roof.

With the ceiling and the ceiling joists removed, you can now see the King post truss and the purlins that make up the roof.

The king post truss in No. 9.  It needs some attention - the main beam isn't really big enough and we can't work out what has happened here.  The purlins in the background show original ones to the right and new(ish) ones to the left.  The new ones are sawn wood that has been bolted to the truss - they also have been set vertically rather than angled with the slope of the roof.  And if that wasn't enough, the purlin on the camera side of the roof (that you can just see through the truss on the left) has a massive crack in it.

The king post truss in No. 9. It needs some attention – the main beam isn’t really big enough and we can’t work out what has happened here. The purlins in the background show original ones to the right and new(ish) ones to the left. The new ones are sawn wood that has been bolted to the truss – they also have been set vertically rather than angled with the slope of the roof. And if that wasn’t enough, the purlin on the camera side of the roof (that you can just see through the truss on the left) has a massive crack in it.

This photo shows the detail of one of the purlins in No. 10.  The ends of the purlins are pegged through the truss and the timber is very roughly sawn - often only on one side.  With this purlin, you can still see the bark attached to the the timber.

This photo shows the detail of one of the purlins in No. 10. The ends of the purlins are pegged through the truss and the timber is very roughly sawn – often only on one side. With this purlin, you can still see the bark attached to the the timber.

Felt and laths on the outbuilding

Well, the snow arrived on Monday and so did Nipper and John (another John, not the same one that worked on the walls).  It was bitterly cold, but it didn’t prevent them from getting the felt on the roof and the laths installed.  The positioning of the laths depends on the height of each course of stone slates – bigger ones at the bottom, smaller ones at the top.  Each of the courses has to overlap to ensure the water doesn’t get through, so it takes a little while to sort out.  Glad it wasn’t me doing this work today!

Monday morning and the snow has arrived.  Nipper has worked out the courses and this determines how far apart the lathes need to be placed.  It is a cold day to be working on a roof, even if it is not 30ft up!

Monday morning and the snow has arrived. Nipper has worked out the courses and this determines how far apart the lathes need to be placed. It is a cold day to be working on a roof, even if it is not 30ft up!

New woodwork for the outbuilding

All of the spars and purlins were removed and replaced.  The existing purlins were nowhere near as big as they needed to be and at some point the original purlin had been supplemented by an additional piece of wood.  All very poorly done and still nowhere need adequate.  Two of the spars in the middle bay had snapped under the sheer weight of the stone slates on the roof.  So we have increased the total number of spars as well as increasing the size of the timber.  We have installed two purlins right across the outbuilding, rather than the one that was there previously. And again we have increased the size of the timber used to 6×4 (although they are really two 6×2’s bolted together – 6×2 are held in stock as standard treated timber – we would have had to order treated 6×4).

The two end walls had to have new holes cut for the purlins and this has meant that they have needed to be repaired to a certain extent.  It is a single skin building and large parts of the upper courses were fairly loose.  Paddy and John have done an excellent job at cutting the stones to fit around the purlins – it puts the rest of the wall to shame, although I suspect that a little bit of pointing will help both improve the stability of the wall as well as it’s appearance.

Paddy and Jon repairing the end walls, Richard fitting the new sofit.  The big stone slabs are the "water tables" that fit on the very top of the wall on the front of the building.

Paddy and Jon repairing the end walls, Richard fitting the new sofit. The big stone slabs are the “water tables” that fit on the very top of the wall on the front of the building.

You can see the top of the end wall where it has been made good and now lines up perfectly with the slope of the spars. If you look along the ling of the roof it is perfectly flat.  The woodwork was put in so accurately that one spar was cut as a template and then all the other spars cut from it.  They all fitted perfectly.

You can see the top of the end wall where it has been made good and now lines up perfectly with the slope of the spars. If you look along the line of the roof it is perfectly flat. The woodwork was put in so accurately that one spar was cut as a template and then all the other spars cut from it. They all fitted perfectly.

Looking along the line of the roof, you can see how flat it is.  You can also see the two holes that have been cut for the new purlins and the stones that have been cut to fit.  The larger hole to the left is an original hole that was for ventilation - this end of the building was used as an outside toilet.  This is a standard design for this part of Yorkshire and we decided to leave it as it was.

Looking along the line of the roof, you can see how flat it is. You can also see the two holes that have been cut for the new purlins and the stones that have been cut to fit. The larger hole to the left is an original hole that was for ventilation – this end of the building was used as an outside toilet. This is a standard design for this part of Yorkshire and we decided to leave it as it was.

The other end wall showing the two holes where the new purlins have been installed.

The other end wall showing the two holes where the new purlins have been installed.

Paddy and John reparing the old outbuilding

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