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.