tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55506807710816658562024-03-13T03:39:28.979-07:00An Acre in HampshireAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-3242819731689961972016-04-04T17:34:00.000-07:002016-04-04T17:34:01.211-07:00Workshop ProgressHere is a reminder as to how wonderful my wife is - six months pregnant, and up a scaffolding tower painting the workshop.<br />
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The painting is finally finished - which means it is time for the floor to go down! Nothing spectacular; this is a workshop after all - but we might as well make it look nice, right?<br />
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We chose a cheap laminate floor from B&Q - it has a surprisingly good finish and it textured, to allow a non-slip surface. The gold stuff is foil backed foam underlay.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-UDHToc7vI/VwMD_5hJMZI/AAAAAAAABH8/SKkfPJrzYZ4_j_tcq7IKlyand9T3lE3LA/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-04-05%2Bat%2B01.15.19.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-UDHToc7vI/VwMD_5hJMZI/AAAAAAAABH8/SKkfPJrzYZ4_j_tcq7IKlyand9T3lE3LA/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-04-05%2Bat%2B01.15.19.png" width="303" /></a></div>
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I made a couple of thresholds from offcuts of oak work surface, which are thouroughly siliconed in and oiled to prevent any water ingress affecting the laminate, and to improve the air tightness of the room.<br />
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This was the first 'job' in the newly floored workshop - making MDF covers for the brickwork that the structure of the Barn sits on. The Laminate needs an expansion gap all round, so there was no easy way to edge the floor without covering the bricks. It looks much better for painted covers over the brick and simple skirting throughout.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TNvljKL4p5g/VwMEAGXQpYI/AAAAAAAABIA/ajW4a5nTMlM4Z2IZp6OtwFoxY4J6qNVOg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-04-05%2Bat%2B01.15.50.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TNvljKL4p5g/VwMEAGXQpYI/AAAAAAAABIA/ajW4a5nTMlM4Z2IZp6OtwFoxY4J6qNVOg/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-04-05%2Bat%2B01.15.50.png" width="298" /></a></div>
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We bought a new woodburner for the Workshop - nothing fancy, just a chinese steel stove from a local firm. It is much more in keeping than the vintage Jotul I bought initially. I'll need to install a hearth (just a 12mm tile, thanks to the design of the stove) and tile a section of the wall behind the stove to comply with Regs. I wanted a stove with a little pasty warming shelf, but Kristy was concerned that I wouldn't even need to leave the workshop for lunch, so that idea was scrapped!<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1bWOplNE9s8/VwMEEoSkiSI/AAAAAAAABII/SNvy7wWoNDAQkXORzLmB7UZj8nWRJgfuQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-04-05%2Bat%2B01.16.25.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1bWOplNE9s8/VwMEEoSkiSI/AAAAAAAABII/SNvy7wWoNDAQkXORzLmB7UZj8nWRJgfuQ/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-04-05%2Bat%2B01.16.25.png" width="296" /></a></div>
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Lastly, this morning I took delivery of a pair of roller cabinets for storage of general tools - the pretty ones will live out above benches, and the normal ones will live in these drawers. Despite the foul colour, these cabinets are very well regarded and were great value for money. I intend to build them into an MDF frame with a hefty work surface on the top, and a hidden bicycle work stand in one end - this will be my 'dirty bench' for fettling anything mechanical - bikes, chainsaws and the like.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DFDt4S95xTw/VwMEGOiNwvI/AAAAAAAABIQ/3FxADIDn_YQEYXQDb1M9NaIPaBsdPZnJA/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-04-05%2Bat%2B01.16.42.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DFDt4S95xTw/VwMEGOiNwvI/AAAAAAAABIQ/3FxADIDn_YQEYXQDb1M9NaIPaBsdPZnJA/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-04-05%2Bat%2B01.16.42.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Hopefully the stove flue will be delivered tomorrow - here's looking forward to a toasty warm weekend in the workshop!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-69630044679069435112016-04-04T17:09:00.001-07:002016-04-04T17:09:57.950-07:00Kitchen - finished!Apologies for the absence; life is getting in the way, particularly with a baby ten weeks away!<br />
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Shall we catch up with the kitchen?<br />
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Even before the joinery was finished, we ordered the flooring. This was a bit of an indulgence - we bought Karndean flooring, which is a wonderful vinyl laminate product that is warm, very hard wearing and quiet under foot (and paw). It is expensive - over £50 per metre in store - but we managed to pay about 40% less online. This stuff is called LooseLay, which means that it has a non-slip backing and stays in place through friction alone. I was skeptical on first contact, but it works very well.<br />
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Here is a demo pack, played over the old laminate tile effect stuff;<br />
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This is the view looking the other way - you can see the open shelves I made from some off cuts of worktop.<br />
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The Karndean product needs to be carefully 'contained' by skirting and thresholds - this helps prevent any movement. This was the perfect opportunity to replace our stove hearth. Our old hearth was flush with the floor, and therefore not Building Regs compliant - the rules are designed to prevent a (flammable) rug being laid underneath the stove door, thus presenting a fire risk. We bought a simple slate square, custom cut to the space.</div>
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The black bit attached to the wall is the fresh air vent for the stove. We had a hole before, but this was drafty when the stove wasn't running - a simple blast gate (designed for wood dust extraction systems) was fitted, allowing fresh air to the stove when open.</div>
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Lastly, I refinished our dining room table. This previously belonged to my parents; I have eaten meals at this table for most of my life, so it has real sentimental value. The table had a lot of water damage - mostly from wet glasses leaving rings - and it needed a good sanding and re-sealing. You can see the difference a session with the sander made - the darker part is the old finish.</div>
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So that's it - the Kitchen is Finished! It was a real slog, and there are a few niggles left to sort out, but the difference it makes to the feel of our home is enormous. </div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-63815543766046754822016-01-18T11:27:00.002-08:002016-01-18T11:32:16.021-08:00Project KitchenThis one has been a long time in the planning - and quite a long time in the doing!<br />
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Our cottage came with a serviceable kitchen when we arrived in 2013 - it was perfectly useable, and allowed us to concentrate on other projects, but we weren't happy with it as a long term proposition. Looking closer, the installation was a bit slap dash, which is always a warning signal that corners might have been cut elsewhere; I wasn't disappointed in this regard, and it transpired that every possible corner had been cut!<br />
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We don't seem to have any pics of the old kitchen - here is a glimpse of it through brick dust. This is the view from the breakfast room.<br />
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As ever, I made a plan. Sketchup to the rescue again! For orientation, the builder in the pic above is standing by the wood-coloured bit at the bottom centre of the plan.<br />
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The kitchen has four doors in a room measuring about 4m x 3m - to accommodate everything would be a challenge. The doors are into the utility room, the larder, the large opening into the breakfast room and the door into the planned orangery which we will build this year. We toyed with the idea of an island, but the room simply isn't big enough. The solution we arrived at was to split the kitchen into four. The 'spit' (not quite an island - get it?) is bottom right which is a set of 800mm pan drawers, plus a cupboard for the microwave and pull out bin. The dishwasher / sink / dog food cupboard / fridge freezer is top right. Top left is more pan drawers (notice a theme?) with large wall cupboards above, and bottom left is the cooker and (yup) more pan drawers. We would also fit an extractor hood, which would be a real novelty for us!<br />
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Why so many pan drawers? One of my pet peeves is having to kneel down and move a large pile of kitchen things to get at other things behind, and you inevitably lose things in the darkest depths of cupboards. With drawers, the whole lot is easy to see and easy to access.<br />
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Let's get building then! I cheated a bit, and popped the Spit in last year or the year before - it gave us loads of storage that the old kitchen lacked. Again, no decent pics - this is the view into the breakfast room.<br />
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I started with the sink / dishwasher / fridge corner. Fairly straightforward, except I had to run new water lines, a new drain and extend the ring main to provide two new sockets and power for the appliances. I also had to cut down the fridge housing and the sink base unit as I hadn't checked the dimensions properly before ordering! The light switch also needed moving to the other side of the door. The new units almost match my Festool boxes...<br />
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The pan drawers corner and wall units were quite easy - I had to cut both wall units to fit around a water pipe and the consumer unit, and I spent most of a day recessing the main house water supply into a wall to hide it. Again, an extended ring main gave two new sockets plus a hard wired set of under counter LED lights.<br />
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Now it was time for the disaster corner! The old under sink cupboard had always been a bit cold and draughty - I had assumed there was an old pipe hole through the inner brick wall into the cavity. I hadn't anticipated that most of the wall would be crumbling brickwork that had never been repaired properly - the old cupboard was effectively exposed to outside air. A previous renovation had seen plastic sheet attached to the brickwork to stop damp - the house has no foundation and no effective damp proof course. However, the plastic sheet was fitted so poorly that large gaps were left, creating mouldy plasterboard and an actual breeze in the kitchen.<br />
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About a week was taken up with putting all this right - new chemical damp proofing, new plastic sheeting and a lot of expanding foam sealed gaps where there shouldn't be gaps. Everything is now damp proof and finished properly - even the walls behind the cabinets are sanded and painted. Nothing screams 'bodge' louder than unfinished walls behind cupboards; I know that I'm the only person who knows it is done well, but as the saying goes - if it's not done right, it's done wrong.<br />
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Again, more wiring - two new sockets, a spur for the extractor and new cooker wiring (using 6mm cable, and not 2.5mm that was in place before). I also built a new stud wall on the left to create a smaller recess for fitted shelves - the existing brickwork will be demolished when we have built the orangery to make a cupboard.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SoomN7fMDjM/Vp0509URivI/AAAAAAAABGU/pz_tpOHLaNg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-01-18%2Bat%2B18.14.16.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SoomN7fMDjM/Vp0509URivI/AAAAAAAABGU/pz_tpOHLaNg/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-01-18%2Bat%2B18.14.16.png" width="301" /></a></div>
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New plasterboard up. This window will go eventually, to make a doorway into the orangery.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dIet9DToNf4/Vp06sGTAE8I/AAAAAAAABGc/p9_yRFcZ1rc/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-01-18%2Bat%2B18.14.30.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="261" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dIet9DToNf4/Vp06sGTAE8I/AAAAAAAABGc/p9_yRFcZ1rc/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-01-18%2Bat%2B18.14.30.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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There are still a few jobs to do - fit the units around the cooker and make some floating shelves, fit all the plinths, trim around the wall cupboards, finish filling and painting etc. The new floor is going to be very exciting - we have tolerated old lino and bare chipboard for two and a half years - but finally the end is in sight! A new hearth for the woodburner and new skirting will complete the job - finally!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-28674381683231709592015-12-31T15:02:00.000-08:002015-12-31T15:02:03.614-08:002015; A Year in Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Sometimes it is easy to forget how much you have achieved. Renovating a house is no different - things get crossed off lists, new lists get written and you can feel like no progress is being made.<br />
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To counter this - and give a good morale boost - here is a picture diary of the highlights of 2015.<br />
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My little sister got engaged to a wonderful chap from Suffolk (her boyfriend, before you ask. Not just any chap from Suffolk)<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yvWHVfzr8Sg/VoTmNuzupFI/AAAAAAAABAg/DJHnzkiVsu8/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.09.12.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yvWHVfzr8Sg/VoTmNuzupFI/AAAAAAAABAg/DJHnzkiVsu8/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.09.12.png" width="301" /></a></div>
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We had the main delivery of Oak for building our barn;<br />
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I bought a tractor - the culmination of years of dreaming of such a machine. The inaugural job - moving a load of logs down to the house;<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tDPWomdgoqs/VoTmUHx1hFI/AAAAAAAABA0/bDa9LWTrJUk/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.10.22.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="376" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tDPWomdgoqs/VoTmUHx1hFI/AAAAAAAABA0/bDa9LWTrJUk/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.10.22.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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I spend a good deal of time machining oak beams - this is the chain mortiser in action;<br />
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It wasn't long before the structure of the Barn started taking shape;<br />
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Kristy and I announced our Wedding - the publication of the date gave me a very firm deadline for finishing the Barn, as we planned to hold the reception in it.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mXbzJ61wuk8/VoTmYLNt69I/AAAAAAAABBA/2TNwhiPzhsQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.11.48.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="390" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mXbzJ61wuk8/VoTmYLNt69I/AAAAAAAABBA/2TNwhiPzhsQ/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.11.48.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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I hired a forklift to help lift the beams for the barn - progress was very swift during this stage!<br />
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I roped all comers into helping - here, my sister Hannah (whose hand you saw earlier) drives a peg into the sole plate;<br />
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I sold my old tractor - the John Deere was a faithful servant, but struggled with the long grass in the Paddock and wasn't nearly as versatile as the newer Kubota;<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vHkhZzVarXw/VoTmxlEG79I/AAAAAAAABBg/FGt--TGhyAo/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.12.46.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vHkhZzVarXw/VoTmxlEG79I/AAAAAAAABBg/FGt--TGhyAo/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.12.46.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Work on the Barn continued - my Father was a huge help screwing the battens in place;<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dRgAm7f31KU/VoTmziYRrzI/AAAAAAAABBo/mGXcwv8PGac/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.13.06.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="296" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dRgAm7f31KU/VoTmziYRrzI/AAAAAAAABBo/mGXcwv8PGac/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.13.06.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Our neighbours adopted three orphaned lambs - they were sweet little creatures, despite all catching bloat;<br />
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Lots of pizzas were consumed, cooked in the new wood fired pizza oven;<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HlBPR-eVFs8/VoTm6EcWFAI/AAAAAAAABB4/KU-NychZvHA/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.13.47.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HlBPR-eVFs8/VoTm6EcWFAI/AAAAAAAABB4/KU-NychZvHA/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.13.47.png" width="375" /></a></div>
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Work on the Barn continued - the cedar shingles were the worst bit of the build, owing the inclement weather and the significant discomfort of spending a week kneeling on a sloped surface;<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--5Rty33hny4/VoTnERfXKDI/AAAAAAAABCA/v6QSrz6enC8/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.14.07.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--5Rty33hny4/VoTnERfXKDI/AAAAAAAABCA/v6QSrz6enC8/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.14.07.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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I bought a sports car! Quite an impulse purchase, but we had a few outings in mind for it (my stag party, our honeymoon, numerous day trips, a backup wedding car etc) and it was an itch I wanted to scratch. Here is the Two Litre Two Seater!<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RQIHpDoGNUI/VoTnISIbuKI/AAAAAAAABCI/sdokoFV5QMo/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.14.28.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="261" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RQIHpDoGNUI/VoTnISIbuKI/AAAAAAAABCI/sdokoFV5QMo/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.14.28.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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We laid a terrace - again, a lot of hard graft in the summer heat, but it saved about £4,000 in labour and the results are fabulous.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rg12RrFjRcY/VoTnPZ7WWNI/AAAAAAAABCQ/ISZk65CCyzA/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.14.39.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rg12RrFjRcY/VoTnPZ7WWNI/AAAAAAAABCQ/ISZk65CCyzA/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.14.39.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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I raced through the cladding on the Barn - the wedding was looming and the temptation was to get it done as quickly as possible, but my OCD kicked in and all the holes were measured, pre-drilled, countersunk and screwed - unlike the professional job in progress up the road where they used a nail gun...<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cWP4pNn16Dk/VoTnXPE8o3I/AAAAAAAABCY/_6rAN7l2fOI/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.14.53.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="285" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cWP4pNn16Dk/VoTnXPE8o3I/AAAAAAAABCY/_6rAN7l2fOI/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.14.53.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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The weekend before the Wedding we had the builders in! Just a small wall around the perimeter of the oak Orangery extension - we were worried about wedding guests falling into the cavity around the foundation - but the lads did a great job.<br />
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I shot down to Devon for my Stag Party - five chaps, three sports cars, a lovely overnight pub, an hour exploring a ruined gunpowder factory, tea and ice creams. Perfect!<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9-OMKv_ybes/VoTneR0pLkI/AAAAAAAABCo/h934fK9Ep5w/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.15.30.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9-OMKv_ybes/VoTneR0pLkI/AAAAAAAABCo/h934fK9Ep5w/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.15.30.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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The Barn was finished at the eleventh hour - it was a great feeling!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XrtnXQlzFgU/VoTnuf5ADhI/AAAAAAAABCw/32EPswHWvtw/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.17.13.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XrtnXQlzFgU/VoTnuf5ADhI/AAAAAAAABCw/32EPswHWvtw/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.17.13.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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The wedding was a wonderful success - we have thousands of pictures but this is one of my favourites, taken as we arrived home for the reception;<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ejzRZtKtmdg/VoTnyEj5OQI/AAAAAAAABDA/Nr0B9HvUkag/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.16.18.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="183" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ejzRZtKtmdg/VoTnyEj5OQI/AAAAAAAABDA/Nr0B9HvUkag/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.16.18.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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We had three mini-moons (a short honeymoon, I'm told); number one was a stay in a shepherd's hut in the South Downs.<br />
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I cut my finger pretty seriously on my table saw, which prompted 1) a visit to hospital 2) the sale of said table saw and 3) the start of a love affair with Festool products. Every cloud!<br />
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We visited my Sister and future Brother-in-Law at their recently renovated house in Woodbridge, Suffolk. It is a wonderful wooded acre, and I got to play in a telehandler...<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7ZDdhr88LAQ/VoTn_CBgzbI/AAAAAAAABDY/XBk8Lq9ZAnI/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.17.53.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7ZDdhr88LAQ/VoTn_CBgzbI/AAAAAAAABDY/XBk8Lq9ZAnI/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.17.53.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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The insulation was delivered for the Barn - I couldn't wait to get the place habitable, and another job for the Kubota;<br />
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In readiness for a visit from close family friends, I knocked up a swing from an offset of oak - I've since replaced the ropes with something more fitting. Space for two little bottoms, or one larger one.<br />
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The second of our mini-moons was in a gorgeous cottage just outside Hay-on-Wye.<br />
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One of the highlights of the trip was a morning paddling down the Wye in a Canadian Canoe - one of the most peaceful mornings I can remember.<br />
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Back home and back to the Barn - this was an 'in progress' pic of scoring the barn doors to give the impression of a panelled door, without the disadvantages of swelling and poor fitting of a 'real' door exposed to the elements.<br />
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The painted doors in place look great, and means I can leave tools in the Barn overnight.<br />
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When the weather finally turned, attention shifted to replacing our kitchen - this job is still ongoing...<br />
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We saw some extraordinary sunrises from our bedroom window;<br />
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Wonderfully exciting news - the Acre in Hampshire clan is growing! This will be our first little nipper, which makes it all the more tremendous...<br />
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In late December, it was time for my Father and I (and everyone else, of course...!) to get tarted up for Hannah and James' wedding;<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QC31G4tyZEY/VoWuk8grvRI/AAAAAAAABFI/ah4eThlA70o/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.22.09.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QC31G4tyZEY/VoWuk8grvRI/AAAAAAAABFI/ah4eThlA70o/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-12-31%2Bat%2B08.22.09.png" width="246" /></a><br />
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Despite the rain, bride and groom (and Pilot the cocker) were marvellous and we all had a splendid day. Not as much fun as our wedding though...!<br />
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Christmas was a quiet affair, with the newlyweds in Argentina on honeymoon and Mrs White under the weather and off her food thanks to the Bump. I still got some building in, having a crack at my first set of stairs;<br />
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So there we are; 2015 consisted of building a Barn and two weddings - 2016 will consist of finishing the house renovations, the arrival of the Bump, and building of the Orangery. 2016 will be great!<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-62487528937398482942015-10-31T16:59:00.000-07:002015-10-31T16:59:35.178-07:00The Door Painting FactorySo, the theme this week is painting. We've been painting non-stop and there's still loads to do.<br />
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Last Saturday saw the first delivery from our new, shiny trade account at Howdens - four doors, doorframes and weather seal, in an attempt to finally make the Workshop and Garden Room watertight and secure.<br />
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My wonderful new Festool track saw and router made short work of door fitting - all four doors had been cut to size, frames installed in the oak, hinge and lock pockets routed and decorative grooves cut in two days. The most satisfying things about using the Festool kit are the achievable precision and the remarkable quality of the finish - I have never been so attached to my power tools!<br />
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All the Workshop doors had decorative grooves routed into the surface, to give the impression of a panelled door. Even this was an easy and relaxing job with the router set up on my 3000mm Festool rail...<br />
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Using the limit stops on the rail meant that all the grooves lined up perfectly...</div>
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A quick couple of coats of paint and they are ready to hang. We've used quite a dark grey colour which I'm hoping will contrast nicely with the light grey silvery colour of the cedar shingles. We copied the colour from my sister's renovation project in Suffolk - it works very well there, so fingers crossed that it works well further west! It is RAL 7012 (Basalt Grey) in case you are interested...</div>
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These are the double doors that will fill the large opening to the Workshop - Kristy is crouching in the corner painting the stable door that will lead to the Garden Room.<br />
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Eagle-eyed readers will notice plasterboard on the walls and sockets installed. I've skipped over my unpleasant week with 55 sheets of plasterboard which collectively weighed over a tonne - it wasn't my favourite part of the build, but it does makes the place feel a bit more finished. We've still got to finish filling and sanding - there is a blanket ban on dust and sawdust while wet paint is present!<br />
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This is the result - I really like the colour, which makes the Barn look really finished. I still need to pop the beading around the glass in the window and attach the lock escutcheon (what a great word!)<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-66943804868620485572015-10-18T04:39:00.000-07:002015-10-18T04:39:17.878-07:00Converting the BarnSo, with the Wedding finished and everything packed away, it was time (after a quick mini-moon in the name of tradition) to start converting the Barn. It was a lovely space when all open, but the building would become much more useful if divided up. The end by the drive will remain open and become a cart lodge for two cars (with a covered area for storage), in the middle would be my new workshop, and the far end would become a guest room with a bathroom for when Kristy's parents came to stay - her father uses a wheelchair so he can't get around easily. When not in use as a guest room, it will be a craft room / garden office / retreat as necessary - to be named the Garden Room.<br />
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Onto the conversion! I ordered a load of Celotex-type insulation from a firm called Seconds and Co, who sell insulation which has not passed quality control during manufacture. It's still perfectly useable, but the odd bit has a void here and there, or not perfectly flat. We saved about £1,000 over using full price material.<br />
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I also did the first of many runs to Wickes for studding timber. I normally shy away from Wickes, but they were holding a promotion and so we saved a good deal - even over using a larger builder's merchant.<br />
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The first job was to wire the place. There is an '8' shaped ring main around the garden room and workshop, with a spur to another socket in the cart lodge. Building Regs state that a ring main can be a maximum os 50 metres long, which was a challenge. There is also a secondary circuit in the workshop to connect certain power tools to a plumbed-in dust extractor that will live outside the workshop, a lighting circuit in each of the three areas and more PIR and timed lights outside. <br />
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The stud timber went in easily enough, even though an earlier mistake in specifying timber to hold the cladding in place caused me a good deal of extra work. I started by trimming the insulation to exact sizes but this took a long time and caused bowing if the size was slightly out; in the end I cut dimensions 5mm under size and filled the gaps with expanding foam.<br />
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The roof was quite easy - I used 100mm insulation to provide the necessary air gap between the top of the insulation and the underside of the cedar shingles to prevent condensation. In this pic you can also see the OSB I had to add to the frame to provide some lateral stability - as recommended by Roy, our structural engineer. I'm sure it's overkill, but it was easy enough to add.<br />
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After the insulation, a vapour barrier was stapled to the studding timber.<br />
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Finally, some more bracing was fitted to the northern gable. Despite the braces which stabilise the ridge, some galvanised strapping was further cheap insurance which helped to secure the roof. This would be covered by plasterboard in any case - the X shapes in the roof provide tension in either direction against wind load.<br />
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In other news, we've designed and ordered our new kitchen, Roy is close to signing off the design for the Orangery for the side of the house, the doors for the Barn are on the way and work is racing along to plasterboard and paint the two rooms in the Barn.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-23680865326828770972015-09-08T16:27:00.002-07:002015-09-08T16:27:48.109-07:00The Wildmoor WeddingThe day was finally here - our wedding day!<br />
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We wanted to have a real 'friends and family' feel to the event - and in the days preceding the Big Day we were snowed under with helpers, advisers, visitors, supper and overnight guests. We had SUCH fun and it was exactly the leadup to the day we were hoping for.<br />
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A typical helper's supper the night before; <br />
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The decorations were wonderful, and the barn looked amazing;<br />
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My mother Karen was responsible for all the flowers - these huge hanging balls in the barn were spectacular.<br />
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And then the deed was done - it went so quickly! Monty was even allowed to take part - he and I wore matching bow ties...<br />
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Our wedding car was a wonderful Series 1 Land Rover, which had been kept a complete surprise from both Kristy and I. It was the most fitting vehicle possible, and really made the day.<br />
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We had a load of wonderful photos taken - this is our favorite;<br />
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Before it was back to our home for the most amazing garden party / wedding reception EVER!<br />
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...and what would be a more fitting start to married life than a cup of tea with my wonderful Grandmother!<br />
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The Barn was full to bursting with friends and family for our wedding supper;<br />
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What they say is quite true - it goes in the blink of an eye! All our wonderful friends and family, loads of amazing things to see and do, wonderful wedding presents, a hog roast - but before we knew, it was 2am and the last of our guests were leaving.<br />
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Easily the best day of my life!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-58313369114808039952015-09-06T03:33:00.003-07:002015-09-06T03:33:51.469-07:00The Barn - Cladding and GlazingI don't seem to have many pics of this stage for some reason...<br />
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Here was a bit of test-fitting of the oak cladding - I attached a softwood frame to the oak beams, and then screwed the cladding to these softwood studs. Stainless screws throughout to prevent corrosion.<br />
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Fast forward a bit...<br />
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Progress was slower than a commercial job - every piece of cladding had to be cut with my ropey old mitre saw, before the screw holes were marked (all the same height thanks to my OCD) and pre-drilled and countersunk. Screws had to be greased to ease them into the holes - the stainless screws are quite soft so the heads would round off without much provocation.<br />
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I didn't quite order enough cladding - about 5 metres short - so I decided to leave the other eave uncovered.<br />
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The glazers also came to pop the glass in the end. I was very glad they measured and fitted the glass - the job was perfect, and we were finally ready for a wedding!<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-53448165745127276662015-09-06T03:24:00.000-07:002015-09-06T03:24:06.928-07:00Simon's Stag DoWhile the dwarf walls were being built, I decided to pop off for a weekend away.<br />
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I'd briefed my Best Man (my chum JB) with very specific parameters - no strip clubs, no big groups of blokes, no awful drunkenness, no being-tied-naked-to-lampposts; in fact, nothing associated with a normal Stag Do.<br />
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We settled on a simple formula - five chaps, in three pokey sports cars, some great roads, a bit of industrial heritage and a nice evening in a good pub. Simple!<br />
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We headed off to Devon early on Saturday morning and spend the day blatting around the place. There were originally four of us - Self, JB (best man), and my friends Neil and Tom. Jimmer was a last minute addition - I'd met him a few times but he got wind of our trip and had just bought a fast car, so he tagged along.<br />
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Above; Author, Neil, Tom, JB and Jimmer<br />
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The cars - my 2 litre Mazda MX5, Jimmer's Mercedes C63 AMG and JB's Porsche Cayman. About 800 BHP in total!<br />
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A good bit of blatting was involved surrounded by glorious scenery and great company.<br />
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Some industrial heritage - this was a proving mortar at an old gunpowder factory. A measured amount of powder would fire a calibrated ball, and thus the strength of the powder could be adjusted to the required potency.<br />
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And a wonderful pub for great beer, lovely grub and a comfy bed. Result!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-18695504950175566412015-09-06T03:01:00.003-07:002015-09-06T03:01:32.413-07:00Garden Room - Dwarf WallsWith something like a fortnight to go before our Wedding (and DIY in-the-garden-and-Barn reception) we contracted the building of the dwarf walls that we'd need for the building of our side extension Garden Room.<br />
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Yes, it was a bit last minute - but the nature of the foundations meant that there was a foot-deep hole running around the perimeter of the foundation. We'd already lost one small child's leg down the hole, and didn't want a repeat performance at the wedding.<br />
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We really landed on our feet with Nathan, our brickie. He had visited before to lay the blocks for the barn, and turned out to be a real craftsman. He planned to finish the job over a two-day weekend - and visited on the friday evening to prepare and move materials into place. We used hand-thrown (or whatever verb they use...) bricks which match the house really well.<br />
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This first pic was first thing in the morning - they had to cut in the bricks to match the pattern in the house. <br />
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The outside skin went up really quickly - and the finish they have achieved is wonderful. There is not a speck of mortar on the brickwork, and the pointing is to a really high standard. <br />
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The job was finished by lunchtime on Sunday - with both skins tied together, insulated and a tidy site. Great work fellas - we'll use you again!<br />
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And a quick reminder about what we hope to achieve with the Garden Room - an oak framed orangery (far too upmarket a word for our house, but that's the proper name - a conservatory with a solid roof!) with bi-fold doors and windows all the way round. We plan to use it as a large family dining room with a small sitting-room bit at one end.<br />
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<span id="goog_1095541298"></span><span id="goog_1095541299"></span><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-30354194067150496282015-09-06T02:16:00.000-07:002015-09-06T02:16:08.299-07:00Laying the TerraceIn the middle of all this barn-building chaos, we decided that having a large terrace would be really nice for our wedding. We were hoping for fine weather, and would have 100-plus people milling about in the garden all evening - we needed something good underfoot!<br />
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We priced up the job and calculated the need for 55 square metres of terracing. This would give us a big area outside the back door for a table and chairs, a path to the barn, a smaller area outside the barn for another small table, a paved area by the log store on the barn plus a long sinuous path between the parking spaces and the front door. The paving we chose would cost about £2,000 - but the labour for installation was over £4,000. Yikes!<br />
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As ever, we decided to DIY. This saved a lot of money, but it was really hard work.<br />
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Our tame groundworker Dickie came in and finished all the excavation and laying of membrane and hardcore in a single day - this also marked the last of our hateful concrete paths. Hooray!<br />
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In hindsight, the level of the hardcore was a bit low - this necessitated a thick layer of lean mix (dry sand and cement) which was more work for us.<br />
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This was the approximate area that we had to fill - plus a bit more in front of the barn that is out of shot. The path can be seen on the right.<br />
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The job progressed quite well - the terrace had to slope away from the house to drain water, and the house wasn't very square which meant that compensation had to be factored into the laying of the stone flags. It looked marvellous very quickly!<br />
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The job was quite hard work - even though the flags were of a calibrated thickness it was difficult to got the levels to a satisfactory standard - and then they had to have the correct drainage slope and sit flat on the sand bed without rocking!<br />
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Sadly we were running out of time towards the end - we left the path and bought a tonne of gravel instead. A bit of turf to tidy up, and the garden as ready for the wedding!<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-58645606442037053162015-09-06T01:35:00.002-07:002015-09-06T01:35:59.670-07:00Barn RoofThis was an interesting part of the build - the rafters and battens were pretty fun and rewarding, whereas the shingles were easily the worst part of the whole barn.<br />
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I started by building a ridge for the tops of the rafters to sit on. This is a slightly unconventional technique - normally a ridge beam is held up by 'cripples' which support the rafters while they are built; the cripples are then removed, and the rafters support the ridge beam without any assistance.<br />
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I decided to do things slightly differently - having a permanent and supported ridge beam seemed like a better structural solution to my (untrained) eye, it would allow the incorporation of oak braces in the roof which would provide some lateral stability, and the braces would look pretty from inside as well!<br />
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This was the first section of ridge beam and braces in place. The
ridge itself is structurally graded softwood - this provided Roy, our
Structural Engineer, with a known quantity for his calculations. Oak is
less homogeneous than graded softwood, and therefore easier to calculate
(even though it's probably weaker!) The uprights and braces are oak, as
they will be visible from inside.<br />
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The rest of the ridge raced up, and then it was time for the rafters.
The longer lengths had three birdsmouths - at the ridge, the main
wallplate and the catslide wallplate. I read a lot of theory about
calculating rafter cuts, but I wasn't confident in my abilities to get
the cuts accurate.<br />
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Sadly I didn't photograph my solution, as I'm quite pleased with it's simplicity and effectiveness! In short, I cut a spare rafter into a template, leaving 2/3 of the original depth for a foot either side of the birdsmouth. I then cut a scrap piece of plywood with a 90 degree notch. I placed the template rafter in position at 600mm centres, and then screwed the plywood onto the rafter template, ensuring it was tight to the wallplate. The template rafter was then removed, and I could trace the position of the bridsmouth onto the real rafter before making the cut.<br />
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The result was really good - surprisingly so. All the birdsmouth cuts are tight and accurate - a really pleasing outcome which was very satisfying.<br />
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Batten was next - this raced up with help from my father Martyn. All were screwed in place - I have a complete aversion to nails...<br />
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The cedar shingles arrived soon afterwards - the best part of a tonne I'd imagine, as the tractor couldn't lift the pallets until they were about 1/3 unloaded. We used the second-best grade of shingles - Number 2 Red Label shingles. We had about 5,500 delivered. <br />
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Each needed two fixings per shingle, in stainless steel to prevent
corrosion (cedar has a high tannin content, which is corrosive to ferrous metals). I decided to use 28mm stainless staples, fired from a
pneumatic staple gun, which saved a huge amount of time over nailing. I could reach the first eight or ten rows from my Youngman boards and ladders, before it was time to hire some more kit.<br />
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The job itself was fairly hateful, due mostly to the weather. We had gusty wind for most of the week that I was doing the roof, and loads of the shingles blew off the platform I rigged on the cherry picker. It rained a fair amount as well, making the roof slippery to work on and caused the cherry picker to start sinking into the soft grass.<br />
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A regular motto of mine is 'Time Spent Making a Jig is Rarely Wasted'. This is the shingle fixing jig I made - the top hooks onto a row of batten, allowing shingles to be hung on the lower edge - all in a straight line and at the correct height. There are also two string lines across the jig which show where the staples will penetrate the shingle and hit the batten below. <br />
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I finished the shingles after a 14 hour shift, trying to meet the hire deadline. We had the inevitable 'topping out' ceremony with a bottle of beer to celebrate the end of a physically demanding part of the build.<br />
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The shingles do look fabulous - they really change colour as they weather - they are quite a light grey now, but shift to a really deep orange and red when they are wet. You can also see the two Velux windows and chimney flashing in this picture.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-7550409591362261922015-09-06T00:52:00.001-07:002015-09-06T01:36:53.144-07:00Are you still Blogging...?I've been asked this question a few times recently. Five months with no updates? What is going on?<br />
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In my defense, I have had a wedding reception venue to finish, a wedding to host and three mini-honeymoons to plan and attend, a 55 square metre terrace to lay, as well as a new car to buy and a change of posting and job role to cope with. Pretty thin list of excuses I know, but there we are.<br />
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Here follows a quick fire catch-up of everything we've been up to. I'll keep everything in separate posts for ease of searching.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-86071455307207105452015-04-12T13:04:00.000-07:002015-04-12T13:04:36.609-07:00Mid March - what's going on...?As is becoming the norm, loads of work but no time to update the blog. A crash course in catching up follows thus;<br />
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I bought a new planer, after the first version I bought broke AGAIN with a motor fault, not five minutes after it arrived back from being 'fixed'. Buy cheap, buy twice - a mantra I have demonstrated perfectly. Huge thanks to the fabulous <a href="http://www.aldermastontoolco.co.uk/" target="_blank">Aldermaston Tool Company</a> who managed to get this delivered next day, at a lower price than any internet suppliers, and who literally saved the day. How many tools come in their own wooden shipping crate these days?<br />
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This chap came to visit one wet morning, and stayed long enough for me to rig my DSLR for a nice snap. Sparrowhawk I think?<br />
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The forklift was delivered in time for a stretch of days away from work. This was the last time for about a month that I'd be able to have a full week off - so it was vital that the frame building was finished on schedule.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LbC3EgPA9MI/VSrJOyoTNiI/AAAAAAAAAy8/Bs_zxdjtxXQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.32.13.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LbC3EgPA9MI/VSrJOyoTNiI/AAAAAAAAAy8/Bs_zxdjtxXQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.32.13.png" height="390" width="400" /></a></div>
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With the forklift I could crack on - the little storage area under the catslide roof was first...<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-ytTANYlSI/VSrJfm-J8LI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/TBEMkqOsyGc/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.32.45.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-ytTANYlSI/VSrJfm-J8LI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/TBEMkqOsyGc/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.32.45.png" height="367" width="400" /></a></div>
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...before I started work on the complicated eastern wall - all sorts of braces, floor-to-ceiling windows and eight inch section doorframes in here.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IV7x0Ye7QQA/VSrJk86WKNI/AAAAAAAAAzk/pj9v0VHnLBA/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.33.01.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IV7x0Ye7QQA/VSrJk86WKNI/AAAAAAAAAzk/pj9v0VHnLBA/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.33.01.png" height="276" width="400" /></a></div>
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Then my Kubota saw some action, moving the 7 metre beams from my neighbour's farmyard towards the barn.<br />
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We lost a whole day to a power cut - the weather was glorious, so we relaxed in the garden...<br />
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...and made coffee in the Kelly Kettle...<br />
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...before a hard slog to beat the forklift-being-collected deadline. The great news is that the oak frame is finished, it is really quite square (better that I expected!) and there were only a few non-terminal mistakes. Oh, and the Landy fits in, which was the whole point after all.<br />
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This week's job is to chuck a thousand pounds at the rafter-and-batten shop and make a start on the roof.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a4FNCWbssTw/VSrJxOLvtUI/AAAAAAAAAzs/KiXVv8y9Ehg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.34.00.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a4FNCWbssTw/VSrJxOLvtUI/AAAAAAAAAzs/KiXVv8y9Ehg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.34.00.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a4FNCWbssTw/VSrJxOLvtUI/AAAAAAAAAzs/KiXVv8y9Ehg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-04-12%2Bat%2B20.34.00.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-38181250236072865692015-03-22T11:57:00.002-07:002015-03-22T11:57:51.496-07:00Loads of Progress......which is a good job, as the Wedding of the Year (as far as we are concerned...) is only 14 weeks away. Yikes!<br />
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Every spare moment has been spent outside cracking on with building the Barn. I don't use the word build lightly - upwards progress is being made, which is a huge boost to morale!<br />
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After much head-scratching, tea-drinking, internet-browsing and working-out, I've settled on the joint design that will hold the tops of the walls together. Spanning the 6.5 metres between the walls are some really long and heavy oak beams - attaching these to the tops of the walls is a pretty hefty bit of engineering design - the weight of the roof wants to push the walls apart. I've settled on a stepped dovetail joint, designed to tighten if any forces try to pull the joint apart. These bits of oak are 7 inches square, and I made a simple jig so that making these dovetails (10 in all) is a simple job.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fM1M5yZc3_w/VQ8Lpx8chbI/AAAAAAAAAx8/dae_D4nRcBA/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-03-22%2Bat%2B18.29.13.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fM1M5yZc3_w/VQ8Lpx8chbI/AAAAAAAAAx8/dae_D4nRcBA/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-03-22%2Bat%2B18.29.13.png" height="397" width="400" /></a></div>
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I've had a lot of help from my Father during the last fortnight - it has been quite strange having him as an 'apprentice' - quite the opposite of my childhood, when it was his job to show me how to make things and keep any breakages from my Mother! It has been great to spend a few days together, pottering on with a satisfying job. Here we are a few weeks ago, in awe of how tall the walls are going to be...</div>
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....and again, with one of the corner posts that we made together...</div>
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Speaking of making things, we spend a good few hours on THE most complicated node in the whole building - the freestanding post that will be in the garage, with three braces and a scarfed wall plate. In a funny way, I am starting to seek out ever more complicated joints to try - for the challenge of designing and the satisfaction of building them. This has 11 pegs in the space of about 2 square feet - a personal record!</div>
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This is the current state of the Barn as of this evening - all of the west wall and garage store uprights in place and both wall plates (12 metres long, with 4 scarf joints and 11 mortices each...) finished.</div>
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Progress is SLIGHTLY stalled owing to an equipment failure - my large hand planer has burned out it's motor. It is a poor design - the exhaust for shavings is right by the cooling air intake, which inevitably gets blocked with shavings and the machine overheats. I am going to try to get a refund and order the machine I should have bought the first time - a Makita which is of far higher quality.</div>
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In other news, Kristy and my mother have worked wonders in a scrubby little corner of the garden which used to be overrun with brambles and stunted trees - we now have a lovely little bank which is covered with bulbs and primroses. They've done a lovely job!</div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-88854800060700404032015-02-16T11:36:00.002-08:002015-02-16T11:36:31.930-08:00TRACTOR! If we are to judge a week in terms of the number of long term aspirations finally achieved, this one was pretty spectacular. I'll rewind about five years to take up the tale...<br />
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Ever since I developed a fascination for homesteading (my catch-all Americanism for a self reliant lifestyle on a bit of land - growing stuff, building things and generally going against the grain of modern life) I've hankered after a tractor. Why? Just think of the <i>jobs</i> you could do with one! Mowing, lifting heavy things, pulling logs out of the woods, splitting those logs with the hydraulics, towing trailers, scraping earth in about a dozen different ways, dragging things - I could go on. I really <i>wanted</i> a tractor.<br />
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However, the realities of living in a small terraced house in Berkshire meant that, had I bought even the teeniest of teeny tractors, I wouldn't even have been able to get it into our postage-stamp sized garden.<br />
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Fast forward to our current (and amazing) home. Loads of space (and jobs) for a tractor. For reasons that I'm yet to quite fathom, a proper tractor seemed to slip out of my mind - perhaps the excitement of moving pushed it down my list of dreams! I bought a great little John Deere ride-on mower which has more than paid for itself - our land is mostly grass for now - but it was a bit of a one trick pony. It could mow, and tow a small trailer, but not much else. Plus, it used a lot of fuel in it's 18HP petrol engine.<br />
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So thoughts turned to a tractor again. The catalyst was having the last order of oak for the Barn - those beams are HEAVY - moving and lifting them was possible, but only just. A strained back at this stage would pretty much cancel our wedding this summer (no back equals no barn building equals no wedding venue) - so I decided to act.<br />
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After a number of months of searching (and a poor attempt by somebody to scam me out of two month's wages on eBay...) I found the perfect little tractor at a dealership in the Midlands.<br />
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She is a Kubota BX2200 - a little 22HP three cylinder diesel, but a proper tractor nonetheless. It has hydraulic transmission, a mid-mount mower deck, three separate hydraulic circuits, a rear linkage that will lift half a ton, mid and rear PTOs and is ready to be road registered. It only has 500-ish hours on the clock - barely run in for a Kubota.<br />
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The first attachment I've bought is a set of folding pallet forks - primarily for oak beams but also to be used for logs. Here she is earning her keep - moving a big pallet of freshly split ash logs down to the house.<br />
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I've also used the tractor to move the oak beams about on the slab - it's great being able to pick up three beams at once and lift them straight onto the saw horses for processing.<br />
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The barn is racing along - helped by a bit of process management advise! All the working drawings are on my Macbook, so whenever I needed a dimension I had to walk from the slab to the house and check on the drawings. Why I didn't think to print some working drawings sooner I'll never know! Anyway, I've now got a load of laminated and dimensioned plans like these to refer to;<br />
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This was the bit I finished this weekend - the covered storage are accessed from the garage. With another couple of dry days forecast next weekend, I should be able to finish about half of the uprights for the building... watch this space!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-16484390557331770462015-02-08T11:16:00.000-08:002015-02-08T11:17:42.647-08:00From Forest to FenceThanks to my future brother-in-law Luke for the title to this blog entry - seeing as he helped with the manual effort I think he has earned naming rights!<br />
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In our apparently never-ending quest to make our boundary dog proof, we needed to sort out the cleft rail fence close to where we park the cars. This lovely new fence had replaced a horrid old half-round effort that we inherited from the previous occupants; although it was much prettier, dogs could still jump through from both directions.<br />
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Spurred on by the success of the resaw jig I'd make for the bandsaw, another trip into our permissive woods was in order. The chainsaw started first time after a couple of months of inactivity, and five minutes later we had these Ash logs - both about a foot round and three feet long.<br />
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Onto the resaw jig, and through the bandsaw they go...</div>
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...before they are planked into 10mm thick boards.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jfZ-DtV8vwE/VNe0CZpXVaI/AAAAAAAAAvY/BoY5CFqwQCw/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-02-08%2Bat%2B19.00.32.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jfZ-DtV8vwE/VNe0CZpXVaI/AAAAAAAAAvY/BoY5CFqwQCw/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-02-08%2Bat%2B19.00.32.png" height="400" width="298" /></a></div>
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The quality control is still somewhat lacking - it is quite hard to keep the log upright and against the fence - the natural drift of the bandsaw will try and push things out of kilter. Anyway, this was perfectly good enough for some three-inch wide boards for the fence.</div>
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Every third board was left a few inches longer, and they were fixed with stainless steel screws - the fence looks marvellous, but most importantly it is dog proof! An added bonus was the off-cuts, which burned beautifully and kept the house heated for the evening. Not a bad day's work!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-62867400620880719242015-02-03T10:31:00.000-08:002015-02-03T10:31:05.848-08:00A Timber Re-saw Jig for the BandsawThis is such a great bit of workshop kit - I can't remember the last time I was so chuffed with a few bits of plywood!<br />
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Last summer I bought a Bandsaw - I needed one to cut the gentle curves in the braces for the Barn, as making all 28 by hand would have taken me years. The bandsaw has already paid for itself - you can buy curved braces off the shelf, but at £50 each it would have got expensive very quickly; far more expensive than buying a machine and making them myself. As ever, I decided to buy a slightly bigger and better model than was strictly necessary - my mantra of 'buy cheap, buy twice' won out, and actually made the bandsaw purchase even more versatile and better value, since I could do more with a larger model.<br />
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Something I'd always wanted to try was cutting my own planks from logs. Wood isn't cheap - if I could scavenge some decent lengths of oak and ash, cut them into boards and plane them to shape the bandsaw would save even me a good chunk over buying wood from a merchant.<br />
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To plank a log, you need to be able to cut two flat, straight edges at 90 degrees to each other. This will allow the log to sit flat on the table of the saw and against the guide fence at the same time, ensuring consistent boards. You can then resaw the log to any thickness you need.<br />
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To make these flat faces, I had to make a jig. There are loads of plans on Pinterest - most were quite comprehensive, with sliding clamp sections and T Slot profiles to fit the bandsaw. Beautiful bits of work, but perhaps a bit more complicated than strictly necessary. I decided to deliberately go as simple and low-tech as possible, using up some bits of scrap plywood from the shed, a bit of glue, some decking screws and a handful of pocket hole screws.<br />
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Here is the (free) jig;<br />
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This is set up for a very short log - I nicked a bit of cherry from the log pile just to try it out. The clamp on the right is fixed; the one on the left can be moved to fit the length of the log. The clamps can be set about four feet from each other - but there really is no limit to how long they could be. The log is held in place by the decking screws on either clamp.<br />
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Here she is in action;<br />
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The log is held by two decking screws per end - they only need to be driven in enough to stop the log moving. Once you've cut one square face, the log is rotated 90 degrees (newly cut face down) to cut the second face.<br />
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Now you've got two square edges, the guide fence is set to whichever thickness you fancy, and the log can be planked...<br />
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This was just a quick-and-dirty trial, but I'm going to head into our 'permission' tomorrow to recover some fallen ash logs to plank and turn into fencing staves.<br />
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Like I said, a very satisfying use of some old bits of plywood!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-87564804818542895872015-02-02T11:47:00.002-08:002015-02-02T11:47:36.319-08:00Final Oak DeliverySo, the last delivery of green oak arrived this morning - containing everything I need to finish the timber frame for the barn. I found the whole process extremely easy, mostly because I was at work and missed all the excitement! Kristy was a champion, directing LGV drivers, telehandlers and generally being a great site foreman. I stopped short of criticising her for lack of safety boots, helmet or high-vis jacket - she took some great pictures which made up for her Health-and-Safety shortfall.<br />
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This was a picture of our drive at 0745hrs this morning - the telehandler and driver were provided at very short notice by Dickie, the chap who did our groundworks.<br />
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Some well-deserved advertising and a link for the fabulous <a href="http://www.venablesoak.co.uk/" target="_blank">Venables Oak</a> - they have been SO helpful throughout, tolerating my repeated phone calls and panicked changes to my order. They fitted delivery around us - even changing the driver's schedule so that we were home. Great people to deal with!</div>
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Here is part of our order - a pack containing 55 square meters of oak cladding for the barn - there is just shy of £1000 of cladding on the telehandler's forks!</div>
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And here it is - one flat-pack 85 square meter barn in kit-form. Upright posts on the left, facing rafters and wall plates in the middle, internal-garage-storage-bit and doorframes on the right.</div>
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To save working space, our amazing neighbour Brooksy let me borrow a bit of space in his farmyard for the oak cladding...</div>
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...and the tie beams. These are real monsters - over 7 meters long, 7 inches square and weighing a quarter of a ton each.</div>
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Kristy's brother Luke is coming to stay for a few days this week, and the plan will be to stack the cladding with timber stringers to let it air, before we start making some more sawdust - and building the barn! I'm hoping we can also start making the apparatus I'll use to move the monster beams about - a clever devise called a Logging Arch, not dissimilar to this;</div>
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...which can then be used to bring home logs from our local permissive woods. </div>
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Too many projects on the go!</div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-21407747300443718822015-01-28T07:58:00.000-08:002015-01-28T07:58:06.814-08:00January Catch-upNo blogging recently, as you may have noticed. Lots of work though - both around the property and to earn money to spend on the property!<br />
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I'll keep it short - a picture tells a thousand words...<br />
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I plucked up the courage to drag the chain mortiser out of the workshop, and tackle the log store for the Barn. This was my trial-run - I ordered the oak early so I had something to <strike>play with</strike> practise on. As it turns out, this is pretty straightforward - as long as the mortises are made a little bigger than they need to be, which saves loads of assembly-and-disassembly to fine tune the components.<br />
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Buoyed by the success of the first corner, I moved from 'beginner' to 'intermediate' oak framing, and had a bash at the centre of the log store. This is quite complex, with five components to line up and pin.<br />
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This stuff is SO HEAVY - I learned a great lesson putting this little part of the frame together, which is to lift the oak by hand as little as possible. To this end, I built a little trolley with swivel wheels to move the beams, spin them on their axis and run them around lengthways - which I couldn't do with the sack truck. I could also do with a facility to lift the beams to saw horse height, but haven't found a good solution to this yet - short of buying a pallet pump truck which would be used for a few weeks and then be redundant.<br />
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I enlisted Graham from next door to help stand the log store up - it is a massive psychological boost to see something up and in place! We even stood the frame on the granite staddle stones.<br />
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Driving the oak pegs into place is the most wonderful job - the joints pull together so tightly if they have been cut properly. I know these pegs look loose - this is the back side, so the taper of the pegs is apparent. The other side is the 'weather' side which are really nice and tight in their holes to keep the water out. The pegs are lubricated with linseed oil before they are driven so that they can draw the components together effectively.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SKCgAkicZvs/VMkGRrtAC9I/AAAAAAAAAtE/sH0oLLJGrdU/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-01-28%2Bat%2B15.54.03.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SKCgAkicZvs/VMkGRrtAC9I/AAAAAAAAAtE/sH0oLLJGrdU/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-01-28%2Bat%2B15.54.03.png" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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When I wasn't framing, I had to pop a quick paving slab base down just outside the larder window...<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uK54bJmqFcQ/VMkCwjyxamI/AAAAAAAAAsk/wXO5tTt3BEo/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-01-28%2Bat%2B15.29.14.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uK54bJmqFcQ/VMkCwjyxamI/AAAAAAAAAsk/wXO5tTt3BEo/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-01-28%2Bat%2B15.29.14.png" height="296" width="400" /></a></div>
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...onto which some lovely chaps then popped our new boiler!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x5cSedoVly4/VMkDeUL-i9I/AAAAAAAAAs0/nwJrAYtsYSg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-01-28%2Bat%2B15.37.16.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x5cSedoVly4/VMkDeUL-i9I/AAAAAAAAAs0/nwJrAYtsYSg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-01-28%2Bat%2B15.37.16.png" height="327" width="400" /></a></div>
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Having an external boiler makes a lot of sense for us - we gain a lot of space in the kitchen, it is much more efficient than our old boiler and there is pretty much zero chance of a faulty boiler causing carbon monoxide poisoning. It also saves us a real headache when routing the flue through the roof of the planned new extension - so an external machine was a no brainer. It is a Worcester Bosch system boiler, which means almost all the workings are in the boiler housing, so we gain airing cupboard space as well.<br />
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Finally, I bought a length of oak worktop from eBay, with the intention of building a little study in the nook in the spare bedroom. Half has been used for the desk top, and the rest will make some little floating shelves for books and baskets. The worktop I bought was exactly half the price of a new piece - driving ten miles in the Defender and spending half an hour with the belt sander saved £60.<br />
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The next significant date is coming this Monday - the remainder of the oak for the Barn is being delivered. I am envisioning a HUGE pile of timber - no doubt the reality will be even bigger. They are delivering all the rest of the structural timber (including five wall ties at 6.5 metres long) and the oak cladding. Next week is going to be BUSY!<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-3631892736391606812014-12-20T08:15:00.001-08:002014-12-20T08:15:22.624-08:00Oak Framing - SoleplatesSince the <a href="http://anacreinhampshire.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/oak-framing-first-day.html" target="_blank">last update</a> a fortnight ago, I have made more sawdust than in the rest of my life put together. Quite literally wheelie-bins full of the stuff.<br />
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Remember that big pile of oak that was due to be soleplates?<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ovopK9UlCFI/VJWbeWkNpEI/AAAAAAAAAqY/jgV5Te_7T3A/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-12-20%2Bat%2B15.53.02.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ovopK9UlCFI/VJWbeWkNpEI/AAAAAAAAAqY/jgV5Te_7T3A/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-12-20%2Bat%2B15.53.02.png" height="201" width="320" /></a><br />
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Mostly done!<br />
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The weather has been really good for December - I've only lost a day or two this month to rain. The original plan was to spend most of the winter in the workshop and emerge in the spring to do all this work, but the looming deadline of our late June wedding has encouraged me to press on.</div>
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The oak is a wonderful material to work with - I'm learning loads and have only made one small 25mm error which I should be able to rectify (or hide). I realise now how much I learned on the <a href="http://anacreinhampshire.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/green-oak-framing-course.html" target="_blank">Oak Framing Course</a> I attended in the late spring - there is no way I would have attempted this project otherwise...</div>
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There are some fairly complex joints (for an amateur anyway!) like this corner tie joint.</div>
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There will be an upright post sitting in a mortice on top of this joint, with an oak peg holding the whole lot together.</div>
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I bought a huge handheld planer, which cleans the saw marks perfectly and skims away any slight stains which the oak has picked up. It really shows the beauty of the wood as well.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G6T5vvHGZLQ/VJWcQKmMgKI/AAAAAAAAAq8/CIzJPPnuSlk/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-12-20%2Bat%2B15.55.20.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G6T5vvHGZLQ/VJWcQKmMgKI/AAAAAAAAAq8/CIzJPPnuSlk/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-12-20%2Bat%2B15.55.20.png" height="332" width="400" /></a></div>
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I've done five complete bridle scarf joints as well - these took a lot of head scratching and double checking before I found the courage to cut the first one. Now I have some live models I can rattle them out in about an hour. I think I'm being a bit fussy about the finish and standard of the joints - but it is really satisfying when they close up tightly.</div>
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This is yet to be planed - which will clear up all the marks, stains and pencil lines, as well as improving the fit of the joint. These will also be draw pegged together. </div>
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There is a big pile of braces which have been marked out with shoulders cut - but I'm saving these for when the winter weather inevitably arrives.</div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-5200662407081549072014-12-06T01:00:00.000-08:002014-12-06T01:00:00.761-08:00Oak Framing - The First DayA really significant day this week - the first delivery of green oak* arrived from Venables Brothers, a sawmill in Shropshire.<br />
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A sight recap for new readers - we are building an oak framed barn of about 80 square meters in our garden, in which we are planning to host our wedding reception this coming June. After the wedding, it will be converted into a double garage, workshop and garden room. I'm building the whole thing - how many people get to build their own wedding reception venue?<br />
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I deliberately scheduled the delivery to arrive when I was at home - but Sod's Law kicked in and the wagon arrived before I was home. Kristy did a great job helping the driver offload everything...<br />
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That little pile doesn't look like much, but it this stuff is HEAVY. Green oak weighs approximately 1 ton per cubic metre, so even the very shortest lengths in this picture are about 35kg each. In all, I ordered 1.3 tonnes of oak, but the sawmill will oversupply if there is any doubt about the structural qualities of the timber - meaning we have more like two tonnes of oak here... For the next delivery I'll be hiring a fork lift truck - that order will contain five lengths that will weigh 300kg each!<br />
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A quick check of the order, and it was stacked in piles dependant on use - I have ordered enough to do all the soleplates (the oak that sits on the small brick walls at the building's perimeter), all the curved windbraces (or knees if you are a boatbuilder - to stop the structure racking under wind load) and the log store that will be closest to the house. They are stacked with air gaps all around to prevent fungal growth as the oak is stored.<br />
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These are the braces - cutting and shaping these will probably be the most labour-intensive part of the build...<br />
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These are all the soleplates - when I have cut the end joints and mortices ready to accept uprights, they will be fixed to the brick dwarf wall with stainless steel studs epoxyed into the concrete slab, with a damp proof membrane under them.</div>
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I also finished my sawhorses this week - I need to buy a bit more timber to make a fourth small horse, and I have two much taller horses which are the same height as my Superjaws clamping sawhorse.<br />
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The next post will contain some really exciting things - mostly sawing, mortising, cutting joints and making sawdust!<br />
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*not green in colour, but green as in unseasoned. The oak is sawn to size soon after the tree is cut, which has three effects - it is cheaper to buy than dried oak, it is MUCH easier to work, and it is still full of water and therefore HEAVY!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-13647603041276268962014-11-20T10:36:00.001-08:002014-11-20T10:38:38.957-08:00Make some Sloe Gin today!<h3>
Sloe Gin is a wonderful drink...</h3>
Sloe Gin is simply lovely. I was first introduced to it in the back of a gun bus while shooting one season with my father, and I've been hooked ever since. There is no other 'warmer' that comes close - I often have a nip or two at six o'clock - and it's even more marvellous (and warming) when it's hot.<br />
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It is simple stuff - mix some good gin with some Sloes and leave it in the cupboard for as long as you can bear. Sure, you can buy a bottle of commercial Sloe Gin from the supermarket, but making your own is great fun - and it makes a super present.<br />
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Firstly, a health warning - I am no expert, having only made three or four batches. I have found good and comprehensive instructions courtesy of <a href="http://www.sipsmith.com/blog/articles/how-to-make-the-perfect-sloe-gin" target="_blank">The SipSmith</a> here...<br />
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Here follows instructions for how I make Sloe Gin...<br />
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1. Collect some Sloes.</h3>
Sloes are the fruit of the Blackthorn (or Sloe) bush, <i>Prunus Spinosa.</i> Read all about them c/o Wikipedia <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prunus_spinosa" target="_blank">here...</a> To save your tired fingers an extra click, here's a stock picture of the fruit that you are after;<br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Sloes really can’t be mistaken for anything else, which is good for a foraging amateur (into which camp I firmly fall…) You'll find these bushes in most countryside hedges - be sure to check both sides in case one side has been picked bare. You can't walk a mile round here without seeing sloes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This may sound like a cop-out, but pick as many as you need. I’m filling a demijohn (1 gallon or so) so picked enough sloes to half fill the demijohn. If you are starting with a 75cl bottle, you’ll need fewer sloes.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Interesting demijohn trivia - the Romanian for Demijohn is…..wait for it…..Demijohn! What else would it be?</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">2. Rinse your Sloes</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Here is our haul...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">...wack them in the sink and agitate them a bit - spiders and bits of husk will float away...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">...then pop them in a colander and rinse under the tap, before you let them drip dry for a bit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">3. Get their juices flowing!</span></h3>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Three schools of thought exist here; 1) wait for the first frost 2) forget the first frost and cheat by freezing them 3) prick each sloe with a needle to burst them. Let's discount No.3 as we're all busy people with lives to lead. Maybe when we retire I'll enjoy the industry of a tedious and repetitive job, but not now. We'd had a bit of frost recently but froze them just in case.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The purpose of the exercise is to burst the cell walls so then the sloe juice can mix with the gin, maximising the taste.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4. Bottling your Sloes</span></h3>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This bit can be tricky if you've chosen a vessel with a small neck. A large Kilner-type jar would be easiest. Here is my glamorous assistant (who conveniently is my fiancee) pouring the sloes from a jug, down the side of the demijohn and onto the kitchen floor. Latterly (when I took over) some found their way inside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">5. Pour in your Gin</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The temptation is to buy cheap gin, hoping the taste of the sloes will mask any hint of kerosene you may detect in Asda Soak's Gin. Quite a false economy - the good stuff is often reduced, and your taste buds (and friends) will thank you. This Gordons was three pence per litre cheaper than the screenwash-grade stuff in Tesco. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">6. Ongoing Actions Pertaining to the Development of Sloe Gin</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">That is the back of the job broken. All that remains is to slosh the bottle about whenever you remember it - once a day is plenty. After six months (or a year - it doesn't really matter...) you need to drain the now-maroon gin into another container, and add a strong sugar syrup mixture (just sugar dissolved in warm water) to taste. Some prefer it sweeter than others, which is why a prescribed amount of sugar is somewhat meaningless. Then re-bottle, label with something pretty-looking (and the date!!!) and stick the bottles in the drinks cabinet / larder / cupboard under the sink as appropriate. The longer you leave it from here, the better it'll taste!</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-3332852559388725942014-11-11T01:28:00.000-08:002014-11-11T01:28:21.230-08:00Autumn ConsolidationLife seems to race by sometimes - and the last month has been one of those periods where it flashes past in a blur. We've been working lots, spent some great times with my sister and hopefully-future-brother-in-law in Suffolk and even managed to squeeze in some work at home. What I haven't had much time to do is write the Blog.<br />
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As this site develops, I am learning that it's maintenance is a real commitment. However, any inconvenience and time spent is greatly rewarded when I read some of my old posts; to see the changes we have made to this wonderful old place is a great boost for morale - often, we can't believe how much has been achieved since last summer. What started out as a diary for friends and family is really taking off - the site has had nearly 5,000 page views in the last year - and I can't wait to see how many people take the time to read the Blog in the next year.<br />
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Anyway, enough musing and introspection - show some damn pictures, wouldya?<br />
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Fencing - DONE! The garden is finally dog-proof, which means Monty can be turfed out into the main garden and run about - something he hasn't been able to do since early summer when the groundworks started. The slight caveat is that the hens also have free reign - until we remember to clip their wings, they can fly straight out of their enclosure, and Monty loves nothing more than chasing hens.<br />
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This is the fence that separates the drive from the front garden - soon, a path will run from the gate to the front door. The 'bare' stock fence in the foreground is a temporary measure to secure the garden until the Barn is built next spring.<br />
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The post and rail at the side of the garden is also finished. We actually own the track on the left, but our neighbours have right of access over it. You'll see that I've put a gate in next to the Barn slab - this will allow me to get the tractor out of the garden without having to drive through our neighbour's farmyard.<br />
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Work has been going on inside the house as well - the carpet has been fitted to the sitting room, and we have 'moved in' for the first time in well over a year. This room was our store room while we renovated the rest of the house, and was rammed to the ceiling for most of the last year. To have use of another room is a revelation - it's almost like having an extension built, so used had we got to living in the kitchen. The Clearview in this room is marvellous - it was brand new when we installed it, and it is so fabulously efficient and air-tight that it heats the room beautifully.<br />
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Do check back in a few days - I am going to try a few 'tutorials' to show some fun aspects of our life. Topics I have planned for the next week include home-made bread making, Sloe Gin (nothing like it when warming up after a day outside!) and building a Holz Hausen - you'll have to wait for an explanation of that last one!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5550680771081665856.post-77779179817474326402014-10-15T10:24:00.001-07:002014-10-15T10:24:45.974-07:00More fencing - almost all done!A hard day today.<br />
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I was determined to get the cleft fencing finished this morning - as you can see from the picture, quite a lot of the rails needed cutting down to size (nine of the twelve rails were shortened...). To get the taper on the end meant using the bandsaw to rough out the cuts - and the bandsaw is buried behind the bikes and the tractor mower, and I didn't want to leave everything out in the (forecasted) rain if I could avoid it.<br />
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Typically, just as I was finishing the cleft fence a delivery of MORE fencing supplies arrived - these were the square posts and rails to fence around the curve of the track which leads to our neighbour's farm. The rain was threatening - I thought 'Oh, I'll just knock a few posts in before the weather breaks'. Posts finished and no rain - 'Better stick a few rails up to give an idea of the finished fence' - and still no rain! Still, great to have the job mostly done - even if it means racing through at quite a pace. My back is certainly feeling it now - I'm self medicating with Sloe Gin...<br />
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This is the cleft fence which I started yesterday. The posts are a bit 'rustic' and not quite straight, but the mortise and tenon joints are incredibly strong and don't allow the posts to sit quite straight. As the sweet chestnut rails dry out they will shrink slightly, allowing the posts to be pulled upright.<br />
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A view of the curved post and rail around the corner of the track. It definitely gives a great feeling of ownership and enclosure - even though the track is within our boundary, it felt quite 'public' without the fence. The bottom rail will be added as soon as I've strung the stock fencing.</div>
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Tomorrow's jobs are stock fencing on the square post and rail, hanging the two gates and adding the second rail - and that'll be the job finished!<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881489819698643364noreply@blogger.com2