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Contemporary build in north Dorset

A blog by Benpointer in General

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About this blog

Contemporary build in north Dorset

Entries in this blog

General

Bonus edition - Garden landscaping

Back by popular demand! (Well, one person asked.)   I said the previous blog was my last.  I lied.  This bonus edition focuses our efforts to landscape the garden.   Just before we moved in in February the rear ‘garden’ looked a bit like this:     Fortunately, we’d stayed close enough to the build budget to have some funds still reserved for landscaping.  It turns out that landscaping is expensive - similar costs to groundworks in our experience.  
General

Week 40 - We’ve moved in!

Yes, we moved into our new house on Monday last week, pretty much 9 months to the day since we broke ground and 15 months after we purchased the plot.   We know we’ve been very lucky with our build.  The weather has generally been in our favour and we had no supply issues or delays.  Above all, we’ve had some excellent people working for us without whom we could not have achieved the build.  There are too many stars to mention here but if you look through the blog you will see them all
General

Week 38 - Nearly there!

I’ve got to be honest, there are times when it feels like we are inching towards the finish line ever more slowly, with lots of jobs nearly but not quite done.   Pulling together this regular blog is really helpful in that respect: Every fortnight I start off thinking there is hardly anything to say so it’s probably not worth issuing an update. But once I start to look at what’s happening since the previous blog I realise that we have generally made good progress.   And indee
General

Week 36 - Progress, issues, and a minor disaster

Week 36   When I posted the previous blog two weeks ago we were looking ahead to activity on the bathrooms and electrics, and also to making a start on the landscaping.  Since then it’s been a fortnight of progress and challenges…    Bathrooms My brother Chris made brilliant progress throughout the week he was with us.  A toilet, basin and shower screen were fitted to finish the guest ensuite, a basin and shower screen fitted in the family bathroom to finish that room, a
General

Week 34 - Kitchen, doors, and more...

Hi everyone.  It’s been four weeks since the last blog instalment and despite the Christmas and New Year break, quite a lot has happened. Apologies for a somewhat scattergun approach but I wanted to try to cover all the progress.   Kitchen units and appliances Last time, just before Christmas, carpenter Chris was halfway through fitting our kitchen units. That work was completed during the first week of January in readiness for…   Kitchen worktops Martin from L
General

Week 30 - Cladding, kitchen, electrics

We are now in that phase where we can see the finish line not far away but, bizarrely, the closer we get the more there seems to be to do.    The list the jobs that yet need to be done is a bit depressing; reflecting on all we have achieved so far is much more uplifting.  We are certainly in a significantly better position as we approach the end of the year than we expected to be when we started the project.   Work has continued in the run up to Christmas and several trades
General

Week 28 - Floor tiling, bathrooms, cladding, MVHR, electrics…

Yes, there’s a lot going on right now.  It’s been a mixture of challenges and progress this past fortnight.   Floor tiling The original plan was for the floor tiling to be done during the first two weeks of November but the screed not being quite dry enough delayed that.  Contractor sickness and the need for the tilers to try to juggle their other booked work around ours have led to us being about 3 1/2 weeks behind now and still not quite finished (a few tiles still to lay and ab
General

Week 26 - Six months in: decorating, floor tiling.

It’s now six months since we broke ground and it's fair to say we’re very pleased with the progress since we began.  We have of course been very lucky with the contractors we’ve had working on the project, right from the start with the great groundworks team and that’s continued pretty much throughout.  And we’ve largely avoided unexpected surprises and delays.    That was until a couple of weeks ago when we found that our screed was not dry enough to start laying the floor tiles http
General

Week 24 - Juggling with the plan

The plan for the two weeks just gone was to complete the plastering and start the floor tiling.  No issues with the first part, our team of plasterers have done a great job, see below.   The floor tiles arrived more or less on schedule, and the tilers Steve and Kev turned up as planned.  However, when they checked the floor humidity to confirm it was ready to tile, the meter showed it was slightly over the required level.  I am a little unclear of the actual moisture numbers but their
General

Week 22 - The best-laid plans…

A principal role of the project manager is surely to deal with the unexpected - for example, when a key team member is ill and out of action.  But what happens when the project manager is laid-up?   Following an ‘incident’ (all my own fault), I have spent the past week unexpectedly in hospital.  That was definitely not in the plan.  Fortunately I am home again now but largely ‘confined to barracks’ for the next month or so.  At the moment I cannot even visit the plot, although I hope t
General

Week 20 - Stress down, progress up.

Two weeks since the last blog and there’s a lot to cover - but lots of pictures too, so persevere!   The main issues and concerns two weeks ago were 1. how well the airtightness test would go, and 2. keeping ahead of the plasterers.     The good news is: both of those concerns can be consigned to the bin.   Airtightness As previously reported, we had engaged Aerobarrier to test, spray their magic mist, then retest the airtightness of our house.  Prior to their
General

Week 18 - Progress on many fronts

Week 18 - Progress on many fronts   It feels like the build has entered a different phase now that the structure is fundamentally in place and watertight so I am going to drop to fortnightly blogging, hopefully with enough progress to ensure there something to cover in each blog:   Since the last blog (week 16) we’ve been busy on a number of fronts, a lot of which is geared to being ready for the plasterers who are due to start on 8th October.   First fix electrics
General

Week 16 - Heating, render, electric 1st fix, and... decisions, decisions

Generally a much less stressful week than last week with lots of great progress but all is not perfect - see below.   Heating Last week's drama getting the UFH pipes laid just in time for the screed pour seems like a distant memory but as there had not been time for Ken to fit the manifold and pressure test, he came on site on Sunday evening (roping in his Dad as a helper) to get that done.      Thanks Ken - and Ken's dad!  A neat job completed...  
General

Week 15 - UFH, screed, and render base coat

As promised, I spared you a Week 14 blog due to our visit to Yorkshire for a wedding and catch-up with old friends.  It was lovely to do something unrelated to the house and it made us realise how all-consuming our build has become.  We will definitely try to have some more non-house time through the rest of the build.   That said, it’s back to the matter in hand:   UFH Two weeks ago the guys were battling through laying the floor insulation in preparation for laying the
General

Week 13 - Floor insulation, electricity, battens, and… scaffold down!

Floor The main focus this week has been laying the DPM + 220mm PIR floor insulation + 50mm upstand insulation round all the walls, then the UFH perimeter expansion strips and the vapour separation layer ready for the UFH pipes.   It’s proved intricate work.  Ken our first fix plumber assisted by local builders Barry and Jordan together have been working hard to complete the task by the end of August so that the liquid screed can go down during the first week in September.  
General

Week 12 - Windows, doors, battens, roof, …and more insulation.

Very busy again this week - we were probably running at the maximum people we can have on site without contractors getting in each other’s way.  On Thursday we had the carpenters, the insulation team, a roofer and the window installation team on site, and it’s not a very big site.     Windows and doors The main highlight of the week was the arrival of the windows and external doors on Thursday together with a team of four (from Ukraine, though the windows were made in Estonia).  T
General

Week 11 - Solar PV panels.

A quieter week this week but good progress nonetheless.   The main build focus this week has been on the south-facing single pitch roof which is to be covered using in-roof solar panels with slates around the boundary, then zinc facias to match the rest of the roof.   It seems the zinc roof guys don’t do slate roofs and the slate roofers don’t do zinc, so two roofing teams required.  Fortunately, both teams have been excellent: professional, tidy, friendly and turning up when
General

Week 10 - Membranes, cellulose, zinc roof.

A longer than usual blog - we’ve had a lot going on this week.    We definitely reached site capacity with five vans and seven contractors on-site on Thursday and Friday.   Seven pallets of cellulose bales arriving mid-week didn’t help space management either.     The whole week got fairly stressful but somehow we seem to have got through it.  Phew!   Membranes The plan was for the team from SW Insulation to fit the VCL membrane to the vaulted ceilin
General

Week 9 - Zinc roof.

As mentioned last week, the zinc roofers asked if they could start a week early(!) and so, on Monday morning along they came - Brian and Tom from Wessex Metal Roofing in Salisbury.  The first couple of days were mainly rolling out long zinc profile sections from the back of their van, then these proceeded to be fixed on to the 18mm ply sheeting that Alan the Chippie had laid the previous week.     Three triple-glazed electric Veluxes arrived from the builders’ merchants (I f
General

Week 8 - And pause... or not.

Last week our timber frame structure shot up.  This week was supposed to be the second week of a two-week frame installation but the team finished on Tuesday, having worked through the weekend.  And off they went, but not before I persuaded them to stand still for 30 seconds for a snap for posterity.  So here they are: Brandon, Jake and Callum - Great work guys!     Their early finish allowed our chippie Alan to press on with the 18mm ply required over the roof for the zinc
General

Week 7 - We have a house!

…well, the shell of a house at least.   What a crazy week.   We chose the factory-built timber frame route because we like the idea that the shell goes up within a few weeks.  But the pace of progress this week has been startling.   The frame erection team of 3 arrived at 7:30am on Monday. A big yellow crane arrived at 8:00, with the frame arriving on an artic by 9:15.  First off: a careful check shows that the frame fits the footings. Hurray!  In fact the footings were withi
General

Week 6 - Scaffolding - and budgeting.

A relatively quiet week this week - the lull before the storm (hopefully not literally!)     The scaffolders arrived to put up a single-lift all around the exterior on Thursday and Friday (and Saturday morning as it turned out).  I say single-lift but there were due to be a couple of hop-ups for the gables on the south-facing roof.  However, at one end the gable is over a canopy roof which means the first lift is 2m away from where the gable will be.  We've left that one off for now -
General

Week 5 - Block and beam floor.

We’ve had another very good week of progress by the groundworks team and they are pretty much done now bar some further levelling of the paddock area and one or two other minor details.  We are really pleased with their work and the Building Inspector is pleased too, thankfully, so our foundations are all signed-off 👍.   Bizarrely, it’s only now that we can submit the “Commencement Statement” for our construction to Building Control, which I duly did this week.  Also bizarrely, we are
General

Week 4 - Out of the ground, just.

Great progress by the groundworks team in sweltering conditions this week - laying concrete blocks in the sun when it’s 30deg C and 80% humidity can’t be any fun at all.     Despite the heat, by the end of the week our foundation walls are in and ready for the block and beam floor this coming week.  We can really see the house take shape now, although quite a few of the foundation walls are just there to support floor beams and won’t appear as internal walls above the floor.
General

Week 3 - Drains and other hidden things

The groundworks team have been putting in the Sewage Treatment Plant and drains this week.  We’ve chosen the Klargester Biotec+ 2 STP and that arrived on schedule from Tanks Direct on Tuesday.    Also this week the concrete pads were dug and poured for five oak posts that will support overhanging roof canopies - the Building Inspector asked us to put in 1m x 1m x 1m pads which seems excessive for 150mm x 150mm oak posts taking point loads of 5-10kN but it was that or pay the SE for (p

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