ToughButterCup

Good idea @PeterW. I'll do that rather than spend more money on Acrows. Standing in the shower, rinsing the concrete dust out of my hair, I had a flash of inspiration . I could easily have made up the gable end on a flat bit of ground by my workshop - prefabbed it in other words. And then lift it into place with the digger. Hey, wait a minnit, there's nowt to stop me trying that out tomorrow is there? Just take it all down, reassemble it on a piece of board, shutter it, pour it, and replace it..... I love it when a plan comes together.

Progress thus far: trimming the gable - a bit fiddly Durisol is hard to mark with a pencil: it's too rough for a carpenter's pencil. I found that a normal white-board marker works best and working on your own, cutting blocks you need one of those Jaws Thingies After a bit (morning) this was the result And looking at it, my heart sank. There's more than the hint of a droop in the middle of the span. I'm not fussed about it, but I am sure that I will spend the rest of my life noticing, and then wincing at it. Tooth sucking....... resulted in this From three spots in the span, this....Hmm, don't believe it. Liar, liar pants on fire. My eyes tell me to do something about it. Bearing in mind the blocks are currently empty, and will soon be filled with concrete, it's only going to get worse. Here's where the concrete goes..... We'll be putting a bit of rebar in there in line with the Technical Guidance from Durisol And this is where are up to just before lunch. Theres a bit of 3 by 3 propping up the span and a couple of battens making sure that the blocks stay where they are. What have I learned so far? Cutting individual blocks is fiddly and, on your own, quite difficult. There are two gables, so tomorrow, or whenever, on the other gable, I'm going to bolt the blocks together (with battens front and back), and make a simple wooden guide set at the correct angle for the gable. And then use a chainsaw to cut the whole lot in one go. Might just ask Debbie to standby when I do that. Durisol dust gets in yer eyes. Always use eye protection. If you get a cut from a Durisol block it takes ages to heal. The cement gets in your skin. It's just an irritant, not serious. What's next? Shuttering such that the concrete (I'll be making) doesn't leak out of the blocks too much. That means the odd bit of foam, and judicious use of shuttering where the gaps are too big. What's too big? I'll show you in a post later in this thread.

No. I intend to knock something up in Sketchup and put it in this thread for review.

Pheeeeewwww, thanks for tell me (us)! How do you test for RH in Concrete?

Things have slowed down a bit for various reasons too boring to relate. So, I've decided to finish the Piggery myself, and let the main builder finish the house (when he decides to come back on site). In @Construction Channel's words, "How hard can it be?" The main aim is to rebuild the piggery to look (outwardly) exactly the same as it looked before, but to turn it into a useful storage and utility space. This is what the piggery used to look like but now it looks like this Just in case anyone thinks that a forum Admin is an expert, let's be clear, I haven't built anything in my life before. (Failed Woodwork at school, got thrown out of Metalwork too). But I did spend years watching my dad build bridges. (M5, M50) There are a series of challenges here Design and build the roof Make the connections for water and sparks Clad it Build and fit the doors Connect the Piggery to the house (water and sparks) Fit it out: washing machine, storage racking, sink I have never done any of this before. So, I'd be glad of your help. I'll try and keep a detailed record of what I plan to do and then compare it with what really happens. I would not have considered doing this without the experience of the generosity of BuildHub. The aim of this post is to give something back, especially to all those who do not post, to those who worry that by posting, they will be making a fool of themselves , or who are maybe a bit shy about 'getting-it-wrong'. For me and many others that's normal. Starting on the roof today. Sorting out the gables.

A partnership has three bits: the individuals and the interaction between (in this case) both. The trick is being with someone who values what you have to offer. And when that works well both ways, you end up thinking more about your partner than yourself. I'm very lucky indeed.

Our supply will come into our site via an outbuilding (an old piggery) which happens to be at the roadside. The water meter will be set into the piggery wall facing the road so that yer waterman can read it easily.

Listen. Hard.

Oh Christ. No. He's going to start making one for himself. Please tell me I'm wrong. Please

We're trying to hide our toaster. Why? Not much work surface. And clutter annoys me (us). Has anyone found a way to hide a toaster? I think we can sort out our microwave, oven, dishwasher, coffee maker, easily enough, but has anyone found a way to 'disappear' a toaster in a way which allows everyone to use it easily? Of course we can just stick it in a cupboard: but how do you deal efficiently with the inevitable smoke, crumbs and usability issues?

Have you read this? Ian

Hi @Russell griffiths, have a careful read of the ecology report AND the LPA response. That should provide an evidence-based rationale for a proper plan. Beasties may wriggle, croak, fly or fart, but the consequences of disregarding them are - potentially - serious. That said, there is a general easing of the regulations. It is certainly the case for GCNs. I have never encountered an academic discipline quite as open to local interpretation as ecology. But it still needs to be taken seriously in terms of the paper work. On the ground....

Take the above as advised with a cup of coffee. It accelerates the analgesic effect.

Ermm, for the record , before BH runs out of disk space, this thread started on May 31, 2016. Just sayin..... Perhaps we should consider having a whip round for MrsOnOff?

Remarkably well-spoken too: when he was alive.

Well, @Ferdinand, I'm not going to bother to tune ours. I remember too well the noise my heels made as I tripped, and then slipped down a shiney polished staircase. And I bit my tongue hard at the same time. Luckily I was young when that happened. Eyes water at the memory

Nahhhhhh, @Onoff . Go on, start building one! We'll all watch and learn from you. Honest

Talking to one of our BH members a few months ago.... he acknowledged the role of good, local, informed advice. And had stories to tell of the opposite.

It's a nightmare to travel through. If you have to. It used to be OK out of season, but now the season stretches through the whole year. Good thing? Not sure. I know nothing about the practical implications of Heritage Sites. Living just outside the margin is probably a good thing, though. Ian

But @Onoff, how much did the process of making the CAd drawing teach you about the object.... a good deal, I suspect. And in doing so you shortened the the time it takes anyone to build to your instructions - reduced the number of on site panic-ridden questions, reduced frustration, and got more value out of the people working with you.

Before I forget: the process of learning any new software package is almost always aided by having two monitors: one for the package and the other an instruction resource (YT, helpsheet, keyboard shortcut list, demonstration)

The benefit I get (apart for the process of learning, on which I am firmly hooked) is the way that designing something makes me pay great attention to detail. The process of briefing someone to do the job for you is fraught with pitfalls : and that's why -at many levels- people say 'sod it I'll do it myself'. But I must admit to being hooked on learning software packages. Sunday mornings ; I try to find an hour to teach myself some new aspect of (at the moment) Sketchup.

I wondered about Stucco in the American context and did a bit of research before replying above. You are right @Ferdinand I should not have suggested avoiding stucco: instead I should have focussed on the contractor. Here's flavour of the research I did; An American law firm educating prospective clients One can find many discussions like this (too many others to reference) Here's a video itemising common problems with stucco Maybe the Italian houses in which I stayed were all poorly maintained. And finally I read the Guardian too much. @Russell griffiths, thanks for starting this thread. @Ferdinand, Ms Orr is off my Christmas card list

Hmm, I think there's enough evidence in the film to conclude: don't use stucco, and make sure the windows are aluminium clad, especially if they are facing the prevailing wind. I suspect the prevailing temperature range will have something to do with it: I bet that house faces south.

No. Sorry, but there isn't. Ian