Graven Hill build, 7 weeks of brick laying update

[DarrenA]

This follows on from my previous update https://forum.buildhub.org.uk/topic/12101-graven-hill-build-2-month-update

 

I've reset the clock on this. Our actual time line is that we exchanged on the plot in May, the foundations were finished in August and we completed and got access to the plot at the beginning of September. However our bricklayer was on another job so we just set up the site and made a garden for 6 weeks. Our bricklayer started mid September and has been on site for 7 weeks. 

 

It's going very well and we are shocked at the speed of progress. The bricklayer works alone although we have done a lot of labouring for him. The ground floor is complete, we did the joists and floors and the second storey is half done. The most stressful day was when we had to hire a crane. The hire company had a 3 hour option (£700+vat) and it was a worrying time getting everything done. This was for putting up the steels for the balcony and others bits at first floor level. In fact, we finished comfortably in time so also used the crane to lift the 8m joists into place and spent the final 20 minutes drinking tea. 

The weather has been awkward and I strongly recommend building your brick and block house at a different time of year. At the moment even though it's just about light at 7.30am, it's normally too cold to mix the mortar. So the actual bricklaying window is only around 6 hours a day. Also our white bricks are marking really easily so we only lay bricks in the dry. The blocks aren't so bad and although it's been cold and dark, we've been lucky with the rain. So overall, we've only lost 2 days so far due to weather and never run out of things to do. 

 

We've had 2 lifts of scaffolding with 3 to go. My £70 silverline hoist is doing very well so far lifting lintels and mortar. Our scaffold height is now at the limits of the hiab cranes on delivery trucks so after the next lift we will have a new problem getting the bricks and blocks where we need them. 

 

Next steps are thinking about what flat roofing system to use and preparing for the second crane hire to bring in the rest of the steels. 

 

So far so good, we've enjoyed every second. 

I've attached some progress pictures and also a picture of our neighbours all at different states of completion. It should be a very interesting street when we're all finished. 

Edited December 8, 2019 by DarrenA

[epsilonGreedy]

My house will have a similar grey footing and then buff bricks above the dpc. Have you tried to obtain any specific mortar colour for your build (particularly the buff bricks)?

 

Re. Adverse weather... I have followed a build next door to my plot through the summer and they lost a few days due to high heat. Even a scaffolding lift was called off because of the heat one day. 

[epsilonGreedy]

Peel Clean Xtra... I did not know such a product existed. Did you select this first floor boarding because of your winter build timing?

 

https://www.egger.com/shop/en_GB/building/product-detail/PEELCLEANXTRA

[willbish]

29 minutes ago, epsilonGreedy said:

Peel Clean Xtra... I did not know such a product existed. Did you select this first floor boarding because of your winter build timing?

It is much the same as CaberDek, just a different brand. It useful in any season, especially if you've got wet trades around with muck splatter everywhere.

 

The alternative is to lay a temporary deck until in the dry, which is what I've chosen to do as I didnt think I would be finished before the chipboard had started to deteriorate (timescale on this up for debate but definitely longer than the guaranteed 42 days) and I also had a cheap source of used OSB sheets.

 

 

[DarrenA]

1 hour ago, epsilonGreedy said:

Peel Clean Xtra... I did not know such a product existed. Did you select this first floor boarding because of your winter build timing?

 

 

This was supplied by the joist manufacturer as part of the first floor joists package. We didn't choose it but were aware we'd need something to survive the weather so were happy to go with it.

 

We had a nightmare unloading though (no hiab on their lorry) so have specified joists only for the remaining 2 storeys and are sourcing the boards from the builders merchant instead. They don't stock Egger so we're switching to the Caberdek equivalent. Interestingly the joist manufacturer think Egger are far superior to Caber. But we don't have a choice. The only obvious difference is that the Egger product doesn't need tape sealing so is quicker to install. 

[DarrenA]

1 hour ago, epsilonGreedy said:

My house will have a similar grey footing and then buff bricks above the dpc. Have you tried to obtain any specific mortar colour for your build (particularly the buff bricks)?

 

 

We put a lot of thought into the best way of getting light mortar. In the end though, we followed advice from this site and sourced the lightest local sand we could find and mixed with regular cement and lime. It's hard to tell in these wet conditions but it dries to a very acceptable colour. 

https://forum.buildhub.org.uk/topic/11082-white-mortar-any-ideas-please/