Radiators arrived for the Dairy and therefore Brian set too installing these upstairs (I am so pleased that we did not opt for a cheap radiator package as the Myson Décor that we have chosen look just right). I have never before had the exciting opportunity in deciding the style of valves most suited the radiators- I do know how to live life to the full ! The wonderful world of radiator valves produced chrome TRV’s which (although not the cheapest) did actually add to the look!!!

January 2008

Happy New Year!!!!

We had a lovely family Christmas at my Mum & Dad’s but this time of year is certainly not very project friendly, as the whole building trade shuts down for a fortnight.  Andrew had Christmas Day off but worked from Boxing Day onwards, which was rather lonely for him onsite.   He desperately needed to install the wet room shower trays, waterproof membranes & electric under floor heating for the Dairy Master En-suite, ready for the tiler arriving in the New Year.  Bless our electrician Alistair as he offered to help Andrew on the Sunday, which meant Andrew hit his deadline ready for the New Year. As well as the wet room installation, Andrew also concentrated on building cabinetry to house the Master en-suite toilet cistern, piping, and toilet brush (?? apparently).  It is quite amazing to see how Andrew built the cabinetry (which was extremely heavy) on the 1st floor of the Barn (where all his machinery was), lower it down the ladder on his shoulder by himself, hike it across the courtyard, into the Dairy, and then somehow hoist it up the ladder to the 1st floor. Andrew is certainly somewhat determined!!!! (particularly as he had to do this trip several times to get the cabinetry just right)

The New Year meant that the tiler began laying the wonderful Italian porcelain tiles (I am very excited about these) in the Dairy Master ensuite, whilst Andrew and Dean the Builder could start the stud work in the Barn.  After my brilliant attempt of biscuit jointing millions of planks of wood together ( I don’t think I am a natural joiner!) to enable Andrew & Dean to cut out the wood for their curvy walls, the Ist floor Barn rooms are starting to take place.  Andrew had the excellent idea of taking advantage of the full height of the Barn from the Ground floor ( and vice versa from the first floor landing) by introducing the curvy walls both downstairs and upstairs.  This therefore opens up the landing area, which will look absolutely stunning and completely give justice to the very essence of the building.  After only a few days into the New Year, the first bedroom had been studded out and what a piece of excellent joinery!  If you look at it from an arty farty point of view, it is also a wonderful piece of art ( pictured above).  Every room of the 1st floor barn will be exposed up to the purlins which will be stunning to say the least!

Charlie the Plasterer is back in earnest in the Dairy which will keep him busy for a number of weeks, as we have earmarked him to screed the ground floor as well.

The second week into January, Charlie has been plastering the Dairy lounge, downstairs bedrooms, and main bathroom whilst the tiler has concentrated on completing the Master ensuite.  As we were becoming desperate to decorate the kitchen & utility walls and ceiling prior to screeding the floor, Andrew and I decided to ‘set too’ and have a few late nights putting several coats of paint on.  As the Dairy kitchen ceiling is exposed to the purlins and therefore VERY high up, I had to quickly overcome my fear of heights going up and down a scaffolding tower several times ( I can honestly say I wasn’t at my most graceful!!).  Once the kitchen was decorated then it was time for Charlie to do his magic and screed the floor.  We called on the services of Easimix to provide the ready mixed screed (thankfully they were prepared to reverse into the muddy courtyard to dump the screed as close as possible to the Dairy) and Charlie spent the whole Friday on his knees with Dean and Andrew barrowing it in.

I think the combination of the late nights, rotten weather and living in the smelly caravan took its toll on Andrew as the Friday evening he finally admitted that he needed to see a Doctor which resulted him having being diagnosed with border line pneumonia.  Not good timing as the following week was the worst possible week to be poorly, as the trenches were being dug in the courtyard and shared driveway, ready for the utility ducting to be installed for the gas, electric and water.

The Monday morning of the digger arriving to dig the trenches could not have been more miserable as it was bitterly cold and very very wet!! The driver arrived in his JCB willing and able with Dean the builder overseeing the digging and also getting down in the trenches himself to help by hand.  Even the JCB found the ground works hard going, due to the ironstone causing   a problem .  In no time though the courtyard started to look like something out of a 1^st World War Movie (it’s a wonder Dean didn’t get trench foot, the amount of time he spent down in the mud!!) having dug a large soak away for the rainfall off the surrounding roofs) and the utility trenches to each of the properties.

By day three the digger progressed to the driveway, which meant that we had to be vary aware of the neighbours electricity and gas mains.   Treading carefully and not digging too deep as we were conscious of gas mains we unfortunately came across the mains electricity cable instead ( in our defence the cable was not in ducting or very low underground).  This resulted in our neighbours being without electricity for several hours until the Emergency team from YEDL came and fixed the problem at 10.30 at night – it was a good job our neighbours were understanding!!!

The driveway took less time to dig as the ground was a lot softer, so by Thursday the utility ducting was laid and Friday the trenches were backed filled in with pea gravel and soil (and of course using tile tape to indicate where the electricity and gas is in the ground).

Once the groundworks were completed then Dean the Builder ensured that the electricity and gas meter boxes were installed into the three properties.  For the Dovecote, the utilities will run to the arched entrance that will be reinstated, therefore Dean built & damproofed coursed a small wall to house these.  Whilst we still had the services of the JCB it was decided to dig out the footings for the reinstated arches of the Dovecote ready for the foundation concrete to be poured. 

The project has moved pretty well during the month of January (mainly thanks to Dean the builder) but we have also had a lot of the other trades onsite such as the electrician concentrating on the Barn, the plumber flitting from the Barn to the Dairy to ensure that the project isn’t held up by his side of things, the Tiler moved onto the Main bathroom of the Dairy once the Master Ensuite was completed, and Charlie the Plasterer concentrated on finishing the Downstair bedrooms and study aswell as screeding them. We were also lucky in having our joiner mate Iain to join us (excuse the pun) to help with making wardrobes, hanging internal doors of the Dairy and finishing Andrew’s curvy stud wall in the Barn.

The real challenge in January has been financial, as we have had to pay for Kitchens/Bathrooms for the Dairy and Barn in advance as well as the utilities for the three properties.  The very nature of the loan we have is that the building society releases the money once the value of the properties have increased.  The problem with all three utility companies ie gas, electric and water is that they demand payment prior to even considering organising a date to install the services which can be six weeks++++.  The most infuriating utility has been water.  I initially sent off the application form in October and we have still not a date to install the water.  Anglian Water’s procedures are so complicated and wrapped up in bureaucracy that it’s a wonder that the North of England have any water at all.  Through ringing them practically daily I think I am starting to understand the procedure which I will write down before I forget (BEWARE: this is not interesting reading)

ACTION

1. Complete application form and return to Anglican Water ( NB sent November October
2. Six weeks later they send a letter saying that they want proof of our Listed building status for the development ( I still didn’t know why they needed this)
3. This is sent by return.
4. Four weeks later prior to Christmas I chased Anglian Water and apparently they were waiting for their listed building department respond to my letter. Finally they accepted my letter(?????) and a surveyor came out to survey the installation.
5. Although the surveyor promised he would send the report to Anglian Water on his return to the office it took 3 weeks to receive a quote for the water installation.  I tried to hurry up this process by trying to pay over the phone prior to receiving the quote in letter form so I could arrange all the other processes more efficiency.
6. Apparently prior to booking a Chlorination company to clean the water pipes (as the driveway from the main road is 80 M long), we had to have a Byelaws officer inspect the water mains ducting which we laid 750mm down into the utility trenches.  The problem was that I couldn’t make an appointment for this officer to visit (to co ordinate this with digging out the trenches) therefore we had to back fill in the ducting and leave inspection points along the length of the ducting. Once the inspection was completed, the job finally moved to the installation stage BUT, prior to that, we have had to wait another 2 weeks (apparently that is their service level agreement to contact us) for the contractors (who ever they are) to install a temporary water supply. 
7. Upon receiving the temporary supply this  then will enable me to organise the Chlorination Company to clean the water pipes (apparently I cannot pre book this ).
8. Once the Chlorination Company has sent off the water sample reports to Anglian Water Supply for them to analyse it is then we can have a date to install the WATER-   I DO NOT KNOW WHAT ANGLIAN WATER SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT IS FOR MY INSTALLATION DATE IS BUT QUITE FRANKLY, THE £4600 THAT I PAID IN ADVANCE WILL BE BY THEN HAVE GAINED £1MILLION INTEREST !!

FEBRUARY 2008

Things are really getting exciting!!! The first Monday in the month and the guys to install the electricity had arrived.  This was a bit of an anticlimax as they arrived at 9ish in the morning, left just after lunch and seemed to of only dug a tiny little trench (no wonder it takes 3 days to install with working commitments like these!!)  I also spoke to the mysterious Anglian Water and I now have a date to install the temporary water supply for the chlorination company, so things are moving (slowly).

It will be a happening week as Steve the kitchen fitter is tiling the Dairy kitchen floor with our lovely large Italian Porcelian tiles, (which are blooming heavy to carry) ready for the kitchen arriving on the 7^th February.  Meanwhile the last room in the Dairy to be screeded will be done by Charlie on the Thursday, which in turn will mean that we can start on the decoration, 2^nd fix electrics & plumbing and joinery!!!  That bit closer to completion! 

Dean the builder has been playing mini diggers in the Dairy garden, by digging the footings for the concrete foundations for the walled garden. Bless him, he has already ended up in the soakaway unexpectedly last week, as the digger gently skidded backwards in the rain, down a deep hole!!!!!!

The 2^nd week into February not only brought us a brand new kitchen fitted to perfection and looking gorgeous, a tiled main and ensuite bathroom,  but also the gas mains supply.  Two utilities down with one more to go (WATER!!!). With chlorination complete, we only (sarcastically) had to wait another 14 days for the water board to give us water!!!!!!!!!!!!

On February 25^th we were finally connected to our water mains, unfortunately this was timed nicely with our plumber working on another job which in turn has meant that the Dairy has not been able to have its final pressure test before connecting to the Central Heating system.

This same week whilst the next door neighbours were away (as not to inconvenience them too much) they gave us permission to gain access around the back of the Barns & Dovecote to level, tidy and dig footings for foundations for the garden wall and cabins.  A very busy week for ground works as in the courtyard the sewerage engineers have been busy installing the man holes and sewerage piping for the Dairy, Barn and Dovecote.

In addition to the groundworks, Dean the builder has been concentrating on building a brickwall for the Dairy secret walled garden, Charly (after a health scare last week) has been back in ernest plastering the Barn 1^st floor rooms, Alistair the Electrician has started 2^nd fix electrics on the Dairy, Ian the Joiner has been completing 2^nd fix joinery on the Dairy (ie internal doors with fittings)

 March

Exciting times as Discovery Channel have contacted us to follow our trials and tribulations of the Thealby Grange build.  Apparantely the programme will be a cross between Grand Designs and Property Ladder and is due to be aired at the end of the year under the title "Wrecks to Riches" (I wish we were!!!).  The first day of filming involved two property presenters who were very down to earth and also complimentary of the development which gave the whole team a real boost.  The second day was filming us all in action which meant the Dovecote mangers were demolished at a great rate of knots and the first floor (lath & plaster) was brought down along with (you guess it) more pigeon poo!!!!   In the two days we had gutted internally in the Dovecote.

March also finally brought us a lovely kitchen for the Barn although after several attempts we recieved the kitchen which we had paid for. The first delivery of our kitchen was flat packed carcasses which we immediately sent back.  The second delivery brought us rigid carcasses and the rest of the kitchen minus the utility cabinet doors.  The third delivery brought us the utility doors but two of them were warped...the story goes on.  On a plus side the units look lovely.  We went for a totally different theme to the Barn (as with everything we have designed for the Dairy and the Barn) as they warrant totally different ideas as they are both very unique properties.

After installing the kitchen (our kitchen fitter/tiler doing a brilliant job as usual) Stephen started on the mammoth challenge of tiling the Master Ensuite!!!  The upper floor of the Barn does hardly have a straight wall insight (this has been designed this way!!) which meant poor Stephen had to tile a curvy wall from floor to roof height in preparation for the biggest showere head in Thealby!!!!  After suffering from vertigo ontop of the scaffolding tower Stephen did manage to make this room totally unique and gorgeous!!!.

May

At last the lighter nights are upon us and also the better weather (or so we are convincing ourselves).  Things are going relatively slowly as we are watching very closely our budget.

The underfloor heating in the Barn ground floor was laid without any problems although Andrew looked like Ray Mears wrestling with a giant python whilst laying down the plastic piping.  Once in psoition the lumber pressure tested the sustem prior to the screed being laid.  An excellent job of screeding the groundfloor by our plastering team.  They also tackled the downstairs wall plastering within days which meant the Barn was fully plastered internally ready for 2nd fix plumbing, electricity and decoration.

After completing the tiling challenge of Barn ensuite, Steve then continued onto the Family Bathroom of the Barn. As we never make anything easy for him, we had chosen to curved whirl pool bath which meant tiling was difficult around this.  Instead Steve did his magic of introducing a relatively new product "Corian" which is a seamless high quality product which can be moulded into shape to snugly fit around the bathroom.  This looks totally stunning and fits in well with the high quality tiles of the bathroom.

Dean the builder started work on the Dovecote extension (the 6 arched stable block that collasped 30 years ago).  Within days the reinforced pillars were built, arched steel lintels in situ ready for wall plates and roof trusses.

From start to finish, 3 weeks this extension went from a concrete slab to a beautiful 6 arched reinstated stable block, fully insulated, trusses in place, felt, battened and tiled.

What a difference this has made to the look of the courtyard.