Yet Another House Renovation Thread

[mattdaniels]

Chicken Lesson number 1 learned: when they lay their first egg, don't put it back in the house trying to get a commemorative photo. They will eat the egg. Ooops.

[mattdaniels]

TonyHetherington said:

The laying of an egg is an excellent sign, isn't it? Means they're happy and comfortable?

No idea TBH. They are the OH's chickens, I just humour them.

We've had three eggs out of them since we got them on Saturday.

There is a bit of a gang war breaking out, three are picking on one. Apparently if it's "schoolgirl hair pulling" it's ok, but if they draw blood we have to separate them.

The OH muttered something about vinegar and anti peck stuff which she is going to sort out when she comes home from work.

I just want to get on with some wiring

(where "wiring" = put cctv in the chicken house - which is a job which seems to have appeared on the whiteboard)

[mattdaniels]

VEX said:

That it, tell the OH I am not working with someone who wants to but CCTV in their chicken house.

Too late



All together now: "...you play the guitar on the Hen TV....Matt ain't working, he's got time to rig it...get your chicken-cam for nothing and your eggs for free"

I think I need a lie down.

[mattdaniels]

[mattdaniels]

We had a yorkshire pud on Sunday made with one egg (which doesn't really count I spose) and the OH had egg on toast for lunch yesterday. We've got another one today so I suppose she will have the same. I guess we need more than one egg to have scrambled eggs though.

[mattdaniels]

Right, we're overdue a non chicken related update, so here it is. I've made a start on installing the ceiling speakers upstairs, starting in the master bedroom (which will eventually become two bedrooms).

Firstly measuring and laying out the speaker templates. Then measuring some more. And a bit more, just for good measure.


I didn't realise what a faff it is to measure and mark in the ceiling. I eventually sorted it, with a combination of swearing at the tape measure as it collapsed over my head for the umpteenth time, marking on the floorboards, plumb lines, a lot of tapping on the plasterboard and a speculative poke through with a screwdriver to ensure I really was going to miss the roof joists.

Eventually, I can put off the inevitable no longer, and I make the first, nervous incisions.


Well, there be the loft. Past the point of no return, no going back now.


Hole cut, just needs a bit of rounding off with some medium sandpaper.


Speaker offered up and screwed in to place. Fits like a glove! Now need to get the other one installed.


Second speaker in, and wires routed up from the comms cupboard in to the loft. Insulation cleared, and speakers wired up.



Temporary amp in comms cupboard for some testing.


Covers on, job done.


Time for luch then start on the next ones.

[mattdaniels]

TonyHetherington said:

Like the speakers!

Thanks. They are Monitor Audio 100 and 200 series as recommended / supplied by VEX. I'm fitting pairs of the T1s in the bedrooms, roughly above where the bottom half of the beds will be, and a single T2 unit (which has a pair of speakers in one housing) in the bathroom. Downstairs I'll put a pair of speakers in the kitchen and dining room ceilings, and the lounge and office will have surround sound (lounge with a soundbar+sub combo, office with a proper 5.1 set up) so no ceiling speakers required there.

TonyHetherington said:

What will you be powering them with - i.e., how will you control what sound is coming out of them, and will it be room by room or will it be coming out of everywhere at the same time? (assuming you have multiple speakers in different rooms I guess?).

I'm planning on using a combination of Sonos Amps and bridges to allow either all speakers to play the same source, or to stream individual rooms with different sources such as my music library, what's on the TV, streaming internet radio etc.

I'd like to have a play with a Nexus 7 tablet at some point, as this integrates directly into the Sonos mesh, and if it does what is claimed on the tin, I'll probably have 2 or 3 dotted around the house for control.

That's the theory anyway. VEX is providing lots of help and advice but I'm trying to do as much as I can myself rather than get him in to do it for me as it's an interesting learning experience.

[mattdaniels]

Thanks, I will add that to the "to do" list

[mattdaniels]

Thanks for the interest chaps. Had to stop working on the house in order to go out and earn some money rather than spend it. We've started working on a couple of rooms, I'll sort an update this week.