Chamonix studio renovation - build thread
Discussion
DoubleSix said:
Great work. I hadn't realised you were just using screws. A proper bolt through the joist (presumably with a dirty big washer) is the way forward for sure.
Looks great, you must be chuffed with the end result!
Here's a close up of the glass bolts, complete with dirty big washers. Looks great, you must be chuffed with the end result!
jinkster said:
Drainage in the ski locker, have you thought about the wet room tanking with gradient again on some cheaper porcelain tiles but standing the skis on a wooden pallete type affair?
This is plan B. I'll definitely use the tanking materials from the wetroom and drop a gradient in there. Ideally I'd like to drop this into the 100mm waste pipe that's close by. The trick will be doing that without losing too much height, otherwise I may struggle to fit decent sized skis in, given the ceiling is so low.jinkster said:
Bio ethanol fire - I was looking at a Morso BEL(bio ethanol), I'm not sure on the size of it but they look very fancy http://www.morsoliving.co.uk/Produktvisning-2188.a... however trying to source one is a bit of a nightmare. I did see a cheaper version in B&Q the other day for around £30!! Maybe could be an option depending on the size.
Apparently the place gets quite parky during winter. There's communal underfloor heating but I'm told it's a bit limp, so I'd like to get a bit of heat from a fireplace. I think 3-4°C is about as much as we can hope for from a bioethanol fire, but I doubt we'd get much at all from those ones. They do look lovely though.jinkster said:
I fitted a wet room about 12 months ago, it's all about getting the tanking right (I used the roofing felt type called homelux rather than paint on) and the gradient. The underfloor heating is ultimate luxury for not an expensive price (tool station). Will toolstation/ screwfix post out to you?
It's taken a while but I'm finding my way around and have managed to source pretty much everything I need now. Tanking kits are available from the local Entrepôt (le B&Q) and the Wedi boards from a slightly better place an hour's drive away. I'll be collecting those supplies on my way back from the airport next week.Day 18
Slight setback with the wiring. We came to wire everything into the consumer unit and learned that the terminal positions aren't standardised on breakers. So that job was put on hold until we were able to get a standardised set of breakers this evening.
Instead, attention turned to knocking together the tall storage units and getting some timber behind them to fix them to the wall. They stand about 140mm from the wall, to clear the conduit and line up flush with the staircase.
After that I went back to removing the old stone fireplace. Got a bit jittery, worried that it was doing support duties for the left timber or the window. There are also very old water pipes inside it for the communal underfloor heating. I paid a visit to the estate agent who reassured me that it can come out entirely, so I trotted back and had at it with the 'big ommer', disc cutter, power chisel and wrecking bar. What's left now is too chunky to budge with the tools I have (not in a hurry anyway) but I have a cunning plan...
This was snapped a bit earlier. The right hand side is gone now but the left hand side is mostly solid.
Slight setback with the wiring. We came to wire everything into the consumer unit and learned that the terminal positions aren't standardised on breakers. So that job was put on hold until we were able to get a standardised set of breakers this evening.
Instead, attention turned to knocking together the tall storage units and getting some timber behind them to fix them to the wall. They stand about 140mm from the wall, to clear the conduit and line up flush with the staircase.
After that I went back to removing the old stone fireplace. Got a bit jittery, worried that it was doing support duties for the left timber or the window. There are also very old water pipes inside it for the communal underfloor heating. I paid a visit to the estate agent who reassured me that it can come out entirely, so I trotted back and had at it with the 'big ommer', disc cutter, power chisel and wrecking bar. What's left now is too chunky to budge with the tools I have (not in a hurry anyway) but I have a cunning plan...
This was snapped a bit earlier. The right hand side is gone now but the left hand side is mostly solid.
It's an interesting idea. Getting power to it may be a problem now that the ceiling is plastered. I did realise today that there's no ceiling in the locker yet, so it currently extends right up to the floorboards. That gives another 150mm, which is probably enough to drain it into the 100mm pipe without a pump.
A deep trap is not a bother at all. I've got plenty of room beneath it.
The ski locker in the building is useless anyway. It was built in '68 when skis looked like toothpicks. There's absolutely no chance of getting a snowboard into it and I'd be surprised if most of today's skis would fit either.
The ski locker in the building is useless anyway. It was built in '68 when skis looked like toothpicks. There's absolutely no chance of getting a snowboard into it and I'd be surprised if most of today's skis would fit either.
Day 19
Armed with uniform breakers we got the electrics wired into the consumer unit.
This was followed by much faffing to get the storage units fitted with absolute precision, to ensure the doors line up flush with the under-stair unit and sit right up against the ceiling.
They sit a little forward from the wall to line up sweetly with the stairs, which also leaves lots of room for conduits.
We also cut out the left side of the first unit to give access to thefifth bed under-stair storage.
No updates tomorrow. I'm typing this at the boarding gate waiting for a flight back to Blighty, enjoying watching everyone rush and jostle and queue as early as they can to board a Sleazy flight with allocated seating. Back on Monday morning and kicking the week off with some shopping.
Armed with uniform breakers we got the electrics wired into the consumer unit.
This was followed by much faffing to get the storage units fitted with absolute precision, to ensure the doors line up flush with the under-stair unit and sit right up against the ceiling.
They sit a little forward from the wall to line up sweetly with the stairs, which also leaves lots of room for conduits.
We also cut out the left side of the first unit to give access to the
No updates tomorrow. I'm typing this at the boarding gate waiting for a flight back to Blighty, enjoying watching everyone rush and jostle and queue as early as they can to board a Sleazy flight with allocated seating. Back on Monday morning and kicking the week off with some shopping.
Well that was a busy weekend. Back to Blighty for a wedding and some other social duties. Just managed to make it back to France this morning (all trains to Gatwick inexplicably cancelled).
I got out of GVA quickly enough but wasted lots of time in IKEA getting the extractor unit replaced. The original box didn't have the fittings, plug or instruction booklets. I had it exchanged and checked it in the car park before I set off. Same story. Back to customer service and we discover that the missing items are inside the unit. You have to remove the filter panels to find them. Obviously.
Next stop was Leroy Merlin for the final sockets and switches, plus some tiling and underfloor heating research. I'll probably be getting my tiles there, but not the Mickey Mouse heating on offer.
Point P next, which is a serious trade/customer materials place. Their website shows they stock the materials I need for creating the wet room. The folk behind the counter are beyond useless though. They don't sell it at that particular store and they couldn't be bothered to find out the nearest store that did. Lots of Gallic shrugging. f
k 'em, I'll build it manually instead. [famouslastwords] How hard can it be? [/famouslastwords]
After 12 hours of travelling and shopping I rocked up to the site with just 25 minutes left in the noisy period. I was hoping to get the final bits of channeling done but could only manage a fraction of it before 6pm.
The cunning plan for the final fireplace demolition was to persuade the chaps renovating the nearby restaurant to help me out, as they've got some serious kit and would go through it in no time. Sod's Law dictates that I came up with the idea an hour after they'd finished their project and left. Now it's a decision whether to get someone in (££) or just have at it with the tools I have.
I got out of GVA quickly enough but wasted lots of time in IKEA getting the extractor unit replaced. The original box didn't have the fittings, plug or instruction booklets. I had it exchanged and checked it in the car park before I set off. Same story. Back to customer service and we discover that the missing items are inside the unit. You have to remove the filter panels to find them. Obviously.
Next stop was Leroy Merlin for the final sockets and switches, plus some tiling and underfloor heating research. I'll probably be getting my tiles there, but not the Mickey Mouse heating on offer.
Point P next, which is a serious trade/customer materials place. Their website shows they stock the materials I need for creating the wet room. The folk behind the counter are beyond useless though. They don't sell it at that particular store and they couldn't be bothered to find out the nearest store that did. Lots of Gallic shrugging. f
k 'em, I'll build it manually instead. [famouslastwords] How hard can it be? [/famouslastwords]After 12 hours of travelling and shopping I rocked up to the site with just 25 minutes left in the noisy period. I was hoping to get the final bits of channeling done but could only manage a fraction of it before 6pm.
The cunning plan for the final fireplace demolition was to persuade the chaps renovating the nearby restaurant to help me out, as they've got some serious kit and would go through it in no time. Sod's Law dictates that I came up with the idea an hour after they'd finished their project and left. Now it's a decision whether to get someone in (££) or just have at it with the tools I have.
That bit has taken a lot of effort to figure out. I can probably now add 'building materials and methods' to my vocabulary. Local suppliers have been largely sourced via email (and Google Translate) and the odd awkward phone call. In terms of serious on-site labour there's only been me, my mate Maurice, who speaks passable English (he's from the Black Country), and a joiner I shipped out from Blighty. I was warned off French labour before the job began. Twice/thrice the price and half the speed and quality.
Incidentally, for anybody else following in my footsteps, I can recommend sourcing tricky things from Germany or elsewhere in Europe. The French really don't seem to understand the web. After a frustrating period searching in France I've found that elsewhere in Europe they offer much more detailed information, in multiple languages and multiple countries for delivery, and usually cheaper and much quicker than items sourced in France. They tend to carry more items in stock too. I've ended up sourcing stuff from far and wide:
Switzerland | Kitchen and IKEA stuff
Italy | Lights
Belgium | Lights
Sweden | Cow hide
Germany | Washbasin, taps, toilet
UK | Underfloor heating, glass, stairs, bioethanol burner box, oven, seat foam*
France | Timber, plasterboard and other basic building materials, washing machine and dishwasher
*because I couldn't figure out the exact translation and it was easy to get from Blighty
Switzerland | Kitchen and IKEA stuff
Italy | Lights
Belgium | Lights
Sweden | Cow hide
Germany | Washbasin, taps, toilet
UK | Underfloor heating, glass, stairs, bioethanol burner box, oven, seat foam*
France | Timber, plasterboard and other basic building materials, washing machine and dishwasher
*because I couldn't figure out the exact translation and it was easy to get from Blighty
I've used http://www.reuter-shop.com but I've gone for branded items. Villeroy & Boch washbasin and WC, Hansgrohe taps, Grohe concealed cistern and frame. That should all be good stuff. I've gone for an unknown brand of shower column, which was also quite affordable. None of it has arrived yet so I can't comment on quality or value just yet. It all comes down to price, so I'd certainly have a look at the German sites as you may be surprised at the odd saving, especially if you can get it all from the same place and have a single delivery. If you're going for the very cheap stuff then I think you're probably best to get it from the UK, but the savings are quite substantial buying online, if you know what you want.
Unfortunately I spoke to soon in commending the German company on their service and stock levels. I specifically ordered only items that were ready for immediate despatch but have this morning had an email to say that between ordering and making the payment (which was done at the same time) some of the items have become out of stock and have to be ordered from the manufacturer, which could take up to 10 days. I call porkie pies on that - very disappointing.
Unfortunately I spoke to soon in commending the German company on their service and stock levels. I specifically ordered only items that were ready for immediate despatch but have this morning had an email to say that between ordering and making the payment (which was done at the same time) some of the items have become out of stock and have to be ordered from the manufacturer, which could take up to 10 days. I call porkie pies on that - very disappointing.
Day 20
More kitchen action today. We got the last of the carcasses in place and positioned up all lovely. Most of the doors, drawers and hinges are on and the appliances I have are in. The dishwasher and washing machine should arrive on Wednesday/Thursday but we've tested the space with the doors that'll go over them. Finishing tolerances are very small but it's all coming together and looking all the better for it.
The drawer runners were a bit of a sod to position properly. The IKEA instructions and diagrams are normally very good, but they left something to be desired for a stack of three drawers (rather than one or five), so I had to have three goes at getting the runners on. I may have swore a bit.
The pressure is on to ramp up the pace a bit. The original plan was to be done within six weeks but I suspect this'll run into seven weeks, especially if the bathroom order from Germany is genuinely delayed. The künts.
More kitchen action today. We got the last of the carcasses in place and positioned up all lovely. Most of the doors, drawers and hinges are on and the appliances I have are in. The dishwasher and washing machine should arrive on Wednesday/Thursday but we've tested the space with the doors that'll go over them. Finishing tolerances are very small but it's all coming together and looking all the better for it.
The drawer runners were a bit of a sod to position properly. The IKEA instructions and diagrams are normally very good, but they left something to be desired for a stack of three drawers (rather than one or five), so I had to have three goes at getting the runners on. I may have swore a bit.
The pressure is on to ramp up the pace a bit. The original plan was to be done within six weeks but I suspect this'll run into seven weeks, especially if the bathroom order from Germany is genuinely delayed. The künts.
Day 21
One of the lads renovating a neighbouring apartment has agreed to have a crack at the last bits of the fireplace. €100 sounded a bit steep but I figured it'd have taken me a good half a day or more plus some knackered tools, so I agreed.
He starts off with this beautiful old mechanical jack.
That wasn't cutting it, so out comes the hydraulic jack.
That still wasn't doing much so out come the big guns.
Making it have it. Even with this monster it's taking some serious time. By now I think €100 is a bit of a bargain.
The beast is slain.
One of the lads renovating a neighbouring apartment has agreed to have a crack at the last bits of the fireplace. €100 sounded a bit steep but I figured it'd have taken me a good half a day or more plus some knackered tools, so I agreed.
He starts off with this beautiful old mechanical jack.
That wasn't cutting it, so out comes the hydraulic jack.
That still wasn't doing much so out come the big guns.
Making it have it. Even with this monster it's taking some serious time. By now I think €100 is a bit of a bargain.
The beast is slain.
DS3R said:
This looks fantastic!
How do you have the time to do it though?!? Having said that, I can imagine many PHers employing you to do the same after this!
I'm a self-employed designer so I have some flexibility. As it's part of a co-propriete officially I'm only allowed to carry out works (noisy or otherwise) between 08:30-12:00 and 14:00-18:00. After 18:00 I usually head back to the other place I've rented, freshen up, update PH/Facebook, eat dinner and then get on with my design work until about 23:00-midnight. It's quite a tiring routine but it's only a 6-7 weeks.How do you have the time to do it though?!? Having said that, I can imagine many PHers employing you to do the same after this!
I do enjoy this property development game - especially the design part of it - so I wouldn't be unhappy doing more of it in the future.
Day 21 - Part Deux
This bd pull-out unit took me absolutely ages to get right. Mostly because I mis-measured a fixing on the door front and didn't realise until I'd tried to correct it (elsewhere) a dozen times. Probably too tired today.
The rest of the appliances arrived this afternoon and almost all of the doors are on now. Turns out we're missing one. I reckon I've got this IKEA system down now, just as I finished the final bits of the kitchen.
This b
d pull-out unit took me absolutely ages to get right. Mostly because I mis-measured a fixing on the door front and didn't realise until I'd tried to correct it (elsewhere) a dozen times. Probably too tired today.The rest of the appliances arrived this afternoon and almost all of the doors are on now. Turns out we're missing one. I reckon I've got this IKEA system down now, just as I finished the final bits of the kitchen.
Edited by Gruffy on Thursday 24th October 20:07
Day 22
The boxout for the electrical conduits is now in place including a little door for the consumer unit and master cut-off.
This is the view from just outside the door. The carcass is in place for some shelves to hold four pairs of ski boots, helmets, gloves and so on.
I've done the second pass on the plasterboard ceiling and made a start on some of the conduit channels. The polyfilla is a bit crap going on, but sands really well so I've been quite heavy-handed. [edited to add] This pic shows the area where I'd cut the neighbour's conduit which was sitting just under the surface. The cavity was enormous after I'd repaired it. I'm not being that heavy-handed.
Some of the conduits wanted to bulge out so I've wedged the mischievous parts in place and filled around them. Hopefully once it's set that'll hold them all nicely in place and I can fill in the gaps.
The boxout for the electrical conduits is now in place including a little door for the consumer unit and master cut-off.
This is the view from just outside the door. The carcass is in place for some shelves to hold four pairs of ski boots, helmets, gloves and so on.
I've done the second pass on the plasterboard ceiling and made a start on some of the conduit channels. The polyfilla is a bit crap going on, but sands really well so I've been quite heavy-handed. [edited to add] This pic shows the area where I'd cut the neighbour's conduit which was sitting just under the surface. The cavity was enormous after I'd repaired it. I'm not being that heavy-handed.
Some of the conduits wanted to bulge out so I've wedged the mischievous parts in place and filled around them. Hopefully once it's set that'll hold them all nicely in place and I can fill in the gaps.
Edited by Gruffy on Thursday 24th October 20:10
Edited by Gruffy on Thursday 24th October 20:42
Day 23
Maurice finished the shelves in the entrance area. I've re-sanded half of the ceiling and regretted being so heavy-handed with the polyfilla. Not so bad on the walls but the plasterboard sheets are too delicate to use a power sander and need to be done by hand. It's hard work if there's too much excess.
Got the first of the integrated doors on. That's quite a faff! Nice to get the first handle on though. It's only a small thing but it made such a difference in helping to see the place as a home rather than a building site. Not long now, hopefully.
I'm losing Maurice next week (along with the big SDS drill/chisel) so I wanted to make sure I'd finished all of the channelling so that I can get on with filling and sanding along with making a start on the bathroom. First job was to channel to wall for the shower plumbing. That didn't go so well. The smaller disc cutter gave up the ghost. A bit of testing tells us it's the switch that's died.
No bother, we have its big brother. Only that gave up after just 60 seconds too. It didn't hit anything or appear to have burnt out. The odds are phenomenal but we put it down to coincidence. That just leaves the power chisel. Urgh.
That took much longer than I'd have liked. I'm totally up for never channelling concrete again. I thought London bogies were bad!
Fitted the last of the downstairs lights this afternoon too. Classic cantilevered design from Italy. I didn't want to invade the double-height space with anything too weighty (because that's a canvas for a piece of art) but, at the same time, the light would always steal some attention so I didn't want to ignore that fact and go for something dreary. This feels like a decent compromise, but it did take a lot of searching and visualising. Not the best photo for appreciating the scale and proportions within the space. I'll take another once the walls are finished.
Maurice finished the shelves in the entrance area. I've re-sanded half of the ceiling and regretted being so heavy-handed with the polyfilla. Not so bad on the walls but the plasterboard sheets are too delicate to use a power sander and need to be done by hand. It's hard work if there's too much excess.
Got the first of the integrated doors on. That's quite a faff! Nice to get the first handle on though. It's only a small thing but it made such a difference in helping to see the place as a home rather than a building site. Not long now, hopefully.
I'm losing Maurice next week (along with the big SDS drill/chisel) so I wanted to make sure I'd finished all of the channelling so that I can get on with filling and sanding along with making a start on the bathroom. First job was to channel to wall for the shower plumbing. That didn't go so well. The smaller disc cutter gave up the ghost. A bit of testing tells us it's the switch that's died.
No bother, we have its big brother. Only that gave up after just 60 seconds too. It didn't hit anything or appear to have burnt out. The odds are phenomenal but we put it down to coincidence. That just leaves the power chisel. Urgh.
That took much longer than I'd have liked. I'm totally up for never channelling concrete again. I thought London bogies were bad!
Fitted the last of the downstairs lights this afternoon too. Classic cantilevered design from Italy. I didn't want to invade the double-height space with anything too weighty (because that's a canvas for a piece of art) but, at the same time, the light would always steal some attention so I didn't want to ignore that fact and go for something dreary. This feels like a decent compromise, but it did take a lot of searching and visualising. Not the best photo for appreciating the scale and proportions within the space. I'll take another once the walls are finished.
Deliveries are also improving. The shower unit arrived from Spain, a cowhide from Sweden and the künts have also been in touch to say that the bathroom bits (wash basin, mixer, WC and concealed cistern) are finally on their way. There are two packages waiting to be collected in the morning from Chamonix post office. I suspect that's the underfloor heating supplies for the bathroom and the bioethanol burner box for my DIY fireplace.
Glass becomes a challenge once again. I need to find a 700mm shower screen and a small piece of glass to screen the fireplace, as it will sit uncomfortably close to the sofa to be safe without it.
E36GUY has been advising with bathroom lights. I've got some demanding ideas but I think we have a solution. Sadly that involves more channelling of concrete.
There's a hell of a lot to do in two weeks. I may get some help in next week, even if it's just for the easy (but time-consuming) jobs like filling, sanding and painting.
Glass becomes a challenge once again. I need to find a 700mm shower screen and a small piece of glass to screen the fireplace, as it will sit uncomfortably close to the sofa to be safe without it.
E36GUY has been advising with bathroom lights. I've got some demanding ideas but I think we have a solution. Sadly that involves more channelling of concrete.
There's a hell of a lot to do in two weeks. I may get some help in next week, even if it's just for the easy (but time-consuming) jobs like filling, sanding and painting.
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