The house that Nadger (re)built.... well, sort of!
Discussion
skintemma said:
Yes, you bid for trays but there's generally loads of similar stuff so you won't come home empty handed. Wednesday is more for the pros rather than the tyre kickers so I'd go then as you'll generally pay less - largely because the pros won't overpay. I'm defo a tyre kicker but tend to go on a weds so I don't get sucked in to being 'the overpaying winner!' Even then, it's really cheap.
Bugger. I’m a teacher so Wednesdays are a no go sadly! Unless I wait for the summer hols of course. Huzzah!
So today’s my last birthday before I turn 40! I was the lucky recipient of this -
I’ve also been given this. Apparently necessary due to now being an Esq! ;-)
It was meant to be s joke present, but I actually quite like it.....
Edited to add - so excited by hat that I’m standing on my head!!!
I’ve also been given this. Apparently necessary due to now being an Esq! ;-)
It was meant to be s joke present, but I actually quite like it.....
Edited to add - so excited by hat that I’m standing on my head!!!
So more work on the laaaaaahnd this morning. Up early to burn a huge pile of brambles, roots and wood I had from clearing the land. It did well, to the point where I panicked, grabbed the hose and then realised it wouldn’t quite reach so got out the pressure washer just in case! However my pyromania in my youth had served me well and I’d actually built it quite safely and far enough away from everything not to destroy it!
Some big news! We’ve just had son #1’s birthday party in the field! A 6th birthday nerf war! Was brilliant. My brother also came along and brought his flash drone, so I bagged the chance to fly it and filmed the land.
Video is here - https://youtu.be/IMAaUXyGN4A
As you will see, there have been nerf suitable obstacles erected!
Video is here - https://youtu.be/IMAaUXyGN4A
As you will see, there have been nerf suitable obstacles erected!
Today’s little task was to get some weed matting down at the bottom of the garden, where the demolished shed once stood. The ground is like concrete there, but we’ve decided to put bark down and get the kids’ toys off the lawn (which they ruin!). Matting is now down (plus this pic shows our new rear garden fence - went for a four bar fence and are delighted with it!) ready for the bark to be shifted from the front of the house!
It’s been a while since I updated this thread, but quite a lot has happened, mostly bad and upsetting, but last week finally something good!
Just after my last update I was struck down with gout. I had no idea something so innocuous could be so bloody painful, but sadly worse was to come!
The next day we received a notification from the council that we were in breach of planning by putting children’s toys on agricultural land (they’d been there before we purchased the land!) and then to top it off the next day we discovered that our gorgeous old hound, autumn, had terminal cancer and we had to make the agonising decision to have her put to sleep.
To cut a long story short, my foot is now better, and last week we got full change of use permission on the land to make it curtiledge of property (despite the stupid bint who’d obviously dobbed us in in the first place making a spurious objection to the application, despite her not actually being a neighbour and not backing on to the land!) so it is now officially garden!
To say we’re relieved is an understatement
Just after my last update I was struck down with gout. I had no idea something so innocuous could be so bloody painful, but sadly worse was to come!
The next day we received a notification from the council that we were in breach of planning by putting children’s toys on agricultural land (they’d been there before we purchased the land!) and then to top it off the next day we discovered that our gorgeous old hound, autumn, had terminal cancer and we had to make the agonising decision to have her put to sleep.
To cut a long story short, my foot is now better, and last week we got full change of use permission on the land to make it curtiledge of property (despite the stupid bint who’d obviously dobbed us in in the first place making a spurious objection to the application, despite her not actually being a neighbour and not backing on to the land!) so it is now officially garden!
To say we’re relieved is an understatement
SonicHedgeHog said:
Really sorry to hear about fido. Had to put our seven year old cat to sleep a few months ago due to kidney failure. Horrendous. As with others we have lost we planted a tree in the garden. Maybe you could do something similar in that nice garden of yours?
Thanks Sonic.The vets sent some poppies, and the plan is to make a litttle area in the garden to bury her ashes and plant up a little memorial area. The new bit of garden is also now know to us all as ‘Autumn’s field’, so she will definitely be remembered, bless her!
So, three years after my last post, I have something to add to this thread!
Back in 2018 we welcomed a new (and final!) addition to the family, little Max. The consequence of this was that the house was no longer large enough for us all (1st world problems and all that!), which was exacerbated by us all being in it all the time pretty much during lockdown. As a result we decided at the end of 2020 to pull the trigger on an extension to the existing house to add an extra bedroom and more living space downstairs. We’ve just finished it (or rather run out of money to completely finish!) so I’ll add updates on here over the next couple of days to show what we’ve achieved. We’re really pleased with the result!
Back in 2018 we welcomed a new (and final!) addition to the family, little Max. The consequence of this was that the house was no longer large enough for us all (1st world problems and all that!), which was exacerbated by us all being in it all the time pretty much during lockdown. As a result we decided at the end of 2020 to pull the trigger on an extension to the existing house to add an extra bedroom and more living space downstairs. We’ve just finished it (or rather run out of money to completely finish!) so I’ll add updates on here over the next couple of days to show what we’ve achieved. We’re really pleased with the result!
So obviously the first hurdle was design. We wanted an additional bedroom, but our plot is very narrow meaning that we could only go out to the rear. The original design of the house was bedroom, bathroom, bedroom across the rear of the house, and I puzzled for ages over how to fit in another bedroom. Without putting it to the side. I won’t admit how long it took me to realise the solution was to put the bathroom to the side of the house, but it was a long time!
Once I’d worked out a solution, we employed an architect to make it actually function, and he came up with the designs below (before and after!)
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|https://thumbsnap.com/atUdsYko[/url][url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/1cA7X4Et[/url][url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/72fgmwb8[/url]
We went for a 6m wide x 3m deep extension which allowed us two good doubles upstairs to the rear, as well as a decent bathroom to the side. Next job was to find a builder!
Once I’d worked out a solution, we employed an architect to make it actually function, and he came up with the designs below (before and after!)
[url]|https://thumbsnap.com/atUdsYko[/url][url]|https://thumbsnap.com/1cA7X4Et[/url][url]|https://thumbsnap.com/72fgmwb8[/url]We went for a 6m wide x 3m deep extension which allowed us two good doubles upstairs to the rear, as well as a decent bathroom to the side. Next job was to find a builder!
Edited by nadger on Wednesday 2nd June 09:12
I’m not generally speaking a lucky person. When it comes to double doors, I’ll always push on the locked one. If I’m wearing a new shirt, I’ll always spill something down myself, etc etc. However on this one occasion the gods were clearly smiling on me, as our first choice builder in the village was not only willing to take on the build, but could start a week after we’d commissioned him due to a cancellation! He wasn’t the cheapest quote but with the rapidity with which he could start, plus his reputation in the village, it was a no brainer!
Work started on the 18/1, and the first task was to remove the old conservatory from the rear of the house. Based on the builder’s suggestion we’d stuck it on eBay, and some paid over £300 for it! We’d been intending to just skip it, so that was a welcome little bonus.
Forewoman checking the structure prior to demolition.
End of day one.
I returned home on the 19th to discover we’d acquired a new garden ornament. Very PH i thought.
This, sadly, was where my luck ran out I’m afraid. On starting the foundations it became apparent that the ground was crap (our house is built on a brownfield site - the site of an old tyre factory apparently!) and as such we had to go down more than twice as far to find solid ground to build on (2.5m!). This added over 6k to the cost of the build, which was already slightly more than we could afford (we’d intended to get a small loan to make up the difference), so we had to consider what to do. I’ll come back to this later.
This is what 2.5m deep foundations look like (plus I discovered my house is basically built on breeze blocks)
Work started on the 18/1, and the first task was to remove the old conservatory from the rear of the house. Based on the builder’s suggestion we’d stuck it on eBay, and some paid over £300 for it! We’d been intending to just skip it, so that was a welcome little bonus.
Forewoman checking the structure prior to demolition.
End of day one.
I returned home on the 19th to discover we’d acquired a new garden ornament. Very PH i thought.
This, sadly, was where my luck ran out I’m afraid. On starting the foundations it became apparent that the ground was crap (our house is built on a brownfield site - the site of an old tyre factory apparently!) and as such we had to go down more than twice as far to find solid ground to build on (2.5m!). This added over 6k to the cost of the build, which was already slightly more than we could afford (we’d intended to get a small loan to make up the difference), so we had to consider what to do. I’ll come back to this later.
This is what 2.5m deep foundations look like (plus I discovered my house is basically built on breeze blocks)
Edited by nadger on Wednesday 2nd June 10:12
elanfan said:
Did I see on an earlier photo that neighbours had gates onto the land? Have you done anything to stop this or are you okay with them having access?
There is a gate, but it’s actually for us to access the neighbour’s land. Our plot isn’t accessible other than across their bit of land, so if I want to get my ride on mower serviced it needs to go out across their bit. Luckily we haven’t had to do this yet, but they’ve said they’re happy to allow it. So the next stage was drains once the foundations were dug out. They looked like, well, drains I guess!
Then the slab was laid (which I don’t seem to have any pics of) before the walls started to go up.
This last one shows the roof trusses also in situ.
Finally our scaffolder was very *ahem* self confident!
Then the slab was laid (which I don’t seem to have any pics of) before the walls started to go up.
This last one shows the roof trusses also in situ.
Finally our scaffolder was very *ahem* self confident!
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