Finally Ready for the Trusses !!

On the 14th Nov the block layers installed the first window sill into the house. This will make the first substantial connection between the outside leaf and inner leaf of the blockwork walls.

With every new sill being fitted the walls will get progressively stronger.

On the 16th Nov the East wall was up to the start of the gable

View from the North -West corner

 On the 19th Nov the men arrived from the ESB (Electricity Supply Board) to put up the pole. The pole will be erected on the southern edge of my land.

It took two men and a 10t digger with a great claw attachment about half and hour to install it. The claw was used to lift the pole and dig the hole.

The Claw attachment on the digger.

The Digger carrying the pole

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Digging the hole.

On the 19th Nov the block layers finished the West wall up to gable level.

North-West corner

The scaffolding is now being added to the outside of the house. This will be used at first to help install the roof trusses.

View of the South-East corner, More cills have been fitted.

On the 21st Nov the block layers capped the North side wall ready for the wall plate to be installed.

The blocks closing the cavity being finished on the North Wall

Pat the carpenter arrived on 23rd Nov to fix the timber wall plates and to start on the roof trusses

Fixing the wall plate to the South Wall with ESB pole in the back ground

The wall plate, the green tint is the wood preservative. The string line is used to confirm straightness.

The wall plates are lengths of 100mm x 75mm timber that the roof trusses will rest on. These timbers are bolted to the top of the blockwork closing the cavity.

All the walls are all partly "scudded" this is a mix cement and sand with is flicked on to the block work to provide a key for the "scratch coat" and final render coat. This "scudding" has to be done on the inside and outside walls

The "scudding" pattern can be seen on the walls

We are now ready for the roof trusses.

The Roof Trusses have Arrived

The roof trusses arrived today.They where made in a factory in Northern Ireland and delivered to site ready to be installed. All the timber material that will be needed in the roof all came from Quinn Building Supplies. Quinn gave us a 3D drawing of what the roof will look like with all the bracing attached, which is done on site.

All the roof timber came in one load.

3D drawing of the roof

 We used the telehoist to unload them and set them down near the West wall of the house.

Using the Telehoist to unload the Trusses

Taking them along the drive

Placing them on West wall of the house.

I have prepared a temporary place for the trusses.

The trusses will be placed on the timbers

On the 7th November we had the last full load of blocks delivered to site a total of 5744. Which included 640 150mm and the rest were 100mm. I might order the blocks we need for the garage due to a large price increase on blocks in the New Year. Cemex have been brilliant with deliveries some where made well within 24 hours of being ordered!!!

Last full load of blocks

We have had to brace the southern wall, due to there being no internal walls and that the pier between the two large openings on the ground floor being a bit narrow. These braces will be taken down when the roof is attached.

Timber bracing added to the Southern Wall

The weather at the moment has been very kind to us so the block layers have made great progress.

Photo taken 8th Nov. View from the North West corner looking out to the South East corner.

 Photo taken from the West looking to the East and Keash Hill. The trusses all wrapped up.

The Southern wall will be finished first to wall plate level and then the to gable walls, East and West. Then they will complete the North wall to wall plate level. The trusses will fixed on the wall plates which are made of timber. The block layers say that they should be finished in two weeks weather depending.

Lintels Are In !!

The block layers are going great guns in a few short days they have raised the wall levels on three sides up to lintel level.

Photo taken 29th October, The 4" yellow land drains can be seen.

Trying out the Bobcat

I now have a Bobcat on site which is very useful for getting around the perimeter of the house so we can get the land drainage in.

Photo taken 31st October. Looking at the western side of the house. Keash Hill in the background.

Internal view facing the South-West.

The northern side of the house the block layers have left deliberately short so that they can load the scaffolding with blocks using there own Telehoist.

The order for the roof trusses have been delayed they will now be arriving7th or 8th November.

We have also ordererd the roof slates they will be Tegral Rivendale Black-Blue.