8th October 2017

So today we embarked on our very own house renovation project. This house was severely damaged by fire back in March and needs total renovation. Prior to today, we had the house cleared completely as it was crammed to the rafters with stuff, none which was any good and the whole house smelled of charred wood, plastic and masonry.

Currently the only access is round the back through the back door as the front door and most of the windows are boarded up. We dutifully arrived about 9.30am after having breakfast with Spok and Denise at the cafe in Oldcotes. Spok and Denise offered us some help and we very gratefully accepted.

First job was to remove the board from the kitchen window and the front door to allow us access before emptying the car of all the tools and cleaning products we thought we would need. We did quite well, only forgot wire cutters. Once in, Sharon and Denise made a start on cleaning the sink out and the toilet - a job I’m happy I didn’t have to be involved in. Spok and I focused on the main bedroom. The ceiling had partially been destroyed which allowed us access to the loft. I went up and removed all of the smoke infested insulation throwing down in to the bedroom. Spok and I then bagged it all up in to wheelie bin liners and threw it out. I then went back up and removed the whole of the ceiling in the bedroom before we threw all of the plasterboard out on to the front garden ready for us to stick in the trailer another day. At this time Sharon and Denise moved on to trying to wipe down the walls with some TFR to try and remove the smoke. They also ripped up the kitchen floor tiles and generally gave the downstairs a good scrub where they could. Spok and I then progressed to clearing all of the insulation from the other side of the roof along with no end of more junk including a carrier bag full of lighters, a brand new sealed game of scrabble, a full roll of carpet and no end of other stuff circa 1970’s. Again we bagged all this up and the Sharon and Denise gave the front bedroom a good sweep.

We stopped for a cup of tea and a sandwich, Sharon was very prepared with flasks and sandwiches and goodies which went down very well.

Our next job was to drill a 22mm hole through the wall from the back of the house in to the passageway in readiness for the electricity supply to be fitted on Friday. Getting power was quite easy as Spok knows nearly everyone on the street, we chatted to a few of the neighbours and there was some good banter. Next door but 2 (Wally Parish) connected us up with a couple of extension cables and I drilled the hole. I thought that would be difficult but it was actually quite easy, however mounting the fireproof board for the termination point was less so. A combination of slightly too big a hole for the plugs, not being able to see and having to move the ladders out of the house every time I needed to get new rawplug or screwdriver saw me getting a bit pissed off. A trip to B&Q for some bigger plugs that I didn’t use saw me approach it slightly different when we got back and all turned out well in the end.

Denises Uncle (Paul) turned up to give us some advice about 2 massive trees in the back garden, we’ve decided they need to come down. Again the garden is like a jungle and there is masses of wood. 4 wheelie bins and countless other item scattered about all over the place. It appears Uncle Les (who used to own the house) was a bit of a hoarder.

We packed up about 3.30 just as it started to chuck it down, a very successful day, massive thanks to Spok and Denise for their very hard work and help and Paul for his advice.

This blogs going to go on for a very long time but will provide a great reminder when its all done (assuming we get that far).Read more