1st July 2018

Apologies for the lack of blog for the last couple of weeks. That’s not to say nothing has happened.

Last week I had the Friday off to try and help push things along as I knew Gemma and Adam needed to be moving in. On the Friday the three of us were there and we cracked on. Richard was busy with lots of little woodworking jobs, John and I set about putting the new facia boards, soffits and guttering up. It was a great day and the outside started to turn a corner. As you look up to the roof of the house, it all looks neat and tidy and more importantly any rainwater will actually drain away in to the drains instead of just running down the walls.

Saturday morning was spent finishing off inside so they could move in, however John and Rich didn’t come as they had some large machine on hire and needed to get a job of their own done. So Sharon and I did as many little jobs as we could. I connected the fan up for the bathroom and for the final time and vented it properly which allowed us to then re lay the insulation in the loft. We also got the boiler stat wired up and the condensate pipe sealed in to the main drain before starting a massive clean and sweep through the whole house. As we cleaned each room, we wrote a list of the little snagging jobs that needed doing and left a list in each room. By close of play on Sunday, all rooms were swept and all paintwork and walls were cleaned down. On the Sunday, John came for a couple of hours with his mini digger and removed the hedge out of the front and flattened it in readiness for a gravelled drive to be laid.

The only movement during the week last week was on an evening when Sharon, me and my dad went up. Safe to say we had a couple of good nights and a couple of bad nights. We only really had a few jobs to do but at the beginning of the week we struggled. We had a towel rail to fit, we couldn’t get it seal and had numerous water leaks, and the outside tap needed repositioning, again we had a problem and couldn’t stop a small leak. However, the following evening we revisited it with fresh eyes and managed to get both jobs done even though it meant taking the downstairs toilet out and removing a wall. But all sorted and all put back together. We also cracked on with the cleaning of the window frames as well as cleaning out all the kitchen cupboards and a general good scrub.

Yesterday we had a cracking day and really turned a corner. Again my Dad helped and John was there early as well as me and Sharon. John rendered the front and back tops, and he did a lovely job. He did the front all by hand using cement and a large nail. The rear was a different story, it was rendered with a tyrolean applicator. It’s like a watering can with no front and a handle on it. When the handle is turned, it throws the tyrolean render on to the wall. He’s done a lovely job but the heat and the reflection of the sun made it very hard work. The rest of us set about tidying the garden up. We borrowed Johns big trailer and loaded up everything we could on to it including loads of old rubber floor tiles, plasterboard, old cables ( you could still smell the charred smell that was in the house when we first went in), old windows, lots of glass and anything else we could get rid of. It was a brilliant effort by us all and it really tidied up, it took us 2 trips, would have been about 5 with our trailer. We also cut down the hedge to a manageable size. We lit a fire but the neighbours complained so we put it out but went back later in the evening to light it. It took a while to get going and I was a bit nervous as it has been so dry. Sharon was extremely nervous so we sent her home to get a shower and come back for us later. As it got going, we managed to get rid of most things, it took us about 3 hours but everything gone so bonus. A long old shift, 13 hours I reckon. The carpets were also fitted yesterday so it’s really turned around now.

Today saw us there again, me, Sharon and my dad. We had 3 jobs on, plane the doors as they catch on the new carpets, connect up the pressure release valve on the boiler and sort the gate so it no longer catches on the gas supply pipe. Gate done, pressure release pipes up but needs John to connect to boiler but failed with the doors. A combination of lack of time due to me having to go to work tonight and they need massive adjustment so I’ll leave them for John. Sharon cleaned all the downstairs windows outside and removed all the plastic film from them.

We now have the gas safety certificate and the energy performance-certificate ( grade C which is excellent). Gemma and Adam have now signed the tenancy agreement so it’s theirs from today. There’s a few snags to do inside which hopefully John and Rich are doing tomorrow, and outside at the front needs the render painting and the drive sorting. Again hopefully that will be done this week.Baca lagi