Gonna Build a House #6

Hello! 
Promises, promises.



With everything that went on during April, my promises of new house progress updates didn't quite happen. That's not because little happened on the house front - quite the contrary -  in fact, there’s been remarkable progress.

As I write this update I'm going to be conscious, as a writer, about the tenses used throughout. I'm sometimes too inclined to flit between present and past tenses, if not careflul, so my target will be to clearly use the correct past tenses since time  - and the house - have moved on since the last posting on the project. 

Since the middle of March 2015, the house has moved through the stages of being a basic shell to the present stage where it’s now having the interior finished (some six weeks later at 6th May). The utilities aren’t fully in yet, though planning for them is almost in place, the conduits and pipework for gas, electricity and water being laid as I write.

I’ve taken literally hundreds of photos during April but only some will appear here to show the amazing work that has gone on with multiple squads of trades’ people having been involved. Initially, I had envisaged that most of the work would be done by the contracted builder and his small crew but have found that’s not quite the case. Some of the work, like the slating of the roof, interior plumbing, and interior electrical work has been sub-contracted to experts in the field.

My last images on #5 post on  'Gonna Build a House' were of the foundation concrete being poured on the 18th March so what follows are the next phases…

25th March 2015

The first base and wall construction began by the 25th March.

The weather remained fine and cold, but that was good weather for house construction. Supplies of timber and insulated wallboards arrived in huge pallet loads. Other equipment and supplies were delivered and organised around the site for future use - some of this stored inside the outhouses and some outside on what has become the construction yard.

25th March 2015

I was intrigued when this lot of metal work (photo at right)  arrived but all was soon revealed. The scaffolding was hired for a certain duration from a specialist supplier.

I'm told that rules and regulations concerning the safety of scaffolding use have been seriously tightened up in recent years (as seems sensible) and by hiring out equipment from a certified supplier thorough checking can be rigorously applied before any personnel use the equipment.

26th March 2015

Roof trusses arrived, scaffolding was erected and the house began to take shape.

28th March 2015

Some of the upper floor and roof trusses were in place by the end of 28th March. The house is considered to be a one and a half storey house- the only height that the local planning department would allow.

In our part of Aberdeenshire that one and a half storey is very common and is what is around and about the new house, including my own. That means a couple of things: the height of the house matches my own and some of those surrounding the property; and like most houses close by the upper floor is built into the roof space. That means there is almost no loft space, but what exists is packed with the most effective, thick loft insulation that's on the market. Most houses of this 'one and a half storey' type have Velux windows built flush with the roof slates to give light to the upper floor rooms, in addition to the usual window types. The coombed (angled) ceilings are common and easy to get used to- even for those who are not height challenged, like I am. At 5 ft 2 ins I don't generally bang my head on coombed walls!

30th March 2015

It was a great thrill to see the protective green cover going on to the bare wood of the frame- the interior dimesions becoming more real by the 30th March.

All of my photos, after the concrete sub floor phase, have been taken at the end of the day's work since we are not permitted on site during working hours. With two young children, I wouldn't be trying to access it anyway but we have been lucky to be living nearby and able to access the house in the evening- under strict safety rules.

30th March 2015

It was an amazing feeling standing under the partially constructed roof, yet quite hard to envisage what the living space will eventually 'feel' like.


At times during the early construction, when only partially erected, the house seemed very large and airy and at others it was easy to realise just how neatly the slightly larger than average 3-bedroomed house fits the ground site. (compared with other new houses in our locale) 

31st March 2015

The month of March ended with exceptionally good progress having been made. On a very cold March day the site is inspected and given the seal of approval by my granddaughter!


More photos to come soon showing the April progress. 



Slainthe!