This is a sketch of our existing concrete, or finlock gutters, shaded in blue. These systems were widely used in mid-century properties and combined to serve both as the wall plate and gutter system. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Existing House
bathroom window wall (or sieve)
The toilet has come out, freeing up the remaining floor for re-boarding and the window wall for the rest of the re-plastering. Around the soil and vent pipe (shown) there were huge holes through the inner leaf brick wall, measuring approximately 350 x 150mm – a very significant air leakage path (sorry no photo). Bathrooms and kitchens are key culprit areas for air leakage, particularly over the years as trade plumber after trade plumber make alterations for new appliances, sanitaryware, etc. It is always worthwhile looking for air leakage paths and dealing with them before the new installation goes in. In this case, the hole was infilled with masonry and mortar and plastered over. Continue reading
a not very private bathroom
The first phase of floorboards are in along with the new corner vanity unit. The door needs to be relocated to suit the new bath position. The existing partition wall between bathroom and landing is demolished, ready for the new stud wall and door position. This gives further opportunities to do more air leakage sealing around the wall frame.
the shower is in
Well, the shower is in and working, but now the work continues around it. Probably not the most practical solution, but this is the reality of working in an area that needs to be kept in use. The floorboards have come up as the originals were in poor repair. Also, there was a strip in the floorboards where the original partition was. Continue reading
new bathroom starts shaping up
Have got a bit carried away with building the bathroom over the last few weeks and haven’t done such a good job of recording progress. The bathroom has been extended as the top photo shows (looking toward new wall). Continue reading
next project: bathroom
For a four-bedroom house, the original bathroom dimension is a little on the small side. Accomodating a bath, toilet and vanity basin, there is no room for a seperate shower. The plan is to extend the room by just under a metre, as shown on the plans above, to allow a 900mm quadrant shower cubicle to be fitted. Continue reading
choosing the right wood burner
Where to begin! As with many products, once you start googling, it can be quite overwhelming. Simply thousands of woodburners to choose from. Our rationalle was as follows, which helped to narrow our options: Continue reading
finishing the recess for the wood burner
The plaster scratch coat is applied to the recess and the surrounding area where the plaster was removed. Next the flue needs to be finished. Continue reading
the chimney opening is enlarged
Whole bricks are removed, including the original lintel. The remaining bricks on the ‘tooth’ edge will be cut back. Recommend that this is done with a cutting disc to prevent brick damage, but it will be very dusty! Continue reading
getting started with the wood burner installation
There are many elements of mid-century design that I like, but there are some that I dislike. One of these dislikes tends to be fireplace surrounds – they are usually characterless lumps of concrete clad in ceramic tile, or faux-stone. Ours is no different. Continue reading