Works Continue...
As the title suggests, work have continued, with all the tiles now on the roof, so the building, although not watertight is largely able to dry out, sheltered from most of the rain that batters the island sporadically (read often) at this time of year.
The project manager has been experimenting with his lens flare technique. Very arty. Here we can see the fully tiled roof: it looks beautiful and will age well, as evidenced by other properties in the neighbourhood with the same construction.
Looking at the diagram below we can see the finished construction of the roof and walls as specified by the architect:
Modern XPS insulation of 40mm is used under the roof - what isn't shown on the drawing here is the wooden cladding also added to the underside of the roof and the vapour barrier that could be seen in earlier photographs.
Wot? No Gutters?
The eagle eyed may notice that there is no guttering on the drawing or the photograph - this is the way in the Azores: Guttering and down pipes are rarely seen on residential properties. The reason for this is just the volume of water that can occur in a heavy downpour, as the guttering and drainage would be quickly overwhelmed. Plus of course, it does away with the possibility of blacked gutters and down pipes. Instead the tiles project a considerable distance from the eaves, getting the falling rainwater clear off the walls below.
The evidence of not enough overhang, or bouncing rainwater can often be seen at the bases of some house walls... and its one reason that most houses have a coloured weatherproof paint job to the bottom 12" to18" high or so on the bottom of the walls... to hide these unsightly marks. So yes, it looks pretty but has a practical purpose.
Drainage away from the house is important to stop water ingress into the house. I have seen two or three inches of standing water during one torrential downpour that lasted just half an hour. With this in mind, the house is surrounded by ceramic tiles (actually the same as the interior) that will be laid to slope slightly downwards away from the house, where then rainwater will soak away into surrounding land.
From a little way down the field we get another perspective of the house with its spanking new roof. The leaning tree adds charm... it's not falling down but has just grown that way over the years to grab the light.
Outside work started (and has now probably finished) on the external 2cm skim of the walls in render.
The builder on the right is really going for it, with a board in each hand. "Bish-Bosh" as they say. This 2cm external render covers all the block-work and visually ties all the separate elements of the walls, pillars, doors and windows together to give a pleasing appearance ready for the coats of exterior paint.
Even the dog is getting involved. As a side note, interesting H&S issue for the guy in the blue pants. Of course, everything is tied off properly... erm...
I'm not sure, but I think this render will be slightly flexible with some plastic component, to avoid cracks in the case of earth tremors ... otherwise regular maintenance will be required... watch this space.
Internally, the floor and wall treatments of insulation concrete, plaster board and skim can only happen one the windows and doors are installed, making the building thoroughly element proof. With this in mind, the project manager has been chasing up progress with the delivery of these to the island: We await news... but at this stage it is quite urgent for progress that these items arrive rapidly, otherwise progress will be slowed once again.
Ideally these items should have been ordered at the same time as the roof beams - but I of course understand that it is all about cash flow with the builder, and having several thousand Euros worth of double glazing kicking about for weeks is not money well employed.
But because of the poor weather, high winds and rain, the fitting of the roof was delayed, most likely pushing the ordering of the windows further back on the project spreadsheet.
The delay with the roof has pushed the build back about a month, so it is important that now the build process is accelerated and plays catch-up. My project manager informs me that the house will not be fit for even camping in by the end of February, so we have kicked the can down the road to the end of March.
The upshot of this is that I am going over in early March and staying in nearby accommodation for three or four weeks. I will then be there to supervise the finishing stages and make sure things are done to my liking and taste, something that is difficult to do from a distance.
Some work such as preliminary plumbing has been done inside.The project manager had a meeting with the plumber and informed me that one of the instant heaters did not specify the distance between the inlet and outlet pipes - obviously something the plumber needed to know in order to get the pipes in the right place. These details have been supplied and the position of the unit marked on the wall.
Here is the water heater's desired position marked up on the kitchen wall, clearly showing the inlet and hot outlet pipes orientation. There are power outlets on the adjacent wall, but these are not suitable: A 48 amp supply is required for this high output unit, not present yet.
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Other discussions :
A price has been confirmed for the balustrades throughout the build. The same company that is supplying the flooring and bathroom fittings have given a good price, so that has been approved. This is going to look brilliant; a combination of glass panels indoors and tensioned wire outside. A good mix of modern and practical.
The project manager assured me that one heat-pump will be adequate along with the wood burner for keeping the house snug in the cooler months, and that the power and drains are fitted ready for the unit. The price of this is very good, I guess because so many are fitted on the island, being very popular.
The log burner will be finally chosen once I am there to have a look at the available models.
Kitchen tiles to be chosen and fitted later when resident; I might see something I like more than just plain white tiles...
The wardrobe needs to be shelved and this is not part of the builder's remit: The simplest way to do this is use Ikea units and some doors chosen from the local trades. More shopping then...
A quote for a bar under the kitchen window is being sought - I can't see this being hugely expensive, after all it is just a shelf, all be it in concrete with a Silestone top to match the kitchen units. If it is expensive to have fitted I will probably get a bunch of brackets, some MDF and a nice top and DIY, after all it is under cover ... but it would be nice to have it 'integral' to the wall.
Regarding exterior works, these are subsequent to the house build. It has been decided to not take the drive down to the underuse area - it is very steep and a lot of earth moving would be required to make a sensible access, not to mention driveway materials. So parking will be limited, at least for now, to a block-work drive down to the porch. More than adequate for several vehicles.
So what about that massive under-house area that was/is a garage and workshop? Well as Soren said.. it would make a good badminton court... no seriously, a covered workshop area is always useful, as it can be accessed by steps down the side of the house. Also, it is a good undercover 'disco' and bar :) With further development it could provide a self-contained flat or holiday let. There are numerous possibilities.In the interim, it is a great dry storage area and place to keep gardening tools and the like.
A guest loo ... yes, I'm getting a quote to put a toilet and washbasin on the mezzanine, realising that without it's going to be really tricky to have people stay over or make it less than desirable even for parties or dinner gatherings if everyone has to traipse through the bedroom and dressing room. The lack of loo access wasn't an oversight - but merely an architectural oversight of where the services enter the house. So, a toilet on the mezzanine, at the top of the landing could be just the tick
Just squeezing in with enough headroom on the mezzanine, and a 1m walkway past, this provides the adequate guest loo, using a built in sink on top of the cistern. The side advantage is that a storage are is made where the headroom is unusable for standing.
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Spending:
The (almost) final phase of spending on goods for shipping is just about done. The latest tranche of expenditure has been the light fittings. And it's still not quite done, as I realised I missed one of the exterior lights down the side of the house.
Now how much do you think it costs to fit nice lights to a house? My god... it is frightening.
So far, exterior lights, kitchen spots, landing lights, entrance and bathroom ceiling roses.. kitchen breakfast bar lights, studio lights... the list goes on. Yet to come are the LED bulbs and if I tell you they will cost about £250.... well you get the idea.
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The Brain Zone:
The date of departure is fast approaching, and last night I booked my flight and accommodation. Scary stuff. It is becoming very real. Next week is a must for organising the container for delivery at the end of February, and that is going to be the beginning of the logistical nightmare.
I can understand why some people just move with a suitcase... it would be so much easier. But, yup, I'm not moving to New York, where everything can be bought easily and in store or online. I'm moving to a remote island that although everyday items are mostly cheap and plentiful, getting a specific item can prove more difficult, take time and be considerably more expansive, as it has to be shipped in from mainland Portugal.
A great, but slightly ridiculous example of this was when the project manager said, just last week, that I needed to buy a shower switch with a pull cord to bring in the container. They don't sell them on the island; apparently I will be one of the few using an electric shower (in fact the builder was bewildered about it).
So, some simple things that we here in the UK take for granted are not available in the Azores... and pretty random things at that.Some more important than Marmite.
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Next Up... Where be dem Windows?
