Merry Christmas 2012

18th December 2012

I really cant believe how quickly November came and went,with a good mixture of weather thrown in,
Plenty of rain but between all that a nice but brief spell of cold frosty days, The lakes are an awesome place to live and work when the weather is nice.although you don't get lakes and green grass for no reason (rain) and lots of it.

Grizebeck has taken on a new dimension with the removal of scaffolding following the completion of the roof .This revealed Rob and Adam or stone masons fine work. Local natural stone quoins carefully dressed of there sawn edges our unique way to give a natural look,it takes a little longer but we intend our work to to be there a long time ,so attention to detail i thinks is very important.
The same goes with the slate hanging detail to the outside roof spar,slates are dressed and hung on the outside roof spar and,fixed with 2 copper nails with lead washers,when pointed, this provides a good weather covering and minimal maintenance in the future, is also a good alternative to the usual finish where stonework meets slate roof,usually done with a single cement band and in my opinion looks a little messy.
With the completion of stone work and roof, the site received a good tidy up in anticipation for the next stage. Installation of windows and doors,formation of the sun room canopy and first fix plumbing/ electrics can now be undertaken first thing in the New Year

Coniston is now near completion re plastering and looking really nice,lots of character to the stairway and first floor bedroom ceilings,with vaulted ceilings again it takes a little more time but makes for a really nice job long term.
First thing in the New Year we can call back our plumbers and electrician for second fix.
The job as a whole has gone very well despite the weather we areon time and on budget and due for completion mid to late February.

We are also very pleased to be involved in the first phase of works on a property in Bowness
It involves the demolition and excavation work to the old coach house and associated house strip out.
We enjoy some fantastic views of the lake whilst we work, making cold damp days a little more bearable.
Safety being paramount ,a substantial scaffold has been erected around the property giving us safe access for the removal of the chimney stack and slate to the roof.
Following removal of the slate all timbers can be stripped to first floor level as above first floor is timber framed with a brick infill,although demolition work sounds simple careful consideration to the structure stability is paramount .

We also under take smaller jobs too. this chimney stack was showing damp to the top floor internal walls, the masonry chimney stack was carefully removed and a code 5 lead tray installed at roof level providing a damp proof coarse and a water stop to vertical water ingress. A birds nest ( most probably a jackdaw ) was removed from the chimney flue ,this would most probably case substantial damp
to the internal walls and.removal was essential. The only way to remove it is to break into the flues externally at a lower level and extracting the debris by hand.
We don't shy away from smaller jobs as they can often be interesting and challenging,often working in beautiful places and can often lead to larger contracts.

The mountain bike training for the 4C4C (four coasts for charity) next year is also going well and i took a well earned break from work last weekend to one of my favourite parts of the country,The west coast of Scotland. Mountain biking in stunning scenery with the sea and islands like Mull,Easdale,Colansay and Jura are just a superb back drop along with the wild life like seals,otters and gannets top the bill. I love it.

Well with Christmas just around the corner i would like to take this opportunity to thank all my customers past and present for all there support throughout the year and also to past and new viewers to my blog. wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

See you all next year.
Ste.

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