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Friday 9 May 2014

THE DAY WE GOT A NEW ROOF

GOSH! Look what they did to our roof!!!

Definitely not a project one wants to undertake every 5 minutes


These concrete tiles were way past their best!


Although our roof was not leaking, the felting was very brittle and torn, the tiles were beginning to crumble and crack with age and the tile battens had begun to degrade. I had been thinking of replacing the 50+ year old roof for a few years and got a chance when our next door neighbour built his extension, including replacing his roof.  The builder gave us a very good price for upgrading both house roofs, so in the summer of 2012 he erected scaffolding round both houses and work began. The extension next door was well underway and when all the building work was completed there they started work on the roofs, ours first.  Fortunately they chose a dry day.  They did one side at a time so they could cover it as quickly as possible in case of rain.

That morning there was a thunderous noise on our roof and we saw 4 men throwing our tiles into a large skip.  Then they ripped off the tile battens and felt and began hammering new tile battens into place.  Maria and I went out shopping and just left them to it.




On this shot you can make out the new roofing felt which allows the roof to breathe much better whilst being totally impervious to water.  It is very strong but very thin and the idea is very clever.

Oh . . . . and look what they found up there!! Poor bird must have got trapped in the roof space somewhere.


Not in quite as good condition as our roof timbers.  We were very pleased to hear that these were in very good condition.


Once the battens were in place they proceeded fitting the new Double Roman tiles, which fitted perfectly and instead of cementing ridge tiles like they used to, they screwed in modern dry ridge tiles which also allow more roof ventilation.



Of course that gave me an excuse to be a boy again and climb up my ladder onto the scaffolding and have a walk round.  Notice the wrap round verge tiles, just above my hand, which are a great idea, since these allow no wind to get underneath and lift them.  Originally they used ordinary tiles and cemented the edges in place but eventually the  cement cracked and allowed wind to get underneath and sometimes ties blew off the roof in violent storms.  When I was younger I replaced and re-cemented many tiles in our street, after strong gales in 1987 and 1993.



(No it is not Quasimodo up there looking for Esmeralda, although you can't see my bluelights behind those shades!)

While the scaffolding was in place I applied another coat on masonry paint to the walls. This was much easier to do than on two previous occasions when I worked off just a ladder. I was in my element up there moving and throwing scaffolding planks around  whist cleaning and washing out all the gutters, then washing down the barge boards, fascias and soffits. 

I even erected a new TV aerial whilst I was up there.




We had a sun tunnel fitted into the roof to lighten up the bathroom and works very well and lets a lot of light through the bathroom ceiling.




And because our gate arch was demolished during the house extension next door they had to rebuild our gate arch at their expense.



It was interesting watching them do it and I got quite friendly with the 'bricky'.

And Mike next door asked me if I would paint his new masonry walls since he knew I used to paint houses, so I came out of retirement and did that for him, along with other work he asked me to do on a paid basis.

Well all this occurred nearly two years ago and it is a pity Maria is not here to share and enjoy the improvements but at least it is reassuring to know this roof will see me out by a mile and I wont have to worry about that.

I was quite sad when the scaffolding came down! 

 . . . . .and while I was up there I took down a bird box I made for Great Tit birds.  It is too heavy and getting a bit old and it needs renewing and 
re-siting to a more accessible place.  I will get round to that later in the year.



You can see all three compartments for these 'terraced' houses have been occupied - long overdue for cleaning and disinfecting.
Did you know birds will not nest again in a box unless the old nest has been removed.  There are no second hand homes in birdland - the birdie Missus' always see to that!

Remember this shot from a previous post?



Just got him going in.

I took some video shots two years ago of Blue Tits and Great Tits plus their chicks.  I hope to post that soon when my clever son shows me how to do it.

47 comments:

  1. That is a lot of work being done around your home Eddie! I love the new gate entry that was created - very pretty!
    Sad that the little bird got trapped though. I hope it doesn't happen again but I'm sure you will do what you can to insure the little birds that come to visit will find a nice warm home to nest in and some food to eat =)
    BTW: that AAADD happens to ME and I'm not even 50 yet!! I think it happens to folks who just have VERY active brains, that are always thinking a few steps ahead ourselves!! ;)

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  2. Yes a lot of work. We decided rather than moving house to scale down we would modernise this one and I am glad we made that decision,

    I always rey to welcome the birds here and make them comfortable LOL

    Yes I agree that in my previous post perhaps more active brains keep churning out new things and take over the thought processes which should be applied to the task in hand. That's my excuse antway LOL
    Mice to see you here Monica xo

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  3. We have roofing works and re-rendering of our house to come in the next few months - I wish they would hurry up and come and do it as I'm not looking forward to it. Your post makes me feel a bit better though!

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  4. I think it is not as bad having the roof done as I thought it was going to be, The main thing is the weather and the mess is cleared up very quickly. When they are hammering in the new battens it is very noisy. Let's hope the weather is kind. They will not do it if it rains and doing half the roof at a time they can at least get the new felt on which alone would keep the water out - it is marvellous stuff.
    Good luck with it :)

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  5. I just love renovations and improvements! Some people hate the process and think it's stressful, but I think it is so much fun! Your new roof looks great and if you live past 106, you might outlive it! ha.

    I love the bird boxes! That last shot is great with the bird arriving home. :)

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  6. Well I aim to live until I am 120, remember! LOL
    So maybe I will have to get the roof done again!
    We have had a lot of renovations. We were considering moving a few years ago but decided, fortunately, to rnovate our existing house instead. So we had new windows and doors, a new kitchen, new conservatory roof and a new house roof.

    Yes I love making bird boxes and I was chuffed to get the shot shown of him arriving home. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 120? Oh, how did I get that wrong? I thought our scores were both 106. haha.
      We've built on to our original little house three times over the years. Now it's about time to renovate some of the rooms like the kitchen and bathrooms. I'd rather renovate than move, too...we love our neighborhood and want to stay.

      Chuffed...now there's an English word we don't have over here! :)

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    2. Yes I think it's much nicer to renovate and probably cheaper too - saving costs on solicitors and Estate Agent's fees.

      (I bet you don't say Estate Agents either" What do you call people who buy and sell houses - other than greedy of course?)

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    3. We call them Realtors, or Real Estate Agents. :)

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    4. Gosh you do use a lot of funny names for things over there? I might have guessed Rel Estate Agents. So logically our's shoulb be Unreal Estate Agents! ROFL

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    5. Makes you wonder why we have the 'real' at the beginning. ha.

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    6. Yes I find that very strange.
      Hey Betsy! I've tumbled on how to widen my blog - I am really 'chuffed' but alway intended to ask you if I could not crack it.

      Delete
    7. I knew you could do it! ;)

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    8. I admire your faith in my abilities. LOL

      I have to make the header picture spread across the page and I think I do that by making it less deep. Am I correct or have you got a magic wand for that? ;)

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    9. You have to make it the same width as your blog. If you go back to where you adjusted the width and find your total width (mine is 1180 pixels), then you can take your photo over to picmonkey and adjust your photo to the same!

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    10. "Jeronomo" . . . . did it! Oh I can't say him he is Apache isn't he and you are a Cherokee! LOL

      Just to let you know we are both 1180 pixels wide!
      Now haven't you always wanted to know that? LOL

      Delete
  7. I need a new roof. I’m looking for some information for many days. Ultimately I found them in your post. Thanks!

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    Replies
    1. Hope it helped Julia - you are most welcome.
      Try to find a reputable builder who can give you 2-3 references - and shop around and get 2 or 3 quotes.

      Delete
  8. Is terrible works inside house and in tbe roof!
    I told you some weeks ago hubby bring a man to paint the bathrooms,
    He has to comeback to finish one of them.Still he doesnt!
    These things are really a mess.
    But Im seeing yours willbe ok look so good Eddie!
    xo

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Gloria. It wasn't very messy really and they cleaned it all up very quickly. It all happened 2 years ago and I am very pleased we had it done. Hope you bathrooms are sorted soon. Give me one of your delicious cakes and I will come and do it for you! . . . . . I used to do this work as a job. I've done lots of things. xo

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  9. Replies
    1. Thanks Gloria. I make a lot of these and sell them, I will do a post on it soon. xo

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  10. We have a Purple Martin house at the cottage, Eddie
    We remove it every fall...clean it out..paint etc...
    We must get it up, as we have seen the Martins circling over the Lake...
    Our house has 2 levels with a total of 12 nesting holes....
    We always look forward to them arriving,mating and raising their young...
    They come all the way from Brazil!
    Imagine that!
    Have a great weekend Eddie....
    Cheers!
    Linda :o)

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    Replies
    1. That's very interesting, Linda - I just love wild birds nesting near the house. IKt is incredible that they fly all the way from Brazil and don't have to refuel on the way! lol
      When we arrived at our present house 32 years ago we had House Martins nesting under the eaves of the house. It was wonderful to watch them flying their aerial acrobatics after insects at dusk. They suddenly vanished and have never returned. Very strange!

      Hope you are feeling better and enjoy your weekend too.
      Bye for now ~ Eddie :)

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    2. We also get Swallows....much smaller than the Martins....
      I have houses around the property for them...
      Very animated birds.....and fun to watch...
      I bought some oranges to slice and hang for the Orioles...
      Hopefully we will go tomorrow....
      Cheers!

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    3. That's strange - our birds are so much different here!
      Our House Martins are small and our Swallows are larger with longer tails. Your Martins must be a species we do not have here.
      btw Like your toes! LOL

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    4. I see Linda's toes have made the news on three blogs now! haha. They need their own blog! lol....

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    5. I shall have to ask her to 'tow' the line!! Ugggh what a dreadful pun!!
      Guess who is responsible for promoting her toes and flip flops across Blogsville?
      A bit easier to sell than your red wellies ROFL.

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    6. Gosh - I've just been speaking to one Betsy!! Are you twins? And do multiple births run in the family?

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    7. hmmm...not following you there...let me have another cup of coffee and read that again. :)

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    8. Oh it's me being silly!!
      We are having two conversations at the same time. I'd just finished talking about blog layouts with Betsy 1 and I scrolled down here and saw Betsy 2 talking about Linda's feet. Hence the comment about twins and I coupled the logic to the fact you have triplets. :)

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    9. Oh, I got you. Nope, there's only one Betsy! ha.

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    10. What a relief!! . . . . . . ducking!!

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    11. How did I miss this big conversation about my FEET!
      Really people......they are feet...beautiful I know...but...just...feet!
      Glad to give you guys fodder!
      Cheers!
      Linda :o)

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  11. It was obviously a mammoth job but as you say, you can enjoy it now for years to come and relax in the safety of your home.

    We also have birds nesting in the gutters - house martins and swallows, but my husband is the bird man!

    CJ x

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    Replies
    1. Great to see you Crystal.
      Hope you are feeling a lot better now.
      Eddie x

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  12. Hi Eddie .. well that showed us how a new roof should look and get into place .. the well-light looks such a great idea ...

    As you say you can relax knowing the house is safe ... and love it that you'll be sorting out the bird boxes anon ... cheers Hilary

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Hilary.
      Yes, I am afraid when I decide to do something I 'go for it' , like taking the roof off lol.
      Yes, I am starting to make bidr boxes and tables again - that is as soon as this weather brightens up. Cheer ~ Eddie

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  13. We put a metal roof on our house a couple of years ago so that we wouldn't be replacing shingles again when we're in our 80's, but your tile roof makes that look like child's play. And I love your gate arch!

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    1. Thanks Jeanne and welcome.
      We have hung the wrought iron gate in the archway now so I must post a picture of it soon.
      The metal roof sounds interesting - wonder if it rings when it rains or hails lol.

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  14. Cloudia charters
    17:50 (1 hour ago)

    to me
    Wonderful seeing You, Eddie! The web is so big that it's too easy to misplace good people like you. Thanks for so kindly looking in.

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  15. What a lot of work went into that - looks great and I am sure it was worth it. Now you won't blow away! Love the arch and I bet the wrought iron adds that finishing touch. Sweet little bird squeezing in! Must be nice to know they actually use what you craft for them. Do you sell your bird houses? Lovely hobby to have.

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    1. Hi Suza - owe you an email - have not forgotten!
      Yes, thanks and I will fearure the wrought iron gate in another post. I paint it with black hammerite sometimes.
      The bird is called a Great Tit and is one of our most attractive British birds along with Blue Tits. Our birds are not nearly as lovely and proilific as the ones the ones that visit Betsy's feeders. Yes, I do make bird bixes and tables and sell a few. I intend to make a lot during the summer and try to market them. I have some great video shots which I will post soon when my whiz kid son shows me how lol. . . . . . . . good hobby when I can get myself motivated to do it again:)

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  16. Oh - and I meant to mention your banner is gorgeous!

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    Replies
    1. Yes it is my magnolia tree in my front garden. I have always forgotten to photograph it in previous years until last week - thought it would make a good header for the blog. smiles :)

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