We needed to dig down in order to put the plumbing, some UFH and then lay a concrete slab in order to tile or flagstone from there.
We are still in the “trying to choose the correct floor” stage at the moment and have spent some interesting hours in various tile centers in Brittany but have yet to fine the “one” that will give the kitchen the feel we are looking for.
We visited someone with a flagstone floor and it looked dirty all the time regardless of the attention given to it by our host. They said they had just learned to live with it looking dirty but if they had the choice again would not go with flags.
Fair enough if you live on a working farm with people tromping in and out all day in their willies and are happy to give it a sweep once in a while, but however much you clean it the thing will never look clean. So flags have been given the thumbs down. And now the search begins for something else.
We don’t like shiny, or uniform, or twee, or contrived, so we search until the “one” shows itself to us.
First I became all macho and decided it would be good for me to do this by hand and after a bone juddering, back hurting, teeth rattling, 10 minutes on my mates 30 kilo Kangol, followed by 10 minutes of scraping and scruffling, just to get a barrow full of soil and leave a tiny area looking like I had ‘roughed it a little bit” I decided that macho was not the way forward and do hired a mini “mini digger” (85cms wide). It fitted easily through the kitchen door although I was concerned that it didn’t look “man” enough for the job. The reason for my concern was because the top inch or so was packed earth but under it were large areas of shale type rock. The sort of rock that you wouldn’t use in a wall but might be happy to use as hard core.
I put the smallest trenching bucket on that had two decent teeth and began ragging it. I have to say that the little digger did great job and I was filling barrows as I went and my son and his mate (they ofhttp://www.ancient-giants.com fame) did the barrowing.
I had done about two thirds when Zak, (as sons are want to do), said “Dad can I have a go on the digger”
Being a dad and focused in the “dads digger zone” I explained that I had bought him over for his youthful strength, ie to push barrows, and that I am getting quicker and better on a digger every time I use one and want to get it done, and a few other excuses. I did throw out that he would be more than welcome to get stuck into the JCB at the other house as we had loads to do there. To give him his due he said fair enough and carried on pushing barrows.
MrsB, who had been doing the trimming around the areas we didn’t get with the digger bucket, turned up with coffee and quietly said to me (like mothers do) that he was a “man” now and not a child and that I had done the danger areas around the fire and doors that I wanted to make sure were done carefully and perhaps as a sign of respect, acknowledgement, and in the interest of sharing the work load I should find something else to do and let those two finish it off.
Have you ever noticed how hard it is to argue with logic as simple as that .
Once I had dug down in the doorway next to the lounge floor it was a simple case of working out (backwards) how deep the scalpings would be and then the insulation and then the concrete to make it level with the lounge floor. Just case of putting a bit of v black electricians tape ona length of batten, setting up the laser level where it could get the whole room and off you go. Dig Dig check check and so on. When you are finished it should be about as level as it is to get. Just one word of warning I did buy a decent laser level (Dewalt) I did originally have a B&Q cheapie special which to be honest was as about much use as Ann Franks drum kit.
The one thing I have learnt during this whole project is that most cheap tools are cheap because they are sh!te and will let you down when you need them the most. Buy something that will last as it is false economy not to. However don’t be frightened of e-bay in order to pick up a bargain quality second hand or demonstrator model tool .
So here we go after we had dug down a small portion, I am in the background setting up the laser level so that we could get it level as we went. Zak and Walso manning the barrows
In this corner the sink and work top will be living in a galley style set up kitchen cooking area with an island in front of it
This bit is where my clay pipe wine rack will end up living. I have just loaded a few in to get the general idea ( we will be seeing this photo later on as a situation has developed surrounding it). See if you can spot what it is?
Here is Zak ragging the last bits of rock followed by Waldo (with Mrs B watching on) having a go and where you can clearly see the teeth on the bucket that eventually saw the rock off. “Ragging” with the digger is going in and in again on the same spot and drawing back and then just changing the angle slightly and having another go and keep of ragging at it and eventually you get a corner to lift, or a crack to appear and you are in like Flynn.
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Here is MrsB using hammer and bolster and spike to loosen up and tidy all the stuff in the doorways she is sat on the concrete lounge floor.
And here are the lads taking a well deserved tea break and the pile of rubble they shifted. That is about two thirds of an area 34 M2 at about 9 inches deep. It took the four of us the best part of 6 hours continuous work (that’s is taking out the coffee stops and lunch break.)
The next day it was a case of wheel barrowing in the scalpings in and raking them level (using the laser level and a marked pole again. Once that was done we went ion with the whacker plate to tighten it all down. Then we went in again, one in front with the survey pole, one with a barrow of scalpings applying to any low spots, and one with the whacker plate applying whack where it was needed and it finished up looking like this by mid-morning on the second day.
Next installment is our first encounter of a problem so far.
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