6 months on........

The new deck

Our newly surfaced driveway


The garden takes shape

Its now some 6 months since we moved in to Wee House and we both love living here. The house layout works well and most things seem to be living up to expectations. We did have a couple of niggles - the cistern in the shower room had an annoying habit of continual flushing. Having had the original plumber come back to check it out and advise that "all would be well as I've taken it apart and cleaned it" only to find that the problem continued. After several months I asked another plumber to look at it and he advised that it was due to a build up of limescale on the seal. I cleaned the seal as suggested but nothing changed - it still refused to work properly. In a fit of pique one day I took the cistern all apart and found that the plunger button on the top of the cistern was on a ratchet and that by adjusting this I could stop the problem all together. Plumbers - who needs 'em!

~
We've also become a little irritated with the water sprinkler system which acts as an unintended reservoir for the cisterns and outside tap. Every time the recycled water is used the sprinkler system goes into a symphony of gurgling and glugging noises as it disgorges water to the requesting device, only to be followed by the rainwater pump surging into life to restore the 105 lbs per square foot pressure that the system demands. Think we might look at a redesign of that. Of course the other problem with the rainwater harvesting system is that it hasn't rained for months so we're using chargeable mains water. Being green isn't necessarily cost effective.
~
With the bad weather over winter little was done to the house/garden until March, which happened to coincide with my retirement. Since then we've designed and laid out paths to the rear of the house, laid a base for and erected a shed behind the garage, and planted various plants, shrubs and other stuff (I'm not the green fingered type).
~
One of the biggest projects has been the building of the deck which was completed the week following the Easter break. This has made a tremendous difference to the garden and will allow us to plan a little more of the area to the side of the house. Mind you, the birds seem to like the deck a lot and the trouble with that is - bird poo - lots of it on the deck and railings. Still as an idle retired person, what else have I to do but clean bird poo off the deck.
~
Another side effect of the dry weather has been the dust thrown up by traffic passing the house. Our windows and door at the front of the house have been covered by dust for several months but it had always been our intention to have the 100 yard driveway resurfaced. With no apparent likelihood of more heavy traffic to any of the houses at Brookvale, we arranged for a company to fill the holes and resurface the drive. Much to our surprise, all the neighbours agreed to have their respective bits done too, so during May, the complete drive from the public road to the far end of Brookvale was transformed over a two day period. It looked marvellous and transformed the whole appearance of Brookvale. Would you believe that on the afternoon that the drive had been finished, the owners of number 1 Brookvale (absent landlords) had arranged for a tracked digger to carry out some work on their back garden. So with fresh tar still setting this idiot tracked the digger down the drive, chewing up the surface where he turned on the corners. It took me an hour to restore the drive to something like it short-lived former glory. We were assured that when the work was finished the digger would be tracked back up the lawn. Guess what? It went back up the drive. More work to cover up the track marks. Bless 'em!
~
For the future, it will be the garden that receives most of our effort as we generally move clockwise round the house, taking our time so make sure we (Jan) get the planting as right as we can, given sun, shade, wind, and other factors to consider.
~
Jan and Rog (enjoying Brookvale)

Nearly there now

With contracts exchanged on Friday for our house in Clifton, we are set to move into Brookvale this coming week. We've spent the last few days gradually moving "stuff" to Brookvale - filling up cupboards, hanging pictures, and generally getting Wee House sorted out. With just the bed, mattress, chest of drawers and washing machine to go to Brookvale, we have hired a local man with a van who rejoices under the trading name of Steptoe and Son (probably better than one called Trotter's International Trading Company). Whilst there are still some things we need - coffee table, side tables, toiler roll holders, coat hooks, etc, the basic needs are all well catered for. I expect we'll have another shopping trip at the end of the week.
~
At long last our rainwater harvesting man has given a date to swap the pump for an uprated version - Thursday 14th, so I'll then be able to get onto our sprinkler company to finish the installation and commission the system.
~
We are still waiting for Andy our electrician to come and resolve a couple of problems we have with the electrics at Brookvale. We've also discovered that the boiler seems to have a mind of its own and refuses to be controlled by the timer, so Andy will need to check that out too. Regardless of this erratic boiler behaviour, the house does heat up very quickly and retain the heat so the high levels of insulation seem to be doing their job.
~
I guess the blog will have soon run its course both as an a means of informing everyone of progress but also as an outlet for my frustrations. However, there is one final chapter to come and that involves our sprinkler company so look out for the posting in a few weeks time.
~
I'm sure we'll be seeing all of you at Brookvale over the coming weeks once we've settled in.
~
Relieved of Brookvale

I finally explode......

Somewhere to sit now

Scatter cushions and red doors

It had to be Anglian Water that would finally cause me to get more than a tad angry. I had received a call from a rather curt sounding young lady from the aforesaid monopoly to arrange an appointment to fit the meter. Wednesday was the date offered, between 12.00 and 17.00. "No they couldn't make it a specific time" she said. I explained that the house was unoccupied and that I would need to be telephoned 10 minutes before their man arrived. This was duly noted. I made sure I was at Brookvale at 12.00 on Wednesday anyway and worked my way through a few of the remaining jobs. At 15.30 the an Anglian Water van pulled up outside - just as well I was there as I hadn't received the promised phone call. My heart sank - it was the same over-officious fellow that took such delight in refusing to connect us the last time. Still, no matter, I've got the installation approved so no worries surely? WRONG! He insisted that I had not passed the inspection because the water regulation team manager was not able to do this. He said that all the water regulation team could do was to pass the rainwater harvesting aspects. He then asked how we had solved the shower hose problem so I took him to the bathroom and showed him the pathetic little hose lying by the taps. "That's no good" he said. "you haven't got a clip to stop you leaving the shower hose in the bath. You need a double check valve in the tap otherwise you could get bathwater being sucked back into the supply." Now my father had a favourite saying that he "got fighting mad" and I do know what he meant. Well, I laid into this fellow and covered a lot of ground before he suddenly backed down and agreed that his comment about the bathwater back flow was only for our benefit as it couldn't get into the mains supply (as I had pointed out, most politely you understand, that we had a double check valve on the main supply into the house). Of he toddled up the drive in the pouring rain (there is some justice at times) and fitted the meter. On his return he smugly told me that he thought someone had tampered with the trickle valve that had stopped us getting full mains pressure, declaring that this was a serious matter and that Anglian Water had considered prosecution in the past when this had happened. I asked to see the offending valve and he showed me a slightly rough edge in the plastic. It could so easily have been poor manufacture. I pointed out that there was little point me getting a slightly faster trickle (which is all we had received) instead of a feeble trickle and that if anyone was going to tamper with it they would make sure they got a decent flow of water surely. He didn't really answer this but proceeded to regale me with tales of how he had refused to sign off various developments including one where I got chapter and verse about the tampering with valves, broken water mains, and even access issues - how unprofessional.
~
Our sofas arrived from John Lewis on Tuesday and after a little jiggling have been positioned where we think they will stay (subject to management correction of course). The living room still looks a little bare but with the curtains due to be fitted on Thursday 7th October, it should look much better.
~
We had filled all the bookcases as we transferred books from Clifton so decided that we needed some more shelving. This called for another trip to IKEA where we duly went on Wednesday. Neither Jan nor I fancied the meatballs so opted for chicken (Jan) and fish (Rog). The fact that Jan ended up with fish too is one of life's little mysteries but sadly we were both disappointed as eating the filling imprisoned by the breadcrumbs was more akin to eating a cushion than fish! Anyway, another two shelving units, various containers and a display cabinet were soon on their way to the car park on a trolley with a mind of its own. We just hoped the 2 metre long cabinet pack would fit in the car, but with a bit of seat movement and Jan relegated to the back seat, it all fitted in. And no, Jan didn't tell me how to drive from her back seat.
~
Two of the items we bought from IKEA are red (very red) doors that fit into the shelving units to turn them into little cupboards. We had decided, perhaps rashly, that we should paint the door to the cupboard at the end of the mezzanine in a similar bright red. Because the wood used for the door is not as smooth as it might be we opted for a satin finish as this would be less likely to show blemishes than full gloss. Trouble is, red is not generally available in satin so we've struggled to come up with any paint. My last hope is that our local builders merchants will be able to produce something on their colour mixing machine, although the look of bewilderment on the face of the hooded young person (who it seems is still training to be a human being as well as a sales assistant) did not inspire me that they could deliver. Hopefully Clever Trevor will be back next week - he's the man who lists Methuselah as a friend on Facebook and knows everything about everything.
~
Talking of red, we've ordered a red glass splashback for the wall behind the hob in the kitchen with a view to using the same coloured glass as upstands around the rest of the worktop area. We're just waiting to make sure the splashback looks OK before we order the upstands.
~
With insurance in mind I was conscious that we didn't have lockable stays on the top hinging windows so checked what was available with the suppliers of the casement stays. Although very expensive, I had no choice but to buy them and they arrived at work. On opening the pack I found that there were no keys with them. Now I would have thought if you're spending £140 + on seven locks that a key or two would be something you would expect. At the very least you would think that you would be told you would need the keys as they were not part of the lock itself. I'm now waiting to find out how much the postage is going to cost for two £2 keys.
~
Our alarms man was persuaded to come on Sunday and after a long day has finished the installation so we feel much more comfortable about leaving more and more of our possessions at Brookvale. Just got to learn how the dam thing works now.
~
Following a visit from the couple that are buying our house in Clifton and their requirement to move on the 14th October , we have decided to move on Tuesday 12th October as it gives us a bit more time to move and clean up Manor Close. We'll be taking "stuff" to Brookvale over the course of the next 8 days so all we really need to move on "the day" will be a few items of bedroom furniture that we're keeping.
~
The couple who can't believe that after all this time they're actually going to move in!

Ding bloody dong!

Ready for lunch

Ready for guests!

At long last, after our third inspection, Anglian Water have finally approved our plumbing and promised to give us mains pressure - they can't say when, but at least we know everything is now as they want it. The inspector said to me that the new sign by the outside tap was so much better (dark gungy green and not very clear with its black type). He did not share my view that the previous sign was far easier to read and gave a much clearer warning with its red type on a white background. He also said that what we did after he left was up to us (in reference to the shower hose). I was well ahead of him on that one!

~

All we need now is the sprinkler system to be commissioned and we're done with the formalities. Unfortunately our rainwater harvesting man has let us down rather badly as he said he hadn't given us any priority in responding on the pump replacement. He's not kidding - its nearly four weeks ago since I spoke to him about it. Its now five days after my latest call and he's still not provided the promised quote. However, I have to admit that its not a priority for me at the moment as we need to get the rest of the house ready for us to move in since our buyers are now gently pushing for a moving date from Clifton.

~

We've spent most of the week getting the large store cupboard (at the end of the mezzanine) ready so that we can start to fill it with toot - sorry - useful stuff that we don't use very often (at all?). With a covering of our favourite material - Glasstex - two coats of white emulsion, an offcut of carpet from our local store, and some simple skirting, its all ready except for the door. This is being painted in the garage and should be ready for fitting by the middle of next week.

~

I called out reluctant electrician - Andy - during the week to ask him to resolve the non-working outside lights, and the movement sensitive porch lights which seem to have a mind of their own as they come on during the day (sometimes), and not always at night. As ever he promised to come at the weekend. As ever, he didn't show! Similarly, I called Michael. our alarms man, during the week and he promised to come at the weekend and finish the installation. He didn't show either. What is it with these guys?

~

With a delivery of the studio bed, dining table, and chairs from John Lewis on Friday, Wee House is looking more like a home now. The study/guest room is now complete with bookshelves, books, studio couch, desk and chair, whilst the living room has the table and chairs roughly in the right place but subject to change by management (Jan's still deciding on the exact position).

~

Generally speaking we're at the end of the jobs inside the house now - mainly those little things left to do that didn't seem important when there were more significant things, but now need finishing before we move more furniture in. There are several bits of "touching up" of paintwork, for example, and we're still deciding on the colour of the splashback and upstands for the kitchen. I favour a clarety sort of colour - not too different from the red in the bathroom.

~

John Lewis will be delivering the two sofas on Tuesday which completes the major furniture purchases. We'll have to call the curtain suppliers to see when these will be ready as this will make such a difference when they are in place.

~

Jan is busy sorting out Manor Close - looks like the charity shops will benefit, including it would seem, possibly receiving most of our furniture. I called our local auction house during the week and was told that yew reproduction furniture, of which we have a lot, is the most difficult to sell. In their judgement we'd be lucky to get £50 for the lot. As "the lot" includes an extending table with four chairs, corner display cabinet with glazed upper door, another corner cupboard, large coffee table, two side tables with drawers, two 2 seater sofas (M&S Charlotte in green), two display cabinets (dark oak finish from Locke's of London), and two pine wardrobes, then that strikes me as quite a lot for £50! So, if anyone reading this wants some furniture for a small donation to a favourite charity, then let us know. Only thing is, it needs to go quickly.

~

Jan & Rog

Getting there

New garage door, new car, new fence, new gravel

Darrell our affable garage door man called to say that the door had been delivered and he wanted to fit it on Wednesday. This makes the garage almost finished now - just a final coat of paint on the door posts. Fortunately, Darrell took the old, very heavy doors away with him so we didn't have to get another skip just yet. The new "up and over" door is much easier to use and looks the part with its pseudo oak finish. One good thing - it is a plastic coating so doesn't require painting.

I'm struck by the fact that we have what could be a beach and a boat is poking its nose out from behind the garage!

I called Darren, our plumber, on Thursday as it suddenly occurred to me that he had keys for the old garage doors which were no longer attached to the garage. "Ah" he said, " we were talking about you yesterday - saying that we ought to do the work on the rainwater harvesting system". He duly promised to come on Friday to fit the stop cock and drain plug that Anglian Water required. This he did and also lagged the pipe as demanded by AW. We're now ready for another inspection. I wonder what daft rules they will have dreamt up since last I saw them?

I'm a little puzzled not to have heard from Roger McEvoy, our usually reliable rainwater harvesting specialist. Our last communication was over three weeks ago when he suggested that he could fit the new pump (required by the sprinkler company) in three weeks time. I emailed him on Wednesday evening and have not received a reply. It does seem that we are doomed with this darned sprinkler system. Better call him on Monday and find out what's happening.

We heard from John Lewis that our sofas will be delivered next week, and that coincides with the delivery of a sofa bed that we ordered from John Lewis this week, together with a dining table and six chairs. So we'll soon be able to relax in comfort, eat in a civilised manner (well, as near as we can), and offer our guests a bed to sleep in.

I've been working on the cupboard at the end of the guest room - filling up the gaps between the plaster board, and sealing the plasterboard surface so that I can apply the Glasstex wall covering. I've also started making the rather odd shaped door for the cupboard. Hopefully both tasks will be finished next week.

The postman delivered a letter from Anglian Water today - fume, rage, rant, etc! This was from the billing department who seemed to be under the impression that we were using water that we weren't paying for. The letter was addressed to the occupier. Can you believe it? After all the grief they've given us, the cheeky so and sos are now suggesting that firstly they don't know who we are, and secondly that we are taking free water - I wish! I've drafted several replies in my mind, none of which is overly polite. Perhaps I will be more tolerant by Monday when I do write the letter.

With the two surveys on Manor Close apparently OK we now await news from our buyers with a moving date. We are aiming for an early to mid October completion which should tie in nicely with our schedule. Its really the curtains and blinds that we need news of - promised in six weeks or less three weeks ago. As long as there's no delay on these we should be OK.

Jan & Rog

A step nearer

The air pressure test was carried out today and I had no idea at all whether we would pass. For some reason the building surveyor had set a target of 7 when the normal pass is 10 (I don't know what these numbers mean). Mark, the tester, was a very jovial fellow and he set up his equipment - big screen in the utility room door with a fan in the middle, and various gadgets attached to the screen including small bore plastic piping that he ran into the house and also outside (to gauge the internal pressure created against the outside pressure). The fan was sucking air out of the house (the opposite of what I expected) which meant that you could feel the draughts created. The biggest culprits were an area behind our en suite bathroom - presumably coming up from the void under the floor, two spotlights in the ceiling, and the general area of the fireplace where air was coming in thick and fast from the chimney. After about 15 minutes the figures produced were input to the inevitable lap top, and voila - 6.04 was the result - a pass by a good margin. Mark issued the certificate and I breathed a sigh of relief.
~
Just Anglian Water to sort out now. On that subject, I had a further phone call from Anglian Water who now insist on another visit to check the remaining issues. I've solved the shower problem by buying a 1 metre shower hose which just about allows the shower head to be attached to the rail, but however hard I try I cannot make it reach the toilet bowl. With the new correctly coloured sign for the outside tap now provided, it only remains for Darren, our plumber, to fit the stopcock and drain plug in the garage. That is unless Anglian Water come up with some more ridiculous ideas. By the way, thank you to Steven who came up with the idea of forged (Photoshop produced) photos, but as Anglian Water now insist on a visit rather than me sending photos, I'm afraid its a non-starter.
~
Other than spreading 3 tons of gravel over the parking area, we have nothing else to report, except that our trellis arrived today so I've put that up. (Photos next week)
~
We're off to Devon for a long weekend and a rest. The smell of bacon and eggs for breakfast beckons and I reckon we can both afford to tuck in as we've lost so much weight.
~
Jan & Rog

Anglian Water Update - polite words fail me

I know how Munch felt now!

~

Well, he came, he failed us, and he left! Apparently, the clip on the shower hose is not sufficient as we can undo the shower head, pull the hose through the clip and then put the hose down the toilet. Furthermore, the sign on the outside tap (declaring it to be unfit for drinking) is the wrong colour! Give me strength.

~

What really irritates is that none of these requirements seem to be known outside the monopolistic walls of Anglian Water. Our plumber knows nothing about the rules, nor does the bathroom fitter, or indeed the supplier of all the bathroom stuff. Indeed, many manufacturers are making items that apparently do not comply with the British Standard that covers this area.

~

Anglian Water have said they will supply me with a suitable green and black label (ours is red and black) but the suggestion about turning the bath round so the taps are at the other end produced my most withering of looks. Other options we could consider are of course moving the toilet or fitting a shower screen between the bath and the toilet bowl. Alternatively, we could drill into the new tiles and fit some awful clip to hold the hose away from the offending toilet. Do they really think that we want to rip out the bathroom and have it refitted, or damage the tiles?

~

At least we have the concession that another visit is not necessary as long as we send photos of the changes we've made showing we now comply.

~

Having thought about a purpose-made clip for the shower hose, or removing the shower altogether (but would they accept this?), plan B is to check the hose length of the existing hose and go for a shorter one. I'm tempted to make one that's six inches long and looks plain stupid just to make the point.

~

Latest update - another call from Anglian Water who now say that we need another stopcock and drain plug on the top-up mains feed to the rainwater tank. Will it ever end? Still, its not their money they are talking about - its ours!

~

Thoroughly hacked off of Clifton