Weekend work - the extension has windows

In fine sunshine today, finishing touches were put to the windows and sliding doors, installed yesterday in driving rain and cold wind.
The triple windows on the south facing wall went in first to give some protection from the weather, then the east window and finally the 3 metre sliding doors, so the 'garden room' now looks out at the garden rather than being open on 3 sides to the garden.
Double glazed windows and doors should provide light and heat through the year, with plenty of openings to allow a free flow of air should the mythical hot summer arrive.
Radiators will be heated from the geothermal heat pump :see http://www.iceenergy.co.uk/
- we've been running this system in 'Orchard Lee' since we built it in 2005 and are very enthusiastic about the benefits of obtaining heat from the ground.
Because we built 'Orchard Lee' from scratch, we were able to install underfloor heating and the 400m of pipes ran out through the next field; here at 'Eastern Lee' we are having to work with an existing building and much smaller grounds. Here, the ground source pipes will go in vertically in looped sections like large radiators, each section being at least one metre below ground level. (see the photo of the pipes stacked up waiting for the digger). As we're retaining existing floorboards and have to keep the system simple, we've opted for conventional radiators. With all the increased insulation inside and cladding outside, we hope the house will be much more efficient thermally, and need relatively modest heat.

In the coming week, we aim to start tiling the main bathroom, finish plastering downstairs and start upstairs, and solve the riddle of exactly how to fit in all the elements of the bathrooms. IF the weather allows, the slates will go on, but meanwhile there's plenty to do inside.

Rain stops play - but only on the roof

If the view on a wet day in March, is this good, how much better will it be on a fine day?

The key to a 'green' heating system sits in the garden - the pipes for our geothermal system from Ice Energy, piled amongst the daffodils. There wasnews last night from our digger driver who can come to 'sow' them next Wednesday.

Ten minutes clear and dry was the best today, but inside three teams worked steadily and much was achieved.

The plasterers rocked on downstairs. If plastering was an Olympic sport this team would be medal winners. Upstairs, there was awareness that the plasterers have one room only left to do downstairs so the plasterboard was steadily fitted.

When it was built in 1931, there was little insulation. 77 years later there are now substantial layers being fitted which will make a dramatic difference, cutting heat loss in winter, and keeping the house cool, in the apparently unlikely event of a hot summer.

No matter how neatly the drawings show bathrooms fitting nicely into the space upstairs, in reality, trying to fit a shower in restricted space and under reduced headroom of the eaves, has been an exercise in ingenuity. A quadrant shower, nestled up to the central chimney breast does the job. The enclosure fits with one cm to spare - and we've found satin glass so our hard water wont leave visible ugly limescale. And yes, a trip to the loo can be achieved without cracking your head! All the pipework is now in place. The twin bedroom will be en suite.

At the western end upstairs, will be a bedroom with a six foot bed, and in the room, as befits such splendid views from the newly fitted Velux - there will be THE bath. It's freestanding and positioned so that bathers can admire views to the Downs and Brighstone Forest. From the other bedroom window, there are distant views to the West Wight and Hurst Castle. Likewise from the cloakroom window the other side of the chimney breast - so why put in obscured glass?

Today the walls went in, so we can now say there is a cloakroom!

Thanks to good, kind weather great strides were made today, after yesterday's wind and downpours made work on the roof unsafe. Even our less athletic staff member was up on the new extension felting and battening all day. With weather like this tomorrow, the slates will be piling on.

The new little patio-to-be at the back of the house is proving a real sun trap - just the place to spend the lunch break, so likely to be a great place for our holiday visitors, even outside the summer months.

Here's the present stage, with the new, as yet empty, sewage system well protected against frost with bales of straw. Once there's a volume of water and effluent, the protection wont be necessary.

Meanwhile, look beyond the sewage system to the new door leading out of the bedroom onto the patio. It was sad to lose the lovely sash window ( which will be reused elsewhere) but great to gain so much light and be able to walk straight out onto the patio. One of the main ways we hope to improve the energy efficiency of the house is by insulation and by reducing heat loss. A double glazed door should cut down drafts and heat loss.

The new extension - with windows on three sides to capture the countryside views, light and heat, is in the right of the picture.

Tomorrow, more velux windows in the roof - I hope.

Plastering is go!

Today, despite it being Easter Monday our team of plasterers started work. In order to bring the house up to our demanding standards it has been gutted and we are now to the point where we can start plastering the downstairs rooms, after a number of new windows and doors have been added to make the most of the natural light, especially on the south side.

Our electrician is just finishing the 'first fix' of the electrics. As soon as the rooms have been plastered we are looking forward to fitting up the lights, all of which have been chosen to accept low-energy light bulbs, and still look good.

Just a quick word about what we've already done. The picture is of our sewage digester. Because we're out in the glorious countryside we're not on mains drainage. In the past this has meant either a septic tank, or cesspit, neither of which is a very eco-friendly option. Instead of either of these options we have chosen to install a sewage bio-digester. How one of these works is explained here .

The bio-technology in these means that we are protecting the local water courses and quietly and odourlessly breaking down our waste, on site.

The view in the picture has already changed substantially. We have removed the heavy, ugly and out of character concrete tiles and replaced them with European slate. The insulation in our modern renovation is looked after by the boarding installed within the roof. As the tiles were coming off we've chosen to install Velux windows into the southern side of the house, once again bringing further light into the building.

The coming few days should see the new roof finished and the roof on the extension finished - we've not even mentioned that yet!

Eastern Lee - our new project - new windows going in

Our eco-house in Wellow has new windows!

What was once a single floor bungalow, with a huge and sadly neglected roof space, ready with windows, is developing in to our newest, premium accommodation.

The plasterers start tomorrow.

Unlike much of the UK the, weather over Easter on the IOW has been mostly fine!