Renovation Project - Sorry seafood risotto all is forgiven

Renovation Project - Sorry seafood risotto all is forgiven

John wakes up much better, and we have a ponder on his bout of ‘food poisoning’ which we now think is more likely to have been caused by insulation and crawling about in a loft space with over a hundred years worth of mice droppings! Just wish we had realised this before he let everyone think I had poisoned him again!

This is also a warning for anybody else doing this type of project ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS wear a face mask when in the loft or using rock wool insulation, no matter how uncomfortable it is or how quick the job is! And always wash your hands and clothes thoroughly.

Even though John wore the mask and all clothes were dumped outside straight after and he used lots of anti bacterial hand wash he still felt bad (we are also still arguing over whether I poisoned him or whether it was the loft)

We go to the building supplies to buy the wood and plaster board for the new wall for the new bathroom, we pile as much as we can on to the roof rack, this will take 2 journeys as we need so much.

Back at the house John begins to build the wall, he puts up a simple frame made of 3 x 2 timber and puts the door in place.

This makes the landing space seem very small, yet before the walls came down this was one of the best areas, because it was so big, it is amazing how perceptions change when you have got used to having no walls, it’s not until somebody else comes and visits and sees it with new eyes that you really realise just what it is like.

It is also exciting as this is one of the jobs where you get to see quick results, we have been working really hard and yet there is not a big difference as the work has been all hidden, I like it when you see bathrooms appear or walls appear from nothing.

We also spend some time testing out the plumbing, to make sure that 3 showers will work at the same time, but as I point out this will never happen, one shower is ours and we can make sure that we only shower when the house is empty, we also decide that the immersion tank will go outside in the utility as this will mean less distance for the hot water to travel (and will also give me more wardrobe space, result!!!!!)

We find that 2 showers can be used at the same time and a toilet can be flushed with no problems but you can’t turn on the taps, but as I point out how many people are going to be in the bathroom using all 3 together at exactly the same time, I know I would not be impressed in any house if someone uses the toilet 

whilst I am in the shower! So our fears are not really founded.

We also discuss whether to have 2 separate water heating systems and decide that we will have both systems, so that the water heating can be switched from the electric water heater to the gas heater as required. This means that we can heat the tank over night (there is a cheaper rate of electricity over night in France) and if we are ever to run out of hot water we can easily switch the system over to have instant hot water from the gas system whilst we wait for the electric system to heat up.

At some point we will assess which is the most cost effective form of water heating and let you know.