Happy New Year

Work has been continuing, and a lot has happened since Christmas.


John & Ali have been building the garage. Those of you with sharp eyes will see that the bond is different to that on the house. I love the classic "tied bond" usually found on Victorian and early 20C houses, associated with a double brick wall, as you can see clearly here. To get that effect on a single wall house, the bricks have to be cut especially, which makes it more expensive. So our house is in the usual, modern "stretcher bond" but as the garage is a double wall, we can have the tied bond.

Steve & Richard, the professional & friendly plumbers from Ian Young Plumbing have been back, installing & connecting up our waste pipes, rainwater harvester, and this wonderful hot water cylinder:

You can't see on this photo, but I have labelled all the pipes with markers so I know what they are. The water will be warmed by the solar panels on the roof, and when that is insufficient, by gas.

We have yet another timeline set up - regulars here can see if this one works!
Friday 13th Jan: Fotheringhay Forge come to pressure test the chimney - we really hope it works, because the following week, the roofers will dismantle the chimney scaffolding and tidy the tiling.
Then the scaffolding can be dismantled, so the garage can be finished.
In the week 30th Jan - 3rd Feb, the trenches can be dug so that the utilities can be connected.
We really hope this works, because we are moving out of Irthlingborough the weekend of 18th/19th February.
We do have 2 kind offers of temporary accommodation in Denford, but hope not to trouble anyone. As long as we have heating & a flushing toilet, I reckon we can manage. The Nene Leisure Centre with a swimming pool & showers is only a mile away. I am too soft to bathe in the river in all weathers, although within my memory one Denford resident never missed his daily dip by the war memorial.
Inside, we have almost finished the boarding, and Mick our electrician will come to do the second fix at the end of January.
To finish, here are pictures of the swans & geese, taken today: