More exciting discoveries today! This, whatever it may be, was discovered in Zanna’s bedroom. Obviously they are shelves, the top one is just like the other cubby holes we have found elsewhere in the house, but the one underneath is puzzling us…
It appears to be stone, but could be concrete (although unlikely). It looks like an animal trough that has been installed in the wall. Again, any other house and this would be odd. The green paint is vivid and is similar to the green painted walls we have found in the dining room.
The shelf at the top has timbers top and bottom, and there are two other timbers in the wall above and below these two features. Also, can you see what looks like the shape of an earlier roof line, top right in the wall here???
These two shelves/cubby holes were bricked up then plastered over with cement. Very odd. And why would you cover these up? I guess the same reason why they covered up all the old fireplaces and boxed in the beams. Heathens.
George was the lucky one to make these discoveries. George has joined us this week to help get everything ready for the soda blasting due next week. He has been removing all the cement on the walls to uncover hidden timbers, interesting features like these and some more structural horrors.
The corner with what looks to be an earlier roof line inside the wall. Also another hollow corner with hole and crumbling stone. Marvellous.
Dan and his amazing laser machine. This gives him an accurate level for the installation of new floors.
Dan installing the joists for the new floor above Zanna’s bedroom.
New joist in place, just needs to be fixed in with stone and mortar.
Dan demonstrating his squirrel skills and testing the head height. It’s not bad actually.
The original timber that sits across the new bathroom ceiling still in place. Dan has raised it up on slightly on this side so it will sit under the new ceiling without a gap.
Dan explaining the structure of the joist hangars for the loft floor. The structural plans just had these joists hanging off one timber plate that was attached to the wall, but bearing in mind what we now know about the strength of this wall, Dan has modified this so that every one in three joists is actually bedded into the wall with mortar, for added strength and stability.
On this level these same steel rods are installed into the walls just as we installed them downstairs, but here they get bolted through the timber not a steel bracket. It does the same job.
Cannot wait to be able to stand on this!
Early morning skip shift change. 7am!!!
Meanwhile Tom has been breaking through to our neighbours house! That’s quite a gap!
He has repaired and rebuilt, where necessary, the back and right hand walls, whilst also rebuilding it in our neighbours house.
The finished product and we now have a hearth so we can use it! The hearth stone came from one of the footpaths in our garden.
Cat continues to rake out the dining room walls with her new toy (a pickaxe) and very achy arm muscles, she’s kept at it all day though!
Sitting down on the job?!?
Some of the pointing having been raked out in the front wall. This took George about an hour. Just saying. This is ready for Tom to start installing more steel rods.
Tom embedding the steel rods into the channels cut into the joints. This is the part of the wall that the internal wall is being tied into from inside. Tom has brought the steel rods right through and extended them along the walls outside, for added strength and stability.
Section showing the difference after the damaging cement mortar has been raked out of the joints ready for the steel rods and lime pointing. This is going to be a mammoth task as all the external walls have been pointed with cement…
That roof line is exactly what I hoped you would find, and was disappointed you hadn’t yet – the pitch points towards what I have always thought – the cottage must have been thatched at some point, I think your top windows may have been dormers! I can’t explain the box in the wall though!