Chateau de Firbeix

Finally the 7m3 of concrete arrived for the gîte floor. We had to cut down some bushes so the lorry could get around the corner and then the driver was not happy about putting the supporting "feet" (36 ton lorry!) near the foundations of the chateau so we laid tubing instead of using the long arm. The concrete lorry arrived 45 minutes later and parked behind it. I had the job of moving the tube around the rooms distributing the concrete while Dan raked it around to make it semi-level for Luke for vibrate with the improvised tool and then smooth And a bonus video of the guys in action...

Dan and I finished fixing the deck boards today just in time before the extended family arrive for a 10 day vacation. 1,400 screws later... Luke and his girlfriend Bella cooling off during some very hot days The deck lights are great but a little difficult to show on a photo Last job will be to fit the metal fencing around the deck and connect it to the existing fencing for security.

We finished the gîte kitchen floor today by laying a sheet of heavy duty plastic liner on top of the insulation and then the metal mesh. I'm searching for concrete firms that can delivery 7m3 for Friday as next week the extended family are coming for a vacation so I'd prefer this job is done and drying.  Along with the kitchen, we'll also put in the concrete slab for the adjoining bedroom and some of the bathroom.

A very busy day! We cleared all the rubble from the gîte floor (from the block wall we removed and the door opening I added for the PMR bathroom). We must have filled 15 wheelbarrow loads for a skip I have coming this week. Then we shipped in 10 or so wheelbarrow loads of hardcore so we end up with 20cm below the slab top (the bottom of the 2 doors on the left and the top of the foundation on the right). This will allow 10cm of insulation and 10cm of concrete. Then finally we laid and glued the insulation,  extruded polystyrene panels,  125x60cm by  10cm deep. They fit like tongue and groove with glue to keep them in place. We now need to lay the thick plastic sheeting for moisture protection then the steel mesh/rebar and we're all set for the concrete to be delivered. We'll get this room (the kitchen/diner) and the bedroom done at the same time. I will do the bathroom floor by hand (mixer) as the slab needs to be lower than the other rooms as it is a wet room and so the ...