The Workshop is Secure !

Saturday 23rd and Sunday24th of September 2017.

A great result for the weekend - all the door hardware fitted - all four doors and window primed. - the left hand doors covered with Tyvek and the centre doors undercoated.

The Detail -

The left hand doors are secured by heavy doors bolts into the top frame and the floor - the right half has a strong cross bolt to the other half - all done so that I can secure them when the wood rack and cross cut saw are in place.

The centre doors have very nice / strong brass bolts into the top frame and concrete - with the right half fitted with a Yale style lock for day use and a hasp and staple / padlock for security.

I found that the doors are only hardboard faced with a very / very thin veneer of ply to make them appear to be ply faced - NOT GOOD !! - I did know that they are internal fire doors.

I managed to get a good coat of oil based primer on the outside and all edges on Saturday afternoon before it rained.

The left hand doors are now protected by Tyvek paper - on the face and top edge - plus a drip edge at the bottom.

They have started to disappear already !! - great.

I glued and nailed on the moulding to the centre doors to make a feature of them and Jackie suggested high lighting the panels in the light green ( this is just undercoat ).
I think they look Good.

A nice pair of handles set them off nicely.

I plan to get at least one more undercoat on before we start with the Cuprinol Colours top coats to match the summer house.

Good progress but not quite as much as it would have been -

Very early on Sunday ( 5 am ) I shot off to Sheffield to pick up some oak laths for the seal at the top of the fascia board.
I called in at my empty flat to feed the cats and the place had been BURGLED !!!

It was ransacked - plus a broken sky light window.

It took me all morning to clear up - board up the window - meet with the Police.

Jonathan has had several items stolen which will be hard to replace.

It was quite a shock to walk into that - but I am OK now.

I did fill the car with timber from the wood store - No point in going to Derby empty !

I stripped the broken double glazed unit from the window - straightened the hinges and I will order a new double glazed unit today ( Monday ) - Sorted !

Quite a Weekend !!

I feel better that the new workshop is secure - we have been warned that there is an epidemic of shed burglaries in Derby !!

An alarm needed !!

Mike.

Back at Barry's this week - so no posts for a few days.

Lots To Do Now !

07.30 Saturday 23rd of September 2017

A dry but overcast day forecast today - Lots to do !!

Materials prepared -

Wood to finish the internal window.
Stop laths and hardware for the doors.
Insulation and OSB to finish the sheathing above the doors/window.
Timber to make the massive fascia board for the front - ( 11inches x 1.5 inches x 15 feet )
90 feet of Shiplap cladding for the front - YIPPEE !!
Primer paint for the front woodwork.
Paint for the cladding - (2 gallons !!!)
All the slate lath to fit onto the Tyvek paper as bearers for the side cladding.
20 LED downlights for internal lighting.

That lot should keep me busy for a few weeks - BETTER GET CRACKING !!

I made a start last night and fitted the decorative moulding to the centre doors - looks great - photo's later.

Mike.

The Doors Are On !!

Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th of September 2017

On Saturday afternoon I devised a method for cutting the hinge recesses in the door frames and the doors themselves - 24 recesses in total - that would be a long job with a chisel !!

I have never cut hinge recesses with a router before but I saw a clip on you tube that looked easy.
I set up my light weight hand router ( lovely) with an 8 mm dia cutter - adjusted it to about 3mm deep.

Then I cut a plywood jig that gave me the width and depth of the hinge on the frame and all the way through on the door.

It worked well !!

The back flap hinges needed about 4mm cutting off one side ( hacksaw !) and 2 new holes dilling and countersinking on each side - ( my cheap bench pillar drill did a great job )

The fire doors are heavy - so three hinges in each with 3 - 50mm screws in each half right through the casing and into the frame - solid !!

I managed to hang one door on Saturday on my own - what a struggle - a heavy door wobbling about while I marked the hinge positions !!

Sunday - I called for some help and Jackie's sister brought her partner John to help - He is a retired joiner and it made a big difference.

The hinges really worked well - allowing the doors to open right back with good clearance for the cladding and architrave - Great !!

The left hand doors were set flush with the sheathing to allow the shiplap cladding to fit flush to both the doors and the sheathing.

The right hand doors have the casing set forwards for the shiplap to butt up to it.

I am very pleased with the result - all four doors hung neatly - even gaps - no twist.
I love it when a plan comes together !

It took all weekend to get to this point - hard work !

The doors have simple turn buckles holding them from flapping around.
Next job is to fit stop laths and hardware.

From my stock of hardware - I have galv bolts for the left and door - a black jap horizontal bolt for the one next to it.
Brass bolts for the left hand centre door and nice handles for the far right hand door.

I might have a door closer for that door in Sheffield and I need to buy a good mortise dead lock for it.

Urgent job next - primer on the doors - before the ply wood suffers in the rain.

Very pleased with the result - Mike

Hinges

Thursday 14th of September 2017

I had to go to Sheffield today to visit my rented house for a chat about gas cookers ! - so it was a great opportunity to try Shaw's for the door hinges that I need.

The doors will be about 52 mm thick to start with and then I would like them to fold right back in front of  the architrave - so I am looking for hinges about 70mm wide ( from the pivot point ).

As mentioned before - B&Q have parliament hinges at £3.50 a pair which is OK - but I wanted to try Shaw's.
I was a bit shocked when they asked for £12.50 a pair - WHAT !!!

Then I spotted large back flap hinges - 70mm wide - very strong - £1.60 a pair +VAT - Great.

I will trim them to the exact width and re-drill the holes - no bother at all - worth the visit.

I then visited my unit and filled the car with small items and the belt sander - no point in going home empty from now on.
I plan to fill the car and trailer every visit from now on ( about once per week )

I know that it means that I'm filling up the unfinished workshop but I'll manage some how.

So - I'm well prepared for this weekend - finish the window - hang the doors - find door bolts and a good lock from my stock - finish the sheathing behind the front fascia board.

I had a good tidy up last night - so that I can work efficiently this weekend.
I can't wait to get cracking !!

Mike.

The Window is IN !

Sunday 10th of September 2017

A rainy Monday morning - it's hard to see but the window is in position !!

Yesterday - Sunday - I installed a double socket under the window - (just the box and cable) - then fixed the MDF panel around the window inside.

I could then cut the window lining to width - ( flush with the shiplap and the MDF ).
With that nailed in place, I installed the first double glazed unit with a bead made from door stop pine - cut down in width to a nice width for the glass.
I fixed the unit with temporary laths so that I can work out the best method of fitting the next double glazed unit behind it.
The second unit is slightly smaller than the first one - so packing strips are needed.

I will seal the first unit with acrylic sealant before I push it into place - then wipe off any sealant that squeezes out.

I pinned in place a test sample of the shiplap cladding and a 3 inch architrave that I thought would look good around the window and central door.

I still have to frame out - insulate and sheath the area behind where the fascia board will go - I have all the materials for that - no problem.

The other good news - B&Q stock the parliament hinges I need to hang the doors - £3.50 per set - I need 6 sets !!
Before I order - I will try Shaws in Sheffield - might be a bit cheaper.

Back to Barry's this week - I will post an update if I manage any evening work on the workshop.

Mike.

Widow Frame

Saturday 9th of September 2017

Confession !!
There was nothing wrong with the Tackwise staples - the genuine Stanley ones didn't work either - I found a way to open up the stapler and found an errant staple - jamming up the mechanism - DUH !!

So - early on Saturday I fitted all the paper to the last of the sheathing - Great.

To sort out the correct width for the window boards and centre door jams I tacked on a sample of the shiplap cladding under the window - then cut 12mm MDF for the internal cladding in the office
( the MDF was reclaimed from a former workshop in Sheffield )

Then I realised that I needed to insulate the window wall before I could fit the MDF - so I cut and fitted polystyrene - 2 inches thick ( also reclaimed ) to fit in between the studding - messy !

Then I realised that I need to wire a double socket on the window wall before I can fit the MDF -
I will get to that on Sunday.

I popped in some temporary screws to see what the cladding fitted like - Not Bad !!

The office will be about 6 feet square and will have a worktop desk - 2 drawer filing cabinet - computer and book shelves.
It will mean that Jackie will get the office upstairs in the house back as a single bedroom.
It will still have a small desk in it and a computer but all my stuff will be in the workshop office.
I am eager to get that bit done ASAP.

So - socket next - then fix the MDF - then cut the widow boards flush with the shiplap and the MDF - then fit the window.

Mike

More Work On The Front Wall

Tuesday 5th of September 2017

I'm back at Barry's weekdays now - still lots to do - but in the evenings I can do a bit to the workshop.

The last two evenings - I completed the window stud work - sheathed it with OSB board and fitted the lining boards to the window and door frame.

When I thought about it - the lining boards were not wide enough to be flush with the ship lap boards.

Also - I need to wrap the front with Tyvek - before I fit the lining boards.

So I bought wider - 5 inch - lining boards - removed the ones I fitted - wrapped the sheathing with Tyvek - then ran out of staples !!!

Staplers drive me nuts !!

It is very difficult to find staples for the cheap hand tackers - I have two that I can't find staples for.

So - I bought a Stanley T45 tacker.

When the first 500 staples started to run out - I bought 5000 on EBay - Tackwise - clearly marked as suitable for the T45 - do they fit ?  - NO !!!

That's why the Tyvek is still covering the window - Argh !!!

I have ordered some genuine Stanley staples - we will see if they fit !!

Mike

Weekend Trip To Blazer

Thursday 31st of August 2017 - Sunday 3rd of September.

Thursday 31st of August.

We set off from home at 4pm and arrived at North Fambridge at around 8pm - a slow journey due to heavy traffic most of the way - not too bad.

I had asked the marina to bring Blazer to the visitors pontoon and there she was - waiting for us.
One trolley full of our gear was all we needed and we quickly got set up - everything OK.

We had drinks in the cockpit with James - oil lamp on -  he works for the marina and has a big steel barge moored on the pontoon - Penny met his dog Stanley - now friends !!

Friday 1st of September

 A lovely sunny day - we took Penny to Promenade Park in Maldon for a good walk - very busy with lots of attractions for children - we explored the promenade and found a massive council facility for kids - all well used - wonderful.

I always enjoy seeing the Thames barges that moor on the Quay at Maldon - all looking great in the sunshine.

We had a short walk into town where Penny had people stopping to stroke and hug her - amazing !

We shared fish and chips for lunch - not great ! - then back on board to clean Blazer up a bit for visitors.

Patrick and his wife Lynette - joined us for a quick drink before we all went up to the Yacht Club for a Social evening.

It was our first visit to the club to meet the members - we were made very welcome and really enjoyed the evening - including the quiz !

Saturday 2nd of September - Shopping at Asda - Jackie took Penny for a long river bank walk in company with another lady and her Lurcher.

I entertained a cockpit full of people with coffee and a nice chat - catching up with all the Fambridge gossip in hot sunshine - wonderful.

Patrick was running the trot boat this weekend for the marina - taking people to their boats in the river and he took Jackie out to try and give her the confidence to use it to go out to Blazer in the river - it worked !! - no problem now - well done Patrick - many thanks.

Jackie cooked a fresh chicken for dinner - we listened to music on board - a great day all round.  

Sunday 3rd of September

A cooler cloudy day - we decided to slowly pack up / clean up and head home in the afternoon.
Lots to do at home.

A great weekend.

Mike - Jackie + Penny.