My Barn Conversion

Having spent a fair amount of time over the last few years staring at a wall with trowel in hand pointing I’ve built up some opinions on mortar, pointing and stonework and how the three should mesh together (tragic I know!). I’m no fan of overly fussy, decorative pointing and neither is my new favoriteContinue reading Pointing opinions

I discovered a great source of information on the maintenance and restoration of old buildings on the new Maintenance Matters website. The site has been produced by Cadw, the ‘official guardian of the built heritage of Wales’. Short publications on such subjects as lime-washing, repointing and replacing sash cords are freely available and well worthContinue reading Maintenance [really does] matter

Oh dear … the June update passed me by, so here in brief and from some distance (19th July) is a summary of progress… I have completed under-coating all the windows twice with ‘eco friendly’ Farrow and Ball paint. Floor laying was slowed by my inflamed knee. My right knee stopped working altogether at oneContinue reading Building Progress ~ June 2010

I keep mislaying these so I thought I’d put them on the site. With hindsight (wonderful thing that it is) I would have put all these types of things – room sizes, dimensions, plans and diagrams on the site way-back-when and kept them all in one place. Next time! Room sizes in square metres are:Continue reading Room sizes

A strong yet light insulator, foamed glass is suitable for load bearing applications especially those demanding water and vapour resistance. Description Foamed glass insulation is made from (usually) recycled glass that is mixed with carbon and then heated to very high temperatures. Upon heating the carbon oxidises and forms bubbles in the resultant stone-like material.Continue reading Insulation ~ Foamed Glass

Here I’ll consider the actual costs of converting your barn and making it habitable. The Conversion So we’ve safely purchased our pile of stone, slate and wood and it’s quietly decaying away in the corner of a farm-yard somewhere, how much will it cost to convert it to a place a person (rather than aContinue reading How much does a barn conversion cost? Part 3