My Barn Conversion … musings in small-house, off-grid, architecture, design with smatterings of art, history and literature

Phenolic foam insulation is made by combining phenol-formaldehyde resin (note the presence of formaldehyde, a hazardous chemical and known carcinogen), a foaming agent and a hardener. When all three are mixed an exothermic reaction causes foaming followed by rapid setting. Description Usually now available as rigid boards or panels sometimes as a backing to plaster…

Similar to mineral wool insulation, glass fibre is one of the most common forms of insulation in the UK – everyone knows that rough, itchy, scratchy feel of glass fibre much beloved in our drafty attics. Whilst it has been installed in many homes for at least of couple of decades, this has not usually…

Picture with measurements of both of the living room windows – one photo two sets of measurements. Only where the two windows vary are both measurements given. Just for the record the picture is of the left side window (I think!) Click on the picture for a larger version hosted by Picasa.

Picture with measurements of the hay loft window in the bedroom window. Click on the picture for a larger version hosted by Picasa.

Ah, October – seems like a long time ago now… I’ve stalled in finishing treating the untreated oak stairs and banisters the banisters along the landing have all been whitened & waxed, but the stairs themselves along with the banisters still need finishing. I managed (mistakenly) to wax one of the posts before whitening it…

Sorry, I’ve been very slack in updating the site over the last few weeks – very busy at work (my proper job) at the moment with a system implementation. Rest assured my usual slow and steady service will be resumed shortly…

Picture with measurements of the yard side window. Click on the picture for a larger version hosted by Picasa.

I really enjoy Roger Deakin’s book ‘Wildwood: A Journey Through Trees’…

Straight in this month, no excuses and no delay… I’ve managed to spread the load on finishing the untreated oak stairs and banisters having roped TC into treating the stairs with white foundation paint prior to waxing. I completed sanding and filling last weekend and the bannisters along the landing have all been whitened &…

Somewhat in anticipation of being able to take up residence we’ve bought a great new bed for the barn. King sized, so an extra six inches for the baby to spread out in during the middle of the night whilst his mother and I teeter at opposite edges of the bed. Ours is a Snowdon…

Whilst way beyond my own humble aspirations for energy self sufficiency, the fantastically named Island Micro Grid just commissioned at the Centre for Alternative Technology is an interesting development. I was shocked to read: The developed world’s centralised electricity system wastes around 65% of energy through heat loss in power stations and transmission lines, before…

The rainy damp Summer of 2009 continues … damply … I’ve completed regrouting the grubby bathroom tiling at long last. I’ve not fully cleaned them yet as I’m trying to avoid spending any more time on tiles at least for the next few weeks. The travertine floors downstairs have been completed and look great. I’ll…