Chowney.com

Well that’s been a busy day!

Yesterday we had the insurance company send out a team to investigate a water leak underground from the mains water supply somewhere on the the property.

Turns out that its under the tarmaced drive so a temporary pipe was put in over the top to bypass the broken one.

The insurance company will then send a out a different team to put a ‘mole’ under the tarmac to burrow a hole and then run a new pipe through. The underground pipe is the black plastic one they they fitted widely in the late 70’s. It last about 25 years then becomes brittle and splits. I’ve already repaired this pipe where it runs up to the garage three times. The main worry is that it will leak where it passes under the house………. I think we’ll be informing insurers that we will not consider this claim closed unless they replace all the pipe as its no longer fit for purpose.

So, went up to see mum and dad at around 3pm. Dad was going out dancing until 1am so it was me and mum for the evening. I replaced the guttering on the back of the garage and managed to get talked into replacing a part of the lady s next door as well as it was leaking above the door. Took mum out to Rackstraws restaurant in Sandhurst after this then came back home and spent a very pleasant hour talking to my sister and nieces on Skype from Cornwall with mum in the front room on the ipad.

Well the tiling’s almost completed. The floors all done even though I could have done with one more tile. I had to use a coupe of off cuts under the washing machine to fill the gap. If anyone wants to pull it out, point to the floor and call me a rank amateur, we can go outside and discuss it……..

The big tiling machine I had on load from County tiles in Salisbury did not do the job. It kept shearing off the  tile and not following the score line down properly. I did three separate cuts but I had no confidence in its actual ability to produce a consistent cut. The tiles were around £55 per sq. m2 so I wasn’t prepared to wreck any more tiles. I took it back to the shop who said “fair enough” and gave me a full refund. Bearing in mind that they had to get it in from another place I think that this was dead fair of them.

I ended up cutting all the tiles by hand using my trusty Erebaur tile saw with the correct diamond blade. This was a long and tricky job running the tiles length-ways but the overall outcome was perfect.

The tile shop said that although the catalog referred to matching bullnose edge tiles to match the floor ones, no one in UK could get them. Not having that. Decided to contact the manufacturer of the tiles in Italy. It turns out that the skirting tiles are available so we put in an order for 13 m to finish the room off. These should be with us in mid September, so it’ll be back on by recently wrecked knees again on the kitchen floor.

Put the new sliding door back into the wall and rebuilt the door jamb and architrave. Painted both door frames.

Replaced the light pendents.

First day of my two week holiday!

.. well sort of…. when I say ‘holiday’ what I  really mean is two weeks  of working like a dog around the house wishing I was back at work where at least I was getting paid.

My nephew came down and stayed over on Saturday so that he could help out with the tiling and learn how to do it himself. Because he worked really hard I didn’t even charge him for he masterclass. So we put the majority of tiles down in the kitchen after they’d been stored in the garage since Christmas when I finished the rest of the kitchen.

So this morning I started measuring up the tiles for the cutting. Slight problem, my radial arm tile saw won’t accommodate a 1 metre tile…… After searching around the intermerweb I realised that I would need a Rubi 250 1200 radial tile saw “That’ll be one thousand pounds to you sir”.

I spoke to the tile shop in Salisbury where I go the tiles from and he has kindly arranged for me to have a loan of a manual 1500 tile splitter which he assures me will do the job. We’ll see, i’m not convinced until I use it as the tiles are quite heavily ridged as they resemble wood planking.

Going to collect it tomorrow morning so we’ll give it a go.

All being well should get the majority of it finished tomorrow.

This is me in full ’tiling god’ outfit…… I was trapped down that end of the kitchen for 16 hours whilst I waited for the adhesive to go off, wife threw buns (and abuse) at regular intervals.

Started clearing my desk and calendar for the my two weeks off starting on Monday. There’s something quite theraputic about going through the endless list of upcoming meetings and declining all the tedious stuff I usually can’t get out of.

Watched the Tour de France, seems a lot more civilised when they close the roads so the hoards of urine lobbing froggies can’t impede Lord Froomes progress up the mountains.

Put my father in laws mobility scooter on Ebay as he no longer needs it. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/131562902453?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649

Going to start clearing out the kitchen in rediness for the tiling being done on Saturday and Sunday. My nephews coming down to help out which will make the job go a lot faster.

Today is Monday, or as it’s known at work, multiple meeting Monday. Its got so bad that I didn’t even get a brew inside me until after 11:00 by which time i’d got very stressed, barked at several people, set fire to a portacabin and in a fit of pique, napalmed Cheltenham…

See, this is what happens when you don’t get the caffeine intake the body needs….

Don’t even ask me what the meetings were about, I can’t remember. I’m sure someone thought they were important at the time.

Good news is that i’ve booked two weeks off, starting next Monday, bad news is that the first two days are going to be spent tiling the kitchen floor. But the more good news is that my nephew wants to learn how to tile, so he is really lucky that this opportunity has come along when it did. He can then get first hand ‘one to one’ tuition from a master tiler.

Anyway, i’ve come home, had dinner and fed the fish. In half an hour i’m going to sit down and watch the ‘Le Tour’ highlights.

Back to the PC and time to add in a booking calendar to the wife’s website so that people can book onto her jewellery courses.

Very hot today, went down to Andover garden centre with wife, father in law and his partner. Had breakfast and bought some plants.

Got home and wife said that we needed some soil…. fairly sure we’re just been there but never mind, back in the car again, damn global warming, and back to Homebase.

Four large bags of soil and several flower pots later and we’re back home. Sit down in front of the telly and watch the Tour de France live.

Then Midsomer murders, don’t want to live anywhere near that place, be lucky to survive a week!

Spent all day helping my mate Craig move all the stuff out of his house in Farnborough, this included two motorcycles that had not turned a wheel in ten years. Tyres flat, chain rusted and wheel bearings seized. Lots of swearing and sweating, just whats needed in 26 deg C of heat.

Lobbed everything in the transit and headed off to Camberley with it, came to a screeching halt in the 10′ 8″ transit just before the 10′ 3″ bridge in North Camp.

Had to get out, back the traffic up and reverse back about 1/2 mile before Craig could execute one of his legendary 35 point turns in the road using only forward and reverse gears, some pavement and a lawn…..

There may have been a small amount of swearing around this time……

Popped in to see the parents in Camberley whilst I was up there, then steamed back to Whitchurch for a quick shower before heading over to friends in Andover for dinner. Home made Chicken Tikka, Lentil Daal and naan bread Yummo!

There may also have been cheesecake and ice cream involved…..

Helped Chris to get the Smart Car started after it was laid up for several months.