HOME  »  BUILDING A SOLAR HOUSE IN FRANCE - WEEK 4 - crane and monomur walls go up  (16 Slides)     [Page 1 of 1] :: Jump To  
  Up one level  
Week 5 began on the 23rd April with the monomur walls complete and some of the blockwork retaining walls. Weather was exceptionally good all week with temperatures quite cool each morning but rising to 27 degrees Celsius in the afternoons. No dramas this week, thank you.
After my initial scepticism about the crane, Francis was keen to prove how it speeded up the job, although by this stage I needed little proof, judging by the last weeks progress.
On Monday there were 3 on site and a lot of heavy blocks to move.
  Week 5 began on the 23rd April with the monomur walls complete and some of the blockwork retaining walls. Weather was exceptionally good all week with temperatures quite cool each morning but rising to 27 degrees Celsius in the afternoons. No dramas this week, thank you.  
  After my initial scepticism about the crane, Francis was keen to prove how it speeded up the job, although by this stage I needed little proof, judging by the last weeks progress.  
  On Monday there were 3 on site and a lot of heavy blocks to move.  
I was on site every day using our Trafic van as my office, doing detail drawings to explain things for Francis, making the occasional cups of tea and coffee.
There was a momentary change of design to accommodate a little error in the positioning of a window. The advantage of being client, architect, quantity surveyor, and clerk of works (maitre d'ouvrage), is that meetings to consider changes of design are quite quick, take place mostly in my head, with occasional calls on my mobile phone to Margaret (thanks to Uda for the phone). Margaret usually says No, but I have to occasionally overrule her, having a majority vote.
Having completed the external walls by Wednesday, Francis began to lay the internal load-bearing walls. .
  I was on site every day using our Trafic van as my office, doing detail drawings to explain things for Francis, making the occasional cups of tea and coffee.  
  There was a momentary change of design to accommodate a little error in the positioning of a window. The advantage of being client, architect, quantity surveyor, and clerk of works (maitre d'ouvrage), is that meetings to consider changes of design are quite quick, take place mostly in my head, with occasional calls on my mobile phone to Margaret (thanks to Uda for the phone). Margaret usually says No, but I have to occasionally overrule her, having a majority vote.  
  Having completed the external walls by Wednesday, Francis began to lay the internal load-bearing walls. .  
Again some minor changes in design were required to acommodate the standard sizes of internal 'briques' to avoid too much cutting of them.
This was the stage reached on Friday morning, standing in the studio corner by the sink.
Another little change of design was the addition of a small window in the 'cave' . This space is not supposed to be 'habitable' and is not included in the allowable area of the house as it is only 1m80 high. But it can be used for storage and as this is supposed to be an ecological house, if it did not have a window, then every time one used it, an electric light would have to be turned on. So, I think I'm justified in giving it a little natural daylight to avoid pouring more carbon into the atmosphere !
  Again some minor changes in design were required to acommodate the standard sizes of internal 'briques' to avoid too much cutting of them.  
  This was the stage reached on Friday morning, standing in the studio corner by the sink.  
  Another little change of design was the addition of a small window in the 'cave' . This space is not supposed to be 'habitable' and is not included in the allowable area of the house as it is only 1m80 high. But it can be used for storage and as this is supposed to be an ecological house, if it did not have a window, then every time one used it, an electric light would have to be turned on. So, I think I'm justified in giving it a little natural daylight to avoid pouring more carbon into the atmosphere !  
The North West basement wall.
The next series of shots are all taken from the same position each day. This was Monday morning.
Tuesday afternoon.
  The North West basement wall.  
  The next series of shots are all taken from the same position each day. This was Monday morning.  
  Tuesday afternoon.  
Wednesday morning.
Thirsday morning
Thursday afternoon
  Wednesday morning.  
  Thirsday morning  
  Thursday afternoon  
Friday morning. Francis and gang had to go off to another job, and because the floor beams and 'hourdis' had not beendelivered, did not expect ot be back before next Wednesday (Tuesday 1st May is a holiday).
  Friday morning. Francis and gang had to go off to another job, and because the floor beams and 'hourdis' had not beendelivered, did not expect ot be back before next Wednesday (Tuesday 1st May is a holiday).  
BluPlusPlus skin for JAlbum 5.1 created by Armond Avanes
Album last updated on Apr 27, 2007 - 07:17 PM