|
Post by Deleted on May 14, 2015 1:19:41 GMT
I'm even more sick with envy than before....
Superb execution of style and aesthetics that fit the terrain perfectly.
When is the house warming party?
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on May 29, 2015 18:51:54 GMT
casi, sorry, missed your post as it was first over the page. The house warming will be...... errrrr...... when can you come?
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on May 29, 2015 18:52:04 GMT
Slight update - In the courtyard we left a space for a tree and debated what to put in there. Eventually, today, we've had a Mulberry tree delivered and planted. And it was a comedy of errors. The garden centre we got it from told us we needed to dig a hole 1mx1mx1m. They would deliver the tree and enough soil and stuff to fit it in. We dug the hole but as we got down about 80cm we found the old concrete base to the courtyard. We then had to punch through this to get to some earth. Fortunately the concrete was just 20cm thick so we ended up with the one metre depth.
A man with a van came with the tree we had selected. Parked up, opened the doors and I peered in at the tree laying on its side. Luckily it had only come a few kilometres anyway. I gave a hand to get the tree out and looked back in the van. There was no soil or earth or anything other than one bag of compost. I asked where the stuff was, to be told he had been told we would have it already. A frantic phone call by the driver revealed he was right, he'd been told we had a cubic metre of soil ready and waiting. No, we haven't, I said as we were told different.
A compromise was reached. We would all dig out earth from nearby and chuck that in with about ten bags of compost I had as well. The driver, I made sure, did the majority of the work. So, after a sweaty hour in the 35 degree sun, the tree was in, standing proud and watered. I'll get a photo when I can.
Now the pool...... another saga. Three years ago we designed it and told the builder what tiles we wanted. Mosaic tiles, and we even gave him the reference number from the maker. Two years ago the concrete pool was built, with semi-circular steps, as I had designed. Last year we got a quote, after confirming the tiles, for the cost of tiling and fitting out. This year we confirmed the quote and the tiles again.
The builder ordered them and they came. The workers started laying them in the main body of the pool but told me they would be difficult to go around the curve of the steps. I asked the builder about it and he said the same. He showed me you can't put them around a curve like the top of a step (the face is ok) without missing some out ---- as you can't cut each little mosaic tile as they are ceramic/glass type stuff that chips and leaves sharp edges. We said we'd told him three years ago, two years ago, last year and this year that these were the tiles we wanted.... why didn't he say they can't be fitted on our design?
A compromise was reached. We will now have on the curve at the top of each step, marble, not tile. And he's paying half the cost plus the laying of it. So, the main body of the pool is now tiled. What is left (besides the plumbing/electrics and pump etc) to do is wait seemingly now endlessly for the marble to be cut and delivered, that needs fitting and the vertical face of the steps having the original mosaic tile fitted.
Anyway, I'm busy building another wardrobe (two more yet to go) then a couple of day beds, a table, loads of shelves, bookcases in the 'study/spare room'......... and no doubt, more things I've forgotten about for now.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on May 29, 2015 20:55:42 GMT
Oh, mulberry. A purple mulberry? You are going to have a permanently stained courtyard, if so....
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on May 30, 2015 7:06:54 GMT
Ah yes, but we have a white Mulberry, Morus Alba, (or so we ordered).... plus...... it is supposed to be a fruitless one. We'll see if that is true in time.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on May 30, 2015 8:12:53 GMT
Oh, mulberry. A purple mulberry? You are going to have a permanently stained courtyard, if so.... That was the first thing that I thought of, too. We had a mulberry tree when I was little and it even managed to stain the lawn.
|
|
|
Post by tod2 on May 30, 2015 12:29:57 GMT
Mark, what a lot has happened. The white mulberry will be impotant?Non-producing?? I saw one in my parents yard and it did nothing. Yes, mulberries rain down like 'purple rain' but an old cloth scattered underneath can quickly be scooped up and re=spread every day. They shouldn't stain unless you walk on them. Seems like you wont have that problem.
Our pool is not tiled , merely gunited and then marble-plastered. Only the top is lined with tiles. When it came to the steps, they simply laid a couple of rows of mosaic tiles into the marblelite so you could see where the steps were. We put one step too many in the pool and its been a darn nuisance.
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on May 30, 2015 20:43:47 GMT
I'll try and get a photo of the pool as it is at the moment in the next few days but I hope the marble for the steps get delivered soon anyway.
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on May 31, 2015 17:05:48 GMT
First the tree, bless its little cotton socks. Looks a bit lonely and forlorn all by itself. I might sleep out there to keep its spirits up until its established. Lancelot (the cock to the right) is studiously trying to ignore it - And this is how far we've got with the pool. The steps we are having a problem with are obvious. Note the railing (still needs a coat of paint) at the end and the large gap where there is nothing at the end of the pool. I think the views when in there will be quite good - We'll see if the marble comes next week. The temps here are low to mid thirties Celsius and I'm about ready to go for a swim.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on May 31, 2015 21:44:57 GMT
casi, sorry, missed your post as it was first over the page. The house warming will be...... errrrr...... when can you come? I'll have to check my busy, busy, social/travel calendar, and my bank account... Spain is the first on my list of countries to visit when the time comes.
|
|
|
Post by mich64 on May 31, 2015 22:01:35 GMT
The tree is going to fill out nicely in that spot Mark! I do like the color of the tile. What color will the marble be?
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 1, 2015 8:30:39 GMT
The pool tiles are multi-shaded green to reflect the surroundings besides the fact that blue just made us think of a municipal pool or a hotel, the mosaic tiles on the vertical face of the steps will be different, though a theme of green and are more varied in shades. The tiles around the pool, when clean, are grey as you can see with also different shades in them. So, to answer your question, the horizontal faces of the steps will also be a shade of grey but not plain, they are 'veined' like the marble in the courtyard compass.
Talking about cleaning, as the end is in sight I'm becoming more and more frustrated that everything is covered in builder's dust and residue. You can see how dirty the bottom of the wall is near the tree from when they laid the courtyard tiles. I don't need everything to be pristine but a white wall is supposed to be f'ing white.
|
|
|
Post by tod2 on Jun 1, 2015 10:09:12 GMT
I think it looks awesome Mark! I love the colour of the green tiles - in case I missed it, what are those things sticking up on the floor of the pool? Lights? I have suddenly realised your pool is all one depth! No shallow end for kids. I bet you will have a battery of arm-bands, and rubber tubes on hand!
|
|
|
Post by Kimby on Jun 1, 2015 12:17:02 GMT
It's looking lovely Mark. Can you rent a "shop vac" to clean up after the builders, and your own woodworking projects?
I suspect if you don't, you'll be tracking in and sweeping around the same dirt for months after you move in.
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 1, 2015 18:28:15 GMT
tod, it's difficult to see from the photos but the pool does vary in depth. It is 1.35m at the shallow end and 1.70m at the deep end - the 'view' end. The things sticking up are the end of the pipes that will be cut off and grills put in flush with the floor of the pool for the water from the pump. There are four of them. The one sticking out the side will also be flush but with a connector to connect to a pool vacuum for cleaning. At the deep end, not visible, is already a grill and a pipe underneath where the water will by sucked out and then go through the pump/filter to return up the previously mentioned four places. This will be sufficient (I hope) to agitate the pool enough for the water to be filtered properly.
If anyone brings their kids and they are too small to stand up in the shallow end then they'll have to either remain on the steps or bring their own devices. There is nobody in the family or friends who currently have any and when we thought of the pool we decided we wouldn't have a particularly steep drop between one end and the other. That then dictated a lot as to how deep the shallow end would be when we wanted about 1.70m at the deep end (to the top of Mrs M's head!). The main rectangle of the pool is 9m x 4m and the steps add an extra 1.70m on the side.
kimby, in my workshop I have a compressor and blow gun to just blow all the sawdust out the door but we have used a power washer supplied by the builder at times. We are anticipating the builders finishing everything we need one day, packing their tools up, saying goodbye and thanks for the work and we saying, thanks also but you can come back tomorrow and now clean up properly.
|
|
|
Post by tod2 on Jun 2, 2015 7:38:25 GMT
Mark - thanks for that information as I could not see it from the photos. I say a good depth, 1.35m, in the shallow end is better - no one should dive in and crack their coconut on the bottom then! Your deep end is going to be marvellous for diving down and retrieving objects like coins or small pebbles in a family challenge
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 3, 2015 16:57:43 GMT
The plumber was supposed to come on Monday and did early morning about the pipework on the pump house. After 5 mins he left again saying he'd be back later. Sunday I painted the walls but not the floor. He didn't come back on Monday, nor Tuesday. This morning the building boss was here and I told him I needed to paint the floor of the pump house and it needed 24 hours to dry, so is the plumber coming? He telephoned Mr Happy (the plumber) and told him the situation as regards the floor. So the plumber decided to not come today either but would come tomorrow, Thursday. We'll see. So I painted the floor.
The marble has come this morning, that is why the boss was here. The workers have 90% finished the front wall (with white and stone. Photo when finished) but have left the last bit so as to crack on with the pool. The marble looks as when I saw it in the workshop, dull dusty grey. But with water on it it looks good. However......... It didn't fit. On Monday the boss and the marble man spent a long while discussing and measuring the steps. As I am, I wanted to jump in and show them how to do it, but I kept my mouth shut. But somehow it is wrong. What a surprise (not). After delivering the marble the boss shot off so he didn't see me and the two workers puzzling over whether it fit or not. They called him back but in the meantime we came to a solution after jigsaw puzzling with 50kg bits of marble.
The solution - each step has three curved pieces - the problem mainly was that when the three pieces for each step were laid together on the step the ends were 20-30cm or so short of being flush with the front edge where it meets the pool, the ends of the step. But, if they were pulled forward 15cm or so, towards the pool, the edges lined up. Also, the big pieces right at the top step, where it is straight where the grills are, were to wide. Thus, when they were put down they stuck over the first step by the 15cm or so.
So - the solution is to build the first step, the one where you step over the grill into the water, wider, then extend the next steps forward until reaching the bottom. The only difference now will be the curve is smaller where you step off the last step to the floor of the pool. But the steps are still the same, only the very top is wider and when you step off the last one you don't need to walk forward into the main rectangle of the pool, it is just 20cm or so.
I'm sure that is as clear as mud but hopefully photos probably early next week will show it all better.
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 3, 2015 17:09:07 GMT
In other news - for the last few days a couple of dogs have been making their home on our hill. I've no idea if they are owned but neither have collars on. My daughter has decided to feed them so we are doing so. Plus leaving water out for them. At first, as expected, they kept away from us, but now are quite happy to laze in the shade by our back gate, then only move a metre or two away as we pass by. This one has been christened 'Socks'. Obvious but fitting - This one's name is yet to be decided - As for food, they look capable of catching any of our numerous wild rabbits but seem content with smaller game for now as I've seen both of them playing with a dead mouse each. We'll see if they stick around.
|
|
|
Post by tod2 on Jun 3, 2015 17:15:35 GMT
They look in good nick Mark. The only problem I would think is that they are not vaccinated against rabies. Very important if they are feeding of wild vermin like rabbits and rats. Is there anyway you could trace their owners....maybe make them household pets but what happens when you want to holiday somewhere else - In other words do they have kennel facilities near you?
I have fed numerous stray cats over the years much to my own cats wounds and scratches. Vet bills mounted as I need antibiotics etc. Luckily no dogs.
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 3, 2015 19:56:24 GMT
They won't be our household pets and I don't mind them hanging around for a bit but I've warned the daughter that she is not to pet and stroke them or continually feed them. I want them to remain undomesticated and fend for themselves. There are no kennels around us and I don't want to have the responsibility of looking after them, especially as we will only be here for just over a year.
The man who owns the land next to us lives in the local village and is well known there as he is a shop owner. I have already asked him to make enquiries as to if anyone has lost them. Funnily enough a couple of men came near the house a couple of months ago, men I'd not seen before. I asked them why they were here and they said they were looking for their dogs. Me being suspicious put them down as 'casing the joint'. Maybe they were genuine.
|
|
|
Post by tod2 on Jun 4, 2015 15:27:09 GMT
Don't blame you Mark.....Those well trained police suspicions are still entrenched and working just fine. Actually if I was you I would drop the locals that you are an ex-copper....couldn't hurt.
|
|
|
Post by mickthecactus on Jun 4, 2015 15:55:50 GMT
Lovely pool.
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 4, 2015 18:06:37 GMT
Thanks Mick. The marble has been laid now on the steps and they are filling in with the mosaic tiles.
tod, funnily anough recently two other men came walking down the track and passed by my workshop. The door was open so I saw them. I slipped out and closed the door and they became aware of me nearby. They turned and we had a chat. One of them is the local Guardia Civil, off duty, and lives in the village. I did mention to him my history and he commented that I must be unusual in that I don't frequent the village bars, being English and police. He expected I'd be up there knocking them back every night.
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 6, 2015 20:52:46 GMT
So, update - the pool tiling has been finished, at last. So now I am filling it. Unfortunately the electrics and the plumbing haven't yet been done. Word is they 'may' come on Monday. This is a big day anyway as the two workers, who have made appearances throughout the years of the project (bought end 2009), with others, will have their last day here. It appears we have no more work for them (yeah, yeah, I bet as soon as Mrs M gets here she'll think of more stuff). So I've got them a couple of crates of beer and a bottle of whisky each (which I know they drink). I know we have a couple of stone benches for the courtyard that need building, plus a breakfast bar in the kitchen, but nothing else. They'll come in time I suppose.
The plan is everything will go in the what for want of a better name, is called the Pump House (recently painted by me blue and red as I had some paint spare). A grand name for the shed at the end. In there should be a 1 horse power pump, a filter and a large capacity storage tank to take the overflow, to be pumped back in, from the pool due to it being an 'infinity' pool whereby the water is level with the grills so that when someone get in, the equivalent amount of water goes out (Archimedes anyone?).
Also the electrics. Bear in mind we are a solar powered house, not mains. So, rather than taxing the house system I wanted a completely separate system for the pool. This will have its own solar panels, batteries, control box etc. So if there is a fault with it we don't lose the house power nor do we have to possibly restrict how long we run the pump for on less sunny days to 'save' some for the house.
Put it this way, I know what we are supposed to have as regards all the equipment. Let's see what turns up.
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 7, 2015 16:26:41 GMT
Just to mention that as we ended up having the marble on the pool steps we now have a surfeit of mosaic tiles. They could possibly be returned but we want to keep them for other things. The cousin of Mrs M is an arts and crafts teacher and she'll be visiting later this year sometime, so we have a few projects for her to cast her mind to. One is about these tiles. In the meantime we bought a cheap glass topped patio set - table and four chairs. The table I covered in the mosaic tiles. They are easy enough to lay, stuck down with silicon and I nicked some of the builder's grout to fill in the gaps. It looks like this now - One of the rooms downstairs will have a bit of an Arabic theme, it is grandly called the Alhambra Room. Only to differentiate it from the 'Monastery Room' which is the other one at the bottom of the house directly off the courtyard. The rooms follow the general theme but not too closely. More of something to play at than a serious attempt. But it needs a wardrobe, a sitting area and a table. The sitting area is yet to be made, there will be a day bed type affair in an L shape and another in a niche. In keeping with the Arabic idea they will be quite low off the ground. This is the table I made to go there. It sits in the area where the L shape day bed will be (when I get round to it) - Then there is the wardrobe. Again low but spacious enough – Then we come yet again to the pool and surround. I’ve had a bit of a clean and tidy up to take a few photos. It will need more. Cleaning, not photos for now. It still isn’t full but getting there. It gives you the idea anyway. The white metal thing is the twin’s old bunk bed. It will have a new mattress on the bottom, the top bunk has been removed, and will be covered in material for shade with just an open front. You’ll have to use your imagination for now. Even though it isn’t full I’m off in a minute for a swim round to christen it. My new pool thermometer says it is 30 degrees (C) in there –
|
|
|
Post by Kimby on Jun 7, 2015 17:15:42 GMT
You're inspiring, Mark! Getting prettier by the day ( the renovation, not yourself!)
Will marble pool steps need some treatment to not be slippery?
|
|
|
Post by onlyMark on Jun 7, 2015 17:40:53 GMT
I reached my peak in my late 20's Kimby. It's been a rapid decline since then.
Normally marble is polished as a final stage before fitting somewhere. Ours hasn't been. This means it is actually a bit non-slip anyway. Plus it'd only be the first couple anyway. The difficulty of moving in water, as it gets deeper, will prevent you from going arse over tit anyway.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2015 18:01:22 GMT
The pool looks fantastic, so you probably shouldn't have put the wardrobe photos in the same set. They look good, too, but compared to seeing the pool, "who cares?"
Quite a few spacious southern French houses have both a "salon marocain" and a "salon européen" because both are useful and appealing, but the styles do not mix, so if you don't have sufficient room, you have to choose between one or the other. The Arabian room being just a bit of exotic fluff for most people of European origin, it's the European version that wins in most cases. Obviously, families of Maghrebi origin generally opt for the other version.
|
|
|
Post by htmb on Jun 7, 2015 18:07:51 GMT
This whole project has shaped up beautifully through all your hard word and management. It's been great to be able to follow along as things have progressed. I really like seeing the fantastic view from the pool area, too.
|
|
|
Post by mich64 on Jun 7, 2015 18:08:34 GMT
I love the green/grey choices in/around the pool. How rewarding this all must be now that it has almost come to completion. Wishing you and your family many happy years in your vacation home!
We have a dog that stops by every few days. All she gets from us is hugs and cuddles. Although we have been very tempted to give her a cookie or two through the years, we never have as we do not know her owners so have not been able to ask their permission. Last summer she stayed a couple of hours during our annual horse shoe tournament, but she usually stays for about 10 minutes and them off through the bush she goes.
|
|