Second fix part 2

Now the second fix is well underway.
A lot of different jobs are underway now, mainly fixtures and fittings, cupboards and wardrobes in the various rooms, sauna panelled, ceiling boards and light fittings, parquet flooring etc et all.

Ceiling panel, this is an MDF panel, tongue and groove all around, very easy to fit and very low maintenance, just the way I like things, fit and forget.
The blue pipe is for the ventilation system.





More of the same, the ceiling is continuous, no gaps or breaks. this is the living room to the kitchen






Bedroom ceiling, ventilation pipe and light fittings attached





Once all the ceiling panels were fitted, it was then time to start thinking about some of the cupboards we wanted, Tarja meanwhile was having a ball in IKEA, this is where we bought most of the fitted cupboards, a lot of heavy flatpack boxes arrive and all you need is a hex key and a screwdriver, the patience of Job also comes in handy, unpack it and crack on, lots of space is required so a tidy working area is vital, assembling the cupboards is easy enough, the glass sliding doors, well that gets the nerves jangling, as always when working with glass you have to be just that little bit more careful, watch where you stand and don't drop any tools.


Main bedroom, wall to wall cupboards, This is IKEA's Pax series. 1 x 1.5m wide the other 2m wide






















We didn't notice the pattern on the glass doors, until it was assembly time, we thought there was some flaw, apparently they had changed the design, between us ordering and what was in the catalogue.






Guestroom wardrobe. again IKEA Pax, 1.5m wide









Done.




Now all the cupboards are in, it is time to start doing the Parquet flooring, we chose a dark oak parquet, boards are 2.4m long, tongue and groove with self locking, no need for gluing this time around. All in all the flooring is 45m2, the other 40m2 being tiled.


Both bedrooms, under the parquet there is an underlay, this is a plastic sheeting with styrofoam insulation between the two sheets.







We called in a couple of contractors to do some of the other jobs, one of which is the insulation in the attic space, we had already put 10cm of sheet rockwool insulation, unfortunately in this climate that is nowhere near enough, it requires a further 30cm of granule rockwool on top, it's a hideous job requiring protective clothing and breathing gear, all in all it took about 2 hours to blow about 30m3 of granules around the attic.


Attic space insulated.






Glass terrace.

The fitter arrived on time.

He had been a few weeks earlier to measure us up, then all the elements were cut and sent away to be toughened,


Some free advertising for the fitter.




Easy when you know how.








All the Glass panels open, so if we want we can leave them open or closed.




Another job done and gives us 17m2 of extra space.




Back to the inside,

Time for me to start on the sauna, this is probably one of the most important rooms in a Finnish house, it is an absolute requirement as well.

On top of the frame we then put on a vapour seal, this is a reflective waterproof tin paper, it reflects the heat back into the sauna.




On top of the paper are put wooden battens, this stops condensation forming as there is the free flow of air behind the panels, starting with the ceiling, you then attach the finished panels to the battens, in this case we chose Red Alder as the finished surface.
The hole in the ceiling is for a decorative lighted panel.





Decorative panel,
This is a sheet of plywood, with 6mm offcuts of Juniper wood, it gives an aromatic smell to the sauna when it heats up.
It will be getting fibre optic lights at the final fitting stage.




Temporarily in place.




Sauna walls panelled, Benches in place, all we require now is an electrician.




Last item at this stage.
Is to do the rest of the ceilings in the "wet" areas, as mdf is not really suitable, we stayed with the theme and used red alder for the washroom and utility room.

Utility room, with the ventilation systems machine in place.





That's all for now, next blog will be after we have moved in and you can see the finished project, well finished until springtime, then we have to take on the garden and garage.

SECOND FIX

Being as I have not updated the blog in a few months, thought it would be a good idea to bring everyone up to date.
As we completed the outside of the building, our attention switches to the inside and start on the second fix, (the bit where you actually get things ready)
Tarja concentrated on the base painting and wallpapering, while I was doing the waterproofing of the areas that have to be tiled, another small job I had to take care of was the ventilation system throughout the house.
The ventilation is done mechanically, we have a machine in the utility room, it draws fresh air into the house, if it is too cold outside, it goes via heat exchanger to be warmed, cutting out a cold draught on the back of your neck, it also recycles some of the internal air, so it saves on the energy costs, bedrooms and living rooms have fresh air pumped into them, extraction is done via the "wet rooms" ie, utility room, bathroom, sauna and small toilet, there is an extra extraction in the kitchen as well, thought the kitchen is fitted with its own extraction fan via the cooker hood. this will be fitted same time as all the other kitchen appliances.
We called in some contractors, they had to take care of the rainwater gutters and downpipes, also the roof safety and access ladder, the other contractor was taking care of the glass roof on the main terrace and the glass terrace attached to the kitchen.

FRONT TERRACE, framework ready for the glass fitter.




MAIN TERRACE, frame ready for roofing, this will be 8mm safety glass, smoke grey in colour.
Rainwater gutters and downpipes fitted.





LADDER FOR ROOF ACCESS, this is mandatory here, allows for easy inspection of the roof and also for the chimney cleaner.




GABLE WALL.
door to utility room and framework for terrace. All gutters and downpipes fitted to house.





TINPLATE FLASHING. this is fitted to all the windows






DOOR TO LIVING ROOM, gives quick access to the terrace.







VENTILATION SYSTEM.
all the pipes will be insulated, the fresh air pipes came with a neoprene insulation already fitted, the exhaust air must be done with mineral wool as the air is warmer and has more condensation in it, if it was not insulated it would drip water when the temperature drops as the vapour would condense. The aluminium pipes are silencers, very much the same as in a car.




Pipes dropping through the ceiling to various rooms





The chimney joint arrived and was fitted too, this was necessary as we had moved the original position of the fireplace and the chimney was going to exit the building via the ridgeboard





TEST DRIVING THE FIREPLACE.
This is going to supply a lot of our heat during the long winter, it works on the storage radiator principle, one load of logs and it warms up about half the house, it retains heat for about half a day or slightly longer.





Tarja and her sister getting on with the wallpapering, 2 bedrooms, livingroom and hallway are papered, all other walls are tiled or painted. All walls were primed with base paint, this serves two purposes, one it covers up all the work that was done with joint filler, two, the adhesive from the paper, it does not soak into the baseboard, making it easier to redecorate in future, as you only have to dampen the paper to remove it.


LIVING ROOM, base painted








Main bedroom



Guest bedroom




WATERPROOF MEMBRANE FABRIC.
This is put on all the joints and edges, a liquid rubber based fibreglass reinforced waterproofing agent is applied, it comes to about .6mm thick




Membrane and waterproofing around the tap fittings.



membrane and waterproofing done on the wall joint.




Membrane and waterproofing at seam between wall and floor.





SAUNA FLOOR, waterproofed and tiled.




Bathroom, waterproofed and tiled




Small toilet floor, waterproofed and tiled



Wall tiles in small toilet.




Small toilet walls tiled.

Over the half way point

Starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel.
Work progressing well on the outside, another week should see it nearing completion, or at least all the main aspects of the exterior.
Indoors, we have put up the interior walls, drywall boards on one side, electrician has paid us a visit or two, now the majority of the wiring is in place, switch boxes fitted, so we can get on and insulate the internal walls and apply the boards to the other sides.
We have had the fireplace built, it's made from Finnish soapstone, a light grey in colour with a steel chimney, we need to buy an offset element for the chimney as it is going to penetrate the roof at the wrong place.
The fittings have been made for the taps and plumbing so another job taken care off.
Started putting the boards down on the outer terrace. but I probably wont get it all finished before moving day, it will probably wait until next spring.



Fireplace elements, these are precut in the factory, all that is required is assembly by a suitably qualified person. (not me)




More of the elements-





coming together









nearly ready



just the doors to fit and it's ready for action, 3 hours to assemble



there we have it





How handy, an indoor bbq





The fireplace works on the storage heater principle, 10kg of firewood is enough on any given day to heat an area of about 60m2 in our case that would be the two bedrooms, livingroom, kitchen and hallway.



Spaghetti wars, the day after the electrician





wiring hidden in the wall recess




wall studs and wiring in the bathroom area






tap boxes, just need to fit the taps now.







Exterior wall boarded, not with normal "Gypsum" board, this is a stone based water resistant board, similar properties to asbestos, without the health risk






Screwing of normal gypsum board onto the studs.










Now to the exterior.

Back of house, as high as we can go without scaffolding





Before, front corner






after, front corner all done, facia and soffit boards in place





Front terrace, soffit boards underway




Nearly there






cutting the last board




another small part completed, Tarja proceeded to paint it for the final time after we had nailed it into place, she is following along behind us to do the finishing touches.





Facia boards



Tarja, cracking on with the painting, 3kms of wood panel went into this house, along with another 1.2 km of facia and soffit boards, it has been painted 3 times, glad I'm not a painter.






detail of corner.




corner after the list has been fitted.





Small roof over the utility room door














Tinplate flashing on windows










Placement of the terrace boards.






Rami, doing the terrace boarding. all I need to do now is a buy a sun lounger and a crate or two.