This week from the Money Pit: Something’s rotten in Queen’s Park

Monday morning, 6:45am. What sort of Christmas break is this?

Progress was made as radiators were removed and the last of the plaster came off, the damp proof course was injected into the walls and the fireplaces were opened and shored up with new lintels. 

Opening up the fireplace

I walked through the electrical plan with the electrician. All ok there. He said it was all possible and would give us an estimate. He’s available in early January but we need to get the floors up before he can start work.

Removing the wallpaper – front bedroom

Things were going well. British Gas came round to look at the boiler and left immediately saying there were too many cooks and best to get the builder to install a boiler and central heating. Not very impressed with British Gas!

Deciding if we can move the door into the kitchen

And then things got a little more complicated. We started looking at taking out the cupboard under the stairs and bashing commenced. Suddenly it seemed things were not progressing as well as before.

We knew the lintel in the bathroom needed to be replaced but as bashing was replaced with excavating, it appeared that the joists were rotten in the ceiling. We were looking at a new lintel, new joists and new ceilings.

Wall down – hall and back bedroom

Ceiling down

Are there any joists in here?

Rot in the bathroom ceiling

It was all a bit daunting but apparently it can be sorted.

I now have a binder of paperwork with bills, estimates, surveys and plans. It will only get thicker!