What "man jobs" have you done today?

Put coving + dado/picture rail up.

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Buffman said:
That floor and angling looks great!

Was the floor easy enough to fit? (is it click lock/engineered wood?)

Ive fit wood floor before but not at 45 degrees! Tempted to try it in my new place.
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Yeah, its a floor designed for herringbone and can be laid in a number of patterns. This particular brand even had marking on the cork underside to tell you if its a left or right piece.
 
gav_172 said:
Looks good. Is it proper plaster cove?
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Cheers :)
Yes the coving is plaster coving. The dado/picture rail is Orac (plastic).
apg said:
Looks good. I see you are using nails to keep the coving in position. What adhesive are you using to fix it in place?
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Cheers :)

Yeah, it probably didn't need it, but I just put them there to make sure it doesn't move while the adhesive goes off. Also when doing the your test fits if you put the bottom nails in then, you can just pivot it up off of the nails. I used Knauf Cove Adhesive for the coving. It's really good but if you are going to use it on bare plaster, make the mix a little wetter than you'd think and also brush the plaster with a wet brush first. The walls suck the moisture instantly otherwise and make it really had to wiggle it into place.

And as the picture rail was Orac, I used their adhesive + joint compound for the picture rail.
 
Got most of the slabs laid, just 2 full slabs to go and then it's time to move onto the cuts around the edge. Once that's done I can joint the thing up and sit out there and have a rest! It's slow going doing it all by yourself.

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bainbridge said:
Got most of the slabs laid, just 2 full slabs to go and then it's time to move onto the cuts around the edge. Once that's done I can joint the thing up and sit out there and have a rest! It's slow going doing it all by yourself.
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Looks good! What's the rough cost/sqm or total for that area ? Have you done it before? Did you have to get a whacker plate/similar down to the underside to ensure a level base?

Id like to do similar with my new garden
 
Buffman said:
Looks good! What's the rough cost/sqm or total for that area ? Have you done it before? Did you have to get a whacker plate/similar down to the underside to ensure a level base?

Id like to do similar with my new garden
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Thanks. The full cost of materials (including drainage), machinery and skip hire came to £79.64 per m2.

I've not laid a stone patio before but am a qualified brickie (many years ago with Wimpey) so I know my way around a spirit level. Having said that, I think anyone with a bit of common sense and patience, who isn't afraid of taking on something new could do this work to a good standard.

Yes I hired a whacker, it was about £60 for the weekend. It was advertised as £35 but with £5 delivery each way and vat it was £60. I put down half of the sub base material and compacted it, then put down the other half on top, and compacted again. I could have done it in a day but I work full time so only have weekends spare, the weather forecast was patchy and because I'm doing it alone I wanted more time if needed. It was only £15 more than 1 day hire anyway.

A couple of other things which I hope you find helpful:

Skips. They did a discount for just soil/stone rather than domestic waste, so do enquire when ordering a skip.

Stone slabs. I anticipated a few breakages, what with them being shipped all the way from India, so bought a 20m2 crate for my 17m2, however upon arrival not one single slab out of 64 was broken. They were cleverly stacked in the crate and a small offcut wedged in there held the stone like a solid block. Had I known this I would've bought a 18m2 pack, but I'll make a nice doorstep out of one of the leftover tombstones and find a use for the others.

Cement mixer. With it being a project for weekends only, I calculated it would be cheaper to buy a mixer rather than rent it to sit unused during the week. I bought this little beauty for £219 and she runs like a dream:

https://www.screwfix.com/p/134-ltr-...ABrrBl1t7wYnJPo-YTMaAuJ2EALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

They sell used for between £150 and £200 used so I'll probably sell it once finished, though I am becoming attached to it lol. Without the cost of the mixer the project is £66.58 per m2.
 
Before:
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Now:
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Spent a week ripping out the chimney breast in what will be a bathroom, stack on the roof had been taken out in the 70's and this explained why there was a horrible draft!

Can't quite move as a result of all this work though
 
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Planted some summer flowering bulbs (peacock orchid, gladioli and iris) so the flowr bed will be very colourful later in the year.
Got a post hole digger today and fencing arriving on Monday.
 
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