24th June 2020...Another grand day. I started off by getting the easy boards up in the roof, this comprised of 2 whole sheets, 2 99% whole sheets and then 4 smaller cut pieces. With those in place I could start the fiddly bit of cutting around the rest of the rafter ties/joists.
A handy resting place for an unwieldy sheet
"Easy" sheets complete
I was once again fortunate that the distance from the wall to the ridge was nigh on 2480mm, and I needed to leave a little gap to be able to swing boards up past the ridge as it sticks out below the rafters. So a 2440 sheet pretty much filled the gap entirely. The gap at the ridge will be covered with a single piece nailed to the underside of the ridge.
So with the offcuts of my earlier exertions I could begin measuring, marking, measuring again, writing on the wall, checking and finally cutting. All in all not too difficult, though true to the rest of the project I was unable to not copy Mike in one more way. For one cut, just one, I had measured the distance to the rafter, and not the joist. Ploppers.
Todays cockup
Todays result
With that all finished I could hop (more like teeter) onto the roof and nail on some supports for those cut ends, then come down again to finish the nailing inside.
Next up it was time to attack the insulation. I had 23 sheets of 610x2440 60mm insulation already up from the farm. While the stuff is easy enough to cut I do find that handsaws make an inordinate mess. Add to that an element of drunken blade wander and I figured since the table saw was still out it was the work of a moment to rip all the sheets down to size, and lo, it was. A nice finish on the edge too so less bits flapping around.
This is the insulation that cost £120 for 60 sheets, so thats 30 full sheets, equalling just £4 for a full sheet. The joy of farmers sales. The second batch did test the wallet a bit though at...£6 per full sheet.
Again, these were not bought for this job, they were bought for use around the farm (cottages, houses etc) over a year ago.
So off I started carving them up to work around bolts and joists and so on. Once you have a pattern for the first one the next become much easier. I ended the day doing the nice easy sheets in the vaulted section with no pesky bits to cut out. Just trim an angle off the end of the first piece and in they sailed.
I'll have more insulation and expandy foam brought up tomorrow morning while I'm sorting the remaining sheets out. Hopefully I can get them all done, foamed and membraned before the expected thunderstorms on Friday morning. It would be nice to get the walls done too, but its just not going to happen. I'm a little less worried about those.
25th June 2020... It's hot out thereIt's 9:40 and it's 23 degrees already. I have at least got my next batch of insulation here already. Time to take on water like the Titanic and cut the next 24 boards to width.
Everything went pretty well for the most part. You get surprisingly comfortable climbing wonky ladders and crawling all over your roof when you have to do it for a few days. I had a lie in yesterday and didn't get out of bed till 7 helped by the fact that my kid also decided that sleep was good.
While my wimmin slept I woke up and got ready to go and move the truck to get more insulation. Lo and behold as I walked out to where the track was, it wasn't. Mike had already been up and was driving across the field with my next batch of insulation. All £48 worth. Great. All materials on site to crack on.
I'd already cut all but the last 2 bits (which are narrower than normal) to width the night before so I could carve up my first one for the door end, check my measurements and then make 2 more to the same pattern, and 3 more bits to go over the top. With those all in place I then did the easy one at the end, just a straight run to two different widths.
One half complete
Time to fire up the saw again and make some mess.
I know most only use a hand saw for the insulation but honestly I'd do it again with the table saw. 20 pieces all cut to perfect width in a minute or two with less mess and no marking out. This is obviously easier when the boards come in half widths in the first place.
I started hacking bits away to get the other side done and it all went in without major issue. As always you work it out slowly and it only gets faster as you start banging it up. It really helped noting the cuts from the first boards to just mark out the same for the next 3 or 4 for around the joists. I could do minimal trips around the garden to the saw and up and down the ladder.
The far side was complete by about 2:15. The temperature was about TooHot degrees.
We'd had some friends arrive for a distanced BBQ and with them came grown up conversation and cold beer, so I wasn't going to miss out after 3 months. Really the only thing I've missed since lockdown started was this kind of afternoon with friends.
Despite that I needed to get my foam in so I hoofed it up onto the ridge once more with the foam lance. Wifey and friend Lee proved adept at launching cans of foam up to me on the ridge and I worked my way along the top doing the gap and as far down the rafter edges as I could comfortably reach. Then it was time to scamper across the rafters to do the rest of it, then the other side. But it was done by about 3:30 and I could sit, eat have a much needed beer and enjoy a natter while the foam cured.
They did the foxtrot come 6 and so I could get back up and trim any odd bits that had bubbled up out of nowhere and clean up a little of the more overzealous foam. Then I set out my membrane on the floor and marked out 5x 7.5m lengths, enough to do the whole roof with excess.
That's where I started getting hot under the collar. The merest gnats fart had the stuff billowing all over the place, and I'd only folded the membrane up to get it up onto the ridge and work down. Never again. Don't do it this way. I've warned you! With the ridge piece on I could come back down for my second length. This proved more difficult as I was rapidly running out of rafter to hold onto or stand on. The third and final length for the far side was completed mostly from the ladder. That side looks rubbish compared to the side in the photo, but it doesn't need to look pretty.
The side you've seen was done marginally better and slightly differently. I rolled up my membrane as tight as I could and after clambering onto the roof went to the farthest end from the ladder and worked backwards. I wasn't quite getting in my own way as often, but boy was I glad I didn't have a steeper pitch to try standing on. With that one down it was fairly easy to do the last bit down at the eaves once again all from the ladder.
LESSON: Start at the bottom and work up using battens. Oddly, exactly as you're supposed to do it!
I wish I'd worked out something for my batten spacings before getting to this point so I could have put some up without them being temporary. But time was also in the way as the potential for rain was high enough that I didn't want my hard work ruined.
So that's that. I'd never do it that way again, but apart from the membrane part it all went ok given the ridiculous temperatures.
All in all the insulation cost for the roof came to £92. Not bad for 34m2 of 120mm insulation. A new record perhaps?
End of the day...Well its done. The phrase rhymes with clucking bell.
The forecast said today you shall bake and tomorrow you shall drown. Hopefully it doesn't hit here anyway but at least it's got some protection.