My Sitooterie

[Billy Flitch]

Hi Paul sorry for being tardy with the reply to your request but I did`t want it to be seen as criticism because I think you have done wonders. Your right to keep control of the costs bearing in mind the use of the building. But I think Chris is right to point out the problems that can come with condensation. You being the man at the sharp end you can see just how much ventilation the roof will receive.

What would I have done different, well feel free to totally ignore any thing I say from this point on. You where quite right to place a lot of importance on the over hang at the eaves but I also place a lot of importance on the gable ends of any building. Here is a pic of a timber house I built and you can see in the three gables how I overhang the roof to through any water away from the building

.
A lot of builders just place a barge board against the gable and then call it a day and then the owners suffer later with damp walls and start spending money on getting shut of rising damp, a waist of time and money because its falling damp from the roof.
On the roof I deck the eaves and gables and in this case the porch and open areas from on top of the roof, no trouble with butt joints every thing is jointed from above and not seen from below no climbing up and down ladders no taking measurements just flop it on and nail.In the open spaces (ie the living room) I would just flop one plank the same thickness as the cladding, on top of the open spars and that would keep the top of the roof on one level.

The breathable roof felt is layed and i put a counter batten directly on top of each spar from eave to ridge then on top of this I place the roof battens every 50 Cm to take the weight of the steel cladding, not much weight there now but when the snow gets on top there will be. I add the counter battens because it improves the air flow over the roof and allows any leaks to flow straight of the roof, also when fastening the steel down it keeps the lag bolts away from the roof felt and stop any danger of penetration.
You can buy insect grills to keep wasps and such from nesting in the roof but if your OK with that then that's a saving.

When fitting the counter battens on the side one thing I do is take a trip along to the local sheet metal shop and see that they have sheets full of holes I get them to cut strips at 2" wide bent at 1"x 1" and then fit this to the bottom of the counter battens before the cladding is fitted. Why you may ask but you have already met one "Wee sleekit cow`rin tim`rous beastie" believe me there will be more, I don't mind them but its the noise they make that drives people crazy.

I only added all this because you said later you would be building a shop, any way Paul enjoy your sitooterie, it looks like a beautiful part of the country your in there.
Just thought I would show a pic to the back drop to my own garden taken earlier in the year. all the best Billy.

 

[Paul200]

Cheers Billy. That all makes a lot of sense. I was already aware of the large overhangs - Chris mentioned it earlier here and is something I'll use when I design my workshop - unfortunately I was too far ahead with the summer house. Your counter-batten method is something that occurred to me at the design stage - but I couldn't find any examples of it's use so I discounted it. I've since seen someone on here use it and now you're telling me about it! (Note to self - trust your instincts).

The timber house looks very tidy - nice job. I'm guessing you do this for a living. All of my knowledge and 'experience' is second hand from tradesmen that used my tool shop - but I'm getting there!

Nice view from your place Billy - I think we all need open space in our lives. I certainly do. Thanks very much for taking the time mate - it's appreciated and will be acted upon (hammer)

Slainte!

Paul

 

[Bluekingfisher]

I particularly like the US style of house building (timber clad) perhaps not ideal for our damper climes but they do look twee.
I have built my back garden workshop on a similar ( but smaller ) vein with a large overhand with vents. If I remember, I will post a piccy or two.


David

 

[Paul200]

I'd like to see your pictures David. Is that 'log cabin' style or southern states, ornate style? I like both but I'm a sucker for those old southern houses with the filigree metalwork around the balconies :roll:

 

[Bluekingfisher]

Paul,

Perhaps I "bigged" my shop up a little. just a 22mm T&G boards laid on 4 x 2 studs. then lined with 18mm WBP ply. I painted it so not to cause not too much of an eye sore for neighbours ( and of course us).











David

 

[Paul200]

That looks great David. There's a lot of detail work there - really impressive and a good sized space. My original thoughts for my proposed workshop were to use the same 'rustic' cladding as the sitooterie, but you've given me food for thought now - especially as it will be sited near the house. Thanks for sharing.

Slainte!

Paul

 

[Bluekingfisher]

Thanks for the kind words Paul,.

I would however have liked it a tad bigger (oh -err) particularly head height as I am 6'3". However, I have what I have due to planning etc etc, although it is my intention to have one more suited to my needs and wants when next we relocate.

David

 

[beganasatree]

Hi Paul,
I have just got up to date reading your W I P .It is coming along very nicely and I have picked up lots of pointers from it.I have often wondered which part of the S.W.you are in,I thought Wigtonshire but now I know better.the Midge Magnet does work but it takes a week or so before you have the full benefit from it.I hope that you made good use of the good weather that we have had of late as it looks set to change.

Peter

 

[Paul200]

It changed Peter! Absolutely persisting down here from the very early hours. The hole we dug under the house for our mains water pipe is - under water!

We have been taking advantage of the weather by mainly getting out and about in the glorious countryside around here. I know I should have been concentrating on the sitooterie but, to be honest, it was starting to become a chore. I was beginning to feel as if I was back at work again and that's not why we came here. Beside that there's always plenty to do keeping the greenery in check and splitting logs ready for the winter.

We have made some progress though. The Boss has been busy painting windows, I've made the frames for them (very simple softwood frames with a sill) and the 'walkway' side is now clad up to halfway. Guttering has been installed and bargeboards nailed on. Lucky horseshoe also in place. I'm not in the least bit superstitious but our old house has horseshoes everywhere and even a big old key that was found cemented in the wall - apparently to ward off evil spirits - so just to be on the safe side I'm quite happy to continue the tradition :wink:

Not much of the recent work is very photogenic so no more photo's I'm afraid. I'll try to put that right next week.

Cheers

Paul

 

[Paul200]

Had an unexpected bonus weather-wise. The last couple of days have been showery rather than the wall-to-wall rain forecast so we've got a bit more done and been able to take pictures.

The fascias, guttering and downpipes were done last week - but here's some pictures.

The downpipe on the 'uphill' side was routed underneath the building to exit on the 'downhill' side to prevent the ground becoming boggy against the side of the concrete base.

No rush at the moment but I will be digging a channel down to the burn, running through the garden lower down the hill, to take the rainwater away properly. It will be filled with gravel.

In between showers today I've made a test fit of the window frames and completed the cladding around the window reveals - and above.

Also managed to get the ceiling of the walkway boarded.

I still have to board the ceiling of the deck end and, while I wait for the frames to be painted, I'll get on with cladding the inside walls with OSB. It's really starting to come together now and we're looking forward to getting the inside painted and installing furniture. The wildlife is already playing ball - we had a brief visit today from one of our red squirrels while we were inside having our lunch. He sat on the edge of the deck sheltering from the rain Couldn't get a picture but I'll do my best next time!

Slainte!

Paul

 

[n0legs]

Looking great Paul =D>
I like the down pipe idea :wink:

 

[Paul200]

Thanks n0legs. The route of the pipe wasn't part of the original plan but I noticed how boggy the ground became on that side after the roof went on and was draining onto it unchecked. The old concrete base is quite deep (we think the original tin building was a tractor shed - so it would need a good floor) and water is trapped behind it so it made sense to divert it away.

Nice to know we're on the last leg now :lol:

Slainte!

Paul

 

[Paul200]

Couldn't wait to post this lot of pictures. We're actually on the home straight now =D>

At the start of the week I finished boarding the ceiling over the end deck and finished it off with barge boards and another of those little diamond shaped, apex-finishing-off jobbies. This wasn't as straight-forward as it looks because I had to fit boards around the two collars. Is it just me or do other people struggle to transfer the orientation of cuts onto the workpiece in front of you? I didn't make any mistakes but it gave me a headache :?

The next job was to fit the windows and their frames, all nicely painted by the Boss. This was a much simpler exercise. The windows are hinged at the top and simply sit flush onto the front of the frames, which are set back into the reveal giving approx. 5mm gap all round apart from the tops - which are overhung by cladding. Anything more elaborate would have been a waste of effort because even sideways rain hasn't penetrated too far under the overhang so they only needed to be draught proof.

At last (today) I got around to the one job I've been looking forward to - the railings around the edge. I haven't been able to do this until now because it's been useful being able to just hop up or down from the deck while the main construction work has been going on. So although there is still a lot of finishing work to be done internally this job really has been a milestone and the end is in sight.

And, of course, it now looks very much like the original Sketchup I posted on day one which, it surprised me to realise, wasn't actually too long ago.

Cheers all - I'm off for a beer =P~

 

[Charlie Woody]

Looks great, well done!

 

[Paul200]

Thanks Charlie. Working out here in the middle of nowhere and with just a modicum of experience it has helped a lot to have this forum as a reference point. It's good to know that people will take the time to help out and congratulate a complete stranger

It's not finished yet though - so I'll keep posting so long as you all keep looking.

Have a great weekend

Paul

 

[Paul200]

Slight Return.

I've been busy with other things lately but took advantage of the glorious Autumn weather we're enjoying to finish off the external work on the Sitooterie.

One small step for man.......

and another one...........

The second step will, at some time in the future, also form the top step of a walkway to the burn that runs through the garden lower down the hill - which is why it's so deep.

I've also finished closing off the eaves today. Just need to get some deck oil on the steps and then I'll be inside trimming around the windows.

 

[Mcluma]

Looks very nice

any shots from the inside?

 

[Wildman]

you have done an excellent job and should be proud of what you have achieved. Well done.

 

[Paul200]

Looks very nice

any shots from the inside?

Thanks Chris

Afraid I can hardly get in to take pictures! We're drastically short of storage space because of work we're doing on our house (we bought a project!). The Boss has finished painting the walls and I still have to line the window reveals and pin on some architrave (more painting - she loves it really :wink: ).

I'll try to get up there to tidy up and see what I can do next week - but there's not much to see really.

Thanks again for your input buddy

 

[Paul200]

you have done an excellent job and should be proud of what you have achieved. Well done.

Wow - thank you! Very nice of you to say so. There are plenty of things I would do differently with hindsight though :? I've started making a list!

Cheers

Paul