Timber Porch Build W.I.P

[markblue777]

Hey Cammy,
Thanks for that, I will look at getting some of that.

Yeah I have looked at that site before. Will give it another go over for the DPC side of things.

Cheers
Mark

 

[markblue777]

Hey Cammy,
Could this be used to seal the sides of the concrete base?

http://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Bitumen-Protective-Paint-For-Metal+Concrete-5L/p/241223

Cheers
Mark

 

[markblue777]

Day 8

Well today was the day of getting the brick mortared down. Unfortunately the weather had a different idea so I only managed to get the first course on.

Something I have discovered from today is that I do not like bricklaying. It is made to look so easy by the pro's haha.

Any how due to issues with slab sizing etc from silly initial lay out mistake I made I have the bricks set with how they look good with the rest of the house. You can see how I have l sloped / started slopping off the edges where the brick is not set right on the edge of the concrete, so the water has a nice path to run off (really should not get on there once the whole frame is on and clad really).

Cheers
Mark

 

[cammy9r]

Bet you are glad it is only 2-3 courses, of course pro's should make almost everything look easy. Problem you have there is that there is not enough to do to get the hang of it.
I have done a small amount of brick laying and did not find it as easy as it looked nor did I realise how much mortar is needed. Think if I ever needed to do large amounts I might invest in the bricky tool thing.
The paint would work but it is paint and it always fails sooner rather than later, for the price you can get a 5L SBR from B&Q and you would appear to have cement already.

 

[markblue777]

Hey cammy,
Tell me about it even for the smal amount done I got through the mortar.
I saw that bricky mate thing. It don't look bad but when you lay the mix down you do the trawl thing to indent the mortar the create the suction and with that tool that does not happen. Don't no how much it affects the strength of the wall.

Yeah I think Il go with the SBR

Mark

 

[Graham Orm]

I wouldn't have bothered trying to line up the bricks with the house. A couple of 3/4 cuts in the front would have had the width the same as the slab. You will always get damp on the inside of the brickwork unless you build a cavity wall. I'd re-do the first course to fit the slab and build an inner wall of block.

 

[markblue777]

Day 9

This afternoon I wanted to get the brick work put to bed so I went and bought the dpc and laid that out and cut to size.

I then bedded the dpc down on some mortar to create a level field for the second course of bricks and finished the slopped edge on the slab from the bricks

Finally got the second course on with the gap left for the door frame to fit in to. In total this bricklaying and DPC has taken me about 10 hours. Slowest progress ever, but now it is done I can hopefully get cracking with the rest (as soon as I get the timber, which is looking like Monday if the weather stays alright).

Also got side tracked as I looked down the inspection chamber for the soil line and noticed it is backing up a bit (about 1/5 full, which is more than normal as I can normally see the bottom) so I think there is a blockage so having now borrowed my uncles rods I need to try and hopefully shift it tomorrow. If no could be a bit of an unwanted expense.
Cheers
Mark

 

[n0legs]

You'll need to take care screwing the frame down to the bricks.

 

[markblue777]

Yeah I will be drilling into them very carefully nolegs. I would definitely swear if I crack one of them.

 

[n0legs]

Yeah I will be drilling into them very carefully nolegs. I would definitely swear if I crack one of them.

Swear !!!!
They'd end up down the f****** street if it was me :shock:

 

[markblue777]

Yes much the same here we have a field next door to us so I can see if I can qualify for the 2016 Olympic shot put team.

I was going to bed down a timber on the bricks with some mortar first (the have anchor bolts holding it down to) like what you do with a wall plate, does that sound about right to you?
Cheers
Mark

 

[Graham Orm]

You might want to use something like this to tie the brickwork to the house. http://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Stainles ... 2/p/246016

 

[markblue777]

Hi Graham,

This is all I am going up with for the brick work, the rest is now a timber frame that will be bolted to the wall or else I would have used such a system.

Cheers Mark

 

[Graham Orm]

Hi Graham,

This is all I am going up with for the brick work, the rest is now a timber frame that will be bolted to the wall or else I would have used such a system.

Cheers Mark

Ah I see. Should be fine then. :wink:

 

[cammy9r]

I like using those wall starters for tying in.
Have you thought about L shaped brackets that nail into studwork then screw into the slab on the inside. The slab is getting a screed over it and the internal sheathing can be notched out for the few mm of the bracket/strap.
It is a good strong fixing as I don't fancy you tying into 1 brick course that is sitting on a dpc unless you are going right through into the slab underneath, but this will breach the dpc. Normally there would be more courses adding strength and weight above the dpc line for framework to be attached to. Kind of like dwarf wall built conservatories.

 

[markblue777]

I was actually looking at the l shaped brackets and I think I will be using them instead as they seem the less risky option of cracking bricks and I think they will be stronger as well as you have said.

Cheers
Mark

 

[markblue777]

Day 10 and 11

So over the last couple of days I have started to make some progress with the wood side of things.

Day 10
Today involved getting the wall plate cut, levelled and bedded

Whilst cutting the parts it started to rain so had to get the patio umbrella out front for a bit of protection.

Hand cut the lap joints as my circular saw was around my grandads (as were my japanese saws that would have made the cutting a bit faster)

Lap joints all cut

So by the end of the day I had them all cut, levelled and bedded (sorry not got a final picture)

My misses nephew came around as well to see the baby and I thought I would pick his brain (his a roofer). After a talk with him I have got it in mind of what to do (run into a little issue but will need to get him round to check and brain pick again at the weekend hopefully)

Day 11

Today I set about securely fixing the wall plate to the brick and concrete base.

I used (as advised by cammy) L shape brackets and then bent the excess over the wall plate as well. I also used metal straps and the off cuts of the L shape brackets as extra fixings

I then cut both the uprights and fixed them to the wall with anchor bolts. I also threaded the existing exterior light wire through the timber to re-attach the exterior light (wire will be used in end porch as well for lighting etc)

After today I have thought of an issue though. So the exterior door frame from wickes says it need 2067 x 926 hole to fit in but although I have the width the height will be an issue as I will only have about 2030 ish. This is due to a limitation of how high I can take it due to the existing roof line at the front of the house that this is being built under (should be able to see it in the pic above). Does anyone have any ideas? All I can think of is that I will have to make my own door frame (so it can take a 1981 x 838 door).

Cheers
Mark

 

[Graham Orm]

Is that untreated wood Mark?

 

[markblue777]

Hi Graham,
Going up the side of the house it is. On the brick work it is treated

Cheers
Mark

 

[Paul200]

The weight of all those straps alone should stop it flying away Mark :wink: