September started with bare roof timbers and ended with the roof sarked and ready for slates.  We have chosen Spanish Villa del Rey blue/black supplied by Yates Slates of Clitheroe www.yateslate.co.uk to match the garage and have agreed that a local slater, Alan Blackburn, (postponing early retirement due to popular demand!) will fit them.  Alan will start on 3rd October.

Hundreds of cedar shingles have been fixed to the vertical faces of the dormers after being coated with 2 coats of Sikkens Cetol HLS 077.  The grain and colour of the cedar are brought out beautifully by the Cetol, which is formulated to protect against UV and weathering.  

The cedar vt&g boards were treated in the same way. We have started to fit some of the boards under the eastern eaves and found that the different colours of the boards complement each other to produce a varied and attractive finish.

Treated cedar is expensive compared with softwood, however, we think the longevity and looks are worth the extra cost.  The block of shingles break up the roof shape into 3 elements, avoiding the top-heavy look which a large slate roof could have created.

The block work was completed by building the chimney on the west end. The flue is an Isokern pumice class 1 for the multi-fuel stove in the living room.  The flue was very easy to fit using the special cement provided. The stove will have a 3.5 kw back boiler to provide winter water heating.

Three local suppliers who have been involved:

Gwynneth Clarke - Engineering With Composites. 01282 618219

Gwynneth, who has a background in automotive engineering, fitted glass re-inforced plastic onto the balconies on the south.  We chose g.r.p. as it is totally weatherproof, can be fitted in-situ, moulded to any shape, and provides a stable surface on which we can fix the tiles. Very effective and straightforward.  We have asked Gwynneth to come back and tank the wet areas in the bathrooms.

Varley Insulation Products (01772) 690360

Specialists in polystyrene block cutting, Varley supply most large builders’ merchants with Kingspan, Rockwool, Xtratherm and loose fill thermal and sound insulation products. Graham Varley is very helpful. Located just off the A6 north of Preston.

David Wallace International

UK supplier of Rofatop Magic breathable membrane. www.slate.uk.com/RofatopM.htm

75 square metre rolls of 3 layer UV stable membrane at a competitive price.

Located in Garstang on the A6 north of Preston.