tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45116713944505671042023-11-16T15:27:03.292+01:00Our German Build with Allkauf HausTrack the ups and downs as we build our house in south GermanyBenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.comBlogger84125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-14213967820773263212016-05-21T18:22:00.000+02:002017-06-05T18:24:11.687+02:00Garden Part 6 - FinishedThe is garden all planted up and the fence is finished. Now we just have to wait for the grass to grow.
Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-87263329747655285292016-05-20T18:18:00.000+02:002017-06-05T18:19:32.081+02:00Garden Part 5 - Plants and FenceThe plants have arrived. We have been out with the gardeners to look where they suggest they go.
Out the front we want a tree to give some privacy through the front door window and out the back we want a natural looking hedge that will eventually hide the ugly (but necessary) fence.
As we are located within the Black Forrest Nature Park area we are advised (in the contract back when we bought Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-25824337668658039992016-05-10T18:04:00.000+02:002017-06-05T18:07:43.325+02:00Garden Part 4 - Topsoil ArrivesIt has been a while since the front driveway and patio were completed but finally we got our topsoil delivered and the gardeners have been back to spread and level it.
Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-56867761791544676052016-04-22T18:03:00.000+02:002017-06-05T18:04:19.385+02:00Garden Part 3As we have a wooden construction (as opposed to brick) we can't allow damp to come in to contact with the walls for any long period of time. This means we need to leave a space around the walls for air to circulate. The gardeners have dealt with this by leaving a narrow trench next to the walls bordered by curbing, then having the path running along this.
At the back where the patio Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-86081653871651263332016-04-19T17:49:00.000+02:002017-06-05T17:52:32.480+02:00Garden Part 2Today the gardeners completed the driveway and path. We chose "Antique" style stones for this to fit in with the colour and style of the house. Once the sand washes off it should look good!
Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-37479605195879962492016-04-15T17:43:00.000+02:002017-06-05T17:47:49.059+02:00Garden Part 1One thing we really wanted to get finished was the garden. With a toddler, a dog and a baby on the way it is really important we have a fenced in garden with space for playing and an outdoor dining area.
We spoke to four gardeners about our ideas and requirements and their responses differed a lot. One was extremely expensive and even boasted about being so, saying that's what made him Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-26879458719591898042016-03-07T17:22:00.000+01:002017-06-05T17:23:55.184+02:00Bathroom Finally FinishedFinally the bathroom is done.
There were a few issues with the planning meaning the light switch was too close to the shelf behind the sink so we had to cut off a few mm from the plastic surrounding. The plug sockets above the sink are also not ideally placed so we had to hang the mirror over these making it higher than we would have liked.Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-35416348157090535402016-02-28T17:13:00.000+01:002017-06-05T17:13:26.727+02:00Our New HomeWe're in!!!
It's been chaos living out of boxes and not finding anything but we're in and it's starting to feel like home.
The upstairs bathroom saga continues but finally the plumbers have reached an agreement and they are now working on completing it.
Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-50240758232669738762016-02-21T16:53:00.000+01:002017-06-05T16:54:04.201+02:00The Day Before the MoveWe can't quite believe we're moving tomorrow. After the madness of the past few weeks trying to organise the build, selling our flat and packing for the move it'S all been a bit of a blur.
We only have the bathroom downstairs ready but at least we have one. It's proving difficult getting rid of the building dust. It will take months before it's all gone.
Here's how things look the day beforeBenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-8114515757338602742016-02-20T16:43:00.000+01:002017-06-05T16:45:42.036+02:00Final Push to Hit the DeadlineLot's has happened, we have doors and the laminate is down in the bedrooms.
The final tiles are going down in the hall.
The plastering is complete, except in the cellar hall.
We just need to tidy up a bit and do a deep clean to get rid of the dust... so much dust!
Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-818430237630613892016-02-18T16:32:00.000+01:002017-06-05T16:32:55.122+02:00Bathroom ProgressThe downstairs guest bathroom is progressing well and should be ready to use when we move in on 22nd (although the BBB guys will have to give up their weekend to complete it on time, which they kindly agreed to do).
Upstairs is a different story. The drainage pipe from the shower is apparently too high so the plumber from BBB tasked with putting the shower in refuses to plumb the shower Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-14918883959195946272016-02-15T16:11:00.000+01:002017-06-05T16:22:15.345+02:00A New KitchenHooray, we have a kitchen so we can at least eat when we move in. Whether we can go to the toilet or have a shower is still debatable!
Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-85669351313544231922016-02-13T15:59:00.000+01:002017-06-05T16:00:40.775+02:00Ready for the Kitchen & Bathroom IssuesJust in time, the living room and kitchen space is complete and has a day to dry ready for the kitchen to be fitted on 15th.
Unfortunately the main bathroom upstairs is not progressing so quickly. We discovered that the wall at the back of the shower is not included in the original offer so BBB had to construct this.
Also, the plumbers that fitted the ventilation system placed the air Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-78455811767900414862016-02-12T15:37:00.000+01:002017-06-05T15:46:12.386+02:00Quick Progress - Living Room Walls and TilesWith our moving date fixed on 22nd February things are having to move quickly. The Kitchen is being fitted on 15th so the guys from BBB have been working flat out to get the living room and kitchen plastered, tiled and hopefully painted (and dry) on time.
Here's the progress today:
The floor tiles are half finished. We chose a "Random" pattern as we think this looks best with Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-23622622680599501642016-02-06T15:31:00.000+01:002017-06-05T15:32:07.002+02:00Plastering the cracks and bumpsBBB have been busy on site doing the initial plastering. they need to smooth over all the gaps between plaster boards and over every indent from each nail used to fix the boards to the wooden frames. This is required so that the final layer of plaster is smooth and bump-free.
Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-90620537303255638782016-01-27T20:00:00.000+01:002017-06-05T15:21:02.828+02:00Renovation Pack 2Today we took delivery of the second renovation pack from Moebau. This includes the materials needed to complete the internal decoration like laminate, floor & wall tiles, doors, and bathroom suite. It also includes the materials required to install these.
We have contracted the company " BBB Bauherren Betreuung Bensch" https://www.bbb-clever-bauen.de/ to do the fitting, plastering, Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-13919196058553744682016-01-14T21:49:00.003+01:002017-06-05T14:59:30.230+02:00Progress and ProblemsIt's been an eventful few weeks with lots of issues to deal with, and with Christmas thrown in there hasn't been much spare time to update the blog but here's a summary of the progress and the problems over the past few weeks.
Screed
The screed went in on 11th December and the plan was that the plumbers would return the following week to connect up and turn on the heating. The boiler has a Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-85025325390211837722015-12-11T22:06:00.000+01:002015-12-11T22:12:40.887+01:00Screed and GarageThis week the screed was laid. We had an appointment with the manager of the contractors sent to do the work at the end of last week. We told him we don't want screed laid where the bath and showers will go so we can set them lower in to the floor making it easier to get in and out. He told us to measure out the areas and mark them by placing wood or similar around the edge or where the Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-86521001520763290012015-12-11T21:32:00.000+01:002015-12-11T21:32:33.165+01:00Under-Floor HeatingMore progress! Last week the under floor heating was laid. We didn't realise quite how this would be done but were amazed there is so much polystyrene involved, about 20cm thick base on which the heating pipes are run. This makes the total thickness of the floor about 50cm once the screed is in.
The pipes themselves are set out in several spirals covering the entire ground floor with a small Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-70584993031621417382015-12-03T22:46:00.000+01:002015-12-03T22:46:08.938+01:00Allkauf and Moebau InflexibilityWe decided fairly soon after the house was built that we wanted to plaster the walls rather than put up wood-chip wallpaper (fairly standard in Germany). We already agreed this with the contractors that will complete the final renovation and called Moebau, the company contracted by Allkauf to deliver the hardware, to request this. They informed us they don't have the plaster so can't deliver thisBenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-54111446870004046172015-12-03T22:34:00.001+01:002015-12-03T22:34:32.525+01:00Plumbing, Ventilation, and Some IssuesAnother couple of weeks have past and there has been lots of activity at the house.
The main work has been the installation of the ventilation unit, plumbing in of the heating and all the pipework for water and drainage. This was started on Monday 23rd November and finished on Wednesday 2nd December.
The start of the work immediately highlighted a problem as the radiators that were delivered Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-76476964517962006642015-11-19T22:40:00.001+01:002015-11-19T22:41:36.941+01:00Stairs - Going UpOn Tuesday the stairs to the first floor were put in. It only took a couple of hours and it makes things so much easier now we don't have to climb up on the ladder.
We celebrated by carrying down about 100 of the around 200 excess roof tiles Allkauf left after they finished the build (they said these are our problem, not theirs). We have to take them all out of the house before the scree is laidBenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-13216877126906297702015-11-19T22:29:00.002+01:002015-11-19T22:29:17.576+01:00Interior ConstructionIt's been a busy few weeks on site. On Monday 2nd November the interior construction company arrived. They took delivery of more plaster boards and the rockwool insulation bales and when we arrived they quickly talked over what they will do and let us point out where fittings like sinks and the toilet will go. One surprise for us was that they said that although in the architects plans, theBenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-70778238282316908582015-11-02T21:40:00.000+01:002015-11-19T21:43:57.500+01:00DIY Cabling On Sunday Joe and I headed up to Heimerwegwiesen to lay some additional cables in the house. As the electrician wanted an extortionate amount for laying the cables to the satellite dish I decided we could do this ourselves. It didn't take long as we just had to measure out eight lengths of cable then bundle them together and poke one end outside under the wall, which was not yet sealed. We then Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4511671394450567104.post-10811249138974120342015-10-30T22:18:00.000+01:002015-11-02T22:18:22.331+01:00First Allkauf Expansion PackAt 5pm yesterday as we were on our way back from Lehningen to meet friends for dinner when we received a call from the delivery lorry driver saying he would be on site in about half an hour. This was a surprise as he was supposed to come today. We told him there was no chance we could get back out to Lehningen yesterday evening but fortunately this was no problem for him as he needed to Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429541699603998421noreply@blogger.com0