Jack! The new member of the Family!!!

Well the time has come to bring a new little one onto Hapuku Kitchen estate. The first of many I suspect. Jack is a Labrador/Huntaway X so Sturge is dead keen to get him out Duck Hunting while Fi is wondering if he could round up the chickens and ducks. Mmmm I sense disaster coming.

I'm Jack and am 6 1/2 Weeks old from Amberley. Mum was a Lab and Dad was a frisky Huntaway

Meg being introduced to Jack!mmmm this will be interesting!

We werent kidding when we said only one wall would remain. It is a bit scary actually. Not sure why we even bothered to keep a single wall.

The one remaining wall!

Looking to the Mountains, thru where the doors will be

Looks like the entrance to a Church!

The rest is roofed and lined! Hang on does that mean more than one roof party!

Few issues just cropping up, the roof setup was not right and therefore we were not able to save any of the existing roof structure. Oh well , Out it came then.


Next Step the roof goes on the living area (AKA School Hall) Man it is huge!!!
Then the windows and cladding. Roll on the next few weeks

Some things you just cant control!

Meg chasing a builder resulted in this!

Some things you just cant control!

Well the roof is now on the extension and completely wrapped. This is great as the rain starts.

The guys have started on the remainder of the house with the removal of the old porch front which will become the main windows to the mountains and the replacement of the roof.

Of course now they remove the remainder of the floor! What joy will they find under there?

Extension Roof On! Plumbing Starts!

Well as each day goes buy things are happening to the house.
Whilst the Sun is out....just! the roof goes on and the ditches have been dug for the sewerage tank.
Damn glad I wasn't there when they pumped out the old one!

Roof framing is completed, Fascia goes on

The boys have spent a few days adding the multitude of framing for the roof ready for the delivery of the Longrun Iron.

Time marches on and up she goes!

Well it has been about a month since the last post. Fi has been gallivanting around the countryside cooking at Simon Gault's restaurants and having a fine time as well. Of course not one to miss out on good Kai I had the privilege of going to each of the restaurants over the period. Anyway that was all to give you the excuse that we haven't been around Kaikoura much, well not until last week. So here are the latest pictures. Things are progressing at a great speed and we now have all the framing up and the main structure completed.

The interior of the old house is hardly recognisable now with all the walls removed and the floor lifted. We are delighted that the rimu floor is in pretty good nick with only a few rotten boards. Certainly a lot better than we expected.

As with many old NZ farmhouses every winter you are visited by our friend the Rat. In pulling down the walls it was amazing how many of our little friends were still with us. Gruesome but true.


Here are some extra shots that speak for themselves

And then finally this is home at the moment.....brrrrrr welcome to Winter!!

So... next steps, the boys are bracing the structure and wrapping it in the next week with the roof added to the new build in the next 10 days. Timeline at this point, in by End June.

Wow the extn floor is down!

Flooring has been laid for the bedroom parts of the extension. As this will be covered in carpet we have gone with a standard chipboard floor. And yes I checked the chipboard is waterproof!
Windows and doors are out of the master bedroom ready for reroofing and extension of the external wall.
Long may the sun continue!

Piles are in!

These guys are machines! They have to slow down at some point! Day 3

Clearing the Hedges

Clearing of the hedges, man what a difference, you certainly feel pretty exposed. Here is a before and after.

  

Pegging Out

Alister and the boys have spent most of the day scraping out to the new wing and pegging out the foundation holes. These guys are great.