House and Household

One thing about an old shop is the advertising. Below are some examples.                    

Fireplaces are essential in the Midlands. In winter it is not warm and the wins cut through from the Highlands. Traditionally the only way going of keeping warm was to burn wood in a fireplace. Nice solid sandstone fireplaces actors heatsinks and keep the house warm through the cold. When we acquired our house most of the fireplaces had been covered up. The lounge room fire had an insert into it that had been used as the main heating for the whole house. Upstairs had coal fires.   The traditional Rayburn stove in the kitchen and had been removed and replaced by Gastown and gas hot water heater. the result of this move was that the kitchen is extremely cold and leaks like a sieve.   Robin and I had a wonderful weekend where we opened up two of the old fireplaces. In the library fireplace we added a fireguard and started to use the fireplace. In the small office because the base of the fireplace had been removed we were unable to use it.                           ...

On the way back to the mainland last trip I found an "oldtool" stall in the antiques emporim in Davenport. Twas the start of the rot.. . I bought two planes and a draw knife

Sun up at about 7.30am sun down 4.50 pm. This introduces a new meaning the working outside while itś light. You cant start till itś defrosted and after 3.30 it starts the cycle starts again. Sunny days are a buzz of activity. Gray or rainy days are indoors. Fires are a must. Drafts and insulation sudenly move to the top of any work list. Unless it means opening up the house to the weather. In winter you just don get as much done and plans are flexible....

Winter is here in Tassie. Today it was minus 4 at 7 am this morning. I suppose I knew winter was going to be cold in a building that leaks air like a sieve and has heats sources that throw most of there heat straight up the chimney. Open fires are so romantic but pretty useless. Normally the kitchen is the heart of a house in winter as you all crowd round the “Rayburn” stove.  This house had been “gassified” in the worst possible way.  Gas stove and a gas hot water heated plonked in the old kitchen fire place. Wood stove dumped. Most fire places blocked up. windows painted shut. My job over winter is to fix this loss, replace the insert in the “lounge” with one who’s fan works and is a mite more efficient. I also have to get the planning approval for a shed at the top of the garden. Whilst I’m here I am to get “as much” as possible done. Painting digging, wood and weatherboard ordered, gutters ordered and things in pl...

This blog was meant to be a log of work done. Decisions and compromises.... But lack of a reliable network in the house made that hard. Now we have internet and warmth. But winter is not the time to work outside. So I'll start by outlining progress to date. Condition as Acquired  Two front windows were smashed and had structural problems. Paint and wood had not seen much work in the last few decades.  Nice large Yard but not a tree in sight..   A cleanup had been undertaken and the stuff not taken to the tip was burnt. The main door is on the eastern ish side. the gutters were full of rubbish and overflowing in all directions. Note the green on the wall near the end of the Verandah.    Kitchen is simple and usable. Once water leaks thru the valley gutter. And mould were overcome.   Entrance to "the laundry" It was just filthy, wet and grease covered. The mud room had been used as a kitchen and was grease coated. The lounge - note the shake and cigarett...

1st of September 2012 -Wellington Street on Monday I leave for Tasmania. I will be driving down to Melbourne on Monday, doing some shopping in Melbourne on Tuesday and taking the ferry across Tuesday evening. The trip across this best rate should be easy as good weather is predicted. Assuming I get some sleep I should be able to drive to Oatlands in about an hour. I might decide to stop in Launceston along the way to get some hardware materials. When you kindly note London's my primary objective is to clean the house remove the nails from the flooring in the lounge room so we can put a carpet down. I also hope to effect some repairs on the Windows. Of course one of my other objectives is to start living a life in Tasmania. I need to discover my environment, where to shop, who to talk to, with a good market are, where not to buy things. I’m also hoping to start more walking and cycling. We’ll see how we go.