Great stuff Gervase!!

[Anonymous]

At last - a telly prog about 'restoration' 'renovation' or in fact simple gentle appropriate repair - which two of us here didn't spend the whole hour shouting at the screen!

Yes it's hard work, no it's not civilised living, bank staements aren't somwething you look forward to receiving, and cow#####does smell rather - but it's worth it in the end. not that the end ever really comes of course.

Thank you!

 

[Anonymous]

Well done you two. That was a really good bit of TV.
Biff

 

[Anonymous]

WELL DONE!! I am full of admiration.

Young Jack's happy face and positive comments say it all-- it will be a great home as well as giving us all an insight into the skills and learning curves.

All the best

Jocelyn

 

[Anonymous]

If I had a hat, I'd take it off to you Gervase!

Top marks indeed, and well deserved too, particularly for tackling that cement render.

I was particularly interested in your reed mat (and plaster) ceiling, which is something I contemplated myself for smaller areas of repair. How's it holding up now? It looks fantastic.

I've also use the 'repair from above' method to re-attach the ceiling plaster, albeit with laths and not reed, and it has worked OK.

You also deserve credit for getting several sh*ts on BBC2 in the early evening <IMG SRC="http://www.periodproperty.co.uk/discussing/smileys/smile.gif" BORDER=0 ALT=""> Might as well call it what it is, particularly if you're up to your arm pits in it <IMG SRC="http://www.periodproperty.co.uk/discussing/smileys/smile.gif" BORDER=0 ALT="">

Cheers

Ian

 

[Anonymous]

Damn! I missed it!

 

[Anonymous]

I was only able to see half of it but the vibes coming from the show were all positive - good to see a show where people weren't made to look stupid and inept.
Obviously this is because the people involved aren't stupid or inept but sensible and sympathetic to what they are doing.

Well done indeed.....

(Is it available on the BBC website for those who missed it?)

 

[Anonymous]

If the powers-that-be at PPUK have videod it, is there some way it could be made available via a link?

 

[Anonymous]

Your family is lovely, you are lovely, your house is amazing.

As a sheep owner myself, can't quite see why you would want them on top of that huuuuge restoration job!

I was so impressed by your patience and attention to detail using correct methods, bet the others in the show come nowhere near. Class swot!

 

[Anonymous]

Is the BBC going to give you that huge dresser as prize for being Class Swot?

 

[Anonymous]

Aw shucks, enough already! My beloved wife is already mercilessly taking the p*ss out of me, so don't give her any more ammunition.
Seriously though, I know there's a lot of antipathy towards the way the media treats restoration, and that is one reason why we agreed to do the programme. Even if one lone nutter can bore on about lime and breathability for an hour on telly it might make a difference, so we bit the bullet and agreed (not to mention the prospect of looming visits from Auntie keeping me up to speed and keeping the project moving along in the face of possible procrastination. Lovely beaches here, y'know!).
We found that a good way of countering the propensity of TV to focus on disasters was to remain ludicrously optimistic and unflappable throughout. It did p*ss them off a tad, but it meant that there was none of the doom, gloom and angst that make up so much of such fare.
That said, the production team were a delight to work with, and Ian, John and Jo were great fun - although they did prove the point that if you have three experts in one room you'll get four differing opinions! And Charlie Luxton almost saying goodbye to his full English after savouring a trug full of cow#####has to be a memory to treasure.
Of course there was a lot they didn't show, and a lot that was blown up beyond its significance; the stones around the fireplace wee never going to be a major issue, and I'm pretty sure that once the room started to near completion the fireplace would have looked what it was - unfinished.
But it made for an amusing hour's viewing, and if it helped get the message across to anyone contemplating injecting a DPC or rending with cement, or plastering with PVA and gypsum or any number of crimes against buildings, then it was time well spent.
As for the reed matting - I'd love to have gone with riven oak, but it was just too much on our meagre budget. And, so far, I've been impressed. There is a problem with consistency, however. Some of the rolls have the reeds wired much closer together than others, and that makes plastering a proper pain (literally if you've got arthritis like me) if you've got a well haired mix. If you get the chance, slect the rolls yourself rather than just ordering them.
There's also a lot of 'flag' on the reeds - dried leaf sheaths that are wrapped around the hard stem - and it's essential to remove as much of this as you can. A brisk scrub with a churn brush loosens it, and then it can be picked off by hand. if you don't, the plaster will stick to the flag, and then the weight will unwrap it from the smooth reed stem and...splat. And get used to ordering staples by the kilo - you need lots and lots and lots...
(In the attached pic they're too far apart - in the end I felt happier and safer putting them over every third reed)

 

[Anonymous]

Brought back a few memories... re-pointing.. watching Gervase with same pointing trowel in hand that I used, at the end I was up to about 1sq metre per day - still took me 3 months (evenings and weekends).

A bit late now, I did resort to using a needle gun to clean out the joints - magic bit of kit and used carefully avoids damage to even the softest most friable stone.

Good luck for the future.

Andy

 

[Anonymous]

Now I'm doubly impressed.. you did all that with arthritis!! I have chronic tenosynovitus in both wrists and I have to take things like pointing and plastering so slowly and in small doses or I'm crippled, I'm not sure I'd ever get thru everything you've done..so as i do have a hat (it being a very cold day) I take my hat off too you.. well done <IMG SRC="http://www.periodproperty.co.uk/discussing/smileys/smile.gif" BORDER=0 ALT="">

 

[Anonymous]

It's amazing isn't it - you can say s h * t on TV, but if you write it PPUK censors it...

I recall a trial last year where we posted a number of rude words to see what got through and what didn't. Maybe we should try again...

Another compliment Gervase - husband (a beardy type himself - catches the beer drips) was pleased to see you sporting such a fine example on telly, although it did get curtailed a touch for summer wear I noticed.

 

[Anonymous]

i managed to miss the complete *************g programme....... : - (

 

[Anonymous]

The whole blooming prog, Andrew? Tough shit!

However, you can at least get a taste of the before and after (although I have sad feelings regarding the loss of the corru) if you look at Gervase's PPUK User Profile...

 

[Anonymous]

How did that one geta way without being censored?

A trial...

cowshit
shit

 

[Anonymous]

Not lost, just gone before. In fact it will soon be appearing in a pigsty, helping keep the worst of the west Wales winds away from a couple of Gloucester Old Spot weaners.
When we removed it from the battens I was staggered at the amount of nesting material stuffed behind the sheets - it was almost enough to insulate that side of the house!

 

[Anonymous]

evelyn..... does he have a profile? under a sydonym??

 

[Anonymous]

In the new forest, the corrugated sheet is a traditional vernacular building material and you would have probably had to have kept it

 

[Anonymous]

with soap and water, young lady!!!!

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