28/8/12

So today we installed the rest of the batts in the exterior walls of the house.There were 2 types of batts for the build.Batts for the walls and batts for the ceilings.The way I get the batts all nice and snug is by putting the first corner in and cutting the last part on the dwang and stud.With a 10mm over hang for the hole making it a nice and tight fit without creeses.The insulation will be useless if the batts aren't installed properly.There can't be any gaps at all.



Batts to be put behind the wiring.

We had all the batts in before 9am ready for the inspector to arrive and assess the building for our inspection.He showed us the small device for measuring the moisture content in the timber.The device had 2 prongs in the end which you stab into the timber to get the reading.He tested each wall in the house,It needs to measure around 18.  3 above or below.The house passed with flying colours.




Installing Batts.

After smoko,me and Brad went and continued with the top weather boards so that we can continue with the corner caps of the house along with the beads.The gib will be arriving today so we will be ready to start that and possibly have it finished next week.

21/8/12

So today I had to go up onto the roof and finsh the last side.We laid all the sheets of iron out on the ground and marked it all out with a straight edge and whiteboard marker.We don't use pencil as we found out that the water will make it rust because it is made out of graphite.Once all was marked out,we then used the nibler to cut the marked lines.We then used the offcuts from the otherside of the building.I used the same pattern for the screws.screw one in,miss 2,screw one in miss 3.Chalk lines were used again to ping where the purlins are under the sheets.

The corner scribers are all cut to the right lengths and primed up.The batts all arrived today,So we will be getting stuck into the flashings,and batts tomorrow.Then we should be doing Gib and the rest of the flashings.

14/8/12

We went upstairs for a class session with Matt this morning.We went back over the types of wood that can be used in the building industry.There are 3 different catagories that we put them into;Indigenous,Exotic and imported.We went back over these as we have a written assessment to do tomorrow.

After the classroom went headed back to the e shed where we carried on with the build.I continued with the scribers,I have got all my scribers within reasonable distance on the weatherboards.I had to go and nail off the remainder of the wall claddings on the house.Me and Conan went to the Joinery room with Matt and ripped down some weatherboards on the table saw.Then we marked out where the window openings were on the board.I also learned how to make head flashings for the windows.I used snips to cut the flashings to the right lengths.Then they are nailed above the windows.The weatherboard that is cut to fit can then be put up and nailed off.

13/08/12

My first attempt at making my first scriber.

So today we got straight into the build,We had no more paper for the roof so that was left on hold.I was shown how to do scribers for the outsides of the facings for the windows.I measured the facing boards and added another 50mm on top of the overall to give me plenty of over hang.The bottom cut for the scriber was cut at 15 degrees.I made a 30mm guide that I leaned up against the side of the wood and tacked it in place.Then used the guide to mark down the sections that need to be cut.I used the table(ripping)saw to nicely cut the sections out.Once I had a nice tight fit then primed up the cuts and put it in place then tacked it,checked it,then nailed it off home.I repeated this for both sides of the window.



Scribers for the outside of the bathroom.

Everyone else was installing foam around all the windows and doors.This is to prevent drafts of cold air entering the house from the outside,and to keep warm air in the house.We will be ready for batts this week if they arrive.Then Gib can be chucked in,once the walls have been checked for square again,The rest of the roofing iron should be put up and done leaving us with the flashings for the hips and ridge.

7/8/12

So yesterday,we started off in class with a small session of catch for the rest of the class.Steve came in and took the session for the morning.Me and Brad were already up to date with our assessments,Moodle,Blogging and quizzes.So we were instructed to go ahead and move on to the house.My first task was installing facing boards for the outside windows on the weatherboards.I had to cut go ahead and cut some weatherboards into small packers,Phil made a scriber for the blocks to sit nicely to,then a strip of timber is nailed to them with finishing nails.Then the facing boards are nailed on.The bottoms of the facing boards are cut on a small angle to sit flush with the outside sill under the window.Our boards were to overlap the outside of the window by 10mm.This is to prevent weathering from getting in from behind.We were going to move on with the head flashings for the windows but it turned out that the flashings we were sent were the incorrect lengths.

After Smoko we moved back on with the roof.Me Mark,Brad and Takey went out and carried on.We had all our sheets at 60mm from the face of the facia board,The overlap is needed for the run off into the guttering.The longer the better as water cannot run back up under the roof causing the materials to rott and or weaken over time.The tool used was called a "nibler" This was used to cut the sheets of iron for the roof.We used a chalk line to ping a line to have something to follow to give us a nice finished cut.We then fixed the sheets down with techscrews,These are not to be over tightned as these can put pressure on the sheets and burst the rubber seal under the screw.The offcuts we have can then be used on the opposite end of the house as the overlapping patterns will be the same but different to the ones you have just cut them from.We no longer staple the building paper down as we just lay it under the sheets of iron.The iron is more then enough to hold the paper down.And once its screwed down they ain't going anywhere.

31/7/12

Today we finally moved on to the ROOFING!We started with crimping the ends of the iron at the tops,as this prevents water from getting into the house under the ridge caps.We cut the paper to,4900mm for the underlay of the iron.Our screw patterns for the top and bottom are 1 in then two gaps then one in ect.For the intermediate purlins,It was 1 in,2 spaces,1 in,3 spaces ect.Less screws are required for the middle purlins.We used chalk string lines to mark down where our screws are to be placed.I had a rattle gun with the tech screw piece.The screws are not to be fully screwed right down as the pressure can crack the rubber seals underneath the screws causing small leaks.

To get the first sheet straight,We done a 345 on the roof,marked 3 on the top purlin and 4 on the sheet of iron,Then matched it up to 5.We then tacked the sheet in place with a couple of nails.Another way of checking it for square is to have a string line up the top of the roof and one at the bottom of the roof,then you can move them around till they fit nicely between the string lines.

The other part of the class went ahead with the exterior window facing boards.We will be doing that tomorrow when we rotate.The tools we will be using are routers,chizels and many more.Primer will also be used to keep the freshly cut timber treated from the elements.

30/7/12

So today I got stuck into the Fixing,for the window facings and flashings.I measured the distance between the weatherboards then went to the joinery room with Cam and ripped the timber to 45mm by 45mm.With some of the window headers,I had to use packers so that the face of the H1.2 timber was flush with the window.The facings will be ready to put on tomorrow.Then we can nail up the window top sill flashings.



Fixing for the window flashings and facings.

In class this morning,we went back over sealants and roofing.We were told that for the top of the sheets for the roof that we use vice grips and bend the valley parts of the sheets back,this prevents water from entering the top of the building under the flashing caps.The sheets are to overhang into the gutter by 50mm.The overlap of the iron is 2 valleys.The over lap for the builders paper is 150mm. The top and bottom of the roof has a screw on every rise. and a screw on every 2-3 rise to every purlin.I will set up a string line at each end of the roof,Top and Bottom So that I can line up the sheets of iron nicely and straight.We start off with one full length sheet then carry on.The overlaps of the sheets are determined when we know the main direction that the wind blows for that area,but in our case,We will do whatever as we are building indoors and don't know where the house will finally be placed.

Packers making the timber flush with the window.