The heatIn the previous post about the heating system we talked about the fundamentals of the floor heating systems, their benefits & drawbacks and what were the decisive reasons for us to choose such a system above more conventional ones. Now the question is: where do we start? How many different heating zones do we need? and how much pipe? In this post we will walk through the steps to define the system.
Low and SlowRecently another project has born in The Shed. It is all about wood fires, meat and beer: designing and building a real Texas offset smoker! You might ask yourself “Doesn’t this guy have a house to build?”. The answer is simple: yes. But being a technical guy these sorts of things get me interested. I always want to figure out how things work and then try to improve them. Maybe that’s why I always end up with so many projects…
Warm feet in the entire houseEarly on the design process we decided to install a floor heating system to warm the house. We decided to do so due to the advantages it entails and its flexibility. This was one of the decisions we never again doubted. We were convinced.
The beauty below the filthWe bought these wooden crates on our first visit to the second hand furniture market of Amiens in 2014. When we found them, they looked terribly: they were extremely dirty and beaten-up, but we loved them. They were made of solid wood so we knew that with a little bit of patience we could make them look beautiful again.
The toys of the big boysWhen starting a project of this magnitude, investing in a selection of good quality tools is a must. In The Netherlands we have a saying which states that “having good tools is having the work half done”. We have put this saying into good use and purchased some very handy “toys” which were added to the collection! Continue reading
Deep in the mud!In April 2014 we started working on the foundation of the extension of the house. The first thing we did was to demolish the two attachments that the original house had in the rear because they were not incorporated in the new plans. Next step was to make room for the foundation itself. In order words, digging into the mud. Luckily we had put together a great team to help us: my parents and Chris.
As it happens on all our quests, we found these balls unexpectedly in Soumoulou (France). Hubert instantly fell in love. We were leaving without them, but seeing his sad face made us turn around and get them. They were very dirty and infested with termites; however we thought they could give a nice look to any corner of the house. Continue reading
The Shed 