Demolition and Removal

When I described the state of play to a friend, his eyes widened and he asked “Oh, so you bought just a shell?!” Actually, we did buy a full flat complete with walls, appliances and everything else – but everything was in such dire condition that we basically turned it into a shell !

It took 3 days to demolish everything, and 2 more days to get rid of all the debris. In the end, the debris filled two 12-yard skips (dumpsters)! That's probably 5-8 tonnes (tons) of debris!

Starting from the bedroom...

...and working our way towards the living room

The living room

Almost there!

A very full skip

The skip being hauled onto the truck.
It's so heavy the truck is actually doing a wheelie!

Demolition: Before and After

A few pictures showing the flat before and after demolition...

Demo: Before & After - View from top of stairs

Demo: Before & After - View from hallway

Demo: Before & After - View from living room

Demo: Before & After - View from living room to kitchen

Demo: Before & After - View of bathroom

Relief

What a relief!!!

OK, about a month later than planned, but at last, things are finally kicking off. G.C. showed up late last week, and I had been stopping by the flat after work in anticipation of seeing some progress... I would phone André from inside and say "Well, I don't think anything has been done yet..." Little did I know that once demo actually started, there could be no doubt whatsoever, since it looked like the flat had been the site of a medium-sized explosion!

Now that things are finally moving forward, I've gone ahead and given notice on the current rental flat. So our moving date early December. Thank God, that means just another month of paying both rent and mortgage... because to continue to do that is definitely not a viable proposition.

Demolition: Everything Goes

Everything had to go!

We got rid of, literally, everything but the kitchen sink! The ceiling, the walls, the bathroom (and all its fixtures), the kitchen appliances, the radiators… you get the idea.

To give ourselves a blank canvas, it was time for “demo”.

The pictures speak for themselves...

Demolition montage: View from the former kitchen

Demolition

Demolition montage: View from living room

Demolition

Demolition: View of the bedroom

Demolition: View towards entry

Demolition montage: View from former hallway