Floor Insulation & Pigeon Patch

After we realized that there was no way we were going to finish the bathroom construction before my return to New York (because of the time needed to order and deliver the stone tiles), I decided to take a day to deal with a few small tasks that were becoming more and more pressing...particularly as the weather was getting colder and colder.

Back when we leveled the floors at the beginning of the year, we did not install insulation. But now I feel strongly that we need to start making the flat more comfortable - not just bare-minimum livable - so with the temperature dropping and some drafts becoming apparent, it should be done soon. Plus - with the radiator plumbing completed in the bedroom we no longer need access to the floor, so it's good time to do it. After some research, I ordered several very large bags of insulation...

The insulation being delivered

The bags of insulation are quite large!

In addition to the insulation, we also needed to patch a hole in the rear exterior brick wall. This hole was the result of removing the old waste pipe from the original bathroom - it was removed during the plumbing's first fixing - right before the scaffolding was taken down at the end of July.

The "hole"

Not only did the hole let cold air into the cavity of the floor (a big source of drafts in between the joists), but we learned very quickly that a pair of pigeons had moved in! The pigeons did not bother us at all (they were under the floor and off to the side)...in fact "Aglaya" thought it was quite sweet to wake up every morning to the sound of their cooing (and they were LOUD!) But they really bothered a few of our neighbors. Because this would be a messy job (with the bricks & mortar), I figured it would make sense to patch the hole on the same day the floor was insulated.

After removing part of the closet and cutting away the floor boards

The view from the hole (you can see one of the floor joists on the left)

Patching the hole involved making mortar and fitting pieces of brick which meant cutting them individually. What made this difficult was having to work from the inside as there was a 3 story drop below. I should point out that this could not have been done when the scaffolding was up as it did not reach this far over...

The patched hole - sloppy but done

Once the patch was completed, I moved onto the insulation. This was a relatively easy task, but (as usual) it took a bit more time than expected. Having recently been involved in a sound proofing project in New York, I wanted to be sure our floor also provided a decent amount of sound dampening between us and our neighbor below. A key element in sound dampening is to have insulation, but it's better if there's an air gap, so I decided to raise the insulation a few inches above the plaster ceiling using chicken wire to prevent it from slipping. The chicken wire was what took a little time, but within a few hours I had it completed...

Removing the plywood sub-floor to expose the cavity between the joists

Installing the chicken wire between each joist (prevents the insulation from slipping)

Half the insulation installed

The completed insulation

That night we noticed that "the Box" was significantly warmer and the drafts had been minimized...mission accomplished!

The Shower: Waterpoofing (part 2)

Once the initial layer of waterproofing was dry, I moved on to complete the installation of the 2nd layer of waterproofing: the Marmox board (an insulated & waterproof tile backer board). Because this had to go onto the rough masonry walls, I was definitely not looking forward to this - not only because of my lack of ability with a trowel, but also because I always manage to make a huge mess whenever mortar is involved. This work was similar to dry-lining plasterboard and installing the first few Marmox boards, except here I had to also deal with the arch...

The masonry arch and wall - in a rough state

A Marmox board ready to be installed - the adhesive is dabbed onto it to help level it out properly once up on the wall

Pounding in the plastic "spankers" that provide additional support with masonry

More spankers ready to be nailed

Closing up the arch using small pieces of Marmox board - the white is silicone caulk which is used to seal any joints and make them waterproof.

Applying a small piece of Marmox to the arch

The completed arch

Starting to apply the waterproof tape at the joints (additional layer of waterproofing)

The completed arch. The area on the right will be built out with plywood as part of the ledge design.

The Shower: Waterproofing (part 1)

With the shower walls framed out and sheathed in plywood, the next step is to start waterproofing. I had to do a huge amount of research on the subject, but in the end I actually decided to layer several different waterproof systems over each other. It's definitely a bit of overkill, since each system is designed to function independently. But the memory of a leak from the flat's original, ancient loo early last year is still too close for comfort, so we decided not to take any chances and to go with the logic "better safe than sorry". (The leak was nothing to do with us, though of course we had to deal with the aftermath.). I thought about it afterwards and realised that the idea of redundant waterproofing is similar to what we have on our new slate roof - it has multiple layers of waterproofing to minimize the chances of any water leaking through.

For the initial layer, I had decided on using BAL's WP-1 tanking kit - a rubberized membrane that is painted on. It has the consistency of cream, but once dried, it becomes a flexible rubber membrane. This flexibility is ideal (and often necessary) for a wooden substrate, because wood has a tendency to expand/contract with heat/cold. Also, older buildings settle over time, and they shake slightly when a heavy truck drives by - if one does not allow for all of this movement, there will eventually be cracks - and water just loves to slip through them...

Before any waterproofing could start, there was (or course) something that had to be removed, because it was in the way. The end of our steel beam (that supports the post which supports the new mezzanine's structural steel beam) had to be trimmed so it did not stick out.

In the middle of cutting off the edge of the steel beam

The completed cut

The initial waterproofing system - BAL's WP-1 Tanking Kit

The tanking system involved several steps: the first requires you to prime the plywood; after 15-20 minutes you can start painting on the membrane. Joints between wood, as well as any holes, have to be covered with a polyester gauze tape that help span the opening; finally, an additional coat of the membrane is applied over the tape.

The primer applied to the sub-floor on the underside of the shower.

The membrane is applied to the floor and wraps up around the edges to create a waterproof enclosure - and to prevent any leaks through the floor (to the flat below) in case any water leaks from the shower.

You may have noticed that the waterproofing that's been done so far is located below the shower, not at the floor level of the shower. As part of the redundant waterproofing, we decided to fully waterproof the bathroom's floor - but because our shower floor is sitting 9" above the bathroom floor (because of the steel beam), that waterproofing extends under the shower. Because of the configuration, we will have two (hopefully) waterproof levels under the shower. This means that should any water leak from the shower or drain above, the odds of it leaking through the sub-floor - and through to the flat below - are extremely slim. This is definitely unconventional - and certainly overkill - but we really want to minimize the possibility of a leak.

The initial layer of waterproofing (blue-gray color) below the shower on the bathroom's sub-floor

The Shower: Initial Build-out

While the plumber was installing the radiators, I was able to start focusing my attention (finally) on the shower. It (along with the rest of the bathroom) is going to be completely new - when we did demolition we pulled out all the old fixtures, so for the moment, the bathroom is just an empty space except for the toilet and the boiler. So the entire shower enclosure has to built from scratch: framing, walls, floors, waterproofing, tiles and new plumbing...in other words, "the works".

I had previously installed the bathroom sub-floor, working out the initial layout when we had the boiler installed. During that period, the wall separating the shower from the boiler was put up - so when everything is finally done, that wall will become the front of the shower (where the shower head and valve go).

Morning of October 17th - the previously framed-out is visible on the left.

After clearing everything out - the starting point for the shower!

The first task will be to start installing the tile backer boards - I had done quite a bit of research on the various options and decided to go with a product made by Marmox - a waterproof, insulated cement board. Not only will this be the proper surface to which the tiles can be attached, but it can be used as part of a waterproof system for building showers - I liked that this product accomplished several things at the same time. The Marmox boards can either be screwed into framing, adhered to masonry with adhesive, or nailed in place with plastic "spankers". I opted for using the "spankers" and the adhesive due to the very uneven surfaces of both brick and plaster - this was similar to dry-lining plasterboard in the living room. The adhesive itself is waterproof, but it also adds strength to the installation which will be necessary if we use heavier stone tiles.

Applying adhesive to the wall and the back of the Marmox board

The first Marmox board installed

The design for the bathroom (and specifically the shower) ended up becoming quite complicated as there are many "spanners" in the works here. You may have noticed there's a large arch in the brick wall - this was only discovered during demolition as it was hidden behind the old walls. This arch resulted in a steel post going in to reinforce the steel beam - which (of course) pockets into the brick wall directly above the arch. This post ended up in the shower, and the post is sitting on a heavy steel beam to help distribute the forces and weight (or to be more precise, the point load) of the post across a few floor joists below. As a result, the floor of our shower will sit on-top of the steel beam. I also added a ledge that wraps around two sides of the bathroom - this was initially done to help hide the concealed cistern from our loo, but i carried the ledge around to give a ledge over the sink and in the shower where we can put things. The final design of the bathroom incorporates all these elements and (hopefully) will seamlessly tie everything together for a clean and simple appearance.

Second Marmox board installed and starting to frame out the base of the shower. The ledge is also starting to be framed on the right side of the picture

The shower base fully framed out - sitting on top of the steel beam.

The shower floor's plywood substrate

The Marmox system includes an insulated and waterproofed floor board that is pre-sloped for water drainage. I ordered one that was closest to the size of our shower and then cut it down to fit. One of the other things I liked about the Marmox system is that is has been designed around a specific drain - the floor board is pre-cut to receive the drain, so the entire system is integrated and should come together easily.

The Marmox floor board

We had worked out that as the plumber finished working on the heating, he would do the "roughing", or first fixing, of the shower pipes and fixtures. We had previously selected and ordered the shower head and valve, but that evening "Aglaya" and I had to choose exactly where they should be installed the following day - she really enjoyed this part!

Locating the shower valve - which height feels right?

Locating the shower head.

So the next day our plumber installed the pipes and fixtures based on the locations we selected the previous evening.

October 20th - Overall view of the shower plumbing

Detail view of the shower valve in the wall

The floor drain anticipating the future floor height due the steel beam (visible in the backgound). The white pipe is a condensate drain coming from the boiler

With the initial plumbing completed, it was finally time to sheath the shower with plywood, covering the pipes (on one side). As part of the waterproofing I decided to use WPBP (waterproof boil proof) plywood that would later be covered with a waterproof tanking kit (to be explained in the next post), followed by the Marmox board.

Installing the plywood substrate

Most of the plywood installed

With the floor, plywood, plumbing and Marmox in place...the outlines of a shower are finally starting to be visible!

Balcony Formwork

With the ridge tiles done, the roof is basically finished - so it's nice to finally start doing something else. The next area to focus on is finishing the dormer - but before working on the carpentry and painting which will be quite involved, I figure it makes to start at the bottom. The bottom of the dormer will be a narrow "Juliet" balcony which will sit in front of a very large series of windows that will open (on one side) like a set of French doors. The idea is that one day, we'll be able to open these doors and step out onto the balcony to enjoy a view if the beautiful neighboring gardens and trees below.

The Dormer -afternoon of June 22nd

The balcony will be made of concrete so that it's strong enough to allow the balcony to extend beyond the face of the brick wall, and also to help hold together all the loose bricks that remain exposed. The first step in working with concrete will be to make the wooden form-work that will hold the wet concrete in place before it dries.

Before starting the form-work, the first task was to remove some obstructions that were in the way - the ends of the vent stack for the plumbing, and the downspout for the old gutters. These were quickly cut away, revealing that some of the brickwork had been removed, leaving a gap. I soon realized that before moving forward, this gap had to be repaired before the form-work could go up - whoever installed these pipes really butchered the wall and the brick. Because it was so bad, the rest of the day was taken up by repairing and filling in this gap. It was only on the following day that I was able to do the actual form-work, and that ended-up taking the whole day...but at least it was finished. Another item to check off the list!

The obstructing pipes before being cut away

After the pipes were cut, the gap and damage to the brick (from when the pipes were originally installed) was revealed

To fully repair som eof the decorative brickwork would have involved removing most of the surrounding bricks, and possibly causing more damage. To avoid this, I decided to span the gap with a plate of unused steel from the structural work. The plate was held in place by mortar.

Brick were then laid over the steel plate and the gap was slowly filled.

The completed repair.

June 23rd - the form-work in place.

This space is where the concrete will go. The left side is the form-work, the right side is the wood "wall plate" that used to hold the original roof rafters.

The completed form-work

Just in case you think the roof is finished...

...it's not.

One might imagine that now with the slates done, the roof is finished...

...but unfortunately that's hardly the case.

There's still a long list of things that needs to be done before the roof work is officially finished, the scaffolding can come down, and I can go back to New York:

• The Ridge tiles need to be installed along the sloping edge of each roof plane. These tiles are triangular shaped and cover the gaps where the roof planes meet (at one of the dreaded corners) with a bed or mortar. The tiles are placed on the mortar which holds everything together and seals all the openings. (You can see one of these ridge tiles sitting on the edge in the picture above.)
• The eaves, which are plywood, need to be be protected from the rain so they don't rot away. They can either painted (which would mean they would have to be re-painted every few years), or - preferably - covered by a waterproof sheet (so they won't fade or need repainting).
• The gutters need to replaced because we took the old ones out in order to remove the roof joists back in January as part of the structural work. Besides being in the way, the old gutters were metal and rusting away - it was only a matter of time before they started falling off...
• There's a small area of re-pointing to be completed in the brick party wall over the flat roof.
• The flashing needs to be completed along the brick wall - primarily where the flat roof is.
• Once the flashing is completely finished, I need to apply a special waterproof caulk in the open joints where the lead is inserted into the brick. The caulk is formulated to bond between the brick and lead, but allows each to expand and contract properly - this avoids the problems associated with water getting into cracked mortar, which is the traditional way to seal the joint.
• Our neighbors' TV antennas, which are cluttered along the face of the dormer, will need to be relocated.
• And now on to the dormer - the first element of the dormer that needs to be done is all of the final exterior trim-work and facing. The plan is to do this with wood and then paint it (beacuse it will be easily accessible for repainting)
• Once the dormer is trimmed out, the wood needs to be treated for exposure to the rain & damp weather with a protective coating for the wood. Once that's dry (2 days later), all joists and screw holes need to be patched with an exterior filler. After drying and sanding, the wood is ready to be primed, and then finally painted with 3 coats of black exterior paint.
• Once the dormer is painted and finished, the final flashing/cap can be installed over the top edge. this will prevent water from coming in along the edge of the dormer where the slates stop. The trick with this is that the detail needs to span both types of roofing: traditional slates and modern membranes, yet look the same for visual consistency.
• The vents for the boiler, kitchen exhaust and bathroom exhaust need to be cut through the brick wall in the rear and the vents need to be installed. This has to be done before the scaffolding comes down because otherwise there is no way to install the vents and patch the holes. The plumbers will do the boiler vents and I'll take care of the others.
• The hole from the old boiler vent needs to be patched (once the plumbers take it down) - otherwise we'll have a 4" hole on the side of the building!
• The windows need to scraped and painted (not replaced) because in a few years we would like to replace the windows with efficient double-glazed windows. 
• Paint the exterior stone sills and other decorative stone elements that frame the windows. These are probably the most distinctive features of our building's facade.
• The floor of the Juliette balcony needs to be poured in concrete. To do this, the wood form-work must be made, followed by the placement of steel reinforcing bars, followed by the brackets that hold the railing posts. Once all of that is done...then you can pour the concrete...
• Once the balcony is poured and dry, the balcony railing can be installed.
• Finally...the scaffolding needs to be cleared of all the debris that's piled up since November, and then it can be taken down by the scaffolding company!