Tiles

Yes, that’s right. Painting is almost complete and now the tiles are being laid! Things are moving very quickly. Sometimes Monte and I get a bit anxious that soon we will be moving into the house! Can it really be happening?

Sean tiling in the living area (yay)

Sean tiling in the living area (yay)

In just 2-3 hours, over 12 square metres of tiles were laid. I think the tiling will happen soon. We’re using charcoal tiles and we’re laying them on the diagonal.

I am really happy, mostly because of the progress on the house, and because we can now run a fridge and a washing machine. Life is so much easier (and normal). Who would’ve thought?

We need to finalise the purchase of appliances. We’re currently debating whether it is worth spending an extra $1000 to get 5-star appliances. We could buy a 5-star fridge, which would be over $1000 more than the 4-star fridge – and then only be $300 cheaper to run over 10 years. I suppose more factors (eg environment) need to be considered. If we didn’t limit ourselves to 5-star energy/water ratings, we’d save thousands. But what would be the greater impact?

We only have 2 days of rendering left: Matty’s bedroom and the main bathroom. Monte is waiting for cooler weather to do that. Currently we are enjoying warm temperatures of mid-high 20s. The guestroom needs to be rendered too, but that is presently a store room, and we do not think we need to hurry to finish the guest room. We are going to have parents visiting this month, but I don’t know of any other visitors until May, so we have plenty of time. The outside rendering will be finished in Autumn, when the weather is cooler. It is not good for the lime render to be exposed to too cold or too hot temperatures. Hot days will make it dry too quickly and then crack (however, cracks can be scrubbed over with a damp scourer – hey presto!). Cold days can cause ice crystals in the render, which would jeopardise the render’s integrity.

We’re looking forward to getting the power connected at the house. Our contractor is also a farmer, and, being hay season, he is very busy. Often working 30-hour shifts, he finds finding the time difficult. However, it should not be too long until we are connected to the mains. Derek is looking forward to having power; working in the pantry, in particular, is tricky because it’s so dark!

Life is good.