Daydream fund challenge part 4

Davesnave · 15 May 2017 at 7:30PM

As our builder is still having bad back problems, we decided to have a lie-in this morning..... when the phone rang....

"We'll be over in about half an hour!"

That was the flooring chap, who'd written down the wrong dates on our order, so we were expecting his prep guy tomorrow!:eek:

He arrived about 25 minutes later, took one look, said, "Oh, that's easy! I can tackle all that tomorrow." And with that, he left! :rotfl:

We were well awake by then.

In other news, we spoke with another conservatory company surveyor today, who gave us good, unbiased advice. He wasn't after business, saying he would only wish to involve his company if ours just walked away, but he doubted they'd do that. So do we.

Soooo....I'm trying to work out what we want from these shysters now. While I don't trust them to do anything complicated, since no one else will touch the job, we'll have to get the structure finished off properly, supervising it every step of the way. Deep joy!

Then they'll be asking for their money.....I doubt if it will be as originally agreed!

Davesnave · 15 May 2017 at 7:35PM

Chesapeake wrote: »

The allotment is deteriating with the recent gales and storms, the polytunnel ends with doors have both collapsed, the repair I did to the "shed" roof has blown off and weeds are pushing up the ground control fabric we laid.

It's been breezy here, even a little wild for odd 10 minute spells, but no gales. The rain today almost missed us too.

I'm glad for what we've had, but the stream is hardly running, and that's our guide. Nothing's coming out of the land; it's just road washings.

alfie_1 · 15 May 2017 at 10:51PM

dave... at worst scenario I personally would tell the 1st company to go whistle.. they have had chances to put right what they got WRONG and if they took YOU to court for whats owed [what they think] then the argument in law would be the amount quoted to you to PUT IT RIGHT would be deducted from the original quote.
I seriously would NOT let them back on the project !! if they were conscientious they would have been straight onto putting it right..

Davesnave · 16 May 2017 at 6:50AM

alfie_1 wrote: »

dave... at worst scenario I personally would tell the 1st company to go whistle.. they have had chances to put right what they got WRONG and if they took YOU to court for whats owed [what they think] then the argument in law would be the amount quoted to you to PUT IT RIGHT would be deducted from the original quote.
I seriously would NOT let them back on the project !! if they were conscientious they would have been straight onto putting it right..

It's complicated. The law says we must allow them the chance to put things right, and it's us, not them, who've been delaying till we get some answers.

We needed to know what alternative was possible technically, and what it might cost. It's taken this long for us to get that info. The conservatory roof manufacturers won't speak to us. They have an enquiry service, but mysteriously, none of my enquiries is ever answered. I'm in the naughty book, obviously.

:o

Now, I have a chain of events showing that they deceived us from the start, when we proposed altering the roof of the bungalow while it was off, and they countered with a different proposal a week later. We were kidded along, but they could never have built what we thought we were getting for the price quoted. I don't think they ever do. They just do what they do....rather badly. The product they use isn't too bad though.

We had an idea how this might pan-out, so being a long-term pain in the @rse to them must surely result in a deal we can live with, and it's important we get that, at least. We're resigned to the fact that we won't get anything else, but they've thousands of £ worth of kit erected here, not being paid-for, and we're about to make some suggestions regarding that.....

Won't say any more. This probably has some way to run yet.

Chesapeake · 16 May 2017 at 5:01PM

Davesnave wrote: »

It's been breezy here, even a little wild for odd 10 minute spells, but no gales. The rain today almost missed us too.

I'm glad for what we've had, but the stream is hardly running, and that's our guide. Nothing's coming out of the land; it's just road washings.

Yeh I've noticed that within a couple of hours of every rainy spell the ground is already drying up without many muddy patches forming. Need a few more weeks of nice steady rain to top up the water table.

I've got 2x 1,000 litre IBC's at work that I need to get to the allotment so that I can build a proper guttering system for the polytunnel and "shed". The plan is to lay a system of drip hoses through the raised beds and have an overflow pipe to keep the pond topped up. My winter project is to get hold of a small solar panel and a control system so that it will automatically turn the water on and off at set times of day

Davesnave · 17 May 2017 at 6:40AM

That sounds like a great plan, Chesapeake.

I have quite a lot of plans too, but that's how they stay, because as soon as we get to May, the job of staying on top of everything fills up all the time. I ought to be used to it by now, but the speed at which everything grows still shocks me. One week I can be looking at a fairly neat outdoors, yet the next it's covered in weeds and long grass!

Living room floor goes down today. The guys spread the levelling compound yesterday in no time at all. They know a lot of people, so I'm pumping them for info! :cool:

Looks like another rainy one, so no strimming today.......:D

Davesnave · 18 May 2017 at 6:55AM

Still quiet in here without choille......Come on girl, sign up as Wee Hettie Haggis....or something! We won't tell. :cool::D:)

Nice floor went down yesterday. Good guys who take a pride in what they do. :A

They gave us lots of free info/advice too, so I've been able to solve the problem of the conservatory floor and avoid asking the builder to alter it for the second time. That's a huge relief, because it's all very well, having one of your long term friends as a contractor, until things go awry......;)

It's threatening to be a nice day today, so I feel a bout of strimming coming on.

DaftyDuck · 18 May 2017 at 4:34PM

... no rain, soil so dry, grass going brown, all you Western Coast lot don't know you've had it so good... even joined all the hosepipes together (dribbling from every failing junction) to water the hedge, and the Heavens opened... for all of thirteen seconds before the Saharan Drought resumed (oh deary-me) even the stream is virtually dry, and the soil has split into cracks, which is never good as it dries out even more.. oh and the underground water tank that was brim-full is now bottom-empty... woe, woe, and thrice woe....

Then, yesterday, it rained. Biblically (for us dry Easterners, anyway). We had puddles! Green fields!! Hedge sprouting from even the dead bits!!! Joy!!!!

Well, until the flies came out, that is. Biters during the evening feeding then, today, every damn Dipteran, Hymenopteran, Coleopteran and Godknowswhateran came out to play... Jeepers Creepers!

(Gotta find something to moan about, I'm English!

)

But, it is damp again, which is good. The fields were suffering, the trees were, and so was I, from lugging water about. The sheep had a good bath, and the Norfolk Horns went bright white (in the right bits too). The Boreray decided it all stank, one proved she can just Gazelle-leap over a fence (from a standstill... oops, there's a problem for the future) and went back to the big barn, while the others just looked so drenched we let them in anyway. They are meant to be hardy sheeple, not wimps. (I have some Bagot goats coming soon, and they can climb trees. Most of my fences

Most of the hedge has taken, and the wild roses are already in flower. The hazel and crab apples have just rocketed away, and most of the other fruiting plants are alive at least. It's going to be a forager's paradise in a few years! One way to encourage neighbourhood watch...

I am also in a strimming mood, and had the sprayers out as well. Death to weeds. All must die... Bwah hah har! I'm getting the hang of precision spot-weeding. Last year I had a bloke out to help, and he had sertificurts an' all. He seemed hell-bent on finding how much spray you could inhale, liquid you could swallow, and drips you could run down a neck before you keeled over, and whether you could block a drain by knocking a bottle over. A nutter. He'd have enjoyed the scent of 1970's Vietnam, around breakfast time

... This year I will use my lab-training and do a neat and tidy job. Actually, most weeds are my friends. I need to get the docks under control, and limit the spread of nettle. The ragwort war is well on the road to success, and bracken is losing ground, both mainly from hand-removal.

Now the ground is softer, I might manage to get some more fence posts in, but it could do with a bit more rain to soften it.

I'd have thought those conservatory guys will soften up soon, Dave. They'll need to move on, they'll have had to pay the supplier for what they've fitted anyway by now, and their busy fitting-season is upon them, so they'll want a resolution. Well, hopefully, anyway.

Cheers, everyone, even those on a Scottish Naughty Step!

lucielle · 18 May 2017 at 6:05PM

OH is very busy at this end and had a couple of 4 am starts to catch up not helped by a member of our team going sick for 2 days. DS1 has handed his notice in and is moving back home. Absolutely dreading this but ground rules have been laid. He's going shearing then hoping to go to New Zealand and do their season. DD1 has returned from Texas and been and looked round a few ranches and different farming systems, she had a great time. Just landed her job back at the caf! she worked at last year. DD2 is hoping to do another year at college if her grades are good enough. DS2 is still doing hi s apprenticeship so all moving steadily on here.

L

Fay · 20 May 2017 at 11:38AM

Not much to report here but loving the updates. The D is under way now and financial matters will start soon.
But in day dream news, I've seen s few places that could have potential...sadly not a small holding yet but gardens with some scope. Early days obviously but nice to know there are things out there I like. The great plant pilfer is under way too (not sure I can pilfer my own stock actually lol). So far I have about 12 hostas intimate pots (looking good, slug damage now under conrol), 2 salvia caradonna, a viburnum snowball bush, 2 salvias whose name escapes me I bought from wollerton old hall last year, a limelight hydrangea, hundreads (I might exaggerate!) of verbena seedlings, a few astrantias, a rose I was bought for my birthday, a hellebore, a couple of geraniums and a lupin that is clinging on for dear life after slug damage. I have pics but not sure I have the patience to go via photobucket lol.
I was hoping to continue moving other things this weekend but it's currently bucketing it down...sorry Daffy, I hope it is for you too!

Daydream fund challenge part 4

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