Some decorating

Alongside everything else I am decorating an old farmhouse for a family I have worked for before, must have done something right :)
I am going to be doing this one on an as and when basis but the first two rooms want to be done asap due to the kids coming home for christmas !!

Before during and after on the first bedroom :)

The church

Currently I am modifying a rostra for the church in Ashcroft road Cirencester.
they have a raised area like a stage at the front of the church where the alter and pulpit etc are situated. In front of this are placed some movable boxes so they can alter the stage for the purpose they need for that particular day.
They were concerned about mic leads lying around and exposed sockets fro the electric and sound system and wanted to tidy it all up. They came up with an idea of adding a couple of boxes and modifying what was there to make the front rails removable but after making a mock up this was decided against due to the fiddliness of the rail sockets and storing the rails when not in use.
We have gone with the second plan of building two fixed boxes, one at either end, to fill the gap left by the current boxes.
The large box fits behind the entrance door and will necessitate the modification of the entrance ramp but will end up creating a nice lead to the current boxes due to its wedge shape. The smaller box is built to accomodate the electrical and sound system sockets at one end and the other end will be a storge box for all the cables etc.
The entrance ramp as it is now showing current boxes.









small box showing shelf for sockets and storage area.







Construction of larger rostra box









mock up box

warming up..

As my shed is getting cold I thought a source of warmth was in order.
I visited a local scrap yard and found an old gas bottle that he was stuck with so only to happy to lose :)

After carefully removing the valve and filling with water for a week I set about modifying it.

First job was cut a hole in the top to fit a flue stub, I fitted the stub with a flue damper so the chimock could be shut off.


I cut the bottom ring off the bottle and cut in into 4 sections, 2 large and 2 small. The large pieces were to make a stand, or legs, for the burner so I could stand it on any surface without worry. The base of a wood burner does not get too hot as the wood burns on a bed of ash which keeps the base insulated.
I then cut a hole in what was the base to make a door and the 2 small pieces of the base ring were then used as the hinge along with some m10 nuts and an m10 bolt.

This is where it is as of today.

Next time i need to fit a door catch and some method of sealing it. Also an air control so along with the chimney damper I can control the heat output.

Inset Fireplace

For this little project I had to close off a fireplace opening and open a new one further up the wall. This would involve breaking into the chimney of the fireplace on the other side of the wall as well.



Knocking out the wall was straight forward as was rebuilding the opening and fitting the new lintel.

















Because the new fire had its flue exiting top and centre I had to clear enough space above the opening to accomodate the flue. This was not so easy as it meant breaking into the chimney from the fire on the other side of the wall.
















Will have to get a piccie of the finished job.

The Secret Garden

I was asked to make a stage set for a theater company in Cirencester for their production of The Secret garden. I had to build a platform that stood approx 6 feet high on which several people could dance and would be accessed by a flight of steps at each end.
I used 40mm box and 19mm ply and this is what I came up with..

The stage at the theater was built on a slope towards the front which meant I had to install some adjustable feet for the whole assembly.

For transport and storage the assembly was built in sections, 4 step flights, 2 square frames and the main frame flat packed.

When on stage we installed uprights on the steps and intermediate frames and this allowed us to fit a rope banister going up the steps and meeting the top rail both back and front.

This picture shows it on stage ready for action. I have to admit I was quite nervous as the top was filled with dancing actors.

Intro

Well I thought i had better let peeps know what I do and what I am capable of.

I hope to get pics of work I do and post it here, not always in order but here none the less.

Basically I am a practical person which means I am good with my hands. I have always fixed my own stuff from go karts and push bikes, motorbikes and cars to houses and all associated things.

I can operate a spanner, I own the equipment to fabricate in wood and steel, I weld, solder, fibreglass, I own and use a chainsaw, hedgecutter, and strimmer.

Any use to you? just give me a ring, 0 seven 77 five 83 one one five 7 or alan at gruntys.co.uk