Workawayers & Wells

Things have slowed down coming into the spring and summer of 2009. We are focused on the baby due in early June. But we also decided around this time to join a website called Workaway . You basically get requests from people from anywhere around the world of any age, happy to come and stay with you and do some work in exchange for accommodation and food..Simple.
We had are first 2 volunteers arrive in April of 2009...A french teenager and a young guy from California.
Then in May we had Gaston come to stay with us and help out.

Gaston from Argentina helped us out in May 2009.

Pictures of the house from the top of our large Pine Tree in the garden.

Best fresh Organic produce in Donegal.

 

Just before our baby arrived in June we had Trey and Danielle come and stay for a week.

Repointing the walls on the gables at the end of the house that was exposed to the harsh winter previous and rebuilding the chimney.

Makes a big change in Ireland to actually need shelter from the sun, but it was a roasting hot week.

Lily Anne arrived a few days later...

In July Ian decided that he would turn his attention away from the house and do something that was looking like a major job. We had 4 volunteers lined up to arrive any day and hoping that with that much man power we could build a well.

This was what the original well looked like after the large tree stump next to it was taken out.

The tree stump that was taken out of the well.

All the stones that were shifted from the surrounding area.

Mat & Ramsey, just 2 of the 4 volunteers who helped us out building our well over the month of July/August 2009.

Read Mat's view on the project here: http://matburich.blogspot.ie/2009/11/donegal-dreams.html

 

The water quality is excellent and pure.

 

 

 

 

New Roof

Over the winter of 2008-2009 we started rebuilding the new roof. When I say "we" I mean Ian as I was growing rapidly. Once the wall plates were in place and he had rebuilt the gables he started by putting in recycled telegraph poles to use as a cross frame.

Ian preparing the poles.

These will be visible in the rooms.

Starting to get the rafters in.

 

At this stage the house was exposed to the elements which can be harsh in Donegal. The aim at this point is to get the house sealed as soon as possible.

Finally the felt goes on half of the house.

We choose breathable felt because we will be putting thatch back onto the roof.

Ian fixing the battens in place.

The house is starting to take shape and look more habital again.

 

 

No Roof....

The House is exposed...the walls are open to the elements and we are expecting our first baby. Things have just become a little more complicated. The walls are a mess and each gable needs rebuilding. The evidence of woodworm is much greater than we had anticipated now also...We have little choice but to keep stripping back, further and further...when will we be on the way up because at this point we are on a steady slope down down down.....

We recycled the oak beams from the old A-frame in the roof...they will be used as lintels because almost all the ones above each door or window in the house needs replacing. Ian will have to take down many walls and then rebuild them again once the lintels are in place. Using lime mortar.

The little sitting room we spent ages clearing out when we first arrived.

It was traditional to put things into the walls in these old houses. We have found many shoes and bottles and bags and widdled bits of wood.

Some bones and quils found in the wall.

If you look closely you can see the date 1766.

Some hairpins with red hair wrapped around them found above the chimney in the kitchen.

There was a pouch of ashes also.

 

You can see the new wall plate here that was put in to support the new roof.

Were a piece of the old A-frame will be recyled to make a new lintel.

You can see how the house was constructed here. A maze of stone.

Some of the wood removed from above the window.

The new lintel going in

Old telegraph pools have been recycled into support beams here and will also be used in the roof.

 

It was around this stage that we realised we were gonna need some additional help.

So we got online and discovered Workaway.

We had some people lined up to arrive in April 2009, nearly 2yrs after we had bought the house and up until this stage Ian, myself and a few others had done all the work.