A LONG WAY FROM THE HOUSE

SO HERE I AM in Adelaide Airport, South Australia; a long way from home, so to speak.

UPDATE ON  'FIX THE SUNROOM': Over the weekend prior to leaving for Oz, I completed the last project needing to be done before Winter.  Recall this aimed at fixing two problems: a slight problem with water seepage into the Sun-Potting room and the need to get more sunlight into this room during the cold months.  At right, you can see the dampness problem at its worst>

I have tackled this by digging out the topsoil around the foundation walls, laying down a waterproof membrane, and replacing the soil with a more porous gravelly mix.  This surely has fixed the water problem  and I now have a heap of topsoil to be used elsewhere in the garden.

The problem with the light during the cold months is the acute angle of the sun's rays.  These fall mainly onto the rear walls of the room.  As report in my last posting, I have concreted around the southern walls and planned to place off-white tiles over the slabs, extending out about four feet.  The theory is that sunlight striking these tiles will be reflected up through the windows and onto the ceiling, then to be scattered around the room.  We shall see just how effective this is when I return in early February.  Below is the completed job.

While I am away Daniel will be fixing a new roof.  Since painting the roof white, we have had trouble with a series of minor leaks, especially when the wind is in the north (the direction of the worst weather) which seems to have acted to lift the composite bituminous tiles (low pitch roofs act somewhat like wings, producing a lower pressure above the roof than below, within the attic space).  Despite all our efforts, we have not been able to fix this annoying problem and this has meant that I have not been able fully to insulate the space above the entrance hall and stairs.

So, when I return, a steel decking room colored polar white will welcome me.  This will be secret nailed to batons or furring strips that fixed through the current roof to the roof trusses.  This is lighter than covering the old tiles with new and will create an insulating layer of air between the old and new roofs.