Monday 24 September 2012

Permanent Quality Temporary Roof

There was a single storey walkway on the north side of the main body of the castle with a lead covered roof. Duh! Naturally this was the amongst the first lead to be stripped when the building was abandoned. The walkway did not stand a chance. The paperwork to get this fixed up has been a nightmare of delay-after-delay, all the while water has been dripping through here into the basement below. This is the only place water is still getting into the building en masse albeit by percolation. It has been a source of considerable distress: this part of the basement is permanently wet.

My builder and I finally snapped and we decided to build a temporary roof here. I hate wasting time and resources on something that is not the final solution - but enough was enough. The temporary roof will protect the building and it is cleverly a couple of feet above the original roof. so we can eventually construct the proper replacement underneath in the dry.

The photos show the step-by-step construction of the roof. My builder has achieved an amazing quality of build, and has chased it exceptionally neatly into the contours of the building. He assures me it will last for decades, which made me laugh. And certainly, it buys genuine time for the building. :-)



roof beams in position; sheeting before affixing


roof from the inside
roof now felted
windows blocked, roof in place
roof drains into this light well below - fortunately we excavated working drains!

7 comments:

  1. Hi David. Have just read through your blog and the history of Balintore Castle and am so pleased that you have taken on this mammoth task! Will keep reading your blog with interest. Kind regards. Roger Blake, Finavon Castle.

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    1. Thanks Roger for your kind words! Naturally, I know about Finavon Castle though I have never been to see it and would certainly love to. I am envious of its ancient parts: Balintore arrived fully formed in 1860! If memory serves, I think Finavon is where one of my Kirriemuir friends rented an apartment some time back. Doing my best to keep up the good work. :-)

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  2. David,

    Just to let you know that I have started uploading some of my vintage colour transparencies.

    It is at

    http://vintage-colour.blogspot.co.uk/

    Hopefully regular updates!!

    Gavin

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    1. Hi Gavin. Delighted to see your blog is up and running - the colour images are amazing. Keep them coming. :-) David

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  3. Hi David! The old castle here is probably 15C and beyond even your reparative skills! The new castle is slightly younger than yours, built in 1865 I think... You're more than welcome to visit any time :-) Cheers.

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  4. Whilst I am in love with the West front of Balintore, this "rear" North elevation is my favourite!

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    1. Good choice! I went for years not realising how good the north elevation is. There are trees and a mountain to the north, so the views are not clear. Then one day, I caught a glimpse of the north elevation through the trees just at the right angle. It was a revelation. :-)

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