~~
Morning coffee meant that I was back to fighting my way around the new work surface. Which is still filling the entire kitchen. I am far too old for limbo dancing. Probably too old for crawling on my hands and knees too. It is so undignified!
7.00am If I pull the worktop out to reach the sink I can't open the door. If I leave it butting I can't reach across both. So it is still lying halfway across the room at waist height. Now I can just squeeze around the end. The plan is to buy some painters masking tape. To make my cut lines far more visible.
The nearest builder's merchant is 5 miles away. I was there yesterday. Delivering more sacks to the charity shop. So I may go to another village instead. Via the scenic route through the gorgeous spring countryside. I could cycle there but life is too short.
I can't just drop the new worktop into place yet. Because I'd be days without a cooker or a sink. Which would be very silly. I could lift the worktop onto one edge after marking it out. Then clamp it upright in the B&D workbench jaws. Then I could move around it more easily. Doing so would be a monumental struggle! I'll just have to leave it where it is. Until I really need to do something "more drastic."
Both types of refuse lorry were around at 5.30. The recycling lorry is split into two containers lengthways. For the two kinds of segregated material. The recycling bin has a central divider. The "normal" refuse lorry has a single container.
The government plans to introduce ten containers per household. I hope they get somebody "sensible" to design them. The present bins have to stand at least 20cm or 8" away from a wall for the open lids to stay up!
How do I know? After 25 years of getting wet, I moved the bins from against a vast, conifer hedge. I now have them up against the north wall of the house near the door. Where there is a protective overhang from the eaves and shelter from the wind. The problem lies with the bin lid hinges. The lid has to be well away from the bin for it to open fully. To allow the contents to empty by gravity. When tipped by the lorry mechanism.
What a silly billy! I can move the bins under the overhang of the adjoining shed. Then they won't dominate the "patio." I use the term [extremely] loosely. After years of housing countless plants, I now have a bare, but badly crumbing, concrete area. Paving slabs laid on sand is the plan. I just need to ensure the ants don't move in. Textile underlay? I'll have to do some homework before committing to more, very hard labour.
09.00 Back from the shops and have finished morning coffee. I have been watching YT videos on my new DeWALT jigsaw. My old Bosch [mains] saw is knackered. It can't follow a line. So I invested in a new DCS335 barrel grip, jigsaw for cutting out the worktop. I have batteries and chargers from other DW tools so did not need those. Which makes the purchase much less stressful on the wallet.
The sink is 25mm / 1" further to the left of the original. I have allowed 100mm gap between the hob and draining board.
If the hob goes further to the left I lose working surface area. It could be centred on the wall pillar between the two windows. Not sure if that helps. Offset to the right [as shown] it gains light from the right hand window.
Any closer to the draining board and there is an overlap with the rack. Will I catch saucepans on the rack? For example, when putting hot saucepans into the sink to rinse under the tap. Perhaps I'd better move the hob more to the left. Just to be on the safe side. I added 50mm to the gap between the draining board and hob. Making it 150mm. The rack is about 180mm high. It folds flat but is unlikely to remain so. It is common practice to empty a pan onto a plate on the left. Then to carry the empty, but still hot, pan over to the sink. When full sized dinner plates are drying on the rack then it is even higher. 280mm.
The DW jigsaw is heavy but solid. With lots of modern features. Best of
all it is a battery model. Which means mobility is built in. I don't
need to run extension cords everywhere I need to work. Which can often
be 30 meters away from a power socket. Not to mention the risk of sawing
though the mains cable.
I also bought a pack of laminate blades for the saw. These blades have straight teeth. So they cut without upwards or downwards pressure on the surfaces being cut. Which avoids ragged edges. Some recommend cutting from underneath the material. However, I cannot easily turn the worktop over due to its sheer weight. Not to mention the risk of breakage when there is such a large cut-out. I only get to do this once. I might as well get it right.
10.15. 56F. Bright sunshine. First I have to apply the masking tape. So I can actually see my cut lines. Done that. See mock-up [above.] I am dithering on layout before I start cutting. My back is hurting so I'm going for a late walk.
11.00 Not for long. 20 minutes. Lots of holiday traffic leaving early for tomorrow's long weekend. Judging by the number of caravans and trailers.
By lunchtime I still hadn't decided on the best positions for the sink and hob. I could move the sink to the right. Which would amount to the same thing as moving the hob to the left.
I spent time this afternoon clearing the last of my wife's "stuff" from under the big Chestnut tree. My wife spent years under that tree. Mostly collecting and bagging fallen leaves. In the vain hope of avoiding the micro moth problem. Every year their larvae would decimate the leaves and turn them brown.
Ironically, my wife would not have enjoyed outdoor light levels working under that tree. No doubt further adding to her S.A.D. I had a good cry while I barrowed the last of her bags away to the compost heap. The leaves had been in there so long that they had become soil.
I have strimmed most of the dandelions around the edges of the tree. They cannot grow in the deep shade underneath. Which is further reinforced by the trees on three sides. Plus the tall hedge to the east.
The tree covers 13m [43'] north to south and 17m [56'] east to west. The picture [at the top] looking west, was taken at 17.00. So the low sun is sneaking in underneath. Making it look much brighter than at any other time of day.
~~
No comments:
Post a Comment