Trev and Hil's New Build in Polemi

[Anne&Mike]

Hi Trev
Is there no end to your talents, that bed looks so well made.

Anne

[trevnhil]

Thanks Anne. It did help that in one of my previous lives I was a joiner, and I have the right tools.
I am short of a bit of 'get up and go' sometimes though.

Cheers. Trev..

[rival beacon]

Wow that looks really good. Our house, which is in the process of being built has only 2 bedrooms but plenty of storage. Are you taking orders for those? If you are and can store it for 6 months I will have 2. You might have more get up and go if you are getting paid for it. LOL
Jill

[trevnhil]

Hi Jill. I think my 'get up and go' went when Winter arrived. I have enough jobs from Mrs Trev to keep me occupied, honestly.

Take care. Trev..

[rival beacon]

Ok. Will send my O/H across to Polemi for some joinery lessons. LOL

[trevnhil]

He will need an umbrella today as we have thunder , lightening and Torrential rain overflowing the gutters.

What a day for the CH to stop working and the car Battery to pack up. I have had a new Battery fitted this morning and the CH guy is coming this afternoon.

I also got some 'Dulux Once' paint for the new bed. It will have to wait for some better weather to do the painting though.

Trev..

[rival beacon]

Weather looks awful on the webcams today. Wont get much building done on ours.
Have a lovely Christmas.

[trevnhil]

Re the mattress, I got that first and made the bed to fit the mattress.

If I remember correctly I held the cacti (carefully) in the air and Hilary banged at the pot until it fell off.

The plants and weeds are now all growing very well indeed, and the nightly watering regime is a far off memory.

Trev..

[trevnhil]

Hi all. Well I could not let today go by without posting some pictures, possibly too many pictures.

The reason being is that it has SNOWED here in Polemi. It is almost 4 years since it last snowed here so of course this means that it is the FIRST time it has ever snowed on our Bungalow.

I obviously wanted to capture it so here are some Photos....






















This has also been a test for the Central Heating. The temperature outside went down to 0.7c in the early morning. We put the heating on this morning for a little under 2 hrs and the temperature inside rose to 22c in the lounge.

The consumption of gas will be increased but we are very comfortable indeed.

By the way... HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL. Trev..

[dancingqueen]

Hi Trev

What a winter wonderland. Happy New Year to you and yours too.

[jagwheels]

Trev what's happening on those hills with your property at the moment

[trevnhil]

Hi Norv, and everyone. Well in answer to your question, not a lot is happening actually. I suppose the main reason is that it is Winter.
But another reason is that the weeds are growing really well.
So a few weeks back I tried pulling up some of the big bush size ones. it was a bad Idea as I did my back in. It is 95% OK now though.

However now that Spring is upon us especially today, I have been painting the Toddlers bed that I made late last year. here is a picture of it painted...



Also as I said the days are lengthening and the sun is shining many many days now. Here is a spring picture from our patio...




Another big thing is how really comfortable we are here during the Winter months. The temperature in the house is around 23c even when it is approaching freezing outside. Brilliant.

Regards. Trev..

[Biddy]

What an absolutely gorgeous view

[trevnhil]

The view was certainly the reason that we bought this plot of land. It does change as the seasons progress, and certainly Spring and Autumn are probably the times when the best views are available.

It is no exaggeration to say that we looked at over 50 pieces of land. Some had good views, but it was too costly to make the land viable to build on. Another that comes to mind was in what I can only describe as a quarry, so had no view at all. The Agent said to us..."But the price is good isn't it" and indeed that was undeniable. We still see many of the plots we viewed and most have not been built on, so they were not such a 'good buy'.

Some people came to look round our place a week or two back, as they were having a property built also in Polemi.

I though that I would make a list of all the important points that they should take note of. Wow what a long list it became.

We don't sit here all day looking out of the windows, but we did make sure that the lounge windows were made low enough to look out. Of course when we are outside in the Summer our Patio overlooks Polemi and the surrounding hills. Even the night time views are good with many twinkling lights from the many neighbouring villages.

If you are building a new property, there are so very many things to think about, as well as the views.

Cheers. Trev..

PS. The live link below is to our House build Album.

[rival beacon]

Hi Trev
Dont know about you and your family but the view definitely played a part in our decision to buy our land. We have bought a plot in Filousa and we look across the valley towards Lasa and Fyti. Our friends who live in Lasa can actually see the builders working on our house with binoculars. Water was never something we wanted to see when we were sat on the patio. Twinkling lights and hills and fields are much more interesting. What is that village in the distance?
Jill

[trevnhil]

Hello Jill. I had to look up exactly where Filousa was. You are over the other side if the hill to us and almost exactly the same distance from Fyti and Lasa. I have labelled the villages in the picture. Your village is just about at the same height as ours, and so I assume will get roughly the same temperatures.
Whilst you say that seeing water was not on your 'must have' list, can you see the reservoir from your plot? If you are not in Cyprus???? then having friends near the site can be a blessing.
And finally the three main things about having something built.... Insulation, Insulation and Insulation.



Regards. Trev..

[rival beacon]

No we are not in Cyprus. We are moving over in July into rented until ours is finished. Our architect, who is wonderful, project manages for us and spends his life shouting at the builder. He has a reputation for it. And hes very finnicky. Everything has to be symmetrcal and perfect or he makes them do corrections. He was trained in Germany and Switzerland so insulation, guttering and UK piping for the toilets are all included. Another house he designed has no heating and just a log fire. Its beautifully warm in the winter. so we are not worried about that although ours is having gas central heating.
And no we cant see the reservoir. We are on flat land but within a slight dip so its not visible. But it is not a problem for us. We decided early on in our search that the sight of water was not important. We have the sea 16 miunutes from our house so its available should we want to look at it.
Filousa is very different to Polemi. Its very small and once was known as the Garlic Village. But it is only 1km from Peristerona. Actually we cant wait to be there now. Just sold the house and business so everythings falling into place.
Jill

[Biddy]

and from my office window, where I am sat now, I can see grey skies, a car park and a couple of scruffy houses - envious - oh yes
I wish you every happiness in your beautiful home. It has been such a joy to watch the progress.

[trevnhil]

Thanks for your good wishes Biddy. It is a different day again here today, especially this afternoon. Although we have only had an odd spot of rain, I have had to put the Brolly down because it is windy and a bit cold with it.
But the heating has been on for an hour and I am here in short shirt sleeves and 23c in the lounge.
I always describe our living here as 'very comfortable'..... here is how comfortable we were on Valentines evening....



Just to add a postscript to Jill's last post..... We too have gas central heating. We also have 4" plastic drain pipes with plastic manholes / inspection chambers. This means that the paper goes down the loo.
Guttering was an addition that I did myself, but I did ensure that I had rainwater drains laid in the drive and Patio. There is no point in the water just coming out around the bottom of the house.

Regards. Trev..

[trevnhil]

We have had one or two good days recently, so I took the opportunity to finish the Toddler bed. Here it is complete with the mattress and cover that Hilary made.....



Cheers. Trev..

[trevnhil]

Well the main work at the moment seems to be Gardening, and Hilary is doing most of that.

The reason for posting is to mention again the Gas Central Heating. During the Winter months we heat 10 rooms. Obviously the bedrooms are not heated to the same temperature as our Lounge / dining room. The lounge is usually about 23c

However this morning (Sunday) I had a phone call from Panicos our gas delivery driver. He told me his last scheduled delivery would be on Tuesday next, and he asked if I needed a top up. Having still got a tank which is 86% full, I politely told him that we would not need any gas until next Winter.

We now can calculate how much it has cost us to keep the 10 rooms warm all Winter. The Grand total is € 550. I think that is very good and includes the heating of the water on inclement days, and also use of the gas hobs. (2)

Cheers. Trev..

[trevnhil]

Good morning all. I know we can't still be building after all this time, but this is sort of relevant to the build process.
Of course when the bungalow was built, we received all the right planning permissions. However here in Cyprus, as the build progresses, no one from the planning department comes to look round and check up. Your own architect is responsible for any inspections.

However when the building has been completed, ideally you need a completion certificate. We applied for this well over a year ago now.
The application goes through various departments at the District offices, and I have been going there to check on the progress roughly every month.
Last year one of the nice young ladies there even came and paid us a visit to check that we had the same number of doors and windows as on the plans.
The most recent activity is that the application for the final certificate has reached the Fire department, actually at the fire station.
A very nice gentleman came to visit us to check that all was in order and that we had complied with the regulations.

There were just 3 items that needed attention.

1, He needed an official letter saying that the Gypsum plasterboard used was at least half hour fireproof........ No problem, got that for him.
2, He needed us to put in 2 extra smoke alarms.... No problem, I did that.
3, Most importantly the flexible hoses connecting the gas hobs (2) to the internal gas piping needed changing.
He explained to me that the rubber type ones that were used, would burn in a fire, and that the gas in the 500lt tank would just feed the fire until the tank was empty.
So yesterday our maintenance Plumber and electrician that we use now, came and changed them for flexible metal ones. I can see the sense in having to have it done, and what a good job he made of the job.

So.... slowly slowly, we must be getting nearer to getting our final completion certificate. Just one small step for man on the road to having all the paperwork completed.

Cheers. Trev..

[jagwheels]

Hi Trev

All quiet at Kafkalla at the moment

Took your idea for outside paint & so far so good after the first year. Perhaps we will exchange notes over the next 15 years, the expected life of the product & if it fails to deliver we can jointly
sue the manufacturer

More seriously that toddler bed looks brilliant & no screws visible. Sign of dare I say a perfectionist

[trevnhil]

Hi Norv. In answer to your question as to whether it is quiet or not.... No not really.
Gardening including watering is a time consuming daily chore, and no doubt you have some to do in the UK

However you will remember that we are having inspections of the property to enable us to have our final completion certificate.

Just over a week ago we had an inspection from a government department concerned with health and safety regarding gas installations. In our case it is bulk gas as we have a 500lt gas tank.

The story below is true. But I have left out some thoughts / comments by myself. If anyone is truly interested because they may be in the same situation.... get in touch.


I shall try to explain most of the things they require me to have done. Some I am OK with ...... others I am not.



As you can see from the picture, we have a driveway which goes past the gas tank. They are worried that coming in the direction from where the picture is taken, that I may veer to the left and hit the gas tank and fittings.
So they require me to put in a metal post to provide the tank with protection....... Just about OK with that.



This picture shows that they require me to put a pressure gauge on the side of the fitting shown..... Just about OK with that.

They also wanted to know what the two pipes were for going down the grid. I told them it is waste water from the flushing of the water filter. They then showed concern, as if there is a leak of gas from the tank it will go down the drain.
However I showed them that the drain just empties onto the ground forming the gravel car park. THEY were OK with that.




Here is the most work. There are 4 gas feed pipes going into the house. Two are not being used as they were put in for gas fires we have not installed.
They require me to disconnect the unused ones and blank off the outlets from the Manifold. Also cap the pipe ends, also remove the redundant tap handles. Definitely OK with that.

There is also a main gas feed to the boiler that is copper and is just the copper colour. I have to paint that yellow, so that people know it has gas in it and not water.... Fair enough I suppose

They also explained that the 500lt gas tank has to be emptied every 5 years and pressure tested. That is 3 years down the road and we will see what happens regarding that. It is not my gas tank anyway, it is on lease.

So we have a few items to address soon.

Trev..

[jagwheels]

Trev how many more hoops do you have to go through?
I hope you can get final completion soon. I do find it slightly confusing when someone has had their home built to high standards but as tourists we so often see the lack of safety in the building sector. Lack of hard hats, lack of safety fencing around scaffolding etc
Anyway perhaps we can look forward to seeing the result of yours & Hillary's gardening

[trevnhil]

We had a phone call today from the fire station, asking if we had complied with the items pointed out to us by the H&S people. Hilary told them we were still awaiting a letter to say what additions / alterations were needed. So at the moment we can only wait.

On a better note.... I have some pics of the garden. Don't expect anything 'grand'. We are just filling the soil up.













Cheers. Trev..

[Molly]

Looks fab Trev ....

[trevnhil]

Thanks Molly.

Trev.

[Anne&Mike]

wow, what a fab place you have there Trev. I am sure it has been a lot of hard work and sleepless nights, well done to you and Hilary.

Anne

[trevnhil]

Thank you Anne. We certainly have had a few fraught times with the Authorities, and the occasional villager.

You have just caught me having a break from installing some soffit
ventilators.

If anyone in a similar position (building) and want some tips, just Email me.

Cheers. Trev..

[juliesewell]

Trev, it looks like so far it's all been worthwhile for the effort you have put into it. Having the satisfaction you have your own specifications and design will be the saving grace of the hurdles and hoops you've come across along the way.

Eventually, you will have the opportunity to just sit back and - ENJOY it!

[trevnhil]

We are certainly 'very comfortable' even in the depths of Winter.

Our design was certainly worth doing.

Trev..

[KEITH]

Really enjoyed following your progress from the very start to finish and sooooooooo envious.

Anything else gone on recently.

KEITH

[trevnhil]

Hi Keith, thanks for your comments. There have been some happenings here regarding getting the 'final certificate' for the building. I will however have to be careful what I say.

A long while back (so it seems) we had a visit to ascertain that the building was the right size and with the correct number of doors and windows in. That went fine.

We have since had an inspection by the fire brigade and by the 'health and safety' people. This has meant a number of changes in our gas piping system in the house.

It was seen to be wrong to have piping to the gas hobs from the 500lt gas tank. So we have had to make changes so that now the gas supply to the hobs is from the small 11kg bottles stood outside two kitchens.

On bit of me thinks it is silly to have to do this but I can see the point that if there is a leak in the kitchen then the whole of the big tankful of gas will empty into the kitchen.

Not being too happy at the appearance of a red gas bottle outside the kitchens (2) I have had some nice little boxes made to cover them up....





I have been today to the Paphos town council to see what the next stage is and they tell me that when they get the paperwork from the fire brigade the next step is the issuing of the final completion certificate. But there was no time scale mentioned.

Trev..

[snigjudith]

Followed your house building process, looks amazing, you must both be really proud! Hope you don't mind me asking did you make the gas bottle covers or did you have them made if so where?

[trevnhil]

The gas bottle covers are really good in our estimation. They look good, at least better than a red gas bottle and they keep the bottles cool.

I will send you a PM with the supplier and the cost.

Do bear in mind there is no email notification of PM's at the moment, so you will have to look for it in a short while.


Trev..

[trevnhil]

Well it started off as a usual Sunday. Awoke around 6-30. Made a cup of tea and took the tea and laptop to bed.
Got up about 8 am, and made toast for breakfast.
After breakfast I used the laptop and watched the F1 Grand Prix.

It had only just finished when we had a loss of power at the bungalow. Some power was on, but some areas had non. This was bad news as it meant that it was likely that we had lost 2 of the 3 phases of our supply.
I went outside to check on the meter, and yes only one phase was working. I reported this to the electric board who said they would send someone out.

But wait a minute..... was that smoke I could smell, and crackling I could hear. YES IT WAS.!!!

The field across the track from us was on fire, and burning quite well. I phone the emergency number and got no reply. I phoned a Cypriot friend in the village and asked him to report the fire.

I had already alerted Hilary who had reeled out the hose pipe from our nearest external tap and was squirting what little water we have up here, on the edges of the flames.
She was doing this for about 15 minutes before the little fire truck came and went into the field and tackled the bigger areas.
They had to go away for a refill of the container, but after about an hour and a half it was all out. Still smouldering where the roots had been on fire, but the firemen said it would be OK and left.

The police came to see if we knew how it had started, and a neighbour came early on to make sure that the alarm had been raised.

We have always thought that we are as prepared as we can be for a fire, and we are. We have provided for coupling the hose to the pressurised house supply, which gives us 2,000 lts of water.
BUT we hadn't bargained for a fire at the same time as no electricity.

Here are some of the pictures that I got time to take...










As you can see it got as near as we would like it to get to the Bungalow, probably about 30mts in a straight line.
We will continue to be vigilant and hope we have electricity next time.

Cheers. Trev..

[juliesewell]

Luckier still that you were at home to spot it in the first place!
That's as close as you want it to get to your house.
Well done in being prepared.

[Maggie B]

Jeepers Trev

Having visited your house I can see how close that was for you and Hilary!

Very scary.

Maggie B

[KEITH]

Glad you are all OK, that was one close call.

KEITH

[trevnhil]

Hi Keith. Yes you are right we don't want any closer than that. The fires within our scope of vision are getting more than one a day.
In fact this morning I reported one just off the Polemi the Stroumbi road. We later say one to the North of Fiti and then later in the afternoon there was one to the East of Stroumbi.

Cheers. Trev..

[trevnhil]

Well yesterday was another small milestone on our journey. After 20 months we received a phone call to say that the Final Certificate was ready for collection.

So off I went to the Paphos district offices. I paid the small fee and was issued with a hand written Final Certificate. This shows that our bungalow complies with all the rules and regulation and is satisfactory in every way.

Cheers. Trev..

[dancingqueen]

I have watched the progress of your home and have seen what a labour of love it has been. Well done on receiving the certificate. You must be well chuffed. A red letter day indeed.

[jagwheels]

I think many members have watched & been intrigued by Trev's progress on his home. A very difficult journey at times & he had me sitting on the edge of my chair at times

I have been fortunate in meeting Trev on a couple of occasions & realised he is not the sort of person who can just settle back without thinking of the next project

Perhaps tonight he will sit down with Hillary with some nice wine & say "despite all the doubts we finally did it"

[trevnhil]

On the evening that we got the Final Certificate we did indeed celebrate by having a special bottle of wine with our meal.

I always class our life here as being very comfortable. The central heating in the Winter keeps the whole house nice and warm. No doubt this is in part due to double walls with insulation in them and also the insulation in the ceiling.

We have nicely furnished spacious accommodation, and best of all we have extremely good views, even though they are not of the sea.

Regards. Trev..

[rival beacon]

Our new villa in Filousa doesnt have a view of any water either although we are not too far from Evretou. It was one thing I never actually wanted. Different if you are on holiday for 2 weeks. Then I might. But not when you live there. We are only 11kms from Polis anyway so the wet stuff isnt too far for swimming in. Our villa has loads of insulation as well in the walls and roof and concrete covered in stone so hopefully the one gas tank we have will be enough. Keeping everything crossed. We are moving in in Feb. Cant wait.

[trevnhil]

Insulation certainly is a must and I believe that you have to have some in new builds now. We have gas central heating but only a 500lt tank. It is sufficient for our needs but requires top ups in winter, but we do heat the whole building and the hot water with it.

Trev..

[Macattack]

So how is Spring looking at your beautiful home?

[trevnhil]

Spring is certainly here Mac. I know because I am having to water the garden daily once again. And this year, and over the mild Winter, things have been growing like mad.

We have also started the process of having the building added to the Land Title deeds. No doubt this will take a long while, and there has to be a remeasuring of the building to see that it is in the right position, and not too near the boundaries of the plot.

The painting of the house walls that I did two years ago is still looking like new, and shed rainwater like a ducks back does. So I would certainly use the same Elastomeric paint again.
Also on the painting subject, I found at the end of last Summer that the railing needed painting. So I did the job myself and used Rustoleum (sp) paint. Again after the winter season, it looks like it has just been done. I would use the same paint again.

The Gas tank has been refilled ready for next Winter and although I have not added up the total cost, it is in the region of €600 to heat the whole house and water when needed.

Here is one of the pictures taken recently of one area of our Garden.



Regards. Trev..

[trevnhil]

The Google earth images of our home just show the building outline on the plot. But recently I found the first satellite picture on anther site, showing our finished home just after we moved here in March 2011.



Trev..