Building in NZ- Framing and roof

This is a more interesting and certainly visually interesting phase of a build.
The first time you will see your builder (the guy with the nail gun) is at the framing stage. The framing is  all pre-prepared in a factory and then delivered to site.

Bottoms of doorways and window sills have thick aluminium paper put on them for extra protection and the bottom beam of timber that touches your slab has a waterproof material attached so the walls don't come into direct contact with the concrete.

 The builders just erect it like a jigsaw puzzel, attach the metal connectors/reinforcers, do the roof trusses and the purlins for the roof to lie down on. They also create the valleys from wood. These days the builder working for a big firm does stuff-all really. The sub-trades come in and do their specialities. I hadn't expected quite that degree of specialisation.

I was fortunate to receive laminate framing. This is stronger and straighter than standard pine framing and consists of slices of wood bonded together with glue. It moves less because the slices of wood  often use grain across various directions. My lot was supplied by Nelson Pine.

After the basic framing is up it's time to install the safety nets. These protect visitors like me from having bits of wood or even tools dropped on my head . Then up goes the scaffolding which is going to remain for an interminable time.

You will note that the shell of my framed chimney and fireplace is built in wood. Looks like plywood. And my design has cute little 'shoulders'. I wanted a design with some character to suggest a cottage, even though it's clearly not one. Throughout the design phase I have always wanted to add in lots of light and views of the future garden as well as include plenty of private places with indoor-outoor flow, each spot with it's own character.

This is a home where I can escape to many different 'places' to conduct activities, depending on the wind direction and my interest at the time. There's also consideration for providing private facilities for my future BnB guests or visitors.

The roofing guys are specialists. Your builder does not do the roof. Those roofing guys clamber over everything without harnesses. Occasionally there are accidents. My team leader told me one of his guys slippped recently and sliced off three fingers and a thumb with the slicer for trimming the coloursteel. Ugghh! He's in hospital for weeks and that's his roofing career over.

These days they use screws rather than nails. Before the steel roof goes on they lay the black roofing paper. There's facia to be done, spouting. Then poof! These roofing guys have disappeared and the Builder comes back. The builder in my case, installs the metal strips running the length of the house for the ceiling gib to attach to.

Meanwhile the builder was getting impatient for my drainlayer to finish his work. This is a horribly messy stage as there are piles of rubbishy soil and rocks on site from the excavators and the drainlayer. I shall have to spend more money and pay to have it carted away as it's too mixed up to be of any great use other than a bit of backfilling around the foundation line.

The next stage will be wrapping the house and installing joinery. All good, but after that things seem to have ground to halt.