Following the local architectural traditions when building a slate roof, we placed two symbolic ornments, one at each end of the roof ridge:
- A stone cross (with even branches), and
- A granite sphere or ball
Based on what we were able to gather from locals, slate artisans and the Internet, the stone cross on top of a slate roof, in the higher plateaux of the Auvergne region, is first and foremost a symbol of protection. Although its position and orientation seem to vary slightly depending on the area, in most cases, it appears to be facing West.
The cross is placed on top of the roof not as a sign indicating the occupants faith but as a ‘firewall’ against diseases, epidemics, fire and lightnings. It is there to steer danger away from the house, a bit like a magical shield.
The granite or stone sphere, placed on top of the roof, is to bring prosperity and fertility, and keep misfortune away.
For more info on local and architectural characteristics of the Auvergne region, I recommend the following website:
(www.cezaliersianne.asso.fr)
Another important milestone was reached today with the installation of the last slates and ridge stones of the roof.
The slate work started at the end of September with amazing weather. The contractor made really good progress for the first three to four weeks before hitting a standstill because of really bad weather. When the temperatures hover between 2 and 5°C and the Northerly wind blows, it is almost impossible to stay and work on the roof. Luckily, the rain and the wind eased off about 7 days ago providing enough of a window for the slate workers to finish up the roof.
Let’s hope for a few more days of nice weather so the macons can finish filling in the gaps between the slates and the top of the walls. The gutters and the covering of the second chimney with zinc sheets will also be done within the next few days, weather permitting.
As for the roof of the garage which will also be covered with slates, it will have to wait until next Spring. Since it is a much smaller area, it should not take more than two weeks to complete.
Today, the sun set permanently on one of the small thatched-roof cottages of the hamlet; we said goodbye to the last of the elders who was born and lived all her life in the village. She was born here, went to the hamlet school, married one of the best and last thatch-roof specialists, raised her family and lived in one of the smallest but cutest houses in the hamlet.
Young parents would bring their children for her to look after while running into the city or finishing up farm or field work. When we were older and able to wander off by ourselves, we would find refuge at her house to chat, drink a “sirop de grenadine”, suck on a “Vichy pastille” or “Krema candy” and watch a little bit of TV…
Goodbye Angélina, your smile, kindness and warm welcome will stay forever in our memories.
As houses become more insulated and weatherproof, they also become less permeable to air and moisture. This means that both the air inside the house and the moisture generated by the occupants are not easily renewed (air) and eliminated (moisture) as in old drafty houses. There are three main solutions that are generally offered to residents of ‘super-insulated’ houses:
- Manually and diligently air the house by opening and closing windows and doors
- Install venting grids on windows and/or doors (albeit defeats the purpose of installing energy-efficient windows and doors)
- Install a mechanical and automatic venting system or HVAC
Because our house will be rented out and occupied by people who may not be familiar with the functioning of low-energy housing, we opted for installing an automatic venting system.
There are many different venting systems out there and we chose one that is commonly used in passive or even positive housing. It consists of a ventilation unit with heat recovery combined to a ground-to-water heat exchanger (earth tubes with ethyl glycol solution). More information on our system can be found by following the link below
Over the past month and a half, we worked on installing the piping for the ground-to-water heat exchanger. All-in-all, it took us close to 10 days of full work to install 185 meters of tubes at an average of 2 meters below the ground. We had hoped not to find too much rock in the ground but it was wishful thinking. We dug up more than 90 meters of trench of which 35 where almost all rock. In some places we went as deep as 2.6 and in other places we could not go further than 1.2m because of the rock bed.
We installed two loops of 32mm PE-HD (Polyethylene High-Pressure) tubes for a total of 185 meters of hose. We made the trench 0.8m wide in order to lay two tubes in the same trench, 0.6m apart from each other. We used 10 to 15cm of thin black sand, from a near-by quarry, to set the tubes in place and envelop them with consistent and even material before refilling the trench with soil and a ‘few’ rocks.
The pictures below will tell you the rest. Use the “View with Piclens” function to see all pictures and comments.
The two doors leading to the front courtyard are installed and look very nice. These two doors, like the windows are wood-framed with aluminium cladding on the outside.
Dining room door – it’s a single door with a large window pane
The doors have a three-point closure system (middle, top an bottom of the door) which is supposed to be more weatherproof and secure than doors with a single latch at the level of the handle.
Living room alu-wood door. This is a double door providing a very large opening into the house.left side can also be opened to make a very large opening.
The other doors, 5 more to come (for the upper and lower cellar, kitchen, front entrance and garage), will all be made of solid wood with some wood fiber insulation in between the two layers of planks. We are expecting their delivery and installation by the end of the month.Les deux premières portes de la maison viennent d’être posées et ce sont celles qui mènent sur la cour de devant. Ces deux portes sont de même construction que les fenêtres, en bois-alu et ont un système de fermeture à trois points. La porte se referme toute seule, simplement en la poussant ou en la tirant contre le cadre, il n’y a pas besoin de baisser la poignée.