Renovation Diary: December 2020

Week 49/20: 4th December, 2020

Never in the courtyard of pub refurbishment has so much been achieved by so few! After their incredible efforts this week our valiant Weekday Warriors have truly earned our thanks. They battled through the underground debris of the courtyard, revealing what may have been foundations for old stables, to lay in the ducting needed for power supplies to the new kitchen. They also battled through the torrential rain too.

Tamping down the sand Checking how much materials are left for the trench Only six inches to go
Starting to bury the cable protector Using a compactor
Laying the cable protector Trench marked out that there are cables underneath

Passers by may have seen the tons of rubble building up which needed removal by grab lorry. And also the delivery lorry for sand and scalpings to fill in the trench.

Grabber from a lorry removing trench debris Delivry lorry dropping a bag next to The School stairs
Unloading bags of material using crane attachement Lorry half in and half out the gate Activity at the front bay window Activity at the front bay window
Tonyt watching the crane attachment lifting a bag high into the sky Spreading sand into the trench

The trenching has been filled in ready for reopening and, in between deliveries of materials, good progress was made in the stripping out of the kitchen. This revealed a range of interesting wildlife and pottery; some fresh, other historical! Thanks this week to those that literally put their backs into it; Ian, Anthony, John, Tony, Steve, Trevor and Lexie.

A poodle toy in the kitchen debris
Part of a plate was dug up
Handle of a pint pot
Another bit of pottery dug up
The team working in The Kitchen Rotten wood in The Kitchen
Temporary door created in the kitchen with one of the team playing a spade as a guitae Shows why the floor needs ripped up
Ian and Athony Birch Floor removed from front of the fire place

The bar really benefited from hard graft of the volunteers who came in. They gave the place a lick of paint followed by a good scrub and brush up. We'd like to thank our socially distanced painters: Trevor, Colin, Jeff, Tony, Miranda, Bez, Dawn, Richard, Debbie & Steve, Anne and of course Ian. See last week's diary page too.

Tony on hads and knees cleaning the floor
Getting right into the corners with the cleaning

Please note we have tried our best to include photos of everyone involved, and also mentioned, but if you are missing, then please give us a shout and we will update this page.

Week 50/20: 11th December, 2020

Another busy week for our Weekday Warriors who, despite the trials of December weather, have been hard at it. Work in the kitchen area has continued where there is just one board left to remove after the Acros have been installed to support the ceiling.

The team are due to be joined this week by the builders employed to get the kitchen area ready for installation.

Prep work on the kitchen floor

Week 51/20: 18th December, 2020

Undaunted by the weather our Weekday Warriors have been hard at it again. Hard hats were definitely needed as they tackled more heavy demolition as work to prepare the kitchen area continues.

Whilst we still have a long way to go before we can have an indoor kitchen our intrepid Warriors are bringing that day ever closer.

And whilst the Weekday Warriors were working, the Bar Staff were trying out the new food van. This will hopefully allow us to offer simple, cost effective meals that meet the Covid Tier requirements.

The food van has arrived Guys looking to remove the old cenrtal wooden pillar The Weekday Warriors in the kitchen
Bar Staff learning how to use the cooking facilities in the food van Going, going .... central post being taken down in the kitchen
Acrow props have been installed to keep the ceiling secure Acrow props in front of the fireplace in the kitchen ... the fireplace goes next week

Week 52/20: 25th December, 2020

Refurbishment work at The Swan continues despite the festive period. Our Weekday Warriors have continued, when not enjoying at least a little break for food and refreshment!

We are delighted to see our new kitchen windows under construction with many thanks to Roy Maclean and team at Windsor Joinery.

Glueing the frame together Measuring out the frame before final assembly
Two frames sitting ready for installation Frames lying on the bench drying Adding the head piece to a frame Another shot of the two frames in the workshop
Tapping in small wooden posts into the frame to finish it off Almost finished another frame

Week 53/20: 31st December, 2020

No let-up over the Festive period for our valiant Weekday Warriors. Work has continued to get ready for the kitchen installation. Tony appears more intent on tunnelling his way out of the pub!

With plenty of work still needed we are always looking for volunteers to join this happy band of warriors. Please contact Ian Birch if you are able to help.

Kitchen floor stripped right back to the ground Tony working at the entrance to the tunnel in the Room of Doom
Debris from the kitchen ready to be taken away Ian in the corridor outside the kitchen
Not much of ony visible whilst orking underneath the staircase to the school Peek-a-boo ... luckily Tony is a small lad
Renovation Diary for November 2020 Renovation Diary for January 2021