It’s the middle of winter and rain, wind, and rats invading the tiny house were on the menu this week, but it was nice to be back even after a wonderful weekend in Melbourne last week. Melbourne is one of my favourite cities, especially in winter – great galleries, food and drink to die for, interesting shops and nice gardens even in the middle of the city.
I’ve been spending a lot of time planning and planting the new septic tank drainage area. It’s large and covered with a deep layer of bark, with pressurised hoses underneath. Some areas are solid yellow clay under the bark, but most are are silty, so it requires a variety of different plants. It’s kind of slow to plant, but I am enjoying it and trying some new plants – (perennial borage, giant buttercups, new salvias, and more). It will be a bit of a lottery as to what survives – I’m not really clear on how wet it will be, and it sounds like it will be salty as well, which make sense if you think about what goes into the septic tank, the salt doesn’t get sieved out.
I thought I would include C’s update on the build as well:

Lots of progress this week on the shed.
Both ends are clad now. Just some trimming to do. Still waiting for the door sill then the deck. We will also wrap the posts in redwood. The fascia arrived so that will finish of the front roof nicely.

The ceiling is just about finished now. This view is from the bedroom looking west to the sea. These posts will be wrapped as well and a beam will go along the top of the mezzanine on both ends. I still have the bolts to forge for these as well which should be fun. Lots of sanding to do and then oiling.

Cath is still hard at it on the drainage field and we need more rocks…again.

New turning circle out front is a huge improvement but still needs a little more metal to bring it up to the right height.

The lining downstairs is just about done. Looking really good and makes the whole place a lot lighter. Electrical is mostly done and plumbing is done for the first fit. Taps, toilets, bath and shower next week hopefully.

The wood shop side just needs the skylights cut out and framed. Stairs are next week as well as so that will make life a lot easier getting between floors. We went and saw the first of the Silver Beech timber being machined for all the window sills and surrounds and it looks amazing. Taking some down next week as well so it will be another big load.

The Project Manager is Not completely happy with everything just yet…