New Worcestershire Observatory

[michaelmorris]

A year ago I bought a small cottage in a Worcestershire village.  This weekend I have a mini digger being delivered so that I can start work on building an observatory.  😁  I haven't had one for nearly 4 years. 😟

It is planned to be a scratch-built 2.75m X 2.4m roll off roof with larch cladding and a metal roll off roof.   I'll keep you posted on progress.

First job had been to mark out the approximate dimensions and position of the pier so that I can dig the trench for the armoured cable for the observatory.

 

[fwm891]

You just might need to give yourself a little ‘wiggle’ room between Obsy and fences. Both will need maintenance at some stage - even just a coat or two of preservative !
Good luck with the build.

[Graeme]

That corner was made for an observatory!

I look forward to watching your build progress.

+1 on Francis' comment.

Regards

Graeme

[Oddsocks]

4 hours ago, fwm891 said:

You just might need to give yourself a little ‘wiggle’ room between Obsy and fences. Both will need maintenance at some stage - even just a coat or two of preservative !
Good luck with the build.

Agree with Francis on this aspect, not only the issue of maintenance but also you need to think about where the rain water run-off will go.

Over the years I’ve had to deal with too many rotten shed base rails and lower rear walls where the previous owners had placed timber sheds and garages right up to the boundary fence leaving no room for guttering to take roof run-off water to a soak-away or water butt. All the rainwater run-off ends up being dumped on a few inches of ground behind the shed where there is no air movement to dry things out and a result the timber rots really quickly.

For my own installed sheds and garden buildings I’ve always left at least 300mm between fence and building to allow access for annual preservative treatment (applied with a long-reach garden fruit tree sprayer) and to allow for guttering along the rear wall without overhanging the fence.

William.

[malc-c]

4 hours ago, fwm891 said:

You just might need to give yourself a little ‘wiggle’ room between Obsy and fences. Both will need maintenance at some stage - even just a coat or two of preservative !
Good luck with the build.

I also recommend leaving a gap between the observatory and the two fences to aid maintenance.  Plus you may find the mini digger is not able to get close enough to be able to dig a straight trench for the foundations (assuming this is going to be a slab or dwarf wall base).

[CraigT82]

Nice corner that, looks like a great view of the sky all round. I’d treat those fence panels now whilst you can get at them easily. Another reason to leave a gap is if you plan on excavating down a little for the shed base you might foul the concrete footing of the fence posts.  Also if you get any issues with sticky rollers on the roof it will be handy to be able to access them from both inside and outside the obsy so leaving enough room to get down all sides is a good idea 

[Alan White]

Nice to see you starting a new observatory Michael.

Firstly the following is based on your images and the view provided.

I do tend to agree with the side access for fence maintenance,
is that a turning circle or hammer head behind the fence? 
If it is the rear fence could be lifted out on that side so allow the observatory to sit back.

I look foward to watching the observatory develop from plan to use, 
good luck with it.

Oh and I trust you get decent Lunar views from this spot.

 

Edited March 21, 2023 by Alan White

[michaelmorris]

Thanks for the advice folks.

The roof will have a gutter, so shouldn't be too much of an issue with rainwater.  The fence panels can simply be lifted out, so again shouldn't be too much of an issue with maintenance.  The shed will be clad in larch, which as far as I can find out needs no annual paint with preservative.  The whole structure will sit on pressure-treated bearers, probably 15 or 20 cm high. 

[michaelmorris]

Latest progress with the observatory.

Grass stripped off and armoured cable layed in trench. 

Then whacker plated a good layer of hardcore to make a firm base.

 

[michaelmorris]

Next 60cm X 60cm X 80cm deep hole dug for pier base and filled with 3/4 tonne of concrete.

[michaelmorris]

[michaelmorris]

Next a layer of sharp sand and some old 450cm X 450cm slabs as a base.

[fwm891]

16 minutes ago, michaelmorris said:

Thanks for the advice folks.

The roof will have a gutter, so shouldn't be too much of an issue with rainwater.  The fence panels can simply be lifted out, so again shouldn't be too much of an issue with maintenance.  The shed will be clad in larch, which as far as I can find out needs no annual paint with preservative.  The whole structure will sit on pressure-treated bearers, probably 15 or 20 cm high. 

Lets hope you always have the same co-opperative neighbours when you want access to remove the fence panels for replacement or painting....

Edited April 12, 2023 by fwm891

[michaelmorris]

Next job is to finalise the design of the observatory itself, then start building (probably in May). 😁😁😁

[michaelmorris]

3 minutes ago, fwm891 said:

Lets hope you always have the same co-operative neighbours when you want access to remove the fence panels for replacement or painting....

It's their fence, so I can't see it being an issue.  Anyway, space is very much at a premium in my small garden and I have to weigh up easy of access with the impact that moving the structure out an extra 20cm would have.  

The fence panels will get a good coat of preservative before the observatory goes up and hopefully the use of larch cladding will negate the need for frequent access for applying preservative to the observatory walls.  

 

[Spile]

Is that St John’s Church I see in the background?

[Ags]

This build is looking very promising!

[michaelmorris]

A bit of a hiatus whilst I do other landscaping work done in both the front and back gardens.  The uprights for the run off rails of the adjacent pergola are now in. 

  

  

[michaelmorris]

I'm now thinking using a custom-made fibreglass roof instead of a metal one.

[michaelmorris]

Landscaping on back garden now nearing completion. 😁

 

 

[michaelmorris]

On 12/04/2023 at 23:28, Spile said:

Is that St John’s Church I see in the background?

No I moved out of Worcester 4 years ago.

[Spile]

14 minutes ago, michaelmorris said:

No I moved out of Worcester 4 years ago.

I was thinking Bromsgrove.

[michaelmorris]

12 hours ago, Spile said:

I was thinking Bromsgrove.

I'm near Pershore.

[M40]

12 hours ago, michaelmorris said:

A bit of a hiatus whilst I do other landscaping work done in both the front and back gardens

Am I sensing a negotiated deal with management here? 🤣 looking good 👌

[michaelmorris]

No negotiation 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣