More Walls...

Carried on with walls today but was able to get a lot more done as was working with Afi.  Just followed the same procedures as yesterday, but today, we also got to put up Standard gib as well as brace line gib.  

It was quite an interesting process, as with the standard gib, the spacings were every 300mm, but could also use the same braceline fixings of 50/50/50/150 if it was stipulated that the area was GS1.

In this case, although the same nailing pattern was used (as you would for braceline) this was done with the screws rather than the Gib Braceline nails.  

When cutting out the different openings from the gib, I also found that when measuring out, it was best to take the measurement up to the stud in which the frame sits in (rather than hard up to the frames edge).  This was because the wooden packers often got in the way of the gib & caused it to splinter & damage the gib when it was being held hard up against the wall.

Also, it is a really good idea to double check the frames first before lifting the gib sheet up as often the expandable foam needed to be trimmed back to allow the gib to sit comfortably.

A good tip from the gib book was to use a drink bottle lid at the end of the glue's nozzle as this allowed for good distribution of glue onto the studs where the sheeting sat. 

When placing the gib up, we sometimes found that it didn't sit comfortably in the gap, so a quick solution to this, was to use the rasp to sand back the edge a bit.  This was a quick method to shave a few millimeters off the end & then a piece of gib could then be held against the sheet trying to be fitted in & lightly tapped with a hammer to tap it the rest of the way in.

Wall Work

On site today I worked on my own in the lounge area putting up the gib for the walls.  Had already had a go at doing this during the holiday, so was quite happy to go off and do this on my own anyways.

I started off with the corners where it required bracing elements in the form of 'braceline' gib sheet.  This is much stronger gib that has been mixed with fibre glass, and is distinguished as it has a slight blue tinge to the colour of the boards paper.

When cutting this sheet, the same principles apply using a craft knife (or sometimes a saw if it is cut outs for window frames - as pictured above and to the left).  Glue is also used in the middle sections of the gib where no screw or nail fixings will be.

         Once cut out & ready, the board was held as tight up near the ceiling gib as possible & then braceline gib could be held up onto the wall temporarily using a screw nail gun.

This is the part where it is critical to check against the plan to ascertain what size of the bracing element is required.

When this measurement is known, for example 1.2m, then markings with 50/50/50/150mm from each corner is carried out along 1.2m of the braceline gib, with the rest of the intervals for the gib line brace nails all at 150 cr's (photo below of nails).

It is important when hammering down gib line bracing nails, that they are flush with the surface for when the gib stopper comes (as it makes it easier for them to smooth out with their plaster).   For the rest of the sheet that runs over the 1.2m bracing element requirement, standard fixings with the screws is done, every 300mm along the edge.  When putting the fixings on, it should not be less than 18mm, as this can cause weakness to the board & it eventually breaks away.

As the sheets are run horizontally on the wall, the height of the building allows for two sheets to fit easily along the wall.  When placing the sheet on the top section of the wall, it is important to ensure the SE goes against the ceiling gib & the TE inwards, & for the bottom the SE runs along the floor line & the TE inwards.

When aligning the bottom sheet, it was helpful for me to have a crow bar to help push it up from the ground so it was tight against the top sheet already fixed in.  It is better that there is a gap at the bottom than between the sheets, as often this will be covered with skirting boards.

Changing the Ceiling for the Better!

Back from holidays today, so making a genuine start to get work done with the gib.  Didn't really get much done over the holidays, just the ceiling gib for the two back rooms, along with some of the walls, so theres plenty to carry on with. 

As a class, we got underway with concentrating on the ceiling gib for the lounge area.  This gave everyone the opportunity to go over the procedure of cutting the gib to length, where to fix the glue & also fixing in with the screw gun.  The added bonus was that there were numbers available to hold the long lengths of gib so that it didn't snap whilst we were lifting it up.

Once the length had been worked out the ceiling gib could be attached.  When measuring the length, we had to make sure that the sheet fell in the middle of two cavity battens. 

The measurement is then transffered to the sheet, along with any measurements for cut out sections (for wire that might be for a light fitting etc).  Once ready to be fixed, glue is placed on the ceiling batten approximately every 200mm to provide extra fittings for the areas that would not have screws holding it in place.  Once this was done, the ceiling gib was held in place and adjusted until it was sitting hard up against the wall edge & the other sheet of gib it was sitting against (if applicable).  It is important to remember the SE is against the edge of the room's ceiling & the TE is on the inside sections.  As this ceiling area spanned a fair distance it meant we required Standard Gib TE/SE & Standard Gib TE/TE.

Once fixed, a sheet of gib 300mm wide & the length of the sheet (1.2m) was cut and glued in place (as pictured above), to provide extra support to the sheet that was joining it.  The sheets were laid out horizontally across the battens to provide regular fixing points.

The same process of gluing gib to provide extra support, was also done along the length of the sheet fixed up (which would help support the join of the gib adjacent to it).  These pieces only had to be as long as the width between each cavity batten (approximately 300mm) & 200mm thick.

This process was repeated until the whole ceiling was done.  Where there were joins present, we also nailed a few piece of timber across the join temporarily & inserted nails between the timber & the gib to push the gib in at the join (as pictured below).  The reason for this was to create the same concept of a tapered edge, so that when the gib stopper comes, the joins are not so apparent as they can be sealed over more effectively.

A a shot at the big time... I mean gibing.

As the house got a bit behind last term due to bad weather, Marty & Rich called for us to come in during the holidays.

Came in to work today as a result, so did a bit of ceiling gib & wall as well with Mike S & Rich.

Was pretty easy to cut the gib to length, basically used a craft knife to run along the length of the gib along a straight edge.  Once done, the gib easily bends along this scored line, & a craft knife can then be used to cut the last remaining bit attached.  When taking the measurement you can take off a 10mm amount to allow a gap at each end for adjustment.  Also needed to take into account the location of wiring for lights, as holes needed to be cut out for them to drop through.  To cut these holes, we used a gib saw.

When fixing it on to the ceiling, it ran along the ceiling battens so it can be attached at each point with the gib screws, and also every 200mm cr along the edge as well & through the middle.  Glue was also placed through the middle where nails were not placed.

When laying out the gib, it was important that the SE gib was on the outside edge of the ceiling, with TE meeting each other in between.  

For extra support to join the TE together cut bits of gib are placed with glue spanning the distance between the ceiling battens with 100mm fixed onto the existing ceiling gib & the other 100mm will overhang to be glued to the next bit of gib being attached next to it.

Was good to have a few people, as whilst some were holding it into position, the other was fixing it to the ceiling battens.  Really makes the job go quicker.

Last Day Before HOLIDAYS!!! Whoop Whoop!

Bit of a clean up day today before heading on holidays.  Some of us were outside cleaning the frames of the houses as a lot of stain had flicked on to them whilst doing the second coating on the weatherboards.

Some of the boys cleared out the interior of the house for the delivery of the gib sheets from the company.  It's important that nothing is left on the ground, as the slightest bump can damage the sheet when it sits on it.

 When carrying the gib you had to be careful to lift it properly as it can break really easily.  Best to have at least two people holding it at each end, and for the longer lengths (like the 6 meters) to have someone in the middle, so it doesn't warp.  This is because it easily breaks if twisted the wrong way.

When laying the sheets down, they were held on their side and then left to drop down on their own.  As each sheet is laid down, it was also really important to make sure the edges were lying flat and in line.  This is so that it won't be broken on the edge if bumped up against or stood on.

When stacking the sheets, its good practise to lay out all the same lengths & types together, so they are easier to get at as you need them.  For us we had four types of gib delivered:

- Standard Gib, TE (tapered edge)

- Standard Gib, TE/SE (tapered edge, square edge)

- Aqualine Gib, TE/SE (for wet areas)

- Braceline Gib, TE/SE (for areas that require additional bracing elements as per building plan)

We also double checked all the insulation was finished, as this will have an inspection done tomorrow, so that we can start on the gibing when we come back from holidays.  Little gaps were filled out with the green stuff, along with any outstanding areas in the frame work.

The interior walls do not require insulation as once the outer barrier is sealed, it will be effective for all of the interior.  The only type that may be put in the interior walls is for noise insulation throughout the house.

Finishing off insulation & wall cladding

Continued on with insulation today, just had a little bit of the ceiling to do, but the most of the installation was for the walls.  For this, we used R2.2 wall pads made from polyester (like the ceiling ones).  It comes in 580x1160mm pre cut pads that are 90mm thick.  These were cut in the same way as the ceiling ones were, with sections cut out to accommodate any wiring or pipes.  Yesterday we had some of the boys help us out from the other house, so Rich had us go over a few of these as there were a few gaps present that he wanted closed up.  

This got all finished up today, so we cleaned up the window frames by cutting back the expandable foam & also just gave the interior a sweep out  preparation for the delivery of the gib sheets that came today. 

Some of us were outside doing the rest of the weatherboards that are left to do.  We didn't quite get it done, but it should be finished up easily by tomorrow as there is only a couple of runs to go.

Insulating the Interior

On Wednesday last week whilst I was doing the weatherboards, some of the boys were inside preparing the interior for insulation (which is what we concentrated on doing today).  They had to make sure that all of the walls were all flush for when the Gib sheeting is to be put on it.  In order to achieve this, they had to plane back where nogs or other parts of the frame might be sticking out a bit, so that it is all flat.

This is best to be done before the insulation is done as it can get in the way when trying to plane or get into certain areas.

When doing the insulation we started off with the ceiling first, using 'R3.2 ceiling pads (polyester thermal insulation made by green stuf).  These come in 430x1220 pre cut pads which are 180mm thick.  They are laid on top of the ceiling battens and generally fit so that two can go between each truss.  It is important when we are laying the pads down, that they are not scrunched up and are as flat as possible.  This is because the insulation works from the still air pockets within it - by squishing the pad up (it eliminates the air pockets required to keep the warmth).

The pad's had to lie flat against the ceiling batten and where wiring or pipes were present, the pad had to be cut accordingly so that it could fit.  This was done by using a craft knife to cut through.

We found that the blades of the craft knives constantly became blunt because of the material we were cutting through, so we had to use a sharpening stone to keep the knives at a level where they could cut.

There should be no spaces present where the insulation is, as this will cause poor results with it's insulating capabilities.  Rich mentioned that for ever 3mm gap present 1% of its insulating power is lost.

Whilst doing the ceiling insulation, we also sealed the window frames.  We did this by putting Sika REF 10mm rod packing into the gap around the window frame.  This was pushed in so that it was around 25mm inside the recess present.  This was done so that it sat between the wooden packers already present, and where it was too thin to pack the gap, a double amount was fed into the space.  Once this was done, expanding foam was then injected on top of the packer so that there were no gaps any longer.

When using the expanding foam, it had to be shook for 30 seconds before use & for some of the cans they were only active if the bottle was held upside down.  Some of the cans had multi positions, so it is very important to read the instructions so it functions properly.  This will be left until tomorrow where it should have expanded and dried adequately enough for us to tidy up and cut the excess away.