Horizons Vendeens

As already noticed in the previous posts, the webblog ”Horizons vendéens” should be replaced progressively with the website, in order to market the gite 1 accomodated for 6 persons, the gite 2 for 4 persons and the common and interior pool.

At the end of the restoration works, representatives of Gîtes de France from Vendée will check the compliance of the criteria of getting this quality label of Gîtes de France with the completed works, then they classify the gites and the pool with at least 3 ears of wheet -minimum classification in order to get departemental subsidies which will be granted to us at the end of the restoration works. Now just wait and see the authentication…

From now on, I give you some ”concrete” photos, or failing these the architect’s plans so that you will be able to have an idea of the whole stone buildigs, i.e. the both gites with the common pool, located between the 2 lodgings.

Then, in order to have the area of each gite, you can find below plans:

Gite 1

on the ground:
  upstairs:

Gite 2:

The swimming pool:
 

At last, even if the webblog has no commercial target but more a descriptive one concering the restoration works from old stone buildings into gite and the pool, I take the liberty of disclosing the tariffs of each gite. Going to pool will not be of extra costs and is included in the price on whatever the season may be. You will take advantage of this pool when you want, to respect tourists in the “neighbouring” gite.

Prices are net of tax; no tax for the town of Pouzauges will be requested.

Tariffs are calculated for a week, from Saturday to the next Saturday. For dates of various arrivals or/and departures, let us know with this email -contact@horizons-vendeens.fr- so that we could check our availabilities and possibilities in order to answer favourably to your requests.

And are inclusive in the price:

1. Sheets -all beds will be made at your arrival in gites on holidays,

2. Necessities for babies -on request,

3. Bed linen and towels -for hygiene reasons, we do not provide bath sheets for the swimming pool and/or for external activities to gites, like sea…-,

4. Cleaning materials like washing powder for dishwasher, cleaning products…

5. Internet hit,

6. A phone -in each gite- at your disposal will be only used for for emergency cases, but at your arrival into gites, a phone number will be given to you so that you are able to be reached during your holidays.

For further details about gites and the pool, do not hesitate to contact us with: contact@horizons-vendeens.fr.

After silence of one week in the posts for the “Horizons vendéens“, you can find below the summary of the works, which still go on!

• Front stone wall-to-be of the gite 2

As already explained in the previous posts, the wall -”built with breeze blocks-which is located on the front façade of the gite 2, should be covered with stones. Hereafter, the following steps since last November:

After having laid the ”last” stones and the wood lintels on this wall of this gite, stoneworkers will make way for the workers for the stone face-lifting of this façade. Then, our website should be available on Internet…

• Screed above the tiles in the gite 2

No photo can be available: indeed, the liquid screed was poured last Wednesday, so we should not walk on it for the moment and we should also avoid draughts in this gite because of risk of cracks inside the screed. Now wait and see for some weeks before the tiles can be seen on the floor…

• Tiles in the pool area

All around the pool, in the changing room and also for the machines space, a “standard” screed has been poured and the tiler begins his work next week. Hereafter, photos of the screed:

• Waste water from the gite 1 and from the gite 2

The waste water for the both gites and the changing room of the pool have been well connected to the town services. No photo should be needed to understand this part of work.

• Earthworks begin in the back side of the gites and the pool

The earthworker ,as he was around the gites and the pool, began last week to level this surroundings, more precisely in the back side of the gites and the pool.

• Ceilings in the gite 1

We have fallen the ceilings in rooms like bathrooms and toilets, but also in the living room and kitchen of the gite 1 so that all ceilings are the same and more precisely light. Indeed, we have choosen to lay white panellings so that all rooms should be bright at the most.

For further details about Horizons vendéens -gites & swimming pool- let us know by the following link: contact@horizons-vendeens.fr.

Works in the gite 2 are going on with the plumber , with the heating floor…

Entrance hall of the gite:

Living room of the gite -in the quiet spot:

Living room of the gite:

Kitchen of the gite:

Corridor -view from bedrooms towards living room of the gite:

Bedrooms of the gite:

If you want more details about the gites and the pool, let us know with contact@horizons-vendeens.fr.

After cleaning out stones on 2 walls in the gite 2, and as explained in the post Walls inside the gite 2, we ought to strenghten  the front wall of this gite -weakened- with a “grey coating”, then in order to avoid loosing too much place, we have choosen to get a coating instead of having placo with  a finishing touch of paintwork , so the colour will be the same as the coating on the other walls of the living room.

Hereafter photos showing this finishing touch in this gite:

In order to have a more precise idea of the living room of this gite, any complementary photos:

For further information about Horizons vendéens -gites & swimming pool- let us know by the following link: contact@horizons-vendeens.fr.

In this gite, persons in charge of placo should create and demarcate rooms:

Partition between the living room and bedrooms of the gite:

Evolution of partitions for the bedrooms of the gite:

View from the living room towards bedrooms -on the left- and kitchen -on the right-
then in the background bathroom of the gite:

From bedrooms/bathroom towards kitchen and living room of the gite:
-on opposite view-  

Do not hesitate to contact us if you need more exhaustive details about gites of Horizons vendéens and their common swimming pool with this following link contact@horizons-vendeens.fr.

As far as the swimming pool is concerned, works are going on with the placo, which demarcate these 2 spaces, namely space for changing room -toiletd and shower- and one for the machines.

Hereafter different photos showing the development step by step:

On one hand, the changing room              on the other hand, “room” for machines  

Lastly, after technical information with placo, it should be good to see this following photo, taken recently towards the sight, when you go out the swimming pool from back of the stone buildings:

Do not hesitate to contact us if you need more exhaustive details about the gites and the swimming pool, contact@horizons-vendeens.fr.

You should need explanations about the delay in the restoration works for these gites, especially for the gite 2, and this leads consequently to postpone the “launch” of the gites and their common swimming pool to the tourists from May to June 2008.

For those, who from now on want to have the exact dates for the launch on preview or/and to receive further details on the gites & swimming pool and/or book right now your holiday in these gites,
please send us your contact details and your requirements with this following link: contact@horizons-vendeens.fr
and we will be pleased to answer you asap.

Before the launch for the gites and the swimming pool to the public, any details on the hazards around the gites, that are unavoidable for all retoration, and on all hitches and unexpected events encountered since the beginning of restoration works for these gites and swimming pool:

• Since January, bad weathers, which were numerous, make the carpenters and stoneworkers waste their time, so wasted time for the following trades. Solution: waiting for better weather…

• For the lambourdage -wood support used for fixing the flat ceilings- in the gite 2, we should have no water leak in the roof; but as tiles have not been put down, the masons had to put down a tarpaulin on the roof and then tiles, after having ended the creation and extension of doors and windows.

• In the swimming pool place, we should ”cheat” with walls that are really straight: example with the large door located in the back side of the pool place, this door was put in the 2nd beam -starting from outside.

• “The ridge sheathing” -tiles on top of the roof-  was not finished when “placo” began, so there was a risk of water leak in the roof of the gite 2. But the masons had put well down the tarpaulin on the roof and the weather was not so bad, so the risk has been quickly averted and the ridge sheathing ended.

• A too low pressure has prevented the trades to clean out the stones of the gite 1; this worry was quickly solved with the plumber, otherwise these persons should have gone to another site.

• In the gite 2, the 1st bedroom has been reduced widthwise, whereas the 2nd increased in the same proportion. Reason: the window has been “moved” when it has been created in the wall and as the partition is in the middle of the window – as explained in some previous posts like works in the gite 1, there was not any other solution, except incresing one bedroom by reducing the other, the partition between the 2nd bedroom and the living-room has not been altered.

• Even in the gite 2, the bathroom has been also reduced, on one hand because stones of the wall could not be removed, risking to weaken more the wall and on the other hand, in order to respect the alignment with doors between bedrooms, bathroom and toilets. To be confirmed but I prefer having a single sink but with a large worktop, instead of 2 sinks without worktop… Do not hesitate to come and see in Pouzauges and let us your advices about that room of the gite, your comments will be always welcome!

• Still in this gite, as already explained in the post Walls inside the gite 2, the wall of the front façade of the gite will not be hidden by placo, otherwise we should have lost too much space -at least 30 cm-. This unexpected event, for this once, is not so disastrous because the finishing touch with coating will be more esthetic than a paintwork on the placo. Moreover, the advantage of this coating is to be tougher with time.

• A false level of the screed in the gite 2: before having put down the heating floor and the screed for the tiles, a big surprise of 2,5 cm was waiting for us in the living-romm of this gite. In order to lessen the impact of this level, the plumber had to ”find” insulating sheets -to put down underneath the tubes of the heating floor- with a lower thickness but with an equal -at least- insulation index.

• Consequence of this false level : delay in laying of the heating floor and so for the screed. At that stage, we have no solution to catch up with delay.

• Water infiltrations in the breez blocks, stood on the front façade of the gite 2. Indeed, the ground in front of the stone buildings is sloping and the works are not finished yet, the earthworks cannot come and finish its work. Coating has been projected on this wall in order to “waterproof” at the most and a trench has been dug to turn water towards outside, not inside the gite. When stoneworkers will be cover these breeze blocks with stones and then these stones will be clened out and coated, this problem of water infiltration will diappear.

Styl’façades goes on cleaning out the stones and face-lifting the walls with the back of the stone buildings, starting with the gite 1, then on the swimming pool plac and at last on the gite 2.

the whole stone buildings -the 2 gites and the swimming pool:

 

the whole stone buildings: the 2 gites and the swimming pool -opposite view:

 

the gite 1:

 

the swimming pool place:

 

the gite 2: