Week Beginning 29th September 2025
This week started with optimism, a plan, and a cherry picker in good spirits. It very quickly reminded me who’s really in charge, and it’s certainly not me.
Monday – The Gutter Job That Wasn’t
Bright and early, I headed to Wrights Officers in Bulwell to collect my job sheets like a man ready to conquer the world. First job: clear some gutters at Toot Hill Road in Loughborough, covering three long runs of flats.
Except… it wasn’t a gutter clear. It was a full gutter replacement, and nobody had told me. No materials on site, none at the offices. Mission aborted.
Thankfully, Errol from the YMCA rang asking me to investigate some dodgy looking slates at Alfreton Road in Nottingham. At least someone needed me.
To salvage the day, I headed to the chicken shed, home of Operation Move Out. Cleared a bit more, then clocked off early and picked my daughter up from school, which is hands down one of my favourite jobs of all time. Roofing is satisfying but school pick-up? That’s unbeatable.
Tuesday – Tracks and Triumphs
Started at MKM Building Supplies, hoping for an easy win. And I got one they had everything I needed for Grange Farm in Oxton.
Then I got to the job and immediately lost a track on the cherry picker while unloading it. Within five minutes. Again. I’m starting to think the machine does it just to see me panic.
Got it fixed, cracked on only to realise I was a metre short on gutter. Classic. So I removed the old cast iron gutters, dropped them back at base, grabbed extras from stock, and got the install finished.
Swung by the chicken shed to collect my new workwear from Granite Workwear (shout out to the ladies there absolute legends).
Then headed to MJC Motors in Southwell to assess their gutters. They’ll need:
- 22m gutter
- 30m downpipe
- 22 gutter brackets
- 12 downpipe brackets
- 2 stop ends
- 3 running outlets
- 4 offset bends
- Plus unions all round
That’ll be a satisfying one… if the track behaves.
Wednesday – Chimneys and Childcare
With Monday’s big job cancelled, I suddenly had a free day. So after dropping my daughter at school, I headed to Hayley’s place in Maythorne, Southwell to sort her roof.
I did the full works:
- Rebuilt the top brick course on the rear chimney
- Removed damaged flaunching and laid new concrete
- Reset the leaning chimney pot properly
- Removed cracked flaunching on the front chimney and relaid it securely
- Lifted and re-bedded a loose ridge tile
Cleaned up, packed down, and you guessed it made it in time for school pick-up. Two days in a row. Dad points accumulating nicely.
Thursday – Kingston Hall Marathon
Spent the entire day at Kingston Hall, clearing gutters and inspecting flat roofs.
And within five minutes of arriving?
Track fell off. Again. I don’t even get mad now I just quietly sigh, fetch my tools, and pretend it’s part of the warm-up routine.
Once I’d stitched the machine back together, I spent the rest of the day tracking around the entire estate, pulling unbelievable amounts of debris from the gutters. By the end, I was ready to sleep in the basket.
Friday – Storm Amy Prep & Admin Dad Mode
I was supposed to be in Basford, Nottingham re-flaunching and re-pointing chimneys, but with Storm Amy incoming, I postponed. No point being slapped off a roof by the wind.
Instead:
- Swung by Granite Workwear for a catch-up
- Did a bit more at the chicken shed
- Visited Ash, who handles my website, to discuss some updates
- Back home for computer work — YouTube, socials, website admin
- Took my youngest to her swimming lesson
- More admin, then picked up my eldest from school
A calm before the storm, literally.
Saturday – Operation Chicken Shed: Final Push
Teamed up with Grumps (my father-in-law) for another heavy-duty declutter session at the chicken shed.
And I’m proud to say we fully cleared one of the side sheds and shut the doors behind us.
What once felt like an impossible mission is now one proper day away from being DONE. Years of collected nonsense, soon to be history. All thanks to sheer stubbornness and a shared hatred of clutter.
And Now… We Wait.
Storm Amy is on the way, and I’m fully expecting the phone to explode with calls once the wind’s finished rearranging Nottinghamshire’s chimneys.
But until then that’s another week of Roof Tops and Pit Stops in the bag.
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Workwear Powered by Granite Workwear
Big thanks to the team at Granite Workwear for keeping me kitted out in gear that can survive rooftops, gutter sludge, high winds and chicken shed chaos.
If you need proper tough workwear that doesn’t fall apart when your cherry picker does, check them out at:
👉 https://www.graniteworkwear.com
