Week beginning Monday 12th January 2026
Some weeks are all about graft, some weeks are about juggling weather, family, and logistics, and some weeks somehow manage to be all three at once. This one ticked every box chimneys, fog, fencing, Cubs, hospitals, insulation-induced itching, and the occasional mad dash for roofing membrane.
Here’s how the week unfolded.
Monday – Chimneys, Rain, and a Survey Marathon
The week kicked off on Greenland Crescent in Beeston, with a chimney that had clearly seen better days. The top five courses of brickwork were in poor condition, with mortar dropping onto a corrugated roof next door never ideal. The flaunching wasn’t much better either.
The plan was straightforward: remove the failed flaunching, replace it with new, grind out and repoint the brickwork, remove an old aerial, job’s a fish.
Of course, the plan didn’t account for the sky opening up at midday. What followed was a classic roofer’s sprint, straight down to grab roofing membrane, back up to cover the chimney, then a half-hour wait while the rain did its thing. Once it cleared, everything was uncovered, finished off, and tidied up properly.
With the tools packed away, the afternoon turned into a survey tour of Nottinghamshire:
- Long Eaton – a bulging chimney looking like it was planning an escape.
- Bobbers Mill – tracking down a persistent roof leak.
- Mapperley – a chimney in very questionable condition.
- Mansfield – another chimney, plus some very tired bonnet tile pointing.
One job turned into five locations, and suddenly Monday was gone.
Tuesday – Wet Weather Tactics and Cubs Chaos
Tuesday was always going to be wet, so it was a case of picking jobs that could cope with the rain. That led to Bakersfield, Nottingham, installing eaves trays to stop water running down tiles and sneaking behind the guttering. Simple, effective, and rain-friendly.
With the heavens well and truly open for the rest of the day, all mortar-based work was off the table. That meant retreating to DJI HQ for some behind-the-scenes progress: fitting new lighting, organising tools, and slowly reclaiming floor space after moving everything out of the old chicken shed. You know it’s been a good sort-out when you can walk through the garage without risking a twisted ankle.
Tuesday evening, as always, meant Cubs night. Necker on, scout hut unlocked, and straight into team games and problem-solving. My contribution was a spider’s web / spy-film laser entrapment course. The Cubs loved it. My ears are still ringing from the shouting, laughing, and general hubbub.
Wednesday – Fog, Hips, Ridges, and a Full Day on the Roof
Wednesday took me over to Old Basford, where hip tiles were coming loose and slate tiles were showing their age. This was a full-on roofing day.
Hip and ridge tiles were stripped back and re-bedded using a 3-in-1 sharp sand mix, modified with SBR bond for extra workability and stability. Damaged slates were repaired, and a problematic valley was sorted while access was already in place.
The fog hung around all day, slowing things down and making everything feel just that bit more gloomy. By the time the tools were packed away, it had been a long one and the drive home felt even longer thanks to the murk.
Thursday – Family First and Progress at DJI HQ
By Thursday, the week was already in a good place financially, so I made a conscious decision not to get the cherry picker out and instead focus on work at DJI HQ.
The day started nicely with taking Robyn to school, something I always try to do when work allows, because they don’t stay young forever. After a supply run and dropping my older daughter back home in Calverton, it was off to Rainworth Fencing to collect materials for the HQ boundary.
A quick call to Tomek later, and he was round like a flash. He’s keen, hardworking, and genuinely interested in learning all aspects of the trade exactly the kind of attitude you want around. Together we nailed on overlap boards and got most of the fencing done before running out of materials.
Naturally, it started raining about an hour before we finished. We got soaked, but made excellent progress. The day finished with another trip out, this time taking Robyn to football training.
As if that wasn’t enough, the phone rang with an unexpected call from Geoff Smith, the Roofing Outlaw, about helping access some jobs up in Bradford. Future collaboration, future footage… very exciting. I’ll say no more for now. Not that anyone reads this far anyway.
Friday – Buddleia, Brickwork, and Finishing the Fence
Friday started early to get to Leicester for an 8am meet-up with Michael from MJ Gardening Services. The job was on Slater Street, in the grounds of an old factory that burned down years ago.
The task was to make the site safer and tidier: clearing buddleia, removing loose and unsafe brickwork, and taking down a collapsing billboard that had definitely overstayed its welcome. All wrapped up by lunchtime.
The afternoon was back to Rainworth Fencing for more materials, then straight to DJI HQ to finish off the Fencing around the yard. With that done, the perimeter is now nearly there, just large vehicle gates and a pedestrian gate left, which can wait for another day.
Saturday – Hospital Roofs and Loft Insulation Regret
Saturday meant meeting colleague Dean up at Newark Hospital. The job was straightforward: fix a slipped tile above a dormer window and clear out vine-filled gutters. In, out, done and home at a reasonable time for once.
But the day wasn’t over. After help received clearing out the old chicken shed during the HQ move, it was time to return the favour. Off to my father-in-law’s house to install loft insulation.
If you’ve ever done it, you’ll know: itchy, scratchy, deeply unpleasant… but favour repaid. That officially wrapped up the working week.
That’s the Week
From chimney maintenance and repair to roof surveys, fencing projects, and the occasional sprint for emergency membrane, it’s been one of those weeks that perfectly sums up life in high-access work. Some days you’re carrying out careful roof repair work, other days you’re organising the yard or crawling around in loft insulation, all part of the job.
If you’re curious about the kind of work I get up to day-to-day, whether it’s access using a cherry picker, chimney repairs, gutter clearance, or general roof maintenance, this week was a pretty accurate snapshot.
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Before I wrap this week up, a quick shout-out to Granite Workwear, who sponsor what I wear while I’m up chimneys, on roofs, in cherry pickers, crawling through lofts, and occasionally getting absolutely soaked or covered in itch-inducing insulation. Their kit takes a proper beating, stays comfortable, and crucially doesn’t fall apart halfway through the week, which is more than can be said for some roof tiles I’ve met recently.
If you want workwear that’s actually designed for people who work, not just pose in it, you can check them out here:
👉 https://www.graniteworkwear.com/?afid=danny
