Buildings Archives

What is the reason for the delay in finishing the work?

As Nigel has reminded us – most recently in his sermon on James 4 – the Lord is sovereign over all things, and it is his will and desire for us to trust Him and wait!

And what is the technical reason for the delay?

The timber floor cannot be laid on the still slightly damp sand-cement screed base which has been prepared.

Why is that?

Like all manufacturers of timber flooring, our supplier (Junckers) cannot guarantee that the floor will not warp and twist unless the moisture content of what it is laid, and the surrounding air, on is within certain humidity limits.

How far away is it from the target moisture content?

We are looking for numbers from the readings of ‘less than 3’ for the floor, and 35-75% humidity in the air. The general trend at 12 sample points continues to be downwards, but 10 of the 12 are still (as of 8 July) in excess of 4. The air humidity has been within acceptable limits for some time.

What has been done to dry the floor?

The heating has been on almost continuously since Easter, with windows open to ventilate the warm moist air from the building. Since early July a large fan has been used to force ventilate the space.

Why wasn’t the time it takes to dry the floor anticipated?

There are ‘rules of thumb’ for screed drying based on the thickness of the screed. Some of the screed is thinner, and that has indeed dried. But most of the floor is 70-80mm thick. We knew it would take time, but every building is slightly different.

Is there anything in the existing building that could be slowing the drying?

The very thick existing walls of the church are certainly damp, and old buildings work not with damp proof courses, but with walls that ‘breathe’ moisture in an out on a cyclical basis. One theory is that the heating is drying the walls  too, but quickly saturating the air and so slowing the moisture drying from the screed. The other theory is that the screed is like a ‘sponge’, actually absorbing moisture in the air as quickly as it dries. Frustrating as it is, neither architect, nor contractor, nor flooring supplier, nor screed manufacturer can say with certainty what is happening to our floor!

What about sealing the screed, so that the moisture won’t affect the wood?

That is possible. There is a worry about the effect of leaving moisture in the screed, as it may not be healthy for it in the long term, that is, it may break down over time. That risk is probably small in our case. So there are liquid products available that prevent moisture from evaporating at a rate which would endanger the wood, and we are pursuing that as an option.

If we were to use a floor seal of this kind, or the floor were dried naturally, how long would it then take to finish the work?

The contractor has indicated he will need 6-8 weeks to get back to site and finish the work. After the floor has been laid, there are more decorations to complete, and the audio visual installation also needs to be finished.

What has PCC decided about this?

PCC have been kept informed. At the July meeting, there was a long discussion about the options open to us to bring the problem to a conclusion. It was agreed that the team could actively pursue the option to use a suitable floor seal, provided the contractor and suppliers agreed to its use – that is, could guarantee the floor would not warp. We are currently in discussions about this option.

 If you have any other questions, email Helen, and if John or Dave can’t answer, they will try to find someone who can.

 

 

*FAQs = ‘frequently asked questions’, as Helen, Dave and John will attest to…

No, the Bible won’t change!

But the Ministers have been carefully considering how we might read God’s word during our services. There is a practical need to replace the pew Bibles used in the new space, as many are tatty and damaged. Using a projector for the Bible passages is not satisfactory, for one important reason: it will never feel quite as ‘real’ and powerful as a physical book in the hand. In addition, we have found there to be technical problems with verse numbering when projecting.

A decision has been taken to adopt the English Standard Version (‘ESV’) in place of the New International Version (‘NIV’). New ESV pew Bibles are being ordered for the reordered church building. There are two reasons for this change.

On the one hand, the NIV is no longer available in the translation used in the red pew bibles. This is because all new NIV Bibles now use ‘gender-neutral’ language. In common with many in our tradition, the Ministry Team regard this as not being as faithful to the original as it might be, thus impairing in some measure the clarity of the word of God.

The ESV is a more ‘literal’ translation, helping us as we look into the detail of God’s revelation to us, and as we ‘search the Scriptures’ together on Sundays. We may find some passages more difficult to read, with longer sentences, and we may need more practice for public reading. You will find many passages are very similar, especially in the Old Testament.

The NIV has not suddenly become heretical! Far from it. It is an excellent translation, and you may prefer to use it in your personal studies. But in the church services, we will be using the ESV when we move back.

If you have any questions or concerns about this, please feel free to speak to Nigel, Richard or Chris.

[The short slideshow, including a side-by-side comparison is available here.]

The meeting to consider the Church’s planning application to relocate the stained glass windows was held this afternoon. After the wind turbines and house extensions were cleared from the agenda, it was our turn. Knutsford Conservation and Heritage Group, and Knutsford Town Council both spoke against the proposals, and then we had our three minutes to speak in favour.

In the subsequent debate, it quickly became clear that the Councillors were worried that they may not have fully understood the proposals, preventing them from agreeing with the Planning Officer’s recommendation to refuse consent. The outcome was a ‘deferral pending a site visit by the Committee’ – a great result in the circumstances.

It was interesting to note the reaction to the realisation that the families and households of the church (i.e. you!) were entirely funding the project. That seemed to weigh in the discussions, i.e., that our view of what we wanted in the building ought to be balanced against a heritage argument which presumed against change.

The Committee will visit the building, probably in January, and then we’ll have another Committee Session to attend in either January or February.

So thank you for praying! The Lord is at work…

On 1 December, the second short Q&A was given by David Adams on the subject of the AV proposals – especially on the ‘visual’ side of the new arrangements.

You can find a PDF of the slides here.

Slides from the first of the ‘bite-sized briefings’ on 24 November – details about the move back into the new building – can be downloaded by clicking here. You can check whether the seating arrangements will change or not! (They will.)