Found this in my newly purchased ruin of a barn.
Any idea as to what it is? For its size it’s massively constructed in oak, bolted together and weighs a ton!
It’s agricultural, in an old barn that was used for wine making and for slaughtering sheep and pigs!
There’s a reddish stain there that might have come from red wine…
Or not…
It will be a support for some kind of machine I would guess.
Could be blood, but I don’t think blood would soak into wood the way wine does…
I asked the matriarch of the farming family next door to warn me when blood was going to be drawn, because I could hear what was going on in there - and then I’d go shopping until it was all over. …!
Sounds plausible…
If I could get the energy from somewhere this could be converted, with a new oak table top, into a garden table…or something like that…
No don’t.
It’s really obvious to me what it is but I don’t want to say.
You have to now! Is it the blood catcher?
Blood doesn’t stain red like that for very long, it goes black. Red wine does stain red.
I think I’ve found the answer. First clue is the red wine staining, second clue is @JaneJones a support for some kind of machine ’, then a little research on ancient wine presses, and voila.
The leg & base construction is virtually identical.
So, it is the base support for a small but heavy wine press!
Solved?
You mean it’s gory…?
On wine presses there’s the crème de la crème of wine press manufacturers here with an online catalogue dating back to 1879.
Cost advice needed, please….very grateful….
I haven’t employed a builder for any work to my house for 30 years, except for the roof - around 1992 – so I’m well out of date regarding building trade costs.
I need someone to renovate the ruin of a barn I’ve bought attached to my house, and had a knock on the door from a builder this morning looking for work. He looked to be around 50 years plus and came with his son – both were friendly – and I feel OK about them.
He reassured me by taking me to the local chateau in my village, where he has been working on renovating its outbuildings/barns for several years, and the work he’s doing looks fine to me.
He measured up and told me roughly what the cost would be and I’ve asked him for a devis. He has a SIREN number for travaux de maçonnerie générale et gros oeuvre de bâtiment.
There’s about 50 sq.m of old roof which he will basically replace reusing as much of the old materials that are ok, plus repairing, raking out and repointing with stone coloured mortar, the rear wall of my house, all for around 8,500 euros, subject to the devis and possible further discussions.
Does that price look reasonable or am I being conned?!!!
If everything he says checks out (actually his work on the chateau etc then thats a fair price, especially as the roof structure needs replacing and you never know exactly how it will go with an old building. The roof pitch looks too shallow IMO so you may need to get a little permission to increase it a bit. Are you going to insulate it? Any need of a chimney flue for some type of heating?
As @tim17 said early on in this thread, you will probably need permission from the Mairie, especially as you mention a chateau.
We recently had a roof retile, like for like (only changing century old for new) same colour. New bâche and thorough beam check. Mairie was sent a detailed plan of works by the builder, which was then sent to the Mairie architect for approval. Took 3 weeks. (We live in a ‘protected’ historical zone of a chateau village.)
As I understand, in a protected/heritage zone, pretty much works on anything external - shutter repaint, doorway change, roofing, windows, wall etc. needs a permit. For anything with a floor area of 150 m2 or greater, an architect is obligatory.
Here is a good guide for your information, although a Notaire is not usually involved.
Happy building!
Thanks, Corona, the roof is the same pitch as my house, which is about 17°, normal for the Charente Maritime area I believe. Encouraging news about the cost.
If you’re happy that the devis covers everything, then its not a bad price. Don’t forget to check his decennel insurance
Thank you Susannah. I don’t think I’ll need planning permission. When I concluded the purchase the Notaire asked if I was going to convert the barn - I said no - just a simple repair/renovation job. It’s a sun trap so will be a hard-landscaped area with a greenhouse maybe, as I’m not replacing that part of the roof which has collapsed.
The chateau is some distance away, and a neighbour renovated a similar barn attached to the side of his house. We both bought from the same owner.
Hope it will be happy building. I’m soaking it all in at the moment…getting used to the idea!
One devi and a suggestion that it is a fair price is a start but proceeding on that basis is a recipe for disaster.
Ask yourself how many artisans go looking for work in France unless they are English and rubbish.
Its the norm to have to wait months if not a year or more for a decent macon or roofing artisan in France.
Be very careful what is being offered.
When I get the devis I’ll give it a good hard look and ask a few more questions.
