REAL LIFE
down the chalet for her and recycled as much as I could. Her roof and windows ended up being my roof and windows!” Chris, who has lived and
worked in The Three Valleys for decades, kept his ear to the ground for other recycling opportunities. A local estate agent told him of any house and probate clearances, as he was keen to find local wood cladding or bardage en bois. “I did three house clearances with this agent. One chalet was full of incredible wood that was going to be taken to the dechetterie (tip).” Chris was able to recycle the wood and use it in the refurbishment of his own chalet.
Rebuilding projects
were also a good source of materials. Many of his skiing friends worked as part of the construction crews during the summer and could source materials for him. When he heard of a kitchen being taken out of one luxury chalet and thrown away, he claimed it. “The old kitchen included an unwanted £10,000 fridge. So for the price of a few nights out for the building crew working on the project, I was able to have it – eventually. It took five people to get it into my chalet!” Chris isn’t sure precisely
how much recycling local materials has saved him, but estimates it’s been “hundreds
32 FRENCH PROPERTY NEWS: March/April 2023
of thousands of euros. If I’d had to buy it all, it would have cost a huge amount”.
GETTING STUCK IN The renovation work itself was mainly a question of hard graft and lots of YouTube videos. Chris and his friends watched building shows for know-how and did most of the basic work themselves. Where they didn’t have sufficient knowledge, Chris brought in specialists, such as for gas and electricity installation and to meet building regulations. Sometimes the expertise
needed was unexpected, such as for the 100-year-old vaulted ceiling in the workshop.
Realising that it was crucial to check the structure was sound, Chris had all the ceilings and floors examined by an expert. It turned out that the metal rods that held the ceiling together, had rusted and would likely fail in coming years. “It had been there over 100 years and we had to make it stronger.” This meant that the ceiling
of the workshop, which was also the floor of several bedrooms, had to be reinforced with almost 15 tons of concrete. “It was our first concrete pour and a bit scary. We just knew we had to get it right.” Fortunately, it worked perfectly and the ceiling is now stronger than ever.
© CHRIS MORAN
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