The stairs

Nearly there now, at least we have our wall constructed to divide the hallway so that we can make a small boiler room. The construction rapidly progressed due to the use of the lightweight cement blocks that have little air bubbles making them very easy to cut.

 

We've used the rock/gravel infill to create a breathable yet insulated floor which will later be compacted by tamping down a few inches of road base onto the gravel. We used this method in the living room and it seems to be working very well with any damp earth being kept well away from the base of the floor bricks. In times of very wet and cold weather some damp will come upwards but rapidly evaporates and does not cause a problem by rising inside walls and forcing bubbles in plaster a common sight in Italian houses.