House extensions

1. Use a reputable builder that will happily show you an extension that he has recently finished.

2. Get more reputable builders to quote !

3. Try and have as much space as possible.

4. Don't make any cutbacks if you can help it. You'll only get one chance.

5. The new brick used will take time to age - your building has already done this so don't get too worked up about any slight difference if you have used the same brick. It will "burn in".

6. Finally - ensure that your quote is not an estimate. Get a detailed schedule of work and accurate downtakings. Builders are notorious for finding "problems". You are building into free space - it should not be that difficult to do the correct sums if the builder has good local experience.

I am sure others will help formulate a great "guide" to home extensions.

FWIW - We thought about extending VERY seriously and ended up moving to a much bigger house.

We're the same as LTD...spent loads on architects, planning perm etc but when we looked at the building costs and factored in living with mess for months we decided moving was cheaper and easier.

-- woody

We had an extension added to our house recently and it was a relatively pain free experience. No problem with the architects and the builders were ok (although they started a couple of months later than planned).

Planning permission took about 6 weeks to come through and then the building warrants about another 2 months after that.

When you're deciding what builder to use try to get some commitment on dates. The most frustrating thing in the whole experience for me was getting the builder to actually start the job. After lots of chasing it eventually got to the stage of telling them that they either started the next day or could GTF.

When you're getting the plans drawn up give very careful thought to the layout etc, including any electrical or plumbing work required as changing these late in the day can be costly. The new area in my house is used as a home cinema but as I didn't have all the kit when the extension was getting built I missed the chance to hide the AV wiring, which is slightly annoying.

Thanks for the replies thus far.

If anyone else has any subtle tips then please post...

Thanks

Mike

Tips? Being 'over the painful bit' of a house extension (albeit a mahogany frame conservatory addition to a Victorian house with walls removed, etc.) I'd say:

(1) Listen to Steve. Think very carefully about what goes where; run conduit under floors so that it's easy to add or remove cables.

(2) Take the opportunity to make any 'affected' bits of the home more energy efficient - we insulated under our floor.

(3) Think about drainage - best to run pipes around rather than under.

(4) Don't skimp. Quality costs and you'll regret not doing things properly if you go for a cheaper option. Ferinstance, we thought we'd save a few pounds by opting for Ikea carcasses for our new kitchen, which was good in principle, but (a) the carcasses provided no service space so aren't suitable for running up against a wall, and (b) Ikea carcasses are very cheaply made (no surprises) and needed to be strengthened up by creating a CLS superstructure to hold the (*very* heavy) worktop, and also in places we doubled up with MDF sheeting as well, just for peace of mind.

As far as builders go - the best thing I learned was to keep an eye on what they're up to. They will often take the easiest option even when it's not necessarily the best option. Try not to overdo it though...

HTH

John

John,

The new place is sounding good. How are you enjoying life over in Fife? Getting much mileage out of that bike you bought?

Regards
Steve

quote:

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The new place is sounding good. How are you enjoying life over in Fife? Getting much mileage out of that bike you bought?

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Hi Steve, Fife is great. Got a much bigger place for the same money as my little house in Edinburgh, and so in a sense it's been a success. Still kinda miss being in the middle of it, though. Not used the bike as much as I'd like - what with sailing and running, plus the work on the house, I've not had so much time to go out on decent runs. Having said that, I'm very impressed with how much bike I got for basically peanuts, and the odd occasion I do get out on it is always enjoyable.

Back to extensions... kind of. Painted the roughcast over the weekend. Took ages, trying to get the little holes and everything covered... getting gas hooked up tomorrow, ah it never seems to end...

John