If you were renovating..

[Ohhawtdang]

We are about to embark on our “forever house”
(why does this term make me want to vomit?) It’s a real start from scratch type, so I’m trying to really think about smaller things that make all the difference. We don’t have endless money and need to prioritise a lot of boring bollocks to begin with… electrics, plumbing etc.

I was thinking of various things. Like how I need somewhere for a bigger bin (the small pull out has never cut the mustard) and dimmable lights in the bathroom- bright lights as I bathe has always upset me..)

but also… alternatives to radiators that are always a pain taking up wall space and dictating furniture positions. Hate tall rads, too modern. I don’t know the answer to this, still googling

so if you could start from scratch. What helpful, nice or life improving things would you do to make your house perfect for you?

it’s going to take us forever to do this house so I figure we might as well get serious about the small things that fine tune and make a house great.

Investigate underfloor heating.

We had them living in Germany, no radiators, it was great. They worked with hot water pipes and then the floors were stone/tiled. You could walk around barefoot in winter and it was warm.

We have underfloor heating in the bathroom and kitchen but it's electric and less efficient so a radiator is still required but it takes away the chill, especially in the bathroom.

Yes to underfloor heating with an air source heat pump, the last word in efficiency and comfort.

Expensive tiles and worktops, cheap sanitary wear, taps and built in cupboards for me. Good thick curtains over big windows.

Sockets. Sockets everywhere. We did an extension and got the sockets wrong in a few places (desks and TV all at 90 degrees to where we originally thought they'd be) and the trailing wires really annoy me. You'll never regret a socket.

Lots of insulation, triple glazed windows.

Underfloor heating is lovely if it's in budget. We only have it in one room and it is a bit of a pain running the different systems but still love it.

We now come in and out through the utility which has room for all our coats and shoes - and then we close the door on the chaos. Really recommend that.

We’re renovating a complete doer upper. My tip is live in it, live in it live in it! Don’t rush to make big expensive layout decisions until you know the house backwards and how you want it to work for you. Get to know all its quirky design flaws. Bat around a hundred ideas before going ahead with changes. It’s really easy to waste money on things and then look back and wish you’d done it differently.

fabulous storage is probably my biggest priority. A functional house is a joy!

I would 100% opt for a laundry room UPSTAIRS! Not downstairs next to the kitchen, or in the kitchen. I know it’s against the grain, but I just don’t understand why we have washers/dryers in our kitchen.

I used to follow someone on instagram (I think she was called @ thehousebuild or similar) and was very inspired by her upstairs laundry room - complete with hanging rail, creel, pull out airier and steamer 😍 I’d also have an ironing board, and a TV for ironing 😂

We renovated a few years ago and put ufh throughout the downstairs, I love it. The only thing that bothers me is I would like to have a big area rug but I don't think that's the best combination (although not a total no no).

Random small tip would be inset door mats, we didn't do this and I do regret it.

Underfloor heating is good, we have it under wood floors. Not sure it’s worth ripping up a lovely floor for, if you have a floor you want to preserve! Don’t know how that’s works, probably doable.

LOADS of storage.

Big master bedroom.

That’s basically all I’m asking for :)

Invest in the best quality kitchen cabinets that your budget allows. Pull out shelves, etc. - "smart" storage will keep your countertops from being a cluttered mess.

A utility/mudroom is a godsend.

Skirting board heating could be something you'd be interested in, if your house isn't suitable for under floor heating.

I agree we don’t have an “upstairs” otherwise I would do the same. We do have a separate laundry room though rather than a combined utility room. Nothing other than laundry goes on in there and it’s fab. All cleaning stuff, mops, hoover and all the other crap that tends to be stored in a utility room has a separate storage area.

Something that I worry about, with the idea of underfloor heating, is how it works when something goes wrong?
I mean, any system will have a shelf life even if there is no initial fault.
With radiators, the engineer can get to them, but what happens if everything is underneath your flooring ?

This might be long!
We have just finished 2yrs of renovating. Structurally its finished, but now need furnishing, a garden, curtains- I could go on.
Are you living in the property currently, or planning to buy it? If it hasn't been lived in for 2+yrs, there is a little known government scheme to get it back into a livable home with reduced VAT on repairs.

Will you try living inside the house whilst renovating or elsewhere? We lived in a static van in the garden. No dust and less noise than the main house. If no space for a van, could you use a garage?

You can have a draftsman draw up plans, if you don't need an architect and have a fair idea of what you want.

We put in underfloor heating which is great. We also looked into radiators which are hidden behind the skirting boards- so nothing on the wall. I can't recall why we decided against it- but its an alternative you might not be aware of.

Keep your neighbours on side! If I knew we were expecting noisy work, I'd text them to warn them. They'd let us park on their drive when we had lots of trade vans on site or large deliveries and we are all still talking!

Will you be doing the renovations yourself or know local trades people? We hadn't lived in the area beforehand, but did have a few recommendations. We found that once we found good trades people, they would usually recommend equally good ones, that had often worked together.

Plus sockets- twice the amount you think you'll need. Put them at least knee heigh up the walls, not down by the floor. I vaguely think the electrician told us that in new builds now, they legally have to put them XX cm's up the wall for disabilities. It also saves bending down!

DH installed a system called home assist, which means can turn lights and certain switches on and off remotely. We installed dimmer switches and lights everywhere. There is a mode, so say, after 10pm, the bathroom lights are only at 50% brightness.

We bought tiles from an independent shop that mainly buys from Italy and Spain. They recommended a brilliant tiler. He said that often tiles from say tops tiles/B&Q can not only be wonky but not square, so many go to waste or break when being cut. Larger tiles can make a small bathroom look even bigger- plus less grout means less cleaning.

Happy to answer any questions you have.

I forgot, we have a shute from the top floor, directly into the utility. Not possible in every house, but it saves carrying bedding, towels, clothes down the stairs.

Get a water softener. Yes, you can drink the water, but I prefer the regular tap- which can been filtered. We installed a hard water, drinking tap to the en-suite which is great. No having to go downstairs if you want a drink at night.

Oh yes definitely a water softener and if you are a family of four and can find the space I thoroughly recommend two dishwashers

Underfloor heating
Log burner stove
USB plug sockets
Inset doormats
Storage for ironing board hoover mop
We don't have a bin

@BarbaraHoward I agree. Our kitchen fitters thought we were mad when we asked for 5 double sockets in a tiny galley kitchen.

All are in regular use.

The same with the guys who did our loft extension, they couldn't understand why we asekd for sockets. The original plans just showed one on each side of the bed, we added them to each corner of the room, in the middle of the wall as we knew we would change around furtnitures at one point.

Going against the majority here but underfloor heating was a big no for me when we renovated our now home. It’s great for retaining heat if done properly but I just really don’t like how it feels.
Our biggest improvement was moving walls and opening up rooms. We now have an open plan kitchen/dining/sitting area and separate living room.
We also moved a wall upstairs to open up our landing so there’s more light, we are lucky to have large bedrooms so we didn’t lose too much space by doing this but the landing now feels so much more airy.
Definitely a utility room if you have space, with space for a pull down drying rack - fit an extractor fan if you’re doing this. Also a big cupboard for mop, brush, ironing board etc.
Kitchen island with electric sockets and usbc charging points for phones/laptops etc is a godsend. Agree with a pp about smart storage, pull out cupboards etc. We have a larder cupboard with fitted spice racks, drawers etc - it was DH ‘must have’ and I wasn’t so bothered but I love it now.
I also love our log burner and ceramic mantle - it looks lovely and means we don’t have that silly gap you have to have if you have a wooden mantle.
Finally a separate bath and shower in the family bathroom.
Good luck - renovating is not for the feint hearted!

An airing/linen cupboard to store towels and bedding. We don’t have a hot water tank anymore to keep it warm so DH fitted a small tubular heater that can be turned on a just gives off enough gentle heat keep towels and bedding dry and warm.

Sorry- Keep thinking of things!
-Kitchen. As many drawers as possible. Saves bending and you can actually see what is at the back. If space it tight, ask about drawers under the cupboards which go into the plinths.
-Comfort toilet seats. If not all, then at least the downstairs one (if applicable). Makes such a difference for anyone with hip/knee issues, elderly etc. IF shorter relatives/kids use it, there are foldaway stools
-Bathroom doors that open outwards are better for safety. Drawers on the undersink, bathroom cabinets.

Oh my goodness- these are all sooo great!! I’m making note.

yes ok I also have questions about under floor heating- what if it breaks?! And presumably only good if not electric.

a utility room is the dream.

and yes yes yes to the poster who said live in it. We will need to save again after the initial stuff decimates our savings so this will happen. I know I made mistakes in our last house for rushing.

I think with underfloor heating it’s possible to locate the area that is the issue and just lift the flooring for that area to repair. You shouldn’t need to lift the whole floor.

Yes, this. We bought a Victorian wreck during lockdown, and lived in it for a good year before making any changes, which was invaluable.

Please please introduce yourself and have a polite chat with your neighbours about your work and any noisy work happening before it starts, let them know timescales. Our neighbours renovating haven’t bothered to talk to us at all (they are actively avoiding us which is so odd). I have tried to introduce myself politely a couple of times. They are so inconsiderate and rude.I absolutely hate them and I’ve never even met them. I Will be ignoring them and will not be considerate to them in the future with anything. I might even actively be a terrible neighbour 😂

In my dreams I have a mud room and enough shoe storage

Another vote for underfloor heating, but with separate zones in each room or area - there are rooms where we rarely run it or keep it very low, like guest bedrooms. Ours has an app, so we can turn it up or down from our phones. We also have an air source heat pump which could be used for auxiliary heating, which we've never needed (London), but which we do use for a/c. I wouldn't do a whole renovation at this point in time without a/c.

Double glazed windows and good insulation that also allows the house to breathe. The boring bit, I know, but ultimately makes such a huge difference.

I second the whole house water softener.

I thought I would hate them, but we've ended up loving our gas fireplaces.

If you're a big family or entertain a lot, a second dishwasher and/or oven in the utility.

An insinkerator. I love our Quooker, which does sparkling water too, but I know they're divisive.

Alll lights on dimmers and really think about what kind of lighting you want where, particularly in the kitchen. Ours can go from very bright task lighting to soft and glowy. We didn't do a lighting system like @JC03745 and I regret that - it would be nice to change it all at once with the touch of a button.

Have fun!