Home Extensions 2017 - come along on the journey

[RedRobin1]

Hi just wondered if anyone has recently started or about to start a home extension. Haven’t seen a 2017 thread so starting one here.

Our two-storey extension is due to start on 1st March and we have just started packing boxes. The planning and research has been ongoing for 2-3 years. Had planning permission approved a few years back and completed all the research around what we would like in our new extended and how we would like to design it all - extending the kitchen / dining area downstairs to create an open plan living, dining and kitchen space and an extra bedroom upstairs.

Have two DCs under 4 and need help / advice / tips and general hand holding.

Is anyone else starting theirs soon?

#hide I have never heard the word flahule! How do you say it? I love it! It's good to hear that you have got better at this as the build has gone on. There are moments when I feel so clueless! Are you paying your plumber by the day, or as a fixed price? If the former, can you switch to the latter?

rick - oh my goodness! Good job your DS was there to rescue you! It could get pretty boring being stuck in a bathroom all day...

namedy - I am sure your relatives will understand, especially if you tell them early enough that you can make an alternative plan. Could you all go away to a holiday cottage together? It might give you a bit more of a break? I have absolutely no idea whether we are going to have a kitchen in for Christmas or not (I suspect not is more likely), so I'm planning to be away for stretches.

tika - Is the hold up with the building regs people? If so, could you get another firm involved and claim the money back on the grounds that they're delaying your project unreasonably? I'm using Aedis on the recommendation of the builder, and so far they have been pretty prompt in terms of site visits etc. (touch wood! I've probably jinxed it now!) I know it means more money, but there may be costs in delay too against which that can be weighed? I think them telling you that they're putting you further down the queue when you call is outrageous, to be honest. It's very patronising - like how you would talk to a child.

No sign of my walls yet . I am super, super excited to see them, so sitting in the upstairs bedroom that looks out onto the street, leaping up every time a car goes past just in case (and waving to all the neighbours).

Not much has happened this week. Bricklayers are back this weekend to finish. We’re at the stage of kitchen shopping which is exciting!
This is the latest photo

Oooh Bax it's going to be lovely! Is it a single or double storey extension?

A mixture of excited and petrified looking at the stories here. We were supposed to have our party wall award in place yesterday but nothing heard from the surveyor and a chase up today indicating he's not in the office for the rest of the week. He hasn't responded to the last two emails I've sent one giving info and one asking if he needed anything else. I think he's stalling at the request of the other party who are away and are desperately trying to stop the works going ahead. Suddenly today it all seems too much and we haven't even started building yet... been awake since 4 am worrying but there's nothing else I can do. So frustrating.

It’s all double storey then where you see the single doorway is single (that’s the utility and downstairs toilet.

I have to say so far our builders have been great. Honest, on time, polite, hardworking etc. I know it’s early days but they did our friends loft and they spoke very highly of them so I remain confident that we have good ones!

My walls are going up!!

It's tremendously exciting.

I'm doing timber frame, so it's soooo fast too. By the end of the day, they'll have them all done. The panels are really solid, and they literally just nail gun them together. The nail gun is reminding me a bit of The Wire...

Yay guilty

Enjoy this period of rapid progress. When it comes to finishing, it'll seem like time itself has slowed to a halt as someone fiddles with a hinge for a week I've lost a number of builders who've vanished with just a bit more work left to do, as they could make more money elsewhere keep up the tea and biscuits at the end stages!

whattodo you may be having a problem with neighbours now, but it still could be fine later. I've had builds with problems right from the start, and builds where the problems were all the end. Keep very polite and amicable relations with neighbours as much as you can, they can cause a lot of unnecessary hassle even if you are completely in the right. Try not to burn any bridges. I took around Christmas cake and wine to the immediate neighbours during one build which went way over schedule, which worked well Most people are of the reasonable sort, true nightmare neighbours are rare. Good luck to you!

whatthefox - I've noticed that seems to be a near-universal experience around here. I'm dreading it, but can see no reason why we'd be an exception. I'm hoping I can perhaps use the lull there sometimes is for trades in January to help, but I'm not optimistic.

Fabulous reference to the Wire guilty! Loved loved loved that show.

Well our builders were supposed to come back today to sort out the outside ( has to be dug to so many inches below the damp course level), put in the drainage channel, connect up the downpipes and connect to the soakaway.
And despite the fact he was the one who sent me the date, they didn't turn up!! Now coming next week.
So yet again we have sorted out time off work for no reason. Luckily DH has managed to move some of his to cover the end of next week when I am in the office.
We haven't had the major problems some of you have had and I still so fed up of this. Looking at another 6 weeks I reckon before the flooring can go down. Then we have to finish the decorating, put up blinds etc.

So now I have a stand off between the electrician & the builder! Bloody great!

No new kitchen for me next week!

FFS! We were so close!

Oh bloody hell rick. What's the stand-off about?

I've made us a new thread.

here

To do with the wiring of the lights underneath the celotex & plasterboard!

Electrician wants the whole lot taken down to find the lights, builder saying electrician should have given them a plan!

So nothing happened for 2 days, plasterers cancelled!

Tumbleweed! 😞

TeamRick - i must admit our first fix electrics were done before the plasterboard went up. Then then worked round that when they put the boards up.

Oh bloody hellfire rick. Yeah same here sushi.

Well Sushi common sense would say take down the boards where the electrician thinks the lights are to check first!

DH has text them both tonight to say he is home tomorrow & will help do what's needed but he hasn't had a response from either of them!

The electrician is really good, very professional so I'm surprised but with twatchops record of falling out with people maybe not that surprised!

We need this resolved though!

Thanks whatthefox am sure it will be ok in the long term I've calmed down a bit just so desperate to get started!

monkey hope you enjoyed some pampering

rivk how's that £2k looking? Secure?

guilty must be such a lift to see quick progress in a day!

Whattodo the deadline was last Friday so yeah he missed that! 😬

I can see us having to chuck some money at it now though get things moving again! Sigh!