Home Extension Thread 2019

[4yearsnosleep]

Time to start another extension thread. 2019 for lots of newcomers and hopefully lots of finishers too!

We're Day 5 of builders on site and have a roof framed. V excited about the big velux

@avocuddl, we are going for this style in the kitchen
www.lochannakitchens.co.uk/ricco/ It's actually also a Second Nature door called Litchfield.
in mello oak and porcelian with marble minerva worktops. We did want granite but only liked the black and it wouldn't go as well with the worktops I think. We didn't like any of the (affordable!) paler granites. It also helped that the builder left us a good sample size to have in the kitchen so we had a "chink" test of putting down glasses on it and a big stain test with curry, tumeric, red wine and even a cd marker. It really impressed both of us! DH was set on granite from day 1 so it was quite a surprise!

As far as I'm aware we just have a tap and splashback to choose. I'm quite impressed with builder and designer so far. Very on my level.

Isn't is strange how plans change? I had my heart set on painted grey shaker and pantry larders. Really quite traditional! But now it's a modern handleless with slight nod to shaker and no kitchen porn pantry larder. Replaced it with a corner bespoke storage unit with swing out wirework!

@4yearsnosleep, I really hope the boiler issue doesn't happen to us. We put a new one in 6 years ago with explicit instructions to the plumber to choose a larger one as we were going to extend... didn't think it would take us soooooo long!

We are taking away one and adding two new ones so net effect is one more radiator for the boiler to heat. Fingers crossed it copes ok!

How is the painting going? How many coats does a new room need BTW? I will not have budget to hire a decorator so will also have to do it myself :(

We have a pull out larder Soaked - I love it, although it is very full already!

We had a few extra things crop up here... we needed a new fuse board - I think it was because the old one wasn't up to current regulations - this cost an extra £500.
We also have a new boiler - the old one was here when we moved in and was very old though.
Another thing we opted to do was sort out the roof while the builders were on site and before the extension roof went on, resetting the roof ridges and chimney pointing - this would normally cost a few thousand pounds to do, but they did it for less than half that and it does look great.
Finally, we got the patio done, along with some sleepers along the edge of the garden and we are now planning to finish off with a new shed - I really want to be able to make the most of the bifolds and garden!

@soakedat3,

What made you change from grey shaker to this kitchen? I have been dithering between these two styles

@soakedat3 you should be fine with the boiler; ours was 18 years old and it made sense to do it.

The painting is hard as it's a huge room. 1 coat of mist coat, 2 on top of that fit a good finish. The first coat on top of the mist coat was hard work as the wall just soaked paint up. Invest in good brushes; Axus Blue on Amazon or Purdy Monarch Elite; it's worth it. We're using Harris perfect finish rollers and bought a 12inch roller too

Ps. Love the kitchen

Well both potential boyfriends builders turned up on time and didn't bump into each other.
Very interesting experience- I had written down a layman's spec which i thought they would laugh at but they both said it was useful as a starting point and they often turn up to quote to be presented with line outline plans and nothing else, and no idea from the client as to what they really want.
Both were very personable and positive. Realised that it was a run of the mill job for them but a very big thing for us.

Biggest difference was their approach to the logistics.
Builder A said the he would really need to block us out of the kitchen 2 weeks into a 12 week build, Builder B was happy to leave kitchen (and us) in situ for much longer.
Both mentioned how important it is that we have our space and the builders are contained separately. Portaloos were mentioned!
I threw a few choice word and phrases into the mix (that I learned on here) like Block and Beam floor, and mist coat to try and give the impression that I knew what I was talking about

@Wheredoesthistoiletgo, it's so hard to choose isn't it? Did builder A mention if they would rig anything up for you? We had no mention of portaloos... I'm thinking a lot of plastic down between the backdoor and downstairs toilet! That and the not posh towels :D

Thank you for the painting tips 4years. I haven't decided on the colour yet.

@mum2015. I do love shaker but I was getting a bit of shaker blindness TBH. I am cheating a bit and having shaker in the utility as it's only a few units and I got the cheaper veneer option rather than a solid door. I even got sample doors in shaker options from DIYKitchens which I now must work out how to cheaply post back. :(

The handless one I chose has a small bead to it which made it stand out from other handleless and the drawer pack just looked so different as a result. There is a door called Ellerton which you might like which is a true handleless shaker. It's really beautiful and streamlined. It's often shown mixed with the Ricco/Litchfield one I have chosen. There is another mum on a different thread who had it put in via units online. Her kitchen is stunning! Units Online were charging £500 for a one man delivery to Central Scotland which I thought was a bit much!

I thought as the builder was edging me towards a kitchen supplier who had a door design we both really liked then why not? I won't have to worry about checking an online order and someone else will help me visualise it. And the £500 delivery can get spent elsewhere!

@soakedat3,

Thank you. You have made right decision. I can totally relate to shaker blindness. Yesterday night after scrolling through over 300 real customer kitchens, I felt like that.

Thanks @mum2015. I have a photo of the kitchen on my phone to keep me motivated now. I think even my OH is getting quite excited and having caught my ultra trendy long cardigan on the cupboard door handle this morning I am looking forward to handleless. I will always admire a good shaker pantry though!! :D

BTW - I have only just realised that the J Pull style has been around for ages so not very modern at all LOL!

I called in at Kitchen designer's showroom today, just to remind myself what the end point is.
Main man wasn't in, but spent ages with the junior manning the shop discussing pros and cons of various handles and handleless. He referred to J pull drawers as Pea Catchers!

I was determined to have the absolute opposite of my current kitchen (wood Shaker) that I started off wanting glossy white handleless, but I now think I don't want it to be that plain. But th only handles I really like are the ones on my existing Shaker kitchen!

I’m getting total cold feet now that the planning permission is through! Daft really but nerves are totally strong at the moment. I keep thinking we’re making a mistake even though I know the end result will be amazing. Anyone else got the wobbles?

@WorrisomeHeart, I think wobbles are normal! Why do you think it might not be the right thing to do?

If only we could all see our extensions on virtual reality like the BB2 programme we would be fine but we can't so we have to imagine. I have a terrible imagination hence my photo of the kitchen on my phone :)

@wheredoesthistoiletgo, can you reuse your handles? I am reusing our handles in our utility and we were going to keep them if we needed handles in the kitchen. We have 24 to use up! They aren't anything special IMHO. Round cast iron type knob but I like them better than almost all I've seen in showrooms. And actually handles can be quite pricey! Have you thought of a slab door? I liked them too as they are not quite as minimal as full handleless. I know what you mean about white gloss handleless. I am not a minimal person so it wouldn't suit us. I've been impressed by the painted gloss handleless I saw. Super clean looking.

Any cons of handleless that I need to know?!? Pea catching aside lol!

I think it’s just the amount of money and upheaval. It is absolutely the right thing to do when I have my sensible head on - we need the space and we’ve been wanting this for ages. It’s all just moving so quickly!!!!

@soakedat3 We're not changing the cabinets in the utility (which match the current kitchen) but plan to keep back 3 kitchen wall cabinets to add to the feeble storage we currently have in Utility . My neighbour has identical kitchen to me, so she is also going to put some extra cabinets of ours in her utility
So there won't be enough left to use in new kitchen, but I think I'll follow your advice and keep a few in reserve.
Yes, we are most probably going to go plain white slab, but not gloss.
Contrast colour on island, I fancy navy but Mr WhereDoes might need some convincing /nagging into submission.

@WorrisomeHeart Yes, definitely wobbling today after detailed meeting with builders.
There's only so many times you can hear the phrases 'tear it out' "rip it up" and "big hole in the back of the house" without breaking out in a cold sweat.
And all figures have the word Thousand after them.

The cold reality is that we don't NEED to do this extension.
It will cost most than any uplift in value of the house.
BUT it will make the house so much nicer for us, we know we'll use the space, and if we sell in the distant future it will definitely make the house more attractive to buyers.

Massive wobbles here too.

To fund this extension we will need to borrow a lot of money from the bank - get it wind and water tight then remortgage and PRAY that it’s added £20k of value onto our house.

The other option is we ‘do up’ the house as it is now, new boiler and a rewire, have it plastered and decorated and hope that that adds the £20k in order to remortgage to then do the extension.

The second option is definitely the less risky but just means it all taking longer

Oh gosh massive wobbles here too and I'm glad I'm not the only one. I've had a missed call from nice builder and I can't bring myself to call him back because it means possibly committing to it and I'm just not ready!!

We're also borrowing a lot. And depending on how much value it's added will determine how much of the project we can complete.

I've just spoken to the bank this evening hopeful they'll lend us a bit more. Got another appointment tomorrow to confirm. Big sums, big decisions, making me so nervous. Even though we've been planning it for ages! Know exactly what we're doing etc etc. But just signing on the dotted line and taking the plunge makes me feel a bit ill 😬

It’s very scary!! Will all be worth it in the end though.

We signed the contracts today Mega wobbles here too but it needs doing and we just need to get on with it! Start date 19th August. Eek

@4yearsnosleep Do you have a link for the rollers please?

(I have been building a Screwfix saved list) those pelican tubs are in there, along with a cheap vacuum cleaner to try and clear the dust away as soon as possible.

The bi-folds & roof lantern go in today and they will finally be able to break though in the house. It is driving my BIL mad to walk all the way round the house just to get up the stairs!

DH was there yesterday fitting the insulation in the extension and knocked out a cupboard to create an alcove in DD’s room for her desk. It looks huge now and she’s pleased. We used to keep our tumble dryer there (it used to be our bedroom). I’m looking forward to going back to see it tonight.

I think it's normal to wobble as for most of us, it's the biggest financial commitment second only to the house. We were really lucky in that our house had increased by £50k value and we needed £65k, so financing was fine. I've been having a big wobble about the exterior, but I think it's due to the garden being a disaster and as we're edging towards the final bits, the savings are fast ticking away!

We can already see the difference it's going to make to family living though and know it was the only option we had.

My friend has a handless gloss and wishes she'd gone for matt as the fingerprints drive her bonkers. I do love a simple matt painted slab kitchen, especially with generous use of end panels to frame everything.

www.screwfix.com/p/hamilton-perfection-roller-sleeve-emulsion-9-x-1/10175

@MyNameisJane how easy is fitting the insulation? We’ve been told my OH would manage it but he’s the type to have barely even put up a shelf never mind contribute to building our extension

Major wobble here too. It is a major financial commitment, it is going to be very hard as we will be living in house while it gets ripped out and built again, but my biggest fear is there will be lots of arguement between me and DH. We are a couple since uni days and the sort who never argued until we started planning this extension. We think differently, we have different ways of handling anything.

We're 6 weeks in and living here, I won't lie, it's stressful. I'm not sure if I would have done it if we needed the value to increase in the current housing market. We lived here for 5 years before remortgaging and getting money out (luckily in a rising market). We know that this is probably a forever home so makes sense to throw vast amounts at it (in a way). I would say there are no quick savings & lots of hidden costs.

Has anyone used DIY kitchens for utility room cupboards? I was planning to, but not sure they're deep enough to house non integrated appliances and boiler, mega flow cylinder.