Home extension 2019 the Third thread- Drowning in Dust

[WhereDoesThisToiletGo]

And we're off again

@Slightlysurviving your bat sitch sounds absolutely crazy! Just keep thinking it will all be worth it in the end!

@Slightlysurviving why all the bat surveys? Is it because of the house (barn? Stables? Church?) or the geographical area is bat-rich or is your local Council just batshit crazy?

@avocuddl we are going with engineered oak, but the bamboo looks lovely - such a rich colour!

@Italianna I think we will be 2 years from initial meeting with architect to building!! I don't truly believe yet that we are actually doing anything since it's taken soooooo long.

@Slightlysurviving how frustrating, but it's probably still better than actually having bats?

@soakedat3 a functioning kitchen is definitely something to celebrate!!

@Spidershuffle so glad to hear we are not the only ones!!! I'm convinced I commented on an equivalent thread about a year ago!!

We have bought a very broken 1950s semi house that has a lovely garden that backs on to a protected copse. The best part of it all is the one 5 doors down in exactly the same set up wasn't asked for even the basic survey. they keep talking about potential for bats and that's what's causing the problems, the potential comes from 2 holes in the roof that leak so need to be fixed. It's ludicrous. I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old and we made a house out of a huge box the other day. My 3 year old went in and said " no bats in here mummy" I am now worried I am going on a bit about it.

Yes @spidershuffle one on the other side had a maternity roost. The cost of moving and rehoming them as part of the build was prohibitive, and they had to totally redesign the house it cast thousands. So it could be worse.

Builders are currently jackhammering up my tiled kitchen floor.
I am really am Drowning in Dust but thankfully they have shut the zip dust door.
Brickie Number 2 redoing the wrong size opening for the right sized window...

Is the zip dust door any good @wheredoesthistoiletgo?

@gleegeek, this is our Egger laminate in bardolino oak. It feels lots better than the laminates of old.

@WhereDoesThisToiletGo, some Minerva shelves have been requested! I only have a 600 tall larder so we shall see if it works out well. No harm trying now!

Functioning kitchen is nearly there - tap to be plumbed in and things switched on. Range has been fitted and I have been to look at the shinyness of it all. So close!

Ooh great progress peeps! It’s so quiet here now, I not really almost miss the builders. Today we only had the plumber onsite fitting the plinth heater in the island.

That laminate looks fantastic @soaked.

@WhereDoesThisToiletGo another one eagerly hearing your review of the zip doors and hoping you’re not shaking your virtual fist at me from a dust bowl 😱😂

The dust doors are certainly better than nothing - we can't shut the actual kitchen door as the arco props are in the way.
There is a little collection of cement dust on the floor just outside the door - I think they haven't totally sealed it to the frame, but overall I'm pleased with them considering it only cost less than 15 quid.
I think also because it's more of a faff to open than a real door, it disuades the builders from just popping out of their area.
I mean the rest of the house will end up filthy eventually but at least I don't have an actual haze of dust in the hall.
So yes, highly recommended thank you @WorrisomeHeart

Looks great @soakedat3 !

Definitely need to get some doors! Going to get some big sofa covers too- someone recommended them on the tips thread!

Oh that’s great, I am pleased.

@avocuddl I wish I’d known about the sofa bag. We have incredibly old Ikea sofas at the moment but the dust on them drove me mad. Particularly small foot prints all over them from the DCs...

Hi I’m still here 13weeks into a 2week build!!!!
My one piece of advice that I can give is to get a contract with finishing date. The company that I’m using belong to a builders guild, I hate confrontation but would you report the builders to them? They were supposed to finish today, they haven’t (this has been 4th date that they have promised) they turned up at half 1, pottered around carried a door in and disappeared. I thought that they’d gone to get the other door, but nope they never came back! And will they come back and finish tomorrow or disappear for another few weeks!!!!

The laminate looks great @soakedat3. Love the colour of your doors, is it a bespoke colour?

@avocuddl sofa covers sound like a good plan. I just know I have totally forgotten how bad the dust was the last time we did some work. Zip-up doors sound intriguing too, where can they be purchased?

No updates here other than our architect did a good job of emphasising the benefits of a March vs January build start. Another plus I've discovered of an additional 5 week delay is that it may have curbed my house related magazine buying frenzy as my enthusiasm has waned, so not all bad!

I admire your stoicism @ladybird69. You must be so frustrated and annoyed. Is there anyone more senior you can speak with? Thanks also for the advice about finish date. Our architect is also putting penalty clauses into the contract if they overrun, has anyone else done that?

Thanks soaked will look into the laminates a bit more...
Am putting door covers and sofa covers on my shopping list! Would be lovely to be able to keep dust to a low roar if possible.
italianna what a nightmare! It does sound like they're taking the mick...hopefully someone in here will have advice for you.

@Italianna I totally get the waning enthusiasm! Feels like daydreaming rather then planning to me at the moment, but we do have two builders coming tomorrow to start tendering, so hopefully will feel a bit more real then...

That laminate is lovely @soakedat3 - really nice grain. Thanks for the recommendation and the pics.

@ladybird69 I really hope they're back to complete soon, I've got my fingers crossed for you.

The dust guards seem to be a must! Can anyone post a link to the ones they used? We're planning to stay in the house so I imagine they are indispensable!! Our cleaner also quit this week, which feels like an omen for Very Dusty Times ahead!

I have been kitchen showroom browsing today. Looking at all the beautiful things has made me very excited but also a little worried about my budget.
Still waiting for final designs to put to planning here.

This is the zip dust door I got. Not sure if it's the same one @WorrisomeHeart recommended but it works ok
amazon.co.uk/True-Products-Dust-Stop-B5017B/dp/B008BT6ORU]]

Hi long time reader here. Planning on starting a kitchen/diner extension in January with removing a wall between current lounge/diner and tiny kitchen and putting up a wall to create a smaller lounge/playroom.
@Italianna what are the issues with a January start? A family member is away on holiday for 2 months from January and has agreed we can all go and stay in her house so I have based the start time in this. And not having Christmas disrupted!

@soakedat3 that's really good laminate thanks for the recommendation. I love the thought of wood but in practice with 2 small kids it will get trashed. And I can't decide if I would rather battered wood in a couple of years or laminate which is more forgiving. Fed up of waiting now as we won't be doing much until the new year and I just want it done. We never really unpacked as we were supposed to be building now if it hadn't been for all the delays. And it's just not very settled.

Although I am very excited about my new night time visitor. Hedgehog has a friend