Extension / loft conversion thread 2020

[missfliss]

Hello,

Thought I'd start a thread for 2020 extenders and converters.

Might be good for us each time say a bit about what works we have planned / are in the midst of if folks are happy to share some / al details.

Current house:
1970s semi with 2.5 (!) bedrooms on South Coast ( Sussex).
Single storey extension ( large kitchen / diner with bifolds) was completed in 2013.

Planned works
Loft conversion with full width rear dormer and small front dormer to create a new master bedroom with large bathroom.

Stage
Planning permission received, builder appointed to start in March

Costs
Build is £60k including VAT. Bathroom / decor extra.
It is a double dormer with aluminium sliding doors to rear and lots of pipe work due to siting the new bathroom at the opposite end to the existing bathroom below.
It's more than expected but we have non-standard plans and are doing the work to stay in the house for years as opposed to maximising profit to sell.

Reasons for doing work
An adult space to hide away and relax!
Also our son has additional needs and we may need to use au pairs in the future ( new room needed). As our son gets older he may need to live with us into adulthood

Plans
Attached

Next steps
Party wall agreement
Deciding on bathroom fittings / flooring within budget

@WhereDoesThisToiletGo there is a big water tank and pipe work that we are hiding in the far corner. Hopefully fit in a big pantry cupboard inbetween that and fridge. Opposite is washer and dryer with some more bench space.

Has any one had to put in a new drain as required by the water board? We've got a shared drain with next door and I'm a bit clueless as to how much drain we'd have to replace....is it likely to cost a small fortune? We're having to put in a new build near application too....

Loving the kitchen layout @birdbrained - that's a really good use of space and flow IMHO.

Little bit of progress here - we served party wall notice yesterday to new neighbours.

I'm also trying to get a bespoke vanity unit made possibly for the new bathroom. I'm so fussy and ridiculous but I really want a beautiful one! Double sink and marble tops.

@birdbrained here's my pantry. Still in love with it after several months! This is a 1000mm wide tall unit with 170 degree hinges

@WhereDoesThisToiletGo oooooooh the larder

I am beyond happy tonight. The lovely Kichen fitter has been and installed a temp kitchen no 2 in the new space. The beautiful fridge freezer has arrived. It's not yet plumbed in but DH has optimistically big a bottle of champagne in it ready for the big switch on

Me and DS 17 have spent the evening listening to his rap music whilst moving temp kitchen no 1 contents from the liounge to temp kitchen 2 in the new extension

And the table arrived. Oooooh it's so beautiful and it feels like it's been here forever, which is s good sign. DS and I had dinner at the new table and I had wine out of a glass. (We have been living in 'reduced' circumstances in the lounge/temp kitchen no1 room for a while and wine from a cup had not berm an unusual occurrence). The new room has a 'loft' vibe to it. No wall cupboards and a huge peninsula and bare white wells. It's going to be such s good party room . Progress.

I had wine out of a glass
Ha ha! Anyone who lived without a kitchen knows this feeling! After several months drinking out of plastic tumblers (and drinking A LOT), a proper glass feels like such a luxury.

@birdbrained can't sleep so I'm looking at your kitchen design...
Is there a structural reason for the little sticky out bit of wall between bifolds and hidden utility area?
Also what height are your wall units on sink wall? They don't seem to be the same height as utility. If they are the standard 720mm height, is there enough room to put 900 units in?

Good questions @WhereDoesThisToiletGo will look at spec for units. The bit of wall is probably a bit structural, it's a remaining external wall to the galley kitchen. Not quite sure exactly how big this is going to be.

I love the pantry cupboard! Where is your kitchen from?

Hi, everyone!
Just reading through as I start to plan and get ideas for our plans for an extension. As someone was saying, it seems costs have really ramped up in the last few years!
I would like to add a 6m x 6m rear extension for a utility room, plus kitchen/diner with a seating area. I'm really disheartened as I thought we'd be able to plan for next year, but that won't be possible. Bummer!

@WhereDoesThisToiletGo I'm in love love loooove with your larder. Where did you get it from? And the hinges, gosh, so practical - is this thing one could get through any kitchen or is it a more specialised and bespoke design feature?

@birdbrained quick question: above your sink - what is that piece called, is it a slightly smaller cabinet or like a mantle?

thank you

Can i join... Foundations were laid October 2019.

Existing: small 3 bed semi.

Planned: 2 story full rear extention. Bigger bathroom, cupboard storage, bigger 3rd bedroom, open plan kitchen/dining/living area.

I'll upload some plans after.

Costs: Probably about £50-60k. Builders quoted anything between 60 to 120k for the job. Decided to project manage ourselves. Partner is a plumber and a mechanical engineer in construction industry so his experience is helping massively.

I'll post some pics shorty. Full brick build done and final old external wall being knocked down today.

My larder is semi bespoke, in that it's not a standard item but it's made up from standard bits and bobs. Nothing is made an unusual size.
It's based a a 1000mm tall double unit. The 170 degree hinges are essential to ensure that the doors open wide enough to allow the drawers to pull out.
I think the fitters had to do some construction on site - drilling and siting the hinges between the drawer gaps. The sides have 'continuous drilling' so that the shelves can go wherever I wanted.
There is a bit of quartz worktop fitted on top of main shelf - adds to the larderiness of it.

170 degree hinges are not standard, but are widely available. But you need to ask for them.
Kitchen is Second Nature, Designed and fitted by an independent company based in SW London

@BookishKitten it's just a cupboard I think just a short one!

So glad we could move out whilst our house has become a building site.

Stressing looking for an extractor. Our hob is going to be on an island. Ceiling extractors are £££ and I'm worried about it ruining our pendant lighting over this island!

Joining in as we're getting closer to this being a reality!

Current house:
Classic 3-bed 1930s semi with a box room, outer London

Planned works
Single storey side extension for downstairs loo, utility and living space. Redoing the garden and its ancient patio

Stage
Planning permission received, architect finalising detailed drawings to go out for quotes within the next week or so

Costs
Hoping for £80k, may mean postponing some of the garden work to a later date

Reasons for doing work
The house had open living/dining and a tiny kitchen when we bought, so we went all open plan to maximise the space. Now sick of the washing machine noise! Planning to stay for a while so wanted to future proof a bit by having more living space. Not doing anything upstairs as the two bedrooms are large enough and the box room is office space, but there is potential for a future loft conversion if needed

Next steps
Get quotes and choose builder!

@Inabarunderthesea If you are planning a loft conversion further down the line, make sure that all the Steel calculations from the Structural Engineer take this into account

@bananabunch119 we've bought a hob with downdraft extractor. Not cheap but saves on installation costs and filters etc for separates. We have a peninsula-too so didn't want a hanging down one

I have been out buying sofas today. And cushions

Meanwhile the sliding fire door has been put back in. More plastering end of the week and re,re-pointing. Then a long wait for the kitchen. But civilisation is slowly returning (along with my sanity)

The new fridge is lovely and one whole shelf is already taken up with wine and champagne

How's everyone else getting on ?

Oh blimey Banana I haven't started even looking at ceiling extractors and we need one too.....ho hum.

Oh @lightlypoached that looks like the fun bit of the process! Our foundations are mostly laid but they ran out of concrete - something about needing to dig them a bit deeper than they anticipated or something...

Build also cracked a soil pipe which looked like it was ours but was actually from next door. But he seems to have sorted...

I'm still here and still waiting to get started!
We have reapplied first planning as the quotes were coming in more than we were willing to pay so we have changed them slightly. We will be keeping 2 walls we were originally going to knock down but it shouldn't affect the overall lay out too much.
We had the drain survey done and have a public drain running through our garden so that needs rerouting.
Our next door neighbour that isn't attached to us wants a surveyor report follow us issuing the party wall agreement!

We have found a builder that will do just the build and first fix for £35000. He has been recommended by our architect so he should be good. I'm just worried we are going to lose him with all the hold ups as he has a space mid February.
I just want to get started!!

we have had the OK from our neighbours and are starting feb 24th now...

excited

Sending a shy hello!
Our plans were sent from the architect to the council so we are actually ready to go.
Builders are coming again tomorrow and then I think we set a timeline. They are keen to start as they have a similar project not far from ours and want to do them simultaneously.
I hope it'll all go well. We have nowhere to go during the building phase and I am already having nightmares.

Hello. Please may I join?

We are currently at damp proof course stage on two little extensions at either end of an existing 50-year-old L-shaped extension. Blockwork expected to be up by the end of the week, followed by a new wrap-around pitch roof, replacing the horrible old flat roof! New kitchen, utility, toilet, extra room at the end of the dining room etc. Swiftly followed by loft conversion and patio/sprucing up the house exterior!

At the moment it's all fine as we're still enjoying the novelty of our up-to-date central heating and brand new shower room (and all the work is happening outside!) but am slowly dreading it once it all moves inside!

@WhereDoesThisToiletGo 'Tianamen Square' made me laugh. Sounds like we're in a similar situation. Our patio is going to be 2-3 times the size of the extension we're doing (although of course we're cheating as we're just adding bits on to an existing extension).