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

Oh no banana! Have you managed to find a solution or is it good bye to the new fridge??

Oh, that's bad with the fridge!! Have you found a solution?
I heard of people taking their windows out to get furniture delivered...?

They've ripped out the kitchen yesterday and are preparing for the internal steels. I was so shocked to see a lake under my floor boards. But apparently that's normal because of the rain we had and the high water table in the area. My house sits on water

I've been doing the dishes in the bathroom for the first time. Thank God for the changing table. This will save my back haha.
My child is very excited that kettle, toaster and coffee machine are within his reach. He thinks we gave him new toys. Sighs.

@bananabunch119 we bought an American FF for old kitchen which just fitted through front door (scratching the handles as it did so) and we have had a new front door since...
But with help from the internet, we were able to work out how to,remove the doors to get it out.

The problem is our porch door and front door do not line up. Builder thinks it will go round the back (he wasn't there yesterday) so they are trying again Thursday.
I do however have a disco kitchen thanks to under cupboard lighting!

Goodness @bananabunch119
I've just checked back and you only started just before Xmas. 2 months from foundations to disco kitchen is amazing!

The sweet sight of my fridge being delivered!

Enterprising!

Hi all - joining now in a hope to avoid any costly mistakes once we start our extension work. We've got a 1960s bungalow in the west of Ireland - planning on side and front extensions, total rewiring and plumbing of existing house, installation of central heating, new bathroom, new kitchen, conservatory and utility space. Hoping to come in under €100k, but we could stretch a bit further if necessary. Currently waiting on funds, then we'll be clearing the contents of the bungalow and renting a house from a friend down the road for the duration of the work. Still not sure if it'll be happening this year or next, but there's no rush! It's all very exciting, but also very daunting!

Hi all, we have a start date for beginning of April 😬 so excited! Just need to reconfigure my house ie fridge, freezer and most of the kitchen contents going into the dining room and a lot into a storage unit!

Our house insurance is due for renewal anyway in a couple of weeks. Just been through a broker who specialises in insurance whilst building work ongoing whose quoted £400 for the year! Go Compare can get it for about £200! Anyone have companies they can recommend? It's usually about £120 to insure for the year normally 😆

@bez91 we are with Direct Line for our insurance and they just said they'll put our excess up for the duration but nothing else will change...

Wahey @bananabunch119! That must have been a relief!

@Pashazade thank you, I've heard a few people say similar. I think we're just unlucky that our insurance runs out end of March and our extension is due to begin beginning of April so no one wants to take us on! I will try Direct Line

Joining in if that's ok? , while ripping off missfliss's format:

Current house
1930s semi with 4 bedrooms in Norf London.
It's a great house, though hasn't been updated in decades, has some things (garage roof) approaching end of life, threadbare carpets.
So time for massive refresh and make it fit for the 21st century...

Planned works
Loft conversion with full width rear dormer to create a new master bedroom with large bathroom.
Moving small kitchen into the big living room space, and stealing half the garage/utility room to make a new living room.
Hopefully a full re-wire/re-plumb, wet UFH, decoration, re-configure outside space, change bedroom configurations.

Status
Planning permission pending, and tending for builders going out very soon (days). Most of the interior has been discussed (we are at paint colour stage, so fairly advanced)

Costs
Professional fees and all building works and procurement, costs for moving out for half a year or so, then some new furniture and total top to bottom decoration, probably £450k (no windfall so it's all on the mortgage)

Reasons for doing work
Hopefully a forever home (well, 20 yrs +)
Modernise for modern life
Big kitchen and dining table
Improve comfort and efficiency
A whole floor for the adults!

Plans
I will attach in due course

I just wanted to engage with the thread and have somewhere to post frustrations, joys, and maybe questions for all you lovely property/DIYers

welcome @lmcneil003

Well the end of week 1 of proper construction here and the builders have been working really hard:

• All the steels (bar 1) are in position in the loft - no mean feat. There is just one left to do which is the full width rear dormer support.
• 80% of the floor joists are done too.
• dwarf walls are up
• Trusses removed
• The stairs have been measured and ordered
• he sliding aluminum window (3.5 m width) for our new bedroom is on order too.The pic below gives the general idea.

Next week the construction of the rear dormer begins - this weather is awful for roof works, hope it lays off a bit so they can make progress. We are having our roof redone at the same time.

Good luck converters

this pic is not our actual house by the way ^ just the same kind of window in a dormer like ours will be

That's a belter of a window!
I believe it's as cheap or cheaper to get a door of the same size as opposed to a window. Looks like that may be a door..

Hey yes - I'm using window and door interchangeably- they are indeed sliding patio doors x

I was on the thread last year and posted now and again - we’re all finished ! We had the bulk if the kitchen and ufh in just before Xmas , then took our time with the last bits

And the doors - love these!

@wohmum that's huuuge! Amazing. Thanks for sharing

Wow! This looks amazing. Absolutely love it!

Marking place. We are 1 week in to a large loft conversion. Hip to gable and rear dormer. In this bloody weather!

So great to see the finished result @wohmum feels a long way off for us! Block work for first floor mainly finished and scaffolding up. Storms and rain not helping!

CottonSock... I feel your pain. We are getting a new main roof as well. The old tiles are mostly off and they've put some sheeting below the new batons. However with the wind and rain that we had over the weekend we are having some water marks on the ceiling of the master bedroom and the boxroom and the hall. Ah, well.

This is us outside at the moment from the front and the back.
4 weeks in.

They will try and feed the rafters of the new extension roof through the scaffolding and form the openings for the skylights with the scaffolding still up. Internally they've prepared for the steel to go in, so we will soon be knocking the walls down.

When I stand where our dining room was and look outside, I get a feeling how nice and big the room is going to be.

It is however so good to see pictures from people who have already made more progress. Make the pain a little less knowing that it's all going to be worth it.