Extension 2020 part 2: pandemics, plaster & plumbing

[birdbrained]

Original thread: Extension / loft conversion thread 2020 www.mumsnet.com/Talk/property/3783237-extension-loft-conversion-thread-2020

Hopefully during the course of this thread the plaster will be in abundance, the windows will arrive and houses will be put back together...

@TyneFilth Yey! It’s so exciting isn’t it? I’ve spent far too long looking at each step of our build. We are about half way now and the first bit of roof is up.

@UptownFunkYouUp The UFH is approx £75 per m2 fitted.

Snap @TyneFilth ! We've had to sink a fair chunk of contingency into the foundations with triple the amount of concrete needed, but hey ho! Doesn't feel like real money!

Just finished tiling the splashback and doing the grouting - I forgot how much I hate grouting!!

I have a great CAD impression of our (hoped!) future kitchen - either blue with coppery handles or forest green with brass, white/steel appliances either way. Picture of current space for comparison too...

We moved back in this weekend after 10 weeks. We have half a kitchen, still worktops to go and one of the bathrooms needs finishing but it's liveable!
I've already cleaned the house 1000 times, the dust is just something else but keep telling myself it'll be sorted before end of the year (apart from one of the bedrooms maybe 🙈)

Very nice @TyneFilth. I hankered after a lot of the copper stuff but couldn't make it work with the rest of my colour scheme, but I love that blue. (Couldn't do a deep dark colour because of lack of natural light for ours). We are nearly there, just waiting on the bl**dy plumber!

Kitchen delayed, again here. But we have carpets upstairs now and I spent all day tiling the bathroom floor. My knees are broken

Great to see progress elsewhere, we are moving painfully slowly now the work is for us to do, whilst juggling work and kids.. we will get there eventually.

Wow @Slightlydustcovered great effort! Have you done tiling before? I did our kitchen wall tiles when we first moved in and would like to have a go at the bathroom floors this time. Is it difficult to cut neatly around the pipes etc?

I have done a little, but will do alot with this project. It's not too bad I have one of those slider tools, that helps alot. But to be honest I just don't look closely. I would rather have got someone else to do it but we couldn't afford to do the full extension without doing some of this ourselves.

Tiling looking good @Slightlydustcovered! I don;t mind the tiling but the grouting, especially with bevelled tiles, is just shite.
Long straight cuts, @thistimenextyearplease, use the slidey tool, for cutting shapes then you ned a wet electric cutter and maybe a scribe (a pencil like tool to score the cut line then snap off the waste piece). Just get some extra tiles and play about until you're comfy in what you're doing. Setting out is the hardest part!

Dormers... well almost! We are getting very excited at the thought of being watertight!

It's brilliant seeing the progress that you're all making. I had a very exciting call from my builder today, they've finished their current job a week and a half ahead of schedule so can start here later this week, nearly two weeks sooner than planned. I'm so excited that it's finally becoming real.

We have a slot with Karen from OnePlan next week for designs for our kitchen/dining/living space plus an en-suite and bathroom, really looking forward to seeing what we come up with and then being able to start to shop around.

Very professional tiling slightlydustcovered. It is looking great. That looks like very impressive scaffolding positivelynegative. It is great to see everyones progress.

After 8 months we feel like we are finally on the homeward stretch. We have a partially functioing kitchen and the bedroom just needs flooring and second fix.

I know I should be jealous, but your window is looking amazing @weepingwillow22
Great kitchen too. You must be really pleased.
I think our scaffolding is a little dominating locally

Good luck with starting Uptown

@Slightlydustcovered it must be great to get the tiles down. I am just picking ours.

I'm so excited, just had to share pics from the first day. Even finding out that the ground is awful and that the piled foundations required as a result will cost £6-10k more depending on depth isn't going to kill my buzz!

@UptownFunkYouUp oh no! We had the same thing just from 1 soft spot but at that stage you can't really back out 🤦🏼‍♀️, it's just more disheartening as you don't feel you've got anything to show for it! We're almost there now and although 7.5k lighter I don't think about it all that often 🙈

@weepingwillow22

Very professional tiling slightlydustcovered. It is looking great. That looks like very impressive scaffolding positivelynegative. It is great to see everyones progress.

After 8 months we feel like we are finally on the homeward stretch. We have a partially functioing kitchen and the bedroom just needs flooring and second fix.

Looks gorgeous (especially now you got that beam raised) I love that partition wall - is your bed going to be set against it? The little rectangular portholes are a lovely feature.

Thanks BruceandNosh. The idea for the wall came from this photo and it seperates thr bedroom from the dressing area. The nooks will have lights and I will put a dressing table there. The bed will be the other side.

@uptownfunkyou I think it is rare that foundations come on budget, there always seem to be unpleasant surprises. Exciting times thought. Make sure you measure them. Our builder built ours 25cm too small!

@weepingwillow22 I’m think your builder isn’t too hot with a tape! Footings AND window

[quote positivelynegative]@weepingwillow22 I’m think your builder isn’t too hot with a tape! Footings AND window [/quote]
Hmm, yes and always in his favour. Shame he didn't 'accidentally' build it 25cm too big.

I don't understand how so many of the tradespeople we have employed have got such glowing references online and by personal recommendation but failed to live up to them in reality. Maybe people just don't post bad reviews.

Clearly some builders don't follow the Golden Rule of Measure Twice, Cut Once

I don't understand how so many of the tradespeople we have employed have got such glowing references online and by personal recommendation

Yes it’s hard to fathom isn’t it. I think some people expect less and are easily pleased, but are also reluctant to put up a name and shame type post.

We are out of the ground at the end of week 4 with only one extra cost - the manhole with out foul drain in it collapsed and will have to be replaced/rebuilt. Expecting that to be "only" a three figure sum though.

We were supposed to move back in this weekend (and live in deliberate squalor) but we have escaped to grandparents for half term to give our builders a few more days to do a full rewire of the existing rooms. This necessitated stacking up stuff I'm corners and the box room, which will mean a tedious day rearranging the place when we return at the end of the week. But then we will have three rooms and the hall with functioning sockets and lights, and the bathroom lights, extractor and shower pump will work. That's the plan anyway.

Picture: steel holding up the centre of our house. Blackboard caption is "hooray! Just one more job and then it's gin and tonic time!"

@TyneFilth

We are out of the ground at the end of week 4 with only one extra cost - the manhole with out foul drain in it collapsed and will have to be replaced/rebuilt. Expecting that to be "only" a three figure sum though.

We were supposed to move back in this weekend (and live in deliberate squalor) but we have escaped to grandparents for half term to give our builders a few more days to do a full rewire of the existing rooms. This necessitated stacking up stuff I'm corners and the box room, which will mean a tedious day rearranging the place when we return at the end of the week. But then we will have three rooms and the hall with functioning sockets and lights, and the bathroom lights, extractor and shower pump will work. That's the plan anyway.

Picture: steel holding up the centre of our house. Blackboard caption is "hooray! Just one more job and then it's gin and tonic time!"

Oh you're going to have some fun weeks ahead of you during the build!