Self build extension

[Diyextension]

Noticed a few threads on people building extensions / knocking down conservatory etc , so I’m just about to start doing mine.

I thought it might be good for anybody thinking about building one or for people that have no experience/ idea what the process involves.

i will probably be doing about 80% of the work myself , and then using certain trades , plasterer/ electrical as and when.

Old conservatory will be removed and. Single story (bedroom ) extension will be in its place. It’s 5m x 4m .

progress will be slow as I work full time so days of and holidays only.
it should be a straightforward job , but the only downside is we live on a hill so everything has to be carried up/ or down.

if anyone has any questions , feel free to ask and I’ll try to put pictures on as and when there is any progress.

Interesting.

are you trained in things like bricklaying or will you learn as you go? what about things like digging foundations?

Hi. I can do small amounts of brickwork but not to the standard I like , so a bricklayer will be doing the face work / block work. I’ll be doing all the labouring/ mixing etc.

im pretty handy when it comes to most things.

the foundations are going to be the hard part, due to the house being on a hill it’s difficult to get a digger either up or down to the area.

so I’ll be digging it all out by hand. 🙄. I’m guessing , due to it being on a slope that I’ll have to go down about 1.5m , but until it’s clear and I dig down that will be up to building control……….. it’s going to be a busy summer 🙂

on the upside cost so far are plus £190 as we sold some stone and concrete slabs around the conservatory.

Following with interest!

We're planning to do the internal finish ourselves but unfortunately our building skills aren't up to foundations and brickwork, I'm impressed!

make sure you sell the conservatory too!

Yeah I did try that, the windows are starting to rot a bit and it’s definitely past it’s best. Some chap did offer me £150 on eBay but he also wanted me too help him dismantle it . It’s good hardwood so will end up in the wood burner this winter .

How long do you think it will take you to complete?

I've no idea really , I’d like to get all the ground work done before winter , that also includes digging out and levelling the area around the extension.

Its on the the side of the house that we don’t use a lot so it won’t be much of an inconvenience to us.

Have you got construction drawings to work to ? How much soil do you think you will need to dig out ? What do you think the savings will be doing with you doing most of the work ?
Keep us updated, well done for taking this on .

@Bumtum126

we do have drawings that were submitted for planning permission, but they are basic and really only have the overall dimensions on and what the extension will look like. That way we are not tied down on window size/ position, height ( it will have a sloping roof ) But had no problem getting them pressed.

no idea how much will come out , probably a lot more than I think.

Reading what other people’s extensions have cost/ quotes. It would maybe be about 40-50k . I think I can ( hoping ). Bring it in at about 15k , 5k to finished floor, 5k to roof height and 5k for the roof and finish inside.

Plus another 1k for the ground work around to level the area.

this might raise a few eyebrows but I’ve got a good idea of material prices and Barr uncovering a mine shaft or old cellar ( I’ve seen this done ). It should be pretty straightforward.🙂

Interesting thread, hope you don't mind the questions. I'm impressed you don't seem phased by this. Were building control okay with that level of detail or are you not that far along yet?. That's a good cost saving. Will you get concrete wagon to that part of the house or will you have to barrow it all round ?

I’ve spoken to building control to see if there were any problems and to do a site visit before we started , they said everything was fine and no need to visit till the foundations are ready for concrete.

Theres no way we are going to barrow that amount of concrete around the house, because of the location it’s going to have to be pumped from the street as the skip lorry only just fits through the gates so there’s no chance anything bigger will get in. At a rough calculation the foundations might need up to 11m2 and the floor 3.5m2 of concrete. That and soil/ clay removal are going to take up a lot of the ground costs.

We built ourselves...knocked down old lean-to type thing...no planning as same size and height....i did the foundations and most of bricklaying...did a 2 day course...found it very relaxing....windows and doors all from gumtree so very cheap...only paid a friend to render the outside...also fitted a radiator from feed pipes in next room....this was about 8 or 9 years ago...total cost then was under £1000..roof tiles also second hand....its appx 2m wide and 2.5m long so not huge.

Not much ( any ) progress on the extension, but 3 days of digging with a bit of help from a couple of mates popping round and filled one skip ( 8 yard) cleared a bit of the garden so there is somewhere flat to place building materials and also mix.

Found the drain that runs around that side of the house and is in just the right place , so it will miss the foundations.

forgot picture

A bit more progress , more levelling/ digging. ( skip full) Which has uncovered that they built the conservatory over some old foundations. They look to be the same age as the garage ( Victorian) that we have .

wont be a problem as they only look to be 3 bricks deep , but we shall see .

the conservatory has almost gone now and the next job will be to break the floor/ foundations out .

been lucky with the weather and everything is bone dry , so no mud 🙂

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looks good. keep posting photos

Do you know what the old foundations would have been for? Thanks for posting, will be following with admiration.

We've just completed a 26sqm single storey extension. Mainly project managing the different trades really but my partner dug out the footings and laboured on the bricklayers and other trades wherever possible.

Total cost to plaster finish 25k including doors, glazing and roof lantern. We used quite expensive imperial bricks and upgraded wall & roof insulation which impacted our overall cost. The lowest main contractor quote we received to plaster finish was 48k so we're pleased.

Best of luck with your project, it's hard work but worth it!

@Ilovetable

The plot of land the house is built on used to be owned by a large Victorian house up the road , in fact they used to own all the land the whole street is built on.

from what I know it all used to be gardens with tennis courts/ bowling green/ greenhouses. Most of it was sold off in the 1930’s and ours was the last plot to be sold in 1979.

not sure what the foundations were for but I’d hazard a guess it was some sort of washroom/ toilet as I’ve dug up quite a few pieces of white ceramic. Too thick for a Belfast sink? So might be some sort of bath / urinal ?

I think the garage used to be some sort of gardeners store/ workshop and apparently the room up stairs was changing rooms !!!!

I might find out more when we take the base up and see what’s under.

also chopped the conservatory up for the wood burner.

amazing thread! I’ve been contemplating similar. Please do keep updating :)

thanks ! I didn’t think many people would be interested as most people just pay builders to get on with it .

It was more to give anyone the process of what goes into building an extension and the basic costs .

ill continue to add as and when there is progress( slow).

breaking all the old concrete out took a lot more work than expected, that and the heat and also building a fence that was falling down 🤨. So not a lot of progress.

skip is coming today, so it’s back to digging.

no problems so far it’s just been hard work with the temperature this summer 🥵

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