Anyone with work starting soon want a chat thread?

[thenewaveragebear1983]

We were quoted in February, and have been patiently waiting… builder is Dh’s mate so worth waiting for. Finally got the 2-3 weeks call last week, so starting in 2 (ish) and I cannot wait!

we aren’t building any footprint, but are knocking into our garage to make a small living room for the kids/playroom; taking down a stud wall to make a large living room on the back; installing a wall and double doors to split a through room, and having our bathroom split into 2 to make a smaller family bathroom and a separate shower room.

we’ve never done anything like this at all so feel very nervous/excited! I’ve not really allowed myself to get excited yet so as not to be disappointed but it does seem like he’s nearly due to start!

would love a chat thread, estimate our work will take 10-12 weeks.

@RidingMyBike did you buy your house specifically to renovate or was it your existing home? I cannot imagine how incredible my house would look if I spent 150k on it!
ours is coming in around 42k and I find that a huge amount of money, I am so worried that we go over budget as we have only around 5k contingency money.

are people finding there quote to still be accurate if it was done last year? I am worried that the cost of materials has gone up so much, but then I keep reminding myself that the wood/brick is only a small part of the total cost. I find the worry of it quite stressful, I can’t imagine how you must feel when you’re building from scratch!

Hi @thenewaveragebear1983 yes we were a long distance relocation last year - sold up 200 miles away, moved into rental, then looked for somewhere to buy. Which ended up being a house needing a lot of work! Fortunately we moved from very expensive area to cheaper area so had a lot of equity we can use which helps. It's ok, we've done it before when we first moved in together. That project was £40k for the initial project, then we spent a further £60k over about 8 years once we moved in.

Get the initial quotes done, talk to builder about your plans. The initial quotes will be outline rather than detailed but that will give you an idea what you can get done and how much it will cost. We then decided not to go ahead now with some parts of it to keep costs down. Builder took those out and came back with more detailed quote.

Don't go for a quote that's to the max of your budget. If your budget is £40k then aim for a max quote for work now of £35k, then you have some contingency.

Also check everything is included - our quote includes lines for things like waste disposal, portaloo hire (whilst there are no loos in the house), builders' clean at end of project, scaffolding, mobile phone for site foreman, building control fees. If you want post a list on here of what is included in the quote and people can suggest things that might be missing!

Our builder has been busy this week, considering he has only done 5 days so far, we have sliding doors in place and now he has starting stripping out our old extension ceiling and a stud wall, showing the true scale of what will be our lounge. Obviously everything looks a total state and it’s freezing cold and looks ridiculously huge… but it’s so exciting to see a glimpse of how it will look!

It must be great to see things start to take shape. We're still waiting on the stairs but they forgot to board the hole up this evening so I can almost see the landing up there and there's a velux on show.

And so the decision making begins….. things I have had to decide on or think about tonight:
radiators- swap our old rads for new ones, and then do we go standard or do we choose something a bit different? I like the flat panel type ones, we have 2 huge old radiators at the moment, verticals would mean I had a lot more wall space

sockets- how many, what type, what colour, where?

light switch - as above

outside light- makes sense when all the wiring is exposed to have an outside light installed on the other side of the wall

sky light- where to put it, room is not symmetrical and therefore I have considered what it will look like in a variety of positions (ended up laying a 2 x 1.2 m piece of fabric on the floor to visualise it)

tile floor- do we pay for 2 days labour to lift the tile floor to concrete, or not?

built in /inset fire wall- what do I want, do I want lighting?

Oh god, my brain hurts… it’s too hard 😢

@thenewaveragebear1983 @Hall84 replacing the original French doors was pretty impossible as because of the size and even before we started building work we'd had contractors round to see if we could double glaze the originals but because of the irregular shape and sizes of the side panels and door design were told no. It's a shame but now seeing why so many homes have features ripped out .

In other news, BC have approved the new staircase configuration so now the loft works can start!
In addition, our broken original French doors have been replaced with modern ones, all ground and 1st floor rooms have been plastered.

Our kitchen space has been re measured ready for installation end of Jan (production willing).

@thenewaveragebear1983 we considered vertical radiators but were advised by our builder that they distribute heat inefficiently compared to horizontal . Apparently if you have a large open space to achieve the desired bpu you'd need multiple verticals or vertical combined with UFH. Because of this we opted to replace all radiators with columns (better bpu than flat panelled).

One thing that had come to mind is should we extend the current patio. I think it would be a better use of space to but 💷💷....

Oh and our design and build company has gone bust! That's £6k to PM this project down the drain. We are unsecured creditors and considering they owe HMRC £300k not expecting a penny back.

Not to self and all of us. Don't just check companies house at the point of contracting- do so throughout build/prior to paying invoices. And pay as much on CC as possible.

Oh heck @reno22 that's definitely not what you want but sounds like you're really on top of it.
As part of our price we got 4 double sockets in each bedroom and I got an extra one on the landing bit so it was just a case of deciding where to put them. I went for one either side of the best place for a double bed and then in opposite corners in case we end up putting furniture in different places.
Went for standard low level radiators as most efficient/cost but we do have feature ones in the lounge and hall downstairs.
We've had to have spot lights in because of the ceiling height but having looked up there last night it looks great so I'm glad we did!
Just the door handles to go now as we have to swap to fire doors.

Oh heck @reno22 that's definitely not what you want but sounds like you're really on top of it.

As part of our price we got 4 double sockets in each bedroom and I got an extra one on the landing bit so it was just a case of deciding where to put them. I went for one either side of the best place for a double bed and then in opposite corners in case we end up putting furniture in different places.

Went for standard low level radiators as most efficient/cost but we do have feature ones in the lounge and hall downstairs.

We've had to have spot lights in because of the ceiling height but having looked up there last night it looks great so I'm glad we did!

Just the door handles to go now as we have to swap to fire doors.

Oh @reno22 ! That’s awful. I hope you manage to get some back.

I slept on all my difficult decisions and woke up ad my brain had made a lot of them in my sleep! Spoke to the builder today and rattled off all my choices demands. He’s a really nice guy actually and he suggests a lot of very sensible options.

bloody freezing here as all
insulation removed from flat roof!

We have no roof 🥳🥳. So excited for our new loft! Progress

Thank you @Hall84 and @thenewaveragebear1983 . It's been a rollercoaster ride

Hi, how’s everyone doing? Our builder is working hard, the room is completely stripped out now, and he’s strengthening the ceiling joists ready to fit the skylight, lots of banging around. And oh my, it is actually freezing now the weather has turned as well, I could see my breath this morning when I popped in there!

it’s very exciting though, everything coming together.

I'd love to join if that's okay! Our renovation starts tomorrow...the portaloo got dropped off today so we know it's real now.
We're doing a kitchen/diner extension with a small side double storey extension to add on a utility and ensuite. I've spent the past few weeks packing everything into a box I won't need for 6 months (allowing contingency time as it's meant to go for 3-4 months but they're already 2 days late in starting cos of the weather so it's likely to be longer...) I just need to keep the vision of me in my new kitchen alive once the dust starts...

That sounds like great progress, our stair delivery has been confirmed for Thursday and hopefully the Juliet balcony will be coming same day. Once that's up the scaffolding can come down. I just hope the weather doesn't cause any issues. It's very cold downstairs as they've left the stair gap open and no radiators up there yet. Hope anyone with open roofs/extension holes open have somewhere warm to escape to.

Over here things are progressing well.....
Loft: the loft extension has started. The new joists have been laid, roof taken off and replaced so extension tiles match rest of roof, the positions of the velux windows have been agreed with the templates cut out. Dimensions for loft bathroom updated so the wall can be built

Kitchen: Wren have come to remeasure ahead of delivery and installation (by my builder) in mid February.

Kitchen roof light positions agreed (will be cut out once scaffolding comes down in a few days)

Bathrooms & cloak room: order has been shared with our builder and his plumber before we push the button to place the order

Furniture: new king size bed and sofas have been ordered.

Next steps: agree flooring. We wanted to keep original wood floors on ground floor but we're starting to waver (will it be drafty? Creeking?) Thinking of LVT throughout ground floor now as better value than engineered wood. Then carpet on stairs, first floor and 2nd floor.

What does everyone else have?

So many decisions 🤣

We've hit a delay. Ordered the Amtico for ground floor last week and got the fitting booked in in late Feb to coincide with end of build and our moving date. Email today saying that particular type/colour is out of stock and won't be available until 2-3 weeks after the move date.

Bit puzzled as thought Amtico was manufactured in U.K. so not sure why there's a delay.

Amtico local shop have told us we can either delay having it fitted (which we can't as leave already booked for move and that would end up costing us another £2k in rent) or choose another colour. Which is really frustrating as we spent ages choosing the colour to coordinate with other stuff and if I'm paying £1000s for something I want the thing I chose?!

Our builders have started the strip out. I’m also stuck on flooring. I was going to go with engineered wood but the low maintenance of LVT is very tempting. I got a sample from Invictus and it’s lovely. My main problem at the moment is doors, roof lights and windows!

How is everyone getting on? My update is:

Our loft stairs are installed, all lighting and switches are on site.

Our roof is water tight (waiting on the French windows and bathroom window to be installed) and loft will be plastered next week.

Kitchen to be delivered and installed mid February

Bathroom items are all being delivered- should be completed next week.

LVT Flooring to be delivered next week.

One stress is the balustrade for the Juliet balcony has been delayed so we're going to have to pay for the scaffolding to come down then re -erected once the glass arrives 😩. So far though , it's costing us more than expected but we are still on track to finish on time.

Hi @reno22 , lots happening here!

roof supported and hole cut for skylight; electrics first fit done, (he’s coming back Tuesday to finish); half the tile floor taken up and the rest coming up next week;

potentially some insulation and plaster boarding going in tomorrow, roofer coming to seal the skylight frame which is currently boarded up (delay on the glass but that won’t hold us up)
fireplace delivered, radiators delivered etc. plan going forward is: floor, electricals, plaster board, ceiling - ideally he hopes to do this next week. Plasterer following week, then wait for that to dry (could take any number of days as the weather is so damp here). Then once plaster is dry- radiators, light fittings, fireplace install, skirting, finishing touches. I reckon we’ll have 3 more weeks on this phase hopefully. Then he will move on to garage conversion- I think that will be the most disruptive bit because our new lounge won’t be fully finished, and everything from our garage will need to go somewhere (furniture etc) - we can put it into our new room but then our existing room will be adjoining the building site!

Looks fantastic! We're approaching the end just as our main builder and contact goes on holiday 😬 I'm sure it'll be fine!

We've just told our builder we can't afford to pay rent and mortgage indefinitely (?!) and so will have to move into the house in March. They kept hitting delays, some of it because of plumbers going off on other jobs rather than doing ours. We've already sucked up several delays as expected during major renovations but we're worried it would just keep on and on. We've suggested some work is postponed until after we've moved in - solar panels have been delayed for weeks because of supply problems with parts which is then delaying other things as the scaffolding is in the way.

Hi everyone, I love reading about all the progress people are making! We are eagerly awaiting responses to our tender, should have them by the end of the month. Then we'll see if we can actually afford to do what we want and we'll have a better idea of timescale. We are doing a full renovation and extension. It is a big protect and our architect warned us that prices are likely to come back higher than we first planned! So fingers crossed it is still doable.

Currently living in the house though it is falling down around us. The most recent gift is mice!! Honestly I am finding it tough with three small kids, but I just keep thinking it will be worth it in the end. And we haven't even started the Reno yet!!

We are now just over a week into the work and have foundations and am amazed to see the progress in such a small amount of time!

Walls start going up on Monday and we just had the delivery for it this morning so entire front of the house is jammed packed with sand, bricks and other necessary building supplies (can you tell I don't really know the technical terms)

Now we get to spend the weekend researching bathroom supplies (there's only so many toilets I can look at before getting overwhelmed and indecisive) and decide whether we want to invest in a multi-cooker to get us through once the kitchen gets ripped out next month

@vrouge exciting! We aren’t building, just renovating. I don’t think my nerves would take a build! bathrooms blow my mind. There’s just so many, incredibly similar, options. I had my heart set on mint green Matt tiles, white suite, black taps/shower etc. but I cannot find a mint green tile that I like. Typical!!

I’ve allowed myself to indulge in a bit of visualisation this week, I cannot wait to decorate my rooms and I allow myself a little indulgence every now and then even though it’s a little while off. I will have a week off at half term and then another week just to myself when I really hope we’ll be in a position to decorate. This will be largely dependent on how long it takes plaster to dry as if the conditions don’t improve here it could take a long time once it’s up! Our room is east facing so it will be bright but not sunny. Colours will be interesting as they will look very different in the morning to in the evening. I’ve already ordered my sofa and I have some mid century furniture which I want to go in there.

builder has worked hard this week. Frame for skylight is now in and roof all sealed and it’s all boarded up. He’s going to build the fireplace wall next week, we’ve chosen an inset frameless fire and he’s going to create a chimney breast and shelving with led strip lights to illuminate it, and serve as wall lighting. He’s a real craftsman actually and his work is so neat, I’m really excited to see what he creates here.

@thenewaveragebear1983 I had the same problem finding green tiles! I really wanted a green and white colour scheme (with oak basin unit) but couldn't find any tiles I liked! Instead we are doing white suite, white tiles but only tiling the walls in the shower and behind the towel radiator with an upstand along the rest, and then painting the remaining walls in a light green so it's easier to change the colour scheme in the future.

@vrouge I want a large format tile in pale green, apparently they don’t exist 🤷‍♀️
I have an old sideboard which I hope to use as my basin unit as well. It sounds like we are planning the same bathroom!