The new project

Quick update - After a LOT of clearance, the foundations were dug out and we now have the footings for the extension Blockwork has just begun and I'm going over tomorrow just to take down the fruit cage to make sure I can reuse that at some point and clear a bit more room...

 

Yes we had a chat around this very thing. He suggested removing as many possible and using them on the facing elevations, priority being from the road. The new stuff will go where they're less visible and we might clean off the old if it looks a right pigs ear toward the end!

 

Popped over to dismantle the fruit cage today; it's around 5x4m so a decent size but needed quite a lot of walloping to get it apart!

After the walloping it's made the area look bigger again


This is the soakaway after they have fitted the cages and ballast in (the hole is about 2m deep); topsoil is going to fill the remainder...


They've also started the blockwork...

 

Pitched to match the existing and we'll convert the loft space at some point when we have some more pennies!

 

Shows the difference in prices over the years. Our original renovations cost £11,000 - but it was about 45 years ago!



















There were a lot of internal alterations as well. The old kitchen became a dining room, the bathroom and toilet plus the smaller bedroom became the kitchen with the back extension in the last picture becoming the utility room and a new bathroom. The end extension became bedrooms 2 and 3.

I'd hate to think how much it would cost now

 

It's certainly bigger than the average around here! I think beating the developers off was they real cherry on top though
No we didn't bother with the ground source heating and purely down to added cost; the council has insisted on a soakaway to meet their new SuDS requirements but the rest is run of the mill construction. As a matter of interest, how effective is it and what do you use it for, any limitations?

 

Would love to experiment a bit with a borehole set up but funds just aren't there :(
Developers will always cram in as many houses as they can get away with :( I think it's why our neighbours at the new place have been so nice - they're not getting a new estate built on the doorstep!

 

Work progresses...

 

Be more exciting if they'd put the doors in the right place lol Easy fix at this point though and I'm on site a couple of times a week to poke about I'm sure they think that's helpful haha

Certainly coming along isn't it!

Also, bit of a bonus in the pond yesterday -

 

Argh, kitchen design, supply and fit!! Where to go and what to spend... we're really quite tight on funds and not wanting to scrimp on what could be the main room of the house. Decisions decisions...