Victorian detached houses.
Discussion
snowandrocks said:
I think the 24C constant temperature might have had something to do with it! Christ - our thermostat is set at 20C all year round and that's enough for shorts and t shirts most of the time!
Same here, and the heating is off at night and when we're out. I've read of people with large Victorian places shutting up rooms and wearing thick jumpers in winter.snowandrocks said:
I think the 24C constant temperature might have had something to do with it! Christ - our thermostat is set at 20C all year round and that's enough for shorts and t shirts most of the time!
Were you wandering around in bikinis/speedos or something?!
We've got friends with a large Victorian manse and they keep the thermostat at a cosy 16C!
Crikey 16C! I'm sure if you ask them to turn up the temp they will tell you to put a jumper on!!Were you wandering around in bikinis/speedos or something?!
We've got friends with a large Victorian manse and they keep the thermostat at a cosy 16C!
My fiancee is South American and the kids take after her, so I don't really have much choice, the compromise is live in my cold country, but they choose how hot to have the house.
j3gme said:
It's a lifestyle choice ..... having 13ft ceilings up and down it takes a few BTU to warm up but it's well worth it!
9.5 out of 10 though. Have a word with your groundsman.sealtt said:
This is a really big difference I have noticed, older houses have far more solid floors. I've been to many recently built houses (sub 10 years of age) and even in fairly expensive houses I've noticed the floors upstairs are squeaky and have a hollowness to their feel, whereas the floors in older houses tend to be properly bolted together and feel very strong, much stronger than those in £ equivalent new builds.
New builds tend to have deeper joists but thinner boards. A modern floorboard is probably 18mm while an old one will likely be an inch plus (>25mm). New ones are also generally narrower though more likely to be T&G which helps a bit. Or it'll just be chipboard.The big difference is the timber; take a slice through a 100 year plus old floorboard or joist and have a look at how dense it is/how many rings by comparison to the new stuff. You're probably comparing a section of timber that took 40 or 50 years to grow really slowly vs a bit of 'slow grown' with maybe 10 years of growth in the same space.
Which is why the old stuff is worth saving wherever possible as new wood just isn't comparable.
j3gme said:
It's a lifestyle choice ..... having 13ft ceilings up and down it takes a few BTU to warm up but it's well worth it!
My current house (actually Edwardian) was previously owned by a housing conservation officer - he went through room by room, taking each back to brickwork and insulated all the exterior walls using lathe and (at the time) polystyrene backed plasterboard - it would be PIR board these days.
He also netted the underside of the floor joists and filled the joist pocket with mineral wool.
It's nice and cosy, despite high ceilings, but it's a labour intensive and costly solution, as all the skirtingboards, reveals, window cills, coving and electrics needs to be altered too.
If you were staying, it's a solution, though not for the fainthearted - but then the rooms are sizeable, the ceilings high and the features rather nice.
He also netted the underside of the floor joists and filled the joist pocket with mineral wool.
It's nice and cosy, despite high ceilings, but it's a labour intensive and costly solution, as all the skirtingboards, reveals, window cills, coving and electrics needs to be altered too.
If you were staying, it's a solution, though not for the fainthearted - but then the rooms are sizeable, the ceilings high and the features rather nice.
Andehh said:
Uggers said:
All symptoms of inadequate maintenance over 100 years. The very fact that most of them are still standing and been lived in despite this lack of care is testament to the fact they are very well made. Don't do any maintenance to a modern econobox for 100 years and see how much of it is still there.
.
Such a load of b.
ks. 
Says who that a modern house wouldn't outlast a Victorian Box? Zero maintenance/up keep will kill off anything sooner, but a Victorian House would die off far quicker. How can you suggest otherwise?Single glazed vs double & freezing in winters?
PVC Doors/Frames vs wooden ones & the rot they suffer?
Zero foundations vs trenched foundations?
Damp/Rot/Wood Worm?
What about building, plumbing, gas, electrical regulations!?
''Most are still standing'' yet nigh on everyone here has warned to get a full structural survey? Within a few posts re-roofing the damn thing has been suggested & repeatedly discussed as well as re-pointing? Hell, one poster even admitted half is house moving based on the seasons of the year. A quirk? yes. A good story? yes. Ideal in 5,10,15,20 years? No.
I love this fairy tail idea that British Workers were somehow more dedicated, educated & caring about building houses 150 years ago compared to how they are now.
Edited by Andehh on Wednesday 14th December 08:40
I have no doubt that initially the newer build would keep the weather out for a bit longer. But when it does it would be game over for the new build in a very short time as they are made of incredibly cheap materials with all the emphasis on the speed of the build.
They have their place in society, but I'd prefer not to live in a place with the same sound proofing qualities (and sometimes the aesthetics) of a static caravan.
Thing is, there's new builds, and there's new builds.
A mass developer new build will be $hit, and a bespoke new build shouldn't be.
Structural insulated panels are the way forward - might as well build as much as you can on a controlled environment rather then a windy, wet site in the middle of winter. You'll get a weather-tight build in next to no time that is exactly what you want.
High ceilings? check. Indoor-outdoor flow? check. Low energy bills? check. Any exterior finish you can think of? check.
Just plan your ground works properly, especially drainage and other services. Once out of the ground, all you've got to worry about is when the glass will be ready.......
A mass developer new build will be $hit, and a bespoke new build shouldn't be.
Structural insulated panels are the way forward - might as well build as much as you can on a controlled environment rather then a windy, wet site in the middle of winter. You'll get a weather-tight build in next to no time that is exactly what you want.
High ceilings? check. Indoor-outdoor flow? check. Low energy bills? check. Any exterior finish you can think of? check.
Just plan your ground works properly, especially drainage and other services. Once out of the ground, all you've got to worry about is when the glass will be ready.......
dobly said:
Thing is, there's new builds, and there's new builds.
A mass developer new build will be $hit, and a bespoke new build shouldn't be.
Structural insulated panels are the way forward - might as well build as much as you can on a controlled environment rather then a windy, wet site in the middle of winter. You'll get a weather-tight build in next to no time that is exactly what you want.
High ceilings? check. Indoor-outdoor flow? check. Low energy bills? check. Any exterior finish you can think of? check.
Just plan your ground works properly, especially drainage and other services. Once out of the ground, all you've got to worry about is when the glass will be ready.......
This is absolutely correct. And by the same token there are also old houses and old houses. I've lived in one Victorian house that was nothing but problems and was clearly not all that well put together in the first place (an assumption but I'm sure an accurate one), and now live in an Edwardian place that was clearly far better built. A mass developer new build will be $hit, and a bespoke new build shouldn't be.
Structural insulated panels are the way forward - might as well build as much as you can on a controlled environment rather then a windy, wet site in the middle of winter. You'll get a weather-tight build in next to no time that is exactly what you want.
High ceilings? check. Indoor-outdoor flow? check. Low energy bills? check. Any exterior finish you can think of? check.
Just plan your ground works properly, especially drainage and other services. Once out of the ground, all you've got to worry about is when the glass will be ready.......
Just because a house is Victorian or Edwardian or whatever doesn't mean it was brilliantly built by wonderful craftsmen and just because a house is new build doesn't make it some flimsy box.
easytiger123 said:
Just because a house is Victorian or Edwardian or whatever doesn't mean it was brilliantly built by wonderful craftsmen and just because a house is new build doesn't make it some flimsy box.
Labour was a lot cheaper in comparison to materials in times gone by and attitudes meant that houses probably were better built on the whole. Still a lot of poor quality stuff and mistakes made then (esp. foundations) which are not made now. However the main reason that Victorian or Edwardian houses seem better is because the slums have been cleared and what we see now is just the top 10%, or whatever, that remain.Uggers said:
Charming reply.
I have no doubt that initially the newer build would keep the weather out for a bit longer. But when it does it would be game over for the new build in a very short time as they are made of incredibly cheap materials with all the emphasis on the speed of the build.
They have their place in society, but I'd prefer not to live in a place with the same sound proofing qualities (and sometimes the aesthetics) of a static caravan.
Yeah, please see my follow up reply! Didn't realise I had posted my inital post twice. Edited one, missed the second. Apologies for the initial bite. I have no doubt that initially the newer build would keep the weather out for a bit longer. But when it does it would be game over for the new build in a very short time as they are made of incredibly cheap materials with all the emphasis on the speed of the build.
They have their place in society, but I'd prefer not to live in a place with the same sound proofing qualities (and sometimes the aesthetics) of a static caravan.
Edited by Andehh on Thursday 15th December 10:10
easytiger123 said:
Just because a house is Victorian or Edwardian or whatever doesn't mean it was brilliantly built by wonderful craftsmen and just because a house is new build doesn't make it some flimsy box.
.My first place was a Victorian semi in London. Lovely, lovely building, huge, high ceilings, big rooms, great period features. I bought it as wreck, and immediately had to sort out dry rot (which I knew about) at tens of thousands of pounds, including anew roof. I rewired it, insulated between the floors, sorted out the plumbing (easy as you could just lift all the floorboards) After that, there really was little to do - I replaced the windows with UPVC double glazed (not ideal, but they looked very good and were a lot cheaper than double glazed box sashes). In 10 years since the renovation, I have had to do nothing else. But I did get it lovely, at great expense - probably about £100k all in for a 2000 square foot property.
I only moved out of it as it is on a main road and I got tired of the location. I still own the house, and major maintenance is rare - but I did everything properly.
The project I'm finishing at the moment is a 1930s house. Similar construction methods, so frankly similar isues. Once again, I have stripped it and re-built it. And while it is lovely, it does not have the feel of the Victorian - lower ceilings plainer interiro and exterior features. The Victorians had money, and it shows when you compare it to post WW1 or WW2 houses, which were built to more stringent costs. But the new house is on a park, and in London, that matters more than when it was built!
That said, my 1930s house is valued at about 30% less than an equivalently sized Victorian on the same street. In London, people want old houses.
One thing to watch - it you buy one that has had work done, speak carefully to the owner and get a surveyor who knows old construction methods. These houses HAVE to breathe, otherwise the wooden bits get damp and rot. So you will see a load of loft conversions and interior refits using modern materials that either do not breathe, or do not have a ventilation system built in. This is asking for expensive trouble later on. Anything from fitted carpets with non-breathable underlay to non-vented windows through to warm lofts without the correct ridge and eaves ventilation can have some sort of consequence, that is easily avoided if the work is done properly.
One day, when I move out of London, I'll be back in a Victorian house. My favourite era of British construction, aesthetically. I have deliberately bought basket cases that needed complete renovation, and been really fussy about how the work was done. Buy a period house that's been renovated badly, and you can have a lot of issues. Buy one that has been done well, and energy costs aside, it should be no worse maintenance-wise to a modern house, with a boatload more soul to it.
I only moved out of it as it is on a main road and I got tired of the location. I still own the house, and major maintenance is rare - but I did everything properly.
The project I'm finishing at the moment is a 1930s house. Similar construction methods, so frankly similar isues. Once again, I have stripped it and re-built it. And while it is lovely, it does not have the feel of the Victorian - lower ceilings plainer interiro and exterior features. The Victorians had money, and it shows when you compare it to post WW1 or WW2 houses, which were built to more stringent costs. But the new house is on a park, and in London, that matters more than when it was built!
That said, my 1930s house is valued at about 30% less than an equivalently sized Victorian on the same street. In London, people want old houses.
One thing to watch - it you buy one that has had work done, speak carefully to the owner and get a surveyor who knows old construction methods. These houses HAVE to breathe, otherwise the wooden bits get damp and rot. So you will see a load of loft conversions and interior refits using modern materials that either do not breathe, or do not have a ventilation system built in. This is asking for expensive trouble later on. Anything from fitted carpets with non-breathable underlay to non-vented windows through to warm lofts without the correct ridge and eaves ventilation can have some sort of consequence, that is easily avoided if the work is done properly.
One day, when I move out of London, I'll be back in a Victorian house. My favourite era of British construction, aesthetically. I have deliberately bought basket cases that needed complete renovation, and been really fussy about how the work was done. Buy a period house that's been renovated badly, and you can have a lot of issues. Buy one that has been done well, and energy costs aside, it should be no worse maintenance-wise to a modern house, with a boatload more soul to it.
Edited by Harry Flashman on Thursday 15th December 13:41
sealtt said:
Conversely our 2008 new build 4-bed detached cost £800pcm in gas and electric during winter!! We now live in a 1930s 4 bed detached and it's less than £300!
To be fair the new build was probably double the floor space, but still, I'd take the figures with a pinch of salt. Your usage will make the most difference to overall energy costs.
Just checked the bills for our 1930s house and it is only using £11 of gas per month!?! This is for heating the house and water and even cooker, plus a gas fire that is on every evening for the dog. Don't understand how it is that cheap.To be fair the new build was probably double the floor space, but still, I'd take the figures with a pinch of salt. Your usage will make the most difference to overall energy costs.
Electricity is £200 per month which sounds about right given a couple of electric heaters in the annex and lots of lights and electronics.
Ours is less than half that in an 80's detached. Unfortunately we got out bid on the house that inspired this thread 
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