House Build Diary
Discussion
Wow! Benny you've had a baptism of fire there.
Glad it's underway now and I like the bit about the first time you pulled into your driveway.
I'll keep an eye on this thread. Great stuff.
I'm loving the Alan Partridge link.
Good luck with everything, that house will be stunning once it's done. These threads are good things. Whenever things are going a bit crap, you can have a look back at the things you've done, rather than focusing on what you still have left to do.
Glad it's underway now and I like the bit about the first time you pulled into your driveway.
I'll keep an eye on this thread. Great stuff.
I'm loving the Alan Partridge link.
Good luck with everything, that house will be stunning once it's done. These threads are good things. Whenever things are going a bit crap, you can have a look back at the things you've done, rather than focusing on what you still have left to do.
Ok chaps, update time.
Concrete went down fast and blocks were set out. Next problem was Halifax, who are the most agonisingly slow organisation I've ever had to deal with. The last link in the finance chain was the valuer to come and check that the plot exists, pretty much. This was supposed to have happened 3 weeks earlier but as the summer was fast running out and the builder had another house to build next year, we were given clearance to start but only to concrete pouring stage.
Thankfully we only encountered a tools-down delay of a day before the (miserable) surveyor arrived and we carried on.
Next bit of odd news was the surveyor had written down the value of the finished house to at least £75k less than our original estimate. He'd essentially added the build cost (which we've already shaved down to the min, no bathrooms or kitchen included) onto the value of the land and then chipped a bit off that! I know people tend to be unrealistic about these things when it comes to their own homes but if you can buy a near 300m2 six bed house in its own generous plot on a quiet leafy lane a few miles' drive from Durham for his estimate then good luck. Halifax then came back with a revised offer based on that - £185 pounds less. Yes, £185. No, I don't understand either.
So, onwards and upwards. An unexpected bonus arrived in the form of a part-time return to doing my old job, which as you can see involves playing records. That'll help!
Next to go down were the blocks for the floor to sit on:
And then in the blazing hot sunshine the beams arrived, which were fooking heavy.
Beams went down with the blocks and a floor appeared!
Then as of yesterday some walls started to appear. Next week the facing bricks arrive and we'll actually see the outside walls go up.
Elsewhere, it's a good job the house is coming as the static caravan is literally falling apart now. They're not designed for year round living and the shower is leaking somewhere so it's rotting the MDF floor. In hot weather it's probably more miserable than the dead of winter as it's literally a tin box in the sun.
I'll patch it up when I've got time as even old 'un's like ours still fetch strong money, however.
That's the update, I'll keep you chaps posted.
Concrete went down fast and blocks were set out. Next problem was Halifax, who are the most agonisingly slow organisation I've ever had to deal with. The last link in the finance chain was the valuer to come and check that the plot exists, pretty much. This was supposed to have happened 3 weeks earlier but as the summer was fast running out and the builder had another house to build next year, we were given clearance to start but only to concrete pouring stage.
Thankfully we only encountered a tools-down delay of a day before the (miserable) surveyor arrived and we carried on.
Next bit of odd news was the surveyor had written down the value of the finished house to at least £75k less than our original estimate. He'd essentially added the build cost (which we've already shaved down to the min, no bathrooms or kitchen included) onto the value of the land and then chipped a bit off that! I know people tend to be unrealistic about these things when it comes to their own homes but if you can buy a near 300m2 six bed house in its own generous plot on a quiet leafy lane a few miles' drive from Durham for his estimate then good luck. Halifax then came back with a revised offer based on that - £185 pounds less. Yes, £185. No, I don't understand either.
So, onwards and upwards. An unexpected bonus arrived in the form of a part-time return to doing my old job, which as you can see involves playing records. That'll help!
Next to go down were the blocks for the floor to sit on:
And then in the blazing hot sunshine the beams arrived, which were fooking heavy.
Beams went down with the blocks and a floor appeared!
Then as of yesterday some walls started to appear. Next week the facing bricks arrive and we'll actually see the outside walls go up.
Elsewhere, it's a good job the house is coming as the static caravan is literally falling apart now. They're not designed for year round living and the shower is leaking somewhere so it's rotting the MDF floor. In hot weather it's probably more miserable than the dead of winter as it's literally a tin box in the sun.
I'll patch it up when I've got time as even old 'un's like ours still fetch strong money, however.
That's the update, I'll keep you chaps posted.
69 coupe said:
Great stuff, love the music stuff all pc's & mixers then pen & paper 
Do the beams just sit on top of the DPM or is there mortar above below the DPM?
Are the concrete floors just wedged between the beams?
IIRC correctly mine just sat on the DPM. The weight of them is enough. The blocks then slide into the gap and a mix of cement is then brushed into the gaps to form a seal.The internal blockwork sits on the beams. Later the floor is insulated and then screed.Do the beams just sit on top of the DPM or is there mortar above below the DPM?
Are the concrete floors just wedged between the beams?
Bit of an update chaps - a little overdue seeing as we're now putting the roof on!
I'm happy to report that things have progressed reasonably smoothly. Walls going up with brick finish up to cill height outside, above this will be cream render.
Round the back with the utility room door to the left and to the right the kitchen - this space will be filled with bi-fold doors. As much discussed on here, bi folds seem to go from about £1000 for 2.3 metre widths up to the cost of a nice E38 from the 'bargain barges' thread. We originally were going to buy a cheapy set from Jeld Wen and then replace them further down the line but at the Grand Designs show we went to at the NEC last week we found an outfit called Vufold who made a much better quality door that isn't much more money so we're going for that instead.
Beams for the first floor arriving. The jib on the truck delivering them froze in the 'up' position just moments after I took this snap. The driver was a miserable tw%t at the best of times, so being stranded in our lane didn't improve his day one bit!
Living room with first floor beams in place. We have a room! We wanted a square shape as it's much more sociable and versatile as a layout than the long, thin lounges you see in so many new houses these days.
Upstairs on the first floor - no walls up there yet.
Front view, with the scaffolding moved up to first floor level and the blocks going up
External chimney. Inspired by the Border Oak house episode of Grand Designs!
Chinmey pot arrives early. Taking it for a drive, as you do.
That's an update up to about 3 weeks ago, plenty more happened since then which I will update later.
Still tonnes to do:
Roof felt and slate to go on
Velux conservation windows on top floor
Windows in
Order front door in timber (around £950!!!)
Back door to go on
Bi folds to go in
Under floor heating to go in and pour screed to ground and first floor
Render exterior while scaffolding still up
Then we have an exterior! The inside then needs to be turned from an empty shell into a house. More follows....
I'm happy to report that things have progressed reasonably smoothly. Walls going up with brick finish up to cill height outside, above this will be cream render.
Round the back with the utility room door to the left and to the right the kitchen - this space will be filled with bi-fold doors. As much discussed on here, bi folds seem to go from about £1000 for 2.3 metre widths up to the cost of a nice E38 from the 'bargain barges' thread. We originally were going to buy a cheapy set from Jeld Wen and then replace them further down the line but at the Grand Designs show we went to at the NEC last week we found an outfit called Vufold who made a much better quality door that isn't much more money so we're going for that instead.
Beams for the first floor arriving. The jib on the truck delivering them froze in the 'up' position just moments after I took this snap. The driver was a miserable tw%t at the best of times, so being stranded in our lane didn't improve his day one bit!
Living room with first floor beams in place. We have a room! We wanted a square shape as it's much more sociable and versatile as a layout than the long, thin lounges you see in so many new houses these days.
Upstairs on the first floor - no walls up there yet.
Front view, with the scaffolding moved up to first floor level and the blocks going up
External chimney. Inspired by the Border Oak house episode of Grand Designs!
Chinmey pot arrives early. Taking it for a drive, as you do.
That's an update up to about 3 weeks ago, plenty more happened since then which I will update later.
Still tonnes to do:
Roof felt and slate to go on
Velux conservation windows on top floor
Windows in
Order front door in timber (around £950!!!)
Back door to go on
Bi folds to go in
Under floor heating to go in and pour screed to ground and first floor
Render exterior while scaffolding still up
Then we have an exterior! The inside then needs to be turned from an empty shell into a house. More follows....
barryrs said:
Coming along nicely.
Quick question; how did you get away with such a small amount of cavity wall insulation?
We are using a minimum 100mm full fill when using dense concrete blocks internally.
I don't really know, but I do recall our contact at the building merchants recommending Ecotherm over Kingspan as a cheaper and better alternative. There was some to-ing and fro-ing back and forth between our architect (who didn't believe them) and the manufacturer before he gave us the green light. Quick question; how did you get away with such a small amount of cavity wall insulation?
We are using a minimum 100mm full fill when using dense concrete blocks internally.
From what I understand we've specced the glass in the windows to a very low U value and also as I understand it the blocks themselves are much denser than normal. Either way, we've hit the SAP target and even the underfloor heating guy said this was one of the most energy efficient houses he'd come across in terms of the spec.
ETA
The roof slates started going on this week and the windows are arriving in a couple of days, so my diary is well behind! I should also point out that Halifax have now been renamed Halitw@ts, as they are literally useless. There are no words.
Edited by bennyboydurham on Tuesday 28th October 17:13
barryrs said:
Coming along nicely.
Quick question; how did you get away with such a small amount of cavity wall insulation?
We are using a minimum 100mm full fill when using dense concrete blocks internally.
Not an expert but are you comparing like for like? I think 100mm cavity would normally be filled with something like rockwool, the closed cell stuff is more efficient. From memory I think we could have had used 140mm worth of board in our roof in place of 270mm of traditional loft insulation. We actually went with 150mm as it worked out cheaper.Quick question; how did you get away with such a small amount of cavity wall insulation?
We are using a minimum 100mm full fill when using dense concrete blocks internally.
wseed said:
Not an expert but are you comparing like for like? I think 100mm cavity would normally be filled with something like rockwool, the closed cell stuff is more efficient. From memory I think we could have had used 140mm worth of board in our roof in place of 270mm of traditional loft insulation. We actually went with 150mm as it worked out cheaper.
We use a compressed bat by isover called CWS 32; this gives you a U-value of circa 0.24 in a traditional 300mm cavity wall construction and is pretty cheap.Trouble with closed cell is that you have to maintain a clear cavity so if you want a lower U-value you have to either increase the cavity of surface fix to the inside or outside.
Sorry for going a little OT OP
Bit of an update - the build is progressing well. The windows arrived today and look great. We wanted wooden sash windows but the budget didn't stretch that far and in the end we went with UPVC sash windows with georgian panes and chrome fittings. They do UPVC in a kind of wood 'foil' effect but on balance they actually look better in the matt white plain finish as it looks less like something that isn't wood masquerading as wood, if you see where I'm coming from. The quality is excellent and we're very happy with the price - pics to follow. The windows will go in over the weekend, followed shortly by the doors and veluxes. There's still about half the roof to slate and the felt and laths are all on.
The one thing that isn't going well is the finances. In fact, the situation has driven my missus to boiling point which takes some doing! You might remember upthread I moaned about the surveyor sent out by Halifax who penned the finished valuation at the thick end of £100k less than the ballpark figures we were working on. In fact, now we've got a realistic breakdown of the build costs (what we've spent + the remaining quotes) his valuation is less than the build costs plus the value of the land, so he was miles out. That at the time didn't matter as the figures still stacked up for the mortgage we wanted and apart from a few snorts of derision when the valuation arrived in the post, that was the end of that.
Well, he's struck again and this time his poor grasp of property values and indeed knowledge of how self build works has dealt us a mortal blow. A month ago, having hit roof plate stage we asked for an advance and our friend the surveyor was duly dispatched to make sure that we were where we claimed we were in the build stage. He reported back to his masters (after seemingly not even getting out his car, as no-one actually came on site that day) that 'the roof wasn't finished and no builder would take it on in this condition', so put the current value on our house at the same as it was - when it was a muddy hole in the ground!
No-one - from my builder, to my architect to the mortgage advisor that set all this up can understand what he's going on about. The money is released in stages and bearing in mind that the structure is essentially complete with tens of thousands spent in labour and materials, we are at a complete loss as to what to do as the advances are based on his valuation. Our problem is that the Halifax is such a huge, unwieldy organisation that getting through to anyone is an absolute nightmare as you just end up in Indian call centre Hell. Try explaining to someone in Bangalore about your self build mortgage roof plate stage payments and you might as well be speaking in Flemish for all the good it does.
My wife has literally spent several hours each day of the last two weeks on the phone, being passed around from pillar to post. Yesterday - she blew and refused to get off the phone until they sent another surveyor who actually understands a bit about self build around to have another go. Today she spent a long time talking to banking Ombudsman who agrees that our treatment has been shockingly poor and will get involved on our behalf. So there we are folks - we've got a house and lots of bills and the rest of our cash is still with the bank because they don't seem to understand their own product! Thankfully we have a very understanding builder and a generous credit line from the builders' merchant but both are running fast out the comfort zone. I'll keep you posted.
The one thing that isn't going well is the finances. In fact, the situation has driven my missus to boiling point which takes some doing! You might remember upthread I moaned about the surveyor sent out by Halifax who penned the finished valuation at the thick end of £100k less than the ballpark figures we were working on. In fact, now we've got a realistic breakdown of the build costs (what we've spent + the remaining quotes) his valuation is less than the build costs plus the value of the land, so he was miles out. That at the time didn't matter as the figures still stacked up for the mortgage we wanted and apart from a few snorts of derision when the valuation arrived in the post, that was the end of that.
Well, he's struck again and this time his poor grasp of property values and indeed knowledge of how self build works has dealt us a mortal blow. A month ago, having hit roof plate stage we asked for an advance and our friend the surveyor was duly dispatched to make sure that we were where we claimed we were in the build stage. He reported back to his masters (after seemingly not even getting out his car, as no-one actually came on site that day) that 'the roof wasn't finished and no builder would take it on in this condition', so put the current value on our house at the same as it was - when it was a muddy hole in the ground!
No-one - from my builder, to my architect to the mortgage advisor that set all this up can understand what he's going on about. The money is released in stages and bearing in mind that the structure is essentially complete with tens of thousands spent in labour and materials, we are at a complete loss as to what to do as the advances are based on his valuation. Our problem is that the Halifax is such a huge, unwieldy organisation that getting through to anyone is an absolute nightmare as you just end up in Indian call centre Hell. Try explaining to someone in Bangalore about your self build mortgage roof plate stage payments and you might as well be speaking in Flemish for all the good it does.
My wife has literally spent several hours each day of the last two weeks on the phone, being passed around from pillar to post. Yesterday - she blew and refused to get off the phone until they sent another surveyor who actually understands a bit about self build around to have another go. Today she spent a long time talking to banking Ombudsman who agrees that our treatment has been shockingly poor and will get involved on our behalf. So there we are folks - we've got a house and lots of bills and the rest of our cash is still with the bank because they don't seem to understand their own product! Thankfully we have a very understanding builder and a generous credit line from the builders' merchant but both are running fast out the comfort zone. I'll keep you posted.
Edited by bennyboydurham on Friday 31st October 01:33
Fingers crossed for you Benny.
Whilst we weren't self-building, but did have an agreed schedule of payments, each time an invoice was received from the main contractor, which matched the schedule, I gave it to my bank manager and he paid it by transfer the same day. I don't know what I'd have done if I'd had to deal with a call centre in a far away land.
In fact, I'll cross my toes for you guys, too.
Whilst we weren't self-building, but did have an agreed schedule of payments, each time an invoice was received from the main contractor, which matched the schedule, I gave it to my bank manager and he paid it by transfer the same day. I don't know what I'd have done if I'd had to deal with a call centre in a far away land.
In fact, I'll cross my toes for you guys, too.
Sadly no further forward today. The valuer is sticking to his guns on his absurd valuation so we're effectively at an impasse. We've launched a formal complaint with Halifax, but this has been ongoing for month now.
We are considering having an independent valuer to come along and give us a valuation, giving us some ammunition to sling back at Halifax, but clearly that's just more money spent! Very, very frustrating.
We are considering having an independent valuer to come along and give us a valuation, giving us some ammunition to sling back at Halifax, but clearly that's just more money spent! Very, very frustrating.
Sorry to hear of your valuation woes. Same deal here, some t
t from the bank spent all of 10 minutes here (at £300 expense to me) to report to the bank the house is worth £4k more than when we purchased it. That wouldn't even buy the fking bricks! The cynical side of me thinks the market will correct due to these valuations rather than using interest rates as the stick. If someone can't borrow the money to buy something they can't have it. These valuations are done by people not even from the area most(all?) of the time. As it stands I'm having to use my back up money to complete the build. Do you have any funds to progress without the bank? What's fking daft is it is so obvious what the funds will be used for & the bank will end up with an asset that has borrowing guaranteed against it which is worth much more.
t from the bank spent all of 10 minutes here (at £300 expense to me) to report to the bank the house is worth £4k more than when we purchased it. That wouldn't even buy the fking bricks! The cynical side of me thinks the market will correct due to these valuations rather than using interest rates as the stick. If someone can't borrow the money to buy something they can't have it. These valuations are done by people not even from the area most(all?) of the time. As it stands I'm having to use my back up money to complete the build. Do you have any funds to progress without the bank? What's fking daft is it is so obvious what the funds will be used for & the bank will end up with an asset that has borrowing guaranteed against it which is worth much more.I have just finished a self-build and used the Birmingham mid shires self build product. Didn't have a problem until we needed to borrow an addition 10% more than originally agreed mortgage. This took us about 3 months to sort out and effectively had to take out a second mortgage with them! The idiots could not understand why we needed more money ! If I was doing it again I would look at taking out a commercial development loan then remortgage when the house is finished.
bennyboydurham said:
Sadly no further forward today. The valuer is sticking to his guns on his absurd valuation so we're effectively at an impasse. We've launched a formal complaint with Halifax, but this has been ongoing for month now.
We are considering having an independent valuer to come along and give us a valuation, giving us some ammunition to sling back at Halifax, but clearly that's just more money spent! Very, very frustrating.
Surely the broker can get involved and use their account manager to progress this. Seems ridiculous, given that they won't lend on the land but then have stage payments in arrears that they can't process their own product! I'd be all over the local bdm if it were one of my clients.We are considering having an independent valuer to come along and give us a valuation, giving us some ammunition to sling back at Halifax, but clearly that's just more money spent! Very, very frustrating.
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