House extension-Advise?

[helmutlaang]

Hi All

I am shortly going to employ a builder to build a medium size ground floor extension.Now,I have absoutley zero knowledge of this kind of work and after seeing programmes like Cowboy builders I am nervous I will end up paying 30k for a hole in my garden.

What I need is advise on what to do/look for in employing a suitable builder.Do I need a contract with them regarding payments and timescales? How much at a time do you pay a builder(%),and so on.

Thanks in advance.

[mattdaniels]

Have a chat with campfreddie on here. He's an architect and has been massively helpful with my extension project.

[homeimprovements]

Go for a builder that can provide references and ones that you can check.check there insurance. speak to building control, they will most likely have dealt with your builder in the past. Get all payments required written down with the specific stages that they will be required and make sure you hav the funds ready. Nothing spooks a tradesman more, than when 10k is due on monday and you get told monday that the money wont be available till thursday.

what ever you do do not pay more than 70% of the total until the project is completed. If the builder doesnt have cash flow to cover his staff wages/materials he prob isnt that good .

We did a 85k job last year and the costs were broken down as follows

footing dug and poured 3k
re run drainage and connect, new water main installed 2k
trench blocks and brickwork, upto damp inc oversite and slab 5k
up to roof height. 8k
trusses and roof completed inc huge amount of lead work 7k
windows and doors, sliding bi fold doors etc inc removal of 2 internal wall 6.5k

watertight building sub total 31.5

deposit for kitchen and karndean flooring taken 12k
we then installed underfloor heating, first fix elec, carpentry and plumbing and boarded, skimmed and coved and majority of 2nd fix. when this was done another 8k was given.

then 2nd fix carpentry (oak sliding/folding internal doors) 2nd fix plumbing - cloakroom, water softers etc fully decorated another 5k

kitchen installed and all litle jobs finished, site cleared, driveway swept and keys handed over. final bill submitted, balance minus 2k to be held for 2 months to cover snagging(this was my idea of even though customer tried insistng we take it all now).

2 months on and only snags we and was a small piece of coving join kept cracking and alarm ramdomly going off. These were all fixed within 1 week of notifying me.

We now laying 10k worth of composite decking and a huge 9K glass roof covering 50% of it.

Oh yeah and finally, a well watered and fed building team is a happy team. i reckon they must have spent £100 of biscuits and tea :-)

Edited by homeimprovements on Saturday 23 July 21:24