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Planning permission is not normally needed for a loft conversion as they are covered by permitted development rights. A conversion company will tell you if you do and help you with this. For more information, see our article about planning permission.

How To Fit Plasterboard

If you’re planning to renovate your house, then here is a must-read guide! Fitting of plasterboard is a crucial step when it comes to renovation. If you’re bringing down an existing lath and plaster for an upgraded surface or adding a new wall, a plasterboard is required for your project to be a true success. If you’re a novice with no prior practice or experience, you can protect your investment by hiring the services of a professional plasterer to guarantee the best results, the first time. However, we’ve put together this guide to give you an insight on how the plasterboard fitting process is done.

To get started, you’ll need a power drill, hammer, plasterboard nails or screws, broad knife, utility knife, measurement tape, pencil, ladder as well as a joint tape.

Before proceeding, you need to identify the number of plasterboard sheets needed to commence the project by measuring the height and width of the wall as well as calculating the square footage. If you possess a stud timber wall, the steps below will get you the best results.

• Measure the walls and mark the plasterboard where you’ll make the cuts. Start with a full sheet and cut pieces down in such a way that would fit

• Score the front paper of the plasterboard with utility knife. Fold the sheet to get a clean cut through the board and make use of the knife to the remaining paper.

• Place the first sheet against the wall and use an offcut to prevent the plasterboard from touch the floor.

• Make the plasterboard rest snugly against the wall in position and screw it firmly on each stud. Once done, fasten it at all the sheets’ edges and in a line down the stud to make for a firm connection. Follow the same process for the remaining plasterboard sheet till the wall is fully covered.

Yes, bricklayers can work during the cold months, but it all depends on the type of work involved. For instance, residential housing maintenance works such as tuck pointing deficient mortar joints on exterior walls and columns as well as rebuilding of chimneys are best tackled during summer or simply put, the warmer months of the year. This is is mainly because the best results for these activities are achieved in the warmer months and several bricklayers will agree to this fact.

Mixing of mortar using anti-freeze technique to counter-act the effects of a cold weather can lead to white marks trailing down the brick when warmer temperatures comes knocking. As a result, even mortar mixing should be done at temperatures exceeding zero degree farenheit which will hold no serious consequences if the temperature should change to a little bit below the norms. During the winter, a good technique that can be incorporated to when mixing mortar would be to mix them in smaller quantities in a warmer environment. These small quantities will immediately be fed by the labourers to the bricklayers and in such circumstances, the mixed mortars will not be subjected to a freezing temperature for too long.

Generally, it would be very unwise to consider any bricklaying work to be done whenever the temperature jumps to a certain level which would be considered to be very inconvenient to work in. Interior works like remodelling of fireplaces can be tackled so long there is a warm space to mix the mortars while also keeping the materials at an indoor temperature. Bricklaying works that have, however, been completed during the colder months should be subjected to a very close inspection as well as looking for potential damage that can be caused to existing works as a result of the harsh weather.

Over the years, more and more home and property owners are beginning to realize the huge benefits that can be derived from loft insulation being a worthwhile investment. It’s quite worrisome the way in which energy bills have soared over the past 10 years and loft insulation is a considerable affordable energy efficiency measure that can go a long way to help increase your home’s energy savings.

As far back as the 1980’s, the standard when it comes to insulation thickness was 25 mm to 50 mm which was, at the time, considered to be sufficient. However, building regulations have changed the norm that now states that a new build needs to possess 270 mm of insulation in the loft in order to achieve the required u-value of less than 0.16/m2k based on the standard rock wool or sheep wool insulation.

Generally with loft insulation, there’s a law of depreciating returns which implies that the first couple of insulation centimetres will save you many times the cost of the installation, however an extra layer or centimetre is going to add less value to the point where it’ll no longer be wise or worthwhile to add any further centimetre. Therefore, with cheaper energy prices 30 years back, that additional couple of centimetres was not just worthwhile, but with the recent alarming rises in costs of fuel, that additional £10 savings per year has all of sudden changed to £30 which makes it become a lot more attractive.

If you already have 270 mm of loft insulation, regardless of the material you’re looking to add you’re most likely not going to benefit from a top up. The cost of the materials and installation will definitely be too high for the couple of pounds it’ll save you per year.

If you’re currently experiencing some structural issues with your building or property and you’ve heard a thing or two about the several benefits associated with getting underpinning done, you may be wondering if underpinning might just be the answer to your worries. Well, one thing you should when it comes to underpinning is the fact that, while there are some structural issues that may actually warrant an underpinning job, there are also some situations that can not be fixed by underpinning. In this post, we’re going to consider the events whereby underpinning of your house will be required. Let’s take a look!

First and foremost, you should know that underpinning isn’t required for issues related to slab heave. Footing movements which are likely to reverse normally occur when the content of the soil moisture changes unevenly which gives rise to slab heave. This movement results for a reversible effect.

Generally, underpinning is done to remedy problems related with the movement of the footings of a building or property, but as stated above – not all movements require underpinning. So, when is underpinning required? More often than not, a situation that’s resolved by underpinning is the event whereby the footings of a building or structure drops or subside as a result of some reasons that are irreversible. For example, footing movements caused by a footing set on a soft or loose soil which may be irreversible.

In the event whereby the footings of your house haven’t been installed as deep as required during the initial construction, then you will need to have your building underpinned to make it more stable. If you’re also looking to increase the load on your foundation like adding another storey, you may also need to have your house underpinned to support the extra weight added.

For 2 metre solid fences it’s recommended to use concrete posts to support each panel. For smaller 1 metre fences or for picket fences with gaps between each timber piece you can use timber posts. A fencing contractor will be able to advise you on the best materials from the length and requirements of a new fence.

We all need a reliable place to keep our clothes or dresses, however in situations where a standard freestanding wardrobe just won’t cut it, there is the need to put into consideration a fitted wardrobe. For instance, if you have a bedroom with acloves and sloping ceilings, you’ll discover that the standard-size, freestanding wardrobe just won’t be suitable as they’ll appear strange and look very much out of place while also not being able to put the available space to efficient use. In this regard, a fitted wardrobe will do a much better job as it’s a lot more suitable for mostly all types of bedrooms. So if you’re thinking about having one fitted in your bedroom, you’d probably want to know the just how much it’ll cost. In this article, we’re going to provide you with a good insight on fitted wardrobes cost.

Generally, the prices of fitted wardrobes depend largely on a number of factors. These variables include both the quality as well as the type of included fittings. The types of fitted wardrobes with their estimated price range are given below:

✓ Bespoke fitted bedroom wardrobe. This type can range between £2500 to about £3000 depending on the design details. The extras include mouldings, columns and panels.

✓ Simple two section closet. This type can range between £2500 to about £3200 depending on the design.

✓ Large bedroom, three section, six doors. This type of fitted wardrobe features both interior and exterior finishes alongside drawers and hanging space. The cost normally ranges between £4400 to £4900.

✓ Contemporary, sliding door fitted wardrobe. This type usually features three sections alongside door mirrors to make the bedroom appear larger. The cost normally ranges between £2800 to £3600.

The short and simple answer to this question is yes, loft insulation does cause condensation. Over the years, problems with condensation in loft spaces have become increasingly common. While this may not be harmful in anyway, when the condensation becomes excessive it can lead to more serious issues taking root in your loft like wet rot, dry rot as well as black spot mould. Generally, the best thing to do if you’re concerned about the condensation in your loft space and that it may rapidly become a bigger problem is to get in touch with a damp specialist as soon as possible.

Even though insulating your loft space comes with a wide array of benefits like making the top floor rooms warmer, it’s however comes at the cost of making your loft or room space cooler. Condensation in lofts take place primarily due to the humid air making its way through insulation or other gaps into the loft space and touching a cooler surface which in turn results in beads of moisture on the timbers, lintels as well as the underside of the roof. This is why its always a great idea make use of thermal insulation with a vapour barrier that’s installed on the warmer side of the insulating material.

Condensation in loft is caused by excess moisture in the air and lack of adequate air ventilation. Here are some top reasons that gives rise to this in the loft:

• Extra insulation has been installed in the loft leading to a restriction on the natural air circulation in the property.
• When the storage boxes or other items that has been stockpiled in the loft blocks the roof vents.
• The release of steam and moist air into the loft space by hot water tanks.