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With cavity walls being very similar to other type of brick works, it can be quite confusing to figure out the type of wall your property possesses. If your house was constructed after the 1920s, then its highly likely the you have cavity walls, while older houses (houses before the 1920s) are likely to have solid walls. What’s more? If you happen to own a home that was built in the last decade, then it’s very possible that it was built with insulation installed during construction.

An effective way to determine whether or not your property is built with cavity wall is to examine the brickwork on your home’s exterior. The bricks will typically possess a regular pattern if it features cavity walls. In the event whereby the brick work is covered by render, you can also figure it out by taking a measurement of the wall’s width. If the brick wall is beyond 3000mm in thickness ( from the exterior wall to the interior wall), then it probably features a cavity. Meanwhile, a wall that’s narrower is very likely to be solid. Stone walls, on the other hand, may actually be thicker but are most times solid.

In a situation whereby your house is built using steel frame or timber frame, or made using pre-fabricated concrete, there are varying rules that applies when it comes to insulation and should be examined by an expert before any insulation is installed. More often than not, most contractors will have installed special air vents, which can also be a good indicator that a cavity wall insulation has been done.

Pitting, also referred to as spalling is the event whereby “pits” or small holes start showing on the surface of your concrete driveway which makes it appear both worn and uneven. Concrete driveway pitting is a common but highly frustrating problem for most homeowners. You’ll see some concrete driveways that’ll only start to pit after a couple of years, but this is not true for all concrete driveways as others will start to show signs only after a couple of months. So how do you tackle this issue? Well, it’s relatively simple to tackle, however if you’re not confident or lack the necessary skills, we’d recommend you get in touch with a reliable professional who can guarantee the best results for help. In this guide, we’ll take you through the concrete driveway pitting repair process.

✓ Prepare the pits by cleaning the area, clearing out all debris and more. The small pits can be cleaned with a stiff brush while a sturdy broom will do a good job for larger pits.

✓ Make use of a hose to spray the concrete pits and flush out all remaining bits of waste.

✓ If you’re tackling series of small pits, simply use a caulking gun filled with pre-mixed epoxy and specially formulated for concrete to fill the pits. Clear off the excess eproxy ensuring that its level with the concrete surface. Once done, simply leave for at least 24 hours before the application of a concrete sealant to prevent the wear and tear of the new concrete.

✓ Chisel out a little concrete and clean with a pressure washer. Once done, apply a concrete resurfacing compound mixture into the holes and use a trowel to level off.

✓ Ensure that the repaired concrete driveway is protected from rain and foot traffic for at least 6 hours (or 24 hours for vehicles).

Often referred to by many as the holy grail of home improvements, house extension comes with a wide range of benefits which makes it easy to see why the extension could be a great uptick in the potential price of your property in terms of sales. So if you’re looking to build a new home extension but still not convinced about the project, we’re here to help you. Being fully aware any home construction work is usually a heavy investment, there’s a huge need to be set on your decision before scheduling the commencement of any work. So are house extensions worth it? Below are some of the top benefits offered by house extensions to help you decide if it’s the most suitable route for you.

• Add To Your Home’s Value

Building an home extension is a great way to add value to your home before selling. Increasing the living space of your home is an incredible appeal to many buyers which significantly increases your property’s total value. However, you must ensure that the extension is impressively designed using top quality materials in order to generate more value.

• Good Alternative To House Moving

The most common reason for moving is usually due to a lack of sufficient space, but with house prices steadily on the increase a cost effective alternative is highly sought after. This alternative is house extension which creates more space for the household to spread out and have more privacy.

• You May Not Require A Planning Permission

You can extend your house and still not need to apply for a planning permission. To achieve this, simply comply with the laid down rules set under the permitted development rights.

• Extra Living Space

If you fill you’re starting to outgrow your existing structure and do not buy into the idea of moving, then your best bet might just be to extend your home.

How Much Does It Cost To Have A Loft Boarded?

More often than not, several homeowners fail to realize there’s so much value sitting right under their roof - the loft. When a loft is boarded, there are so many juicy benefits that can be derived. It can be used as a storage room, spare bathroom, home office and several more functions. Therefore, if you really wish to maximize the space under your home’s roof, you’d have to considering boarding it. So how much would it cost to have your loft boarded? Here, you’ll discover the cost of boarding your lofts so you that you can set a budget and start to plan.

The cost of boarding a loft is actually affordable for several individuals, simply because you’re allowed to floor as much or as little as you require. And while you’re up there flooring and fitting the loft boards, you can as well decide to upgrade the insulation of the loft too. This way, you be able to prevent heat from escaping through the roof of the house which helps improve energy efficiency and ultimately, save you some money on heating bills.

If you’d prefer to make it a DIY project, the cost of 18mm chipboard is about £8 to £10 per sheet sized 2400m x 600m. Meanwhile the insulation boards should range between £18 to £22 for a sheet.

For a professional service, you’ll be provided with a quote for both the materials and labour. The amount will be based on the number of boarding required as well as the method selected. For an average storage space needs, flooring size of about 15m2 is suitable. The price for this quantity would be between the range of £50 to £700 for the counter barren method or above £1000 for a more sophisticated method.

In the event whereby you’ve got big refurbishment ideas for your house but a small budget, then you know it’s time to be a bit more creative and apply some cheap and simple tricks. The best possible way to go about this is to invest time in acquiring new skills rather than trying to save up more money to pay a pro to deliver the results you want. After all, the most significant cost when it comes to house refurbishments is usually the labour cost.

The key to making cheap tricks a lot effective in the refurbishment process is by undertaking small tasks that’ll make a huge impact. A great way to start would be by taking it one task at a time rather than rushing to complete all at once. This way, you’ll have enough time to perfect your skills before moving on to the next.

✓ Paint the interior walls. Although this is a simple task but it’ll save you a lot of money if done as a DIY project. To get started, you’d have to text colour options by painting samplex on the wall first. Once done, you can go for the one that adds warmth, dynamism as well as energy to the room.

✓ Fix up your furniture. This involves re-upholstering and refinishing any piece of furniture that appears tired or overly worn (you can leave out the ones that you do not really like or unnecessary items).

✓ Spruce up small but important items used on a daily basis. This includes spray-painting inexpensive picture frames, recovering lampshades with a vibrant paper or patterned fabric, adding throw pillows to armchairs and couches and the likes.

✓ Fix all small things that are broken. This includes activities like patching the nail holes in the wall, repairing the latch on the kitchen cabinet, fixing the gutter, putting a new handle on the door and lots more.

If you’re having issues with the amount of space in your home and need an extra space without affecting your garden, loft conversion comes to mind. Not only is it a great solution to creating more living space within a home, but it’s also one of the most budget-friendly solutions you can count on to expand your space by thinking upwards rather than sideways. So if you’re thinking about converting your loft, one thing that almost immediately comes to mind is whether or not your house is suitable for loft conversion.

To answer the question of whether every house can have a loft conversion is a very simple one. Generally, not every house is suitable for loft conversion. This is due to the fact that each and every loft space - from the stairways below and floors to the rafters and the roof up above, is unique. Therefore, the best way to really figure out whether or not a house’s loft offers the potential for conversion is to get in touch with a loft specialist.

So what can make a house not suitable for a loft conversion? Let’s take a closer look!

✓ A house will not be suitable for a loft conversion if the height of the ceiling happens to be too low and it’ll not be possible to have it raised.

✓ If you do not own own the freehold to the loft space, you won’t be able to convert the loft. Surprisingly, this happens to be a common issue in London.

✓ You will not be able to convert your loft if you reside in a conservation area or in a listed building. But you can identify a design solution that’ll still comply with the conservation rules and keep planners happy.

Are you thinking about converting your garage into a new space? Be it a new bedroom, gym, library or playroom, one thing you’ll have to consider before getting started is whether or not you’re going to require a planning permission. Unlike extensions that needs additional space, garage conversion is all about changing the existing structure of a space that’s already available to you - your garage. As a result, these projects are mostly covered by a planning policy that’s a bit different.

For a garage conversion, it’s very unlikely that you’ll need a planning permission. As a matter of fact, only 10 percent of garage conversions has been estimated to need a full planning permission, with the others coming under the permitted development rights. The permitted development rights, however, only provides coverage for home improvements that’s internal which implies that so far you’re not trying to enlarge your garage, you’ll not require a planning permission. But if otherwise, you’ll have to submit an application before commencing your project.

If you’re looking to comply with the permitted development rights, then your project must comply with some specific guidelines. These rules include the following:

• The work should be internal. No plans to enlarge or extend the existing garage.

• You should make sure that the materials used in carrying out the garage conversion is the same with the materials used in building the existing house.

• The building should not be extended.

You may, however, require a planning permission if you’re going to change a detached garage into a living space which could be a bedroom, small annexe or a living room.

Some houses excluded from the permitted development rights include flats, listed buildings, some new developments and most homes in a conservation area.

Did you try rendering a wall but it doesn’t turn out the way you would have hoped for? Or perhaps you’ve been watching your wall render gradually deteriorate over time. Regard of your purpose, learning how to repair render cracks on wall is usually a great skill to have with your home maintenance in mind. However, whenever these crack are too large or difficult, we’d recommend you call in a reliable professional who can guarantee the best results for help. In this guide, we’re going to take you through the wall render repairing process. Let’s have a look!

No matter how solid a building material is, over time it’ll yield to the elements. When it comes to wall rendering it may be a case of too much sunshine or a costly mistake in the application process, but in truth, it cracks just because it cracks.

In order to repair render cracks, you’d have to start with a removal of damaged or cracked render. You’ll have to remove all the render or just a small section depending on the area you’re working on. If you’re able to clean all of the existing render as well as the paint over it all (both old and new), then removing a small section would work better as it makes it look neat and redone. Upon the removal of the existing render, the next important step would be to remove all loose material as well. Once done, you can then leave for up to 2 days to allow any trapped moisture to come out. Unfortunately, if the rains you’d have to wait till that dries too before you proceed.

Once dried, you can buy a pre-prepared render mix which already contains cement, lime and sand. Mix a 20kg bag with 4 litres of water (or check the product instructions and follow strictly), the mix to a fine consistency. Render is quick to dry, so you’d want to apply within 30 minutes of mixing. Make use of a trowel to apply the render on the affected spots and blend with the surrounding area.