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A porch is a small and low structure (with a roof) located at the main entrance of a building or house. It’s typically without a window (although newer variations may come with one) and can either be screened-in or enclosed to prevent unwanted access from insects and extremes in weather. In addition, some homes may have a three-season porch or sun porch. This may be situated by the side of the house and covered by the roof overhang - they’re usually screened in to offer good access all year round.

Generally, porches serve a wide range of purposes. They include:

• Provision of an outdoor living space to relax during the summer months

• It’s an informal extension of the the living room.

• It serves as a great place for social gatherings especially in small towns.

• You can take off your dirty shoes and dry a dripping wet dog before entering into your living room.

• It can be incorporated for relaxation purposes and watching street activities.

• It can serve as a reception area for guests.

• It can also be used for outdoor storage.

Pros & Cons Of A Porch

Pros

• Due to the fact that they’re covered, porches may require little maintenance practices.

• It can go a long way to improves the curb appeal of your property.

• It protects against the extremes of the weather.

• It can be constructed using a wide range of materials.

Cons

• It does not improve the use of the property

• It can be quite expensive to install depending of the material required as well as size of the porch.

• It does not add to the value of the home unlike several other home improvement projects

• It may not be safe to be used by a child or pet.

It depends on the material you use, but if your flat roof is installed correctly it should last for at least 10 years, and at least 20 if a material other than felt is used. Always question a roofing company when they quote to find out what materials they use and what guarantee's they offer.

The short and simple answer to this question is yes, you can build a room in your garden. In fact, if you want an additional space for a living room, dining room, games room, study room or perhaps you want something as cool as a pool house, then looking at your garden for a solution may just be the perfect answer to your need for an extra outdoor living space.

Outbuildings such as garden rooms do not usually require planning permission as they’re usually covered by the permitted development. As a result, making it even a lot more attractive to homeowners who would not like to pass through the stress involved or pay the money required to submit an application for planning permission. However, if you need your garden room to be covered by permitted development ( if it’s not a listed building or in a designated area), you must follow these guidelines:

✓ The garden room shouldn’t be in front of your home or property.

✓ The total area of your extensions, sheds and outbuildings ( which includes your garden room), must not go beyond 50 percent of the total land area surrounding your property.

✓ It must be a single storey that’s less than 3 metres high ( 4 metres for a dual pitched roof). And it must not go beyond 2.5 metres in height if the structure is within 2 metres of your boundary.

✓ The eaves must not go beyond 2.5 metres above ground level.

✓ It must not feature a balcony, veranda or any raised platform

✓ It must not be a self contained living accommodation.

The position of your garden room will be partly determined by the space available in your garden. If you need it to link it to your utilities then positioning it a bit close to your main house would be a cost effective choice unless you’re using off grid sources of power, heat as well as water.

Cockroaches, bedbugs, fleas, mice, rats, mosquitoes, spiders, squirrels and moths are just a few of the long list of pests that home and property owners have to battle with on a regular basis. Failure to hire the services of a professional pest control will not only heighten your worries about your property potentially getting damaged, but you may also be faced with serious health issues if care is not taken.

We all know these pests are everywhere, they’re scavengers digging through ash cans, dirt and even sewage lines to find food. And as a result, they are able to carry and transfer different disease-causing allergens as well as bacteria. If you live or work in a building that’s infested with pests then you’re automatically predisposed to facing various health issues. These could come in form of skin rashes, allergies, respiratory problems and more. With all these aforementioned terrific impact of pest infestation, the importance of getting a professional pest control simply cannot be overemphasized.

If you wish to hire a pest control professional, then you may also be worried about the price. Well, generally, pest control prices offered will largely vary based on a plethora of factors. These factors include where you reside, the kind of pest you want to remove, the scale of one’s infestation, the number of visits you require, the pest control company you hire as well as how large your home is. Generally, if you’re dealing with spider infestation in a four bedroom house, you can expect to pay within the range of £200 to £230 to have the spiders controlled. Meanwhile the price for the control of cockroach in the same house will cost within the range of £230 to £260. Overall, you can expect to pay within the range of £80 to £350 depending on the factors earlier stated.

Not if your current aerial is in good condition and receives a good signal. If you don’t currently get a good signal, you may need to upgrade or relocate your aerial to receive HD channels or if your TV is not HD ready. You may need to upgrade your television if this is the case.

In the UK, conservatories are a very popular structure that you’ll find on almost every home or property. Not only do they offer owners an extra living space where they can relax and enjoy the breathtaking view of their gardens, but they also go a long way to add value to their property. However, due to the fact that conservatories are built mostly with plain glass, their usage is highly influenced by the weather outside. During the summer months, they usually get swelteringly hot while during the winter months they can easily get too cold to withstand. As a result, the usage of a conservatory is normally limited to only a number of months in a year. And that’s exactly where an air conditioning system comes in!

If you wish to derive maximum benefits from your conservatory all year round, then you simply can’t afford to overlook installing an air conditioning system for a bunch of reasons. In this post, we’re to consider a few reason why conservatory air conditioning is important. Let’s take a look!

• It helps you enjoy your conservatory all year round. What’s the use of building a conservatory if you can’t use it throughout the year? With an air conditioning system, you can create a comfortable and relaxing environment for your conservatory.
• It prevents overheating of appliances. Do you know appliances like PCs, mobile phones and the like can be spoilt when there’s too much heat? If you happen to have some of your appliances in the conservatory, installing an air conditioning system inside the structure will protect your appliances from overheating when the heat turns up.

Installing a plasterboard on your ceiling is a cool way to modernize your property. Over the past couple of decades, there has bee an increasing number of trends associated with plastering of both walls and ceilings such as rounded edges and textured plaster. However, in recent times, home and property owners are now looking to install more of sharp edges. If you’re planning to plaster your ceiling, you’d probably want to know just how much this project is going to cost. If yes, then you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’ll give you a rough estimate of ceiling plastering costs.

There are a plethora of factors the can influence the price of plastering your ceiling. These pricing components includes the following:

✓ Size. As you would have expected, the larger the job, the more the overall cost. However, the price per square metre will reduce which means that the cost of plastering a small ceiling space will cost more per square metre than the cost of plastering a larger ceiling space per square metre.

✓ Materials. We have a wide range of plasterboard available in the market. If you need a fire retardant, acoustic or other types of specialist plasterboard, you can expect to pay higher than standard plasterboards.

✓ Location. Just like many other home improvement projects, the cost of plastering ceiling varies greatly throughout the UK. Places such as London and the South East have the highest prices due to the high standard of living as well as greater demands.

In general, to plaster a ceiling (small 2 m x 2 m) - overboard and plaster will cost within the range of £200 to about £300. Also, to plaster a ceiling (large 5 m x 6 m) - overboard and plaster will cost within the range of £400 to about £600. The average plasterer’s daily rate (including material) is about £180 to £300 and ceiling plastering cost per square metre ranges between £20 to £40.

Gravel driveways are very popular in the UK for a reason. Not only do they provide a more natural look than other driveway surfacing options and happens to be quite affordable, but they’re also very easy to install and maintain. And more importantly, they have a great range of colour scheme to match and compliment your brickwork and plants to make for an alluring outdoor living space.

Are you also planning to install a gravel driveway? You’ve come to the right place! If you’re a competent DIYer with confidence, then this should be as easy as they come. If otherwise, then it’s advisable to hire a reliable professional who can guarantee the best results for help. In this guide, we’ll shed more light on the gravel driveway installation process. Let’s get started!

✓ Prepare the floor. To get a level and flat floor, you’ll have to clear the area of all weeds, paving slabs, block paving etc. Get a good foundation material to apply to the surface if you have an uneven surface or if you have potholes to fill.

✓ Stop the weeds. You’ll have to apply an anti-weed membrane so you won’t have stubborn weeds growing through your finished driveway.

✓ Spread the gravel. In the process of purchasing your gravel, ensure to select handy bags, bulk bags if tipped loose. If you go for the bags there may be a need of wheelbarrow to help move the gravel around, however with a tipped loose you can have the gravel chippings tipped directly on to the driveway.

✓ Make use of the hose. It’s possible that when your gravel arrives, it’ll be be dusty. Make use of an hose to run over the driveway to bring out the true colours of your driveway.