Renovations

#Renovation of Little Nook, Woodford, Essex

This project required a rear extension, loft conversion and refurbishment of the whole house. We gutted the entire house, replacing all electrics and plumbing, creating a large kitchen and bedroom with Juliet balcony.

This project got off to a really bad start, due to some really questionable drawings from the client’s architect. As we worked through the drawings we found numerous and serious errors, these included walls on the drawings that did not exist. Unfortunately the calculations for the significant new steelwork were based on the nonexistent walls, and so the structural engineer needed new plans on which to base his calculations. We totally re-designed the plans, making them workable, and the structural engineer was able to re-submit his calculations.

Restoration of Bois Hall Barns, Navestock, Brentwood.

The buildings were derelict barns. The farm had been sold off but the barns been disused for over 40 years. The walls were bowing and had to be pinned back together using a steel frame inside the walls.

The barns now have new roofs and new floors – all with under floor heating. A new sewage system has been installed with a septic tanks. Each roof is all vaulted, like a church giving an immense sense of space.

The original timber work from the eighteenth century is still in place and in good condition. It has been cleaned off by water blasting which is far gentler than sand blasting. After thorough drying out is has had chemical treatment to deal with any pests, followed by two coats of sealant.

The barns are grade 2 listed buildings, which involved a lot of restrictions which must be complied with during renovation. We liaised very closely with Brentwood council, and took many measures on our own initiative to ensure the character of the buildings were preserved:

• Much of the original timber had to be retained
• The requirements for specific window styles were very strict and we installed slim profile heritage style windows to comply
• We used wooden dowels in the timber structure to hide the bolts used to pin the structure securely
• When pointing, we used traditional lime mortar mixes from the period
• We found ways to keep a lot of original brickwork on show
• To match the original brickwork we sourced salvage bricks from reclaim yards all over Essex and Suffolk

Restoration of Hilltop Farm, Ongar, Essex

This project involved the complete restoration of a concrete framed and clad barn in Chipping Ongar, Essex. We retained the concrete support structure, stripping away the concrete clad roof and walls. We replaced the concrete wall cladding with block work, brick and timber cladding. For the roof we used Eternit roof tiles. These have the appearance of slates but are around 35% of the weight.

Inside this very roomy house we installed a beautifully designed kitchen and bathroom. The living areas and also very well appointed and include a cinema room with over 400 ceiling and skirting lights.

We installed the complete electrical system, including under floor heating, all plumbing, heating and sewage systems.