TheMitchells

We are looking to add a full width extension onto the back of our bungalow, after knocking down the flat roofed extension. We are also extending 6 ft to the side of the kitchen, to join up to the porch (behind the red gate). this will hopefully give us a good sized kitchen/dining/living area. It would need to be quite wide. The 'old' bungalow is about 6m (the two front bedrooms are 3.22 and 2.32m wide) with a 2.1m side extension for the new shower room. We had permssion to square off the kitchen in line with the shower room but our new plan will widen the lounge too, right across the back. It is a small bungalow so we hope to make the back into our main living space. The pitched roof would be over 8m wide. Is that too wide to pitch into the current roof and how easy would it be to make it a vaulted ceiling? I dont want to go to the architect with unrealstic plans. Thoughts welcome.

Looks great - I do like a tidy site too. Well done!😄

Well, after a night of rain, we checked the attic this morning and the wood to the side of the soil pipe was wet. It looked as if it was coming in from the roof, the far side side of the pipe so probably not the soil pipe/flashing at all. its going to mean removing the tiles off that corner of the roof and seeing if they or the felt is damaged, as well as re-doing the mortar along the whole roof line at the side of the house. It will give me a chance ot paint the wood too as it hasnt been done since we built the garage, 22 years ago. The pipe flashing could get re-newed too, as belt and braces. now i just need to find out how we can get scaffolding up there or if we can do it from ladders (unlikely).

Thats what we thought but nothing. we're waiting till heavy rain and we'll get up there to have a look. just clearing the insulation in that area is helping to dry it out. But there's been no rain for a few days now.

Hadnt thought of that. 😄

On reflection, I dont think the way it is done is causiing the problem. Partially as its been that way for nearly 40 years so if that was it, the house corner of the roof would be rotten. But also, due to the shape of the tiles, each side allow water under the flashing, but then it drains out as the tile curves back up, stopping it from getting to the actual hole. But i do think we should ask an expert to come and check it and maybe replace the flashing as it is either that or water going into the broken mortar.

We tried that with a hose directed onto the roof but he couldnt see anything coming in.

Yes, I can see that now. I haven't been up the ladder but will ask OH to check then look to find a roofer. Thanks.

Recently we have noticed that after rain, in the top corner of our bathroom (nearest the back corner of the house) the plaster tape has been coming loose, with some damp behind. It is around the sil pipe which runs up, into the attic and out through the roof. After clearing some space in the attic, we removed the insulation from that corner and could see the plasterboard was soggy within the surround of the soil pipe. The wood next to it is wet but the rest around is damp only, not that wet. So we next moved outside and looked at that corner of the house. I can see that some of the mortar under the roof tiles is missing and that is the side that gets the most rain. But that doesnt seem to be the reason the corner of the attic is wet - its in the wrong place. while we do need to get it repaired, hubby thinks it could be coming in from the flashing around the soil pipe. I have added some pictures. Any ideas how we can try sealing around the flashing or does it need to be re-done? We'll have to get scaffolding up to do the mortar (and paint the soffits) so are looking to do it all in one go. Luckily there is good verntilation in the attic and we hope that now the insulation is pulled away, it will dry. Unless we get lots more rain.

All those plants look very pretty in the 3rd from last photo. Or are they the neighbours? 😁 It all looks great and I have enjoyed reading about your renovation - particularly as I shall proably be doing exactly the same to ours in a couple of years when parents no longer need it. We recently had a quote from a consultancy firm to help with planning an extension and a good quality renovation. And while their costs were more than i'd hoped, they seemed to think we'd need around £200k to renovate to a high standard. I'd budgeted half that! We would never get that back on saved energy costs so we likely shall be doing it ourselves, using the information on here. No doubt I will be picking your brains for some of it. Thanks for all the information and ideas that i hope to use. 🙂

Not sure if this helps, but a few years ago a friend commissioned a company to provide a canopy for her garden but when it arrived, she could not open the patio door with the canopy in place. The company said she was responsible for checking the measurements and it was her problem. We went to court and said that she signed the documents but trusted the company to get the measurements right. She was not responsible if they measured wrongly. it was found in her favour.

Martin Lewis said last week that energy prices were being forecasted to go lower than they had thought! maybe down 16%.

I have seen here posts about blown beads being pumped into cavity walls under pressure but am unable to find it again😒. A friend has been renovating an old stone cottage and seemed to think that he could not use cavity wall insulation as the walls were uneven and beads would not fill the space. But I am sure i saw something on here about them being blown in with 100psi which may work. Does anyone have any recommendations for companies that may be able to help? We are on Oxfordshire/Northants border. or point me to the post..... thanks, in advance.

Any update to this with photo's would be nice to hear. As I am planning my own referb of 70's bungalow. 🙂

Hope you dont mind me resurrecting this post. I am looking to insulate elderly parents bungalow. We had a discussion with Eco Consultant but their costs and cost of EWI was far more than we want to pay/would earn back over many years, so we are looking to do it ourselves, hopefully with advice from here. The front of the bungalow is likely to be twin brick cavity with no insulation. (bricks laid lengthways) with an overhang from the roof. I am thinking of adding cavity wall insulation to the wall but I am also concerned about the lack of insulation at the top f the wall, under the soffits and into the attic, where we cannot reach to improve the insulation. Any pointers where I may find the best way of insulating that area? I am thinking we will have to remove the lower line of tiles/felt as mentioned by Roger above but what should be do then?? Thanks. I will try to get some photographs of the front wall and soffit when there on Monday.

I find Kilrock descaler is very good. We use it with boiling hot water and you can see the limescale dissolving. https://www.robertdyas.co.uk/kilrock-multi-purpose-descaler400ml there are other suppliers!

Welcome to the Forum! Looking forward to hearing about your renovation.😀

Has anyone tried one of these or know anything about it? I have looked for some figures into how much power it uses but cant seem to find anything. It just says how good it is. Currently selling for £50ish, depending on how many you buy. I'm wondering if its any good. https://equiwarmpro.co/

I guess I thought all that too - I doubt it will sort the problem out but it may get them through the winter. Re sorting out the window - I doubt it will happen but I will try to help them find someone who could do that. Whether they want to spend the money on it is down to them. I doubt they have much to spend and they have lived all their lives being frugal (to the point of poverty) that getting them to spend is hard. (To be fair, they are both near 80 and unlikely to change now). 😊

A good friend of mine lives in a very old terraced house (one of the oldest in town) and has a big probelm with her kitchen windows. The kitchen extension was done many years ago. It does not have foundations, has single glazed metal frames (apparently it is a particular type) and the Conservation officers will only allow new suitable wooden double glazed windows which she cannot afford. To help get her through the winter, i am making thermal curtains but would like to add secondary glazing to the outside of the main window (155 x 127cm) to help stop the problem of condensation running down the insides everyday, which has rotted the frame, both inside and out. It is so bad that a slug recently crawled in through the frame from outside! What products could help? I hope to screw a wooden frame to the outside and glaze it, so it can be removed in warmer weather so she has ventilation. (Though she typically opens the back door). But when i tried to find a solid bit of wood to screw it to, it was all a bit squidgy. We are worried about removing the whole window as the concrete lintel above, looks like it only sits on a couple of inches of a brick pillar each side and we are worried if the window is removed, the lintel would collapse! It is a huge mess with some temporary fixes in the kitchen still there after about 30 years! 🫣 I was looking at Ronseal Wet Rot wood hardener first then Wood Filler. But are there any other products which could be better? Would they work? I shall try to get some photos, if I can.

received this today - a little too expensive for me but i can see it being very useful in busy environments - offices/libraries etc. https://lifi.co/lifi-product/lifimax-compact/ LiFiMAX Compact: Reshaping the Way You Connect Experience blazing-fast speeds and unmatched security while enjoying our special launch discount. Order now and step into the future of connectivity. Order with absolute confidence – it’s completely risk-free with our 100% money-back guarantee! $1650 $1399

Listened to the TED talk abouot Lifi - it sounds the future of data transmission. Here's the company details. They have working technology now. https://www.purelifi.com/about-lifi/

We arent in a rush. He used to be but has retired and no longer qualified. However, he is very 'handy' and can turn his hand to most things.

Currently on Octopus Green Fixed till December, thank goodness as their bills stayed at £120 all through the energy hikes! That was one of my better moves. Insulation is probably rubbish apart from the new shower room we added in 2019. It was built in 1970's, we think. Our plan is to 'move in' when they dont need it any more and do renovation to high standard (near EnerPhit?). So thinking long term. Also need the PV to be adaptable to any future heating system we use.

Thanks, just read your post re the vertical panels. I need to work out the angle on the bungalow roof - it is almost perfectly south with no shading. The garage could be fixed pretty much any angle. At least the Tesla cost sounds reasonable. Will do more reading and YouTube watching re DIY.