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In the beginning...


Stewpot

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Good Morning,

 

I'm not even at the start of this steep learning curve that I read about, and already need advice (I'll be posting elsewhere about that).

 

Building a place of my own has been a lifetimes ambition that I should have started 20 or more years ago (wait - where did it all go???). Now, my back aches, my knees hurt, and I keep leaving my glasses somewhere... I must be mad.

 

Any encouraging noises would be welcome.

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We are all mad. There will be times you wonder what you are doing and why.  But there are also times when you enjoy every moment of it, and would be nowhere else.

 

Prepare for a bumpy ride. Any other expectation would be false, but also prepare for some major achievements and a huge sense of satisfaction at "scratching the itch"

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Welcome @Stewpot to THE forum. Yes I should have started at least 30 years ago and I ache all over now!. The main thing I would say is enjoy the build as much as possible, I wanted to do everything but knew this would take forever so i employed a local builder to do the bulk of the heavy work and I did what I enjoyed and knew I could do well, this of course depends on your budget. There is no such thing as a stupid question, stupid is not asking and getting it wrong, we have all “been there done that”..

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Welcome to buildhub Stewpot!

 

You will have good days, you will have bad days. You will also have very very bad days:

 

Things will go wrong. Every day. Often multiple things a day. You just have to accept that shit will hit the fan and that it is your attitude to dealing with the problem that is key.

 

Also, you can never prep enough. Even with two and a half years for us to prep, sometimes you just don't have the experience to know what you're missing out.

 

Don't budget by the m2 - it is way too inaccurate and depends on 100s of choices you'll make in your build method and materials. It is useful on its own at the very beginning to convince you can do it cheaper than others!

 

Money on a quantity surveyor up front is well spent to give you a dose of realism when it comes to cost.

 

And your contingency? Go high. You will exceed your budget unless you know the industry. Same for your plan; expect and be prepared for it to take longer than you want it to.

 

Cashflow is king. Those problems above go far easier if you can just deal with it right away. Else it lags, stress builds up and costs also go up. 

 

Cash is also king. Some trades will discount if you ask. 

 

Trades are not your friends. You will be desperate for them to get problems sorted, and curse them in equal measure. Some are great, some are good, others are a nightmare to deal with. Find the people you trust, and get references for their work!!! Also, review their work promptly for quality. before they get near the end of a job.

 

Edit: I should finish with a positive note!

 

Yes it is mad, but I would do it again in a heart beat.

Same as pretty much anyone on here I bet. 

Edited by Visti
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In the beginning, there was a dream.

 

11 years, but getting close.

 

 

Self building is a roller coaster, how intense that ride is depends on what else is going on, how much your prepared to do/money to throw at it and what you are planning.

 

At this stage you need to become a self building sponge and soak up as much knowledge as possible (not just the technical stuff but what you want to achieve).

 

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Welcome ,my advice  is write down anything that you find good or relevant to your build in a little book as soon as you see it on buildhub or anywhere else so you can reference in future. One example is megabad  I heard about it on buildhub  it's a plumbing supplier 47 pages of baths !!!! Also YouTube is your friend with regard to instructional videos .

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Welcome.

I ache all over and not building. So probably nothing to do with it.

I have 5 pairs of glasses, it is annoying when I sit down to read and then realise my nose is holding up my driving glasses.

Edited by SteamyTea
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You ask for encouragement

...

Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

 The Road Not Taken, Robert Frost 

 

And if poetry isn't for you, then think of the time you will have to wonder ~ what if I had given it a go? All these years of 'What if'

 

Most here have given it a try. Not all of it pleasant either. But everyone we meet even for a brief chat realises that self building adds something extra to your life. Something more than just the house.

 

In my case, wrinkles.

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1 hour ago, Stewpot said:

Good Morning,

 

I'm not even at the start of this steep learning curve that I read about, and already need advice (I'll be posting elsewhere about that).

 

Building a place of my own has been a lifetimes ambition that I should have started 20 or more years ago (wait - where did it all go???). Now, my back aches, my knees hurt, and I keep leaving my glasses somewhere... I must be mad.

 

Any encouraging noises would be welcome.

Ian will be along shortly to tell you about creeping knees ?

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Welcome to the adventure.

 

Poetry?

 

"The stronger we our houses do build,

The less chance we have of being killed."

William Topaz McGonagall

 

(Said the person with left arm swathed in bandages having dropped a steak too rapidly into a stonkingly hot wok with some fat in it last week.)

 

On the encouragement side, the best value time you spend is thinking time at the start of the project - costs nothing, saves oodles later in the things you don't get wrong.

Edited by Ferdinand
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5 hours ago, Stewpot said:

Good Morning,

 

I'm not even at the start of this steep learning curve that I read about, and already need advice (I'll be posting elsewhere about that).

 

Building a place of my own has been a lifetimes ambition that I should have started 20 or more years ago (wait - where did it all go???). Now, my back aches, my knees hurt, and I keep leaving my glasses somewhere... I must be mad.

 

Any encouraging noises would be welcome.

Basically what everybody says above but the feeling of looking at your house and thinking "we did that "never fades and the sense of achievement is overwhelming and makes you forget all of the bad times (and there will be a few!!)

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Thank you all for your warm welcome.

 

It's hard not to be inspired by your comments and achievements.

 

I hope, soon, to be in the position to ask you no end of questions. The practical building work doesn't (yet) cause me concern - it's the formalities that have to be complied with first; my brain seizes up when I see a form that need completing.

 

And I'm going to inscribe that McGonagall quote over my front door, when it's all done.

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15 hours ago, Stewpot said:

And I'm going to inscribe that McGonagall quote over my front door, when it's all done.

 

Don't do that; reserve McGonagall for the kennel or toolshed. He is Scotland's national un-poet.

 

Find something from Burns or Shakespeare for the front door.

 

F

 

 

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51 minutes ago, SteamyTea said:

Did he every write anything about building a home disaster.

Apparently so. From an unpublished anthology:

 

It was a wild and storrrrmy night
And the wind did blow, giving us all a very terrrrible fright
It blew east and west, I do surmise
And the roof blew off, giving us all a surprise
So if you good people should e're build a hoose o' ye're own
Make sure the roof trusses are supplied by a company of renown.

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21 hours ago, Ferdinand said:

Welcome to the adventure.

 

Poetry?

 

"The stronger we our houses do build,

The less chance we have of being killed."

William Topaz McGonagall

 

(Said the person with left arm swathed in bandages having dropped a steak too rapidly into a stonkingly hot wok with some fat in it last week.)

 

On the encouragement side, the best value time you spend is thinking time at the start of the project - costs nothing, saves oodles later in the things you don't get wrong.

 

What doesn't kill you* makes you stronger.

 

*Nothing like a self build to showcase some novel new ways to accidentally kill yourself. Or at least temporarily rob you of your dignity :)

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