What does 'High Specification' really mean.

[SteamyTea]

I have seen the title term used, as well as similar terms like 'high end'.

To me they just seem like marketing puff, and have no real meaning.

If I was building a good house, it would have thicker walls, floor joists, stairs that bear onto a concrete floor. 

Basically things that give a very solid structure.

What I would not consider is anything that is easily replaced, bathrooms, kitchens, doors and windows, which are nice to have, but do not really add real value in my eyes.

A decent heating and ventilation system is important these days, but assuming the basic design is right, the replaceable heat source or MVHR unit is a bit of irrelevant as it can be changed.

 

What do others think constitutes 'quality'?

[Big Jimbo]

High end, quality, means that i have sprinkled my magic wand over it.

[SimonD]

20 minutes ago, SteamyTea said:

I have seen the title term used, as well as similar terms like 'high end'.

To me they just seem like marketing puff, and have no real meaning.

If I was building a good house, it would have thicker walls, floor joists, stairs that bear onto a concrete floor. 

Basically things that give a very solid structure.

What I would not consider is anything that is easily replaced, bathrooms, kitchens, doors and windows, which are nice to have, but do not really add real value in my eyes.

A decent heating and ventilation system is important these days, but assuming the basic design is right, the replaceable heat source or MVHR unit is a bit of irrelevant as it can be changed.

 

What do others think constitutes 'quality'?

 

I think you've just described properties in the opposite of the order most people put them in. Most people will think less about spending huge amounts of money on kitchens and bathrooms, but will then skimp on a heating system, unless it's a flashy column radiator..

[-rick-]

1 minute ago, SimonD said:

I think you've just described properties in the opposite of the order most people put them in. Most people will think less about spending huge amounts of money on kitchens and bathrooms, but will then skimp on a heating system, unless it's a flashy column radiator..

 

Agree, not how I look at it but I think most people think about touch points, so expensive fixtures and fittings that feel luxury (eg solid metal rather than plastic and name brand 'premium' appliances, etc.

[SteamyTea]

Bit of a tricky one.

At work, I often hear the therm 'I don't get paid enough to do this'.

I pointed out the other day that if they were working at their peak performance, extra money could not make a difference.

I feel the same about expensive items, which to me are generally add ons, not fundamentals.

An example of this is car tyres. I can get a Goodyear for £170, or the ones I have, for £60.  There may be a difference at the very extreme of performance, but as the ABS and stability control both work, I won't see the difference.  I feel the same about a bathtub, or a kitchen work surface (I use a chopping board anyway).

 

Maybe @Nickfromwales can join in as he often mentions the high spec places he works on. 

 

[Big Jimbo]

always try and fit, unbranded items. That way you can say they are handmade. One off, and seriously expensive. I think it was that Northern monkey @nod who said that all the people who viewed his house only ever asked about the boiling water tap.

[Big Jimbo]

I did some work in a place that was 120Million. It had some sort of very fancy Airstream door, that prevented any smell from the swimming pool, entering the rest of the property.

[Big Jimbo]

I built a vanity unit for an en-suite that was £12k. I'd call that high end. It was made of Wenge, marble, included lights, and a shaver socket.  Another had a feature glass panel between Two rooms, that cost £120k. Obviously my vanity unit looked fab, but the glass wall thing looked tacky. Russian Mafia money.

[Oz07]

Id say marketing gimmick used for the bling elements. 

[Crofter]

52 minutes ago, Big Jimbo said:

I built a vanity unit for an en-suite that was £12k. I'd call that high end. It was made of Wenge, marble, included lights, and a shaver socket.  Another had a feature glass panel between Two rooms, that cost £120k. Obviously my vanity unit looked fab, but the glass wall thing looked tacky. Russian Mafia money.

Wow. My entire bathroom cost £700.

[SteamyTea]

1 minute ago, Crofter said:

Wow. My entire bathroom cost £700.

That is a proper price.

Gets the dirt off just the same as a £10k one.

[Big Jimbo]

I totally agree. Its just people with limitless money, want things that nobody else have. Stupid Mansory Rolls Royce for £800k

[Crofter]

1 hour ago, SteamyTea said:

That is a proper price.

Gets the dirt off just the same as a £10k one.

I don't feel like I've cut any corners. There's genuinely nothing I would do differently even if I had a bigger budget.

 

(Actually there is- I'm never tiling an entire room in metro tiles again!)

[DownSouth]

With you on that - last place we used white mosaics in the bathroom. Every time I went in I could see every single uneven tile. This time it’s 600x600 tiles for us. 
 

High end of quality isn’t about where you shop for your kitchen to my mind, it’s about how thoughtfully the room is designed and how skillfully everything in it is fitted. Buying things that won’t date too - I never want to refit the kitchen again in the new house. 
 

I think quality is things that feel solid to touch too - so fire doors throughout with decent metal handles, quality taps that feel tactile. Just finished geeking out looking at Hansgrohe catalogues and working out what bathroom taps to get.