updating our cottage!

[jocelyn plummer]

Asking around our neighbours has produced a couple of good recommendations for the refitting of our bath room, One came to see us today--nice chap who spent some time chatting through my requirements and gave me a ball park figure of around £2K . He will send me an itemised estimate and is willing to visit a couple of times beforehand to make a plan of action. However--he is fully booked until the middle of November--!!! still, I think he will be worth waiting for. I still await another quote from a chap who visited 2 weeks ago. Another recommendation has led us to a multifuel burning stove installer so we expect a visit and quote from him on Friday.

Small steps, but what a long wait!!

 

[mims&pip]

I'm pleased to hear you are making more progress and £2k sounds far more reasonable Jocelyn

Plus the fact that he is booked up gives an indication that he is in demand, so hopefully as you say he will be worth the wait :wink:

Mims x

 

[jocelyn plummer]

One of the biggest problems is that all the tradespeople round here are used to working for second home owners, the mind set is that the house will be vacated for the duration of the works. I am struggling to get them to break the job down into manageable chunks to minimise the disruption. For example, we have the one small bathroom and a downstairs loo, as we cannot vacate the property for 2 weeks whilst the bathroom is done, I want to get the artex ceiling sorted first, then panel the side unaffected by sanitary ware , then have the electric towel rail installed, before tackling the bath, loo, basin and tiling on the other side. This would also help to spread the cost into our disposable income bracket! Doing the ceiling will be messy but at least there is nothing to worry about as everything is to be replaced anyway!!

 

[CliffordPope]

We have been planning the updating of our ( 1986/7 traditionally built,) forever cottage.

1986 seems incredibly modern to me - I'm struggling to think what could possibly need updating so soon?

 

[xanthe]

That is incredibly expensive.

I'm fortunate to have a fab Bulgarian who does exactly what I ask but will make sensible suggestions if there are areas I'm unsure on - like choosing between 17 different shades of off-white paint on the wall :roll: . He's not a conservation builder but has agreed to come down from London to do any joinery etc that might need doing and I'll probably get him to fit a new bathroom and/or kitchen.

Just to give an idea what I was paying (no VAT as cash in hand) in London in 2010/11 for size of job:

He charged me £5.5k to do a whole kitchen - rip out old, install vast numbers of IKEA cabinets and do all the plumbing, electrics and gas (bar the boiler). I had bought in all the materials. He laid a new oak floor, and the marble worktops and tiles and took all the cupboard doors home for a weekend and got his mates round to sand them and paint them in F&B.

The bathroom was about £2.5k which included ripping out the old and fitting new everything including laying a new floor in marble.

He sent a chap round to uninstall 7 sets of lights and install new ones for us the day before we moved and that was £100.

He and his team have been known to move in somewhere and do a major project rather than come out from London everyday.

Will the council take away things like an old bath/loo etc?? Ours had a free removal service for things like that.

We have used Rated People and had really good people round. However it might be more use in London than outside, although the electrician who came to quote here was via them.

Not sure if that is any help. Best bet is generally local recommendations.

Mr Bluster... :shock: :shock: :shock:

 

[skier-hughes]

I cut my plastic bath in half with an agle grinder and put it in the landrover to the tip.

 

[jocelyn plummer]

Interesting Xanthe---in our previous North Norfolk home, ten years ago I had a fantastic Polish chap in to do a lot of painting and decorating, cash in hand and a jolly good days work 8-6 non stop. Things have changed up here now. I do think we will get there in the end if I can get the task broken down into small chunks. On a good note the woodburning stove company came in with a very fair quotation, no mark ups on the necessary supply and a £200.00 contingency in case the brick work behind the existing fireplace needs attention to bring it in line with the required regulations .

I agree the build is not old but it is in desperate need of updating since it is stuck in the late '80's and '90's and definitely not to my taste!!!!

Skier, I assume you mean an angle grinder ? Yes, my Landy will take the bath in two halves!!!