What does an architect do and ...

[Lindyboo]

... yes, I know it sounds a daft question. We want to make some changes in the layout of our Victorian cottage, which has been mucked about with by amateurs for many years.

In particular I need to know which are the supporting walls, which bits have been added or changed and what is feasible/advisable to do in terms of making alterations to the existing layout. And if I can afford it, I'd be glad to have an architect draw up some plans for alterations. I've never used the services of an architect nor do I know anyone who has, so I'd like to know if I could expect to get the above sort of info from one and if their fees are likely to be scary.

In addition, do architects generally have contacts with reliable builders etc?

Ta

 

[Nemesis]

I have. He was terrific. Came up with great ideas and drawings and specifications which meant the whole process went rather better than if we hadn't used such a professional. The cost wasn't too much in the overall scheme of things, and you can opt for a basic level of supervision of the whole thing, although I'd go the whole hog and get the full service.

An architect can help smooth the way with the local authority, and also yes frequently knows builders etc.

 

[Gareth Hughes]

... yes, I know it sounds a daft question. We want to make some changes in the layout of our Victorian cottage, which has been mucked about with by amateurs for many years.

In particular I need to know which are the supporting walls, which bits have been added or changed and what is feasible/advisable to do in terms of making alterations to the existing layout. And if I can afford it, I'd be glad to have an architect draw up some plans for alterations. I've never used the services of an architect nor do I know anyone who has, so I'd like to know if I could expect to get the above sort of info from one and if their fees are likely to be scary.

In addition, do architects generally have contacts with reliable builders etc?

Ta

Don't be put off by the horrid pictures:

http://www.architecture.com/fileLibrary/pdf/01_Finding_revise_v3001.pdf

and some useful info (though it makes it all sound far more complicated than it really is):

http://www.architecture.com/go/Architecture/Using/Finding_291.html

 

[Nemesis]

Next week is Architecture Week - and as part of that in the past many architects have given some time for free to discuss potential jobs with people... I need to check further but see if this is happening again this year?

 

[Penners]

An architect should certainly have no trouble answering all your questions about what is/isn't feasible, as regards your plans for your building. He/she should also be able to tell you what has already been altered from the original structure.

And of course he/she will be able to draw up plans, apply for the appropriate consents, appoint a suitable builder and project manage the work.

As to the scariness of the fees, the only way to find that out is to ask! Have an initial meeting with your chosen architect, outline your thoughts and your requirements, tell him/her what you want them to do, and ask for guidance on what their fees are likely to be.

 

[Nemesis]

It's a percentage of the work as I recall - depends what sort of service is required.

 

[alice]

When I started some recent remodeling on my Texas house, I called 4 architects. My job entailed remodeling a garage space to living space and adding a flight of stairs. I was concerned about the design of the stairs as they were in a tricky space and wanted a professional to design them so that there was enough headroom, even steps, etc. I had read promotions from the local architectural societies that no job was too small and to give them a try. So I did and my $15K (£7,500) job was too small for any of them to bother with.

On the other hand, when my mother in Lowestoft bought the flat directly above here and want to add a flight of stairs between the two flats (listed building, as well) she was able to hire an architect for a very reasonable £500 to design the stairs, make sure the engineering for creating a hole between the floors was sound and move the project through the permits and conservation offices. The final product came out much better with his input and she's comfortable knowing the stairwell is soundly engineered.

The moral, I suppose, is that you don't know what the answer will be until you ask the question, and you don't know whether an architect will be worth it until you interview him and see what he says.

alice

 

[Nemesis]

http://members.riba.org/archweek/full.asp

 

[Penners]

Lindyboo - if you haven't already done so, do check out Nemesis's link above. A one-hour consultation for a £40 donation to Shelter sounds like a good deal.

 

[stickybeak]

.

 

[Gareth Hughes]

Lindyboo
As one who has worked for one of the better conservation architects (altho I am an historic buildings researcher/consultant, not an architect myself), a couple of pointers:
1 Make sure your architect is a conservation architect. While the RIBA 'Find an Architect' website has a register of Architects Accredited in Building Conservation (AABC), not all of the architects listed there actually have any formal training in conservation work. Question your shortlist of conservation architects to make sure they have done the kind of project you propose. For example, some might be brilliant at sympathetically converting Georgian townhouses into flats, or devising schemes for converting churches into chi chi 'duplex apartments', but know very little about timber-framing.

I agree with the second part of that statement, but the AABC register should not be taken seriously. And "formal training" in conservation work is no guarantee that they'll be any good.

Ask instead for examples of previous similar work they've done (if their clients for those jobs are happy, they should have no difficulty in providing a reference), and go on that basis, rather than a paper qualification.

 

[Nemesis]

But - is the rather mucked about with Victorian cottage in question listed? I can't recall that it is? Is the purpose of all this to return it to some time past or simply to make it more aesthetically pleasing a place in which to live?

(If I had a pound or several for every purported history I've read from a Historic Buildings Consultant as part of an application for LBC which was so very wrong I'd be rich indeed, but that's another issue entirely.)

 

[stickybeak]

Good point- it may not need LBC. But as we all know, an historic building however 'mucked about'- perhaps even more so where unsympathetic alterations have taken place without the benefit of listed buildings legislation- is just as much deserving of respectful treatment.

As for buildings histories which are 'so very wrong'- in the commercial environment, you only have as much time to research and write a history as the client is willing to pay for. In the case of unenlightened clients- those with a commercial interest in the building for example- they see the 'conservation' element as an unwelcome distraction from their real purpose, which is to turn it around as quickly as possible. Where one has unlimited time to persue the 'truth' of a building, clearly the result is going to be much more satisfactory. One such has been a pet project of mine for the past 6 years and I would say I have probably, in all, spent five or six weeks in total - and about £1000- getting all the information available anywhere. This is a luxury most owners cannot afford. Interested personal owner/occupiers, like Lindyboo, might like to take on the detective work as a long-term project, just for the sake of it.

 

[Lindyboo]

Thank you all for your recent input, which I find interesting and helpful.

The cottage is not listed and local knowledge informs me that it was originally built to accommodate a falconer. I found the property marked on an (online) ordnance survey map of 1891, but haven’t yet had time to do any research in local libraries etc to trace it further back. As Stickybeak says, it’s a project that could be done out of interest, rather than for ideas for changes to the house.

The property is modest, to say the least (ramshackle also describes it well) and my chief aim is to get it to a state which meets modern living requirements but retains some level of sympathy with the age of the house - I suppose that’s what a good many people want when they take on older places. I’m definitely not looking for ‘the Good Life’ – no Aga’s, old Bovril signs and Welsh dressers, nor chickens in the yard for me. I know the purists will probably cringe at that, but we bought it for its beautiful location and because the house, in spite of its numerous flaws and DIY courtesy of Frank Spencer, has a quirky charm and overall is the right size for us. The layout however appears to have been altered to its detriment over the years and needs improving.

Foolish though it will sound, I suppose my baseline for making changes is the large number of period holiday cottages throughout Britain which I’ve stayed in over the years. The better ones, in my personal view, have struck a balance between modern needs and ‘period charm’. They tend to have been neatly re-plastered, have decent central heating and kitchens which accommodate all the appliances for modern life. They often retain original doors/skirtings and the like, though none I’ve yet found have wooden windows (sorry, Biff). I realise that for some, retaining original doors (of which there appear to be none in this house) is just not enough, but we didn’t take this property on because we wanted to recreate the original, nor create a pastiche of it. Functional, comfortable and with a moderate nod toward its period will do. I’m conscious that owners of period properties have a wider responsibility and as far as time, health and money will permit I’ll do what I can.

Maybe I should have a party and invite you all so you can see it for yourselves – bring a bottle and a paintbrush (also a digger, a few pantiles, an electrician who actually bothers to turn up, a plumber likewise, a roofer …)

 

[Penners]

I should have a party and invite you all so you can see it for yourselves – bring a bottle and a paintbrush

Damn! Just as I've developed this pain in my DIY muscles.

 

[Nemesis]

I wonder what you consider a 'purist' to be?

I haven't any Bovril signs, and no chickens either, but I do have a healthy respect for traditional building materials etc as they work best in period buildings and in the main give the sort of texture which modern materials cannot.

Messing about with chemical injection etc is never a great idea either.

You don't have to have wonky plaster (not all period buildings did) but I would suggest lime is still best for all manner of reasons.

uPVC windows though look rubbish, are rubbish, won't last, are unsympathetic, environmentally lousy, and shout to me BAD TASTE and an inability to appreciate aesthetics.

http://www.bricksandbrass.co.uk/diy/conserv/consbath.htm


http://www.georgiangroup.org.uk/docs/cases/index.php?id=3:62:0:0


Some interesting photos and discussion here:

http://www.archiseek.com/content/showthread.php?t=3267&page=5

 

[Penners]

I haven't any Bovril signs, and no chickens either

Ugh! Charlatan!

 

[Nemesis]

Tame injured pheasant we seem to have adopted is the best I can manage.

Not a Bovril sign in sight. Plenty of paintings though.

 

[stickybeak]

Hi Lindyboo
Returning to an earlier point, if you are dealing with an historic building (one more than 100 years old), whether listed or not, you will still encounter the same problems as exist for listed buildings. The difference is that you will not have to apply for LBC for the works that you do. It may be that it has been turned down for listing on the basis of all the unsympathetic work that has been done to it in the past.............! but that is a moot point.
The important point to make here is that you will not only do the building itself a favour by adopting traditional materials and techniques for its repair and rehabilitation, but add very considerably to its lifespan - and its value inthe long run. On that basis, then, I still recommend the services of a conservation architect (try 'Seeking Specialists' on the left, and then 'Architectural Services') to advise you on what needs to be 'undone' to preserve what remains, and how best to conserve the fabric while improving it to meet modern conceptions of comfort.
I'm very happy to come to Suffolk and wield a trowel (for lime mortar, of course!), a (limewashing) paintbrush, and lay (sheep's fleece) insulation in the roof...I sound like a purist! but leavened with a certain pragmatic sensibility, promise.
Can I cordially invite you to look at the 'sticky' towards the top of the Forum threadlist entitled RICS 'One in Five Roadshow'? You might find it illuminating- as indeed, you might have done the roadshow, if any were still to be had. Does anyone (Stephen?) know if there will be any more?

 

[Nemesis]

Given the Vic buildings turned down for listing (or only listed after a major struggle...) it's really probably not likely it was ever considered... but you must of course know that it's very hard to get later 19th century buildings listed? Far greater selection happens?

Or maybe you don't know that...

Not sure 100 years is such a cut off point for history either! Wonder what is? Why do you consider only buildings more than a hundred to be historic?


But yes it needs to be given sympathetic treatment. Not a totally modern makeover in modern materials. They will in the end be at best unsympathetic, at worst damaging.

A SPAB Homeowner's course is always a good thing to attend IMO.