Just looking into the possibility of extending our house at the back, as have a large garden doing nothing useful, but in need of a dining area - either by building a brick attachment with roof thing, or having a conservatory. Which one is best?

Has anyone done this for a semi-detached, is it worth the hassle, how long did it take and how much did it cost roughly?

Thanks :)

There is not a huge differance in cost between the two but a conserv' will work out cheaper. A brick extension requires planning and building permision which requires plans to be drawn up. Expect to pay around £15,000 depending on exactly what you want, a conserv will cost about £10,00 depending on size. Give more details and i will be more accurate.

Hope it helps.

a conservatory could be between 5 and 15k, depending on size and complexity. It cannot be open to the main house though, it must be seperated by an external lockable door.

A brick extension would (these are estimates i've made for myself before) be between 10 - 20 for a single storey and 20 - 40 for a double storey, depending on size etc... And as noted already would require planning permission if above a very small size.

I know someone who is having a garage built on with a bedroom/bathroom above. They have been quoted £32K for just the building work (including wiring/plumbing/plastering I think).

Hi

We had a single storey Kitchen/dining extension added to our house full width of back approx 4'5 metres and 2.5 out! It did not need planning permission or architects drawings because our builder (a family friend) did it under a building notice/building regs only - Check with builder/council first it can be done this way and saves a packet but usually they don't tell you!!!

Obviously every property is differant so save yourself a lot of money by doing good research first!!

Originally posted by Cyclone
a conservatory could be between 5 and 15k, depending on size and complexity. It cannot be open to the main house though, it must be seperated by an external lockable door.

A brick extension would (these are estimates i've made for myself before) be between 10 - 20 for a single storey and 20 - 40 for a double storey, depending on size etc... And as noted already would require planning permission if above a very small size.

Obviously depends on size, type etc. but these are realistic figures for an 'average' conservatory or extension :)

A conservatory and an extension are both covered by the same rules under 'permitted development rights'. This limits the size of an extension/conservatory you can have before planning permission is required. It's calculated on the increase in volume, but I don't know the threshold figure off the top of my head.

To clarify cyclone's point - IF a conservatory is open into the rest of the house it will need to conform to the new regs for heat emmission that applies to all new windows. If you can prove it is thermally isolated from the rest of the house you can have it made of the cheaper heat-leaking glass.

And buy a couple of copies of the 'homebuilding and renovating' magazine for loads of useful advice :thumbsup: (or look a relevant edition up in your library)

I thought all conservatories were excluded from the planning permission if under a certain fixed size. Whereas an extension (or conservatory open to the main house) needs planning permission if above something like 7% of the floor space of the house when it was built.

Conservatories are exempt from planning permission in most cases but you must inform the council that you are doing one and they will tell you if planning or building regs are required in your case. To get away with no planning permission the conservatory must not be open to the main house as mentioned before, not have a permanent source of heating, not have a toilet and not be used to sleep in (so no nodding off on a Sunday afternoon).

The main thing that you have to worry about is the Party Wall Act which is being enforced more theese days and if you don't follow the proper procedures then your neighbour can make you stop work and there is nothing you can do.

Building notices are ok if the structure is straight forward however building control officers are not keen on then because they have to decide if things are ok, so you need builder that you can trust to do the job properly in the first place.

But you still have to apply to planning and if they say they want plans (which they will) you have to provide them which is why builders use building notices for work that doesn't need planning consent.

Hope that helps a bit.

Originally posted by Cyclone
I thought all conservatories were excluded from the planning permission if under a certain fixed size. Whereas an extension (or conservatory open to the main house) needs planning permission if above something like 7% of the floor space of the house when it was built.
Not floorspace - volume.

Here we go: (dug out the assignment on it from last year)

Planning Permission Not Required For:

*A loft conversion

*The insertion of roof lights

*A roof extension up to 50m3

*An extension of up to 15% of the original volume of the property or
70m3 (including a roof extension)

*A 2 storey extension
- <15% original volume
- roof height no greater than original
- if within 2m of boundary not to exceed 4m high

* A single storey extension with pitched roof of height not exceeding 4m to ridge (and conforming to above points)


Source: Homebuilding and renovating mag :thumbsup:

So why do you need permission on a porch if over 2.99m2?

Because it exceeds the building line and may cause an obstruction to your local neighbourhood watch members or somebody driving down the street???

Local building control mystifys me. they decide one thing then another and you can't do anything about it!!!

Originally posted by pablocouk
Local building control mystifys me. they decide one thing then another and you can't do anything about it!!!
My mum lives in Cambridge. You think we've got it bad :rolleyes:

I do a lot of work in Bassetlaw and they are a nightmare, Sheffield are much better but Rotherham are the best around here.

Originally posted by pablocouk
So why do you need permission on a porch if over 2.99m2?

You don't! (http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/england/genpub/en/1011888236897.html)

OK. Splitting hairs here, but you only need permission if it's over 3m2 or 3m high.

The planning regs say that it has to be under 3m2 internal volume which is taken at 2.99m2. Trust me i have had this conversation, try it with building control, i did and lost!!

Originally posted by pablocouk
The planning regs say that it has to be under 3m2 internal volume which is taken at 2.99m2. Trust me i have had this conversation, try it with building control, i did and lost!!

was one cubic centimetre going to make that much difference?

Originally posted by Cyclone
was one cubic centimetre going to make that much difference?

Knowing how some of them work then yeah there's a chance :hihi:

1st Fact of Building Works.

It will ALWAYS be just more than you budgeted for NEVER just less.

2nd Fact of Building Works.

You will very quickly tire of people saying..."it'll be worth it when it's finished....nearly there now...etc"

3 rd Fact of Building Works.

Neighbours who say they have "no problems" with skips, vans, mess, disruption etc... are lying and will hate you for ever behind your back.

....not that I'm bitter or owt!

I will be renovating my bathroom soon. I will do new tile around the bathtub, new linoleum, new paint, new fixtures and sink......basically all the bathroom surfaces, with the exception of the bathtub, will be new. I've done all these things (tile, linoleum) before and I am comfortable with it, but I've never done them all together as one complete project. Do you have any suggestions as to where to start and what order to do these things in?

We used this company crossbow developments for our house extension
they took all the hassle out of dealing with the paperwork & the builders

http://www.home-extensions.com/

A small house extension may cost around £15,000 to £20,000 (not including interior fit-out). More detailed cost information can be found on this page:

http://www.architectureforlondon.co.uk/house-extension-cost.html

There is not a huge differance in cost between the two but a conserv' will work out cheaper. A brick extension requires planning and building permision which requires plans to be drawn up. Expect to pay around £15,000 depending on exactly what you want, a conserv will cost about £10,00 depending on size. Give more details and i will be more accurate.

Hope it helps.

Hi guys, actually you dont always need planning permission for an extension, there are ways you can work it out, after googling for a minute i found this site, click the planning permission button at the top, if will tell you everything you need to calculate if you need to draw up plans or not.

Hope this helps!!!!!

Extension Costs (http://www.extensioncosts.co.uk) - http://www.extensioncosts.co.uk

Have a look at this loads of info on there about what permission you need for extensions use the virtual house to find out

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/hhg/houseguide.html

Dear sirs,
We are architects local to your area who specialise is residential extensions & conversions.
We offer a free feasibility site meeting where we will assess your requirements providing you with an estimate for build costs and design costs.
Our company are unique in offering fixed rate fees for extensions.
Please visit our website for more information, or give us a call to arrange a free no obligation site visit.

Regards

Ben Winslade
Cero Architecture
T - 0114 2331302
M - 07525373731

Hi

I might have to move to Leeds and I am just looking around. I am a builder specialized in house extension.

Do people still build and extend houses in ?

Thanks

Hi All,

I think the above link to the planning portal is really useful - it's something I use regularly at my architectural practice.

I don't know if this is of any use to those that have already posted, but it may be for those that find this thread in the future. We've just finished developing a Construction Cost Calculator on our website, which allows users to input approximate sizes of proposed spaces, the type of construction, room types etc; the calculator then generates a budget cost. This is the same tool as I use in the office to develop budget figures for small projects.

You can find the tool in the 'Residential' section of our website, which can be accessed through my signature below.

If you're interested in generating an idea of architectural fees, you can use the construction cost figures to calculate an approximate architectural fee - it's all part of the same calculator. It's explained in more detail in a feature on our website called 'Counting the Cost', which is also in the residential section.

The calculator is free to use. I hope it helps!

Cheers,

Kris