Construction Company in Plymouth 01752 905030

For thousands of years people have building their own homes. They like getting involved and as a contractor I find it easier to work with the owners and provide exactly what they need for their home. Plus, it is much more enjoyable for us to help the homeowner make a final decision and create a home with ultimate comfort and security. Besides this, there are many other reasons why self build homes are much more beneficial to their owners.

You Have Choice and Control

Personally, I don’t like those commercial characterless buildings in UK that all look alike. From my experience, people are not happy with such homes. That’s why I see many people building their own homes, because they seek control over it. Self building gives you a unique opportunity to create a house that will fit your lifestyle and which you can call a home. Any changes that the owners require are easy to adapt and integrate and there is enough space for changes in the future. Self building actually removes all the restrains and limits when it comes to creating a comfortable home that will meet the needs of the owners and their own way of living.

Affordability

You don’t have to spend a fortune in order to build your home; it is actually an easy and affordable route towards tailoring a home according to your needs. You can expect to recoup more money from your investment into self building since there is no profit margin that you are operating. Also, if you buy a plot under £125,000 threshold, you won’t have to pay any stamp duty, no matter what is the value of the completed house. What is more, self building can save you plenty of money on VAT. New build housing has zero rating for VAT on labour costs, while the VAT charged on building materials can easily be reclaimed after completion. Another reason why self building is more affordable is that you can make your own decision about where to save or spend money. For example, you can choose not to build a deck at the moment and instead invest a bit more into a bigger kitchen. Also, you get to choose your own materials and opt for some less expensive ones that won’t even hurt the environment.

Chance to Make It Green

I find it essential to have a choice of creating an eco-friendly home. This is exactly what you get when opting for self building. You are in control of the building materials; you can choose which type of insulation you want in your house and you have the chance to completely devote your home to being friendly to our environment. Since everything is up to you, you can choose which sources of energy you want to use. For example, you can ask people like me to set up solar panels, wind mills or any other renewable source of energy. All this is closely related to affordability, since eco-friendly investments are bound to pay off in the long run and save you plenty of money.

Being Involved

If you have the skills and experience in building, why not help us? If you know how to mix concrete and pour foundations, lay your own bricks and get a great result, why not get involved? By being involved into building your own home from scratch, you will be absolutely sure that everything will go according to plan and that the end result with be satisfying. This is perfect especially if you have trust issues with other people. I am sure that every builder and contractor will be happy to get some help from an owner and exchange ideas in order to completely satisfy the customer.

You Will Work with the Experts

As a homeowner you get to experience, see and hear everything that is happening on the site and to talk to some experienced professionals. Many of my clients have actually enjoyed spending time with me and my colleagues since we all get the chance to discuss and share advice and experiences in building and designing. It’s all about making the customer happy, so why wouldn’t we all enjoy together.

If you are tired of commercial buildings and you want a home with a character, I believe these 5 benefits will convince you to get involved. For your best builders in Plymouth All of these services and benefits are available at Plymouth Builders on 01752 905030 so don’t hesitate to contact us.

Our Self Build Service can be found here

Groundworks Contractors Plymouth  01752 905016

A groundworker or groundworks are terms synonymous with the UK. In fact, you must have heard about them during a construction project. But do you know what the terminologies mean and their role in the building and construction industry?

Simply put, groundwork is the job or trade that is performed at the early and last ages of a construction. It’s aimed at preparing the site, laying the foundation, and also cleaning up after the project is over. The person who carries out this task is known as the groundsman and operates as a subcontractor. The following are the key services offered by a groundworks contractor:

Ground Investigation

Before undertaking any project, you are required to confirm several things. Firstly, you need to know its earlier use. Secondly, the ground should be solid and safe to support the proposed development. Thirdly, it shouldn’t be in a swampy or gazetted area. Fourthly, the construction shouldn’t cause any harm to the drainage, soil structure, ecology, or contaminate the land. Such investigations are undertaken by a groundsman who will give a final report based on the findings. A builder or constructor will only carry on if the report is positive.

Site Clearance

Before putting up a project, you need to make the land ready. This involves removing any trees, roots or stumps, demolishing any existing structures (buildings, walls, fences…), and removing the topsoil. A groundworks contractor ensures the target space is clear and this also helps him discover any flaws that were previously hidden by the vegetation or old buildings. For instance, he may discover that the land is not as level as it appears and leveling it will be necessary. This is achieved through erecting retaining walls or excavating some sections and moving the soil to the shallower ends.

Ground Stabilisation

After clearing and leveling the land, the next step is making certain the ground is firm enough to support the proposed building. The method or technique used is influenced by several things including the type of development, substructure, soil type and profile, local legislations and more. Retaining walls improve stability especially on sloppy surfaces and are made from reinforced concrete, blockwork, timber or bricks. A cheaper alternative when working on shallower foundations is using sheet piling. It entails inserting steel sheet piles using a hydraulic hammer and then interlocking them. Use of ground anchors (metal wedges attached to steel cables), attaching a mesh to ends of the bars, using geosynthetic materials are other ways of stabilizing the ground

Preparing the Foundation

Picture yourself placing a heavy brick or stone on sand or very wet clay soil. The weight of the stone or brick will displace some sand or soil, and this is exactly what will happen if the foundation is poor or substandard. A groundwork contractor creates the right foundation that will effectively and safely support the building. The suitability of the chosen type is determined by the size of the building, type of soil, water presence, sensitivity to vibrations, and ground conditions. There are two types of foundation; shallow and deep. The former is suitable for small loads or in areas where the soil structure is good; for instanced, stone or rock surfaces. The latter is used in areas with clay soils or to support heavy loads (large buildings).

Site Services

You should also expect the groundworker to offer services such as constructing the channels for the drainage, basic tunneling, creating utility connections, altering the electricity cables or water piping and more. All these services are done to create minimal interruptions or inconvenience and will ensure the builder will carry on without breaks and waste time. However, complex services such as deep tunneling, major alteration to the electricity cables, or pipe work will be handled by a specialist. This is why groundworks needs to be carried out by Groundworks construction companies who are approved.

Landscaping

After the building project is complete, the contractor is called back to finish off. He will get rid of unwanted materials and debris, re-flatten areas that are a little bumpy, or excavate some sections for a better outlook. The tradesman also resurfaces the car park, creates the footpath, driveway or roads. All these are aimed at making the building occupation-ready and also contribute to its final appearance. Groundwork contractors normally are paid on the basis of material, labour or plant.

Conclusion

You probably are amazed by the value added by a groundworks contractor. Without him, the project would take much longer and would possibly cost more. If you are about to undertake a project, it’s the right time you started searching for a good groundworker. Not only will you enjoy exceptional service and peace-of-mind but maximum satisfaction as well. Make sure your Groundworking contractor is part of the National Federation of Builders.

As Plymouth Builders, we are more than happy to serve as your OneStop shop for all groundworks. We are a team of dedicated and skilled individuals with many years of hands-on experience. Our company is registered and licensed to offer various services for domestic, commercial and industrial clients in Plymouth and its environs. To us, your satisfaction is what matters and this is why we offer a guarantee on our services. We also give a free quote. All you need is visiting us at www.plymouthbuild.co.uk or calling 01752 905016

. Talk to us and experience what stress-free groundwork service is about.

Groundworks Contractors in Plymouth   01752 905016

Local Extension Builders 01752 905030

Since owning a house is a never-ending project, many homeowners are constantly redecorating and renovating. One of the biggest trends in building today is adding an extension to the existing house. However, many of our clients engage in such a project without knowing the five important rules of extension building.

Building Regulations for Extensions

Before you engage in extension building you have to be familiar with all the laws and permits stated by the local authority. If you decide to extend your home, your neighbour might try to stop you. However, there is actually a legally established ��right to light’ that can override any planning permission. This law can actually stop you from blocking your neighbour’s windows but these are planning considerations which are relevant in limited circumstances. These special circumstances are relevant when it comes to adding an extension to your home which is in the centre, where all buildings are close together.

Another important thing is getting the Building Regulations’ approval. We have the need to tell our clients to pay attention to this since these regulations set the minimum requirements for fire safety, energy efficiency, structural integrity and many other key aspects that will ensure the safety of the building. The Building Regulations do exclude minor repair works, but when it comes to adding a shed, outbuildings and conservatories, you must comply with their regulations. Also, Building Regulations must be complied with when it comes to home extensions, such as bedroom, lounges, kitchen, loft conversions, installations of baths, WCs and showers, installation of new heating appliances and new chimneys or flues.

Balance Your Accommodation

Our clients usually just want to build an extension because they feel like they need more space in their home. However, all of you should aim to balance your living space. For example, when adding another bathroom you should aim to have at least one bathroom on the same floor as the main bedroom. So, when talking to our clients who want to do bathroom extensions, we always recommend taking into consideration the number of bedrooms. More precisely, you should have at least one full bathroom with a shower room on four bedrooms in your house, because that’s what most potential buyers are looking for and it can greatly affect the value of your home.

Removing Walls

Building an actual extension to your home is not always necessary. You can create larger and open spaces by simply knocking down a few walls which will create more visual space and feeling of a larger home. However, if you do want to extend your home, consider using fewer walls in the new addition. The whole property will be more spacious and organized the fewer walls it has. Separate rooms are easily defined with furniture and decorations, while open plan of your home will exude elegance and comfort.

Consider More Basement Space

Sometimes it is better to expand what you already have. If you have a neglected cellar, you can easily convert it into another living area and you won’t even have to get any permits. Creating new basement windows and external access won’t require any planning permissions, but you should always check with your local authority. When transforming your old basement into an actual living space with a few minor adjustments you will manage to add plenty of value to your home and free up some space in the main part of the house.

Your Conservatory as Part of Your Home

If you wish to add a conservatory to your house, you have to be careful with the design and Building Regulations requirements. Usually, they require for conservatories to be separated from the house by exterior doors. However, that can leave the new addition feel isolated and useless. In order to make the conservatory feel like a part of your existing home, you can set up double doors and leave them open. Another even better option includes the removal of the section of exterior wall that separates conservatory from the rest of the house. This way it will feel more comfortable and like a true extension of your home.

Every building company should aim to help their clients like we do; and that’s why we are sharing the most important rules of building an extension. These rules will be helpful both for some legal issues you have to care of and things regarding better aesthetics. If you wish to rely on our services, they are available at www.plymouthbuild.co.uk on 01752 905030.

How to build a brick wall

Before we start to instruct on how to build this wall, we need to inform you that any retaining wall over 600mm high needs the advice and instruction of a qualified builder, any other wall over 900mm needs serious consideration before an unqualified person takes on such a project.

This guide will give you the exact instructions needed to build a small garden wall 4 or 5 brick rows high.

Foundations

The first part involves marking out the area where the wall will be built so that you can start on the foundations. Also known as footings, if you have an already concreted area to build on then you may not need footings.
For this example we are building a wall that is 450mm high onto soil/loose ground

Dig a trench 200mm high and 350mm wide

Prepare some concrete using 6 parts aggregate (stone and gravel) and 1 part cement. Pour in your water and mix so you have a fairly wet consistency enabling you to evenly and easily spread the concrete out into your foundation trench.

Tip all your concrete into the hole and flatten the top with a trenching trowel. Tamping the concrete creates a rough rugged finish and helps the mortar to bond when starting the brickwork.

Leave the concrete overnight to harden

Building the Wall

It’s best to lay down a couple of rows of bricks without any mortar to assess exactly how many you need. You will also identify the parts of the wall where you may have to cut some bricks for a perfect fit.

Once you have the wall exactly where you want it on the foundations then you can set up a string line to mark your edge.

Making the Mortar

For this wall project we are going to be using a mortar made up of 3 parts building sand to 1 part cement. Just add enough water to bond it together creating a smooth consistency

Laying the Blocks

First make a line of mortar underneath your line to create the footing. “Butter” the end of the bricks, which need to press into any existing wall, with some mortar, lay onto the footing and press into the wall.

Using a rubber mallet and a spirit level make sure all bricks laid are level running along the line of the wall and also across the line.

Continue laying the first row of bricks using the mortar and leveling up with your long spirit level.

For sections where a full brick can’t be used you will need to cut the block into the required shape using a hammer ad bolster chisel.

Laying the Second Course

The next row of bricks are laid on top of the first in exactly the same way. Make sure there are no vertical gaps in line with the row below by staggering the position of each brick

As in the classic brick wall style!

Take the wall as high as it needs to be repeating this process. When you get to 3 rows high you are going to need to start “pointing” the mortar and neaten it up using a small pointing trowel and pointing bar.

Copings

Like the first row of brick work, your coping stones need to be dry laid on top of your wall to mark out how they are going to fit. Making sure that the gaps between them are not in line with the vertical gaps of the brickwork below.

This will also identify any cutting that needs to be done…..it is better to have this finished before you start mortaring the coping onto your wall.

Exactly like you did with the bricks the coping slabs sit onto a nice section of mortar and mortared in between each coping slab. Taping into place with your rubber mallet and spirit level so you have a really nice level finish to your wall.

Point up the mortar when all the slabs are in place and your wall is complete!

For your garden wall building project to be built by a professional, if you are in Plymouth or Devon call us here at Plymouth Builders on 01752 905030