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A five bedroom house for a growing family, set in a Kent village. Specification 1. Living Room Time Scale 6 month, from digging the foundations to moving in (April - September 2000) Gill and Graham Bedford owned the land they chose to build on. They set their budget and wanted to create a traditional family home. The bungalow, which occupied the land they bought, had been built in the 1930's and did not provide the right sort of accommodation for the family. Working with the Bedfords, the Self-Build House Co team was pro-active in developing their original plans and ideas, which resulted in subtle improvements to the aesthetic look of the house, and to its overall performance. "There were a number of practical issues that SBHC helped us to appreciate. It certainly improved the specification of the original plans," says Graham. "Now we are looking forward to moving in. We're really delighted, it looks even better than we imagined it would. |
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A four bedroom detached house with garage in Jersey. Specification 1. Living Room Time Scale 7 months (December 1999 - June 2000) Garage owner Keith Syvret and his family already owned this valuable plot of land on Jersey. "We were particularly keen to ensure that we built a highly energy efficient home," explains Keith. "The timber frame solution certainly ensured we achieved our objective! Being on Jersey, continuity of supplies was not always smooth but everyone at SBHC always kept me informed on progress. It was good to know that there was always someone on the end of the phone." "We are particularly please with the attic, which we have made into a playroom for the children. I am a little disappointed that we did not manage to stick within the budget, but then again we are delighted with the result and now we are really enjoying our new home." |
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A three bedroom home in Sussex for first time buyers and builders. Specification 1. Living Room Time Scale 3.5 months (June - September 2000) Michael and Emma Drew chose to build there first house together, enlisting the help of the family and contracting out only the skilled labour. The house is situated next to racing stables, beside an old windmill on the edge of the South Downs. "It was great to see the house take shape, the first day the kit arrived! In the morning there was a concrete slab...and by the end of the afternoon there was a house. Fantastic!", enthuses Michael. After living in a little flat together, we now have room to breathe! We have a lovely garden, a room to create a nursery for 'Junior' who is on the way; I have my own study and we have a spare room for friends to stay. "It is very much our house, we hated the idea of making do with someone else's ideas. It was a lot of work and while not every decision was perfect it is truly our house and our personality is stamped on it throughout. It's great to know there are no suprises behind the walls because we built them! "We did a lot of work ourselves, which with the help of SBHC enabled us to achieve far more than we would have managed. Even with the savings we went 10% over the build budget, which is not too bad. There are a few things that dropped of the wish list like the under floor heating, but we did not compromise on the things that mattered". "I know it will be easier the second time round, and next time I hope we can leave a lot of the donkey work to contractors. As newly weds and first home buyers and builders, I think we have done pretty well. |
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Orchard Views for Family Farmhouse Specification 1. Living Room Time Scale 4 months (July to November 2000) The Self Build House Co have chosen this attractive four bedroom home to illustrate the construction process for timber framed houses. Planning for Richard and Ruth Kelsey's house, situated in the Kent countryside with marvellous views over the surrounding orchards, began over two years before construction commenced. Then, in a period of just fourteen days, it went from flat concrete foundations to a watertight two storey structure. Our photographer recorded the process and you can see the stages illustrated to the left. The house will provide family accommodation and a home office complex with store. The garage is being built separately. |
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