old house renovation

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viztopia

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I am considering rennovating a house that used to belong to my Grand mother and i would like to see if anyone thinks i am mad. The house is old - over 100, hard to know exactly how old but could be more than 150 years old. i suppose it is about 3,500 square foot. the walls are about a foot and a half thick. it hasnt been lived in for about 5 years. if i were going to go ahead with it basically all that i would be keeping are the four walls and the main stairs in the house and the roof slates as well as some fire places. My motive on rennovation would be as follows;
1) Costs (i know it will cost a lot to rennovate) My brother is building at the moment and for him to buy a site, get planning permission, prepare the site, put in foundations, do blockwork and put in a stone front to the house has easily cost €200,000 - allowing €100,000 for the site. I know i will not be saving this money but i can spend it elsewhere on the house
2) the house setting. the house is in a beautiful rural setting (may not suit everyone) with a long avenue approaching it surrounded by matyre trees.
3) when the house is complete it will look magnificent

Has anyone any thoughts on this or can they point me in the right direction?
 
Re: old house rennovation

the words labour of love spring to mind!

however, sounds like a real interesting project, you'd need to have a pretty experienced architect to help guide you through a project like this and a good builder.

you'd imagine the plumbing and electrics would need to be replaced, the roof structure is probably an issue and foundations may need to be addressed.

best of luck!
 
Re: old house rennovation

You should check if it's a protected structure, this can be found out from your local authority. If it is, there are special considerations that you'll have to be aware of.

To add to bamboozles post, the architect, engineer (if one required) and the builder should all have specific experience of old buildings, especially if it's protected.
 
Re: old house rennovation

viztopia said:
what role would an architect have in a house rennovation?
Click to expand...

a hugely important one... especially a conservation architect.

its vital to understand that you must not clad modern materials onto old buildings or you risk running them to decay at a must faster pace.

Old buildings such as you'd described must be allowed to breathe. This means a very careful selection of the materials to be used in a renovation. A whole industry existing that specialise in renovating old buildings...
 
Re: old house rennovation

Some people would argue that an architect might have no role in such a project, that in those days master builders built such dwellings, but its a bit like asking why you'd ask a specialist mechanic and/or a coach builder about refurbishing an old car. Someone who knows about such things should always be asked.

In particular, do not rely solely on the advice any builder who may have served his time in the last twenty years. He may not know about
(i) the kind of materials used [the type of mortar for example]
(ii) the many pitfalls of traditional detailing [how to repair lead valley gutters for example] and
(iii) the generic faults of older buildings [the absence of damp-proof courses and barriers, building in of timber joists, the use of timber binders in walling, etcetera.

A previous poster likened it to a labour of love. Fail to take competent advice, commission a building survey and get proper costings prior to purchase, never mind commencement and it might become a black hole into which you could sink far more than €200,000.
 
Renovating an old house is a labour of love. It is so much easier, warmer etc to move in to a new house (although those have their teething problems as well). You simply cannot find anyone today who can build a house like they did 150 years ago. When you live in and restore an old house, you become part of the local history, and surround yourself in character that impossible to replicate. In short, you either fall in love with it or become to resent it. Hopfully the former! It sounds like a diamond in the rough. I love our old house. It has become our hobby, and evey spare moment and penny is spent on it. Hope you take the plunge... we haven't regretted it. Well, not TOO often! :)
 
Speaking from experience, you should definitely get a conservation architect involved. It's a significant expense, but it will pay for itself and save you a lot of headaches. There are too many issues that could lead to you throwing your money away. Work out your budget with the architect, go over your design and materials options, and get the architect to put the project out to tender from suitably qualified builders. (This is standard). The architect acts as your agent during the project and will make all the significant decisions, in consultation with yourself and the builder(s).

Don't expect to save much money , if any, vis-a-vis a new build, though.

But by all means go ahead with it. You'll never regret it (once it's finished).

Best of luck.
 
Get a grasp on how you are going to finance it as this varies from Lender to Lender on a refurbishment proposition. Get a architect who can give you examples of projects that they have worked on,and see do you like the look of them.Get a plan and stick to it (The big costs are in changes that seem small).Get written Quotes for the work not estimates.Hold regular meetings with the Architect and Build something beautiful.As for the statement that modern tradesmen can not build to the standards of the past this is not true
what people are prepared to accept has gone down,so when building do not accept poor workmanship it will cost no more in the long term.
 
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