Inspiration from Austria

By Chris Chambers

I'm currently on a skiing holiday in Austria. It's snowing/whiteout conditions and whilst my friends are enjoying early Après Ski in the Moose Bar, St Anton, I'm back at the chalet still recovering from last nights drunken mayhem. It strikes me that as well as doing ski resorts really, really well the Austrians also do house construction pretty neatly. I can't see the roof tiles of our chalet as they're covered in snow but the roof timbers are really, really substantial (to take the weight of all that snow) and made from an engineered, laminated softwood by the looks of things. The outsides of the buildings are clad in shingles (cedar or larch possibly) - I'm going to presume that Germanic efficiency means the shingles are sourced from local forests. The front door is a heavy, metal, well fitting piece of engineering (no expanding and getting stuck in wet weather). The garage door where the skis are stored is a heavy timber double door affair that is supported on a rail/guide system (no sagging or not closing properly). The bottom of the door is clad and sheathed in what looks like copper to prevent the bottom of the door getting wet and rotting. The lock is fantastic - a really pleasing, solid handle and deadlock system... indoors things are just as neat although basic - this is a holiday let after all. The windows are all of timber constructions and of course double glazed. There is not a hint of uPVC in sight - anywhere in the resort.

Clearly, construction methods here have to withstand extremes of conditions, so the heavy duty aspects are understandable. But it is the sheer quality of components and attention to achieving longevity that is so impressive. It's all worth bearing in mind next time you ask your builder for a roof repair and he uses some lame uPVC barge board quickly nailed into some weedy rotten timbers that really should be replaced...

Chris Chambers is the owner of Proudhouse Property Management and Wigglies Electrical Services. Creating exciting and innovative homes.

www.wigglies.co.uk
www.proudhouseproperty.co.uk
www.facebook.com/wigglies

The devil is in the detail.

By Chris Chambers

An acquaintance of mine recently bought a property in Dorset - a nice 1950's semi in a nice market town. It needs a bit of love but it is what I would regard as a fairly standard refurb (get a skip, get a crowbar, remove everything, plaster, install new electrics/boiler/kitchen/bathroom, decorate, paint the front door, neaten up the garden... Done). Sounds straightforward but of course it isn't - the real skill is being able to co-ordinate tradesman, timescales, stay on budget and create a home at the same time. As a Part P registered business, Proudhouse Property and Wigglies Electrical Services have been employed as the electrical contractor and this project highlights the need for good project management - it is really important to have a firm grip on what needs to be done and when - are you happy to have new surface mounted electrical sockets installed in a utility room before the plasterers have visited? Similarly, if you have a plasterer visiting to skim a room then be careful with your preparation and arrange for who is going to do what - and plasterers will plaster around (and not behind) any obstacles so make sure that absolutely everything is off the walls - sockets, curtain rails, cupboards, architrave, skirting etc. The boiler fitter will want to make his life easy and fit the boiler where he can easily get a gas supply, vent, and electrical supply to the boiler as well as water pipes - so if that location is in the kitchen then will that work with the kitchen design? Would a bit more effort and time (and a bit more money probably) get the boiler to another location (such as the utility room) and be a worthwhile endeavour? Afterall, you'll use the kitchen many times a day - the boiler will hardly ever get interacted with so why locate it in your most used room if you don't have to? There are many more examples of little details that need to be thought through but won't be considered by the tradesman; it is a sad fact that the majority of tradesman are simply interested in completing what they've been asked to do and then getting paid - so good communication is key to getting it right! The tradesman, although arguably in a very experienced position to do so, will not do a lot of the thinking for you. My advice, having been in the clients shoes on many occasions, is to not congratulate yourself on rapid progress until you're 100% confident that the order of work is logical and the outcome is going to be something you're happy to live with - and if it's not then stop and rethink! The tradesman work for you, not the other way round. A good project manager, whether that's the home-owner or an employed professional, should help create a home, not merely manage a process of refurbishment.

I recently went back to the house concerned and my client has done a great job! A few headaches along the way but patience and a few re-visits from some of the not-so-helpful tradesman have all paid off.

Chris Chambers is the owner of Proudhouse Property Management and Wigglies Electrical Services. Creating exciting and innovative homes.

www.wigglies.co.uk
www.proudhouseproperty.co.uk
www.facebook.com/wigglies