[Closed] New house - work needed - what first?

Start with the bathroom 😕

Cracking carpet, chair, curtain combo!

Jeepers! How much!

It's Harrogate so yes, expensive.

Lived there all my life so am on the 'Harrogate Ladder'.

And had an inheritance last year after losing both parents.

So that is the only reason I can afford it.

wow nice house!

best of luck, i'd go with bathroom first, dont go all guns blazing live in it for a while as you will probably change your mind on alot of things!

assuming the bathrooms functional - the kitchen certainly looks it

do basics in the living room and bedrooms youll be living in first - as youll spend most time in those and they are BOGGIN

live with it for 3/4 months

then make changes once you know how the space is used. as you might do expensive things you later regret once you move in.

looks older.... how are the electrics/when were they last done. - that would be my first port of call - very disruptive job. Second would be - those radiators look mighty small output for the size of the rooms - assuming they are that size because of the boiler output id be checking that out....

then i would start with the improvements.

"Jeepers! How much! "

Yeah it's cheap up north, aye?

That would be a lovely open plan kitchen/diner/family room type thing.... with bi-fold doors etc onto the garden.

Nice house... go for it

Some good feedback here...

House is 1980s and hasn't been touched since then. Has a less than up to date circuit box but I assume it will just mean fitting a new RCD consumer unit????....

Boiler is a modern Worcester Bosch conventional unit with a hot water tank. The timer is old and would be replaced with a new digital one. I was thinking that updating the rads to K2 ones would be enough?

That would be a lovely open plan kitchen/diner/family room type thing.... with bi-fold doors etc onto the garden.

Sorry to to hear about your parents, looks really nice lots of space. Harrogate is really nice, or at ;least the parts I have seen.

No worries pingu, wasn't said to make you feel bad, but don't like people thinking I am flash 'cos I am not. 🙂

Don't live with it for longer than 6 months though. After 6 months you'll accept it and never get round to doing the things you want to now.

Kirstie Allsopp says so, so it must be true.

johndoh - Member

No worries pingu, wasn't said to make you feel bad, but don't like people thinking I am flash 'cos I am not.

Let people think what they want, you're under no obligation to set them straight unless you want to.

As for the house, personally we've prioritised things that are not functional / unuesable. From there we've done things in order of how much we dislike them, basically. Personally I'd be inclined to do refurbish rooms that you aren't changing structurally first and then moving on to the bigger changes.

You are all crazy...

1st job is to convert the garage into the "man cave" of his dreams and post pictures on here. The bathroom can wait.

🙂

"Kirstie Allsopp says so, so it must be true."

aye - she does talk so much pish its unbelievable though.

when in aberdeen she looked at a few houses that i looked at with some couples for relocation relocation.

either shes a midget or blind "this house would be great for a family"

- bar the fact that an average sized person cant stand up upstairs and id have to be decapitated at the neck ! - and its on a main back road rat run that traffic regularly queues back past on a daily basis

1st job is to convert the garage into the "man cave" of his dreams and post pictures on here. The bathroom can wait.

Shhh, don't tell the wife. 8)

Already have plans for cannibalising the existing kitchen as shelving and will be utilising the built-in fridge....

(To be fair, the garage isn't as big as the pictures make it look but still plenty big enough).

" (although the bi-folds open into a conservatory). "

Mmmm warmth.... Said to the Mrs on Saturday I want a consevatory only when I retire... otherwise I will never do other thing, other than nap in the sun.

80's wiring is technically nearing the end of its life span as pvc cables do degrade and go stiff/lose flexibility. As a sparky though I'd be quite happy to use it provided you change the consumer unit and get all the cables insulation resistance tested as well as the earthing/bonding checked. Also check cables for mechanical damage and mice eating them wherever the cables are visible.

[i]Lived there all my life so am on the 'Harrogate Ladder'.[/i]

How do you pronounce it 'arrogate' or 'Harrow-gate'? 🙂

The house looks great, nice garden.
It also looks massive but I think that's mainly due to the garage being very big and stuck onto the house.

With that house, I would sort the kitchen first, probably open plan the three rooms together. For a big house the kitchen is small, this disappointed me in so many houses we looked at. Why are the kitchens so small?

Man cave, obviously.

In fact, I've changed my mind. If the issues with the bathroom are cosmetic, leave that and change the stuff that will actually improve the enjoyment of the house.

So go for use-changing stuff first, then the superficial cosmetic stuff after that.

Lived there all my life so am on the 'Harrogate Ladder'.

How do you pronounce it 'arrogate' or 'Harrow-gate'?

[b]Lived there all my life[/b]

So 'Harrow-Gate' naturally, not ''arrugut'

😀

I like doing the main bedroom first.

Be happy in the last room you see at night/first thing you see of a morning.

I wouldn't be able to relax in bed drinking tea/reading/the other in bad decor

With that house, I would sort the kitchen first, probably open plan the three rooms together. For a big house the kitchen is small, this disappointed me in so many houses we looked at. Why are the kitchens so small?

You mean the part 'below' the kitchen but before the utility and the dining room to the left?
[img] [/img]

If so, that's what our friends have done and it does make a great space. I am worried that we 'lose' a room that could be used as a playroom and keep mess hidden away though.

would most definantly integrate that space into the kitchen and have the utility off it.

Big kitchens well planned kitchens sell houses - even the builders have cottoned onto this.

like samuri i was disapointed by ALOT of houses kitchens due to them being too small to cook in comfortable - i guess it depends on your idea of cooking.... i like to cook - some folk like to microwave.

I LOVE to cook.

And I [b]*WILL*[/b] have something like this....

[img] [/img]

[i]You mean the part 'below' the kitchen but before the utility and the dining room to the left?[/i]

Yeah, make an L shaped kitchen/diner, that's what I'd do.

[i]'lose' a room that could be used as a playroom[/i]
There's a little room next to the utility room, sorted 😉

[i]And I *WILL* have something like this....[/i]
The people who we're buying our house off are leaving this behind (In the disappointing small kitchen).
[img] [/img]

The good news about this house is that the kitchen can easily be extended outwards into the huge back garden once we get a bit of spare cash so will live with a cheap refurb for the time being

Fingers crossed your sale / purchase goes well.
As they have all said ^^^ - get electrics and plumbing checked - assuming they are you're good to crack on - no point decorating etc only to find you've got to make a mess of it all to rewire, etc.

As things move on with your purchase, make a plan as to what you think you'd like to do then move in and, repeating the above advice, take your time to work out exactly what you want. Shifting walls etc are big money items.

re: opening out the space - opening kitchen into dining rooms would likely be top of our list.

Only other thing that springs to my mind - No door from garage into the house? Is it worth putting a door into the utility from the garage so you can drop your mucky stuff in there without going through your beautifully decorated new home - also gives ease of access to Man Cave / beer fridge / wine cellar etc 😉 Taking that a big step further - what's that space to the left of the utility? It may be an option for a downstairs shower room - looks like the relevant plumbing is already in the room above?

Oh and yep - pump track in the back garden 🙂

"Only other thing that springs to my mind - No door from garage into the house? Is it worth putting a door into the utility from the garage so you can drop your mucky stuff in there without going through your beautifully decorated new home "

NO NO NO NO NO - especially with the door to the garden.

but i would put a door in the wall of the garage into the garden next to the utility rooms door if it was that much of a concern.

Muddy stuff should be hosed off before entering the utility room anyway 😉

"Only other thing that springs to my mind - No door from garage into the house? Is it worth putting a door into the utility from the garage so you can drop your mucky stuff in there without going through your beautifully decorated new home "

NO NO NO NO NO - especially with the door to the garden.

And why not trail-rat? I like the idea of being able to drive in (it has electric garage doors (ohh, get you) and straight into the house.

oh if its just car storage fill your boots.

if it was my garage opening the door to the house would just result in metal filings and wood dust entering the house.

what's that space to the left of the utility? It may be an option for a downstairs shower room - looks like the relevant plumbing is already in the room above?

Serious question - what's with folk wanting an open-plan downstairs? Do people really spend more time in the kitchen than in the lounge/dining room?

I did read somewhere that nobody has a dining room these days and was thought of as being rather twee. My dining room is terrific - also doubles as a library and map room. 8)

Assuming you like open plan ... I would do the following changes.

Create a big room out of the following rooms:

1. Lounge
2. Dinning room
3. Entrance hall. (Never have staircase facing the main door - bad feng shui that)

Note: the living space and kitchen should be separated.

Then create a room with the following rooms:

1. Kitchen.
2. Utility
3. And the space between Kitchen & Utility. (kitchen space, if it is an entirely big kitchen space, should not be bigger than lounge or living space - bad feng shui that).

Apart from Bedroom 2 (assuming you integrate the above) , which is above the kitchen (cannot remember the problem now), the rest of the bed rooms are fine with toilet above utility room.

oh ya ... main entrance door should not go straight to the rear door. This design means "easy come easy go" i.e. you will not be able to save money.

Ideally, staircase leading to rooms should be out of sight.

why in the world would you want your kitchen and utility room combined.... i love the fact i can stick the washing machine on and shut the door - then hardly hear it in the kitchen.

why would you want your entrance hall open plan with your living room

ill just leave via your front door --- boom heat from lounge is gone !

why in the world would you want your kitchen and utility room combined.... i love the fact i can stick the washing machine on and shut the door - then hardly hear it in the kitchen

Ah I see ... noisy machine. In that case leave it but just integrate the middle section with kitchen. I like Scandinavian utility room (fridge room or store room whatever that is).

why would you want your entrance hall open plan with your living room

Do you really need all those corridors? Really waste of space.

ill just leave via your front door --- boom heat from lounge is gone !

Could there be something like double door? a bit like two main doors.

Are you planning on living in the place while all this building work's going on? If you can delay moving in for a couple of months that would make a huge difference - be well worth getting any major work done immediately rather than waiting 6 months...

Yes we can stay at the in-laws if required so that isn't a problem.

Johndoh never assumed you were flash at all, nice house, nice area. The only thing I am jealous about and I will remedy when I move is your new garage/man cave. Also a nice size garden which are my two main criteria when I come to move.

You can't believe how much I want that storage space. With two 3 yr olds, the tiny bit of space I did have in my shed has disappeared and every time I want to get something from in there I have to move about another 10 things - all bright pink and covered in tassles.

With two 3 yr olds, the tiny bit of space I did have in my shed has disappeared and every time I want to get something from in there I have to move about another 10 things - all bright pink and covered in tassles.

If you allowed that to happen to your shed, what guarantee do you have when it comes to your new man-cave?

If you allowed that to happen to your shed, what guarantee do you have when it comes to your new man-cave?

Ohh it will happen, of that I am sure, but at least I will have a bit more room to allow it to take over for a while. It might be 3 or even 4 years before I descend into despair again....

Helps if you don't have a door straight into the cave from your house: there's nothing like having to go outside to stop the wife from dumping crap in there 🙂

I would say that heating should be the priority - ensure radiators are sufficient in numbers and size for the house, also whether the boiler is efficient and able to cope. TRVs on each radiator too.

Helps if you don't have a door straight into the cave from your house: there's nothing like having to go outside to stop the wife from dumping crap in there

[i]something from in there I have to move about another 10 things - all bright pink and covered in tassles.[/i]

So it sounds like you had no problem getting at your stuff. 😉

We bought a similar if a little more modest house earlier this year and borrowed a £20k extra for doing a kitchen diner conversion but now we're in we've decided the kitchen isn't that bad and to do it properly it will cost more like 30k. Now going to do the smaller stuff first and save up for the kitchen as a longterm goal.
Judging by the photos I would be spending the money on the living room and bedroom decor. Maybe bathroom too.