Owning your own home

I'd love to try it myself but already got a guy lined up to do it. He's a pro so no worries. Between toddler , pregnant wife and work, it makes sense to get someone else to do it tbh.

Hoping we can get as much done as possible before moving in

Find out how old the boiler is. Ours blew up a month after moving in, was an expense we did not need after spending every penny we had

Think it's around ten years but will be getting everything checked over for sure. Wiring especially.

These home improvement loan work how?

We’re in the stage of buying. The bank decided to give my FIL an appointment on Good Friday. Beggars belief

Unsecured loans or secured against the property.

Cheaper interest rates if you own it.

Before I moved in I said exactly the same but mrs.116 wanted carpets in the bedrooms, best decision ever. Less noise. More warmth. Stepping out of bed on a cold morning onto a thick soft carpet is actually dead nice. If someone had said the same to me I would have ignored it.

Talked about it more tonight and decided carpet for kids room and a big luxurious rug for our room (on top of wood)

My wife is German and we both have balling hausschuh (sp) so the cold feet isn't so much of a big deal, but I see yer point

My wife is German and we both have balling hausschuh

😮

Like dis

That's a relief, sounded like a bit like a chiropodist's worst nightmare... 🙂

Did not want to Google...

Other half making noises about getting the bathroom redone... Not sure I can handle the upheaval at the moment tbh, would be nice tho'... My mate can get me trade price on super lux bathroom suites and accessories so we'll save a bit there... Hmmm...

Carpet goes against all my interior design instincts and we don't have any at the moment but I've pretty much concluded this too.

I’m in the same boat, but as soon as I had carpets fitted I loved them.

Maybe I’m just going off the boil now I live in the provinces.

Oh my neighbours’ selling in 6 months.

Ahh ok. I’ll look into and read about it

If you do need a new boiler, interest free loans with cash back are available from the energy savings trust
https://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/scotland/grants-loans/home-energy-scotland-loan

super useful, thanks!

Does anyone have any recommendations for fitting a hardwood front door and locks in SE London? @dst you may have been looking into this recently.

Also is Hague Blue still de rigueuer or are we all over Stiffkey now?

Blue Black, obvs.

are we all over Stiffkey now?

Just make sure you pronounce it right

My builder is doing it as part of a bigger job. I think it goes......whats your budget first. London Dorrs look the fancy stuff.

I'm getting a door from howdens. Eric says its fine so it'll be fine. £750 for the door and fitting I think. another £200+ on locks and furniture.

Yeah, looking for an independent joiner rather than one of the big companies. London Doors et al are nice but very pricey.

Can you please let me know who you choose and report back with results as I've a front door that needs hanging too with new locks and I'm in Catford.
Often wondered whether this would be the preserve of a locksmith or a builder or both!

Fitting a lock is easy if you have the wood bits. The good ones come with templates to tell you exactly where to drill.

Hanging a door is slightly more complex. Involves more woodwork as you need to set the hinges correctly to make the door line up square.

We asked if we could go an see the house we're trying to buy again tomorrow morning, because we need to get a quote for the plumbing work.

The estate agent called back and said yes, you can go there and the vendors (who we've been probably pissing off by negotiating for them to pay towards the works it needs) will let us in.

It could be interesting...but I get the impression that they are really nice, and so it could actually be a good thing. It could also be really awkward. Let's see!

It's a carpenter or joiners job!

I don't like doing them because new doors need a fair bit of time to settle in and they can warp due to the different interior/exterior temperature and humidity. Most doors should be stored on site for a while to acclimatise to the humidity and spring is a good time to fit them.

I would say fitting a lock is easy if you are only aiming to do an average job! Since most locks in London seem to have been fitted by carpenters with blunt chisels.