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An interior photo showing the dining and open plan living area in a new residential development

Tips for your home extension

Considering an alteration but not sure where to start? Fordham Restoration Services Ltd is here to help. Take a look at our guidance, to make your home improvement a success. 

Once you're ready to get going, email us

Helping you take advantage of our industry experience

Over the course of time, we have carried out hundreds of projects in hundreds of homes across Cambridge. We like to think this has exposed us to most scenarios, and what we have learnt may be of use to you. By the time you get to us, your Architect would have prepared drawings for you, so they are the main source of advice, but the following may be useful in any case.

 

Home extensions and loft conversions are the most popular building work we carry out. Their size and variety mean that a home can have significant space added.

Working with since 2004

Knowledge backed advice

We'll manage it all

Scandinavian modern home interior with open space kitchen

The key benefits of an extension or loft conversion

  • Extend your living space to meet the needs of your family, without the cost and hassle of relocating.

  • It's on your terms. Create a children’s playroom, office, guest room, utility room for all your white goods, additional bathroom, new master bedroom; there are many options. 

  • Enhance your home's energy efficiency with insulation within the new area that meets today's high standards.

  • In the case of loft conversions, these often mean turning a three bedroomed house into a four bedroomed house within areas where most houses are three bedroomed. This fourth bedroom understandably offers a new investment dimension as well as offering a 'large bedroom and en-suite' sanctuary for parents.

Improving your home's energy efficiency

There is a lot of publicity about new houses becoming carbon neutral and the advent of ‘eco-towns’. This is all good, but lowering energy consumption is more important in existing houses, given that there are around 25 million of them in the UK and only 150k new builds each year. If you want to reduce your energy bills whilst you are renovating or extending your home, Fordham Restoration are happy to advise.

 

Energy prices from fossil fuels are only going one way, so on every single project we undertake this is a consideration.

Stop energy escaping your home with insulation

Walls

Poorly insulated walls could be your main source of heat loss, contributing to up to 35% of losses! Some houses can have a ‘U value’ (the rate a structure will transfer heat) as high as 2, despite current UK building regulations aiming for a maximum of 0.25. By making the insulated cavity between brickwork and blockwork 90mm thick or more and filling with a good quality insulation material, we can help you improve this. You can also consider timber framed walls rather than block, for added heat retention.

Your roof

Similarly to walls, your roofing may have a U-value as high as 7 - though you should aim for 0.13 - accounting for up to 25% of your home's heat loss. Here are some things you can do to better this: 
 

  • Install at least 270mm insulation in two layers. We install 300mm as standard.

  • Do not compress the insulation in corners.

  • Seal your attic door to stop draughts.

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Floors

When it comes to your floors, you should aim for a U-value of around 0.20 or lower. Failure to do so could be costing you around 15% of heat loss! Working with both concrete and timber floors, Fordham Restoration Services Ltd can use a range of insulation materials to improve the energy efficiency of your floors, to help you enjoy a warmer home for longer.

Front Door

Using A-rated windows, as standard

If you have single-glazed windows or double-glazed which were installed prior to 2002, then they're likely to be less energy efficient when compared to today's standards. All windows sold today must have a Window Energy Rating (WER) of C or above. (The WER is a very similar scale to what you will have seen on fridges and freezers.)

 

As standard, all windows from Fordham Restoration Services Ltd have an 'A' rating and are Argon filled double-glazed windows with glass that has a low emissivity (Low-e) coating, meaning they attract more heat from the sun to help heat your home. If you have a listed building or live in a conservation area and cannot change your windows, you may be able to change the glazed panels within the existing frames.

Helping you choose your new doors and windows

Beautiful sash windows, which we all love, are unfortunately the least energy efficient. However, the market has many modern double-glazed sash windows for that timeless appeal. We supply and fit these as well as an array of options for glass from the UK's two largest providers, Pilkington and Saint-Gobain, giving you more options when it comes to your home. 

 

French doors, bi-folding doors and patio doors differ from windows in that there is no official energy rating scale. You can however choose the same glass options, so you are left with the knowledge that you have an energy efficient product.​

"I enjoyed working with Fordham’s on our extension and renovation. Communication, administration, attitude and workmanship were all really good. The communication on quoting and invoicing was clear and professional throughout. The original extension project grew into a full renovation. Everyone was flexible, accommodating and worked with me on this. Lee, the Project Manager, is always supportive and nothing is too much trouble. Solutions to challenges that arose were found quickly. We lived in the house throughout the renovation and were well looked after. I would definitely recommend Fordham’s and work with them again."

- LucyB-179, Yell

Now you have a little more knowledge, let's get started!

Email our team in Cambridge to talk specifics.

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