On Jan 11, 10:32*am, "Gill Smith"
wrote:
bought a 1950's ex-council house

it's just about liveable-in

so, where to start?

central heating, electrics, or the damp patches I just noticed at the base
of the sitting room walls


I tend to start with what I call multiplier jobs, ie those that if not
done will add further ongoing costs. Doing them early reduces total
cost.

The other first job is surely planning. If you can take the time to
work the plan out not just quickly, but after a fair bit of thought,
you can end up with a rather better result. Especially is this true in
the area of space, often some patch of space can be repurposed for a
significant improvement.

Insulation is well worth it with cavity walls, and if you're going to
chop lots of holes/grooves in walls, you can inject the stuff via the
inner leaf so it doesnt disfigure the outside. Ensure you keep the
relevant piece of paper, as there will be no physical evidence left
behind that its been CW insulated.

It will seem a bit trivial at this point, but if not done it'll annoy
you for decades: network wiring. Get it in there before plastering.
http://wiki.diyfaq.org.uk/index.php?...Voltage_Wiring

Also if you bury conduit, put your cabling _outside_ the conduit. See
the above article for why.

There's a good thread on kitchen fitting:
http://groups.google.co.uk/group/uk....3f56d113a73ccc

Some good tips:
http://wiki.diyfaq.org.uk/index.php?title=Rewiring_Tips

Lastly a bit of soundproofing of stud walls can make life better, and
isnt too hard to do.
http://wiki.diyfaq.org.uk/index.php?...oise_reduction

I'm sure there are many other things to think of.


NT