helpfulness of people,” says Lilian. “All the suppliers went the extra mile and we were overwhelmed by the support of our family and friends.” The build was not without its setbacks. Vic fell off a ladder several times
and Lilian broke her toe early on in the project, but nothing seemed to deter the couple from their long term goal. “It was a daunting task and there were times when we wondered why
we had started, but we knew this house would take us well into old age,” says Vic. “We have made it our retirement home. The fact that it’s in our daughter and son-in-law’s garden is perfect. They have seven children and it means we can be on hand to help out whenever we are needed, yet still have our own space and privacy.” A caveat exists that says the house will never be sold separately, but Vic
and Lilian have no intentions of leaving. There are still plenty of jobs to complete and they are in the process of building a separate access drive and defining their own section of the garden with landscaping, saving up for it as they go. Their only regret is the purchase of a fire which is still in its packaging and unlikely to get used. “We bought it because we thought we would need it, but the house is
so cosy and well insulated that we don’t think it will be necessary,” says Vic. “It’s one of the few things where we could have reduced the build cost even further, but we still think it’s a lovely home for £28,000 and it will hopefully inspire others, who think they can’t afford to buy a house, to look at alternatives. Building our own home was always on my bucket list. Now that’s done we shall have a bit more time for the other things on the list – like climbing Everest and riding our motorbike along Route 66.”
Who supplied the products?
Construction Materials Online
constructionmaterialsonline.co.uk
The Electric Cable Co
www.electriccable.co.uk
FWB Products Ltd
www.fwb.co.uk
Build Plumb Plastics
www.plasticdrainage.co.uk
Lafarge Tarmac Trading Ltd
www.ribaproductselector.com
Screwfix
www.screwfix.com
Travis Perkins
www.travisperkins.co.uk
Tackburn Ltd
www.tackburn.co.uk
DIY Building Products
www.diybuildingproducts.co.uk
Build Base
www.buildbase.co.uk
Grafton Merchanting GB Ltd
graftonmerchantinggb.co.uk
Mudfords Qualiteer Windows Ltd
www.qualiterewindows.co.uk
Supreme Building Materials
www.supremeuk.com
Prestige Building Supplies Ltd
www.pbslonline.co.uk
Multicrete Products Ltd
www.multicreteproducts.co.uk
Enq. 126
The Underfloor Heating Store
www.theunderfloorheating-
store.com
Handles 4 Homes
www.handles4homes.co.uk
Roofing Superstore
www.roofingsuperstore.co.uk
Connell Ltd
www.connell-lp.com
DPC Products Direct
www.dpcproductsdirect.com
Pasquill Saint-Gobain
www.pasquill.co.uk
Spirit Fires Ltd.
www.spiritfires.co.uk
Roofing Superstore
www.roofingsuperstore.co.uk
PVC Warehouse
pvc-warehouse.co.uk
Master Plastics (SW) Ltd
www.masterplastics.co.uk
TBA Textiles Brooklyn Trading Ltd
www.tbatextiles.co.uk
YESS Electrical
www.yesss.co.uk
Baxi Boilers
www.baxi.co.uk
Cavity Trays
www.cavitytrays.com
Victorian Plumbing
www.victorianplumbing.co.uk
28
selfbuilder & homemaker
www.sbhonline.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68