says Elizabeth, “but we didn’t, so we had to go around it.” They instead installed extractor fans in the toilets and could also only use a certain type of combi boiler to satisfy SAP. But looking on the bright side, she says: “Actually it saved us quite a bit of money!” The installation of the utilities also proved somewhat frustrating. “The services were a nightmare,” Alan says. They arranged for the water and electrics work to be done on the same day to prevent the road from being dug up twice, but only one of the two turned up. They also experienced a wait between each step of the electrics and gas installation – having to wait for one job to be finished before the next could even be arranged. “It’s a sequential problem,” Alan says.
They also had to pay £3,500 for a telegraph pole to be moved 15 feet and discovered that the utility companies “will not work under scaffolding,” says Alan. He says, resignedly: “It’s the little things like the services that have caused us more grief than building the house.”
LESSONS LEARNED
Reflecting on their experience, they agree there are lessons for others from what was an expensive process. “It really is quite scary,” says Elizabeth. “For example, suddenly all sorts of people want different surveys which all cost money.” Alan gives one example of an unexpected sudden charge in the form of the SANG (Suitable Alternative Natural
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www.sbhonline.co.uk
Greenspace) payment, which they discovered was compulsory when building on empty land. They also found themselves paying a fee for the build due to it being within 7 km of the Ashdown Forest, plus various soil tests. Elizabeth says one of her biggest frustrations with the process is what she perceives as a lack of rights when appealing decisions or arguing additional or unnecessary charges. She cites the example of the drainage issue, for which they paid the council for a sewage map only to find it so out of date their existing house isn’t even on it. “You pay your money and there’s no redress,” she says.
They have also found other extra costs cropping up that hadn’t originally been allowed for. “Because we’ve got a slightly sloping site, we’ve had an additional cost to put steps down out the back,” says Alan, giving one example.
ENDING ON A HIGH
Although the project has taken longer than they had originally anticipated, Alan and Elizabeth had no specific deadline to finish by and so were not feeling unduly stressed as the project neared its end. Says Elizabeth: “On the whole, it’s most likely taken longer than we thought it would, but our motto throughout was ‘It doesn’t matter’.”
The ‘inside-first’ efficiency of the Scandia- Hus construction method has impressed Alan. “Because they put the interior of the house up
july/august 2017
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