family room with direct access to the garden, otherwise it would have just been a huge void beneath. We didn’t need to dig underneath the house, which reduced costs significantly and meant we could retain the cellar storage.” After seeing several architects, Chris chose Ana Alonso, who was recommended by a friend. “The first architect we saw was going to charge £3,000 to sketch some rough ideas before we’d even decided who to work with,” says Chris. “Ana was happy to work collaboratively, didn’t seem to have the big ego that a lot of architects do, and had a good relationship with the local planners. She also worked with a structural engineer to ensure our ideas were feasible.” As both neighbours had set a precedent by extending, the planning process was pretty smooth. The only tweaks were a slight reduction in volume at the rear. “Our basement family room was originally going to fan out with a diagonal back wall, but in retrospect it would’ve been a mistake as the TV would have been pointing at a weird angle,” says Chris. And when the planners didn’t want a wraparound terrace which could overlook the neighbours on one side, Ana suggested roof lights for the basement down that side, trumping Chris’s idea of a living roof.
In March 2018, Strong Base Construction began work on the steel and block two-storey rear extension. “We naively thought we’d be able to live in the house, because we’d managed it when initially knocking a wall down,” says Chris. “However when they started smashing holes in the walls for the steels on the first day, we realised it was a bad idea and very
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“The tradesman couldn’t believe it when we asked him to slap the render on roughly”
quickly found a rental property 10 minutes away so I could be onsite every day.”
Unfortunately the main challenge came early on and was completely unexpected. “When rear excavations began, they discovered an excessively large three metre deep slab of reinforced concrete,” says Chris. “An underground stream appeared soon after, which was diverted to the main drainage with a sump pump, and extreme tanking was needed.” The house’s energy efficient credentials have also been boosted with extra insulation, and a new ‘mega flow’ combi boiler in the garage which powers the wet underfloor heating in the new rooms and a Heatmiser remote controlled zonal heating system. A wood burning stove was also fitted in the kitchen diner by specialist company Ash & Embers. “We considered a wood burner in the basement too, but if we’d had both on at the same time, the house would’ve become a furnace,” says Chris. “In the future though, I’d like to have have solar panels on the dormer and maybe a ground source heat pump.”
KITCHEN DINER
Extending out by three feet with a trio of new roof lights above has given the couple a much bigger kitchen diner with seating area to make this new space the hub of the house
CHRIS’S TOP TIPS
It doesn’t cost
proportionately more to go bigger, so be bold, and go as big as you possibly can
Don’t be scared to change your plans if it’s not working. Yes it may have cost
implications, but the most important thing is to get what you want
HIGH POINT
“When I came back from holiday to see the glazing going in. The idea that your house is now sealed and secure was such a magical thing.” – Chris Anderson
nov/dec 2020
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