Designing your extension and things you may consider

Everyone likes to think when they extends their property they can add style and a statement.

The materials your extension is built from should be either very compliant or a complete contrast, however remember it will still more than likely have to be passed by the local council if planning consent is required.

Your extension wants to be balanced and in proportion with the rest of the property. Make sure the design of your extension does not stand out like a sore thumb with surrounding properties. You may like it and it may get through the planning process however it could have a negative effect when you come to sell your property. An extension should increase the value of your home and not devalue it so always bear this in mind.

Always take into consideration of the needs of others do you need ramps and other design elements for wheel chair access, these must be taken into the design at the very early stages and not added as an afterthought at a later stage of the Design. It’s very beneficial if you can flood your property with daylight from the start by introducing large glazed panels. So if your extension is at the rear why not design it with this in mind, who’s going to complain. There used to be a tax on daylight remembers the saying “Daylight Robbery” so go for it when it’s allowable and the property can stand it.

Nowadays with rear extensions the real art seems to be how you can introduce the garden into the house in summer. More people elect to go for large bi – folding doors and glass panels, vaulted ceilings and roof lights to try again to get this feel of openness even to the extent of having matching floor covering in the garden and in the extension floor, an example of this being stone flags this is gives the feeling of openness and will make the extension appear so much larger on a summers night.

Also decking now features as an added extra that is always requested to bring further depth into the design. Many a night can be spent looking into the kitchen from the garden watching your hosts prepare the evening meal while you enjoy a nice bottle or wine with the other guests. With home entertaining being on the increase as cheaper alternative you need to make the best of every little bit of space you have got? So it’s important to welcome the garden into the design and add it as a feature with the appropriate lighting and other features. It is always best to plan your garden layout and design at the same time as the extension so you get the right complimentary balance.

We have talked about keeping in contrast with rooflines and keeping the right balance, this is however not always the case with the ground floor levels. You may find that you have height restrictions for your design; however there is no reason why you cannot sometimes look at alternatives like excavating to facilitate that additional external room. Costs will always be a consideration and there may be some underpinning needed to the exciting property so you always need to get this checked out first by a structural engineer and builder.

Many traditional terraced properties also have ugly little single storey outrigger extensions or outbuildings with none matching brickwork to the rest of the property, you do not have to work around these and include them into your new design, more often than not it will be more cost effective to demolish such buildings to make room for the new extension. This will also give you more room for more exciting ideas with the new extension design and layout.
It should be fun designing your extension and as you have to live in and with the design make sure you get involved with it as much as possible and do your own research and sketch out your own ideas.
It’s the space that will usually dictate your design along with what you want to use the extra space for. If your garden is at an angle it’s not unreasonable to build your new design at an angle. Always remember however that the more angles your design has the more difficult it may be to position furniture inside.

So go on have fun and start sketching you might surprise yourself and your designer