14 Bramcote Avenue, Beeston, NG9 4DG.
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14 Bramcote Ave was built in 1929, a time when building styles were changing over from Victorian to Art Deco. This resulted in some anomalies such as windows being too wide for the wooden lintels. When we bought the house all the window frames were sagging, the wooden ground floors were riddled with dry rot, the tiled floors were becoming uneven because clinker used as hard core was decaying, all plaster was crumbling and the roof leaked because of rotting supports.
The plan was to build an extension so that we could live on the ground floor and keep the upstairs for visitors and occasional use. This meant having different separately controlled heating. It took 10 years to complete the retrofit.
See below for more information, with the least expensive first and the number of £s giving a rough indication of cost. [Information provided February 2025.] |
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1. BLINDS AND CURTAINS ££
Every window has a blind and some have curtains as well. None of them have a radiator underneath. 2. AIRLOCK BY FRONT DOOR ££ The 'airlock' is just the blocked in porch, to avoid losing heat when the front door is opened. It can be heated independently but we don't usually heat it, as it is frost free and fine for the plants there. We have max/min thermometers in each room so we can keep an eye on various sections of the house, e.g. the utility room and porch have on occasion got as low as 8 degrees C, the kitchen/diner and bedroom are usually about 18 degrees, and the living room is set to rise to 20 degrees in the evening until 10 pm. We also have an energy monitor so we can see if the heating has been working extra hard. |
Inner doors of the airlock with front door behind.
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3. DOUBLE GLAZING £££
All windows incorporate 25mm standard double glazing. |
Double-glazed french window.
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4. CEILING INSULATION £££
Upper floor ceilings of the old house are insulated with a minimum of 75mm, mainly glass wool or rockwool insulation, which is progressively being increased to a depth of 200mm. |
Insulation in the loft between the rafters.
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5. ROOF INSULATION ££££
The house has 10” fibreglass insulation underneath the roof. The floor of the loft in the old house has 1cm. load-bearing insulation board on the rafters with insulation between the rafters (see under ceiling insulation). |
Insulation under the roof.
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6. NEW BOILER WITH FLEXIBLE THERMOSTATIC CONTROLS ££££
The new combi boiler has flexible thermostatic controls. Almost every room has its own thermostat, so that it is only heated when needed.
7. WALL INSULATION £££££
In the original property external walls have been stripped of plaster and are lined internally with 50mm insulation board covered by plasterboard and skimmed. External walls in the extension incorporate 100mm insulation.
In the original property external walls have been stripped of plaster and are lined internally with 50mm insulation board covered by plasterboard and skimmed. External walls in the extension incorporate 100mm insulation.
8. UNDERFLOOR HEATING AND INSULATION ON GROUND FLOOR £££££
All solid floors in the extension incorporate a 100mm thick layer of insulation with water-fed underfloor heating.
Suspended wooden flooring in the original part of the house is underpinned with 100mm polyisocyanurate insulation board.
All solid floors in the extension incorporate a 100mm thick layer of insulation with water-fed underfloor heating.
Suspended wooden flooring in the original part of the house is underpinned with 100mm polyisocyanurate insulation board.
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BENEFITS
We believe the attention given to insulating the property has reduced energy consumption by approximately one third and created an equitable environment during the hot summer months. We like the fact that the underfloor heating in the kitchen diner is very controllable and can be set to be comfortable with fairly low energy consumption. There are several different kinds of cooking appliances with different levels of ease of use. Now we've got used to them we find the induction hob, hot air fryer and microwave the best for energy saving. After the wall insulation was done we now have the benefit of wider windowsills. |
The wider windowsill at the front.
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LESSONS LEARNED
We would have underfloor heating extended to other areas, due to its comfort.
We would have underfloor heating extended to other areas, due to its comfort.
Disclaimer: Please note that EcoTrail-NG9 aims to provide information as accurately as possible but the information on this page has been provided by the property owner.
