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Installing a doorway in an exterior wall
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Asked this before, worth a punt again..
We'd like to build a conservatory on the side of our old house - need a doorway installed in what appears to be an exterior rubble wall. Haven't found anyone to do it in a year or two.
Willing to wait for someone knowledgeable about old walls and is insured.
We know Fab isn't the best place to ask but any advice or contacts appreciated. TIA!  |
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"You'll need someone who's experienced and knows what they're doing , you'll need a concrete head over new doorway or if looking for larger gap , an RSJ . Easy enough job tbh ."
Yeah we know in principle how it's done but don't trust ourselves to do it since it looks like a rubble wall instead of a straight block wall. And it's in our own house so really don't want the wall coming down  
Easy enough job but finding someone to do it isn't so easy for us  |
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By (user no longer on site) 26 weeks ago
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"You'll need someone who's experienced and knows what they're doing , you'll need a concrete head over new doorway or if looking for larger gap , an RSJ . Easy enough job tbh .
Yeah we know in principle how it's done but don't trust ourselves to do it since it looks like a rubble wall instead of a straight block wall. And it's in our own house so really don't want the wall coming down
Easy enough job but finding someone to do it isn't so easy for us "
Reckon there are many fine builders on Fab. You should consider throwing in a meet.  |
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"You'll need someone who's experienced and knows what they're doing , you'll need a concrete head over new doorway or if looking for larger gap , an RSJ . Easy enough job tbh .
Yeah we know in principle how it's done but don't trust ourselves to do it since it looks like a rubble wall instead of a straight block wall. And it's in our own house so really don't want the wall coming down
Easy enough job but finding someone to do it isn't so easy for us
Reckon there are many fine builders on Fab. You should consider throwing in a meet. "
We actually did a couple of times! Nothing came of it  |
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All the advice is genuinely appreciated.. we understand how it's done but this is really not a job we want to tackle ourselves. We're going to close up the unfinished wall on the inside and finish the room until we can find someone to knock it for us.. just want to get on someone's list or radar at least |
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We've had all manner of cowboys into our place over the last few years doing jobs of varying quality. Word of mouth is the best way, maybe talk to some neighbours. By far the cheapest way will be to find a local team who can fit it in locally around other jobs they have on. Noone is gonna travel far for this kind of job. Good luck! |
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The type of wall you have isn’t a conventional block cavity wall it sounds like you have old solid stone wall, they can be problematic because the stones are all different sizes and generally held together with sand/mortar dirt spit and sawdust lol Consult a structural engineer first would be my advice and they will have a list of reputable local builders that would price the job for you.. |
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"The type of wall you have isn’t a conventional block cavity wall it sounds like you have old solid stone wall, they can be problematic because the stones are all different sizes and generally held together with sand/mortar dirt spit and sawdust lol Consult a structural engineer first would be my advice and they will have a list of reputable local builders that would price the job for you.. "
100% agree ......great advice ......you should take it.
Coming from a retired builder. |
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By *eth TVTV/TS 26 weeks ago
Mid Meath |
"Do you need planning
Not for that
We don't for the hole- but we would probably for the eventual planned conservatory. The concern is finding tradespeople- we're pretty rubbish at it  "
Your architect will be the best person/s to find you the best builder for the task.
Please tell us that you have an architect on the case |
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"Do you need planning
Not for that
We don't for the hole- but we would probably for the eventual planned conservatory. The concern is finding tradespeople- we're pretty rubbish at it
Your architect will be the best person/s to find you the best builder for the task.
Please tell us that you have an architect on the case "
We indeed don't have an architect as we haven't needed one before. We're not building an extension, only a pre-designed conservatory. You'd think the conservatory people would know some people but we've never had any luck there. |
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"The type of wall you have isn’t a conventional block cavity wall it sounds like you have old solid stone wall, they can be problematic because the stones are all different sizes and generally held together with sand/mortar dirt spit and sawdust lol Consult a structural engineer first would be my advice and they will have a list of reputable local builders that would price the job for you.. "
We may have to try this route again.. we did this before and got a list of people, all of whom had no interest
It doesn't appear to be an old stone wall - it's an extension that was built off a stone house in the 60s or 70s.. it looks like it's breeze block with rubble in the middle (where they had patched up some pipework for a chimney and a stove)
Either way, we need to get better at asking around- very far from our strong suit |
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Very often ye will get a builder for a bigger job than a small one. If ye are adding on a conservatory are ye hiring a builder to do this? Can ye ask them to fit the new door and then when the time comes they can come back and do the conservatory works. Telll them ye need to get it done while the weather is good and not have a big gaping hole in the house during the winter months. And the other works can be done whenever. |
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Another option might be twisting the arm of the conservatory company. Tell them that you are desperate to buy straight away and have cash waiting, but you can't as you need the doorway doing too. They might well find a way when presented with a potential quick sale. |
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"Perhaps telling them that you will have to shop around for another company who can do the whole thing including the doorway might cause a bit of a backtrack  "
Aye fair - have hinted at it but lord knows we're too nice |
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"Very often ye will get a builder for a bigger job than a small one. If ye are adding on a conservatory are ye hiring a builder to do this? Can ye ask them to fit the new door and then when the time comes they can come back and do the conservatory works. Telll them ye need to get it done while the weather is good and not have a big gaping hole in the house during the winter months. And the other works can be done whenever."
Yeah we had the same thought! Have literally offered huge sums to builders to do up a number of buildings on site.. not just this relatively small job. No reason for them to be interested though when they have loads of working with new builds |
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"Very often ye will get a builder for a bigger job than a small one. If ye are adding on a conservatory are ye hiring a builder to do this? Can ye ask them to fit the new door and then when the time comes they can come back and do the conservatory works. Telll them ye need to get it done while the weather is good and not have a big gaping hole in the house during the winter months. And the other works can be done whenever.
Yeah we had the same thought! Have literally offered huge sums to builders to do up a number of buildings on site.. not just this relatively small job. No reason for them to be interested though when they have loads of working with new builds "
I'd imagine the reason most builders are turned off is the nature of the structure. It's too high risk and like everything in this country, Insurance!
They might not even be covered to take that on, and wouldn't want the hassle.
However, if you were doing a complete renovation of the entire place, it might be more attractive to some! |
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"Very often ye will get a builder for a bigger job than a small one. If ye are adding on a conservatory are ye hiring a builder to do this? Can ye ask them to fit the new door and then when the time comes they can come back and do the conservatory works. Telll them ye need to get it done while the weather is good and not have a big gaping hole in the house during the winter months. And the other works can be done whenever.
Yeah we had the same thought! Have literally offered huge sums to builders to do up a number of buildings on site.. not just this relatively small job. No reason for them to be interested though when they have loads of working with new builds
I'd imagine the reason most builders are turned off is the nature of the structure. It's too high risk and like everything in this country, Insurance!
They might not even be covered to take that on, and wouldn't want the hassle.
However, if you were doing a complete renovation of the entire place, it might be more attractive to some!"
Yeah that's what we've encountered so far- many people we've met also simply don't have the experience and qualifications for houses older than 30 years. The search continues! |
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By (user no longer on site) 26 weeks ago
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"Asked this before, worth a punt again..
We'd like to build a conservatory on the side of our old house - need a doorway installed in what appears to be an exterior rubble wall. Haven't found anyone to do it in a year or two.
Willing to wait for someone knowledgeable about old walls and is insured.
We know Fab isn't the best place to ask but any advice or contacts appreciated. TIA! "
You've given me an erection
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I would suggest asking in the local hardware or farm supply store who does this kinda work locally and see if the same name comes up usually a small builder maybe heading for 60 is the lad that will know exactly what you need to do
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If it a rubble wall it will have to be propped in a few locations before taking out the full width. Then shutter it and fill with concrete.
Some will say no need but due to it been rubble it could fall away. Be careful of who you get to do it. Loads of different ways of doing it. Some might cut corners. |
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"Do you need planning
Not for that
We don't for the hole- but we would probably for the eventual planned conservatory. The concern is finding tradespeople- we're pretty rubbish at it "
You won’t need planning if it’s at the back of the property at under 400 sqft. |
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"If it a rubble wall it will have to be propped in a few locations before taking out the full width. Then shutter it and fill with concrete.
Some will say no need but due to it been rubble it could fall away. Be careful of who you get to do it. Loads of different ways of doing it. Some might cut corners. "
That's certainly the concern! And how would we even know We've got a few contacts from this thread already, thanks y'all! |
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"Do you need planning
Not for that
We don't for the hole- but we would probably for the eventual planned conservatory. The concern is finding tradespeople- we're pretty rubbish at it
You won’t need planning if it’s at the back of the property at under 400 sqft. "
Thanks! It's the side and yeah we know about the size requirement |
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"If it a rubble wall it will have to be propped in a few locations before taking out the full width. Then shutter it and fill with concrete.
Some will say no need but due to it been rubble it could fall away. Be careful of who you get to do it. Loads of different ways of doing it. Some might cut corners.
That's certainly the concern! And how would we even know We've got a few contacts from this thread already, thanks y'all! "
Ask for a detail plan of how they are carrying out the work. Step by step. Are what propping they are using and how they are installing it. If they dint give this move on. And decent contractor will provide this. It will also sound like ye know what ye are talking about. Who ever ye get make sure the plan is followed and check things are the work is going on. Private message me if want more info on this. |
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"Do you need planning
Not for that
We don't for the hole- but we would probably for the eventual planned conservatory. The concern is finding tradespeople- we're pretty rubbish at it
You won’t need planning if it’s at the back of the property at under 400 sqft.
Thanks! It's the side and yeah we know about the size requirement "
.
Planning depends on whether its visible from the road . For example we did a job at the rear of a house a couple of years ago and because the house was on a bend in the road and you could see the back of the house clearly the council insisted on Planning permission despite a few appeals from the engineer.
Most builders are extremely busy and can pick and choose the jobs they want to do . I know I can and I do. |
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If it's a previous extension onto the old stone house and the wall is 10 - 12 inches thick it's either a 9 inch hollow block wall or 4 inch cavity block wall, which makes things a lot more straightforward than working with stone and rubble |
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Thanks again y'all! We decided to hold off for now. We're not going to attempt this work ourselves without more practice and hands-on knowledge. It does appear to be a rubble wall, not block for what it's worth  |
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