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Generally, a paved driveway is always subjected to regular usage and yours isn’t likely to be an exception, otherwise you won’t be here. Regular usage automatically necessitates regular maintenance of the driveway in order to extend its lifespan, make your property safer and add more value to it. This maintenance will involve a frequent inspection of the paved driveway so as to identify and repair divots, cracks as well as rutting. Paved driveways usually have a lifespan ranging between 15 to 20 years, but this can only be guaranteed when backed by regular maintenance activities. Failure to provide your paved driveway with a regular maintenance will lead to a rapid deterioration within just a couple of years after installation.

The issues commonly faced by paved driveways is usually different based on several factors such as the weather, your location, your property’s sub base as well as some other elements. The ability to identify the problems and solve or repair them on time is key to success while it’s also save you some time and money. In this article we’re going to look at how to go about do-it-yourself tasks that involves minor cracks. More intense damages are advised to be handled only by professionals.

✓ Prepare the area. Clear the debris, weed the plants or vegetation (if any).

✓ Use a strong spray from a garden hose to wash clean the cracks

✓ In the event whereby the crack is deep, simply fill it until it reach about a quarter inch of the surface with sand.

✓ Tamp down the sand to make it more compact.

✓ Apply a patching compound to the surface of the cracked paved driveway.

✓ Leave it for some time to cure.

✓ Once cured, you can then apply your sealant.

If you’ve decided to construct a porch to your property and now looking to figure out the cost required to complete the project, then you’re at the right place!

There are many factors that comes to play when determining the price of building a porch. These factors includes the size of the porch, the number of windows, the style of the roof as well as the type of the porch selected. Now let’s take a look at these factors one after the other.

• The Porch’s Size

As you would have correctly imagined, a large porch will definitely cost more money than a smaller one. A rough estimate of a porch’s cost per square metre is approximately £1,400.

• The Number Of Windows

Just like in the scenario above, the more the number of windows to be incorporated, the more money you’ll have to pay to complete your porch. A porch window will generally cost you within a range of £300 to £1,000

• The Style Of The Roof

There are two popular styles of porch’s roof which includes a tiled rood and a rubber flat roof. Generally, roof tiles are costlier than a rubber flat roof. A tiled roof would cost you between £0.80 to £1.80 per roof tile, while a rubber roofing will cost your between £70 to £90 per metre squared.

• Type Of The Porch

Another huge determinant of a porch’s price is type of material incorporated. For instance, if your preferred type is a lean-to, the price of a uPVC would be between £2,300 to £2,700. Meanwhile, a flat gable roof porch should cost within a range of £3,300 to £3,800.

Kindly note that the costs quoted in this article are only rough estimates, for a more accurate estimate you can contact a porch building professional within your local area.

A barn conversion can be a great investment for lots of reasons. When done well, barn conversions can be great at holding their value, meaning you could sell yours for a great price. They can also look fantastic, often with period features coupled with large areas of glazing. This can make them a great place to live, especially if you enjoy being in the countryside.

However, barn conversions do have their disadvantages. They may require extensive renovation work to bring their energy efficiency levels up to standard, which can be very expensive. It’s also important to be aware of their location – they might be on a working farm or close to several other converted buildings.

It’s essential to get a survey conducted before you buy a barn you plan to convert. This can tell you about any structural problems it might have and give you an indication of whether you might be able to get permission to convert it. You can also buy barns with planning permission already in place.

Being the most used room in a house, it’s little surprise kitchen extension are usually one of the most popular requests in the UK. They do not only open up a frequently used space in your home, but also goes a long way to add value to your property. However, to know the value that’ll added you must first determine the cost of building such an extension before moving forward. Generally, a typical kitchen extension will cost within the range of £20,000 to about £50,000 plus VAT, based on the size of your project as well as your location.

In reality, a single accurate cost of a kitchen extension will vary depending on a lot of influencing factors, one of which is the type of the extension. Let’s take a look!

✓ Rear extension. You may want to consider this type, if you do not have sufficient space for a side return. This will extend your kitchen into your garden which implies that you’re going to give up some green space to make this a reality. The average price to have this done in London will be about £30,000 or more including VAT, and about £20,000 plus VAT or more in other areas.

✓ Side return extension. This, normally, isn’t a huge add to your property, but will create a lot of space for your kitchen while also be a lot reasonable in terms of cost. This type will extend your home into an alleyway at the side of your property if any is available there. On average, the cost of the side return extension should be about £50,000 plus VAT in London and a lot less in the other regions.

Cement is a crucial element in bricklaying that’s widely used in both construction as well as finishing works. Generally, they’re used to aerate concrete blocks, connect bricks, prepare plaster, floor levelling as well as the making of precast products. The major reason cement is one of the most common construction materials as its incredible ability to hold structure together. To get a cement plaster, you’d simply have to mix cement with both water and sand. However, when you mix cement with lime, sand and water, you’ll get a mortar.

For cements mortars to be used inside joints, you’ll have to include 1 part cement at the minimum to not more than 2 parts sand by weight which should be dry mixed and moistened with enough water to allow for troweling and packing without falling apart. Generally, the cement sand ratio in a mortar is in between 1:2 to 1:6. The cement and sand mix ratio is largely based on the importance of the project.

Cement provides a plethora of uses in bricklaying and these includes:

• Preparation of cement concrete

• Preparation of cement mortar

• Building fireproof and thermal proof structures

• Building chemical proof structures

• Serving as a grout material

• Building hydrographic and frost resistant structures

• Manufacturing precast members

• Constructing aesthetic concrete

• Constructing cement concrete roads

There are several types of cements with each having its specific purpose. For instance, the type of cement more suited to building a fire proof structure is a high alumnia cement and to build a hydrographic structure, cements like expanding cement, hydrophobic cement, pozzolana cement and quick setting cement are the best bet. Acid resistant cements are more useful in building chemical proof structures, portland cements are best suited to making grout materials, while coloured cements are preferable to building aesthetic structures.

Often referred to by many as the holy grail of home improvements, house extension comes with a wide range of benefits which makes it easy to see why the extension could be a great uptick in the potential price of your property in terms of sales. So if you’re looking to build a new home extension but still not convinced about the project, we’re here to help you. Being fully aware any home construction work is usually a heavy investment, there’s a huge need to be set on your decision before scheduling the commencement of any work. So are house extensions worth it? Below are some of the top benefits offered by house extensions to help you decide if it’s the most suitable route for you.

• Add To Your Home’s Value

Building an home extension is a great way to add value to your home before selling. Increasing the living space of your home is an incredible appeal to many buyers which significantly increases your property’s total value. However, you must ensure that the extension is impressively designed using top quality materials in order to generate more value.

• Good Alternative To House Moving

The most common reason for moving is usually due to a lack of sufficient space, but with house prices steadily on the increase a cost effective alternative is highly sought after. This alternative is house extension which creates more space for the household to spread out and have more privacy.

• You May Not Require A Planning Permission

You can extend your house and still not need to apply for a planning permission. To achieve this, simply comply with the laid down rules set under the permitted development rights.

• Extra Living Space

If you fill you’re starting to outgrow your existing structure and do not buy into the idea of moving, then your best bet might just be to extend your home.

This is an individual who is trained in the art of working with concrete blocks or bricks, clay bricks as well as other kinds of mortar building materials. In a combination of these materials and good bricklaying skills, a bricklayer can build and repair veneer as well as full brick construction, arches, partitions and other structures.

Contrary to many beliefs, a bricklayer actually does more than laying of bricks. There’s more to being a bricklayer than you can probably think of. A single bricklaying projects requires a wide array of skills. Let’s have a look at these skills!

• Using damp resistant materials to seal foundations.

• Spreading mortar between joints and applying them to serve as a thick layer binding the bricks together in rows.

• Reading and working from specifications as well as plans.

• Working with brick-cutting machines.

• Taking charge and caring for cement blocks or bricks, clay bricks and the likes.

• Construction of scaffolding - subject to possession of some licenses in some states.

A bricklayer mostly works outdoors, in the field and may also work at heights. Depending on the job, a bricklayer can work as part of a team or be in contact with the public. They are mostly recruited by building and construction companies and bricklaying sub contractors. However, they can also set up their own private construction firm or become a self employed tradesperson.

A bricklaying qualification is one of just two construction trades which can continue to become a registered builder. And regardless of the form a bricklaying employment takes, there are certain qualities that makes a really good bricklayer. These includes:

• Ability to work at heights and outdoors

• Enjoy practical work

• Technical aptitude

• Good hand-eye coordination

• Independent and yet a team player too

• Top physical fitness

• Attitude and attendance.

When thinking about the right insulation material for your loft, some of the first few things that comes to mind is the various properties of that material as well as how good they fit with your home’s needs.naturally, you’d like to ensure that the insulation will be efficient enough to add to the overall energy efficiency of your home, however there are also other features that may not get as much attention but also happens to be equally important. As the primary function of an insulation is to blanket your house to offer a barrier against heat loss, going for an insulation material that’s also fireproof is crucial as loft insulation can burn. Although most insulation materials are fireproof, a myriad of problems can actually make your insulation burn.

For instance, fibreglass insulation is produced using glass combined with plastic polymers and is naturally resistant to fire. However, even at that you’d have to be careful with batts that are supported with foil or paper due to the fact that these materials can burn pretty quickly. Cellulose, on the other hand, is not fireproof and is required to be treated by other flame retardants in order to help reduce combustion. Some of the best insulation materials that are resistant to fire includes the following:

• Fibre glass. This is made of glass that’s spun into fibres, then combined using plastic polymers. As a result, fiberglass insulation is naturally resistant to fire.
• Mineral wool. Having a high melting temperature, this insulation material happens to be a great fit for thermal applications due to its superior fire resistant properties. In fact, mineral wool is still naturally non-combustible even if composed of recycled iron and steel by-products, or from actual mineral rock itself.