If I can do it, so can you!

We bought our house in 2005, and it came with planning permission for a two-storey extension and of course … we let it lapse!

Then, 14 years on, we discussed building an extension! Initially Steph wanted a single storey with fancy roof light. But when I suggested we make it two storey and make the second floor a self-contained flat she agreed that was a good idea.

We went to a home and garden show in May 2019 and saw a stand with ICF. We were impressed with the ease of the system and the reasonable cost of building our extension with it.

A couple of weeks later, we went to Swindon to the National Self Build and Renovation Centre, and we saw the Thermomur  system, which we both thought was better quality than the other ICF products. We spoke to Melanie and Phil who explained how the system worked and answered our questions about what we needed to do and gave us the confidence to go ahead with a self-build. 

Neither Steph or I had any building experience, Steph is an Administrator and I am a Driver trainer for DAF Trucks. The process started with finding an architect. We spoke to lots of people and found one we were happy with. They did the drawings for us and we had discussions about various parts that we wanted changing.

We re-applied for planning permission, which was passed, and we started the build in February 2020. I dug out the footings (in the rain!). The building inspector comes and checks at various stages throughout the build. We concreted the footings - you must ensure they are level … it will make the build easier later. The ICF building system arrived on a truck and 12 pallets of building blocks were unloaded onto our front garden. (Goodbye grass and view!)

Phil came down and helped us set up the first level of blocks, to make sure they were square etc, and correct, according to the plans. Then the build started in earnest. 

Steph and I had the extension up to the first floor in no time - it took us about a week to get to that level. Phil was very helpful during the whole process. If we had any questions, he was on the end of the phone to offer advice. He came down for the concrete pour days and checked the concrete mix was correct as well as checking everything was ready for the pour.

We would not have been able to afford to build using traditional bricks and blocks but the ICF system makes it possible. 

Our extension has doubled the size of our house for half the cost of bricks and blocks.

I would recommend Sandalcroft to anyone thinking about building an extension or a new house, ICF is easy to use and you get lots of support along the way. 

Ron Smith