Why are things so awkward?

TheCatWoman said:

I thought it would fairly simple to get an idea of prices, but no, it seems back to one size fits no one

Everything now has to be metric by law I believe so you will need to measure the windows in mm and use this when doing the quotes.

If there is a window that is a few cm smaller in either dimension then you can still use this - there will be some packing shims used to make up the difference in size and the gap will get filled with expanding foam first then cement.

With the lintel being cracked it will need to be replaced which is a serious job unfortunately as it bears the weight of the bickwork above it plus the roof / joists etc. You will find this is a specialised job as supports need to be cut into the brickwork above so they can safely chisel out the old lintel and replace it.

TheCatWoman said:

The other thing I want is some idea of how much kitchen cupboard door and drawer fronts will cost,

Kitchen cabinets have been standard metric sizes for about 30 years now so if they are from within this timeframe then you should be able to get like for like replacement from any of the big resellers. It is is older then you will probably need a custom made set, or replace the whole lot - probably much the same cost.

One thing to be wary of when changing kitchen unit doors as I have found is that the holes for the hinges often do not line up with the previous ones so a bit of re-driling holes for the hinges will sometimes be needed.

I need a ball park figure for the window as well as the lintel because the window will need to be replaced as it's broken from the pressure of the broken lintel. As it's a bungalow my fear is that there will be problems with the roof.

Thing is Iain here is the boonies, the land of cowboy builders and farmers who think they can do anything, many things here are a mix of imperial and metric. At least this place dosent' have some of the built in redundancies I've found in other Welsh houses, like a gas boiler that gives instant hot water, feeding into an imersion tank and apparently this is normal because "you need an airing cupboard".

TheCatWoman said:

Thing is Iain here is the boonies, the land of cowboy builders and farmers who think they can do anything

One useful website that I used when I was in England is https://www.checkatrade.com

It grew into being for exactly the reasons you quote and is effectively a list of tradespeople and their reviews.

The best reviewed ones tend to be booked a long way ahead but it will give about as good a recommendation list as you can get without knowing the builders in question.

I used the filter criteria of Internal Building work then Small Structural change / repair using the postcode of LL59 to get roughly your area.

There is a decent list to look at.

TheCatWoman said:

like a gas boiler that gives instant hot water, feeding into an imersion tank and apparently this is normal because "you need an airing cupboard".

I've seen plenty of this in the South Coast of England as well - lots of stuff gets "modified" rather than properly replaced and ends up with decades of bodges held together with string and chewing gum that is a nighmare to defuse and is best just ripped out and installed properly (my preferred approach).

I wonder if the window could have the frame repaired (easier if it is wood) and new glass fitted - much less cost. It may be worth asking about this when getting quotes. It is it plastic of metal then repairability is more difficult and it often causes more issues with the interconnecting bits of frame breaking when trying to remove the broken part.

TheCatWoman said:

Thing is Iain here is the boonies, the land of cowboy builders and farmers who think they can do anything

One useful website that I used when I was in England is https://www.checkatrade.com

It grew into being for exactly the reasons you quote and is effectively a list of tradespeople and their reviews.

The best reviewed ones tend to be booked a long way ahead but it will give about as good a recommendation list as you can get without knowing the builders in question.

I used the filter criteria of Internal Building work then Small Structural change / repair using the postcode of LL59 to get roughly your area.

There is a decent list to look at.

TheCatWoman said:

like a gas boiler that gives instant hot water, feeding into an imersion tank and apparently this is normal because "you need an airing cupboard".

I've seen plenty of this in the South Coast of England as well - lots of stuff gets "modified" rather than properly replaced and ends up with decades of bodges held together with string and chewing gum that is a nighmare to defuse and is best just ripped out and installed properly (my preferred approach).

I wonder if the window could have the frame repaired (easier if it is wood) and new glass fitted - much less cost. It may be worth asking about this when getting quotes. It is it plastic of metal then repairability is more difficult and it often causes more issues with the interconnecting bits of frame breaking when trying to remove the broken part.

I've tried using checkatrade before and didn't get on with it, they want photo's and detail I don't have and as is common with builders seem unable to listen properly, won't answer questions and many don't like dealing with women. It's got to the point where the first thing I ask any potential new builder now, is will they work for women? I do this after my Mum tried to get a plumber to fix the leaking shower, a couple of months after my Dad died and was asked twice if they could speak to her husband or other male relative.

The window in question is a UVPC one, it has no FENSA certificate and is seriously past it's best, its also one of those odd double ones, where there's like a normal sized window taking up most of the sitting room wall, then theres another solid window below it and it's all one unit. What my neighbour wants is to block up the lower part of the window so as the house feels less exposed and have a normal window on the top part, he's undecided yet whether to have a large UPVC unit with the lower part white or to brick it up?