After a little hiccup with the roof the water tables finally went on and the roof was complete 
The next job was to get the floor ready for the screed next week which meant digging out my and Derek’s underfloor heating installation skills. With 100mm of insulation down we laid the 240m of 15mm heating pipe and secured it with staples. Now it’s ready!!
We are delighted to have finished the work at Millview Drive in Tynemouth. The project, which started in October has tested our technical know how to the limit, but has eventually succeeded.
Before, July2013
After April 2014
The objective was to create a modern living space utilising the most up to date energy conservation building techniques. High performance walls, floor and roofs were constructed that significantly exceeded the current building regulations in order to create a building that would have a low energy foot print.
At the rear of the building high performance long lasting materials such as Metsä Woodâs ThermoWood was treated with high performance stains and lacquers before being secretly fixed to give a seamless & blemish free effect.
High performance cladding and windows
The ThermoWood had to be made to millimetre perfect sizes as the windows had been ordered some 13 weeks earlier and were sized to exactly fit between the ThermoWood courses. The task on site was then to fit the ThermoWood to the exact positions required, with hidden fixings, to ensure all of the head and cills of the windows lined up with the ThermoWood joints. As you can see from the above photo this was achieved to great effect.
The front elevation was also transformed with ThermoWood, render and a new driveway. Once again ThermoWood ( http://bit.ly/PPO970 ) was used to create a stunning effect.
Technology
The interior was fitted out with high a performance air management systems by Vent-axia, infra-red LED lighting and under floor heating using a Viessmann 200 series with external temperature weather compensation ( http://bit.ly/1g74LgB ). This allows the internal temperature of the house to be varied with reference to the external temperature producing a much smoother and more comfortable heating experience and saving money by allowing the boiler to run constantly at a lower temperature thus maximizing the benefits from the latent heat of vaporisation (condensate heat).
Fitting out
The internal spaces were further enhanced with an oak staircase and balcony which were French polished to match the kitchen units. The staircase was a bespoke item made in Newcastle. 
The balustrade is finished with 10mm toughened glass and secured with stainless steel fixings.
Floors and doors
Above the under floor heating the floors were tiled with black tiles to match the granite paving outside the bifold doors which were constructed at the same level in order to create a seamless transition from inside to out. The Sunflex (http://bit.ly/PSJpxw) SF70 Thermally broken aluminium doors were fitted with integrated blinds allowing the convenience of privacy without the clutter of hanging blinds or curtains.
Mr and Mrs Howes-Roberts commented as follows
We have found Richard Weir of Macoun to be extremely diligent and reliable. He was professional at all times and gave a huge amount of his own personal time to research the specific requirements of our project. We have been impressed with his ability to overcome the numerous technical challenges presented to him that were inherent to our plot. He listened carefully to our ideas and has been proactive in presenting alternatives many of which we accepted and which have added to the overall quality of our final build. Richard project managed the build which, as we both worked away a lot, was invaluable.
The use of an online project management collaboration service meant we could see plans and pictures and be fully informed before making decisions even when away. He turned our architects design into a reality and delivered a modern extension that has surpassed our expectations. We would use Richard again without hesitation.
We have been working at a property in Tynemouth for the past few weeks and are delighted to be âout of the groundâ.
Our excavator arrived on site a few weeks ago and started the process of demolishing the existing structures, levelling the land and excavating for the foundations and floors.
With in 2 weeks we had removed over 200 tonnes of demolition materials, clay and stone and were now ready to cast the foundations for the new building.
20 tonnes of concrete is lifted in place with our 13 ton JCB excavator leaving the site ready for our bricklayers the following week. The machine was also able to distribute 60tons of crushed stone to form the foundations for the solid concrete floors.
Our bricklayers had their work cut out as they needed to build a retaining wall from bricks with an absorbancy of less than 7% to prevent their strength 
deteriorating while under ground, the wall would take 4000 bricks and be sunk 2 meters into ground.
This was then backfilled with earth and crushed rock so as to form the structure. Once this was complete they diverted their attention to the new walls which as a special thermal design using high density polystyrene below ground and solid (9â) walls made from concrete blocks.
The picture opposite shows the high performance insulations mounted below ground to prevent transfer of cold into the sub structures of the new building. This is complimented with 150mm of similar high performance insulation above ground on the walls which is then rendered with another high performance synthetic product to keep the rain out.
The insulation below ground is kept in place by the land and gravel pressing against it which was one of our jobs once the walls were in place. Holywell farms were called in to assist with the placing of the 8 tons on pea gravel used to back fill the surrounding areas.
Macoun were asked to take a look at the roof structure of a kitchen extension which seemed unable to retain the heat placed in it. From initial inspection it was obvious that there were significant gaps in the seals around … Continue reading
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