Cottage Fabric Planning Statement

Details per planning application E J Callow, Ballachurry Farm Cottage, Bernahara Road, Andreas, IM7 3HH. 7th October 2003.

Cottage Fabric

After my purchase of the cottage it transpired that it was built from soil and straw ( 2 feet width) with a single skin brick /rubble external finish. The soil and straw was very wet in one particular corner of the building to the degree it could be pulled out by hand. It was therefore recommended for removal. This resulted in excessive and unexpected extra costs in removing the soil and straw walls from inside the original cottage - initially thought to be only on the ground floor, but later was found to go up to the roof.

The careful soil extraction continued into the first floor, which meant having to remove the roof (intended anyway) to reduce weight and strain on the cottage walls whilst carrying out the works. The roof itself was resting on the soil and straw. Also the front wall of the cottage had to be unavoidably dropped down as the bricks on the extreme upper levels were intermingled with the soil and straw. Thus the front wall was lowered to the bottom sil of the upstairs front windows. At this juncture it was suggested that the windows could be built back up wider to allow more light into the upstairs of the cottage by widening the window.

Extension And Cottage Gable Finish

Due to the poor and porous quality of the original bricks - local Ballacorey - which makes up the 'shell' of the cottage, both gables (all brick) are going to be difficult to make watertight. As a result I wish to explore the option of rendering both gables after all the lime finish has been removed. This will allow the extension to be built in concrete block with a rough 'cottage' render finish to match in with the sides of the original cottage

If at all possible after cleaning the cottage front of all lime, it is hoped to retain the brick finish and this having a cavity could then be treated in a water resistant paint in white.

Windows

The original intention was to fit hard wood timber sliding sash windows retaining the existing size in order to benefit from a conservation grant. As the front wall and upstairs windows were taken out, I considered to replace them with a slightly bigger aperture, allowing more light into the upstairs of the cottage. The increase in size negates the eligibility for a conservation grant. Accordingly, and in view of the extra costs already incurred I am now seeking to install pvc casement windows as a cheaper option.

As part of the works in removing the soil and straw, the ground floor ceiling of the cottage was taken out - the existing supporting joists were resting on the soil and straw and did not meet with building regulations (not thick enough and too wide apart, creating a bowed effect to the old ceiling). Accordingly when the joists are replaced they will be with thicker and stronger joists set to the required distance apart ( 16 inches).

The deeper joists ( 8 inches) will eat into the head height in the upstairs and it is hoped that the cottage being as it is can be heightened when the roof is put back on to compensate for the loss of head space. Equivalent 8 inches would suffice.

With regards to the kitchen extension to the rear - current interior measurement s are 3.96 m . It is hoped that the Committee will agree to extending this by a further meter to increase the living space, i.e to 5 m .

Finally all these works are proposed to a very remote cottage not seen from the road.