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chrismac
bit long but I'll try. but this is a bit like therapy for me so excuse me...
It is very complicated when a project is commissioned, designed and then tendered and without early cost control to establish a realistic budget, clients and architects can get a bit carried away with scale, detail, features and often this isn't tested unitl the project is priced in the market. the market is also very fluid and contractors costs can vary enormously depending on the procurement route, size of contractor, cost of materials and labour also the nature of the appointment of professionals (architects, engineers, QS) can have a big impact on a projects success.
A lot of the projects shown on TV have unrealistic budgets, with no real disclosure of this, one thing about last night was the designer did state he had advised the client the budget was too tight. this happens a lot and some/ (maybe a lot) clients don't believe the professionals they employ and think they can do better because their friend told them something different?? Some appointments are restricted and contrary to popular myths we don't make a lot of money so if your invovlement as an architect is limited by cost then oyu have little influence how a project might develop if your appointment is curtailed too early. This is how most of the TV projects go, if we are still involved then 'value engineering' is more easily resolved for a positive outcome!
For any large projects we now always advise using a QS to establish a feasibility cost report that is then used as a design tool with the client to manage expectations prior to putting this to the market. Of course this can all fall apart for any number of reasons. Communication being the main one!
So most of these programmes don't really discuss these aspect of a project and whose involved at what level. The architects are sometimes involved to the end but mostly they fade off as the client doesn't always want to pay for the full array of skills we offer. Plus you do get what you pay for in most cases so if oyu've adequately designed and described a project and used cost reporting from an early stage and you stay appoitned then the difference can be large when it comes to the outcome.
Also you need a decent contingency related to the project circumstances, mostotf the TV programmes theres always a hidden pot of cash that appears, like last night.
I used to work in the commercial field for a number of years and commercial projects were so much easier as everyone is a professional but i love domestic work so do this now.. poorer but happier but dealing with clients and their expectations of cost is one of the hardest parts. Sorry very long....
I liked the tiled finish and overall outside was appealing but seemed..dunno...too chunky in places. Inside not so sure.
Lots of big questions unanswered, the planning and the cost!
This is how most of the TV projects go,
In a past life I sold insulation and render to GD projects.
They choose the people to be on camera carefully - it isn't great TV when Kevin says 'well, they listen to the Architect, agreed a realistic budget, bought in a main contractor who used a near off the shelf timber frame, bathroom and kitchen, and apart from a week lost to the builder having a week in Greece on holiday, finished within a few days and £1k of their budget'.
They do tend to be a bit nuts - it makes better TV.
I liked the exterior of both buildings, although the cladding could do with weathering in a bit. Inside it seemed pretty sensibly laid out and tastefully done (apart from the clown chairs), the Juliette balcony probably needs a trampoline underneath though. I'm assuming the pond outside was a temporary thing or yet to be finished, no way you'd have a 45 degree slope on each side into a pond...
Would be nice to see a break down of costs at the end of the episode but I suspect the numbers wouldn't add up :p
totally agree matt_outandabout this is about making good TV, it would be pretty boring if everything was too close to reality....
In a past life I sold insulation
I used to like matt_oab, I'm not so sure now
😉
PM me if you like I wont mention the site on here. I'm in the thinking hard about it stage of a plan to build a house in the Scottish borders in the next two years so am looking at what Architects / Designers do and who I need to get involved and when.
not sure they succeeded then! As has been mentioned before, Amazing Spaces is a far better show now for many reasons.totally agree matt_outandabout this is about making good TV
Amazing Spaces is a far better show now for many reasons.
Really disagree with this.
There have been a few interesting things, but there seems to be so little content in the show. Most of the screen time seems to be taken up by talking about what is going to be shown later in the programme, what we will see next, what we have just seen and then what we saw earlier. Ending the show on another full description of what we have all just seen.
After every bit with a person on, the presenter then repeats what the person said almost word for word in a voiceover.
GC in voiceover: next we will see if Bob is proud of his bar made from an old grain silo.
GC to camera: I'm about to ask Bob if he is proud of his bar. Bob are you proud of your bar?
GC in voiceover: I've just asked Bob if he is proud of his bar, let's see what Bob says..
Bob: I'm proud of my bar.
GC to camera: Bob, that's great that you are proud of your bar.
GC in voiceover: I'm so pleased that Bob is proud of his bar.
LOL at that grain silo bar - must have taken ruddy ages to take down and erect again! Describing it as portable was a bit of a stretch. 🙂
that was exactly the problem with last nights GD tho! Everything that might have been interesting was totally glossed over!There have been a few interesting things, but there seems to be so little content in the show.
mahalo
Full Memberthe had huge curtain in the bedroom…
All these designs with huge windows, the first thing I look for is any evidence of a curtain or blind, so it was quite a surprise to see the huge bedroom curtains
not sure they succeeded then! As has been mentioned before, Amazing Spaces is a far better show now for many reasons.
Building the Dream is better than both.
Amazing spaces is just made up BS from a trendies keen to build an AirBnB using a Massey35 and some fairy lights. I think half the projects will spring a leak within a month/and/or fall foul of some regulation regarding planning or motor vehicles. That and I have too many stories about George Clark as a student, he was my brothers flat-mate and Architecture course colleague.... 😉
I also think they should do a cost breakdown too.
@fenboy. Thanks for the reply. I guess through lack of knowledge I presumed the architect would have a better idea of what things cost to build from either the training or just experience
I agree about the amazing spaces. Tonight we had another wreck of a box on wheels turned into a poor glamping pod. The pointless George folly project he watches will build trying to make it sound clever and innovative. And how to take 2 t4s and end up with less space than if you just has 1 and did it properly
Re the latest Grand Designs, whilst I appreciated the design features etc., for the third week running we have another soulless, high ceilinged box. Cavernous, lovely little quirky designs but altogether a bit like crap new Methodist church.
I thought the pond had the look of something to do with SUDs (sustainable urban drainage - aka you can't put storm water into the sewer anymore.
Must say I thought they had accidentally doubled all the measurements!
Nice to see people are concerned about the drainage pond for the child, I was more concerned about the open staircase and landing with its handily spaced gaps for a toddler to climb through
I liked the external shape of it had been 2/3 smaller.
Not a comfortable home at all though
What happens when parents die and they want to sell the annex which has shared access ? And the new neighbours turn out to be the neighbours from hell....
I want Grand Designs to do a series of look backs to the ones that have failed, the ones that over the years that haven’t aged very well, or a kid has died falling through really daft stairs on to a solid concrete floor - in fact I remember now they did but they concentrated it on only a small number of the houses
oops
I agree about the amazing spaces. Tonight we had another wreck of a box on wheels turned into a poor glamping pod. The pointless George folly project he watches will build trying to make it sound clever and innovative. And how to take 2 t4s and end up with less space than if you just has 1 and did it properly
generally agree, especially the terrible t4 caravan, but i thought the railway carriage was ace!
what was funny; its true he repeats everything 3 times!! never noticed before, will never not notice now! and that t4 caravan was terrible!! see the size of the kids beds, then it cut to two giant almost teenage opposite sex kids!!
What happens when parents die and they want to sell the annex which has shared access ? And the new neighbours turn out to be the neighbours from hell….
My take on that was that he already had 2 teenage kids from a previous relationship so when his parents no longer need the annex it'll be available for the (by then grown up) kids plus partners etc when they stay. I don't think he needed to recoup any cash by selling it.
I liked it.
They liked it.
They did it for £600k quite quickly during a pandemic.
She had great hair.
I want Grand Designs to do a series of look backs to the ones that have failed, the ones that over the years that haven’t aged very well, or a kid has died falling through really daft stairs on to a solid concrete floor.
Can’t imagine why they haven’t.
What happens when parents die and they want to sell the annex which has shared access ? And the new neighbours turn out to be the neighbours from hell….
Man Cave with a loo and heating. He wasn't daft!
I haven’t watched GD for years, it all got a bit samey and cliched, decided to watch this weeks and it was actually enjoyable. The couple seemed nice, no hysterics or tantrums and the house looked nice enough and once it’s been lived in a bit I’m sure it’ll have more soul than when a tv show is being shot in it.
I thought the house was brilliant. Loved the shape, style and materials used - apart from the huge bricks chimney which I think stuck out a bit. I don’t think the house did look like a visitor centre etc.
Surprised at the total lack of fondness on here. Not sure if it’s all genuine or tinged with jealousy. I can only dream of owning a house on that scale. I’ve been impressed with all 3 builds so far.
It’s a shame due to covid that we don’t actually get to see much of the build process though.
Too big (again. Even the annexe looked huge and that wasn't being built for a growing family and vistors) but I liked the concept if not the execution. Once again, I think it demonstrates that we generally build much more interesting visitor centres than houses.
All these designs with huge windows, the first thing I look for is any evidence of a curtain or blind, so it was quite a surprise to see the huge bedroom curtains
In a pointlessly huge bedroom (who actually spends any time in their bedroom other than in bed?) with a ridiculous open plan ensuite (smells? damp?) which meant those huge curtains would need to be closed every time anyone wanted to use the bathroom...
the designer did state he had advised the client the budget was too tight. this happens a lot and some/ (maybe a lot) clients don’t believe the professionals they employ and think they can do better because their friend told them something different
That was refreshing to see and maybe it was because he wasn't an architect, but instead a 'technician' who was a lot closer to actual build projects. Our architects estimate of costs were consistently and obviously unrealistically low as they encouraged us to have various bespoke features. Most of those we pushed back on but the few we allowed ended up costing way more than estimated. We were main contractor and PM and came in on budget because we a) did a lot of costing work during design b) kept tight control on spend and compromised on stuff as some costs rose c) started with a realistic budget AND a properly sized contingency all which we spent d) Did the work ourselves so could flex time rather than having to pay more or pay someone to build in risk.
the house we moved into recently has a too-big-really main bedroom, although it's worked out ok as it now also contains my office (much nicer than being stuck in a box-room) and all my Lego where no-one can touch it (probably not a consideration for most people on GD, granted 😃)In a pointlessly huge bedroom (who actually spends any time in their bedroom other than in bed?)
Lego is probably the least weird thing on Grand Designs
Do you remember the huge house built to look like a sterile Bond villain lair and the balding, bespectacled owner spending bazillions to get it just right including lining up his custom made furniture so it was perfectly in line with the knob on his recently acquired sculpture?
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/lifestyle/welsh-homes/grand-design-uses-willy-plumb-10019954.amp
If anyone is wondering how they got planning - seems like the local plan was out of date and they needed more houses. Doesn't seem the most compelling reason, but who knows...
https://planning.sholland.gov.uk/OcellaWeb/showDocuments?reference=H16-1258-18&module=pl
I'd swear Kevin talked about it being clad in 'reclaimed slate' in the opening but when the cladding was going on thought 'those look like modern fake slate tiles'. Sure enough, clad in fibre-cement-slates - thrutone-smooth
It is as huge as it looked - ground floor alone looks like 200m2
I thought he said recycled slate, i.e plastic ? which is what I thought they were.
Classic. Eco warrior using concrete. OK, OK, it's "eco-concrete" but still. GD bingo tick.
And now polystyrene!!!!
And acres of blue plastic. I’m unconvinced by the eco-credentials so far.
Harsh! I'd be happily reconciled with the house not using energy for its lifetime and possibly acting as a blueprint for sustainable housing IF it works. If I was him I'd allow for some discreet gas central heating in case the experiment fails though
Not sure about his underfloor pipe pattern either 🤔.
God forbid one of the kids leaves the patio doors open though
discreet gas central heating
The not so discreet un-plumbed in log burner was in shot there.
It seems to work. Right I'm starting a building company that specialises in laying concrete on a sloping roof etc. The government will be handing out grants and subsidies like sweeties
Do they have to keep all the windows shut in the summer to build up the heat?
un-plumbed in log burner
Maybe the flu went out the back of the stove?
Maybe the flu went out the back of the stove?
It's just the flu bro.
Maybe. Given they have now acknowledged it.