Here is the old house..lower cedar undergoing clean and is now all oiled. Window trims on right painted in dune. Ok. So had heart attack yesterday. Roof painter came out. I am at work. He and my son decided to ‘colormatch’ my already woodland grey painted posts and decide ....yes it’s armour grey....I had told both days earlier woodland grey...now have an armour grey roof which is same as windspray...don’t know whether to laugh or cry..more cry actually. Heart was set on woodland grey and dune trims. But I did really like your windspray..so confused now what to do....any help would be appreciated.

Hi Erika, First up I will proclaim my disdain for render. This is not because it is inherently bad finish, but there is some much poor render and render look products that crack and an look so cheap it has now colour my view of it as a finish. Make it brick if you want masonry or make it weatherboards if you want it to feel lighter. Depending of the form a mix of both can work well also, but be careful how this is done. Masonry to the external skin is inherently wrong in a hot climate (that is most australian how get it wrong with brick veneer). By place the masonry to the external skin, means it heats up all day and the can keep the building warm all night. Handy for a cold cold climate, but you will need insulation on the internal side to avoid heat loss, thus never really benefiting in a big way from this anyway. Try placing the brick skin to the internal face and you will get the true value from the masonry for its thermal qualities and cladding this with a lightweight material to the external face, shading it from the heat. You will also need to insulate between the cladding and the masonry to avoid heat loss as masonry is not a good insulator. Not even a double brick wall with that has the internal face exposed will meet the minimum BASIX requirements for heat loss in NSW, not with out additional insulation in the cavity. OK, stepping of the soap box for a moment to actually answer your question more directly. Weatherboards - Can look great, you will need insulation in the walls anyway. If not put it there anyway, It's a cheap product and make allot of difference to the comfort of the home in hot and cool climates. There will be maintenance that comes with weatherboards, paint them properly with a quality paint system and you will not have to do much for a long time, skimp on this and you will be back regularly. Render - also can look good, if you spend the dollars and get it done well. This will cost more. You will still need insulation and the masonry will warm you home through the night in the summer. It will also require a level of maintenance, but depending on the finish this can be very minimal. Weatherboard will be cheaper, unless you a building a project home and the scale of economies they get can skew things big time, particularly if you are only looking at a bagged brick rather than full render finish.

apologies for the poor quality pic..anyway hopefully u can see. My design features a cantilevered upper floor over the existing living/dining/kitchen using exposed engineered hyspan beams, it's hard to say but the new ceiling could be around 9 feet high, giving enhanced space downstairs. Upstairs there should be enough room for the master bed, study and additional lounge area (approx 8mx5m). Northfacing windows will provide ample sun in winter but shaded by the overhanging skillion roof in summer. A balcony overlooking the garden can be created using the cantilevered beams. Flooring can be particle board floor sheeting (again in keeping with the modest nature of the original worker's cottage). Southfacing windows will give expansive views of the lake and surrounds. Another feature I am proposing is a light well to light the downstairs, and connect the downstairs with the upstairs, so when you walk into the room, you see the fireplace, lookup and see the lightwell, look outside and see the views of the garden and lake. The exposed timber beams and high sheet ceiling will add interest to the downstairs as well. To complement, and soundproof the masterbedroom I am proposing a japanese style screen which can be pulled across for privacy and restrict noise from downstairs. The existing kitchen and bathroom can be demolished, and placed into a new wing, in the form of an old 'colonial' style (for want of a better descriptor) brick or sandstone extension (harking back to previous times). Complete with corrugated roof in the same colour as your existing roof. The extension will include a small walkin pantry, bath, shower, wc, and laundry utilities. All up these are modest extensions which I believe will enhance and encapsulate your existing workers cottage without costing a bomb. The chimney will be kept and will need extending either in brick, or steel flue up over the new roof. Steel might look nice.

if the original asbestos walls are in good condition then they can re-be painted but if the walls are too damaged to be saved the asbestos needs to be removed by professionals and the cladding replaced, no reason you can't have different profiles on the front and sides as long as joints and corners are sealed properly but if you plan to install new windows it could be better to wait to repair sections of wall as the windows are replaced (i'd prefer to have all the roof and external walls in good condition and then do the internal work at leisure)... .modern fibrous cements are excellent ...we've just used flat fibrous cement with curved battens over joints and very happy with the results for our 50's house (there are several different brands available through the big hardware stores and research on line is much easier than trying to work out the variations in store) the gabled portico can be made as a separate structure or as a extension to the roof with valley gutters depending on placement of the solar panels (and/or solar panels can be moved)