Hi, we are extending upstairs over a older red brick home. we have Ironstone windows, gutters, roof. We are going to render the extension but don't want to go lighter like a Dune colour but more of a medium grey. We will be replacing our posts and garage door with timber (also have a timber gate) so I feel like we can get away with a darker grey upstairs render. Do you know a good medium grey that goes well with Ironstone? Initially I was thinking Simone Weil and maybe even Guild Grey if it's not too dark?

nothing worse than a leaking roof...first clean all the gutters and downpipes on the verandah and the house,check the space where the verandah attaches to the house is also clean (especially if the verandah roof is under the original eaves) make sure that all the places where there's a join in the gutters and downpipes are properly sealed, replace any missing roof screws with their attached rubber washers, make sure there's no gaps in the flashing and if you think the slope on the verandah roof is too shallow, consider replacing the verandah roofing (corrugated iron??) with a square profile sheeting that is more effective at lower angles ...there could also be a break in a tile or ridge capping where the rain is running down the inside of the roof and leaking inside the ceiling so the old tile roof needs to be checked and repointed ..a gutter cleaner and a roofing contractor and a plumber can do all this for you...not especially cheap but very worthwhile and hope you have a leak free new year.

Flat roof with a box gutter down the middle is what we have on the house we have bought to move into after renovating - starting from the top down. i.e. A new roof. Present one a nightmare. Leaves from leafy garden - a major reason why we bought the place - pile up in box gutter, which overflows if not constantly cleaned out and anywhere the roof has been breached - e.g. Cable tv antennae and roof mounted airconditioner - somehow water trickles thro - no matter how much silicone gets poured into the crevices - or yet more flashing is replaced. We thought the place was tech-smart with everything controlled by remotes, but soon discovered the reason the 1980s house, built b4 internet, wifi, roller shutters, etc, is that it is impossible to hard wire thro the non-existant roof cavity ! Flat roofs tend to sit just cms above the ceiling. But none of that has permanently put us off the gorgeous minimalistic feel to the place - particularly as we have bought it, knowing it needed to be upgraded. . Aha, we thought. A nice big flat terraced roof with a fabulous view out over the treetops that we can use for a roof garden, entertainment area, etc - with easy access to the necessary box gutter to keep it free of debris, will be just the way to go ! Until our plans got to council - oh no, they said, roof terraces cause overlooking issues into neighbours' private spaces, and also they fear we might have a tribe of teenagers up there making a noise, or kicking a ball, disturbing the local amenity ! We were not that easily deterred. But it is not so easy, i have to warn those who have waxed lyrical about swimming pools and outdoor living with a view, etc, etc up on their roof ... we have had to compromise with 1800 high screening along one side, which fortunately we can camouflage amidst high overhanging trees, and pulling in terraced areas about a metre from the edge of the building - lessening the expanse of useable area considerably ... but we can still make it work, including solar panels on another part of the roof not in our terrace plans - they can easily be installed with angled brackets ( ie a flat or pitched roof is not really an issue when it comes to solar panels) - but turning a flat roof into a wonderful addition to the garden is turning out to be not quite what we originally envisaged And adding any extra weight on the roof, especially if it is going to be used as a living area, also invokes extra building regulations - like the earthquake code i.e think expensive engineers and extra strengthening of whatever is holding the roof up !

" .....there has to be a better design " - that's why I'd love some input here! The 800mm gap under the box gutter will hold storage, the toilet, the 'european laundry' and the wardrobe for Bedroom 3, so certainly not wasted space. It will address all the storage needs, and will enable the garden-facing side to be quite open. No - pergola timbers are not preexisting - extending new ones from the new roof will be the primary shading device, and can have anything added to them to shade them. The box gutter enables the extension roof to be pitched upwards towards the west, creating a higher ceiling, enabling some kind of opening above the bifolds, to enable hot air to be expelled. Not that my own finances are the business of this discussion, but if I can get to lockup stage with my own cash, I can apply for a bank loan for the fitout. I'm not sure of your own experience OKL, but preliminary quotes for lockup stage were around the ballpark I'd mentioned earlier. I'll upload an updated floorplan soon :-)