Kit homes

Been watch a few of the TV programmes where individuals have built the home of their dreams in a few weeks.

Timber panels screwed together with appropriate insulation, underfloor heating, eco boiler etc etc. The only thging that worries me is the sound transmission twixt rooms...

Anyone live in on, or has a view ?

Re: Kit homes

Dobra I have watched a number of programmes about kit homes, the best I have seen come from Germany.

I would like to see one, my son said they had some at one of the Home Shows at Birmingham NEC a couple of years ago.

Re: Kit homes

I'm afraid the tale of the 3 Little Pigs applies here.

The houses made of straw and wood blew away !

These kit houses are great IF, IF the weather is fine. Come a hurricane or earthquake or anything this serious and those houses become non-houses in short measure. Imagine how much more quickly a fire would raze them to the ground.

In the end yer pays yer money and takes yer chance.

I'd want the strongest foundations, steel girder framework, real stone walls and so on.

Re: Kit homes

The majority of new homes here in Scotland are kit homes....as are most house extensions.

There is a company in Selkirk that makes them in their factory and transports them to site.

Most extensions are framed up on site by the on site joiners ( I've consatructed several myself)

It's the future and I see , on my travels South , that more and more English sites are using kit homes.

If these structures are ok for Scotland with our extreme weather they should be more than fine elsewhere in the UK.

Luckily Hurricanes and Earthquakes are practically unheard of in the UK and when they do occur are low intensity and short lived.

Re: Kit homes

I was working with kit homes in the 70`s. Simple two bedroom houses in blocks of five or semi detatched pairs, when finished they came completly carpeted with fridge, cooker, and washing machine.

Designed as starter homes they were very popular and none has succumbed yet.

Re: Kit homes

I agree Nom they have been around for many years, they are a well proven technology and with modern insulation levels coupled with speedy erection qualities are an excellent choice for a dwelling, particularly for a self builder.

Re: Kit homes

I have looked into park homes, whether they are of a similar build or not I don't know but they also seem to have passed the test of time. We did consider buying one a few years ago but were put off by the park rules and the fact that you could be turfed off he land at any time.

Most new houses built these days are on the flimsy side anyway, so kit homes are probably not a lot different.

Re: Kit homes

I have to disagree Dongles, often poorly finished maybe by the mass builders but neither type of construction is unsubstantial if built correctly.

Re: Kit homes

My conservatory is a kit. They dug down 1 metre in 4 different places then filled those holes with concrete, then erected a framework with 4 legs which sat on the filled in holes. Frame was bolted to the back of the house. Then the conservatory was erected from panels.

It's been up 10 years with no problems and is strong enough to have a glass roof. It measures 3m x 3m.

This is one of the holes. As you can see it was raining hard when they were dug and had to be baled out once it stopped before the concrete went in.


This is the grid thing...


Legs....


Modular base blocks, brick slipped on the outside


Finished article....

Re: Kit homes

Slightly different but our third house was timber framed. it was warmer inside even being a 4 bed detached house than our previous 1930's built 3 bed semi.

getting a mortgage was no problem either. As I say a bit different from a kit home but along the same lines as the timber frame was factory built and delivered on site