General
We are a local family run business. All of our joinery is manufactured in house at our workshops in Ashurst Wood, East Grinstead. We carry out and oversee the whole project, starting with your initial enquiry through to final completion. This ensures that our high standard of workmanship can be maintained throughout the whole process, and also enables us to keep to our forecast timescale for each project.
We are based in Mid Sussex, so we cover the whole Sussex area, West Kent and Surrey.
Yes, we strongly recommend visiting. Whilst we don’t have a showroom, we can guide you round the factory where you can see current work at all stages of manufacture. Please call before coming to ensure that someone is available to greet you.
Yes. We carry out all of the work from the initial orangery or conservatory design, through to completion of the project. This includes application for any planning or building regulations that may be required, building works, electrical installation and plastering.
We are happy to discuss with your local planning office to see if consent is likely. We have successfully fitted glass buildings to many listed properties, but there will almost always be certain conditions to be satisfied.
A typical project will take approximately eight to twelve weeks from the start through to final completion. For most projects, we will manufacture the framework joinery before the base in order to minimise project length. However, this may not always be possible on complex projects where significant alterations to the host building mean that precise dimensions can only be acquired once the ground works are completed.
A conservatory can usually be erected on site in two to three days, and finished within a week, ready for electrical and plastering works.
Yes. We are able to offer a large range of additional joinery to suit your requirements.
Yes certainly. With the latest solar control glass and suitable heating this is entirely possible.
In most cases your project will not be charged VAT. Providing we have a copy of the listed consent, we can zero rate the invoice. The custom and excise rules state that zero rating applies to an alteration, but not a repair or refurbishment.
A new conservatory will be zero rated, but replacing an existing conservatory with the same design will not.
Very secure. Our French doors have high security multipoint hook bolts which lock into a strike plate the full length of the door. Windows are fitted with multipoint locks, and lockable handles.
Design Options
An orangery is a more substantial building. The roof comprises of a perimeter (typically 500mm to 1000mm wide) of very well insulated flat roof, with a large central lantern. It is more expensive than a conservatory (by approximately twenty to thirty percent in price). An orangery will be less susceptible to temperature fluctuation, and there will be reduced glare from the sun. The flat roof element of an orangery creates a more secluded atmosphere, perfect for evening entertaining. Orangeries offer a versatile space, ideal for a dining room or a kitchen, a relaxing lounge or a busy home office. Usually down lighters are fitted in the flat roof, but for a stunning feature, why not fit a chandelier or carriage lamp to hang from the roof lantern ridge. For mood lighting, dim the down lighters and switch on table lamps, and perhaps a wall light or two.
A conservatory is a perfect choice as a link between the house and the garden, offering the most panoramic views.
Yes it is possible, although building control will require heat loss calculations. This could mean that it is necessary to improve the energy efficiency of the house by improving loft insulation or a new boiler for example.
No. Every conservatory and orangery is purpose made, and we can manufacture any configuration of window or door.
Dwarf wall heights are in increments of 75mm (brickwork gauge). 600mm is a common height. If you have a garden sloping downwards, consider a lower height of 450mm or 375mm. If one side of the conservatory is near to a neighbour, consider a full height wall. This could offer the opportunity for additional furnishing such as a bookcase, dresser or a beautiful painting.
We have a range of colours that our customers often choose from, but we can match to any colour range, so just tell us the paint range and name of colour. We have yet to come across a paint colour that we cannot recreate.
If you would like a chandelier or pendant light, we can hide the cable within the top of the roof beam. If the house wall is to be plastered, it is straightforward to fit wiring for wall lights. For mood lighting, why not include plenty of sockets for table lamps.
There are a number of options, including electric and water based under floor heating systems. It is also possible to use radiators by extending the house central heating system.
We will include sufficient manual roof vents in every quotation. Electric operation, either manual or automatic is available as an extra. All windows include a lock open facility for allowing some background ventilation whilst the window remains securely locked.
Yes indeed. We can make traditional looking box sash windows with an excellent energy rating.
Materials
We use iroko, a close grained hardwood. Somewhat similar to teak, it is extremely durable with a minimum life span of thirty to forty years.
We recommend after three to five years. Keeping the paintwork clean will extend the life of the paint significantly. Without dust and dirt, water will run off quickly leaving a dry surface.
Feedback from our customers is very positive. Solar glass makes a considerable difference, helping to reduce glare and temperature on hot sunny days. The majority of our jobs now include Pilkington Activ Blue (or Neutral) solar control glass.
We can offer brass, satin, chrome and traditional black wrought iron fittings.
Building
On most locations and soil types, a strip footing measuring 500mm wide and one metre deep is used. Deeper footings may be required for clay soils or where there are trees in close proximity. This may seem excessive for a conservatory, but it is not the weight of the structure that is considered here, but more so the likelihood of ground movement.
The base is constructed of well compacted hard core, sand blinding, damp proof membrane, 70mm Celetex insulation, and 100mm minimum of concrete over site. Once the building is sealed in, the floor is screeded to 65mm minimum depth.
It is important to allow proper drying time, ideally about six to eight weeks before tiling. Ditra tiling mat can reduce this to one week, however it is quite expensive.
These are laid on top of insulation and then screeded over. This then utilises the whole of the 65mm screed layer as one massive heat sink.
The first fix of cable and pipe fitting happens early on in the build, prior to screeding and plastering. This allows for quick installation and neatly hidden cable runs. Always plan your lighting, sockets and radiator needs near the start of the project. If lighting is going to be fitted to a conservatory or lantern roof, we can make provision for this during manufacture by machining suitable hidden grooves.
Once the building is erected and glazed, we can plaster all walls. There is no need to be alarmed by significant condensation after plastering and screeding, as both processes contain a lot of water. Keeping the windows and roof vents open will help cross ventilation whist most of the water dissipates.