Long-time foundations for a first-time buyer

Polypipe Building Products has partnered with renowned construction team The Bald Builders to help a first-time buyer lay the right foundations before taking their first step onto the property ladder.

The three-bed house in Bognor Regis, West Sussex, required a full fit-out from top to bottom, with the buyer requiring a brand-new underfloor heating system across two floors, in addition to various below ground drainage upgrades and a new rainwater and gutter system

The Bald Builders – a company well-known across the UK for their high-calibre work and social media presence – renovated the entire property, choosing Polypipe Building Products’ below ground systems, Ogee extra capacity rainwater, PolyPlumb Enhanced plastic plumbing fittings and the Overlay Underfloor Heating system (alongside ARDEX products) for the project.

The Brief

The new homeowner was seeking to install energy-efficient solutions across the whole property before moving in.

The Bald Builders recommended underfloor heating rather than traditional radiators, and consulted Polypipe Building Products for the systems they needed to get the job done.

This involved adding plastic plumbing beneath old timber floors throughout every bedroom, hallway and bathroom, as well as the lounge, kitchen, and extension area, before the underfloor heating installation could commence.

Our Solution

The installation required a variety of products, including PolyPlumb Enhanced plastic plumbing fittings, and was completed using the Polypipe Underfloor Heating Overlay® system.

The underfloor heating system was installed from scratch across the whole property: 80 square metres downstairs and 60 square metres upstairs.

Polypipe Underfloor Heating’s low-profile solution (which uses strong and durable gypsum fibre boards) is easy to install and suitable for multiple floor coverings, with no need to excavate any existing floors. This meant that The Bald Builders were able to successfully achieve their aims of completing the project quickly to a high standard.

The scale of the work required complex routing of connection pipes, made possible using Polypipe Underfloor Heating’s Overlay® Transition Panels – which allow for multi-directional routing and eliminate the need for any additional screed.

Polypipe Underfloor Heating were also able to support with all the primers and adhesives to fit the items thanks to a technical partnership with ARDEX– a long-time leader in the flooring and tiling industries who provide trusted recommendations for installing and fitting on top of our systems. The panels were primed with ARDEX P 51 Acrylic Primer before being laid on a bedding layer of standard-set flexible ARDEX X 7 G tile adhesive. This ensured that the boards were fully seated and supported on the timber floor.

Finally ARDEX K 40 HB high-build fibre reinforced smoothing and levelling compound was used as a self-leveller on top of the Overlay® to create a smooth, flat surface ready for the homeowners desired floor covering.

Results

In less than a week, the entire property was fitted with an underfloor heating system that will be fully-functional from the moment the new homeowner arrives. From their first day in the house, the buyer will enjoy lower energy bills, higher comfort levels, improved air quality, increased property value, and fewer expenses.

Client Testimonial

Sam Hughes, Director at The Bald Builders Ltd, said:

“Using the solutions from Polypipe Building Products made this project a real success. The products themselves are of an excellent standard and can be installed in any situation – which makes things so refreshingly simple when you’re completing a job.

“Working with Polypipe Building Products isn’t just about the Overlay® system though: it’s the care and attention you get before and after a sale. You can have the whole system designed out for you, and the communication is terrific: you can ask the team a question and within 24 hours you’ll get the answer you need.

“The partnership between Polypipe Underfloor Heating and ARDEX is also so strong and reliable. They work together brilliantly to offer the right products at the right times.

“This new homeowner has now got some of the best foundations for their first home and it’s going to make a huge difference to their living standards.”