The Advantage of Consulting a Sussex Building Company With a Full Suite of Renovation and Home Improvement Services

The Advantage of Consulting a Sussex Building Company With a Full Suite of Renovation and Home Improvement Services

Hiring a company to help with your dream extension build, renovation, or loft conversion is hugely exciting. It may also be fraught with concerns about picking the right building firm or trusting a specialist construction team to deliver the outcomes you expect.

As an experienced full-service Sussex building company, we know that lack of communication between tradespeople, unexpected complexities with aspects of your home improvement, or assumptions that you, as the homeowner, realise certain tasks will have to be outsourced, and paid for separately, are among the most common problems.

The simplest way to dodge these issues and ensure that anything from a straightforward loft conversion to a full-height extension build is well managed is to work with a professional building company with its own multi-skilled in-house team—leaving nothing to chance!

Reducing the Risks of Delays or Unexpected Additional Costs During Building Work

Regardless of the scope of the work, any changes to a property’s structure, such as knocking down walls, building a new staircase, constructing a newly extended living area, or making your attic a habitable bedroom, will involve several professionals. As a brief summary, one renovation job might require expertise from:

  • Plumbers, tilers and plasterers
  • Structural engineers
  • Electricians and gas installers
  • Roofers and scaffolders
  • Painters and decorators

Our Sussex building company services cover the complete scope of all domestic and commercial works, which means we can cover every requirement within our very own trusted, dedicated team, each of whom upholds the highest standards upon which we have built our reputation.

However, the advantage for our clients isn’t solely that they know their home improvements or house extensions will be completed by a fantastic contractor. They also have reassurance that there is zero uncertainty or confusion about what the work might cost or when it is due to be finished.

Issues like leaks, weather damage, and electrical malfunctions are responsible for a huge proportion of overspends and unanticipated spikes in homeowner budgets. As a reputable and fully equipped building firm, we will be ready and able to deal with any problems or prevent complications mid-way through by identifying possible concerns before work begins.

Streamlined Home Improvement or Renovation Project Management

Using one talented team for the duration of your building work provides you with one known point of contact, with no prospect that you’ll find yourself trying to find a new tradesperson to pick up the pieces or complete a job when the third party you’d expected hasn’t arrived.

Pinnacle Works offers comprehensive project management, where our team is always on hand to answer questions, run through updates or timings, advise on delivery timescales for materials, fittings, or fixtures, and chat about anything that you decide to change during the work.

Continuity is key for convenience and eliminates the frustration of having to explain your specifications multiple times or run the chance that miscommunications could mean an important detail of your home improvement is lost in translation.

For instance, if you’ve decided to change the internal aspects of your home to create an open-plan layout, you might have chosen your ideal lighting scheme to compliment your new interior.

Any errors in the planning or electrical wiring that impact the placement of those fixtures could seem relatively minor but be disastrous in achieving the outcomes you’d hoped for—and mean the time and stress of going back to the drawing board to find a workaround or adjust your expectations.

Building Regulations-Compliant Remodelling or Redecoration

We recognise that for most residential building or renovation projects, the look, aesthetic, and feel of the space might be your biggest concerns.

Conversely, a business hiring a Sussex building company to complete specialised construction activities might focus on cost-efficiencies, completing the work quickly, and avoiding unnecessary productivity delays while revamping its premises.

Our years of experience mean that, in either scenario, we can work with you as our client from day one to advise on the regulations and rules that could influence your decision-making, removing any possibility of disappointment when you find that a particular layout, wall placement or material would not be permissible.

Although much may depend on the nature and scope of the project, you’ll usually need to be mindful of building regulations, permitted development regulations and work that will require planning permission.

Pinnacle Works has completed countless projects of every size, from industrial and commercial works to high-end residential remodels and renovation projects. We will provide you with access to a wealth of expertise when making informed, clear judgements and ensuring you have a complete understanding of any limitations that might apply during the design phase rather than after.

The Importance of Reliable Advice Before Sussex Construction Work Begins

As an established local building team, we often say that the key to retaining clients and achieving the outstanding reviews and testimonials we are proud of is equal parts down to skill, attention to detail and our focus on customer satisfaction, balanced against the planning and preparation we put into every job.

Expert advice can reduce the cost of your project by providing recommendations for sustainable, locally sourced and lower-cost materials, advising on the best and most efficient ways to ensure a structure or wall is compliant with the regulations, and identifying possible issues or obstacles before they occur.

If you’re working with an architect, surveyor or designer or sourcing this professional assistance through us, we’ll also collaborate with them directly, providing the peace of mind that your project is in good hands, with clear dialogues throughout, and with up-to-date insights into the progress we’re making from day one through to project completion.

For more information about the full range of services we offer here at Pinnacle Works, from joinery to construction and loft conversions to renewable energy installations, you are welcome to get in touch.

We’ll be delighted to arrange a good time to talk and showcase some of our previous work in your immediate area, as a team covering all of Sussex, Surrey and Hampshire.

 

Empowering Your Home With a Solar PV System Installation

Empowering Your Home With a Solar PV System Installation

Solar panels are an established, accessible way to transform your property, reducing the cost of energy bills and fitting solar PV panels to your roof to capture the natural solar radiation from the sun.

Alongside the ongoing savings, switching to solar power reduces your carbon footprint, offers independence from the electrical grid, and having a solar battery ensures you have stored energy on demand.

As an approved installer of solar PV system panels, we’re often asked about the fitting process, how much it costs, and which properties are best suited to a solar energy system.

Let’s run through a series of frequently asked questions to provide you with up-to-date, independent advice to help you make informed decisions about which types of solar systems are right for your home.

What – Exactly – Is a Home Solar PV System?

The first point to clarify is that PV stands for photovoltaic. This phrase refers to non-mechanical solar cells that convert the sun’s energy into electrical power. During the electricity generation process, PV cells mounted within panels and fixed to your roof within a racking system convert solar radiation into direct current or DC electricity.

An inverter, which forms part of the solar PV system, then inverts that energy into alternating current or AC power, which you can use to run any appliance within your home, power your lights or even supply the electricity required for an electric vehicle charging station.

Other types of solar panels are better suited to larger properties such as commercial power plants, and although there are various photovoltaic installation options and mounting system configurations to pick from, almost all residential solar PV cells work in this way.

What Are the Cost Savings of Switching Your Home to Free Solar Power?

Aside from the initial solar panel installation cost, a photovoltaic system provides free, clean and eco-friendly electricity. The inverter and other system components, such as thermostats, require a minimal amount of electrical energy to function, but most homeowners find that the electricity produced through their solar panels reduces their utility bills by 50% to 70%.

Of course, there are variables based on the number of photovoltaic modules you have fitted, the solar panel efficiency of your system, and whether you have a solar battery storage solution installed alongside your solar panels.

Choosing a battery system is ideal if your solar energy supply is greater than you need within your household. Batteries can store that surplus electricity until it is required, making green solar power available around the clock, even overnight.

Homeowners with an efficient and high-performance photovoltaic system can also sell that extra energy back to the energy companies or utility grid through the Smart Export Guarantee system.

How Long Does it Take a Set of Solar PV Panels to Pay for Themselves?

The cost of installing a set of solar PV panels will depend on the number of photovoltaic modules you install, the type of monitoring system you have in place, whether you opt for a battery storage device, and the complexity of the installation process.

As a rough guide, a property with a 4kW solar PV system will usually find that the reduction in electricity bills fully compensates for the initial investment within ten years, with an average saving of £729 per year.

Should your system produce excess renewable energy, and you decide to sell this back through the Smart Export Guarantee we mentioned, your savings will increase, on average, to £767 a year and fully repay the cost of your solar array within nine years.

Larger homes with more efficient solar electricity systems may recoup the original cost much faster, and savings will be more significant for properties with extensive electricity usage – often due to having more occupants in the home or having all-electric appliances.

What Is the Process of Installing a Set of Solar Panels?

While ground-mounted systems are sometimes an alternative, the vast majority of homeowners have their solar photovoltaic panels mounted on their roofs. If you have a south-facing roof, the electricity generated is likely to be optimal, with the most exposure to direct sunlight during the day.

We’ll normally need to erect scaffolding to be able to access your roof easily, although this may depend on the type of PV system you choose and whether there is an alternative safe access point.

In most cases, installing solar panels takes just one day, provided you have had an initial roof survey conducted, and there is no preparatory or repair work to complete. The process itself involves:

    • Fixing brackets that your solar PV modules will slot into.
    • Clamping the configured solar panels onto the brackets.
    • Connecting your solar panels with your own electricity system.
    • Fitting the inverter that converts DC power into AC electricity.
    • Installing other components, such as your solar battery system.

Before your installation is complete, we will test and check each aspect of your solar power system and verify that it is working as expected and you are comfortable with the controls.

What Difference Does a Solar PV System Array Make to My Carbon Footprint?

Fitting a set of photovoltaic cells to your home with a roof-mounted solar array can reduce your carbon footprint by a tonne or more of carbon per year – making a difference to the sustainability and eco-friendliness of your property.

Homeowners are increasingly finding that a solar electricity system also adds value to their properties. In some areas, buyers pay up to 25% more for homes with a modern, efficient solar panel system, with premiums based on properties that also have good energy efficiency ratings.

It is common to look at additional energy saving measures such as improved insulation and glazing when having a set of solar panels fitted, which can conserve the energy your system produces and boost the amount of surplus power available within your battery.

How Much Maintenance Do Solar PV Systems Require?

Solar cells are built with advanced crystalline silicon technology and require little in the way of maintenance. The average annual maintenance cost is minimal, although we recommend periodic servicing and cleaning to ensure your solar panels remain working at their best.

Still have questions about installing solar panels and upgrading your home to renewable energy? Please contact the Pinnacle Works team at any time, and we’ll be happy to answer any queries you may have.