Copperben

Hi All - advice needed

I am thinking of buying a "character home" but it is made out of wood and only has a wood burner to heat the whole house. Has anybody lived in a wooden house? what are they like to maintain, are they very cold in the winter, is there anyway to insulate them??

I like the look of it, it needs some work but I think could turn out to be a lovely home, but having never lived in a house like that could I be buying a disaster waiting to happen?

Florida_03

Buy a jumper, a fan, and a fire extinguisher, and you're all set...oh and some dieldrin.

Copperben

LOL - so u wouldn't recommend it then!! - Whats dieldrin sounds nasty!!

Florida_03

I personally think that we have devolved into a "soft" species. The endless souless suburbs are a testament to this. Is this an "older" house?

Copperben

the main house is over 100 years and then they have added on bits to it - the bathroom needs to be completly re-built as they did a bodge job on it.

MrsDagboy

We have a lovely Qlder (wooden) & have a open fireplace which is in one corner of the house (which is basically square) on an outside wall. In our case it does little to warm the house up, but thats for a number of reasons. Firstly our house is HUGE, our living area (loungeroom & kitchen/meals area) where its placed, is open plan & is almost as big as our old house LOL & we have very high vaulted ceilings. Next we also have no insulation in the house which means that heat loss is quite large & lastly we have a huge amount of glass in the living area (big doors leading onto the verandah which can be opened up). Add to that the fact that 90% of the heat from an open fire goes up the chimeny & you have a very inefficient form of heating. But then living in Qld its not an important consideration!

There are certainly things that can be improved. Make sure that you have good curtains on all your windows & insulating the ceiling will make a huge difference. Also, if the wood heater is a combustion heater near the centre of the house then heating will be far more efficient than an open fire on an outside wall like ours. I can imagine that the cold would be far far more of a concern in NZ than for us in Qld, I would certainly spend the money & invest in some good insulation etc.

As for maintenance, yes, obviously wooden homes need more, but then you are buying it because of the character, arent you? . There are things like painting (about once every 10 years) & termite inspection to think about, but thats no different than owning a pool & having to put chemicals in it. At the end of the day, it may cost a bit more than a brick house to upkeep, but you have to decide what floats your boat .

Have a look back a couple of days, there was a similar question asked by cookies about queenslanders.

I envy you for the opportunity to buy such a lovely old home & do it up. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Florida_03

If you have money for renovation or can do it yourself, or both.

If you love the style and understand the tradeoffs then have a go at making it your home.

Don't be a slave to the heritage nazis. Houses are personal things and need YOUR touch and attention. Go for it.

...oh and by the way you build a legacy for the next generation.

Copperben

Thanks for your positive reply, I feel as if I am stepping into the unknown, it will be my first house so I am wanting to pick the right one, but I have always wanted a house I can "do up" and put my stamp on and I think this maybe it!

Florida_03

That's the spirit...I used to spend my school holidays and weekends helping the old man "do up" old workers cottages in Brisbane. I hated every minute, and loved every hour. These old places need you. Good luck...oh and you will learn to hate the word sand...

NickyC

And they're so easy to modify too. You want an extra window somewhere? Want to knock a wall down? Just get your chainsaw out!

I love houses with a bit of character and loathe the McMansion brick veneer boxes. Particularly dislike anything that doesn't look like it belongs. That includes everything Tuscan/Tudor/Spanish/clinker brick. If it was built more than 70 years ago or would look OK with a tin roof, then it's an OK house.

I'd definitely buy the wooden house.

bondipom

Whats wrong with with a small bungalow with a 3 story extension filling all the garden and the Trevi fountain in the front Garden with some lion statues?

owieb

I'm very happy living there it's a lovely place!

Copperben

I am going to get a builder in who specialises in older homes to give it a thorough inspection, they will be able to tell me whats wrong with it and how much it is going to cost to repair/improve.

Hopefully they will come back with more positive comments than negative!

Florida_03

I think people have lost the plot with housing.

We went to Atlanta recently and visited a historic house that was owned by an very well-to-do family. It was a wooden 2-story house and was really quite plain.

I bought a plan book recently and there were houses with a bowling alley, fireplace by the pool, movie theater...

My god a home is a house for families to LIVE in...

NickyC

Have you ever taken a drive thu South Coogee/North Maroubra? There are some places there that have to be seen to be believed. Very much in the style of 'Rich Italian Fruitshop Owner With Too Much Money Trying to Impress the Relatives Back Home'.

Storey Street has some prime examples.