Lockwood homes
 

Hi I could do with some good advice from you good people.
We are considering buying a Lockwood home that was built in 1982. I am just asking for your thoughts on Lockwood? We are living in new plymouth, are they easy to heat? Are they easy to maintain? Is it easy to paint over the wood?
Thanks for any advice.
Paul :fingerscrossed:

Re: Lockwood homes
 

The older Lockwoods can be pretty noisy with lots of creaks, groans and bangs as the timbers move. Will be more noticeable at night when the house is quiet. Someone gets up to go the bathroom and the whole house can hear their footsteps and doors opening/closing etc. Wood is a 'living' material and expands and contracts dependent on the moisture in the air and wot not. They do generally have steel rods through them with nuts on each end so as a maintenance exercise you can keep tightening to keep the wood locked together but I'd guess many people wouldn't even bother to keep that maintenance up regularly plus the ends can get rusted up if not greased.
Generally thought to be much more affordable and very solidly built but well known for being cold and sometimes damp as older homes not renowned for having good or any insulation, an effective heating system (if at all) or good ventilation.
You can paint the interior wood as many have done but that starts a regular maintenance project of re-painting regularly.
Any house can be easy to heat using a log burner, heat pumps or forced air system but it's whether or not that heating system is gonna be effective in that home and that all depends on how good the windows are, how well they are fitted, how good (if any) is the insulation in walls, floors, ceilings. If the house doesn't have much in terms of insulation you'll just be throwing money away as the heat will just disappear so you'll be paying to have the heating on constantly to maintain a comfortable temperature. You also need it to be well ventilated so as to prevent condensation and dampness.

Re: Lockwood homes
 

Hard to know.

We have a 40 yr old all cedar wood home, part up on piles. It is not a Lockwood . It was bespoke. It has insulation everywhere. That was put in when it was built. It is angled for the main living area to get the sun . It is single glazed. It is heated by one log burner. We close and open doors & windows. It is a warm house in winter. A cool house in summer. It can creak . There again that is wood homes for you. Our utility bills are not excessive.

Not all 40 yr old homes are a no-no. Much depends on the spec put into the home at the time of building.

Wood clad / panelled homes need to be maintained. That means painting and that can come expensive every 7/10 years.

Years ago Lockwood homes had the rep of being 'creaky' . Without seeing a pic it would be a bit hard to tell online.

I'd suggest a good walk through. You want to lift a carpet corner. Look for new laid floors. Peeling wallpaper if that is what is still on the walls. All the stuff you would do with an old victorian UK house.
Go on a cloudy or rainy day . You will feel and smell if it is a damp house.

What is attracting you to an older style home? For us it was that we preferred character over a faceless new build in a sub division of new builds, attractive though the idea of all new is. I wanted interesting.

Re: Lockwood homes
 

I have never seen a Lockwood with wallpaper - usually just wooden clad in and outside and look like a sauna inside with same wood throughout on walls and ceilings. I understand they are pretty sturdy and warm but I can't get away from that 1970s tongue and groove / holiday cabin feel and most I have seen are pretty dark and drab inside due to all the wood panelling which I expect is why OP is asking about painting.

Google some images of interiors and they can look good and be brightened with whitewash / chalky paints for a more modern look but no doubt quite a bit of work involved and of course some would say it was a crime to paint them. :lol:

Re: Lockwood homes
 

Ah yes. I had forgotten about the interior clad for Lockwood . Any wallpaper would be all kinky. :eek:

Our ceiling timber joists had been painted dark brown in a fake cottage style. We painted them out in cream. Lifted the whole look.

Re: Lockwood homes
 

That sounds lovely BEVS.
Our GP surgery is a Lockwood build, all that wood gets a bit much for me and I like wood :nod:.
I do feel like I'm entering a sauna when I go to see the doc, I've so far refrained from going in my towelling dressing gown.

As well as the sauna feel it would be the noise that would put me off buying one.

Re: Lockwood homes
 

Do you mean possible creaks of wood settling of an evening/night ? I suppose we sometimes have this maybe but to be honest I don't notice if there is so it can't be that often or much and I am a very light sleeper. The log burner & quakes are more creaky. :eek:

There is no doubt though that Lockwood Homes did have a rep. for cracking of an evening.

The all wood look could be painted out I suppose. Depends on whether or not the paneling look would become tiresome after a while. We don't have that. Our internal walls are an older form of gib & are smooth .

For the OP , kiwiwoodpecker, a lot depends on the location , style and the spec. We have insulation . The people next door to us also live in a timber clad house with a wood burner . There is no insulation but the house is perfectly warm of a winter and cool of a summer. There is a young(ish) English family living happily with their two youngsters there.

Bot of a 'how long is a piece of string' thing.

Re: Lockwood homes
 

we are attracted to the house by the character and location of the place. It is an original lockwood house with the high wooden ceilings and the wooden walls. we do want to white wash the interior over time to contrast the look of the place. Thanks for all the info

Re: Lockwood homes
 

yeah we have a lockwood. We got the walls painted white - easy enough and brightens the place. Don't have any cracking. I'd prefer a new build but we have a big section and wonderful location so it's all about compromises. When we moved in they had no heating or insulation!!! So we put in underfloor and ceiling, wood burner and 2 heat-pumps. Would love to replace the doors and windows and go double-glazed but hard to justify that kind of money.

Re: Lockwood homes
 

Totally understand that. We were the same.

Desmondo84 states he has no cracking sounds in his house. We get the odd creak. I actually listened out last night what with the log burner being fired up and nopes, no creaks or cracks.

If the LIM report is sound & all in the house has the correct consents . If yo are satisfied that it is sound & you love the location, then why not.

Re: Lockwood homes
 

Thanks all. The location is perfect and the house has underfloor insulation a logburner and heat pump. Would look into putting insulation into the roof. I have applied for a lim report and if all good then we will go for it.:thumbsup:

Re: Lockwood homes
 

One thing you do know about Lockwood homes is that they are well built. You have to like wood though :p. I would never paint the wood - it could negatively affect you resale value. If you want to tone it down you can install a removable panel and paint or paper that. Or put up large wall hangings. The beauty of the natural wood finish is that you don't need to keep painting or papering it.

Check with Lockwood about when they improved the joints so they don't creak. My mum has two houses, an old 1970s house that still creaks and a more recent one that doesn't. You do get used to the creaks - I lived in the old one for several years and it didn't bother me. The house is definitely not cold and damp.