Renovations in Charlton

Charlton sits on rising ground between the river and the heath, and the slope turns up in the buildings. Terraces step down the hill in short runs, ground levels differ front to back on the same house, and rear gardens are frequently a storey above or below the floor they open onto. That geometry affects everything from drainage falls to how a rear extension meets the garden. Add Victorian terraces built with solid brick walls, closet wings and suspended floors, and an SE7 renovation needs levels checked properly rather than assumed from a plan.

Terraces on a slope

The most common surprise in a Charlton renovation is level. A house that looks conventional from the front can have a garden sitting well above the internal floor, which raises external ground against a solid wall and pushes moisture straight through it. Or the reverse, with the garden dropping away and any rear extension needing real foundation depth and retaining before a single course shows above ground. Neither is a problem in itself, but both are expensive to discover late, so we take levels at quotation stage rather than pricing from photographs.

Slope affects drainage too. Falls that work on flat ground do not always work here, and rear extensions frequently sit over or beside existing runs that have to be diverted or built over with the correct protection. Building over a drain needs agreement and proper detailing, and it does get checked. The same care applies to surface water: a new patio or extension roof adds run off, and where that water goes has to be resolved rather than left to find its own way into the garden below yours. None of it is difficult once it has been designed properly at the right stage.

Closet wings, side returns and the back of the house

The rear of a Charlton terrace usually steps in, with a two storey closet wing leaving a narrow strip of garden alongside it. Filling that strip in is the classic renovation of this house type, and it works because it turns a dark, useless passage into the width the kitchen never had. It also means taking out part of the original rear wall, which carries floor and roof load, so the opening is engineered before it is cut: an independent structural engineer specifies the beam and its bearings, and we install what has been specified under building control inspection.

Inside, these houses share the same wear. Lath and plaster on ceilings and stud walls, suspended ground floors with airbricks blocked beneath them, chimney breasts in every principal room and original joinery that is usually worth saving. We prefer to repair sashes, panelled doors and staircases where they survive, because replacements rarely match the proportions and the originals were made from better timber. Where a chimney breast comes out, the retained stack still has to be supported to an engineer's design, and the party wall position is dealt with first.

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