Renovations · North Devon
Full property renovations, period and listed cottages included, run by someone who understands old fabric.
Renovating a whole house, especially an old one, is a different job to building new: you are working with structure and materials that were never designed to a modern standard, often behind walls you cannot see into until you open them up. Adam Harrison has renovated an 18th-century cottage from the inside out and project-manages every renovation personally, so decisions about old fabric are made by someone who has already made them on his own house.
Established 2020 · £5m public liability · 12-month no-quibble guarantee · Period property experience
- ~20 years in the tradeAdam is a qualified bricklayer, Level 2 Trowel Occupations
- C18th cottage experienceFull renovation of Adam's own period home
- £5m public liabilityPlus £10m employers' liability cover
- One site, one bossAdam project-manages every renovation personally
- 12-month guaranteeNo-quibble workmanship cover after completion
Service overview
What a renovation with us actually involves
We take on full property refurbishments across North Devon: whole-house renovations, run-down properties bought to be brought back to life, and period and listed cottages that need careful, informed hands rather than a standard modern spec applied without thought. This is private client work only; we do not renovate for developers.
A full renovation typically touches every part of a house: structural repairs and alterations, replastering, rewiring and replumbing via certified specialists, new kitchens and bathrooms, flooring, joinery, insulation upgrades and decoration. We carry out the structural work, carpentry, plastering, tiling and general building ourselves, and coordinate Part-P electricians, gas-registered plumbing engineers and a structural engineer where the work legally requires their certification.
Older and period properties bring their own considerations that a standard renovation does not: solid walls that need to breathe rather than be sealed with modern vapour-tight materials, timber floors and roof structures that may have settled or suffered rot, and, on listed buildings, the need for listed building consent before certain work can even start. Adam has renovated his own 18th-century cottage from the inside out, so decisions about lime plaster versus gypsum, whether a beam is sound or needs sistering, and how to insulate a solid wall without trapping damp inside it, are made from direct experience rather than guesswork.
Renovation work is also more unpredictable than new build by nature. You cannot always know what a wall, floor or roof is hiding until it is opened up. We price a genuine contingency into every estimate, explain it clearly, and treat anything found once the job is underway as a proper conversation with you before it is priced and carried out, never a surprise on the final invoice.
- Who it is forOwners of tired, dated or run-down properties who want a full refurbishment rather than a room-by-room patch job, and owners of period or listed cottages who need the work done with an understanding of how old buildings actually behave.
- When you need itBefore you move in if the property needs structural or services work done properly, or when a house has been neglected long enough that piecemeal repairs no longer make sense.
- Why a professional renovation mattersOld buildings punish modern shortcuts. Sealing a solid wall with the wrong materials, or replacing a rotten timber without understanding why it rotted, both create bigger problems than the ones you started with.
What it costs to get wrong
What goes wrong when a renovation is badly run
Renovations, especially of older properties, generate more unwelcome surprises than almost any other kind of building work, and how those surprises are handled decides whether the project stays on budget or spirals.
Hidden structural problems found too late
Rot in a roof timber, a sagging floor joist, or a chimney breast with no proper support are common in older houses and are not always visible until walls or floors are opened up. Left unaddressed, or patched over cosmetically, they get worse and more expensive with every year.
The wrong materials on old fabric
Modern cement render, gypsum plaster and vapour-tight insulation on a solid stone or cob wall trap moisture that the wall was built to release. The result is damp that migrates, timber that rots, and finishes that fail within a couple of years.
Listed building consent skipped or ignored
Altering a listed building without consent (even internal work in some cases) is a legal matter, not just a planning technicality. It can mean enforcement action and having to reverse work already completed at your own cost.
The price that quietly doubles
Renovation estimates without a contingency look attractive on paper and fall apart the moment a wall is opened. We build a stated contingency into every estimate and explain what it covers before you commit.
No one owning the whole picture
A renovation touching structure, services, plastering and finishes needs one person sequencing all of it. Without that, trades clash, work gets covered up before it should be, and problems found by one trade never reach the person who needs to decide what to do about them.
How the job runs
From first visit to final snag
- 01
Site visit and free estimate
We walk the whole property with you, look at structure, services, condition and, where relevant, listed status, and give you a free, honest ballpark figure.
- 02
Detailed quote and programme
A full itemised quote is produced for a fee, refunded in full if you proceed. It sets out the sequence of work, contingency, staged payments and what is included.
- 03
Strip-out and structural assessment
Removing what needs to go, opening up areas of concern, and confirming with the structural engineer what is sound, what needs repair, and what needs replacing.
- 04
Structural repairs and first fix
Timber repairs, structural alterations, new openings where needed, first fix carpentry, and coordination of certified electricians and plumbing engineers.
- 05
Plastering, second fix and finishes
Plastering with materials appropriate to the wall, lime where the building needs it, followed by second fix joinery, kitchen and bathroom fit, tiling and flooring.
- 06
Handover and guarantee
We walk the finished house with you, clear any snagging, and hand over backed by our 12-month no-quibble workmanship guarantee.
Why us
What you get by building with us
One person accountable
Adam quotes the job, runs the site and makes the calls on old fabric and unexpected finds personally, not a rotating cast of subcontractors.
Genuine period property experience
Having renovated his own 18th-century cottage, Adam has already made the decisions your house will throw up: breathable plasters, timber repair versus replacement, insulating solid walls without trapping damp.
Structural work done properly
Timber repairs, new openings and load-bearing alterations are assessed with a structural engineer and inspected by building control, not judged by eye and hoped for.
Fewer trades, less friction
Structural work, carpentry, plastering and tiling are done in-house by a team of five who work together every week, so the standard is consistent from strip-out to final coat.
Costs you can plan around
An estimate with a stated contingency, staged payments matched to the length of the job, and any genuine discovery explained and priced before it is carried out.
Protection after handover
A 12-month no-quibble workmanship guarantee means our responsibility does not end the moment the final invoice is paid.
In detail
Renovation detail: old fabric, structure and finishes
North Devon has no shortage of tired 20th-century houses and genuinely old cottages needing full renovation. The right approach depends entirely on what the building is made of and how it was built.
Assessing what you have got
Before any renovation starts, we assess the structure properly: roof timbers, floor joists, lintels, chimney breasts and, on older properties, the wall construction itself: solid stone, cob, brick or a mix built up over generations. That assessment, backed by the structural engineer where needed, decides what gets repaired, what gets replaced, and what can be left alone.
This matters because renovation decisions made without understanding the existing structure tend to cost twice: once to do the wrong thing, and again to undo it. Opening up early, rather than working around a problem, is what keeps a renovation on budget.
Period and listed cottages
Solid-walled period properties behave differently to modern cavity construction. They rely on being able to let moisture pass through the wall rather than being sealed against it, which is why lime plaster and lime render are often the right choice over modern gypsum and cement, a lesson learned first-hand renovating an 18th-century cottage rather than out of a textbook.
Listed buildings add a legal layer on top of the practical one: listed building consent is required for many types of alteration, sometimes including work that would be unremarkable in an unlisted house. We flag listed status at estimate stage and factor the consent process into the programme rather than treating it as an afterthought.
Structural timber and masonry repairs
Rot and insect damage in old timber does not always mean wholesale replacement. Sound sections can often be retained and repaired by sistering in new timber or resin repair where appropriate, keeping more of the original fabric and reducing cost, provided the underlying cause of the damp or leak has been fixed first.
Masonry repairs on old stone or cob walls use lime mortars matched to the original construction, not modern cement pointing, which traps moisture in the wall and accelerates the very decay it is meant to stop.
Insulation and energy performance in old buildings
Improving thermal performance in an old house is not simply a case of applying modern insulation methods designed for cavity walls. Internal or external wood-fibre insulation systems, breathable membranes and careful detailing at junctions let a solid wall keep working as it was built to, while still cutting heat loss meaningfully.
Floors, roofs and windows are assessed individually, sometimes secondary glazing and improved draught-proofing achieve more for a period property than replacing original windows outright, both for performance and for keeping the character of the house intact.
Whole-house sequencing
A full renovation moves through strip-out, structural repair, first fix services, plastering and second fix in a set order because each stage depends on the last being right, plastering before first fix is signed off means opening up finished walls later. We sequence the whole job rather than letting each trade work to its own convenience.
Where you are living in the property during the renovation, or moving in partway through, the sequence is planned around keeping essential rooms usable as long as possible and getting services reconnected in the right order.
Kitchens, bathrooms and finishes
New kitchens and bathrooms within a renovation are fitted as part of the same in-house sequence as the rest of the house, including tiling, so the finish is consistent with the rest of the work rather than handed to a separate fitter working to a different standard.
Flooring, joinery and decoration are the visible end of the job, but they only look right when the structure and services beneath them were done properly first, which is the whole reason the earlier stages get the attention they do.
Questions
Straight answers before you commit
If your question isn't here, ring Adam directly; you'll get the same straight answer on the phone.
How much does a full renovation cost in North Devon?
Cost depends heavily on the condition of the property, its construction, and how much structural and services work is needed once walls and floors are opened up. Your initial estimate is free; a full itemised quote carries a fee, refunded in full if you proceed.
Do you renovate listed buildings?
Yes. We flag listed status at estimate stage, factor listed building consent into the programme, and use materials and methods, lime plaster, lime pointing, breathable insulation, appropriate to the building rather than a standard modern spec.
Have you actually worked on period properties before?
Yes. Adam has personally renovated an 18th-century cottage from the inside out, so decisions about old fabric, breathable materials and timber repair are made from direct experience.
What if you find a structural problem once work has started?
Our estimates carry a stated contingency precisely because older properties often hide problems that only surface once walls or floors are opened. Any genuine discovery is explained and priced before we proceed, never billed as a surprise afterwards.
Can I live in the house while it is being renovated?
Sometimes, depending on the scope of work, we will tell you honestly at quote stage whether that is realistic for your project and sequence the work to keep essential rooms usable for as long as possible.
Do you do the structural work yourselves?
Structural repairs, alterations and general building are carried out in-house, with a structural engineer involved wherever load-bearing work is affected and building control inspecting at each stage.
Do you use subcontractors for renovations?
Only where certification is legally required, Part-P electricians, gas-registered plumbing engineers and a structural engineer. Structural work, carpentry, plastering and tiling are done in-house by our own team of five.
Is the work guaranteed?
Yes, every renovation we complete is backed by our 12-month no-quibble workmanship guarantee. We also carry £5 million public liability and £10 million employers' liability insurance. The 10-year structural warranty we offer on new builds does not apply to renovation work.
Do you take on renovations for developers or as investment flips?
No. We work with private clients renovating their own homes only.
Which areas do you cover for renovations?
We are based at Langtree near Great Torrington and take on renovations across North Devon, including Bideford, Barnstaple, Holsworthy, Hatherleigh, Winkleigh and Braunton.
Related work
Other trades we cover in-house
Extensions
Single and two-storey extensions, structural work included.
View service
Structural Alterations
Wall removals and openings, designed with our structural engineer.
View service
Plastering
Skimming and rendering to a clean, ready-to-decorate finish.
View service
Carpentry
First and second fix carpentry led by a City & Guilds qualified carpenter.
View serviceWhere we work
Renovations across North Devon
Next step
Get an honest figure for your renovation before you commit
Tell us about the property, period or otherwise, and what state it is in. Adam will walk it with you and give you a free initial estimate, including the structural questions most quotes skip over.
£5m public liability · £10m employers' liability · 12-month no-quibble workmanship guarantee