Wetherby has experienced another five minutes of fame as its products appeared once again on the BBC One series ‘DIY SOS: The Big Build’ on Thursday 6th March 2014.
When the programme producers called looking for companies to supply products and services to help a family in Doncaster, Wetherby happily obliged. This is the fourth such project they’ve been involved in over the last 5 years and marketing director Anne-Marie Armstrong enthused “it’s rewarding to know that we’re able to help such worthwhile causes”. An ambitious project, the DIY SOS team embarked on a challenge to build a two storey extension for widower Paul Makings and his six children, who were struggling for space in their two bedroom house.
Working to strict deadlines, the team needed high performance products that could be installed quickly to help achieve the build time of just 10 days. A particular challenge was the external facade of the extension; originally built in the 1920’s, the property was a traditional brick construction, with non-standard sized bricks, but with no time available to construct a brick extension, an alternative solution was needed. The external finish needed to be suitable for application to the two storey timber frame extension, while mirroring the existing exterior design as far as possible.
Wetherby provided the answer with its EpsiBrick Brick Slip System, a unique, cost effective solution for achieving a genuine brick effect when the use of real brick is impractical. Looking to supply a solution that closely matched the style and colour of the existing brick work as far as possible, the Wetherby marketing team got to work on researching a suitable solution and imported the ‘Taulane’ brick slips especially for the project, direct from the manufacturer in Germany. Perfectly complementing the existing property, the DIY SOS team was delighted with the match.
Installed by leading external wall insulation applicators, Hamilton (Building Contractors) Ltd, the brick slip system was simple to install as Adrian Morley, Contracts Manager at Hamilton’s, explains: “We have installed Wetherby’s external wall insulation systems numerous times on a variety of projects and have always had good experiences, with this being no exception.
“The brick slip system sourced for this project was quick and easy to install, which was vital on a job with such tight deadlines.”
The ambitious build project was finished within the 10 days, with the family overwhelmed at the complete transformation of their home. Unrecognisable from the house they left, the family now enjoy four extra bedrooms, more spacious living accommodation and landscaped gardens with children’s play areas. In addition to the interior transformation, the careful design of the extension has ensured that the exterior complements the existing property to achieve a uniform look and feel to the house.