Bought a house in Portugal

Posted By Castelo Construction Lda in Building in Portugal, buying property in portugal, House for sale, low cost build, refurbishment June 12, 2015

Here are some typical features of a Portuguese home.

These features are not normally found on homes in northern Europe. If you have bought a house in Portugal and are thinking of doing it up here are some typical details often found in a Portuguese home.

Starting with the arrows from left to right

First arrow, Reinforced concrete cornice moulding used to strengthen the top of the perimeter walls and support the roof. These cornice are very often painted a contracting colour such as blue or ochre.

Second arrow, Limestone or marble window surrounds. These are actually glued on to the outside of the building and the inside of the window opening. They provide a weather proof frame or the windows and doors to be attached. There are various thicknesses, grades of stone and decoration options that you can have.

Third arrow, Frost proof, roman look, interlocking roof tiles. Our roofs here in Portugal usually have a slope of 28 Degrees which is much lower than the UK or instance. The tiles are held in place by their own weight and are not nailed on.

Fourth arrow, Exposed roof joists. The ends of these roof joists have been cut by the carpenter to mirror the shape of the roof cornice. This is a very traditional finishing detail in central Portugal.

If you want help or advice with the refurbishment of your newly bought house in Portugal contact info@casteloconstruction.com or take a look at the many projects on our website www.casteloconstruction.com

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About Castelo Construction Lda

Castelo Construction Lda are builders in Central Portugal. We have 12 years’ experience of working with and delighting clients in Portugal. Tel 00351 927168247 or kelvin@casteloconstruction.com If you need an English speaking builder for renovation or new build work we will provide free estimates, fixed prices and carry out your work to a very high standard. Many of our clients are not in the country full time so rely on our regular photographic updates and written reports. They are always surprised when they make inspection visits. New Construction and Refurbishment of Portuguese Property It’s exciting for both our team and of course our clients to mark out on the earth the site of a new home. We will have been with them during the design process and have spoken to the architect many times so we will be comfortable with what we are about to do. For many clients, this stage is a little daunting as it’s hard to see without experience just where the house is going to be in relation to other things on the property. Once the foundations are dug out the house normally looks smaller than they thought, As the pillars and foundation wall start to go you get a much better idea of scale. You can see with your mind’s eye the location of the kitchen, bedrooms and so on. Once the walls are up and the first floor is in place the rooms start to looks smaller again (something to do with the light absorbing properties of the bricks) once the walls are plastered the rooms look a lot larger and it starts to feel more like the home our clients imagined building. As the build progresses we are involved with many specialist subcontractors and it is our job the get them on site at the right time so that the trades do not overlap and time is not wasted. Once the roof is on and tiled it is traditional in this area to have a dinner on site. Everyone who is involved in the build is invited to share a suckling pig dinner with local bread, oranges and of course wine. This is a great way for the clients to enjoy some local hospitality and meet the craftsmen who are building their new home. We also invite the near neighbors so that they get a chance to see what’s going on (when the house is at a very basic stage) and it gives our clients a relaxed opportunity to make their acquaintance. As we always accompany our clients to choose, kitchens, tiles, bathroom fittings or whatever they want. We can help with translation and of course negotiation! As the house is coming to completion we always have them professionally cleaned so that when we hand over the keys it feels more like a home than a building site. 2 months after the house is finished we are back to check for any small faults that may need attention and of course we are available to help and advise should that be needed. Central Portugal builders