Complete strip-out and replumb
A full property refurbishment starts with getting everything out: existing kitchen, bathrooms, flooring, often the plasterboard on certain walls. For a property that's been empty or neglected, you need to see what's behind surfaces before you start building on top of them. Old plumbing that's been leaking slowly behind walls, damp that's tracked into floor joists, pipework that hasn't been touched since 1970. Better to find it all at strip-out than discover it room by room during the fit.
We replumb from scratch on full refurbs: incoming supply, all hot and cold distribution, new waste runs, new soil stack connections where needed. Using the existing pipework on a full refurb usually costs more in time and problems than it saves. New pipework throughout, all pressure tested before walls go back up. See plumbing installation for more on how that works.
We cover Dorset, Devon and Somerset for full refurbishment projects: properties bought to renovate near Dorchester, Bridport, Axminster and Yeovil; inherited houses across the rural southwest; landlord turnovers on tenanted properties in Weymouth, Sherborne and Chard.
Sequencing the work
On a full refurb, the sequence is everything. First-fix plumbing and electrics before boarding. Boarding before plaster. Plaster before tiling. Tiling before second-fix. Second-fix before decoration. Decoration before floor finishes. Get it wrong and you're redoing work.
We manage this. The project is sequenced from the start and trades are brought in at the right point. Not everyone waiting around for the previous person to finish; not anyone starting too early and getting in the way of the next stage. It's a question of planning, communication and experience. A full refurb with multiple rooms, a new bathroom, a kitchen, and some building work on an older Devon or Dorset property typically runs 6 to 12 weeks depending on scope.
We'll give you a realistic programme at the start. If it changes, you hear about it promptly with a reason and a revised date, not at the point where something hasn't happened.
Period properties and listed buildings
A significant share of our full refurbishment work is in older properties: stone farmhouses, Victorian terraces, period cottages across Dorset and Devon, some listed buildings. These have their own demands. Lime mortar rather than sand and cement. Pipework routes that work with the original layout rather than cutting through structural fabric unnecessarily. Breathability retained in solid stone walls rather than sealed up with impermeable materials that cause condensation and damp.
We take a careful approach to these buildings and bring in trades who know traditional materials where a job calls for it. It matters here given the housing stock in this part of the southwest. For bathroom renovation in a period property, the challenges are often in the substrate and the floor level rather than the fitting itself. We assess before we quote.
What our customers say
"We cannot recommend OWB highly enough. The team have been consistently hard-working, dedicated, reassuring, knowledgeable and thorough. Thankfully, the work was completed with no issues, time delay or concerns."
Dorchester · Checkatrade