New Build Plumbing& Heating AcrossPeterborough

First fix is the stage that decides whether the finished house works. Soil and waste is set out with the correct falls and adequate ventilation so traps hold their seal, hot and cold distribution is sized around simultaneous demand rather than a single outlet, and heating pipework is run and clipped so it cannot creak or rub once the floors are down.

Gas is run from the meter position in continuous lengths wherever possible, correctly sleeved where it passes through the structure, kept clear of electrical services and sized so the appliance receives its full gas rate at maximum output with everything else running.

Pipe routes are planned around the structure rather than through it. Joists are drilled and notched only within permitted zones, and where a run genuinely cannot avoid a structural member we raise it with the builder before cutting rather than after.

The single most common complaint in a brand new home is disappointing hot water, and it is almost always a sizing decision made months earlier. Before anything is specified we measure the incoming mains flow rate and static pressure, count the outlets that might run at once, and choose between a combi, a system boiler with an unvented cylinder, or a vented arrangement on that evidence.

Heating is sized from a room-by-room heat loss calculation that accounts for the insulation, glazing and air tightness the new build actually has, not a rule of thumb. Well-insulated new homes typically need far less radiator output than an older house of the same footprint, and oversizing simply means a boiler that short-cycles and never condenses.

Where underfloor heating is specified we design the loop layout and zoning at the same time as the rest of the system, so the blending, controls and boiler flow temperature all work together instead of being reconciled on site at the end.

Second fix happens once the building is clean and secure enough to protect the finishes. Sanitaryware, brassware, showers, radiators and appliance connections go in, the boiler or cylinder is set and connected, and every wet area is checked for leaks under real working pressure.

Commissioning is a proper stage in its own right, not five minutes on handover day. The system is flushed, dosed with inhibitor, balanced across the radiators or underfloor circuits, the boiler is commissioned to the manufacturer's instructions, and the controls are set up and then explained to whoever is moving in.

At handover you receive the gas certification for the work carried out under our registration, commissioning records, manufacturer documentation for the appliances, and our 1-year workmanship guarantee. Where a building notice or registration applies to the appliance installation, it is dealt with rather than left for someone else to chase.

Extensions and conversions bring a complication new builds do not have: an existing system that has to absorb the new load. Before adding radiators or a bathroom we check whether the current boiler has the output, whether the cylinder has the capacity, and whether the existing pipework can carry the extra flow — because bolting new rooms onto a system already at its limit makes the whole house worse, not just the new part.

Where the existing system can take it, we tie in, extend and rebalance so both halves of the property heat evenly. Where it cannot, we say so at quotation stage and price the upgrade openly, rather than fitting the work and letting you discover the shortfall in the first cold week.

Barn and garage conversions are effectively new builds inside an existing shell, and usually need the incoming water main, drainage route and gas supply all assessed before any internal layout is fixed.

New build work is quoted per plot after we have seen the drawings and, where possible, the site. The main variables are the number of bathrooms and outlets, whether the property is on a combi or a stored hot water system, whether underfloor heating is included, the drainage arrangement, and the distance from the meter and incoming main to where the plant will sit.

The quote separates first fix, second fix and commissioning so you can see where the money goes and phase payments against the programme. Nothing is added later without being agreed with you in writing first.

Smaller works — a single extension, an extra en-suite, moving a soil stack — can be priced as a fixed sum or handled hourly, whichever is fairer for the job. Whichever applies is agreed before we start.

We take on new build, extension and conversion plumbing across Peterborough, Hampton, Yaxley, Whittlesey, Stilton, Sawtry, Huntingdon, Ramsey, Stamford, Market Deeping, Oundle and the surrounding Cambridgeshire towns and villages.

Being based in Peterborough with a team of four means we can hold a programme date and get back to site quickly if something changes — which on a live build matters more than almost anything else.