FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Certainly not! Our living spaces are specifically designed to provide you with a year-round location. We’re happy to report that the old polycarbonate roofs that would cause living spaces to get unbearably hot and cold during the summer and winter seasons are long gone. We provide solar control glazing that will prevent that kind of thing from happening. You can also have a solid tiled roof for that purpose.

Yes, we do as Amber Home Improvements is a member of the Conservatory Outlet Group of companies, and Conservatory Outlet, its sister company, is one of the country’s leading roof manufacturers. The roofs are manufactured in their hi-tech facility, based in Wakefield, West Yorkshire.

Being fortunate enough to have such a close relationship with our manufacturer enables us to keep a close eye on our supply chain and ensure the product quality is always exceptionally high.

Absolutely. You can take your pick of a series of shingle and slate roof tile solutions. If you like, we can specially match the roof tiles to the tiles on the roof of your property. We also have a variety of flat roof membranes. Chat it all through with one of our helpful advisors.

To put it simply, an ‘A’ rated window is the most energy efficient window available in the UK as defined by the BFRC Rating Scheme. It is the recognised scheme for the energy labelling of replacement windows and also signifies whether a window complies with current building regulations, an essential requirement.

A consumer-friendly traffic light system, from A-E, is used to label the energy efficiency standards offered by a window, very much like you find on white goods, such as fridges, freezers and washing machines.

Knowing the energy efficiency rating of a window helps you make a more informed decision when buying any new windows.

Our solar control glazing has a very clever coating on it that helps to stop too much heat from being generated in your living space and too much of it from escaping. This glazing can be tinted in different ways depending on what you want in terms of light transmission and heat retention. You can always seek advice from one of our friendly advisors.

Our team will do their very best to pinpoint a close brick match to your property and will seek your approval before any work begins. It’s important that you are aware that there could be weathering and manufacturing differences between new and existing bricks. If you’re not sold on the closest match we find, you can ask to have the brickwork tinted accordingly, but this will come at an additional cost.

When looking to extend a property, you will typically need building regulations approval first. Some classes of extension don’t require it though. Leave it to one of our surveyors to identify where you stand with this, someone who will have vast experience in planning and building regulations. Amber can take care of getting Building Regulations Approval on your behalf.

Certain extensions are considered to be a permitted development, with no requirement for an application for planning permission, if a series of conditions are met, which are as follows:

• The ground area covered by the extension and any other buildings within the boundary of the property, excluding the original house, is not more than half the total area of the property.
• Any part of the extension is not higher than the highest part of the roof of the existing house.
• The eaves of the extension are not higher than the eaves of the existing house.
• Any part of the extension does not extend beyond any wall facing a road if it forms the principal or side elevation of the original house.
• The eaves are no more than 3 metres in height if any part of the extension is within 2 metres of the property boundary.
• The materials used in exterior work, except in the case of a conservatory, are of similar appearance to the existing house.
• An upper floor window on a side elevation within 15 metres of a boundary with another house is obscure glazed; and is non – opening unless the parts which can be opened are more than 1.7 metres above the floor of the room in which the window is installed.
• A side extension does not exceed 4 metres in height or be wider than half the width of the original house.
• In a single storey extension
  • the extension does not extend beyond the rear wall of the original house by more than 4 metres for a detached house or 3 metres for any other type of house;
  • the height of the extension does not exceed 4 metres;
  • no part of the extension is within 3.5 metres of any property boundary with a road opposite the rear wall of the house.
• In an extension with more than one storey
  • the extension does not extend beyond the rear wall of the original house by more than 3 metres;
  • no part of the extension is within 7 metres of the property boundary opposite the rear wall of the house;
  • the roof pitch of the enlargement is as far as practicable the same as that of the original house.
• If you live in a house within a conservation area, World Heritage Site, area of outstanding natural beauty or National Park-
  • no part of the exterior of the house is clad with stone, artificial stone, pebbledash, render, timber, plastic or tiles;
  • the extension is not more than 1 storey or 4 metres in height;
  • no part of the extension extends beyond a principal or side elevation of the original house

Until we know how simple or complex the project is and whether planning permission will be necessary, it is difficult to tell you exactly how long it will take. Our ‘What happens next’ guide will tell you more about potential timescales, so get a copy of it from an Amber advisor.

We carry out a test dig prior to the installation of a living space to check whether the local ground conditions are suitable to take a traditional concrete base and foundation. If we find the ground to be unsuitable, we will advise on an alternative foundation proposal such as a specialist pile foundation or concrete raft.

A cavity tray is a series of high level damp proof courses that bridge a wall cavity to direct moisture to the external face of a wall where the extension roof joins the house wall. Its chief purpose is to stop moisture penetrating the outer wall of the extension so that it doesn’t become visible inside.

Yes. To make life easy for you, Amber Home Improvements can arrange a variety of affordable and convenient easy payment finance options (subject to application & status). Applying for finance is simple and we promise you a quick decision. Everything can be sorted out with you in the comfort of your home or at our Norwich Showroom, so you can enjoy whatever you’ve set your heart on right away.

If you’re arranging your own finance, you’ll need to call us as soon as you get the go ahead. If you’re taking up one of our offers, the company will tell us both directly, so there’s no need to call as we will get in touch with you.

Finance companies can turn down people for lots of reasons, for example if you’ve moved several times over the past few years. In these circumstances, we always do our best to help and sometimes it’s worth trying another provider, especially if they know you.

Sometimes our finance company will say ‘yes’ almost immediately and on other occasions it may take them a few days. This short delay can be for any number of reasons and you should not be unduly concerned.