Latest Posts
May 4, 2023 5:53 pm
Published by Summit Cladding
Our latest client, Donna, knew something had to be done when she found squatters living upstairs. A family of pigeons had taken up residence in the roof space over the front door, leaving their messy “calling cards” all over the porch roof tiles. The house, in Waltham Cross on the North London and Hertfordshire borders, was only 15 years old, but the timber fascias had already started to rot, allowing unwanted access for Donna’s feathered visitors. As Donna was wondering what to do about it, she came across Summit Cladding’s showroom while visiting Springtime Nurseries garden centre at Crews Hill, Enfield. It’s how many of our clients find us, and when Donna saw the range of maintenance-free products that we... View Article
April 14, 2023 9:01 pm
Published by Summit Cladding
Hardieplank weatherproof cladding If Darwin’s Theory of Evolution applied to the materials used for building cladding there’d be a clear line to follow. First came timber, followed by uPVC, and now we have the fully evolved Hardieplank composite cladding, a real game-changer in the world of construction. Take this cosy home in Chigwell, Essex for example. The owner, Lee, has lived there for 20 years. When he moved in, the house still had its original timber cladding which was showing its age. Timber is lovely and natural, but it doesn’t last indefinitely and needs constant painting or staining to preserve its looks. Evolution in action So, one of Lee’s first projects was to replace the wood cladding with white uPVC,... View Article
March 9, 2023 5:55 pm
Published by Summit Cladding
Summit Cladding ventured out to South Ockendon in Essex for this latest task, where our client, Steve, was looking forward to seeing how we could give his home the makeover it deserved. Steve was one of the many householders who bought their former council homes under the Right to Buy legislation brought in by the government of Margaret Thatcher back in the 1980s. It’s a good, solid semi-detached brick-built house which had pebbledash render around the first floor and boasts a large sunroom extension at the back – although it wasn’t very sunny when we saw the house around Christmas! When Steve and his wife bought their house off the council they knew it would be many years until they... View Article
February 15, 2023 12:42 pm
Published by Summit Cladding
Have you ever had one of those “Eureka” moments when you discover something quite unexpectedly while looking for something else? It’s funny how a solution to a problem can appear when you least expect it. This was what happened for the owners of this charming house, The White Cottage in leafy Harlow, Essex They had gone to the garden centre at Crews Hill in Enfield to buy some plants to brighten their property. But Crews Hill is also the site of Summit Cladding’s showroom, where we display the full range of our products, so you can guess what happened next. The perfect solution As the couple wandered into our showroom, they experienced that lightbulb moment. They realised that James Hardie... View Article
February 8, 2023 6:42 pm
Published by Summit Cladding
If you look closely at the fine detail of James Hardie composite cladding, you can see why it has become so popular among fans of home improvement. With a perfect imitation wood grain you can almost believe that you are looking at genuine stained timber — especially when it’s in black, like this latest job for Summit Cladding. We were contacted by a householder from Wanstead, East London, who had been let down by a number of companies which had failed to honour promises to sort out some snagging issues on his property. Summit to the rescue Our client who, ironically, works as a construction project manager himself, had extended and modernised the property last year, but the finish to... View Article
January 18, 2023 7:19 am
Published by Summit Cladding
Summit Cladding is about more than just maintenance-free composite boards – brilliant though they are. Sometimes only natural timber will do. This was the case with our latest job, to replace the cladding on our client’s Georgian house situated within a conservation area in leafy Loughton, Essex. Summit Cladding had already installed new cedar shingles on his outbuilding, and he was so pleased with the result that he asked us to replace the softwood cladding at the back of the main house with bespoke hardwood cladding. As we have written many times on here, softwood cladding just doesn’t stand the test of time. It looks lovely when first installed, but nature and the weather will eventually take its toll, leaving... View Article
October 6, 2022 12:15 pm
Published by Summit Cladding
Readers of a certain age will recall that popular Danny Kaye song from the 1950s, “The Ugly Duckling,” in which the little bird is transformed into “a very fine swan indeed.” Well, that could equally apply to this detached 1960s house in Bromley, Kent, where Summit Cladding has been at work! Our clients, Steve and Liz, moved in recently, attracted to the area by the local schools, shops and other facilities. And although the property was well situated with good sized rooms, the exterior was severely lacking in kerb appeal. There was a very dated stone-clad pillar holding up the porch, with an equally dated flat roof, and the original timber cladding on the walls was showing its age with... View Article
September 1, 2022 7:32 pm
Published by Summit Cladding
The sudden increase in the price of energy has focused everyone’s mind on the best way to keep those gas and electricity bills as low as possible. But apart from turning down the thermostat and switching off unnecessary lights and appliances, what more can we do? Well, Summit Cladding is already helping to lead the way in thermal efficiency, which was a key requirement of this task in Whetstone, North London. James Hardie concrete composite cladding ticks all the boxes for good looks, good insulation and zero maintenance. Energy saving target Our client, Desmond, contacted us two years ago, long before the energy crisis had come to dominate the news. But even then, he was concerned about the escalating cost... View Article
August 22, 2022 11:58 am
Published by Summit Cladding
For our latest assignment Summit Cladding ventured out of London and took a trip down the M23 to Crawley in West Sussex. Tony and Amanda, who live in this handsome detached house, were giving the interior of their home a thorough makeover and had heard about Summit’s reputation for transforming the look of properties from the outside and our expertise at installing James Hardie composite cladding. As a specialist in property renovation and the construction of bespoke swimming pools, Tony is a client who knows what he wants and has the expertise to recognise the best when he sees it. Summit Cladding were delighted to take on the project. Century old tiles removed From the outset it was clear that... View Article
May 28, 2022 5:09 pm
Published by Summit Cladding
Disagreement about natural wood versus composite materials will always be with us, but in our view composite cladding is now so good that the argument is already won. Take this recent job for Summit Cladding. We travelled to Bishops Stortford in Hertfordshire, to meet clients whose home was part clad with treated timber. It must have looked lovely when it was first constructed. But therein lies the problem with wood. The trouble with timber cladding Our clients had spent thousands of pounds on maintenance, but even with constant care the timber boards were twisting and splitting, which meant they could no longer be sure that their house was fully weatherproof. The quality of domestic timber is not what it was,... View Article
