Cruiksfield House Garage, Cruiksfield House, Preston, Duns, Scottish Borders

New build stone garage:

Cruiksfield Garage

Duns, Scottish Borders · 2021

Our role: Principal contractor
Client: Private client
Architect: LDN Architects
Services engineer: Irons Foulner
Civil and structural engineer: Elliot and Company
Value: Under £0.5m
Programme: March 2021 to July 2021
Scope: Groundworks, foundations and drainage, blockwork cavity walls, random rubble and squared stone dressings, stone lintels, natural slate roof, lead work, cast iron rainwater goods, garage doors, cobble setts

Cruiksfield House is an 18th century Category B listed house near Duns in the Scottish Borders. LDN Architects designed a new four car garage to the rear of the house, long and linear, with its materials and detailing taken from the existing farm style outbuildings. We were appointed to build it, from the first groundworks through to the stone, slate and joinery.

Cruiksfield House Garage, Cruiksfield House, Preston, Duns, Scottish Borders — photograph 1

Cruiksfield House Garage, Cruiksfield House, Preston, Duns, Scottish Borders — photograph 2

Cruiksfield House Garage, Cruiksfield House, Preston, Duns, Scottish Borders — photograph 3

Cruiksfield House Garage, Cruiksfield House, Preston, Duns, Scottish Borders — photograph 4

Cruiksfield House Garage, Cruiksfield House, Preston, Duns, Scottish Borders — photograph 5

Cruiksfield House Garage, Cruiksfield House, Preston, Duns, Scottish Borders — photograph 6

The challenge

A new building in the setting of a listed house has to look as though it belongs there. The garage needed random rubble walling and squared stone quoins, rybats, plinths and lintels to match the neighbouring outbuildings, with tooled finishes agreed against samples. The ground had to be re-graded for level vehicle access, and the east elevation had to carry four wide garage door openings with long stone lintels, a contractor designed element. The roof was to be natural slate in diminishing courses, with lead detailing and cast iron gutters. All of this had to be built within the grounds of an occupied private house, with mature trees close to the works and the owners living alongside the site throughout.

Our solution

Site set up, excavations, foundations, below ground drainage and the concrete floor slab came first, followed by a blockwork cavity wall on a stone plinth, with scaffold to the full perimeter. The external leaf is random rubble with squared dressed stone for the quoins, door rybats, plinth, arches and lintels, built to a stone schedule reviewed by the architect and a revised, confirmed order of Swinton stone. Sample panels were built and reviewed on site, covering the tooled face finish, the pitching of the stone and the pointing, before the main walling proceeded. The west elevation carries mock stone windows in squared rubble. The roof is Welsh slate laid in diminishing courses, with lead ridge and hip flashings dressed over timber rolls, and slate vents set into the west wall. Sourcing Swinton lintels of the required length proved difficult, so we worked through alternative details with the architect and the supplier until a solution was found that kept both the appearance and the structural performance of the openings. Salvaged cobbles and slates were incorporated where they suited the design, saving cost for the client without compromising the finish. Cast iron half round gutters, internal wall linings, bespoke garage doors and a granite setts and gravel surround complete the building. Throughout, the existing trees and their root systems were protected behind Heras fencing, and deliveries, noise and waste were managed to keep disturbance to the household to a minimum.

“We were extremely pleased with LTM Group's construction of our four-bay garage. They skilfully integrated the new structure with the existing estate, resolving challenges proactively and maintaining a safe, considerate work environment. Their professionalism and quality craftsmanship exceeded our expectations. The finish to our building is of the highest standard.”

Private clientHomeowner, Scottish Borders