Property Renovation

The first consideration for doors, windows and shutters is that they need to be in character with the building, in terms of their style, and their shape and size. Study some of the other buildings of a similar age and style in your region, preferably those that have not yet been renovated, to determine the traditional style.

Adding new openings in an existing building

All new openings in walls for doors and windows require that a declaration of work be given to the local mairie.

If you are adding new openings to an existing building, so that doors and windows can be added, the big challenge is to add these new openings so that they appear natural for the building. With a project such as a barn conversion this is a significant problem, because the barns didn’t originally have these openings, so who can say what is ‘authentic’.

Look for clues. The age of the building is of course the biggest clue of all, and its style of construction. You will find that windows above a certain size were never added, or that windows were never symmetrical with each other. Stone lintels were usually only used for openings up to a metre wide or so, with wood lintels being used for any larger openings.
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