Renovation work in Combloux

Combloux is a village of family chalets rather than large estates. The work we do here is often the second renovation of a chalet built in the 1970s or 1980s: opening the living space, replacing windows, bringing the bathroom and heating up to date, and improving insulation without changing the silhouette of the building.

Access matters as much as the design. Some driveways are steep and unpaved, and a delivery lorry cannot always reach the door in winter. We plan deliveries, storage and waste removal according to the actual access, not the address on the quote.

Family chalets from the 1970s and 1980s

Combloux is largely made of chalets built as second homes in the three decades after the war, then closed up for most of the year. Their defects repeat: a small kitchen, a bathroom per floor designed for summer use, electric heating, and a roof that has been repaired in stages.

The most useful renovation is rarely the visible one. It is the envelope — roof insulation, window replacement, ventilation — followed by a bathroom that can handle winter humidity. The kitchen and the decoration come after, and cost less when the building is dry.

Access decides the schedule

Some driveways in Combloux are steep, unpaved and impassable for a lorry in winter. Deliveries are therefore planned with the actual vehicle in mind, and materials are stored in one trip rather than three.

For a renovation that runs through the winter, we agree in advance where the snow will be pushed and where the skip can stand without blocking the access. It sounds trivial until the first snowfall blocks a delivery for a week.