Work is undertaken by Rockridge Oak Carpentry on properties of all ages and building styles from the medieval period through to the modern era, and varies from minor repairs to extensive alterations mainly in Cheshire, North Wales, Shropshire and neighbouring areas, although recent jobs in Cumbria have pushed that boundary a touch.

Additionally to Carpentry & Building Renovation, I undertake Oak Framing of porches, roof trusses, garden buildings and make fixtures & fittings in timber such as: 
kitchen islands, cupboards, worktops, doors, gates, tables, benches, mantles and likewise items, in the hand cut style.

Although Oak is generally the choice for most of the work that involves a select timber, other temperate species are regularly used for their various natural characteristics and their ability to be used without the addition of chemical treatments in order to mitigate insect attack and rot-causing fungi - such as Sweet Chestnut, Larch, Western Red Cedar and Douglas Fir.

Not all structures need to be made entirely from select species of timber, often it is both economic and practical in terms of durability to use treated Pines and Spruces in the hidden areas of a structure then clad the exterior with a more select species such as Oak, Larch or Douglas Fir or with a modified timber like Accoya.

These are sourced from local sawmills and estates for native grown (UK) timber and through several well established import suppliers for timber grown in France, Europe, US & Canada and Scandanavia.

Tropical species of timber aren't generally advocated for Rockridge jobs because it's hard sometimes to trust that they're sourced sustainably, however in some situations plywood and other manufactured boards are the right choice of product when sourced through accredited supply chains from reputable suppliers.

Using reclaimed timber of any type, including tropical species, helps sustainability and is environmentally conscious -  re-use of wood and timber sections is widely considered as perfectly acceptable from the onset as the timber was generally felled before sustainability issues were regarded as important and now that they have been felled and converted into timber it would be wasteful not to re-use them whenever is practically possible, after all, timber is also a carbon store and the longer it can work at holding in CO2 has environmental benefits; so whether it's a temperate or tropical species, or whether it was grow in the UK or abroad it's better to re-use, for sure, in an appropriate situation or for the desired visual appearance of older wood.

Conservation Repairs and Lime Renders cross the path of Carpentry work directly in the repair of old timber frame buildings that have lime rendered infill panels within the framework, as well as in more general renovation work where lime renders are used on masonry structures - it's a large subject therefore a separate section on the website about previous jobs involving conservation work and use of appropriate finishing coatings will be expanded on as time elapses.

Being able to undertake jobs in the order they arrive and are booked in avoids most clashes in the timetable and gives more scope to accommodate any unforseen issues that can occur in older buildings, or small extra work items, or erratic weather which is beyond reasonable control and can cause problematic delays - always maintaining the focus primarily on the welfare of the building or element that is being made or repaired.

Hopefully the pictures on the website will be of interest to you, but please get in touch if you would like to discuss your own requirements in detail. 

A general list of services offered  is on the 'Services' page.

Thank You for visiting the website.