Keen to extend their house in Wandsworth, South West London, to create a large, light filled family kitchen and dining area opening directly onto the garden, Simon and Marissa Pilkington used a screen of steel windows and doors to provide a strong industrial aesthetic. To manufacture and install the windows, they chose Steel Window Association member, Steel Window Service and Supplies.
When the Pilkingtons, who have three children, bought the 1900s semi-detached property, they could see the potential despite the small galley style kitchen at the back of the house.
They decided to knock this down and build out into the large rear garden with a single-storey extension. Despite wanting a connection between the indoor and outdoor spaces, they were keen not to have bifold doors and, having looked at the different options, realised that a screen of steel windows and doors was the perfect solution.
Working with Steel Window Service and Supplies to refine the design, the couple decided to have two sets of double doors and a central panel of fixed lights which resulted in an impressive 5m wide by 2.7m high area of glazing. In addition, to separate the kitchen from the adjoining sitting room, they designed an internal screen measuring 2m wide by 2.6m high consisting of double steel doors with fixed lights on either side.
To fabricate the windows and doors, Steel Window Service and Supplies used W20 sections which offer narrow profiles and good sightlines. These were hot dip galvanised and were then finished in a factory applied polyester powder coating in RAL 7021 black/grey matt. The external windows were fitted with 16mm double glazing units while the internal screen was single glazed.
Simon Pilkington, a sports marketing consultant, comments: "We love the industrial look and the feeling of light and space that the steel windows give. They allow a great sense of connection between the garden and indoor living spaces and, despite the large area of glazing, they're really effective at keeping in the warmth from the underfloor heating. Steel Window Service was great, not only with the fabrication and installation of the windows but in helping us get the proportions right, including everything from the size of the door to the kick plate along the bottom."