Middellandstraat · Rotterdam
Block split and redeveloped
Work carried out: an entire block converted internally into apartments and studios, façade work included.
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Service area Gouda
Renovation contractor in Gouda
Rotterdamse Bouwbedrijf handles remodelling and complete renovations in Gouda. From a listed building in the old centre to a family home in Bloemendaal, Goverwelle or Plaswijck, with one dedicated team that knows that in Gouda the question under the house comes first: how is the foundation doing, and how much has it already settled?
5 starreviews from our clients
500+ projects delivered
10+ years of experience
- Our own team of 20 to 30 craftsmen
- One price, no surprises for extra work
- 1-year guarantee on the renovation
Why Rotterdamse Bouwbedrijf
A contractor who knows the reality of renovating in Gouda
One dedicated team
Our own craftsmen run your project from start to finish. No rotating subcontractors.
Familiar with old buildings on soft ground
From listed buildings on timber piles in the old centre to the post-war districts where the garden settles faster than the house.
A clear price up front
A clear quote and a realistic schedule. Any additional work is always discussed first.
Our services in Gouda
How we can help you in Gouda
From repair and a new layout in an older building to a home tackled as a whole. In Gouda that almost always starts with the state of the foundation and with damp. Click through to the service you are looking for.
Full Home Renovation
From teardown to turnkey by one dedicated team.
View serviceHome Extensions
More living space, from foundation to finish.
View serviceRoof Extension
A full extra floor.
View serviceBathroom Renovation
Complete and fully watertight.
View serviceKitchen Renovation
From design to installation.
View serviceDormer Installation
More space and light in your loft.
View servicePlastering & Finishing
Walls and ceilings plastered smooth or ready to paint.
View serviceWindow Frames, Insulation & Energy Efficiency
Better comfort and a better energy label.
View serviceOur work
All projects
Work in older buildings and new layouts
These projects are in Rotterdam and The Hague. They are shown here because the brief is the same as in Gouda: older buildings with a difficult floor plan in which the layout, the services and the finishing were replaced in a single project, façade and roof work included.
The Hague city centre
Three floors and an old rear annexe
Work carried out: a building rebuilt from A to Z, with a former rear annexe turned into a living room.
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Agniesebuurt · Rotterdam
Open kitchen as extra living space
Work carried out: the layout opened up, a new kitchen with an island and complete finishing.
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Reviews
What our clients say
5 starreviews from our clients
Would you like a result like this at home?
Tell us what you have in mind. You get a free quote, usually within one working day.
How we work
From intake to handover
01
Intake & design
We visit, listen and think along with you about layout, materials and budget.
02
Quote & schedule
You receive a clear quote with a clear price and a realistic schedule.
03
Teardown & shell work
Stripping out, structure and shell work. The foundation of your new home is in place.
04
Services & finishing
Services, bathroom, kitchen, plastering, floors and painting.
05
Handover & guarantee
We walk through everything together and hand over turn-key, with a guarantee.
Curious what's possible in your home?
Request your free renovation planLooking for a renovation contractor in Gouda?
Arrange a no-obligation consultation. We come to you in Gouda, look at what is possible in your home and put together a plan with a clear price.
Renovating in Gouda
What makes renovating in Gouda different
Gouda stands on peat, and here that is not background information but the subject itself. The old centre has been sinking for centuries, streets and quays have been raised time and again, and buildings stand on timber piles that only survive while they remain under water. Anyone renovating in Gouda without looking at that first pays for it later.
The centre sinks and the street level creeps up
Because streets and quays have been raised over the years while the buildings stayed on their piles, the ground floor of many Gouda town houses now sits lower than the street. You see the result in the thresholds, in damp in the lowest metre of masonry and in cellars that are getting wetter. In a renovation that is the first thing we map, because it determines whether you can raise the floor, whether a damp-proof layer is needed and what has to happen to the thresholds.
Timber pile foundations and the groundwater level
The older buildings stand on timber piles. As long as the pile head stays under water the timber lasts for centuries; once it dries out, rot sets in and the building settles unevenly. The signals are familiar: cracks running diagonally above the window frames, doors that jam, floors sloping to one side and a lean you can see in the elevation. We have the foundation assessed before starting a complete home renovation, because a new kitchen on a failing foundation is money thrown away.
Listed buildings and the protected townscape
Gouda's old centre holds hundreds of listed buildings within a protected townscape. Inside there is usually plenty of scope; the façade, the window frames, the roof plane and the colour scheme are assessed by the council, and for a listed building the heritage rules apply as well. We agree the plan in advance and take care of the permit, which in the Netherlands is called an omgevingsvergunning.
Narrow, deep buildings with an awkward plan
The typical Gouda town house is narrow and deep, with the stairs in the middle, a dark central section and a rear annexe added later. The classic move is to open up that middle section and bring daylight in from above or from the rear elevation. That almost always touches the structure, and in an older building it means working with temporary support while the new beam goes in.
Korte Akkeren, Bloemendaal, Goverwelle and Plaswijck
Outside the canals lies a completely different stock: post-war family homes and flats, and the expansion districts from the 1970s to the 1990s. There the usual interventions apply, opening up the kitchen, an extension at the back, a dormer above, with one Gouda accent: gardens and terraces here settle noticeably faster than the houses, which stand on piles. So we found an extension on piles.
Deliveries over the bridges and through the alleys
In the old centre logistics are half the job. Narrow alleys, lifting bridges, little room for a skip and sometimes deliveries by water or through a window opening. We arrange the loading exemption, plan day by day which materials arrive and work with smaller quantities at a time. Without that preparation a city-centre project stalls within a week, however good the plan inside the building.
Common mistakes in Gouda
- Starting on the finishes while the foundation has not yet been assessed.
- Raising a floor in a town house without a damp-proof layer and without adapting the thresholds.
- Ordering frames in the protected townscape before the plan has been checked with the council.
- Founding an extension on shallow footings while the house is on piles and the garden is visibly settling.
Considering a renovation in Gouda? Take a look at our complete home renovation, plastering and finishing or window frames and insulation, browse our projects or arrange a no-obligation consultation. Besides Gouda we also work in Rotterdam, Capelle aan den IJssel, Alphen aan den Rijn and the rest of the Randstad.
Frequently asked questions
Questions about renovating in Gouda
How often are you in Gouda?
Gouda is about half an hour from our base on Doklaan in Rotterdam, via the A20 and the A12. It is a regular service area: our own team runs the projects here and we work without hired-in subcontractors, so you keep the same point of contact throughout the build.
How do we know whether the foundation of our Gouda building is still sound?
The construction year already says a lot: buildings from before roughly 1970 in and around the centre generally stand on timber piles. Beyond that the building gives signals: cracks running diagonally above the frames, jamming doors, sloping floors and a visible lean. Where there is doubt we have a foundation survey carried out before starting, with an inspection pit at the pile head.
Our ground floor sits lower than the street. Can that be solved?
Often yes, but it needs a plan. The options are raising the floor with a damp-proof layer and insulation beneath, adapting the thresholds and the front door junction, and making sure water can drain away on the street side. What is feasible depends on the headroom you have left and on what sits under the floor. We measure that before anything is stripped out.
What is allowed in a listed building in the Gouda centre?
Inside, usually a great deal, provided the structure and historically valuable elements are respected. Outside, meaning the façade, frames, roof plane and colour, the council assesses the plan, and for a listed building the heritage rules apply. We submit the plan in advance, take care of the permit and agree what has to be preserved.
Can you make a narrow, deep building lighter?
Usually yes. The interventions that do most are opening up the central section, bringing daylight down from above with a roof lantern or a void, and fitting a larger glazed opening in the rear elevation. Because in an older building this is almost always structural work, we have it calculated and use temporary support during the works.
How do you get materials into a city-centre building?
With a loading exemption, deliveries scheduled day by day and smaller quantities at a time. Where a skip cannot stand, we remove waste in bags or with a small crane, and where the door or stairwell is too narrow, material comes in through a window opening. All of that is arranged before the first day on site.
Is it worth upgrading an older Gouda building?
Certainly, but in the right order and with attention to moisture. Start with the roof and the floor, seal draughts and make sure ventilation is adequate. Internal insulation on an old façade is possible, but only with a vapour-control layer and extra moisture extraction, otherwise it condenses behind the insulation. For the frames there is glazing that fits the existing profile and that the council usually accepts in a protected area.
Is your question not listed?
Call or message us. You will speak to someone who does the work himself.