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Thanks to all those who have already assisted me on these topics. We are embarking on a major renovation of an 1949 bungalow, extended through the late 1900s to dormer bedrooms. Building a new first floor with timber construction, extending ground floor a little, adding external insulation to any existing walls, new DG windows and doors throughout. South-westerly aspect without shade. Will have PV and battery storage (not got to work on planning this yet). GF heated area 148m2 FF heated area 85m2 Total vol approx 600m3 Location N Somerset, just west of Bristol I have run Jeremy's heat loss calcs as best as I can, yielding the following (with soil temp 6C, ACH 0.5, no heat recovery) Looking at UFH throughout ground floor - mainly suspended timber and will be able to add plenty of insulation, but small area (kitchen/dining) of existing concrete floor to be extended slightly. Probably FCUs upstairs, although not decided yet, with the intention of some heating if necessary (maybe not needed?) but definitely active cooling, Family of 5 with 3 kids who will be teenagers soon - I am firmly against long showers but their mother is harder to persuade. Envisaging 300L UVC emptying rather fast so considering a larger one. Have been offered plenty of high output heat pumps through MCS-certified installers, with the accompanying eyewatering costs. Trying to get my house in order to challenge them, but also want to know I'm not going to regret going smaller! Questions: I am looking at ASHPs with max ouput 8-9kW based on previous advice from this forum. However my interpretation of the above calcs is that I need to be able to modulate down towards 3kW for efficient running in the less cold months. Is this correct? I've earmarked the Vaillant aroTherm + 10kW model as one option but finding it hard to identify other models with enough modulation (mainly due to poor documentation by the manufacturers - is there an "uber sheet" with these data anywhere?!) Wunda have offered me a 2-zone UFH system for the GF for £4.4k inc VAT - 2 zones needed as, whilst most is suitable for a between-joist system, the concrete floor area needs their "rapid response" to give similar performance. I had asked them for a screed system throughout the GF and need to ascertain why they think their proposal is better. Also sounds like a lot of £ compared to what others have posted. Thoughts? System volume is 148m3 As will be evident, I've never done anything like this before and am doing as much reading as I can to defend myself against blowing a big chunk of the budget on an inappropriate heating system! Floor plans attached. Location https://maps.app.goo.gl/acCH67SJ65B4fWmJ8 TIA GAP000 - Level 0 General Arrangement Plan.pdf GAP001 - Level 1 General Arrangement Plan.pdf

It gets reviewed, but has to be negotiated with the King's Treasurer and there is no role for Parliament to have any say in what it is. But your Presidency also has significant executive functions (and staff to support that) that are already covered in other parts of our budget. Going by your document (and my rusty French!) that Presidency also includes things like security, which we cover directly out of Met Police and similar budgets and is not part of the Sovereign Grant. In any case my argument is not that we should return to a republic - at least, that's not this argument 🤣. I simply think that whatever our constitutional arrangements: * All revenue from public assets should flow to the Treasury * All expenditure from that revenue should be controlled by a Parliament with the freedom to decide how best to allocate the available budget based on the public services they think are important and the costs of delivering those. And specifically for this thread, Parliament should allocate income from selling offshore seabed leases for windfarms (& other income from renewable generation on public land) towards investing in onshore grid upgrades & other aspects of the energy transition, rather than adding all those costs to our bills.

No

With even fairly simple extensions like the post above being refused, I have to ask, are you in a conservation area?

thanks for the input everyone. does anyone think the case officer was correct in stating this was a "prominent corner plot", as i think this will be the main basis of my appeal.

I wonder if anyone on here has ever managed to find the minimum heating capacity/modulation figures for the Aquarea M Series range? I've tried searching the whole of the Panasonic Pro Club and can't find any technical information? Part of the reason I wonder is because the 12kW and 16kW are exactly the same dimension. I remember that two of the larger vaillant arotherm models were actually the same hardware, with the output software limited... so I wonder whether panasonic does something similar but have a similar modulation floor?

If get rid of all the small bore stuff, can you get rid of the second circulation pump?

One reason for the address still not appearing months after you have paid to have this done is because the local authority are waiting for you to tell them that a house now exists. I have just been through this nonsense with East Herts. sorted in 2 weeks once i spoke to them.

Thanks all this has been helpful. Not least becasue I send the £100 trend jig back unused.

I fit solid wood worktops from time to time and always go for a butt joint. On a top of 600mm + you are probably going to get a fair bit of movement so this needs to be allowed for. I use some biscuits to keep alignment often glueing the ones near the front leaving the movement to happen at the back of the top but this depends on other things like up stands etc. Also some worktop connectors on the underside to keep the joint tight. Any mitre on solid wood will most likely open up over time as expansion or shrinkage causes the angle of the wood to change. You can do any desired moulding on the completed worktop with a router.

It is, and it is a strange arrangement , but the percentage does get reviewed from time-to-time - currently inflated to contribute to the refurb of Buckingham House - projected total £132.1m for 2025-26, it seems. Here in France this year's budget for the Presidency is €125.66m, and for that we only get one person royaling / presidenting. You might not save a lot by returning to a republic :)

Enclosed are the drawings of the application for a 2 storey extension at no 33 back in 2006. Was refused. You have also had 11 objection letters from your neighbours. Also the removal of 2 mature oak trees prior to planning does not go down well with the locals. Not sure your planning consultant is listening. Good luck.

I'm going to be the devils advocate here and assume that the window installer thinks they are not to blame, they have engaged me to defend them. First I'm going to put my SE hat on. With that hat on I want to see if your house is a bit "flexible" and prone to sideways movement. @Balou can you post some full elevation photos. Now if it turns out that your building is flexible then I would, in the installers defense, start asking the SE type questions.. in other words is the building moving sideways as designed by the SE within limits and also vertically (withing limits) and causing out glazing to fail? as the glazing contractor has not accounted for the SE movement in their installation. I can't easily see how the bricks are supported over the bifold doors. Again here if defending the glazing contractor I would want to know about this and cavity tray design. I would also want to know if you have made later alterations since you moved in, have you done something that could compromise the building performance that has cuased the building to move and over stressed the glazing and this has resulted in the problems manifest. If you have not done any of the above then the glazing provider seems to be on a sticky wicket! I agree Craig. It could be that the window frames are absolutely fixed to the main frame of the house and as that moves about it's causing overstress in the windows and doors. By the sound of it the workmanship appeares shoddy, not maintaining air tighntess for example. In the round though there are so many issues it apears to me that the product could just be faulty and the installation is poor.

You only need a masons mitre if you have a pre formed chamfered or rolled edge. If doing solid top, mitre is great glued and bolted, then if you want a chamfer or rolled edge it can be done with a router after joining.

If you set off at 00:30 you'll be on site for 07:00

Hiya all. This post is intended to provide insight into UFH screeds, the build process and build tolerances.. which drives overall cost. The first part sets the narrative. The last sets out and describes what drives screed thickness. At the end of the day if you are building a new house or just extending then it is vital that you understand how each bit of the design works, how you are going to build it and the tolerances you have to apply to each element so you don't cause a later problem. On self builds few folk have the ability / time to ensure that the contractor is delivering what they say they will! To get round this we need to simplify the design so self builders / extenders can see that they are getting what they paying for, compare builders quotes. We need to build in tolerances that the builder can work to when the rain is pissing down their neck. This is real life in the building trade! With my SE hat on I want to make sure that the slab is thick enough, but buildable, so the slab could be 10-15mm high unless the Client wants to pay extra for the tighter tolerance! "But the Architect told us it would work!" It might but they may not have told you how much extra that would cost to work to a tighter tolerance! Oh no, if the slab is high that can't be as my UFH pipes won't fit! As an SE I want to control the level of the sub base, if sub base is too high the slab is too thin. Now in a stricty controlled enviroment with a traditional Clerk of works we may get this down to 10mm high on the top side, not an SE issue in the main. SE washes their hands at this point, but if they are nice guys like me they will alert you to the problem. Any more tighter tolerances than that and the Contractor will add cost. But the whole idea of self building is to cut out these middle men! The only way you do that is to keep it simple stupid! That statement is based on the what I've learnt from being in this business for 40 years! This is the art of design! See where you can save time on site, make it easily buildable, reduced Contractor risk ( so they don't inflate the price) then you can use the savings to deliver what you actually see as the end result. Many self builders just "hope for the best".. but this is the building trade and there are no friends in the desert. Once you get into this mind set then you are in a good position to "sell yourself " to builders. If you make it simple then the risk to them is less and the price will likely go down. If you take the time to understand what you want to build and how it is going to be executed then you are in a strong position. Your reward will be that you open up the field for the more builders to compete for the work not least. At some point you will find a builder that says, I want this job and can see how I'm going to make a profit as I can see that is is not diffucult and carries less risk. Now I've had a few Clients over the years. If you are smart enough to be able to think about extending / self building and have some funds then you are not daft. My role is to give you the information that you need to make an informed descision. If your advisors are not doing this then you need to ask why. Yes, this post is about screed thickness but it's actually about what is below that drives the equation. I design insulated rafts, a passive raft is just a nuance! have done so for decades, but always having in mind what we need to put on top of the structural slab. The tolerance on a structural slab or just the supporting floor is, having done lots of insulated build raft designs, is about 10mm plus or minus on a good day! I shite you not this is a good day! If you have beam and block then these have a pre camber and that inroduces another aspect. If you assume a flat screed at nomimal 40mm thick then you are likely on a hiding to nothing. DO NOT DO THIS SCREED AT 40mm. Its complete bonkers! Now I know that there are many folk on BH that advocate thin screeds, but my own view is that they may have only done one or two projects at most, some may have done more but have never checked or just put their heads in the sand and never admit they cocked it up! In summary my main gripe is: 1/ That there is a total lack of design coordination and this results in extra cost as many contractors and designers as covering their arses. There is this perception that what you are putting the screed on is going to be flat and level.. that is cloud cuchoo land! Any Architect that wants to dish out advice needs to have practical experience and an understanding of what the SE is doing, the complete process and the tolerances every trade is normally expected to work within...otherwise they are a potential liability. 2/ There are far too many folk poncing about on screed thickness without understanding what they are laying it on, structural slabs have a wide tolerance as do beam and block. 3/ You can use the likes of "Loop cad" as much as you like but in the heat of battle some UFH pipes may have to cross over one another. There is an old saying you can plan for war, but as soon as the war starts the plans go out the window, this happens from time to time when building stuff. That is why I'm advocating for the simple stupid,it at least give you a fighting chance. Please folk try and think about cutting yourself some slack, the tighter the tolerances you ask for the higher the cost.. in reality, I see it so many times unless you make it simple you'll end up paying for something that never gets delivered. Best to pay for something that is achievable, even if you need to make compromises? Good design always involves compromising to get the best overall outcome. This is often missed by novice self builders, its not a bad thing to have that enthusiasm.. what is bad is if they then chuck their money down the drain by not beaing able to recognise that design is about balance / the trade off.

The crack is very likely to be installer error imho. i would tend to agree, welds don’t just crack, that’s to be opposite forced. Fixings should be 150mm from the corner (horizontally & vertically). This. It’s the only way to check, otherwise it has to go down as a manufacturing error. I would also suggest they haven’t packed them properly. As for glass, units fail. That’s just an unfortunate aspect but rare for brand new units to fail like this over a short period without other influences occurring (either that or glass manufacturer is just ****e. Sashes that are difficult to close due to expansion, is nearly always down to poor installation, with packers and fixings not being present or just really poorly done. I would suspect that you have zero insulation between the frame and building. Resulting in the said airflow. I have someone in mind, lives in Lincoln but we haven’t spoken in a year or two. I’ve messaged him and will see what I can do. Otherwise I have someone in Henley or I could do an independent report but Lincolns a 6.5hr drive for me. If you have a laser, run it up the glazing beads (where frame meets glass). It should be straight and if not and you see some pinching. It would indicate further inspection of packers/fixings.

Yep. Best gains are by getting decent modulation, lengthy cycle times and running the minimum flow temp possible. Everything is sh!te in sh!te out. If you don't have plenty of water volume and good flow rates your stuffed anyway, and stand a chance of getting a decent CoP.

The crack is very likely to be installer error imho. They have likely screwed through the frame and into the masonry way too close to the corners; the effect of then overtightening these fixings just places huge force of the welded joints, forcing them to pop open. A way to prove (or disprove) this would be to remove the glazed unit and inspect where the fixings have been placed.

It can be set in behind the PB here as there's 60mm to play with to the back of the PB as above As for the adjustable lug, good point, but if you use a spirit level sat across some long plate screws you can get it spot on with near zero effort.

Hadn’t heard of the FMB until this post. Yet our house is up, building control happy and so are we. My one piece of advice would be ‘go local’ - people who have reputations to protect do good work in our experience. Most of the people we’ve worked with had no websites or brochures. But they did have insurance, good references and lots of local connections to make recommendations for others to work on our house which turned out to be invaluable when we needed support. Actually a second piece of advice - look every company up on Companies House, make sure they’re a viable business and not so stretched they’ll go under before they complete your job.

This is exactly the point. The exact performance of any unit will vary by location even for nominally identical properties. Each manufacturer will optimise for slightly different conditions. Model Y from brand X might be slightly better paper than Model A from Brand B, but in the exact conditions (even down to how thr occupier uses it) of a given install the latter might perform slightly better I think chasing the last few % of efficency by looking at the scant data given by most manufacturers is a bit of a losing battle.

If going for PVC box, then don't fit a surface pattress as it's not only the wrong size (the socket face won't overlap the edges). It doesn't have an adjustable lug. I use these sometimes where walls are very slightly damp in old houses and eventually rot out the metal boxes. No such problem with these. Probably have to order in, nobody keeps them in stock round here at least. https://www.cef.co.uk/catalogue/products/1063228-2-gang-35mm-pvc-flush-pattress-box-round-corners-with-20mm-conduit-ko-white?gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23051364679&gbraid=0AAAAADOkMAZCou3JXOW_WiNJ2r4F_Fg3c&gclid=Cj0KCQiA9OnJBhD-ARIsAPV51xNG2MYKTdf6T2rR14bNj17wnkbY5gyAYeFQLZOSGdyOnJgqzd1ZN0UaAoK4EALw_wcB

Make sure you get boom swing if you get one.

Yes. The Liugong machines are cheaper, but not significantly.