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It’s not really my area of expertise tbh but @Nickfromwales might be able answer these questions better than I can?

Hi Im looking for recommendations for my self build insurance my surveyor and mortgage company require cover for rebuild cost for £1.8 million Most insurers online quote a max £1 mill rebuild cost protek are quoting me just under £4k for 12 months this seems steep any other recommendations or brokers?

For that kind of money, you'd expect atleast a metal surround and not a laquered plastic one!

I'm working in Cambridge next week. Are you saying to leave my thermal budgie-smugglers at home?

I saw one of these being fitted in one previous clients projects, but feck knows if the price makes it good............. They have a few offerings here, https://eastcoastkitchens.co.uk/appliances/4020-evoline-backflip-worktop-sockets-uk-c-usb-charger-stainless-steel-4044657042705.html?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23336478432&gbraid=0AAAAADqGETsxA3zX54fcbWAVZnry0IAGJ&gclid=CjwKCAjwnN3OBhA8EiwAfpTYesH79eF82j1MRNZaKTzFIs7AoOEN777WjgnIFwEDjIRuWAUlGNvQuhoC12QQAvD_BwE

Don't plug anything 'chunky' into this or it'll melt. No toaster / kettles etc, defo not a microwave. Cheap crap, sorry!

I'm also happy to test (and have done software design, development and testing in previous life). Plus this will be useful for my needs as like the OP, I have had a ASHP proposal that seems ridiculous (16KW) given the energy efficiency intended for the house - even if it is on the larger side.

I have used the "Rose" range in a couple of properties. They are pretty good lookilikies for trad timber.

Been wondering whether putting a couple of these in the end panel one above the other would do it ? (TBH I would have hoped the kitchen people would have some recommendations but that seems too much for them) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0F2FM14NW/?coliid=I2XH8Y6VFB51BY&colid=3RAUVXUPTJ827&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1

The radial is on the other side of the open plan room, it doesn't serve the kitchen area, just the other dining/sitting areas. Wall sockets to power TV, sound bar, lamps, hoover, laptop type stuff. It is a radial as I specifically asked and queried it when it was put in. I was told that things had changed since I put some ring mains in myself 35 years ago, and these days radial circuits were favoured. Sure seems to be 2.5mm. There is an actual ring main on the kitchen side running around between wall side and island. Will just be for kitchen sockets, dishwasher, fridge, wine cooler, and electric rooflight. There is separate cable to the island labelled TAP

Just spend 5 years of subs money on a mac to run the LLM on and hope that in 2 years time it's still good enough to run the current models Reason I asked is you said the new setup seemed to be performing better and everything I've seen suggests that local models are generally a little worse at chat type stuff and quite a bit worse for agentic workflows (still much better than the leading models from 9 months ago). I guess with the $20 gpt sub you can't access the better OpenAI models?

oh sorry Craig or others, just thought of another question(s)... I have a set of twinwall flexible conduits and a 110 drain pipe coming up under the kitchen island position carrying insulated water pipes and cables etc. Therefore these come up through the concrete. Is there something I should do to try and seal up the top of the surrounding hole around the conduits. I can't say how well membranes were cut and sealed to the conduits - knowing our builder probably not perfectly. Q5 I guess definitely not a good idea to use floor leveller there for fear it all runs down the hole into the insulation layer ?! Maybe try and practice my insulation carving again and try and cut some 30mm XPS slab to fit around the pipes ? What do people usually do for this ? Q6 Re conduits themselves with pipes/wire coming out under kitchen units etc - any need to seal the ends around the pipes/wires to stop air moving along the pipe from colder levels ? See pics

OK. Around half of the room/extension perimeter one of the builders cut off the vapour barrier to slab level as soon as the concrete slab had set. I caught him before he could do the other half. The Architects drawing was for it to run to the wall behind the skirting and get plastered onto the wall, although the plasterers thought that daft. The 25mm edge PIR is inevitably tightly pushed against the inner leaf blockwork by the weight of the concrete pour, so I guess not much chance of any colder air from below the concrete making it through to the room anyway. Certainly over 2 years of of it being in place we have had no sign of any such issue or condensation or anything. Fortunately the radon barrier was run into the cavity wall and up to join the wall DPM so no-one could cut that off. Just googled whether PIR is vapour permeable and got this AI response... So I guess slightly better to do as you say, but if the flooring people want to cut it off it shouldn't be a problem ?

Look up the rules for your vat claim, you don’t need bc final sign off, you need a few things that might bring you back to bc but you DONT need final sign off.

If the boiler is continuously running at 4.1kWh gas consumption and the output by my calc is 3.924kW then it adds up fairly well as this gives a boiler efficiency of 95.71%. You mentioned somewhere I think that you thought your boiler's minimum output should be better as its not achieving its advertised figure of 3.2kW at 50C/30C, which means the gas consumption should be 3.2/0.9571, 3.343kWh?, what do you reckon is the minimum gas consumption when it starts cycling?

MBC have done loads with split-level insulated passive rafts. I'd avoid a cold-ventilated sub floor like the plague, but if cost is the driver then B&B floor will likely be the most affordable / simpler to do. Just be sure to allow for 200mm of PIR insulation over the B&B to get back the loss of the cold underbelly.

Blowing a fuse will have the opposite effect to the one you seek, albeit temporarily satisfying to do. Good luck, and chin up.

I think @Tony L's approach is the one to adopt. Nothing to lose, a good reason to explain why you need this done ASAP, and with patience you'll find where to go and you'll get the result you desire.

There are some half decent ones out there, but most have to be fed from a plug top or from a 13a fused spur, and cannot be connected directly to the ring main. That restricts how much current you can draw through them, with some saying they have to be off a 10a fuse in the spur.

Eh? If that's a radial it will be on a 4.0mm cable. I think you're mixed up and the kitchen is on a ring; they could have spurred off that with a fused spur for the extractor as it's using near zero juice. Are you asking the electrician, or just making assumptions? The Quooker tap could (should) also be off the kitchen ring, via a single 13a socket. 4mm to that is way OTT. Not much of this is making sense tbh.

I haven't worked for over a year now and I want my VAT back. The council building control have made me a financial prisoner

Answering the question with a question to which the answer is yes. "Show me the money!"

Doesn't the VAT reclaim depend on BC sign-off?

Why is the delayed sign off important to you?

Already have 8x2 installed every 400 c/c. The 2x3 or 2x4 will be screwed along each of these, probably every 400mm