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Hi we have 5x soakaways for my build, one of these will unavoidably be under part of the front drive..we are going with 62tonne crates to handle the load. my query is during the construction phase we will inevitable my have some large delivery trucks etc. how would you recommend I protect the solar during the construction phase ? I’ve looked in to track plates etc but want a cost effective but durable solution.

I find it strangely satisfying cutting copper pipe with the slice. Also polishing it up with wire wool, brings a smile to my face.

Is this a trick? Some say a loggia is part of the main structure or are you just being too smart. If it is part of the main structure then you also have to often transfer sideways sway resistance back in the main structure. Or have another way of resisting lateral sway. Post a dimensioned drawing and let us see what you are wanting to achieve. It looks to me like you are designing on the hoof, but don't actually understand what you are doing. Get a grip of this first and then think about your timber / Gluelam selection and the appropriate connections. Your connections are vitally important. But I suspect you have to date not given this some serious thought. Just ask yourself what is going to stop this swaying sideways.

That’s where the ‘poke in the left eye’ would promptly follow….

Ah, can you post an exact copy of the communication you received from BC? Then tell us a bit about the conversation you had with BC. I come across this often but you are not providing the worts and all back ground.

Not sure only importing in winter is practical, rainy days generation is pants any time if the year. We import all year, but export more than we import most of the summer. Yes we have lots more panel capacity compared to inverter capacity. The inverters rarely run at max capacity anyway. But we have tried to optimise for winter rather summer as summer you over produce anyway. But with big arrays you really need to export and import most the year - we do in NE Scotland, maybe different 500/600 miles further south.

Did they also deburr it for you?

Most ‘nice’ plumbers at the merchants will do this, which is nice of them. 🙂

Yes. Ish. I’d not call it overcapacity, even though we can’t export quite all we generate, even after we've refilled the battery. The numbers made it an easy win.

The kindly local independent plumbers merchant sells pipe by the metre and was happy to cut it up for me which was great. Alternatively: https://pipedreamfittings.com/product/copper-tube-22mm/

Yes, have a 7.5kw generation capacity - could do with more in winter. Have space to get some more panels on the garage so might do that. However with hindsight the thing that actually has quickest payback is battery and night charge in winter at cheap rate.

By which I mean large overcapacity of panels. Object being to provide almost all power in the summer & shoulder seasons - only using imported power in the winter?

A letter from whoever saw it being built, ie SE or Arch, saying that it isn't usual to require this and it was 5 years ago but from visual inspection at the time this was industry standard material. Bco can file that.

You’ll have saved paying a plumber. More energy expended in this thread than the time / cost of the project.

Make one up. Failing that, who was the project manager and who were their insurer.

Yes, but there is a small business scheme where you pay just 12% VAT if your turnover is low. That is a (expletive deleted)ing nonsense as if you go a quid over it, you pay the full 20% and get a telling off (it is a bit more complicated than that, but we got caught a few years back)

Yup. No VAT on potatoes. VAT on chips.

Use the 8x2

Dont go on dragons den....if you just want some odd pieces just have a word with a plumber for any scrap (which is probably better quality than new), most plumbers just leave it out for scrap men around leeds area

Plus it takes no account of expenses so massively punishes small businesses and self-employed Say 20% flat rate 30k a year salary pays 6k tax and has 24k taken home 200k a year tradesman with 170k expenses. Pays 40k tax and has a take home of -£10k Like it or not tax is always going to be complicated.

You maybe took as long to write the above that it takes to make 20 of them. For the cost just buy some pipe

I might drain the cylinder and try to remove the immersion heater for a better look inside.

Should a 30 year old HWC need replacing? Other than limescale and leaks what can go wrong? The water in the system is very clean and runs clear, it has been a sealed system since 2015.

Finally got decent looking snow. It accumulates on terrain and thaws.

Look at the plug the other end? Gen 2, proprietary plug either end. Gen 3, RJ45 plug either end.