All Activity

Even with the above we are looking at £500k plus for demo, foundations and fees which I believe is excessive.

Amusingly for me anyway the total actual Rad output is spot on for my heat loss I know I've cocked up somewhere just can't see where 🙂

Sent you a PM

14.83kW emitter sizing load? That seems massive. Something doesn't seem right there. Do want to show some of the room inputs? Or PM me screenshots?

Rad Evaluation at my Target Flow Temps

Not sure how you have worked that out? Think you need to explain in more detail what you are trying to do. I have thick tiles on a stud wall and plasterboard - no steel in sight. So confused what you are or aren't doing

heat rises easier than it falls??

So now I need to understand why the result (if I am reading it right) at 12 kWh is 3 times my current heat loss 🙂 Current heat loss is just under 4.0 kWh at -2.5 Deg C So I've definately made an error somewhere

U Values used

OK Finished Two Warnings I think I understand both are due to the internal nature of the Hall and Landing being centre of house so no external wall ticked

I'm worried about 20mm marble on both sides due to the load exceeding the rated amount for the blocks per m2. Lightweight blocks is cheaper to construct and also less weight so reduces loads, otherwise might need to thicken up the steel frame

I think I said screed instead of self levelling compound. not sure really I just like herringbone.

I'm with you I've never used pir in cavities either. I've done traditional with dot and dab and got great air test score. Parge coat prior and linked to airtight membrane on ceiling. I don't see how the pir helps you with this?

Same here - put them everywhere.

No, not stupid at all, just something you need to get your head round for heat loss calcs. In the 2 story: - Ground floor gets 1 x Ground Floor (Slab) or (Suspended) + Ceiling - 1st Floor get 1 x Floor + Ceiling You're not really double counting because if both rooms have the same design internal temp, the Design dT is set to zero on both the ceiling of ground floor and floor of 1st floor so there are no losses between them. If there is a difference in internal temp, you just need to keep in mind that the Design dT becomes either + or - the difference. So if one room is 21C and the other 18C, it's +/-3 either way on floor & ceiling. You'll not know this now because the standard U-values aren't in the global database yet, but one thing to keep in mind is that the floor always has a lower U-value than the Ceiling for the same buildup - The CIBSE standard for plasterboard, joists, floorboards, with 100mm insulation is 0.32 I think. The same buildup as a floor is 0.25. Hope that clarifies it?

Why bother with lightweight?

I did, put some smart stuff in, but was way more work than it needed to be, so now have a box of smart relays gathering dust. Good old light switches and 5A sockets for side lights. Works every time. Not sure I need lights changing colours or themes and then the wife nagging me why can't we just have stuff that works. KISS.

Not sure about anyone else but I built our house for us and couldn’t care less about any future buyers!

I've put 12mm travertine onto cement boards on timber stud walls. I think most blocks will be ok. Unless you're using something much thicker. See what others say.

One question - might seem a bit stupid In a two storey house Ground Floor gets the downstairs floor does it get the ceiling as well or does the upstairs floor get the ground floor ceiling as it's floor and the ceiling between it and the roof structure? At the moment ground floor has ground floor and ceiling, first floor has floor and ceiling - concerned that this may be double counting?

Using a dense block external leaf, and lightweight block internal seems to achieve 0.18 with 32 batts in the cavity I just seen. Are the lightweight blocks terrible as I’ve heard of them cracking and crumbling easily. Using dense blocks both leafs and 32 batts gives 0.19 which is so close. Would it not be possible to do this and say increase u-value of floor or roofs? Or windows? Anything to compensate for such a small nominal. It’ll allow for using the much cheaper and better dense blocks for walling and go with fully filled cavity mineral wool. For now taped PIR at 140mm is being planned.

I think they're always a bit undersized. They're always designed to be filled or skimmed so suppose it makes sense to be smaller rather than bigger.

The above post is very much my opinion also. You are obliged to give notice of completion to the LA and furnish them with all the relevant documents such as SAP, air test, EPC, water efficiency calculator, electrical certificate etc plus a "competency" declaration but that is the extent of your obligation. Assuming that has been done then the LA should issue a completion certificate within eight weeks. There is no actual obligation on them to inspect, as long as they have considered the risk of not inspecting. Of course it's all very well the government writing these things down but if an LA has no staff then who is to challenge them, the ombudsman will take forever. But, unless you need a completion certificate for a very specific purpose then sit back and let them get around to it. Interestingly HMRC say work is complete once the local planning authority issues a certificate of completion (my bold). Well if one uses private building control there is no LA involvement and I can't see the planners getting involved. Furthermore in contrast, the claim guidelines state you merely have to "provide evidence of completion". Indeed I found that HMRC were more interested in what was contained within my planning application rather than any thoughts about building control. If you have been added to the valuation list then that's pretty good evidence along with perhaps an explanation of the situation. I suspect that if HMRC felt that wasn't sufficient, they would stay your claim until you satisfied them. The team that deals with reclaims seems to have more time to consider things and seem a little more human than the income tax bods.

It's basically an iPhone 16 in a laptop case. Apart from the limited USB ports it appears to be a significantly better buy than similar priced windows laptops.

Any recommendations for the best lightweight concrete blocks for tiling marble onto ? I.e. that can take the weight - ideally on both sides - without reinforcement. Would consider anything <=140mm wide Thank you in advance