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83 Year Old Dies Under Stack Of Polystyrene His wife said "Just something else he started but never finished, I'm still waiting for a wall hung toilet!" The Times, February 2050

I tend to put the seat level at 425mm. When I demonstrate the slightly higher ( referred to as 'comfort' ) height most older customers say it's much more forgiving. I would choose the 420mm option every day, regardless, and don't like a low toilet. Kids can use the chuck-away 'pee step' when their little legs don't reach, but...... "a loo is for life, not just for Xmas"

Yep, @joe90 "won"!

Just a post to say a big thanks to @PeterStarck for his assistance and hospitality today. Peter pm'd me ref my ongoing bathroom saga offering a couple of pan connector spares he had that might help me out. I picked them up today combining a visit to a nearby wildlife park with my youngest. Peter and his wife were kind enough to show my wife, daughter and I around his fantastic build. I knew what it was but had never been inside a Passivhaus. I know I'm probably preaching to the converted but it just felt warm, secure and draught free.....something I'm not used to! Impressive views too through the triple glazing (it's in a lovely location). Add to that the fantastic build quality and that Peter's done the bulk of the work himself and it's even more impressive. Just hoping my missus will take something from it and come round to an appreciation of why I'm always on about insulation, heat loss and trying to do things "right". Once again a very big thanks.

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I used 12mm Hardiebacker board but it's tough stuff and I got through a few holecutters!

So I'm still here, plugging away. Apparently I have a roof that is constantly underestimated in terms of the amount of work required. Both chippies and roofers took weeks longer than expected. Still, all part of the fun! Since my last update the cut roof elements were completed, dormers etc. Tiling was completed this Monday. I've insulated the loft. Marley Cedral cladding has begun in the past couple days. Next steps are for fibreglass flat roof to hopefully be completed on the balcony on Monday, then rear bifold doors and front balcony Velfac sliding doors to be installed. I will then FINALLY be 100% watertight and ready to attack the inside in anger. Few photos of various bits and bobs below.

This thread is "what it's all about" as far as I'm concerned. Ed doesn't "have to", could indeed take an easier route but wants to see "if he can". Rediscovering a lost art and some of his local history at the same time. Great stuff!

I think the SWA nut and collet are tight on the armour, or seem as if they could be, looking at a close up of the full image. TBH, the whole installation is pretty grim, especially as it looks like the CU is a lot newer than the rest, so one has to ask why someone would fork out for what was probably a consumer-side rewire and not get the incoming side properly sorted, especially on a place that's a holiday let. As someone with a bit of a farming background, I'd say it looks a bit like the sort of stuff often found on farms..................

Trying to plan ahead for when I have to wheel myself in and slide off sideways onto the loo. Hence making the doorway wide and open wet room area.....they can just wheel me in and hose me down.

Just been checking the height of our toilets in the new house as they look a bit low. We followed the installation instructions on the Gerberit frame and added the build up for the floor finish. So I measured the height of our current toilet to the top not including the seat and it is 40cm. Checked the ones in the new house and they are just over at 41/42cm. So this seems standard unless you've got very long legs then you can set the Gerberit a bit higher!

No, keep it a dark secret to catch out the unwary.

Ah yes the sacrificial tree.....lightning hits that, tree explodes and destroys house in a deluge of charred timber shrapnel and molten tree sap!

Right-o, shall I just rename the thread or what?!? Pmsl Can we summarise please?

So did they put some USB sockets up there while they were at it? That would be incredibly useful for those occasions your phone battery goes flat. "Excuse me, I just need to plug my phone in to charge."

Isn't it a 'race to the bottom' rather than 'top trumps'.

Well, as we appear to be playing " top trumps" I have had a total colonectomy ( all my large bowel removed) some 20 years ago, had a bag for 3months to enable healing and apart from adhesions in my gut ( scar tissue) no problems since although I do have to careful what I eat. I found out only during the last year that I am intolerant to a long list of foods ( mostly what I like e.g. Dairy, grains, yeasts) and leaving out these foods makes me feel better. I won't go on about my other health problems as I am too busy planning my build. p.s. As stress has been a major factor in my health issues some people believe that doing a self build is the wrong thing to do, however the nutritionalist that found out about my intolerances believes that the enjoyment gained through my achievement will aid my health as long as I can manage any stress related to the build. I have a wonderful builder, I will not require a mortgage or bank loan, i have been involved in the building trade to know that things do go wrong and the trick is to shrug your shoulders and say " shit happens" and get over it.

Spray that mould with some release agent and fill with expanding foam. Done by tea time. Get it stuck in place before she sees it. It'll be March 14th!

In no particular order... Firstly, who is doing the measure and what fitting tolerance they recommend (10mm? or 15mm?). Recommended fitting method for any fixed lights - i.e any brackets, who supplies. Finger jointing - if timber framed and lacquered, pay more for none (although I doubt Gaulhofer would do finger jointing anyway) Ironmongery - internally, I believe you can specify at extra cost 'hidden ironmongery' - something we only realised after and wished we'd specced. This is in the space between an opening window and the frame - on some of ours, you can see the mechanics behind, which I don't like. Window spacers - what colour? Some look at you like you're an alien, others know exactly what you are talking about and tell you what you can specify. Despite the hassle it caused, the black on ours looks great - so slick on triple glazing. Offload method - how will they arrive and how will they be offloaded. Special glazing - we specified special solar glazing on our south elevations to reduce the solar gain. It's also tinted blue slightly, although you can get other colours. Looks good but also adds a degree of privacy. Fitting - can the glazing be removed for fitting? Can make life easier - some do, some don't. Adjoining panels - if you have say a door and side panel, how are these afixed? Is there a cover panel for the joint either internally or externally?

@HerbJ went with Gaulhofer. You could give him a call. One thing to discuss is installation: do they offer to install, or even insist upon installing, the windows themselves? What's the lead time from sign-off - will they give a guaranteed delivery date? Do, eg, continental August shut-downs affect your build schedule? Do you want any extras (eg, blinds?) Are there options for, eg, higher-spec spacers? I assume they'll be double low-e coated, but worth checking, and confirming what type of coating they use. Are cills included? What information can they provide about installation details - can they work with whoever's doing your construction drawings to make sure installation will be a smooth experience? That's all that jumps out at the moment. I was hugely impressed with the guy I spoke to at a building show a few years ago (Tomas, I think), who was the MD. Assuming it's the same guy, he's a Passivhaus trainer, which is the next step up from Passivhaus consultant, so he really gets low energy building. If I had my time again I'd likely have gone with Gaulhofer. The only reason I didn't was actually because they flagged an issue with window sizes early on. The people we went with didn't, and it was only when we were finalising everything that someone at the factory pointed out exactly the same issue that Gaulhofer raised the first time they saw the drawings.

When we were building our house we got a quote for installing structural lightnight protection (conductors etc) from these people : http://www.etechservices.co.uk/ It was going to be expensive (£4k if I remember) - and they made it clear that normally they don't install this kind of system in a domestic property unless there was a high risk because of its location. I didn't have a high risk so I didn't bother with it. Hopefully won't regret that... I did think about doing something DIY instead - ie getting a massive copper wire or strip - attaching it to a rod on the roof - running it down the side of the house and burying it with a really good earth connection. Then I realised I didn't have a clue what I was talking about and might just make it more dangerous so didn't bother with this either :). Would this have helped? I did get a surge protection system installed on the incoming AC - which might help. - reddal

Simple solution TBH. We all just pile over to @readiescards house and run his batteries flat.

Bet you're bricking it.....

This is all you're allowed. The clay has been taking a while to dry but I think it is very nearly ready. There is a small chance I might have a first attempt this weekend ?

+ Vat

We stayed in a hotel last year that had no wi-fi, my good god it was the like the end of the world as we know it so I know what you mean.

I think the problem is, how far do you go? When we lived in Scotland a big, Victorian, Gothic revival, three storey house got hit on one of the two front turrets. That had what looked like decent lightning conductors, with big copper straps running down the walls either side. The side that was hit still had a gash down the wall, where the stone had literally exploded, right behind where the copper strap had been (that got vaporised) . Admittedly that house was fairly high up, and someone must have realised there was a risk of getting a strike to have fitted the lightning conductors, but the structural damage was still so bad that they had to demolish around a quarter of the house and rebuild it. I wondered at the time if they'd have been better off not having the lightning conductors at all. As our new house is right at the bottom of a steep valley, it's not something I'm going to worry about, but I think that if your house is at risk then you either need to get fully onboard with a protection system that will work without causing extensive damage, or just not bother. A half-way house scheme might well increase, rather than decrease, the overall risk, I think.

Don't forget charging the laptops, tablets and phones when their batteries run out.

Yes but don't forget I'll be doing it myself over the next 33 years!

@Construction Channel Ed, any update, or has the clay set in the barrow?

I like that a lot. Picking out the spindles in white makes it look nice and contemporary and lighter.

I'm TT! This never gets old:

Thank you - I need look no further for my hob - that looks the biz in silver. Going for the 5 zone. :-)

Also, along the lines of looking to commercial regs, it's worth taking a ruler or tape measure with you and trying out the stairs in public or commercial premises. I seem to recall that I based our numbers roughly on the stairs at the office building where I worked at the time. Agreed. I'd have gone for exactly that if we'd had the space. I do think there's a point where stairs become too flat and you feel like you're wasting energy going sideways. But Ferdinand is right, in my opinion, about generous stairs adding to that subtle feeling of quality. It's the same as generously proportioned hallways and landings.

I just put all our kitchen waste in the DeLorean...

@nod @Roundtuit How did u get on with ur slate prices in the end? We r looking at ordering ours just now, 362m2, and if I hear one more time about Brexit and price increases from suppliers .....i will....I will...ehm....well....not much I can do really....suck it up and accept the bad timing!

i thought that planners were not allowed to dictate where slate came from and someone on here cleverely wrote on the back of a Spanish sample the name of his local quarry and it was accepted.?