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It's a very simple solution, the way the sash is designed makes it difficult to fit one due to space and the gearing. However, what you need to do is purchase Mila restrictor, catch and then remove one of the screws located on gearing which fixes the gearing to the frame and won't effect the gearing movement. The picture shows we used a mushroom pin, however that has been refined and we use the standard catch - it can only take one screw so gorilla glue is required for the 2nd screw location on the catch. However, it needs to be this type of restrictor from Mila. Until a a better solution is found, this is the best we have come up with and works extremely well and like it should be present.

I've been very quiet for the last couple of weeks. I've been busy at work, but the thing that has really hit me has been doing the electrical planning. I have spent more time of this than anything else in the house as I have specified sockets, lights etc, marked up drawings for where everything goes and so on. Finally this is pretty much done. I have this week off so was on site discussing progress. We are another 4 weeks behind, but it s looking good. They are working on the electrical first fix and have just started some of the plaster boarding. I am really pleased with how the roof tiles look, not having a ridge added a lot to the cost but it is such a nice finish and the tiles themselves have some nice variation.

So we have been in the house about 5 months now and though I'd share a bit about how we are controlling the heating. As a recap, we have a MBC build house and slab, not the twin wall all pumped cellulose version but slightly less insulating and costly. Our wall makeup from outside to inside is: 20mm larch hit and miss cladding or Pavex on render board. 50mm battens Some sort of black membrane 9mm OSB 140mm stubs filled with 150mm Warmcell Airtight membrane 50mm PIR insulation 35mm battens 12mm plaster board Roof is: Evalon VSK single membrane 9mm OSB 25mm batten Non tenting membrane 18mm OSB 300mm I hoisted filled with cellulose insulation. Airtight membrane Battens to create 100mm service cavity 12.5mm plasterboard Floor is: 300mm polystyrene insulation 100mm concrete with UFH pipes imbedding in it. Heating controls So I thought I had found an off the shelf thermostat with a floor sensor from Wunda, but it turns out that the floor sensor is there to limit the screed temperature and somehow the one I have doesn't work as it can't 'see' it even though it's a wired connection. Turns out the thermostat has a sensor on it, whole whole house is being controlled from one air sensor in the open plan living room about 1.5m off the ground. This is set to be 24c (prob a couple of degrees above actual temp due to an offset function in programmer) during the day and 21 overnight so it doesn't call for heat. UFH setup I have a gas combi boiler heating a 70l buffer store, set up so that the boiler is set to keep this store at a certain temperature - currently about 35c. It is set to do this all the time as I haven't got round (and prob won't as set up seems to work) to replacing the duff manual timer on the boiler. Tank is double sprayed and has about 100mm on insulation on it. A pump feeds water to the UFH circuits and is activated by the thermostat in the open plan rooms, there is a bypass in case the UFH circuit thermostat (looks like a TRV on a radiator) is closed. There is also a NC (normally closed) valve on the return side of the UFH manifold, this too is connected to the room thermostat. The pump at the buffer was not in original design and this was the mechanism to allow the buffer water into the UFH circuits - but plumber said pump on manifold wasn't 'sucking' water from the buffer, just pumping it round the circuits. So pump at buffer was added as a quick fix. Flow rate on the 6 UFH circuits all set the same at about 2l/min (and due to someone losing a piece of paper I have no idea which circuit goes were) and both pumps set to lowest setting. Pump on UFH was all all the time but now off 6 hrs over night, the 2hrs first thing in the morning and then off 30mins then on 30 mins for rest of day. I find the temperature on the TRV set to about 30c and find that the return temperature is always about 5c less, but have only tested that from about 28c - 35c on the feed side. So far have found that works great, house nice steady temperature, I were a t-shirt and if boys (7&4) are running about they have to strip off their tops, so prob could go down a bit, but after having 8 winters in a detached solid walked house which was like a fridge I'm liking this. Have noticed the last couple of weeks that it sometimes getting a bit warm, our living room faces north so don't get sun there but bedrooms face SW so they can get warm, but hoping when sun gets higher this won't be as much as an issue as we have fairly deep waves (300mm). Been sending gas and electric meter readings off monthly to see if all this planning is working and for Nov - Jan gas was about £30 and Elec £50 a month. Feb was £28 and £48. That is with 2/3 adults and 2 kids. Be interesting to see what they are once I turn off the pumps and turn boiler to summer mode, would really like to see what the heating cost per month is.

It's a shame that happens @lizzie puts those of us trying to do a good job down. We're not all perfect by a long shot. Sorry to hear of the bad experience you have suffered. Sounds like the owner is trying to put right the wrongs.

Sorry no as depth varying and it was done in two sessions with some new and some old barrels

My supplier BPC has not been able to deliver on hire of test kit, and i have not found ready hire source. So... I am planning to buy a hot wire anemometer like this for £59 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Digital-LCD-Hot-Wire-Thermal-Anemometer-Thermometer-Air-Wind-Speed-Meter-Tester-/381970124376?epid=1640633187&hash=item58ef318e58:g:9jsAAOSwx6pYplFP and using a length of tube or flower pot and gaffer tape to do something similar to the @JSHarris system as above. It seems that the hot wire anemometer is more accurate than the wind vane types. Do others find this method works ok for an amateur. Would anyone else like to share in the investment or buy it on from me? I was hoping to get this sorted before exiting on a recovery holiday, but it now looks likely to be implemented in mid september, since I am focused on other more pressing tasks meantime.

I'm sorry I can't remember how many drums they used. I do know they under estimated and had to get another one.

These look good, to adapt other makes of hole saw for use with the Bosch Progressor arbour. Handy if you've say a 114mm you use for soil etc. https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/181804969464

https://youtu.be/yVkWMRr4xm0 @GroseyHere is the Karndean video

No worries, this should work on the Internorm window as well, it works with our system.

I'm thinking of going the other way with this- manifold in the GF plantroom with risers to the FF circuits (bathrooms only), bottle air traps on the top of the risers to ensure the loops stay full..

This is the link for the loose lay Karndean. Which emphasises the importance of a tight fit for the tiles, but you can also use a semi sticky glue as he mentions. @GroseyI'll see if I can find the other ones for the glue down stuff later.

I've yet to have any formal reply from Internorm. However, the supplier has sat up.

Sorry, I shouldn't add to your anxiety Your question is one that genuinely fascinates me. Internorm appear VERY aware of the issues they have with their volume supply chain partner(s) but seem somewhat disinterested in the issues. I can only assume it's a case of "we like the volume". To my mind they will slowly destroy their brand here in the U.K. But hey what do I know.

Thank you so much for sharing this

Yup. Worked like a dream on the last one like it, and one loop was around 130m. ?

I can recommend that you don't use a hammer ?

Yes, we did mention them about 5 or 6 months ago I think. Personally I'm not convinced, I prefer metal back boxes that are securely fixed and that are spaced so they project into the plasterboard. Holding the board in place and then tapping it against the box marks where it needs to be cut.

A week after the call regarding the site datum (see the above post) I received his quote for the insulated foundations and reinforced basement walls, £135,000, in comparison the other quote I have is for £50,500 and I thought that was a lot! I've sent Trish the drawings and she's said they will happily quote for the work, I eargerly await her reply!

It's it funny, you send out a request for a quote and you have a deadline for responses and it's missed, So you call to be told the boss is on holiday for three weeks! Oh well you think, he can't be that interested in the work! Then today he calls me out of the blue to ask which point on the topo survey is the site datum. I ask why? He needs to work out the quantities for the quote!! I go along with him and don't question the missed deadline. If I were ever daft enough to use this guy, I'm going to write a timescale clause into the contract. If the speed of quotation is anything to go by, he'll be paying me!!

I could not not agree more, I can honestly say the hardest part of self building I've found so far is getting people to take my wads of cash that I have waiting in return for work. I could name 20-30 suppliers of various products/services that I've had in depth conversations with about work, then left it awaiting them to come back to me with various quotes or further info etc, or even in some cases to book in a date for the work - never hear from them again, even if I chase them up I just don't get anywhere. I was was starting to think it was me! Like you say there must just be so much demand for the limited supply. Customer service just goes out of the window in the building industry it seems.

Keep going is the only advise I can give you. I have to say I am genuinely horrified by the lack of service/response/interest from suppliers of products and services in the building industry generally. How do these companies survive? There must be a massive supply and demand issue going on which defies general economics!

Emissions tests, press self regulation, private building control... it all stinks and it's all in the name of "light touch regulation". I'm actually against over regulation, but going the other way is similarly toxic. Self regulation does not work when incentives are not aligned.

I suspect they are wise to not trust the paperwork, as it seems that some of these cladding materials were never, ever fire tested, but were approved using a desk top study, something I find unbelievable. How on earth we have allowed a system to develop where safety-critical materials aren't physically tested as a part of the approval process I don't know; it makes the multifoil approval fiasco look insignificant by comparison. I wonder how many other building materials have never actually been tested in order to gain approval certification?

What staggers me, is (according to someone from BRE that they interviewed on the news) they are just testing the outer rain screen on buildings for flamability and condemning the cladding on that test. NOBODY seems to be testing the "system" i.e insulation, air gaps, fire stops and cladding to see if the system is safe or not. Surely that is fundamentally what needs to be tested? Or am I way off the mark? If I was investigating I would want a mock up of the exact EWI and cladding system set up on a multi storey test building and set fire to. then repeat the tests with different claddings, different fire stops and different insulation.

I've found Leyland to be consistently pretty good across their whole range. Avoid the Screwfix and Wickes own brand stuff, I found it to be pretty dire.

I had a crack at something like this on an old shed.....with CANS. Did the walls and floor: The floor: One of the STUPIDEST things I've ever done by far.