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Everyone. We can't poll the wider self-build community, so this is by definition a poll for BuildHub members to see what building system they're using. What big builders, non-members and the wider self-build community may or may not do is irrelevant. Please consider that before posting.

Is there a option for "I'm making a mess.....Slowly"?

I was going to comment @AnonymousBosch But since you insulated me the other day with your over thinking it comment I think I will refrain and keep my obviously correct answer to my self. Oh sod it, it must be my good nature. I have found with most most things if you make a cock up you end up chasing this cock up on and on, far better to look at replacing something to get back on the right track. I would look at that roof flashing and get one re,made with a larger projection so you can continue your cladding up and finish it under the roof like it’s meant to. Strip iy off and put it right, don’t chase this bodge all the way around as it will haunt you somewhere else. What happens at the corners. Have you got your details correct at ground level. Can you do one of your Picasso style renditions of the bottom. Cheers russ.

Definitely put the film on the OUTSIDE, not the inside. If it's put on the inside then it will risk overheating the glazing unit, as the chances are that there are inward-facing heat reflective coatings already inside that. What the sun-x person has said is spot on. We have a mix of films on the outside of our glazing. Been on for a couple of years now and they still look and work OK.

A friend of mine came to the house yesterday and asked me about self builds and was very surprised when I said a lot of new builds where timber frame. Is it possible to do a poll to to see what construction method people have used. Would it it be possible for one of the mods to set this up as a poll. Im building with ICF, what you doing. Any chance mods, I know your not that busy. Cheers russ. Yea someone did it for me, cheers mods, has given me a warm fuzzy feeling after a rather stressful afternoon. ??

It does take some re thinking of pensions, and how and when they pay out. My AEA pension starts at 60 (though now it has the flexibility to draw it early if I want to) That and my state pension will be enough, add my wifes state pension as well and we will have an income not far short of what we are earning now. So the "issue" is how to fill that gap between when I want to retire (60) and SP age. I am "solving" that with another pension from another company I worked for. That was a defined contribution scheme (the only DC pension I have). I have placed that into a flexible drawdown account. The plan being to start drawing it when I reach 60 and draw it at such a rate that it will run dry on the day my state pension starts. I do like having that flexibility rather than be forced to just buy an annuity with it.

I have the Dewalt. TIP: If you are not using it for a while, take the batteries out. Even when "off" it drains the batteries. I only found this out after the second set of wasted flat batteries.

I bought a Dewalt laser level a few months ago, can't recall the model number but it was a self levelling one, circa £80. Didn't really have a clear idea what I was going to use it for but it's invaluable: Checking up on shoddy window installation, running a line round the outside of the house so that the first floor cladding stopped at the same height all around, checking the dips and bumps in our power floated slab etc etc. No idea about the cheap detectors but I think I'm definitely in the market for the DeWalt detector that goes with my laser level.

I thought they meant it was the other way round ie house being built twice expensive however looking at it probably not. Polycarb ha I was thinking this bloke is going to regret these cheap materials but perhaps perspective changes if you're in his position

That's an EICR, Electrical Installation Condition Report. That report makes it clear you are NOT inspecting hidden cables etc, only what you can see or test. Part P is about cable routes, sticking to safe zones etc. You can't check for that in an EICR. Just to show how stupid the "rules" are, a couple of years ago the Scottish Government decreed that rental properties MUST have a valid EICR, ANDD that the EICR must be performed by a member of a scam. So I am in the even more ridiculous situation that I can do an EICR for someone wanting to know the state of the wiring, perhaps pre purchase, I can do an EICR for a commercial customer, I can wire new builds and issue an EIC. But unless I stump up £00's and jump through the hoops to join a scam, I cannot do an EICR if it's purpose is rental. The rules get sillier and sillier. Never mind 3 1/2 years and I won't have to bother any more.

Force/farce Scheme/scam

I presume that’s not a typo!!!!!

Thanks for the replies folks. Too tired / tipsy to reply sensibly. Wife is away and I'm in the pub. ? Tomorrow / Morgen / Domani / Crastino/

About 5 years ago I nearly bought a disused water tank and wanted to chop into the top very similar - downside was insulation was going to be horrendous and since I watched last weeks Grand Designs I’m so glad I didn’t ..!!

I don’t fancy filling tyres and using a hammer to compress it all ?

Erm...I forgot the fibres in my main floor pour (never did find the bag) but it's 100mm of 4:1 wet concrete with de aerator / waterproofing additive with A142 mesh over the whole area. The underside of the slab was in effect "castellated" as it was over Polypipe panels (saved a lot on concrete volume). It never cracked over the couple of years before I tiled. I continued the mesh into my wet room corner and when I did that I did add fibres. That was an sbr heavy concrete mix based on 10mm pea shingle after much research as I wanted a very resilient almost resinous end result. That was laid perfectly to falls using an overly complicated set of screeding angles ? Different kettle of fish to yours methinks as I've no screed in the build up. Tiled straight onto the concrete as it was dead level due to my using screed rails ei. Pleased with the whole floor in general. Time will tell when I eventually get the UFH loop connected and some heat in the slab!

In Scotland the 4th most prescribed drug is Paracetamol and the 8th is Aspirin. I know that some people need to get Paracetamol prescribed because of the limit on buying them over the counter. On our last holiday in the USA we bought a tub of 500 for $5.59. This is the growth in prescriptions in Scotland, it has been rising at around 2% per person per year. According to this https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/prescriptions-dispensed-in-the-community/prescriptions-dispensed-in-the-community-england---2007---2017 Prescriptions per head of population has grown at 2.9% CAGR over the same period in England. The total number of prescriptions grew 39% compared to around 28% in Scotland. So doing away with charges has not affected growth in Scotland apparently. However, cost per patient in Scotland is around £250 compared to £166 in England so much higher. The prescription bill in England is 7x higher for 10x the population. The number of prescriptions per head is actually slightly lower in Scotland.

Remember that fibres will make it a bit more difficult to spread. The one I have just had done came with pre-included fibres, and the fitter remarked (ahem) that it was tricky to spread because of the electric ufh in it. Anyhoo mine is now tiled but not grouted. F

Pity we don't seem to have anyone building an earth sheltered house. I've always been fascinated by the idea of building one.

Outside is definitely the proper way for heat reduction film. You wouldn't want cracked glass! Too sunny is also quite feasible, we did ours early morning whilst it was still in shade as there was a risk of the water used to keep the film movable and push bubbles out could dry before we had finished getting the film right.

I've read these on and off for years - picking them up as I have been starting a build. They've definitely got worse, in my opinion, over the last few years. They've become much more about interior design and less about the actual build processes and people's experiences of it. They're now filled with articles which feature things like £5,000 baths and other extravagances. Bringing it back on topic, I really like Passive House Plus magazine. It's got great detail on build methods in each case study, detailing construction methods from inside to out as well as all of the components used in the build.

I would leave it to and if they ask, you say this "its part of the building", especially if its fixed down somehow Don't risk cutting it in the loft with a grinder, its so easy to start a fire using one. Jig saw or reciprocating saw would be safer but still too risky.

I got fed up with all the self build magazines pretty quickly. Stuffed full of ads and promotion, as J says. Even the supposed case studies were often houses of architects or property developers seeking to promote their business and/or sell the house they had recently built.

How representative is any self-build magazine, though? Back around 2008, when we first started thinking about self-build, I subscribed to (I think) three of the self-build magazines. Over the course of the first year or so researching building in general (not specifically self-build, more the different options and technologies available) I came to realise that much of the content of the self-build magazines was promotional, and sponsored, directly or indirectly, by some of the major players in the building industry. It was also clear that much of the content was aimed at those who aspired to a fairly high-end home, yet the prices in the guides seemed extraordinarily low for such a home. I've come to the view that many of the self-build magazines, at least those that were around ten years ago when I last looked at one, were a bit like Grand Designs, or the other TV house building shows. They didn't really represent the broad cross section of self-build, just an attractive-looking subset that looked good in a glossy magazine. A bit like GD, many of the nice photo's showed features that would never have been passed by building control, too (stairs seem to be a favourite). There's nothing wrong with this, after all, those magazines, just like the TV shows, are designed to sell and make a profit for their publishers, first and foremost, and I suspect that most people who buy them don't ever undertake a self build themselves. Might be an idea to see how many here are avid readers of self-build magazines, or how many are like us, and felt a bit disillusioned by them after a short time.

Those details look sound to me, I have been looking at cladding manufacturers websites and note there are a plethora of sill strips and base finishing strips and all sorts - all of which do the same thing - step out and create a drip edge further out than the cladding. I quite like the folded metal ones with the plastikote stuff on them. Lead would look good if done well, if a little expensive as a detail - I had to buy lead a couple of weeks ago for the roof and I must admit I do enjoy working with it but it and you can get some nice finishes with the right tools and nipping edges over and what not.

Reply deleted - pointless escalation on my part.

Angle grinder with a ultra thin metal blade, (have a few handy) if you are worried about fire take a damp towel up with you. I've just been cutting 2mm galvanised steel with a cheapo 110mm screwfix grinder and its fine

I reckon your steel cost will be £12-1500 when done as it will need fully bolting on site. Engineer will add another £3-400 depending on location. You'll also need to do either an NMA or a new planning application.

I experienced this. Villagers complained on my behalf that I would be overlooked as a result of someone else's planning revision. This prompted me to upload a positive planning comment about the application including the observation that the development was 25m away and little different in scale relative to my house compared to the prior and already approved plan. The mistake the Nimby's make is adopting a scatter gun approach. There was one strong point of consideration that might have stopped the pros in the planning office approving the said application but this point was lost because of the breadth of trivia spouted by the Nimbys.

If they are installed as part of a solar PV system, then yes, is my understanding,

I have added a poll. If there are any build methods I did not include let us know and we can add them.

I'll set the ball rolling and see what the Mod team thinks..... Ian

I made a couple of inverted T metal legs, added a board and pinned it to the insulation. Elbows on the pipe too. When it comes to building the wall I'll cut the legs off flush with the floor, they're positioned to be hidden/under the wall.

Agree with Temp, more likely diverter valve, although if you have HW and no heating boiler will run but might overheat so will need to press reset button. When was it all serviced last, looks a bit of a mess, lots of weeping/corrosion Typical problem, my husband is a plumber and we get lots of requests for services this time of year, when one delves deeper one finds the problem is the heating not working not just a service. Moral of the tale, get your boiler system checked mid/ late summer, not when it gets cold. It shouldn't cost much with an honest decent plumber/heating peep, around £60-80 a year, costs more when they are busy:, you are in a hurry and cold plus you'll have to join the queue. I don't turn my heating off (obviously on timer) but turn room stat down it then triggers for a short time on those odd cold summer days (1 or 2 this summer, came on for 15 mins each time) and keeps it all moving. Bleed rads, if the water after air coming out really black that might be a sludge issue (will need flushing and might have knackered pumps and more likely diverter), give the diverter valve a sharp knock with a piece of wood, not a hammer, if it then works you still need it serviced and looked at but you will be less cold and damp while you wait.

Depending on what’s above, you’re getting into the realms of very big steels - 254 or 305mm depth is not unusual and even more than that, the UC columns will become 205 or larger. These require a designed foundation pad and can be up to 600mm square and 900mm deep depending on ground conditions. Not cheap, and very heavy to deal with - upward of 45kg per metre and you potentially need two side by side for a cavity wall. If it’s taking the floor joists or a perpendicular load then it could be even bigger. If you've asked an estate agent, it means you’re doing this to sell..?? If so, ignore what they say and put in a set of cheap 3m bi-folds, spend the extra on a bling kitchen and walk away with £20k in your pocket. Asking an estate agent about whether you should open up the back of the house is like asking a Labrador to tell you the football scores ...

Should have been clearer, apologies, I meant in terms of deeper reveals.

My brother for years used to have to hit his pump with a hammer first time he put the heating on after the summer.

Envirograph stock a good range for this purpose. Our neighbour went with their CV strips mounting them on battens to cover the distance of the full cavity. They come in various thicknesses, but would have cost us £13.18/m2. We went with the RSM/I range which are able to cover a deeper cavity than those above at less price. We paid £10.38/m2 for 100mm deep ones, with the intumescent able to cover the final 40mm in case of a fire (138mm cavity on ours) Attached documentation on this range FYI. Tenmat also do similar products but we found they were about double the cost of the envirograph. Cavity detail of ours was: IS-55-RSM-WEB.pdf 2017-Efectis-R001685[Rev.2]_Intumescent_Systems_snp.pdf

Common problems... Sludge building up in the system. In the summer it settles out blocking pipes and pumps. First time you turn it on again it doesn't work. Diverter valve weeps and electrical contacts fail causing pump not to run. Although usually this also stops the boiler firing up when CH calls for heat.

Quite possibly. If I had my classics head on it would have been “Hello, Hippolyta”. F

Painting commenced on 6th March and was finished about two weeks ago. I heavily underestimated the time this would take. By about 4 months. White everywhere so it was hard to tell where we were at after the first two coats. Our favourite whiteboard "spreadsheet" tracked progress and filling it in gave great joy.

One of my sailing partners, 2 weeks before her 60th birthday, she got the letter saying her state pension age had gone up to 65.