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Time for another blog post as we now have 50 piles completed and a nice shiny ground beam linking them all together. The pilers took 6 days to drive the 50 bottom driven steel cased piled into situ just before Christmas, this was two blokes and a fairly shiny new looking piling rig. The rig, in its simplest form, was a 500Kg weight on a string that was capable of being raised and dropped repeatedly. It had some very fancy hydraulic outriggers and a track that could vary its width, but ultimately it was a weight on a string. The pilers said our required loading on each pile (150kN) was fairly modest and explained how each pile would be driven to set. This involved piling away until either a new 2m section was needed to be welded on or the pile started to move less with each blow. When they felt it was getting there, they sprayed a vertical line on the pile and used a welding rod held at one end, to draw a series of 5 lines on the pile, one after each blow. If the spread of these lines was less than 100mm then the pile would be capable of taking the 150kN load. Interestingly I only ever saw this done when I was on site and watching, not one of the piles done when I wasn't there had the vertical white line and marks - I'm sure that's fine.... From a cost point of view, the piles were £1,200 for mobilisation then £127 per pile down to 4m, anything beyond that was £30 per meter per pile. In the end we had 27 piles at 5m, 2 piles at 5.5m and 21 at 6m, which was a total add-on cost of £2,160. So the total piling cost was £9,710. After Christmas the lads returned and were joined by another crew of 2 and the 4 of them started work on the ground beam. The original plan had been to excavate a trench for the beam and just set the steel reinforcement into the trench. When the pilers first saw the site they said this wasn't going to work due to the water and soft ground and we'd need to dig down to the bottom of the ground beams, so they could shutter the beam. After having a concrete blinding delivered and placed level around the route of the beam, they spent the next week placing and tying the rebar along with positioning the shuttering. By the Friday morning it was ready for our first building control inspection. As we are having a Protek structural warranty, the idea of combining the warranty and building control inspections appealed to me. Protek assigned a private building control firm to oversee the inspections, so our approved inspector, a diminutive Welsh lady duly arrived to look at the work the piling lads had done. Happy with everything we were good to pour the ground beam the following Monday. Monday arrived and the concrete pump and wagons arrived at 9.00am, ready to go. The pour was uneventful, but I was badly unprepared for the splatter so had to pop home and get changed into some clothes I didn't mind getting covered in concrete. In total, I think it was about 35 cube of concrete, so a fair amount went into the piles and beams. The lads returned the following day and took down the shuttering and much to my surprise took away pretty much all of their rubbish. That left us with the ground beam in all of its glory. The ground beam was the most costly aspect of the endeavour. The cost for beam itself was £100 per linear metre, of which our beam was 124LM, for a cost of £12,400. The shuttering was unexpected (well not completely, but you can hope) and an additional £4,000. So the overall cost for the ground beam was £16,400, giving a total spend with the pilers of about £26,000. I'm including the costs in the blog as they might be useful for others as comparison. I'm really pleased with the job that they did, the whole thing is obviously very solid and I know we have a decent foundation for the house. It's so substantial it feels like it should be able to be seen from space.

My friend rang and said I’ve knocked you a couple of gates up for around the back of your house Talk about overkill There only to keep my daughters dog off the lawn when she calls

does he want another friend? They are great!

Little at the moment Going to be BIG Great Dane

Hey everyone! So happy to find this site. My husband Ben and I are building a house on Bantaskin Street in Maryhill, in the city of Glasgow. That's right - in the city! We are right by the canal,, and the river, with a view of the Campsies. So there are 6 self builders in total - we have bought the plot and moved onsite in to our static caravan a few months back. We are building the house ourselves. Ben is a carpenter and I am an animator/film maker. We run a creative agency together and have completed a couple of very successful renovations together here in Glasgow. We have designed the house ourselves. Ben and his friend/colleague Craig will be doing all the carpentry onsite (hopefully on the slab, later this year) and erecting the Douglas Fir timber frame, along with the help of some more strong people, and perhaps a crane. Glasgow City Council have initiated this project and plan to do a lot more, but we are the guinea pigs. So far so good: We bought our plot which is 600m2 for 45k. The plots are serviced. Well...almost serviced. There is a little work to be done, but it's basically there. Our build budget is 175k (max) - we simply cannot go any more than this. I think we can do it for 140k. We are brave and resourceful people! We are currently trying to finalise our foundations and trying to find someone who will do all of the following: Clear/scrape the site, dig the holes/piles/build the ringbeam/pour the slab. Could you guys advise...? Are we best to find someone for each stage? Which parts could we do ourselves? Should we bring in one company to do all of this? We dont want to spend 20-30k on founds as our house is simple and small (100m2 on the ground, 150m2 including the mezz). Anyway happy to be here and would love thoughts, ideas, comments...all of it! Attaching our designs. Joanna

Not really enjoying this situation. Spoke to the planning consultant today as the 2 month planning determination deadline is up on Monday and thought that he may have heard from the planner to ask for an extension. The planner spoke to him before Christmas and said that he would visit the site in January to get an idea of things. Of course this means that he turned down our previous application just looking at it on paper, but that is par for the course. The question I asked is should we just appeal on non determination straight away as planning will otherwise waste our time. He said that if we do that they will send it back to go to committee first and we will have to wait for that anyway. The issue is the complete lack of feedback. The planner told him that if there was an issue with the application he would come back to him, maybe the fact we haven't heard is good news or maybe he just hasn't started to look at it yet. Now the consultant says the planner has stopped responding to emails or phone calls. The consultant said that he will continue trying and may even pay him a personal visit if he cannot get him on the phone. Without any feedback we have no idea if there is an issue or not. So I said let's give it a week and see if he is leaning towards recommending approval or recommending rejection, but we need to be able to actually contact him to know this. If we had sensible feedback previously we would have quite happily designed something that took this into consideration. We have taken into consideration the feedback that we do have which amounts to three sentences in an email. Meanwhile the existing approval will eventually run out so we are now going to have to do something to lock that in as I frankly don't trust that it will get extended. Luckily for a modest cost we can make a start and lock it in forever. I think this may also put the wind up some of the locals who probably think that they can stop anything happening by dragging out the situation. My parents are at a loss to understand how the system can drag on for so long with no consideration for them, I knew it would be slow, but they struggle with the notion that you can already have planning permission and just want to change it and that you can pay out a lot in design fees and planning fees and then get nowhere. The planners will claim that they are busy and I know that they are, but the planning fee for a single house is around £1000, if I paid out £1000 for any commercial work I would expect something back in return.

Nope - if you are connecting then they inspect the actual joint. You give 24 hrs notice.

Yeah good friend So handy when I need a workshop Won’t take anything for the oak

This page summarises what's been said above.. https://job-prices.co.uk/waste-pipe-dimensions/

Yup, the cable is strung off poles.

Have you a link to the silver active standards. To be honest, at first, I thought it was about pensioners building houses. We get silver surfers down here, they have the poshest campervan.

In a situation like the one you described I successfully used a system called Ondutile without any problems. Building Control were happy to accept it. It was on a 25sq.m lean-to extension where I could only achieve a low pitch but wanted to use a clay tile. We lived in the house for another 5 years after doing the extension without any issues with the roof. https://onduline.co.uk/products/ondutile/

+1 on the Sandtoft 20/20. Not handmade, but we used them on a rear extension with a shallow pitch some 10 years ago (instead of interlocking concrete which as far as I could tell was the only other option). Not a great pic, but the only one I have to hand (lower roof line).

Find out where the testing stuff is at the moment, see if it is close by.

Unfortunately not. It seems that if you serve them notice they need to apply for the Necessary Wayleave within 3 months, but they are clearly well set up for this and in my case did so 2 days before that deadline. The notice period is 12 months. I need to check but I presume that if they have not secured a Necessary Wayleave within the twelve month notice period they have to remove the equipment, but my guess is that they probably have a further grace period to do it in. Interestingly I had another email last night saying that even if we agree the plan of undergrounding the cable at their cost with me signing an easement it can take a year for the work to be scheduled. Clearly they are doing everything they can to try and make it as inconvenient as possible. The email went on to say something along the lines of "but if you want it done sooner you can always pay for it to be done". I have replied saying a delay is no issue for me as I can begin enacting the planning consent before I need their cable moved and then the planning permission runs forever so I will just it out. Everything I read suggests that the process for securing a Necessary Wayleave is time consuming and expensive for the DNO and there is no provision in the law for them to recover their costs even if the person serving notice submits no argument to the panel reviewing the Necessary Wayleave application and does not even attend the hearing. I am hoping that will work in my favour. They have 5 months left before the notice I served runs out, they have not even provided the plan of the proposed rerouting of the cable underground, let alone started any discussion between solicitors on the easement agreement. I am going to stop chasing them and I will now move in to 'go slow' mode. At some point presumably their legal team will be asking if they need to progress with the Necessary Wayleave application with the associated costs, I am hoping that I will then have a bit more leverage. This is now becoming a bit of a point of principle.

The concern I have over wood burning stove air pollution is that, unlike smoking, it probably doesn't affect the person actually using the wood burning stove as much as it affects those around them. Our house is in a village that's at the bottom of a deep valley, and the valley can literally fill with smoke on occasions. This forces dozens of families to breathe in high levels of toxic particulates, even if they themselves are trying to stay healthy.

Ha, the piling lads called it the moat. They mentioned that their boss had recently bought them all new wellies. However the strong implication was that he was a bit cheap as every single boot had a least one hole in it. You don't want freezing cold moat water in your boots. Work is starting on the foundation masonry on Monday, they are pretty pleased that they won't have to bend down so much as the beam is out of the ground. I'm planning to be nice and go and pump out the moat at the weekend to make things as dry as possible for them.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Willis-Jacket-Complete-External-Immersion-Heater-Prewired-fully-assembled/202416631247?epid=1588852290&hash=item2f20f8adcf:g:wAgAAOSwfEJeHIev even had MIs...

In 35 years of doing one of the most dangerous jobs we have in this country, the thing I always considered to be the most life threatening thing I did every day was. Drive my car to work. I know we are saying woodburners are dirty, but c,mon we aren’t all dropping dead because we sat by the fire in the pub last night.

I cant but help think that the obvious is being missed here. The entire build is highly variable so you simply cannot use the per m2 costing and compare them. Build cost variables: Labour cost How much work done yourself Standard of finish That is just three variables which can have a massive impact on the per m2 cost. It is a bit false for people to strip out the parts which skew the all up cost, such as land etc and go 'ta da' my per m2 cost is ....... Every single element of expense associated with self building is highly variable - even getting TF etc from big companies the prices variations are wild! It is simply impossible to compare apples with apples in this arena, unless someone is doing exactly the same house and finish as yourself. Now, the per m2 analysis is a useful exercise and does have value in helping potential self builders to get a flavour of what costings need to be accounted for and ballpark figures of whey they may expect them to be, therefore helping to establish initial budgets etc. Just my opinion?‍♂️

Someone suggested others here. Not checked by me. https://community.screwfix.com/threads/30-degree-pitch-roof-and-clay-tiles.186024/

Sandtoft 20/20 would do it and they look pretty good and are a decent price. Worth getting some samples.

I've always regarded their price list as a catalogue of sorts, if that might suffice?

Will be 3 days minimum - day to open, day to connect and ST to inspect and a day to close.

My view is that any spend that has arisen directly due to the fact you are building a house should be included. If you buy a house you budget for stamp duty. Why do self builders cherry pick what costs are included - my suspicion is people have a tendency to want to convince themselves they spent less (usually when Joe public may enquire as to 'so how much did it cost to build'). A bit like people who having bought something on offer say 'it's worth £100'....but you bought it for £50....ergo....its worth £50! I include everything but it's a personal choice. I'm under no illusions - I may 'just' break even all this build when all costs are considered but I'm ok with that. I think the main problem with this topic is the question. If you ask 'how much does it cost per m2 to build' that is the a answer you will generally get - the price of materials/labour to 'build' it. If you are starting out and trying to work out how much it will cost 'all in', then the list of 'extras' to this m2 cost can be endless. Start with how much you have, subtract the plot price and there's ya budget, the m2 cost can vary widely and a lot depends on the choices you make I.ie standard of finish etc. This is a minefield - all I can suggest is trawl the forum and it help to gain a better understanding of costs.

Doesn't "On the side, with the side pipe upwards" solve all the arguments? No air pockets, thermostat won't drop out, a leak won't soak the electrics. What is wrong with that?

Ah ok it's an extension. I believe the exemption process is slightly different for extensions.

Welcome. I'm not that far away from you, but am currently buying a building plot in northern territories. And best wishes with your project - I've seen what Alzheimer's can do, and sadly, wishes alone won't be enough.

Welcome to the forum - I was born and dragged up in Windsor so know the area well - Left after 24 years and still return to visit family. Great area. Now becoming established in the Scottish Borders following retirement and a new built house back in 2018 - Any way enough about me - Good luck with your project and I'm sure you will be suitably advised once you start firing off your questions.

It's a bit overdue but this is the first post of our build. The start was a long time coming, the idea to do a self-build struck in May 2017 when I spotted a plot on Rightmove which happened to be exactly equidistant between my family and my wife's family. With a young child and ageing grandparents the idea of relocating to be nearer to family appealed, as did the idea of building a house. Purchasing the plot was not without challenges and the legal side took about 9 months. Most of this was down to the useless solicitor we had instructed but we got there in the end. That took us to early 2018. The plot had detailed planning permission (won on appeal) for a 5 bed very traditional looking house. We knew it wasn't what we wanted but thought we could get by with a few amendments to the planning permission. We spoke the architect the vendor of the plot had used for the original planning application but he was very old school and liked to do a lot more talking than listening. Instinctively we knew he wasn't for us. After a search on the internet and telephone calls with a few other architects and architectural technicians found the practice that seemed right for us. They listened to our ideas and seemed on our wavelength. They convinced us that a new scheme, taking into account our needs and wants was the way forward so we worked with them through early 2018 to put a design together. This was submitted to planning in June 2018 and took until December 2018 to get approval. The council did ask for a couple of amendments to the design which we largely complied with and extra ecological reports which were supplied. There were a number of pre-commencement conditions attached to the approval. So in January 2019 we engaged a structural engineer, energy assessors and noise surveyors to do the work required to discharge the conditions and get in position to start on site. We also started the work of selecting a timber frame supplier. After speaking to half a dozen and getting quotes, a localish timber frame company came out on top. Their quote was competitive but more than anything they were on the right wavelength and seemed very open to listening to our concerns and questions. We hoped to get started on site in the spring / summer but unfortunately our planning condition for surface water drainage (SUDS) resulted in the council asking for a land drainage consent. This particular piece of bureaucracy was relevant as we want to discharge surface water and treated foul water into a brook adjacent to the plot. In addition to a further ecological report regarding voles and otters which I commissioned, they also needed design details of the headwalls we were using and discharge calcs for the roof run off. Reluctant to spend any more money on consultants I used the building regs info to do the calcs myself and submitted. Deafening silence followed for 8 weeks until I reminded them of their statutory obligation to respond within 8 weeks. Soon after this reminder the approved consents arrived. Discharge of the planning conditions followed shortly and we were free to get started. Unfortunately by the time this happened in early September our groundworkers were on another job and didn't become free again until early November. We did look around but couldn't find anyone who could start sooner that didn't want significantly more money for the job. So they started on site on 20th November 2019, two and half years after I spotted the plot on Rightmove. Since starting they've cleared and levelled the site, although there's still some spoil to be taken away. We have difficult ground conditions with clay / sand soil and a low bearing capacity. Due to this the SE has specified piled foundations, a ground beam to link them all together and suspended block and beam floor. I've had a piling contractor lined up since the spring and they visited site for the first time after it had been cleared and levelled and proclaimed there's no way that dug trenches would suffice and that the ground beam would need to be shuttered (another £4k). That means the ground workers needed to excavate to underneath ground beam level which they've done and also have provided the piling contractor with a bed of stone as a rudimentary piling mat. This was completed last week and the nice man with the total station has been out and precisely marked the position of each of the 50 piles. The piling contractor was due on site yesterday. However they have been delayed by a couple of days and are meant to be starting tomorrow. It'll be a big day as they have quoted to pile down to 4m, after which it's £30 / pile / metre - fingers crossed we don't have to go down too deep.

The following overheard at a local plumbing depot: a real proper plumbers merchant, smelling of paraffin, sweat, linseed and thinners - Single lightbulb on at the hatch where sits a Ditsy Teeny Blond Bomshell : her nail varnish bottle out on the counter: cotton wool blob and nail file and thinners bottle open - slightly heady scent. One hand waving to and fro to dry the nail she had absent-mindedly painted a few seconds ago. A local plumber beats me to the counter: smiles at the lass who's now on her second nail of the day .... Y' awreet mert? she says sweetly, while looking at nail number three Aye 'Appen ye've sum 3/4 irons in then? Wadja mean 22 mill? Nahh, I need sum three quarters Pause: by now nail number three had a wet edge, and so needed constant attention We've got sum inch in if that'd do ya? Nahh, I need three quarters really. Ditsy promtly turns and shouts to some hidden Golum deep in the bowels of the warehouse. I cant pretend to remember what she said because I didn't understand it. I speak four languages, and Plumber isn't one of them. Golum replied: which langauge does Golum speak? - because I understood not a word. Not a syllable. The plumber left. My turn. Do you sell HEP2o ? The shock of the question actually stopped her nail painting - eyed me suspiciously. 'S all Speedfit 'ere. And got on with nail number 4 I stood there for a moment and wondered if I should ask her what an inch iron was. Didn't have the guts. I'd feel better if anyone could please point me to a SIMPLE online resource which explains in simple terms the Imperial equivalents of 10, 15, 22 and 25mm piping is please. There are so many Metric to Imperial charts that do nothing more than complicate the problem ( to me anyway) Oh, and what's a plumbing iron in English ?

Tidy up, you messy "ard" git

This is labour only quotes! I expect the first two are probably there or there abouts for a labour only price. The third one made my eyes boggle when I read it!

They will only be half as good.

I walked out of a shop after the sales assistance tried to not discount an item on sale. I even bothered to call up the head office, not as a complaint as such, more to point out the hopeless and confusing pricing policy. The person the phone actually agreed with me. Probably a temp.

Heating ? What’s that . ‘Ard we are !! Shorts all the way ; everyday !

And as you know I have a wood stove ( I know which I prefer) ?

Is the moat planned ? Are you very, very posh ?

Had scrappies knocking on the door the other day to ask if I wanted to get rid of my van. Is that about right?