Leaderboard

Hi everyone, We are just waiting for our survey for a 300sq m Methodist church in the North of England. There are so many questions and we have never done anything like this before. We would like to do a lot of the work ourselves as just getting quotes is like pulling teeth! We need all of the help we can get and are keen to link up with fellow church renovators. Claire and Jonny

We were lucky that our architect was on the same page as us but some of the early concepts were quite off the wall and we were not afraid to say so. They were also dead against a basement (through lack of experience) we persisted. They were excellent at navigating planning politics, one refusal and a second success. They knew nothing (2015) of low energy build methods, which TBH we did not have in the initial brief, and were used to traditional build methods - i.e. get a quote from a main contractor, detailed drawings etc. When we brought a turnkey timber frame firm to them, who provided full drawings etc, they wanted to replicate much of that work so we parted company and we took it from there. Friends got to selecting a contractor before getting cold feet and realising they were not happy with the design but had been too driven forward by architect to hit the stop button. They went back to drawing board, lost a year of time but ended up with something they loved. Your statement about how 'you might miss your timeline' is an alarm bell. This is likely the biggest thing you'll ever do so accept that it may not unfold to a precise timeline.

This is your home and her career so your interests in the project is very different. Customers can be a pain, but they are also essential for a business to survive, and we all have times when things are tough and not going to plan. Send her an email politely saying how you feel and that you are concerned she may have taken on too much (giving someone a bit of slack and an outer often leads to a happy ending). Dont start threats and `legal` jargon as that just causes tension and aggression. If you are going to continue with the project you need to be working as a team, not enemies.

I would suggest talking openly about this. Worst case - you'll lose her (but I assume you still keep your design?) but will be able to move on with the project as other doors would open. Best case - you clear the air and move on all together now, with her being very clear on what / when you need. Reluctance to visit a complex site rings an alarm bell for me. They "think" they know the site from a description, but no one knows it better then you and if your gut feel tells you a site visit is a must to properly integrate the design - then it is a must. Overall, it's much better to clearly understand where you are with the architect of a complex project early on - as early as possible. Things will get much more difficult further on.

Been a while. Had no time. Contrary to the rest of the world, i did not have a minute of rest in 2020 and even 2021 looks similar so far. Finally managed to update the blog... https://tintabernacle.blogspot.com/2021/03/the-ringbeam-is-in-or-above.html Clickbaity headline , but i promise... Shuttering DID burst (even though nothing fatal) and Concrete DID explode (again , nothing fatal) More in the blog . Cheers ? P.S.: @Jeremy Harris , i am still missing you and this place has become less of a fascination for me since you gone, so get your s**t together and help us helpless noobs out ? . @Russell griffiths trying his best to replace you, but he just doesnt have the endless depths of statistical analysis and tables ? (still a big help though) Not to forget the rest of the very patient and knowledgeable Buildhubbers -thank you all !

A for me. I see the vertical section in B detailed incredably poorly very often. With A you have the potential of warm eaves storage.

I have no experience of them but a friend installs alarms for a living, only fits Texecom as he reckons they are the best trouble free alarms

For Clarity this is the overall improved overall window U value with glazing at 0.5 W/(m2K) This is when you drop to double glazing (1.2 W/(m2K) with the same passiv certified frames.Most double glazing frames would be worse. We didn't use any PIR as I think it's entirely overrated. EPS in the floors and walls and cellulose in the roof. Agreed, detailing is everything with low energy houses. I modelled all the junctions in our house myself. We compromised on some of the detailing such as placing the window at the outside of the cavities instead of the middle where they would have been most thermally efficient. It made it easier to build and secure a good wind-tight as well as an airtight envelope. Putting in a little extra insulation elsewhere to compensate was relatively cheap. I left plenty of fat in the overall design to account for shortfalls in the build process. ( I think i allowed for 1.5 ACH to reach 10w/m2 heating load) As it was we achieved 0.3 ACH50. We moved in 3 weeks ago and the house is performing well with only an intermittent 2kw rad for space heating. Hopefully when the house dries out properly we can do away with this other than in just the most extreme situations. On a large project or complex house shape chasing the gains made by ideal thermal detailing is certainly worthwhile. However my builder and I were first time passivehousers and the peace of mind granted by sticking close to known detailing and spending about €3k extra on insulation was the road we chose. As a result I suspect that as built performance will exceed 15kWh/m2a and 10W/m2.

Just seen this and bought the TP link deco M4 for £100 via ebuyer with discount code. https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/tp-link-deco-m4-ac1200-whole-home-mesh-wi-fi-system-3-pack-was-ps12724-now-ps10000-with-code-at-ebuyer-3686924 the tp link deco e4 are only £75 on Amazon at the moment as well.

Is this your place ?? ?

Qwality work there. Send him this link. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/4-WOODEN-LEAD-BEATING-TOOLS-ROOFERS-TOOLS-PLUMBING-FLASHING-WORK/154308428457?hash=item23ed7fc2a9:g:GkgAAOSwfz9gEZ5V

Flexible tile adhesive will allow you to bed them and will stick like sit to a shovel

Just forwarded that photo to the original bodger. No words. Just the photo. Desperate to see his reply...

I've got used to everything taking forever...

Pu adhesive. But make sure you dry fit everything first as when it goes off you won't be able to do any adjustments.

I've used PU adhesives to stick hard to glue materials like plastic trim on cars. I've also struggled to get mortar to stick some non-porus stone. Never thought to use PU on the latter. I'm thinking that the PU adhesive will probably stick very well if the brick and tile is dry, but perhaps not so good if they are damp? On the other hand mortar can usually cope with a bit of damp because its water based.

Would decent tile adhesive give a better bond? When the bond fails with tiles, it tends to be on either the tile or the substrate, which is why they are often best primed / back buttered.

I did this last year, i managed to replace two well rotted lintels in a single day (crap brickwork :)). I used a single strong boy further up the wall, though i don't know the best place to put it in your case.

Just a tip to make life easier. Place the concrete lintels tight to the face of the wall up of the ground before you install the strongboys, this way they are half way into position and you don’t need to thread them through the acrow props.

@idontknowwhatiamdoing this makes it easier as the outside lintel will stabilise the wall and take most of the load.Use strong boys to be doubly safe. a couple near the center shouldn't cause too much hassle getting the replacements in

HI @Mulberry View reading your post it sounds a bit like our experience , we are now on our second architect after the first failed to deliver a set of plans we were happy to send to planning . in total the whole experience took 6 months in which time only 4 drawings were produced , the first meeting was very upbeat with lots of talk regarding build methods , modern styles of architecture , attention to detail , designing cost out of the build rather than designing something difficult to build , forever home wow factor etc. What we actually received as the first draft missed the brief by such a large margin i found it hard to believe the person who drew it had even listened to anything that had been discussed in that initial meeting , over the next 5 months we then received 3 reworkings of the same flawed design . In the end it was clear that the way they operated was, 1st drawing sent for us to make adjustments , 2nd drawing now included elevations for adjustments , 3rd drawing final adjustments , 4th sent to planning , as this did not suit our requirements we parted company. On a positive note you have a concept you are happy with so i would definitely pick up the phone and talk through the parts of the design that need attention and get a time frame as to how long this will take to resolve , also diplomatically let her know that until it is right you wont be signing it of for planning so its in her best interest also to help you finalize the design quickly so to free up her time . I most certainly would not suck it up, explain how undervalued you feel and also give her the opportunity to explain if she has any frustrations from your side , maybe you can come to an agreement on how to proceed and get back on plan. If you feel during this conversation that she is negative and is not really interested in putting any more time and effort into your project ( already put more into this than i thought i was going to ) ask what options you have regarding walking way and using someone else to finish the design and only pay for the pieces you consider complete , which by the sounds of it are the concept drawings .

Just Bloody Do It. The amount of effort to keep this thread in existence far exceeds that needed to just blooooooooody dig it.

I have had factory fitted insulation and it does not look like the site fitted stuff. A very tight fit and clean cut edges.

Yes you are right, Split phase gives you double the capacity and allows lighting etc to be on different phases to prevent total outages and strobe effect on lighting. If you are going to be using any serious machinery you need the 3rd phase

I'd agree with you on that as there's almost always going to be some level of confirmation bias. I think there's also a skewed demographic here on this forum because most self-builders take an active interest in the tech they're installing and also put some effort into how to use it. Hence they take the time to commission, install and use the technology. They also seem to me to take on the challenge of changing their behaviour to accommodate it. There is also the methodological problem with control - not many self-builders are going to build a copy house to test if natural ventilation provides the same results ?? Reading some of the wider research on natural ventilation and MVHR, I've found there seems to be a pattern between those who choose to install the tech and those that get it as part of a house they've bought. When an occupant gets it ready installed, there's almost always a significant need to change behaviour and halt our natural unconscious reactions to indoor air quality. For example, researchers have found that occupiers unconsciously react to raised CO2 levels by simply opening windows rather than consider alternative action. But likewise in natural ventilation there's been a history of people plugging up vents due to their experience of draughts, but that's largely due to badly designed vents in the first place. It is indeed absolutely not a conclusive study, but does helps to start a discussion about different perspectives which I hope is more constructive than the assumptions often bandied around that suggest natural ventilation doesn't work or is energy wasteful and inefficient and that MVHR is the solution. Unfortunately, there is a deficit of recent high quality research on natural ventilation, but there is increasing research on using intelligent natural ventilation systems in commercial premises, offices in particular and which do test some forms of heat recovery. There are actually some solutions on the market now. The other thing is that the research alludes to is one of the commonly accepted advantages of natural ventilation compared to MVHR in that it can provide better micro control of ventilation through the house. For instance, this is advantageous if you like to have different temperatures in different rooms, and/or zones. And from the perpective of indoor comfort, there are those that propose that contrary to providing uniform and constant indoor climates, wider and varing indoor climates are more healthy environments within which to live, IIRC Susan Roaf is one of those. I'm not trying to be evangelical about any of this, I just think that our understanding of ventilation in houses and its relationship with healthy indoor environments and its occupiers is still in its infancy. From some of the books I've read on the subject that were published back in the 1800s, it doesn't seem a huge amount has moved forwards (as an intresting aside a couple of papers I've read that were published in the late 1800s can tell me the exact maximum airflow through a vent that prevents occupants from percieving a draught!) For me, there's also a final question about any form of ventilation and how it relates to building fabric.Some researcher in Canada and other countries like Finland have found that buildings using hygroscopic materials may need modified ventilation designs and that designs of MVHR are rarely, if ever design with this in mind. Anyway food for thought, if you're so inclined.. or find you nerd out on some things like I clearly have the tendency to do ?

No, but probably never less than 20⁰C different, except where the flow goes into the room. So you could say that area has a higher loss, maybe a minimum of 25⁰C difference. Another way to look at is to calculate the floor losses with conventional heating, which may have a mean temp different of 12⁰C. Then work out how much extra insulation thickness is needed so that an UFH system matches those losses.

Personally I think speak your mind. It doesn't have to be a rude conversation, but you are paying for a service and you want that service, so you can move on with your project. I wouldn't do it by email as your intentions could get lost..................... My first architect didn't want to work with me after the design stage, I have no doubt she found me difficult. I feel like architects give you the passionate sales pitch, then you become "just one of their clients".

https://www.eflltd.co.uk/ We haggled a good price.

We're about to embark on an ICF build with basement, ground source heat pump and solar. Hoping we can get some useful tips along the way and share our experiences too! Living on site in a converted seperate garage with outdoor kitchen. C & L

70mm insulation doesn’t meet building regulations under a floor unless it’s something like Aerogel. Minimum with PIR and a square building is 85mm.

Hi Jilly One further thing on these newer screeds....you have to completely adhere to the spec with both accurate depths and drying times/methods...that did add time & complexity to getting it done

Hi Jilly For UFH if you use a flow screed then 70mm insulation is fine. I converted a barn 6 years ago with recommended 70mm insulation and the screed can be laid at only 40mm deep, which means in places it’s 25mm thick above the pipework. Depending on the flow screed this is within the prescribed limits of the product. Obviously you cannot do this with a standard dry screed, so clearly a flow screed is more expensive. I believe some of the newer screeds also allow for direct polishing...I had a micro cement finish put on mine, and this I would NOT recommend.

Hello All, Good to join buildhub have been following posts for a while, we have gained planning permission for a 4 bedroom farm house on our working farm, starting to build end of May, project managing myself and doing some 'unskilled' work, looking forward to using the hub to get some useful unbiased practical information and recommendations from members. Regards to you all Tone D

Iceverge, I hope I have not put you off but I think that you could better spend money on making sure you get a good quality of build. By all means use your calculations as a target but the key will be the quality of the workmanship and attention to detail. For example if you put up a timber kit that is soaking wet, then fill between the studs with PIR insulation. Leave it a few months and you'll find gaps between the studs and the insutaltion as the timber has shrunk. You'll also find that the PIR you thought was fitted tightly is moving about a bit. It now acts as a duvet with your leg out the side of the bed! If you can get a handle on this type of behavoir and seal things up, look after the quality of the build and material then you can get a cracking job without resorting to more expensive materials.

It’s generally caused by thermal stress, it is reduced by toughening the glass on the middle pane but that also adds costs.

Has anyone seen some info on the net re tripple glazing regarding the life span of the sealed units (8 years?). There is some suggestion that the middle pane is in it's own greenhouse and subject to high temperature and higher thermal movement. Thus a tripple glazed unit is more prone to failure. We know they are more expensive, heavy to design for. It may be that you need tripple glazing to get you over the line for BC purposes but if this is your forever home then is this a cause for concern? How much will it cost you to replace them (tripple glazed) at a later date? @craig "Windows and doors are integral to the thermal envelope and airtight layer. Without them, you just have a big hole in the wall(s) and airtight layer. " Yes Craig is bang on. Craig is taking a hollistic view. No point in putting in a Rolls Royce window if you neglect the detail around the window and let drafts fly about where they should not be.

You get all sorts. the guy that did our groundworks works consistently 8-3. Works like a trojan, god help you if you get in his way. The Eastern European fellas that did our insulation worked two jobs, 8am-9pm every day. I do about 5h the average day (plus paperwork), but some days will be on the go for 17-18h, mostly driving but all chargeable.

hi, Self builder here (as much as possible anyway) based in s yorks, and currently working on an extension. so, hope you all can tolerate the intrusion with silly ideas and endless questions..

There are some discussions out there about triple glazing actually increasing noise if you get it wrong. Something about making sure the 3 panes of glass are different thicknesses to ensure each one captures different wavelengths without passing them on. You should probably opt for acoustic triple on anything facing the road, it uses a thicker piece of PVB in the laminated layer.

Well, I'm one of those opting not to go for MVHR. Having done plenty of research on ventilation, there's still lots to learn about the whole subject when it comes to domestic properties. There are also lots of myths about the effectiveness of natural ventilation (I suspect often perpetuated by the marketers of MVHR system makers). This goes for the eco perspective too. When it comes to MVHR location is often overlooked. If I was back up in the north of Sweden building a house, MVHR would be high on my list due to the very long and cold winters. Down here it the southwest of England it's a very different matter because the climate is so mild. Here is a piece of fairly recent research suggesting similar. In this study, they used two new passivhaus flats built in Cardiff. One used MVHR and the other natural ventilation. The naturally ventilated flat consumed 36 kWh primary energy/m²a less than the flat with MVHR with no reduction in indoor air quality or comfort. A Natural Ventilation Alternative to the Passivhaus Standard for a Mild Maritime Climate At the end of the day there are plenty of studies looking at problems associated with MVHR but there are also issues with natural ventilation where it hasn't been thought through or implemented properly either.

I have 70mm under mine, 25 is inadequate in my opinion. Dont forget vapour control layer, and don’t penetrate it with downlighting.

EPS is also highly flammable ..!

Eps is cheaper, breathable, less contraversial

The installation price difference allows for this in the running costs. For the week or two a year that they underperform from specification (if it is an MCS it should be no more that 4 days a year), supplementary heating is used. You really have a problem with ASHPs don't you.

Hmm remind you of anybody??

Nah . Not my rental . That’s my house !!

You may want to use a mortar resin or a strong mix in a pointing gun if you chase the joints out. Make sure you vacuum them first. An apt user name!

Stop messing around with lawyers and get the gardener to dig a hole. Job done. You know the answer to your question ref proximity then. Also, I want to see this damn pipe now...it is becoming infamous. Lots of pics please?

Just going to put the spade bits in my drill for the car experiment

820m2 wow. did you have windows and running water ?