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Hi!, welcome. You have a list of questions above, each of which could be answered by a service provider - and better still two or three service providers . We can just give you an indication. Its important to draw your attention to the fact that we aren't experts at anything much - except a few members and it doesn't take long to work out who they are and what their specialisms are. But some members sound like experts and aren't. You need to go through the process of Due Diligence (a self build is an business decision just like any other) with every single bit of your build. Here, you will always get a sympathetic ear about self-building, especially from those of us who are near the end or have completed our selfbuilds. Its very hard, nervy work. We know from bitter experience and I for one am very grateful to everyone who has supported me. Very grateful indeed. Shame I can't give back directly to those who helped. So instead, we help newbies like you. Good luck. Ian

Tight financial control means restful sleep.

a gem from @pocster! put it in your diaries peeps. ? all joking aside. it's what we did and quite a few others on here. it's not the cheapest way to get more space but if planning are being problematic then it's definitely a great option.

Go underground my friend . It’s the only way to get more space …

I understand your conundrum, I also have a small budget at the moment, but am optimistic for the future! To save money and minimise the amount you want to borrow, perhaps start with a small place but have plans to extend when finances allow? It's much easier to borrow on an existing building. Also, living on site in a static is the classic self builder way to save money, slow self build is cheaper so long as rent isn't swallowing up your cash. Once you have broken ground your planning permission is usually locked in til you are completed so you can steady the ship. It can be stressful journey with a stack of unknowns so it's important to control your finances.

The original install may have been under the renewables obligation and transferred to the FIT scheme as described (page 4) here https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/letter-accredited-independent-microgenerators

Not necessarily as that’s usually controlled by the County Council.

Feed in Tariff didn’t start until 2010.

Can you search the MCS register?

DIY that using Sketchup.

Just to follow up my posts above about chimneys, I've just had approval under a variation of condition application to remove them from the approved plans. The original planning officer insisted on having them in line with the local design guide. Her replacement concluded that although chimneys are generally preferable, in an architecturally mixed street scene such as this they are not mandatory. So much for consistency! At least the savings from not having to include them more than offsets the extra planning fee.

opinions on here vary about architects and their worth but, for us, we paid about £10k for our architects to get to end of building regs and we think it was money well spent. they came up with a great design that we love and have been a single point of contact between all the various engineers, timber frame company, windows company and much more. plus we know they're on the end of a phone or email if we need further advice or work done. yes it will cost us an hourly rate but as we're first time self-builders having that assistance on hand is invaluable.

Or the £6 - 800 jobbie @pocster was salivating over! ?

Hello everyone, Cranky46 here, I have many years in building and construction, I am a time served joiner. I have been in management for the last 20 years, I have a long experience in mainly roofing and windows/doors, I was self employed in my early career so I understand both sides of the business. I am a member of the institute of roofers and I currently work as the operations manager for a big double glazing company in lancashire. I have worked on traditional roofs (slate and tile) and commercial roofs sheeting and cladding, the kind you see on new steel frame units (Aldi, Asda etc) I hope to be of some help where I can and like wise, there will be things I will ask of others, we don't all know everything.

Speaking of which... I'm sure lots of you have seen this a while ago but...

Water with a bit of white spirit

I would never want to need to find a key in order to get out of my house, all my customers got thumb turns as standard, and friends are advised to get them. my house is single hand exit, when lever is depressed to pull back the latch the shoot bolt unlocks too, this was due to become a requirement but slow coming into force

Good news: the BCO has backed down and admitted that “on reflection” there is no requirement for a thumb turn.

I wouldn't worry about neighbour objections, they don't hold much weight. sounds like the planning department are ok with a replacement dwelling and so, even if the current planning expires, there is a good chance that a new application will also be granted. if you go ahead and purchase this land then I would consider approaching an architect and a planning consultant and seeing what you can get away with! our plans were for a substantially larger property than was currently there and the planning department objected to the increase. something along the lines of "disproportionate to the existing dwelling". we just pointed out that under PD we could extend the entire length of the property 3m out at the back and convert the roof to a habitable space etc. which would create a building the same size we wanted but would be ugly as ****! so just let us build what we want. they said ok. ? this blog post give details of our planning woes. so, don't discount ignoring what's already been approved and finding another 'team' to build what you want and not what the vendor could get through planning. (this is exactly what we did. the approved application was for a bungalow and before that outline planning permission for a chalet bungalow. we got approval on a building nothing like those) obviously, this is all caveated with it a risk that planning won't approve another application and if the current one expires you're stuck with out any permission to do anything! good luck.

That's right. The raw maths is: Heat Flow Q = U*A*dT Heat Loss E_heat = time*average_heat_flow = (days*24hours/day) * U * A * (Average_dT) For me average dT across 6 month 'heating season' is 13K (i.e. 13 Celsius) --> E_heat = (183days/yr * 24hours/day) * 0.13W/m2K * 1m2 * 13K = 7422Wh/yr = 7.4kWh/yr per m2. That is heat energy, to understand what I'll pay, I need to know how much heat costs me. Using an ASHP with a COP of 300% (reasonable) and an electricity rate of £0.15/kWh electricity, I can calculated that heat costs £0.15 / 300% = £0.05/kWh heat. 7.4kWh * £0.05/kWh = £0.37/yr per m2. It's all linear with U so to work out differences you can just scale that figure, so if the difference is 0.01 then the cost difference is (0.01 / 0.13) = 1/13 of £0.37/yr /m2. When I work this sort of thing out I keep thinking I am making a mistake, but it's how it works (at least for marginally changes on a good base figure).

Hi Delta, Unfortunately egards the mortgage specifically it's your broker who could best advise as there is too many unknowns for anyone here to advise accurately but your broker should be able to give you an idea of product your likely to be offered and their costs along with his own and may even be able to recommend a solicitor (if you don't have one and of his costs) Also again regards further upfront costs for the site to get further funding this can vary MASSIVELY from a few thousand to tens of thousands and is really dependant on the site you choose and the conditions that come with it, but as a rule the bank will want signed off planning permission and from building control, plus detailed costs for your self build that tallies with your loan amount request and the cash in your bank. Sorry I can't be more help but if you want to nail down costs you really need to nail down a site first

It looks like such a typical English cladding detail. Do you have any roof overhang? From the photo it looks to me like there is just about 25mm or so for the fascia and then your guttering, but I may be mistaken? If not, then you are going to be fairly exposed. Timber cladding should always have a generous roof overhang for long term performance, but that often gets overlooked, by designers and builders alike in this country. The issue with water ingress is not just water running down the outside of your cladding and tracking back into the fabric at the reveal but also ingress to the inside of the cladding (e.g. from wind driven rain) being able to get out. Therefore, if you add some flashing, it should ideally be installed across the ventilation gap behind the cladding and tucked under the membrane. I notice from your photos that there doesn't seem to be any bottom ventilation provision at the reveal. If you're so inclined, you could remove the reveals and take a look to make sure the top of the window has been properly finished for full weather protection within the frame (behind the cladding) and then rip down the reveal board to leave a gap large enough to both provide bottom ventilation to the cladding and allow any water to drain out. I'm sincerely hoping that what looks like a bead of silicon between the window frame and reveals isn't your only layer of weather protection - I'd suggest it would have been a neater and longer lasting finish to have used an expanding foam tape between the window frame and edge of the reveal board - this would take up the natural movement you're going to get with the timber boards and would make it easy to remove the reveals in the future in case of essential maintenance.

Not a term used these days, which is a shame as it was very clear what it meant (even if some ply that was stamped with it did not comply). "WBP stands for “Water Boiled Proof”. This is an old British Standard term although people still refer to it. The new terms are EN 636-(1, 2, 3) and EN 314-2 (Class 1, 2, 3),"

Your location would make things clearer

I'd say go for it. GSE could simplify their instructions a lot by saying just make sure there are battens placed for fixing the trays, battens for fixing the panels and couple extra at the bottom for the flashing.

Don’t be put off by any apparent scepticism, this is what a normal house should cost! Self builders tend to focus on larger, high spec homes which cost much more. Developers will be spending this kind of money on houses they sell for £250k+ but they have economies of scale. Watch out for utility connection costs but as you say, this will be funded by the mortgage ... To answer your specific questions, you can make any offer you want (subject to contract) then sort out the mortgage. Bear in mind, in a competitive market, sellers will prefer cash offers. Survey costs depend on the lender and your attitude to risk.

You need to find a cheaper broker! Mine charges £260 per transaction, and only after you have an actual mortgage offer. Pm me if you want the details.

Thanks for all the answers. Our lintel has been in for nine months and is showing very little in the way of deflection, and that includes the eighty-seven mule loads of shoes that have been inserted into the sidle-in wardrobe.

Yep we have a price from them and Core Edge too which is similar. Core Edge is cheaper as their packs are larger as they account for the overlap of joining where Everedge doesn't so you need more packs.

Yes and if it’s not right you will kick yourself forever, always doing a job properly the first time!!,

On top of all your lender fees You will have to allow for for all your Building surveys bats birds Eco tree Architects etc 150k for the build would be optimistic Including the plot? Typo perhaps

we used 6x1 treated rather than multiple battens

The cheaper Flir one is only 80 x 60 resolution, compared with 320 x 400 for the one linked by @joth Exactly. The nearest I could find to this resolution from a "bigger name" manufacturer is the Seek CompactPro, which is 320 x 240 at £600. So getting almost double the pixels (320 x 400) for half that price seemed a bargain https://www.amazon.co.uk/Seek-Thermal-Compact-Resolution-Imaging-Black/dp/B01NBU1AVN 80 x 60 seemed totally pointless to me.

On my timber cladding I ran it down in front of the reveal and left a 3mm gap between the reveal edge and the cladding as a drip gap.

I am making the "box" around the window end flush with the inside face of the cladding, and the cladding then continues down in front of the "box" with the bottom edge of the cladding ending lower than the "box" and cut an an angle with the lower edge t the front.

Good link here to a Scottish Gov publication: https://www.gov.scot/publications/timber-cladding-scotland/pages/13/

Should have a folded trim behind the timber to prevent water tracking backwards.

I used a strip of lead flashing folded up behind the cladding and dressed half way down the front of the top reveal lining.

Patience..... 40% drop in timber prices in the US in June -> https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/30/lumber-prices-dive-more-than-40percent-in-june-biggest-monthly-drop-on-record.html Not sure where you are in the planning stages but I'd guess that next year prices will be back where they were. So get the quote when you're ready not before. Look at what happened to plaster and plasterboard - you couldn't get it for love nor money last year (the factory is in the next village to us and was off-line for 3 months or so). Production has restarted, scaled up and caught up on the backlog. Simon

I would have taken the cladding over the reveals, not flush - unless the reveal slopes outwards like a cill

Anybody that uses rockwool needs the head looking at, it is the most hideous product known to man and needs banning. Knauf on the other hand is a pleasure to use.

@Adsibob in case it's any consolation, I came from a professional background. I've worked at a senior level in one of the world's largest professional services firms. I've also been responsible for project document management at one of the world's largest engineering consulancies, building everything from airports to pharmaceutical plants, oil refineries and oil platforms. I used to think I was reasonably adept at running fairly complex programmes and projects...until I decided to self build... I found that the rules we think apply to the world of work and projects don't seem to penetrate the twilight zone of construction, an industry which is by far the most dysfunctional I've ever come across. No only this, it's plagued by some weird contradictory mix of last minute, just in time, and the never never. One of my most bemusing experiences of this was when the crew turned up to install my temporary electric supply. The van turns up on time at 8am sharp. The crew come and look at the trench I've dug. Tell me it all looks fine. Then tell me they're going to have their tea and will be at it shortly. They then sit in the van for half an hour drinking tea and reading whatever red top is their flavour. Then they get changed and about an hour later kind of get to work... I won't go into the EWI ordered over a year ago last March and which is only now getting installed! Take a deep breath.....and as both @gc100 and @ToughButterCup say, it seems to be the nature of the game. * and yes, I know there are some good ones our there.

I live next door to the site and can actively monitor what they are doing (also a time lapse camera is set up). Things have got better and and hopefully for the next bits of ground works will progress as expected (last weeks invoice reflected the reduced work on site). I have my guard up though on the work they are doing. Yesterday me and three of the ground workers got the two layers of retaining wall / slab mesh installed, me being on site getting my hands dirty seemed to progress getting the work done, also i was there to make sure it went in properly. I am going to tie in the starter bars over the weekend, and BCO / architect inspection scheduled for Tuesday morning. Hopeful for the slab pour on Tuesday afternoon / weds, and brickie's on site for the retaining wall on Monday (different firm). There is also the availability of slave labour if things get really tough (my little helper setting out mars bars, i should have paid her a proper one for her efforts)

So when is relandscaping a garden or installing a swimming pool financially viable? Things are financially viable when the purchaser has the finances available to purchase it. End of. I think you mean economically justifiable, which is not always the reason to decide to make a modification to a home. Especially those with zero payback like putting in a hot tub or enlarging the patio. To give another view - we put a whole roof of solar on our house (GB sol RIS, picture attached) cost about 16k£ but the whole enerphit+ renovation has added double the value onto our house that it cost to do, undeniably in part due to the current crazy market, but in part because interest in sustainable designed houses are suddenly on the up* in our area and nothing signals this more clearly than a whole roof of solar (in a conservation area where this was not permitted a couple years ago). This is not going to be the common case I know, but done well I do see even the economic value being more than just the reduced electric bill. * I was very surprised - the estate agents we spoke to this week knew very well what a passive House is; turns out in large part because customers are taking about ours as a reference point for the area.

Hi Ian, I think i was on the same training course and also found it very useful. Owing to the social distancing we didn't really get a chance to chat with the other attendees! Good luck with your build and i hope you keep us posted with your progress Alan

Hello, An Englishman with a Lithuanian wife here; building a "practice cabin" on some land she bought at auction whilst there was nothing else to do... There's a saying here (Lithuania) that the first house you build is for your enemy, he second is for sale, and the third is for yourself. As such: House 1: Bought an house that wasn't new. Fixed it up to the point that most of the population would think it great. Annoyed by various bits of it. Longer term We'll build in the back garden then sell the original house. 1970s ex local authority 2 bed terrace in Cambridge. Previous +1 owner was a handy andy carol smiley type. Wiring bodged. Plumbing bodged. Heating bodged. Porch bodged on the front. Attic converted by knocking out all the trusses and calling it good etc. Time (20+ years) says it wasn't going to fall down but flooding or fire were reasonably likely. I think my favourite was the cooker gas supply "sealed" by showing some tile adhesive in the end, bashing the end of the pipe flat and folding it over, then slapping some tiles over it. Stripped back to brick and joists internally; chimney removed down and joists replaced; french windows and larger kitchen window to rear elevation; ground floor open planned; roof jacked back up and steel purlins added; structural partitions on 1st floor to support attic floor. (i.e. sufficiently unbodged not to fall down) Re-wired, re-plumbed, insulated where practical mainly to reduce cold spots/for comfort rather than energy (450 mm loft rolls to the eaves; cut back the brick cavity closures and celotex-ed; 9 mm plasterboard with 25 mm foam to existing concrete window headers; 30 mm EPS between battens on existing ground subfloor w/18 mm chipboard and 14 mm engineered oak on top), MVHR to 1st floor bathroom/bedrooms (for forced ventilation - bedrooms are small, I take in lodgers so doors are shut, the house nowhere near airtight enough for MEV to work, and open windows are a poorly controlled) Biggest wins: MVHR is astounding; if switched on I wake up comfortable; if off I'll wake with did-i-eat-a-hamster throat from mouth-breathing at night due to high CO2 and the windows are moist with condensation. A little mini-split downstairs that bought during a fit of heat induced insomnia/rage is worth every penny for the week or two each year when it's >30C during the day and >25C at night. Works well for heating (the whole house) in the shoulder seasons too. Biggest frustration: mortgage providers won't let you knock down these pieces of rubbish and rebuild them; working around existing rubbish takes far longer, costs more, and achieves a worse result than starting from scratch; tradesmen serving the resi sector are in short supply, with far too many arrogant idiots that need as much supervision as children and come with 10x the back chat. Biggest regret: buying cheap double glazed doors and windows with the structural integrity of wet spaghetti and the airtightness of colander; not digging out the subfloor and throwing in an insulated one with UFH; not planning ahead for a mini-split A/C and running lines to the upstairs landing. (cold air falls / warm air rises so if it's cool bedrooms you're after then you really want that indoor unit on the upstairs landing) House 2: The practice cabin near Moletai (Lithuania). She bought some land at auction and we're building a timber frame "cabin" (12x6m and 1.5 storey/warm roof) as a practice run for building a timber frame house (~6x6m and 1.75 storey/warm roof) in the back garden in Cambridge. SWMBO bought 1 hectare between the highway and some high voltage power lines. It's prettier than it sounds (has trees and the region is just outside a national park) and crucially wasn't zoned as forest or national park. (she's 6' for some context on meadow/weed height!) Planning wise...if <80m2, <8.5m tall, and <6.5m wide, and not a principal residence...and not in the forest or national park...knock yourself out. Building regs...really quite tough if you'd like a resi building. The paperwork is the same for a single house as it is for an apartment building. GPS survey, aerial photo, soil survey, foundation design, structural design, energy modelling, drainage design, electrical design, you name it at €500-1,000 apiece. There isn't really the equivalent of a "deemed to comply" detail and it's the government that set the standards for things not falling on your head rather than the lenders setting the standards for things that won't fall on your head during the mortgage period. For an energy perspective: U-Values: Wall 0.1 Roof 0.08 Windows 0.7 +MVHR +RES (i.e. PV) to offset "most" of the energy consumption of the building https://epbd-ca.eu/ca-outcomes/outcomes-2015-2018/book-2018/countries/lithuania Personally I think this is a step too far. The A+ is ok. (eminently doable and cheap) A++ is getting silly. (probably viable for mid rise apartment buildings with a flat roof full of PV; but frankly you'd be better off spending that money on public renewables that generate in winter when that energy is actually needed) Building regs...if you'd like a non-resi building (a house <80 m2; i.e. a summerhouse / cabin)...are essentially zero though. So we're aiming for: A 12x6 metre "barn" style cabin on screw foundations (I dislike concrete and with no access road / the frost line here being a metre you'd need epic quantities); a variation on Swedish platform framing (sheathed internally with taped OSB as the air tight / vapour retarder layer; rather than solid PE); with posts/ridge beam/warm roof (not that I'd ever add a slightly cheeky mezzanine after it had been certified at 72 m^2 you understand); and insulation with mineral wool (cellulose requires trusting somebody else; fibreglass just falls to the bottom of any cavity and the mice love it; and for foam...you'd best like mice) http://blog.lamidesign.com/p/swedish-platform-framing-info.html https://www.paroc.com/applications/building-insulation/walls/timber-frame-walls Target U-Values: Wall 0.13 (paroc nordic wall = 25 double plasterbaord+50/45 insulated service+12 OSB+200/195 stud+50/45 overlay) Roof 0.1 (same as the wall but 250/245mm rafter and less bridging) Floor 0.1 (22 OSB+250/245 joist full fill+6 OSB+100 underlay) Windows nominal 0.7 (rehau euro 70 3g) Cladding (walls AND roof) to be vertical board on board in black in this style: This is where we're at: Plenty still to do. Joined to ask about air tightness testing techniques (the framers are contracted to get the shell up to the level of wind membrane on the outside, and the OSB on the inside, then it's up to us to do final taping/testing of that inside layer; fit doors/windows; do the external cladding; all the internal fit out) Services wise: Hot water and bathroom UFH / towel rail from a from GSHP (SWMBO thinks solar is ugly; I think air source units are noisy / fugly but mainly I would like to experiment with a GSHP / picked up a Danfoss DHP-H 6 with 1,000 run hours for £650 ). Will install an MVHR unit and bought one but got screwed over by Brookvent (refusing to supply spares for a 4-year old MVHR unit with a failed fan). Need to learn about aerobic sewage treatment plans and drain fields. Need to learn about land drainage. First need to get to a box weather tight enough to breathe and relax some without worrying about how drawings might get mis-interpreted next...

Remember that classic saying “ Real men do it underground “

want to do a good job and are just not looking for the paperwork Gus Potter thanks. We do want paperwork as mortgage will require it, so will need to contract it out. Your points about thoroughness are noted. We can get rid of webs and muck first. Perhaps total supervision, to the point of annoying the workers will be the answer. to thorough coverage including through gaps and into corners.

Those guys have agreed with me I think... But they aren't willing to help me do it!

Just waiting for joe88 and joe89 to chip in...