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Having tried to insulate my way out of a problem with oversized pipes causing huge dead legs I can confirm that insulating radially run pipes is a complete waste of time. There's so little volume of water in 10/15mm pipes it very very quickly resorts to room temp insulation or not. The incoming mains cold is the only place worth thinking about IMO. Also go to town on all connections to and near the cylinder.

It sounds more like a ventilation issue.

I believe PCC (Professional Consultants Certificate) replaced Architects Certificates but they still get called that. https://professionalconsultantscertificate.com/news/the-difference-between-architects-professional-consultants-certifications/ Either way they are different to a warranty as warranty companies will point out.. https://titan-insurance.com/architects-certificate-or-structural-warranty-insurance/#:~:text=Moreover%2C the Architects Certificate only,on a much wider scope. https://www.architectscertificate.co.uk/news/what-is-architects-certificate/

Thats a handy forum

Batteries are VAT exempt if fitted alongside PV install, HMRC forums admin confirmed here for reference: https://community.hmrc.gov.uk/customerforums/vat/543eb674-79af-ec11-826d-00155d9736d7 And my quote and deposit paid also references no VAT

The VAT notice only refers to PV panels, cabling, control panel and inverter. No mention of batteries so I dont know if they should be zero rated even if installed with a new system?? Probably want to refer the guys charging VAT on the materials to the VAT notice??

We have the Sonos Beam and two Sonos One's set up as rear speakers. All works surprisingly well, even in an awkwardly shaped room - and still confuses me sometimes to hear sounds from behind me when watching TV. And no extra cabling...

It's probably not a bad place to start to get some understanding, it helped me. Be aware its costs are probably a bit out. If you can, visit some self builders. You'll start to get a feel for what it's really like- pitfalls, sequencing, additional costs etc. At the beginning you have a number of directions you can go in - location, size of house, build type, extravagance etc. But once you've made those decisions you're committed to a particular route, so the early decisions are key. Hence the benefit of getting a broad a view as possible on your options.

If the frame had dropped 10mm you'd have cracks the size of the San Andreas fault showing inside and out. That looks like poor installation of the door frame, eg lacking support in the bottom corner of the frame where all the loads sit. Have you had a spirit level on the door, door frame and threshold, both horizontally and vertically, to see which thing has actually gone awry?

Welcome. Take this dreaming time and turn it into learning time. I cannot comment much on planning and layout design, but getting a grounding in relevant mathematics and physics (GCSE level is fine) is well worth it.

Is it pleasant for them? My Mother's house is at about 78 F 25.5°C. Way to hot for me most of the time, but if I am just sitting down and reading it is lovely.

@laurenco Hi Lauren, no photos I'm afraid. However it did strike me that you should be able to see the detail of the frame from the Site Pack. The Site Pack contains all the details about the structure. If you didn't get this from MBC, you should still be able to get hold of a copy. Below is a snip of one of the structural openings. You can see the build up of 5 studs on each side of the structural opening to take the steel which is there to ensure the 2mm deflection at the centre of the opening. In addition, the windows suppliers normally have a 10mm gap to allow them to actually get the windows in place, so actually there's plenty of tolerance - at least in our case. Simon

If it’s a full build you will need a Building control sign off Something smaller might be able to be done with an inspection

Thanks. You are braver than me. It would worry me forever more.

It’s normal, they usually take about 12 weeks really. Keep phoning and emailing them though. I used to have to do it every other day as an assistant, but I think that’s pretty much harassment.

You must have got some cracking additions to your private video collection though. Could you fit some filthy sex ponds hot tubs in your HMOs?

Calm down. They are normally really slow. As you wrote to them last week, leave it until Friday to speak to them. The appeal route is a non-starter. They can string you along for months if they want to. Rear extension is normally PD. Are you doing anything lairy? If not, just be polite and bide your time.

I wouldn't let the Atmos side of things influence your layout too much. The effect is relatively subtle, and with upwards-firing speakers even more so to the point where there's every chance you might not even notice it. Regarding height, I'm not sure where Dolby are expecting your TV to be (which should be at eye level when seated) if the soundbar is to be placed at ear level!

A few years back I went to a friend's house who'd just finished a full-on gut and renovate. They'd put in UFH on the ground floor, and basic building regs insulation with little attention to airtightness. I found their house to be uncomfortably warm, at least partly due to the blood in my feet boiling from being in contact with the hot floor. If you have decent insulation, you only need to run your UFH at a relatively low temperature. In my case, I've turned down our ASHP to the lowest temperature it can do (25 deg C), and that works just fine in all but the very coldest weather. The polished concrete floors are extremely comfortable in winter, and pleasantly cool during those periods of summer when the ASHP is run in cooling mode. As someone else said, the stuffiness could also be a lack of ventilation. MVHR will help with that.

Interesting - our experience is the exact opposite (rads were hot and stuffy), UFH lovely. Rads can work with ASHP, but because the flow temp will be lower, you need larger rads for the same size room (approx 150% the size standard radiator calculators would recommend)

I’m doing the same, A193 mesh and 120mm concrete, so will cable tie the pipes to the mesh then lift in onto the 40/50mm rebar chairs.

Mine is, 2/3rd up the wall.

Some people's grout is that colour by choice!

I installed a new gas combi for an old biddy and her spinster daughter. She had me go back, complaining that the living room would not get warmer than 21oC. My friend and I arrived and walked in, and within 60 seconds were both lathered up with factor 50 and stood there in pants and socks, as it was like a sunny day in Dubai! The daughter had bought one of these weather station things from a petrol station and sat it on the marble fireplace, which had a gale blowing up it, and was on an ice cold outside wall ( mass produced bag of shit house btw ). I picked it up and placed it on the lady's coffee table next to where she was sat. As I was getting my arse chewed off about how the old boiler ( same kW rating, same radiators etc but now all flushed and with new TRV's ) was "so much better than the new one"...... After 5 minutes I pointed to the weather station doo-dah and it was showing 24.5oC. We replaced the central heating system, but what we couldn't replace in that house was the lady's central nervous system