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I've been gone for some time, around 9 weeks. I'd had a stroke back in August whilst at our caravan, getting us ready to move in 2 weeks later. For the technical people (everyone on here!) I had a dissect of the artery in my cerebellum. Artery opened for a few seconds, which caused a clot and then caused a stroke. The change was instant and I spent 5 weeks in hospital, however home now (well was home for a week now in the caravan, which im very happy about). Its affected me physically on my right side. 9 weeks I couldn't walk, but now I can so very happy. It's just one of those things, I wasn't doing too much (even though I was doing a lot) sometimes it can be caused by trauma, but well never know the answer to that. I was only 39 (now 40!) , fit and healthy, as above its just one of those things. I'll make a full recovery, and no more likely to have a dissect than others are which is low so all good. I've been positive throughout and intend to be, just another hurdle which is no problem.

Thanks all. Crucially I should have added 'ago' to the walking bit (I've been walking alone for the last 4 weeks). Onwards and upwards

I just did some back of the envelope calculations for myself. The rationale might interest others and the answer is a definite maybe, (ie yes if several factors work out in favour, but no by default). I have solar panels and a solar diverter to heat my hot water (doing this seems to be a no brainer financially). I don't have an electric car (yet). For about 6-8 months of the year I get more energy from the solar panels than I use in hot water heating and daytime electricity consumption. I know this because the hot water needs to be 'topped up' from sources other than solar between mid Oct & Mar. So let’s call it 200 days per year that I have excess generating capacity. The other days don't matter because there is no excess capacity to store, so the batteries will perform no useful function. The maximum I can store each day is the capacity of the battery, thus this becomes the limiting factor on the savings. Therefore my maximum annual import saving from battery storage is 200kWh per kWh battery capacity. With electricity at 34p/kWh import and about 5p/kWh export, this translates to just £58 per kWh of battery capacity. Since battery storage systems seem to be £500-£1000 per kWh and seem to last about 10 years, there is no viable business case with this simple calculation (and there isn’t an environmental case given that, without onsite storage, the excess energy is exported to the grid). I were to switch to a tariff with a cheap night time rate (and assuming AC coupled batteries so that I could charge from imported electricity), the numbers get a bit more favourable. Octopus offer a 10p/kWh night time tariff aimed at EV charging (so far as I am aware they aren’t fussy how its used). So for the 166 days of the year when I don’t have excess solar capacity, I could save 24p/kWh of battery storage capacity by charging them at night, a further £40 saving per year. This saving would be offset during periods of peak daytime usage, when I am forced to import at a higher rate than I otherwise would, but with a bit of clever shifting of loads that might be a fairly small given that the batteries would do some smoothing. So, generously, that gets me to £100 saving per year per kWh battery capacity. Based on £1000 per kWh battery system cost and a 10 year life it still doesn’t work out, because I only just cover the cost over its lifetime. However if the battery cost is only £500 per kWh there is a return of £500, roughly 10% per year, which isn’t a bad figure. If energy prices double or battery prices halve the calculations become more favourable. Of course if energy prices fall back to pre-war levels then the case is shot. I would have guessed that these calculations apply, more or less, to quite a large number of people assuming they have got a solar diverter (and if they haven't, then they should).

Wired up the saniflo compact . surprised for a macerator how quiet it is . How easily it shifts a big 💩 though has yet to be tested !!

Depends on the path the external air can take. You don't want cold air getting though to a plasterboard wall, or even diffusing though insulation. Inside needs to be both airtight and gas impermeable, outside needs to be gas permeable, but reduce the airspeed to virtually zero. Chalks and fillers should really only be used to make things pretty, not as an engineer solution to airtightness failures.

When you say silicone, that's not paintable so you end up with a messy edge. Plus if you tool it and get it on the surrounding area then that becomes difficult to decorate over. The only reason to use silicone is because of its flexibility. Acrylic is over-paintable but is less flexible and tends to dry out and crack so you're back to square on in a few years time. However, you can get a siliconised acrylic sealant which has the both the benefits. It's not going to be as thorough a fix as removing the full plasterboard reveal and window board and taping but it's so much simpler and should last a reasonably time.

I've put it off for as long as I could really, I put the UFH down last week, pressurised it overnight. No pipe leaks, Just a slight weep at the pressure test gauge so bitten the bullet and ordered the screed in, then I can get the Staircase sorted and that will be me done spending money till next year, will give everything time to dry out (my excuse!)...

Hi, As a small step towards repaying the valuable advice I have received on this forum I thought I'd share the attached document, which I hope will be useful and/or interesting to forum users. I am a planner by trade, working in local authority. My SB is on a relatively small, highly inaccessible plot neighboured by mature trees, and tightly bordered by existing houses. The plot was a 'detached' back garden of sorts that came as part of the deal (and something of an afterthought) when we bought our current house. Nobody had ever even considered the prospect that it could be a building plot, and for many years I discounted the idea myself due to the restrictions listed above. Five years ago, having outgrown our house and exhausted other options, I decided to at least try to self build on the plot. I obtained permission at the first time of asking (albeit not quickly and not without having to make a tweak or two). Everyone, without exception, from family to neighbours to building tradesmen to delivery drivers to other planners, have commented on how 'well' I've done to get permission. Some of them probably thought I'd made a mistake, or that the Council did, or that there was some old pals act involved because I am a planner myself (even though I don't work in the borough where I am building, and it really, really doesn't work that way anyway). They are all wrong. I obtained permission because I did the thing that planners spend their working lives telling others to do - I read the relevant planning policies, designed a development that was in line with them, then demonstrated as much in the application. That is what the attached statement does, it goes from global to national to regional to local policy, then explains the thought process behind my design, in that context. I cannot tell you how many architects, developers and would-be planning consultants fail to design development proposals specifically to meet planning policies, and then spend ages moaning, appealing, resubmitting, and generally wasting time. I can't promise that if you follow the thought process in my document you'll certainly get planning permission, but I hope you find it a useful insight into how a planner approached self-build, and specifically the matter of seeking planning permission on a plot that the rest of the world had discounted. Cheers 647910914_DesignandAccessStatementRedacted.pdf

(The actual rates EDF are charging E7 customers: https://www.edfenergy.com/sites/default/files/government_energy_price_guarantee_prices._standard_variable_deemed_and_welcome._credit_meters.pdf )

Yeah, 750% extension before break is impressive for a MS polymer. Bought a tube to see it for myself.

Yes it will need something....ill cover that one when my pool guy comes back in. We will put in a separate pumping facility for this. Or it can be done manually but I will still need a fixed pipe from the tank room up to ground level. I have a 300L pump that will empty the pool in no time. Still lots to think about.

There's some new Mitsubishi ASHPs on donedeal at the moment for €1700. If you DIY install you're looking at less than a 2 year payback. Plumbers in Ireland are taking the proverbial with their prices. It was €7-10k extra for an ASHP for us plus fitting. I couldn't stomach the gouging. If you're any way handy the Hep2O plumbing system is childsplay. Even on our passive house payback would be less than 3 years. Not the 25+ it would have taken had we paid the plumbers.

Just like one of those nutribullet smoothie maker.

Looks fine. It has "good UV resistance" like the SP510. couldn't find any UV data about @Radian suggestion of everflex 195. The workability of sealants varies massively. Maybe buy one of each to see what is easiest to apply and report back.

Sounds like a Confucius quote

I've put 15mm pipe in galv conduit before. Coming down in the corner of a wall. As a nod to mechanical protection:

I don't know if they use the same testing regime but the Soudal product claims it has an Elongation at Break of 750% compared to SP510 at 500% - so I'd be happy to use it. In the absence of anything else, the ability of the sealant to remain attached to both surfaces is of paramount importance.

I'll probably need one of these if I ever install the loo in the basement. I'm very happy to let you be the guinea pig on this one!

It is fine. A surveyor will be sent. The surveyor needs to see a stop tap in the street and a stop tap in the house. Photos are needed for the form / app to raise the job. The meter fitter needs to see a pipe in the trench connected to the meter. Photos are needed for the form / app to close the job. The form / app doesn't ask for photos showing that said pipe in trench is indeed connected to said stop tap in the house. It is very much in the interests of the men with the meters and shovels wanting to close the job to assume this though. 😉 Happy aligned pragmatic incentives. 🙂

Been there, a couple of time with various bits of our plumbing

White window, - white sealant, no problem. just mask off the area as you would if over painting a window. This is silicone free and designed for the job. This is a good video for the same technique. I would wipe with an alcohol wipe or similar solvent first and use @Nickfromwales baby wipes instead of paper wipes.

I'd just use decorators caulk as its paintable. Not sure taping would have been standard practice when they were installed, and there will be quite a bit of making good if you take the window board out I reckon.

Just touching base with this, been quoted 420 per m3, supply/pump/and man, that will be about 55-60mm over 100sq m using Cemfloor mobicem.

Yeah I am, its been well worth the effort. All backfilled now and on with the ground floor brickworks.

Rather than have a split level slab to accommodate the pool and area around it for heating and ventilation pipes we excavated the entire plot to the one level. So we have a void now beneath the B&B floor in the basement to slab level.

Morning James, with a short leg bracket, heavy sink plus water the toe of the bracket will dig into PB. Going through studs is great. If you cut out a bit of PB at the bottom of the bracket and replace with Ply or Chip then the load is transferred to the stud.

Once read a book called "A Bomb In The Brain". Think the guy was a war correspondent or something. He had one in the middle of a war zone! Seem to recall it suggesting some folk have the odd artery that's in simple terms built like a vein and can't always handle the pressure. https://www.amazon.com/Bomb-Brain-Science-Surgery-Survival/dp/0380708981

@markc beat me to it.

What’s on top of the studs? If plasterboard then your biggest problem is likely to be crushing of the PB rather than fixings pulling out. Resin anchors into the blocks with spacers between blocks and brackets or between stud and bracket if you are landing on the studs. m8 studs in resin will be more than sufficient

Great attitude. Good luck for the future.

That's about right. You will need the controller for the heat pump, or boiler only.

I am more concerned about the difference between a convection oven and an air fryer. If I don't consider health issues, I will choose an air fryer, which is not expensive. But I'll take the health factor into consideration, the plastic liner of the air fryer contains a carcinogen - Teflon, which is the last thing I need. I would consider a combi oven maybe it should be called an air fryer, I saw it on amazon and I think it works great because it's so easy to set up, now I don't even use my big oven anymore (too power hungry) . I would recommend it HYSapientia.

Optical illusion. See:

Not at all. I like your approach and attitude to life. I did something similar a "while ago".. bought a field, build the garage and fitted a shower and second hand kitchen in it, bought a 14"caravan that we slept in so the planners could not kick us out. Then worked away building the house. Hope this helps. My thoughts from an SE point of view and looking at your photo are: Winter is coming so leave the soil dumplings between the strip founds where they are until you are ready. What we are trying to do here is not to let the frost into the ground and soften it. Let it flood as the water acts as an insulator. If a really hard winter is predicted (-18 C for two or more days) then chuck some stuff back over the strip founds say 200 -250 mm of soil.. this will give you a cover depth to the underside of the strip founds of about 450mm.. which is what BC recommend. Design wise I would say.. what is the finished floor level of the house to be then work down from there and see what solutions are viable. Ground bearing slabs are not that hard to design.. if you know what to look for and most folk don't so that is where the SE comes in. Why would they.. most folk have plenty other / better things to do. From an SE point of view most low rise (domestic structures) slabs (could be ICF) are designed on the basis that we have a number of elastic layers; the concrete slab, the insulation say and the ground below. Think of this as layers of a cake. Each layer working progressivly deeper has different properties. Now we also know that the ground is not uniform horizontally. In your case we have some strip founds (hard spots) intersperced with softer areas.. the dumplings. So now we have a 3D model! One design approach in your case is to ask.. what do we have under the strip found .. is there a uniform layer of say clay 3 -4 m down or do we have a number of different layers. We then look at for example how "elastic" and thick these layers under the founds you have are and how much they are likely to settle when we put a building on top. Next we look at what you are putting on top of the soil. Say some compacted hard core, then say EPS and a concrete slab. We then look at the most elastic layer.. which usually is the EPS and design for that. On a large project we may develop a more comprehensive model.. but that cost thousands as you need to use expensive software, have folk that know how to use it properly and a good comprehensive compatibale ground investigation that also cost a lot.. no point in trying to race an F1 car if the fuel is made by me in my garden shed. But we also look at the number of the soil layers and recognise that horizontally they will not be uniform so depending on the soil and number of layers we also design for the fact that there may be some soft spots under the EPS and we reinforce the concrete slab to span over these soft spots. That's a bit of one design approach. Your best bet here may to try and get your hands on some recycled aggregate.. some 6F2 lay that and roll it in with a 8 tonne roller. What you are looking to do here is pinch stuff from road design. Before you do that try and find a local SE that will come by the site and expand on what I have written. I'll not go into any great depth here but you can use a loaded concrete lorry to do a rolling proof test! Yes it's old school stuff but it works! Leave the strip found where they are as although they are a potential "hard spot" the EPS ect will easily mitigate. I would love to work with you but you need someone local who will be on tap you all the way through your journey. Hope this helps. Keep us posted as interested in your project. All the best.

Spacetherm Aerogel is 0.015W/mk.

Aerogel is good stuff but very expensive and fragile. Aerogel blanket used for insulation isn't nearly as good as raw Aerogel. The Thermal Conductivity of PIR is 0.022 W/mk. Google suggests the Thermal conductivity aerogel blanket varies from 0.024 W/mK down to 0.018 or 0.014 W/mk. So some (0.024W/mk) appears to be worse than PIR. The best (0.014W/mk) would need... 150*14/22 = 95mm

So dormers face south. You could do with working out the solar gain from those windows. Rooms in roofs suffer from overheating in the summer. One way to estimate the solar gain is to pretend the windows are solar panels and put their details into PVGIS That will give you a feel for the kind of energy input each month - bearing in mind that PV generally converts only 20% of solar radiation into electrical power.

I’d just get on and do it yourself… trench to footpath, new pipe in, chop out the steel from the stop tap, for your mdpe, water back on… no need to inform anyone. That may or may not be how it’s done down in the south west…. I couldn’t possibly say. 😉

I'm too tired to think coherently tonight, but here are some pics: Spent 3 days getting the 1st course right, training masons to work precisely. The next layers went up so quickly I didn't get any early pictures

the 25kg bags of hydrated lime are massive. easily 3 or 4 times the size of a bag of builders sand.

If you add hydrated line You will get the effect pictured 4 sand 1 cement 1 lime and lime is as cheap as chips

Glad to see some people have found the statement useful. Something I didn't explain in my original post but which may be apparent anyway, is that once I had a good idea of my preferred design I asked myself: 'If I was the planner assessing this, and if I was being as harsh as I could reasonably be, what would be the specific grounds on which I could refuse it?' The statement is partly an exercise in anticipating those possible grounds of refusal and addressing them in advance. That is easier for me as a planner than for many others, but it's not rocket science. Look at the adopted policies and supplementary guidance on the council website, and read the planning officers report for a few applications in your area to get a feel for how those policies are applied. You'll find that you get the gist pretty quickly, even if you've never looked at a planning policy before. Its not impossible to discuss and debate your plans once they are submitted (though it is increasingly rare to get the chance), but really the idea is to make the most substantive and comprehensive case upfront. It is for the applicant to support their proposal, not for the council to tease out everything that is good about your idea. Ultimately of course, if you've designed something that obviously doesn't meet the policies then it doesn't matter how thoroughly you state your case. Equally, if you've got a design which plainly meets every criteria then you shouldn't need to sell it to the planning office. Most plans sit somewhere in the middle of those two extremes, where there is inevitably a degree of subjectivity, so put the work in to show the extent of compliance with planning policies as part and parcel of your application. You do of course get the odd stroppy or difficult planner, but not half as often as you get a stroppy or difficult applicant! However frustrated you might get, remember that there is a significant difference between making an argument and having one.

Very difficult to remove afterwards Absolutely unnecessary Ive just laid a similar size slab 9 cube 2 hours

Nudura £22,000 steel cost, £1,500 i have lots of large openings and a number of large concrete beams holding up the roof steel cost is minimal compared to the block and concrete. 55 cubic metres of concrete in mine. Find a good structural engineer that knows icf and you will save a few quid.

That’s me off smoothies for the foreseeable future

The man with no knowledge will achieve more than the man with knowledge because he understands nothing and therefore fears nothing . Though I made that up it does sound kind of like some famous historical quote !

for a man of your calibre, I'm sure it is. 😉

Join the club! Hooked up the manifold for the garage loops last night at 11pm, fed via a daisy linked garden hose from a room inside the house with a dodgy connection. Cue running back and forth around the site (direct door blocked up), hopping over materials in the dark to turn the tap on, rush back to the garage to see if it's pissing everywhere from the fittings, back to the house to turn it off and so on. By the end of it, the system was kind of filled, no real way of telling if there are any leaks as everything was dripping wet - pressure seemed stable enough at 5 bar that i gave up at 12:30 and went to bed, ready for 7am start on the site for the guys to pour the garage slab. It was around ish 5 bar this morning, so guessing there's no MAJOR leaks... It was such a chaotic calamity that I've stopped worrying about it.

Can be. Often put a bit of uncooked fish on my mates exhaust manifold. He says it reminds him of his ex wife.

My old man had a stroke at 40. Recovered fully and went on to lead a long life. Died a couple of weeks ago aged 93. All the best on your recovery.