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Anyone else looking at this ??

Time for a reality check people!!! Get a thermometer and put it in the bath when you think, "ooh, that's just right", eg just before you pass out and then turn the hot tap back off.. Please post that temp here and lets see who ACTUALLY needs these ridiculous DHW temps.

I regret not spending the extra cash and going for an MBC twin-wall cellulose filled passive house. would've save me about 1 year in time and a s**t load of hassle fitting the insulation and AVCL myself.

At the moment I regret not walking away when Putin invaded Ukraine then I would have avoided all the agro with Batman and the section 106 agreement that has held everything up for 10 weeks. Hopefully I’ll get planning next week and I will be feeling better about it all. Then the clock starts ticking again while I wait for natural England to process my bat licence.

The FAQs say prices change when the standard variable prices change, so presumably it's like Cosy where it's +/-some percent of the standard variable but the numbers didn't come out nicely enough to say it. I've been put off cheap overnight tariffs due to losing the outgoing export rate, so this looks well suited to my setup where the battery isn't large enough to shift everything to overnight charging but could get us through the peak rate window.

The screwpiles was one of easiest part of my project so far. My foundation was designed by a specialist company in Ireland that others have also used on this site. There were three parties involved with the screw piles themselves: the screw pile provider, who was in the neighbouring county, his screw pile engineer, who specified the size & required torque needed for each of the individual piles based on my ground survey report, and the screw pile installer recommended by the supplier. The installation was done over two days by the installer using an excavator with a special head (he is the most skilled person I have ever seen using an excavator … he even used the excavator to load his tools in his side-door van at the end of the job!) and he noted the screw pile torque figures for each pile on a sheet of paper as he proceeded. I then received a copy of that report and, in turn, submitted it to building control so that they were satisfied. After the installation of the screw piles, another team then arrived to shutter and cast the raft, which sites atop the top-plates of the screw piles. That raft was indeed insulated with thick PIR insulation. The design of the raft was such that it had extra thickening to form an integrated ring beam and cross members so it was not one consistent thickness across its entire span. All carefully designed with UFH and plumbing embedded within. All in all, the following engineers were involved with the screw piles: 1) ground surveyor (I inherited this survey when I bought the plot) 2) foundations designers, in Ireland 3) specialist screw-pile designer in Suffolk All in all, the process ran smoothly and, I thought, the screw piles were quite inexpensive at about 3.5% of my overall build budget.

Not in todays high energy prices, especially if that is £200 per month for 6 months only, i.e. winter.

Trouble is I don't think a smallholding is agricultural either. There is a minimum size, and I don't think 2 acres is it.

Never seen the floor and wall under a bath tanked. Lots of rotten chipboard flooring though. The life of the seal between bath and tiles depends on how rigid the bath is. If it moves up and down even a tiny bit when you get in and out the life of the seal can be affected. I would ensure the floor is solid, perhaps by fitting 18mm WBP to the floor and make a frame from 2x2 or similar to support the lip of the bath. Get it as rigid as possible. You could also use Hardibacker board or similar on the walls instead of regular plasterboard.

I try explaining this to clients, some smell the coffee, some don't. Thanks for posting this!

Receipts for animal feed or similar? May well be historic satellite images but not sure if sheep are large enough to show up. My house built in 2007 shows up partly constructed on one set so I could prove when it was built.

Early modelling suggests I'd have a 31% higher financial yield from my system per year on this tariff compared to standard variable and outgoing export, a nice little upgrade. Based on 30 min smart meter and PVGIS data, maybe 25% in reality based on the limited data I have so far. Nice to see a PV+Battery targeted tariff at last. Massively system and usage dependent of course, most of the benefit for me comes from the increased export rate.

Yes. Max cable length for a single string is 300m so you'll likely be able to wire a house and nearby garage within that length. You might find it easier to run two strings, one for the house and one for the garage. There's a minimum number of optimisers per string which is 8 or 6 depending on the optimisers youre using- see the optimiser data sheet. We used 6mm 2 core SWA for external wiring from garage to ground array, check the cables DC voltage rating is higher that the SE string max. There's a limit to the inverters DC input so worth checking you're not exceeding that, but I dont think it's double the AC power rating. I did read somewhere recently that the limit had been lifted so definitely worth checking.

Sounds like a plan

It doesn't matter what the land is classified as, it's all down to the buildings themselves - and if they are stables that have been used for horses, then as above I'm pretty sure you can't go down the class Q route. I would forget the structural engineer now too - whether or not they are structurally capable of being converted is kinda moot. Get an opinion from a planning consultant - if they believe that they are worth pursuing then you find a "friendly" structural engineer to write a very carefully worded report to go along with the application. When you have the part Q, apply for full planning to knock down and rebuild (planners often take the Class Q as a fallback position so are then inclined to grant full planning - at least in some areas, search your local planning portal).

If they are stables, and have been used as such, then as far as I'm aware they aren't agricultural so aren't eligible for part Q Happy to be proven wrong though, and agree with Temp that getting the opinion of a planning consultant would be the first step. Different planning departments seem to interpret the rules slightly differently so local knowledge would be key.

🤐

Perhaps I murder @nod neighbors and he murders mine ? . The perfect non linked crime - apart from posting it here … I’ll plead insanity - pretty sure that’ll work .

There isn't one as far as I know, Our Building Control scrutinised drawings show a 50mm gap between the inner face of the plaster board and the inner surface of the rafters / joists and that is all the service void we have. If you have to have 30cm (300mm) everywhere rooms would be so much smaller.

Warm roof on our garage room-in-roof + extension. Almost impossible to balls-up the insulation with that. At the time it seemed to add too much to the cost given the 190m2 roof surface area. But it's only really the cost of the OSB, and ultimately less labour given what a faff is involved in cutting lots of strips of PIR and jamming them between the rafters.

It's important that the buildings have been in agricultural use for 10 years. If they really have been used as stables for horses then you should be OK. If there is any evidence of other use such as storing cars or garden equipment that could be problematic. That includes evidence on old Google Earth/street view images. The building must also be "capable of being converted" technically. Eg not in such bad condition that they require significant knocking down and rebuilding. Underpinning is allowed I think. So what is/was it before the stables were built? Were they built within the planning rules? This whole area can be a bit of a minefield and making the wrong or too early approach to the planners can mess up your chances if you don't know what you are doing. In view of the likely value in your part of the world I would employ a planning consultant in stages. Eg Initially to just give you an opinion on the sites chances of passing the tests for class Q and anything you need to do to maximise the chances first. If that looks OK then get him to quote for submitting a class Q prior notice application. For that second stage you may need them surveyed and architects drawings done etc

You’ve sort of stolen my thunder withe the neighbor thingy But here goes MVRH Larger plant room Double garage into a treble with a room above and vaulted the sunroom ceiling instead of a lantern All of which we have remedied on our second build

I should have gone and re submitted planning to move the house over, then I could have had a double garage. The house was put where it is on the site on the assumption we needed to provide a filter mound drainage system alongside the house. Building control then rejected that and eventually the solution found was discharge to the burn. That meant we no longer needed much land for drainage, so could have re positioned the house on the plot, but that would have meant going back to planning and all the delays before we could start. It's a shame planning and building control are not one integrated function.

You really need to be dropping that another 10 degrees or more to get a good CoP. A 2 degree day and 50 flow temp is good for a CoP no better than 2.8. A flow temp of 35 deg on the same day is 3.8 CoP.

Sounds very similar to our build (piled foundation, not far off on size etc) - with a fair bit of DIY (internal joinery, sheeting, electrics) and a reasonable internal fit I think we'll be about £1450-1500m2. If you act as QS you'll come in a fair bit cheaper than estimates based on book prices and lazy contractors picking up materials from the local merchant.

56k will buy an awful lot of brickwork. Golden rule to remember 99% of architects are clueless on how to build anything. They are good at milking clients though. For example look at any of the window openings your architect has drawn and i guarantee you none of them will work brick. If they had a clue how to build anything they would design them to be built.

In principle this is quite possible but suitability will depend on a lot of factors. The normal way is to install PV high voltage cable inside flexible steel conduit like https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/LFLS20slash10.html How many cores will depend how many strings are being exported to the other building.

This is why I never used standing seam. I have repaired some though. We always left the old sheets on, bashed down any protruding bits, and made flashings to apply over the damaged areas. Looked like new. In your case it looks as if only thd edge is damaged so you could fit a new barge flashing. I would recommend a shape, more interesting than a rectangle, and reduces the contact points. What is the reason for the ridge flashings being as they are?

Looks good, it removes the need to forecast PV generation when charging battery overnight as the daytime export rate is matched. Time to run some calcs on how much it could save.

Check the small print. Mine said it converted to normal buildings insurance upon completion. I don't known if that means once a building is physically completed, or signed off as completed by building control?

Definitely DIYable but your main challenge is going to be forming the new tray/s, and flashings. Unless you have some spare preformed? The damaged tray may not be a standard width which could make it more niggly. To take the existing off, you'll need one of these: https://www.roofing-tools.com/stubai-seam-opening-tool-c2x9251590 I'd also recommend you give Metal Solutions in Glasgow a ring to see if they do tool set hire. They'll also be able to advise you. The rough and ready fix would be to use a hammer and flat cobble under the crinkled tray - you'd be left with some creases but it's doable. The rest could be rectified fairly well also with hammer and cobble together with hand seaming tools.

and how is the Neff? obviously you can't compare it to the Ikea/Bora/a.n.other but is the Neff good?

Well, the numbers don’t quite add up (it says it will run the MVHR for 7hrs at 15W output) but perhaps it’s still calibrating? Regardless, I think it’s exactly what the Dr ordered. Very happy with the solution to our power cut problem.

About the same as a dishwasher maybe.

Hardest part is getting under the cap to open it up, the hand tool and machine have a ‘blade’ rather like a plough that goes under the edge and then forces the cap open as it moves along. A bit of plastic or something like car body trim removal tools could be fashioned to do the job without marking. Re crimping can be done with a soft mallet and support block to tap against

Two! 60cm -> https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/foerdelaktig-induction-hob-integrated-extractor-ikea-500-black-50534854/ 80cm -> https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/foerdelaktig-induction-hob-integrated-extractor-ikea-700-black-90534852/ But prices have gone up since we bought ours last year - now a 1/3 of the Elica....

Can you share photos?

EVERYONE, STOP PUTTING RIGID BOARDS IN CAVITY WALLs!!!!!!!! It's a terrible idea. Use mineral wool or EPS beads. If you need a thin wall use timberframe or SIPs. Architects please can you get your heads around simply drawing thicker walls rather than updating your 1980's 300mm thinking with a very expensive and not very workable solution no doubt provided by the insulation manufacture.

It's unlightly you'll need to underpin for a 50 year old building. Your plan sounds good with a couple of points. Marvin has it nailed. 1. Airtightness. Very DIYable and the most bang for your buck in terms of energy saving and comfort. Make a DIY blowerdoor fan. 2. Ventilation. Needs to be mechanical, continuous running and best of all with heat recovery. 3. Floor insulation. Dig out and start again. If possible consider using the opportunity to make the already small rooms taller if possible. You'll be disrupted anyway by the dry lining. No need for UFH means you can do it a room at a time. 4. ASHP. Proceed with caution. They do not play nice with high heat loss houses. 5. Windows. "A" rated unfortunately can mean little. Good spec triple glazed UPVC with multiple compression seals won't break the bank. Make sure they are continuous with the insulation layer. Again you can do one room at a time if needed. Good luck!

Just found the below document online, thought it summed up some different options nicely. Basically, my original spec was Option 5. Part L1B of the Building Regulations – Extensions Under the new Part L1B 2021 for Extensions, Alterations & Conversions, there are some key changes you should really be made aware of. Below is a summary table for the changes for new extensions for extensions with an initial notice lodged after 15th June 2022: Element Part L1B 2013 (Current) Part L1B 2021 (From 15th June) % Improvement External Walls 0.28 W/m2.K 0.18 W/m2.K 36% Roof (Ceiling Level) 0.16 W/m2.K 0.15 W/m2.K 6% Roof (Slope) 0.18 W/m2.K 0.15 W/m2.K 17% Roof (Flat) 0.18 W/m2.K 0.15 W/m2.K 17% Heat Loss Floor 0.22 W/m2.K 0.18 W/m2.K 18% Windows 1.60 W/m2.K 1.40 W/m2.K 13% Rooflights 1.60 W/m2.K 2.20 W/m2.K -38% Doors 1.60 W/m2.K 1.40 W/m2.K 13% The general improvements are standard,. But the external wall stands out as a challenge because the planning drawings may be drawn with a 300mm cavity wall. The original U value for Part L1A 2013 was 0.28 W/m2.K. Typically, a 100mm cavity within a cavity wall would achieve this. Under the new Part L1B 2021 regulations, this will need a 35% improvement to achieve 0.18 W/m2.K. Typically, you should allow a 150mm cavity to achieve this. Some options are presented below with cavity width ranging from 100-150mm: OPTION 1 – FULL FILL MINERAL WOOL WITH AIRCRETE BLOCKWORK – 150MM CAVITY 102.5mm brickwork 150mm cavity with; 150mm Knauf Dritter 32 insulation (0.032 W/mK) 100mm aircrete blockwork (0.15-0.18 W/mK); 12.5mm plasterboard on dabs OPTION 2 – PARTIAL FILL PIR INSULATION WITH LIGHT MEDIUM DENSE BLOCKWORK – 150MM CAVITY 102.5mm brickwork 150mm cavity with; 100mm Celotex CW4000 insulation (0.022 W/mK) 100mm light medium dense blockwork (0.49 W/mK); 12.5mm plasterboard on dabs OPTION 3 – PARTIAL FILL PIR INSULATION WITH AIRCRETE BLOCKWORK – 135MM CAVITY 102.5mm brickwork 135mm cavity with; 85mm Celotex CW4000 insulation (0.022 W/mK) 100mm aircrete blockwork (0.15-0.19 W/mK); 12.5mm plasterboard on dabs OPTION 4 – PARTIAL FILL PIR INSULATION WITH BLOCKWORK – 125MM CAVITY 102.5mm brickwork 125mm cavity with; 75mm Kingspan Kooltherm K108 Cavity Board insulation (0.018 W/mK) 100mm aircrete blockwork (0.15-0.51 W/mK); 12.5mm plasterboard on dabs OPTION 5 – FULL FILL PIR INSULATION WITH AIRCRETE BLOCKWORK – 100MM CAVITY 102.5mm brickwork 100mm cavity with; 100mm Xtartherm CavithTherm (0.021 W/mK) OR 90mm Kingspan Kooltherm K106 Cavity Board insulation (0.018 W/mK) 100mm aircrete blockwork (0.15 W/mK); 12.5mm plasterboard on dabs

It is unlikely the heat pump is actually using that. They normally have a temperature probe in a pocket giving a much more accurate measure of tank temperature and allowing you to set the tank temperature from the control panel. The traditional tank thermostat is just there as a required G3 safety device, to close the motorised valve and shut off the heat source in the event of a malfunction. My own is there for just that eventuality and is set to 60 degrees. To move this discussion forwards we really need historic gas usage, preferably from actual monthly meter readings not estimates, and the predicted heat loss calculations provided by the installer.

Thanks Jack, several options there, will probably go with the cement board one and plaster over, due to planning requirements, I do fancy brick slips though, they'd look the job.

Jesus. I leave you lot alone for a few hours and now we have a bath with a heated blanket. 65°C out of a bath tap is no longer permissible. That’s lunacy. The most a bath hot tap or mixer can have coming out of it is 46°C, above that is an instant b-regs failure. So “NO”.

Interesting points here. Yes 65C water, as it exists in (gas-heated) cylinders is super hot and can certainly do damage, but - handwavingly, if you have a tub of say 35C water, to get it to 38C by using 44C water you need to replace (aka throw away) half of the bath. Heated bath is intruiging @joth but that particular one is certainly way too weird

Technically possibly. Legally it is a mine field. Two things spring to mind. VAT and non payers. Nearly every community energy company I have heard about fails, and not many people have working shared CHP units, or shared biomass boilers. Just stick as much PV on everything. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/community-energy

5kw is 21.7 amps at 230v or 20.8 amps at 240v. Assuming 2.5mm2 is twin and earth, this can take up to 27 amps if ref method C - clipped direct. You may be able to get a 25 amp RCBO for your consumer unit. Guessing someone will be wiring in the new inverter though, so why not let them deal with it?

NO. 🙊 not sure where I got 35A from. so as you said it is around 20-22A cable is ok to 27A @lakelandfolk. Please ignore my brain fart above..

5KW is around 35amp on mains 240 voltage. 2.5mm Sq cable can take around 25Amp load so yes to both.

Thanks @nod and others - we got past this, and are still on speaking terms

I’ll let you know in about a year 😂 This was yesterday.