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You're welcome folks. 😉 https://gtec.co.uk/clause-5-8-octopus-opens-up-the-solar-pv-market-with-a-paragraph/ (Octopus caved / reviewed their policy and has decided to heck with this MCS nonsense)

Another thing to bear in mind in building is that there are several ways round problems, which need you to think creatively. The more positive and relaxed you are, the more the options present themselves. Ie when we feel negative we can’t see possibilities. It’s quite a good metaphor for life.

You will be treating the wood with something won't you? If it were me, I would paint both sides of the mating t&g profiles before slotting them together to protect from water that WILL get in the gap

I like laurel as a hedge but it needs trimming twice a year (IMO) to stop it getting away from you. When you need scaffolding to cut it the job gets very time consuming.

No If it won’t scrape off It will be ok to tile

hi, the gas is isolated both in the garage and behind the old fireplace. The pipe has a cap on the end and is also disconnected in the garage. The pipework is just left in situ incase its needed again in the future.

How far down the planning route are you? If you havent submitted yet, then in all honesty get the land cleared as @joe90 says, you aren't doing anything other than cutting the grass and tidying up! if you make a noise and upset the Wildlife and it goes on a temporary holiday, it'll come back, don't worry about that! What you don't want is wildlife getting in your way, costing you money and delaying you and your journey! That money will be better spent later on, on the things you want rather than paying for some buggers pcp payment on their new land rover. It's all good doing the right things, but in all honesty when you are building every sod and their pal wants their palms crossing with silver just for ticking a box. There's definitely a reason @ToughButterCup 's farmers act like they do.

There isn’t an emoji I can choose to suit that response …

Same aims. If you have a 120l cylinder that's normally heated to 70 to allow hot water for the family, heating it to 50ish will not keep the family in water without a couple of heats. The other options are bigger cylinder, or to heat it to 70 by another means. That could be immersion, or could be a hybrid of HP and finish with immersion. We want it all to happen ASAP and manufacturers and installers won't connect to the old cylinder, so option A) is a non starter. And so is the hybrid option for the same reason. New cylinder is a big cost adder to upfront costs.

You can’t use the 90 degree temp unless all accessories connected are also rated to that, which invariably they won’t be. It’s highly likely that 35mm2 will be overkill. It’s also likely you’ll want to run data out there I would think. Especially if you’re fitting EV charging. I’d be allowing for a TPN EV charger just to future proof it as much as possible. At a guess, 4C 16mm2 and at least one separate cat 6. It really would be best to discuss with the person who is doing the job though.

Difficult but if it were me I would make the doors and frame as a unit, slightly oversized, then you can plane the frame down where necessary to fit snug in the opening and not worry about the doors fitting the frame after fitting.

In complete agreement.

My gut feel is that there are a range of solutions involving Tarrifs Willis heaters Plate heat exchangers and pumps as add ones Use of high temp flow The existing immersion heater where there is one Currently it seems the industry will contemplate none of these, that has to change.

Apologies @JohnMoI might have accidentally reposted something after you had replied. Intermittent connectivity to blame and no offence or attack intended

@Pocster knows all about this, ask him about his walk on glazing (if you dare). I would always wait till the item arrived before cutting anything. (Due to cock ups in the past).

Guys How much do drywall screws impact insulation value of a wall? Answer : (expletive deleted) all

Seems from this thread and others, some aren't happy removing their cylinder, so the option is limited, 0.7m2 and and heat pump, equals lukewarm water. Even E7 will give you a price equal to a CoP of 2 and was ok for millions for many decades. Do don't see issue. So what's your better solution if you don't want a heat pump cylinder.

Don't think I'm stopping with the PV... 😉

Next we had the concrete. RC35 which I overordered by quite alot ! Now working on the hollow block wall Hope to crack on this weekend.

I didn't know this was a possibility. Actual plastic models made overnight from the planning drawings, which were in 3d design. I saw and handled them today. 4 house types, 4 models.

I think they grow whatever you do. If not kept narrow as hedges they end up with the centre being a dark lifeless place.

At least Dick Turpin wore a mask

As long as the hinges are rated fir the weight and the doors built well then no problem with sagging, it does not sound like you combined doors are bigger/heavier than a normal house door! (I did similar in a previous house, no track and it worked very well).

if anything like my laurel (cherry) then the buggers are difficult to kill, and grow at a rapid rate... I take the tops of to the height I want - get through any thicker branches. New thinner branches will be easier next year, then it's a quick twice a year trim. I need a scaff tower to trim them now. Must be about 12-14ft i think. The neighbourhood bird population love them for nesting in! excuse the rubbish but there's some of mine looking out of my kitchen window trimmed about 6 weeks ago!

No, it will encourage them to to grow more side shoots and thicken up. If it's Cherry Laurel they should grow to around 30 feet eventually. They will still grow to their maximum height if you chop the tops off ocassionally. I planted a Cherry Laurel hedge many years ago and it was hard work keeping it at only eight feet high.

I’ve found that in general prices haves dropped We had four quotes for supply only All offered to discount

We want pics @joe90

Porch footings were poured a few weeks ago. We’re up to FFL for the porch now. That will give us the air lock for the hallway/main access door. We always planned to move the front door out to be flush with the front of the house. I’ll get a new/better door and fit it properly. As for the front lounge, I guess we can just do what we can. The heat loss is a toss up between ashp flow temp and rad sizing for this room. Wife wants the wall space, I want to put two 600x1500 type 22s on the wall. I think it’s able argument I won’t win.

Morning @Adsibob I used Soudel, Butyrub Polybutele non setting mastic. Hope you get it sorted.

@Pocster

As long as you have a 3D model you can print it. Pretty much it's a doddle. Resin is tbh probably going to give the best quality. What's the finish like on the model under any overhangs like soffits and canopies? If done on an FDM (fusion deposit modelling) printer like my lads then PLA (poly lactic acid) is easiest to print / gives the best finish. Colour is immaterial. Again under the overhangs can look a bit rough and require "support". A dual extruder machine comes in handy whereby you can print the support structures in say PVA and then soak then off. PLA is then theoretically compostable given the right heat & moisture conditions. It's I think the most eco friendly of all the filaments. Btw it's my son who does the printing. I just come up with mad ideas.

Sit rep, plastic battens down and fixed, treated timber fixed in place and first two row of logs on, weather forecast is heavy rain and high winds so all covered with a huge tarp, I just hope it stays there 🤞

Well done fella. now time for a beer.

The screws will have a very small cross sectional area. About 9mm2. You have about 70 screws per 1.2*2.4m board so about 0.02% or 1mm2 per 4,500mm2. To take your 50mm thick PIR layer the calcs look like.. (99.98% X 0.022W/mK)+(0.02% X 45W/mK) = an average thermal conductivity of 0.031W/mK so it does make a small difference. However in the real work you need to hold the wall together somehow. Your 50mm layer of PIR between battens at 10% wood will have an average thermal conductivity of about 0.034W/m2K. So your wall as built will have a U value of about 0.32W/m²K Vs about 0.27W/m²K without the effect of the screws. Assuming 20m2 of wall heated for 8hrs a day at 100days per year at a delta T of 12deg is 9.6kWh/year. At 15p/kWh that is £1.44 cost of extra gas per year. Feel free to loose sleep about that but frankly I think you did the bang on right thing by building securely.

How easy is it going to be to investigate it? One of the best tools I’ve bought is a non-destructive moisture meter. I’ve found it very useful at mostly putting my mind at ease. It might help you trace the problem. They do throw up false positives (screws/nails)

Never one to miss an opportunity for analysis:

I made a similar point earlier. Climate change is a gift to the right wing extreme (and not so extreme). The changes that must be made to combat it cost 'the working man' and these are promoted by 'intellectual elites'. The inevitable migration of communities affected will be weaponised by fascists. The elites will be protected by wealth and everyone else, especially those that their ruthless lies are aimed at influencing, will suffer. Just read the headlines in the right wing press if you doubt this. Climate change is a threat to democracy as much, if not more, as it is to the environment and lifestyle. You only have to read the headlines in the right wing press to see the way this could well go.

Because you are only altering the area weighted average u-value. The correction for fixings is a separate calculation (based on type of fixing, number of fixings and construction/insulation thickness of the element) that is then added to the basic u -value.

Maybe not. But you are the master!

See gits ! Not just me !

Like my bedroom then.

If you are confident in making your own doors then you can work this out, you have a track, get it fitted get the doors hung and on to the next job. Over thinking has probably cost me months on this house. If you bought the track you must have thought it necessary, get it in and sleep soundly.

Because without the first mm there wouldn't be any at all.