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Your picture showed very poor farming practice and not something I've seen since living down here. As it shows poor farming practice it will be in a very small minority of cases and not representative of beef farming in Cornwall. So why make the comment you did about beef farming in Cornwall? If you really think importing beef from Australia or the Americas full of growth hormone and antibiotics is better than local beef, that's fine, but you won't convince me.

I would organise a percolation test. Only then can you calculate the area of land required, and then with that, and the limiting distances to buildings etc, work out just where it can actually fit on the plot. Our previous house required 85 square metres of soakaway.

Watched a video where you basically build a 4x2/3x2 frame all around the container, with bolts at the corners through the lifting eyes into ply board blocks so you don't fix through the container at any point. I'll be fixing into 3x2s at 600mm centres, horizontally. (Instead of the domino clamps which are £80 a pop, I'll be making my own out of treaded rods and routered wooden blocks.) I'm also planning a GRP roof with sedum on top, with large overhang on one side for a potting area. That side will also have a living wall.

Here is a picture of the field next to my garden. In this part of the country a good farmer takes cattle in for the winter to stop the fields being damaged by the heavy animals and puts sheep in. Showing that picture, to me, proves you are clutching at straws and have lost the arguement.

Around 11 months ago, we started from a stripped site, the treatment plant was in and running the cabins / static so drainage just required connecting up. we had to wait for the warrant to be amended (change to the certificate of deign) this held us back ma month or so until the BCO just said "get on with it, we can sort that later"- top guy!! If we had waited for the amended certificate of design we would still be building, it took him 5 months to get it to us. I've documented most of the build in blogs on here, partly to have a refence to remember the process, partly as pay back to Buildhub for the inspiration and pointers in the planning / design stage. I'm so glad I spent hours looking at and reading others blogs that we made the switch to ICF. I'm convinced there is no way I would have achieved the efficiency I have for the money spent. Budget was always tight, so some decisions have been made due to Hobson's choice, leading to triple glazed UPVC windows and composite doors. The front door, south facing GRP Composite with low threshold and a slim glass panel leaks with 40mph winds, this leaks through the gazing cassette, and the low threshold. as I know we wont use this door much, we went for a slam lock, another mistake, it blows a gale through. To be fair the company are re making, I'm just not sure if there re-making the panel or the full door, I did ask, if they were remaking the full door to change to standard handle and lock, so it can be adjusted to minimise the drafts. we will see what happens, a full door replacement will mean taking off the reveals in side so a complete PITA, but worth it for no drafts. We had the airtightness test carried out, and they used the front door for the blower door to mitigate any issues with that door. I had put caps in the MVHR. so he just cracked on, the back door is not perfect again due to the low threshold. He didn't seal the blower door to the frame, not sure what the procedure is but seemed a little frustrating. We achieved 0.88 Air permeability, which I'm very happy with, budget wise we didn't spend hundreds on airtightness tape, just designed good solutions, and the doors leak a bit . Our As built EPC came back at A103 , with a possibility of A128.. the report say A105 if we install Thermal Solar EST saving of £40 pa , and A128 with a wind turbine EST saving of £1100 pa, so pretty much the best we could hit. To finish we need to sort out some paths outside, ramp, and the rain water pond, but other than the second bedroom need decorating the house is done. Next week we will hopefully get building control around to see what he 'needs' to get a completion cert. I'm hoping for some flexibility on the ramp and pond, . We need the VAT refund to pay for this stuff. We are working our way through the invoices, but we built for less the 90K and we still need the VAT refund. I've enjoyed it all, and we both agree we have a home. Good luck to all of you with your current builds.

We paid 1200 for two plots and two acre field Get a few quotes

You ultimately can't tell conclusively without consulting your local BCO and asking what their own interpretation of 'suitably non-combustable' would be in your situation specifically. In general, having the external cladding as either cement board cladding/sheet steel/rendered is enough, especially if it's only bordering garden fences (i.e. isn't next to other people's houses), which is usually the norm for garden buildings. But they may also be fussy about the internal wall finishing as well. For my own, I didn't bother asking our BCO and just went with cement board cladding all round (Hardie VL). Slight gamble? Yes. Likelihood of building control giving a shit? Practically zero.

Interesting discussion. I’m currently confirming spec of my PV panels. We’ve built a flat roof in Northumberland so limited to 15degrees due to wind, but they will be pointing due south. Roof size and shape meant we are at 3 rows of 4,5 or 6. At 4.5/5.4/6.5 kWp. Difference was approx £200 per panel (fitted) We used PVGIS to look at generation, we are also speccing at 9.5kW battery; My decision is based upon the shoulder months production not peak. Payback to max out at 18 panels is about 3 years more than the 12 panels. We don’t intend to export, we have a battery, solar boost (hw) and EV. In my opinion building a business case around export costs is a fools game, scope what you need and use to understand payback.

Make sure you get absolutely spot on dimensions from the window company. Not done a TF myself for years but we used to have to leave a gap top & bottom around the frames to allow for differential settlement between the TF & masonry-worth checking what’s required now as the bricklayer will need that info too.

I would not recommend Bristan. Their basin waste corroded through in < 5 yrs, replaced under warranty. Looking at it I think the casting was a cheap zinc-rich alloy not proper brass and there was intermetallic corrosion between it and the brass nut. The shower head had an array of jets moulded into a rubber plate, when new you could massage the rubber and all the limescale would come out. After a year or so it became brittle and all the little rubber jets started to break off. Their bath taps have worn so there is too much travel; after turning them off you have to rotate them back a bit or they drip. The shower/bath pull selector leaks, dismantling and cleaning with de-scaler works for a short time but it recurs and I have given up. Out of four fittings only the basin mixer tap is OK after a few years.

Try this: http://www.buildingcontrol-ni.com/assets/pdf/TechnicalBookletD2012.pdf

Indra- manufacturer of EV chargers Chademo- specification for bi directional charging(putting power into an EVs battery and taking it out again when you need/want it Power pack- Octopus scheme to use your EV battery linked to in first post.

One of the first things I did after making our offer was carry out a land survey which included a percolation test and soil analysis in the rough area the house was likely to go. The farmer provided the tractor and an IBC. You can do the percolation test yourself but I lived in England at the time so was easier to get a proper survey. Part of the survey report included an outline design and location for the soakaway that took all the bylaws into account that you list above.

Flexi’s can fail for no obvious reason . Agree some must be better than others . Now ( after experience ) I only use flexi where I have too - do a visual inspection every 12 months for any sign of decay / leak . My new kitchen I installed copper rod fittings . I feel happier about that .

This should be checked before you bought the plot. You WILL need a drainage field. And depending on the percolation test results it might end up using a lot of land. I do hope you have enough land to accommodate it, or an agreement with a neighbouring land owner for the drainage field to be under their land. It is perfectly possible to get planning permission for a house you cannot actually build or cannot occupy if you cannot get a drainage solution.

In Scotland my BCO was not having the two mix, although topography and make up of the land will see the two mix fairly quickly as they both run to an old field rubble drain and off to the coast 500m away.

That's really impressive. My roof panels get lots of shade in the morning so very short productive day.

Exactly. The field that adjoins our land has livestock rotated through it. Cows with calves a few months ago and now sheep. This keeps the grass down and the weeds in control while not damaging the ground. The livestock here is sent to a local abattoir and ends up at the local butcher. Same with the fruit as we buy that direct from the farmer. Where we used to live our paddock backed onto a farm that provided eggs for The Happy Egg company. The chickens had free range of 15 acres of land and while there were thousands of chickens in the field you’d never really guess that just by looking as they were so spread out. Sadly I’m not entirely convinced we can fix the problems we’ve created. We can mitigate some of the effects of the changing climate. However this argument that the UK is so small that anything we do is negligible compared to the much larger polluters is specious. It’s about intent and everyone doing something to reduce their footprint both at a macro scale and a micro scale. An example of this is the rainwater attenuation we put in. We didn’t strictly have to but we did anyway because the town below us is prone to flooding and we didn’t want to add to the problem.

No. The design of both types of soakaways is different. Certainly mine are. Graf have some information on their website. https://www.graf.info/en-gb/knowledge-hub/blog/does-a-sewage-treatment-plant-need-a-soakaway.html#:~:text=Even though they can be,would have a larger surface

Don't personally like flexis much but have had no problems where they were necessary. They have been used on the Continent for decades. A lot of satisfaction to be had from DIY, you can take your time over it and choose your fittings not rely on what is in the back of someone's van, often the result is to a higher standard than a professional would have left. Also you end up with a much better knowledge which helps enormously with fault-finding, and you are not paying someone for the time taken to trace and understand the plumbing in your own house.

I agree, it’s about choice.

Perhaps the rogue current your smart switch draws reduces once it's storage capacitor is charged, so it is only an issue when the switch is first connected from new?

Good Morning all, Currently self building our forever home in Somerset. I Found this forum via google after researching advise and found some of the contributing posts very helpful indeed. We did intend on going completely off-grid but unfortunately our mortgage lender put a stop to this!

I've got the dewalt first fix, which Ive found to be superior to the paslode. Quieter and less time changing the battery and gas cylinders. But I am wondering if you're only fixing 25mm to 25mm a second fix gun with heads that almost disappear might be better?

welcome to THE self building forum, just because you are connected to the grid does not stop you producing your own electricity and may give you the opportunity to sell any excess. Can’t wait to hear questions and learn about your plans etc.

Welcome!

Bifacial panels mounted vertically facing east/west seems to be the new big thing if you have the space for them. More expensive than standard PV panels though.

Fair. I intentionally put some devices in their own vpc of shame if I don't trust them (i.e. chinesium shite).

Just don't over twist or kink them. Or over tighten. They usually have rubber o-rings and don't need much more than hand tight.

That's a common problem, particularly with DIY, but it's certainly not the only way. It's a real issue: Yes, unless they take M8 tails, but I guess you've asked that. I'd be changing them.

Your manual will say something like the below service pipe into the dwelling should be a minimum of 22mm (usually in the form of a 25mm MDPE supply). The optimum performance is achieved if the inlet pressure is 3 bar dynamic. However, will function with lower inlet pressures, but this will reduce the performance. There should be a flow of at least 30 litres per minute or above available into the property. Normally Ideal HP provides well in excess of 40 litres/min in most conditions. Q4, 22m isn't a long way, 25mm will.be fine. Lower friction, already a smooth surface, no need to look elsewhere. Q5 yes and you don't need 32mm. Q6 yes if it's part open. It should be fully open - if the leak is from the stem tighten the nut where the valve stem comes out the body, to punch the gland a little tighter.

In all my years fitting kitchens and bathrooms I have only had one let go and that had been fitted badly (not by me). Not all flexi,s are equal, if they are willing to give a 10 year guarantee I believe they will have sourced a decent make.

I love real timber but would use engineered and glued, (i hate floating floors) I did this in my build in the lounge and it looked fab, tiles elsewhere downstairs (with UFH) and carpets upstairs, LVT in bathrooms with electric UFH. What about cork in the bathrooms? Retro and coming back into fashion and feels warm unlike tiles.

I have, in the past, done a 'downstand' of PIR/plasterboard internally to cloak the thermal bridge caused by lack of CWI behind the fascias. Oversail on the inside by about 300mm compared with the est'd position of the top of the insulation outside.

I just got used to getting strange looks and comments from people working on our build. There's a very strong tendency to disapprove of anything new in the building industry, not for any good reason, just a seeming reluctance to accept change. We have had a few of the people who worked on our house back since it was finished, and every single one of them agreed that what we've done works OK, so perhaps that will go some way to try and get people to adapt to new methods of construction.

I swear every single person who visits the site comments on how they haven't seen the underfloor heating directly in the slab before, on the mesh. It makes me so anxious - I keep telling them I'm on a forum where lots of people do it and you see it on TV too. They sort of give me a raised eyebrow like they don't believe me ? But it's too late now as our concrete just went in. Perhaps we'll start setting a trend for cornwall!

On my way !

The same stand had interesting statements too. See the first "pro".

It was more interesting than I expected. Straight answers from most of the exhibitors. Plenty of hokum for the naive, but less than I had feared. Here is a novel idea. Fit the kitchen before pouring the screed against it.

This time in Valencia https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-68378968 Similar cladding, similar rapid spread of fire on outside of building, loss of life etc. It appears the Spanish have not had a program of removing such cladding from buildings.

Which is why I built an enclosed porch 🤷‍♂️(air lock).

You guys are going to shit yourselves when you realise the impact on insulation when you open your front door on a cold or windy day!! 😂

I'm just tired, and wishing I was 35 again.

Yep... Me too. And boy have I lost sleep over the last couple years of our build. It's hard enough when your worrying about the finances, before you 'check up' on the build on the way home from work, mid January, and see the brickies have left small gaps between the insulation slabs along the entire length of wall.... To then end up spending 2 hours adjusting all the insulation for tight fit, in smart office wear freezing to death and late for dinner!!! My wife didn't see what all the fuss was about.

invite a coffin dodger for a weeks holiday and claim the free grant for loft insulation.