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Thanks…tried to contact them but no reply .. dads cheque now cancelled by us. Utter crooks who better not show their faces again

If you can build a large enough, temporary, shed on the plot, and get power to it, why not build your own panels. A large bench and a couple of RSJ to make a jig from is about all you need to get started.

The thing with 68mm studwork that I don’t think people think about is running services putting a cable through the centre of a stud puts it only 30mm from the surface, which as far as I’m aware isn’t deep enough to keep it the recommended 50mm in to give it half a chance of not being screwed through. im aware it should be in a safe zone, but good practice and all that stuff. 68 for wardrobe walls and anything non important 89 for dividing walls.

Thanks all - my original idea to use white reflective plastic flags worked up to a point but I realised that the levels varied quite a lot plus the flags were difficult to use with a laser measure even with no wind/breeze. I ended up paying for a topographical survey which worked out really well - I could now see all of the potential drainage issues and the surveyor seemed to go to great lengths to include absolutely everything in terms of outbuildings, hedges, fences, etc. even going out onto the road to measure the extent of the hedges and the utility points, phone/power poles and so on. So, good value for money and a really comprehensive and useful end product - had it printed A1 size which is ideal for planning the garden as well as everything else.

You don't have any complaint against the roofer, you have no contract with them. They are working for your neighbour and that is who you have a problem with. She is easy to track down!

Difficulty getting PH loss may be down to form factor. The closer you get to a cube the better the form factor. A good form factor needs less insulation to achieve a good heat loss figure. Our house is long and thin single storey, all ceilings are vaulted, we have a poor form factor and would stand no chance being PH, with all U values well below 0.1. But generally our heat loss is good.

Yes, it certainly is. There are savings to be had, but you need to get all the correct materials on site in the correct quantities (allowing for waste) and at the right times (taking into account lead times), and sort out any problems. It can certainly be done, but if you're not in the trade it can be a steep learning curve, and if you're not really well organised it can go wrong quickly.

Up here, a 50KVA transformer feeds 5 properties, so start by arguing them fitting a 50KVA transformer is overkill and they are in effect asking you to fund the upgrade for another 3 houses to connect to it.

Previously I've only part-renovated a house before, kitchen/bathroom/re-wire/repaint/new carpets (ok, just planned and then paid the bills). The current work is on a cottage from 1860 with damp issues, and the renovation has been forced on us by a severe flood. The insurers aren't paying for build-back-better as it happened last year and they had only joined the scheme for policies starting later than our renewal. Regardless, we've so far not found builders or surveyors with good knowledge of how to apply flood resilience on an old property when the normal wisdom is to let everything breathe. We have a builder now, seems a good sort and so far admits when he doesn't know something.

Planning is the key if you’re buying yourself. You don’t want to pay labour charges if materials are not on site. Saying that you will save and be in control of your own budget. Do not pay a builder up front. Stage payments are the way.

Fair advice from you both, thanks. I'll calm my passions down a notch. I utterly launched builder at his electrician over this on Monday, and builder was suitable apologetic /meek about... Now just trying to decide how much more I want to kick off & keep escalating this, or accept his agreement to resolve ASAP with one of his senior team/who I trust to babysit the electrician for my peace of mind.

38 x 89 @ 600 ctrs and 9mm OSB is fine. Nail the OSB @ 300 ctrs. Use treated timber if you want it to last.

@joe90 Sounds like good advice! After so long doing everything myself, I find it difficult to "let go".

@Pocster! Quick! A nibble!

Has to be a plumbing issue, tank overflow, pipe connection loose, pipe chewed by rodents?

Robin Clevett the youtube chippy likes to use Cutwrights for this sort of thing. Maybe give them a go. They are well regarded.

Local recommended joiner / carpenter. Plenty of clients down here in South Devon who have the funds, not me. Looking at using Ikea cabinets with custom cut doors etc. About a 1/3 rd of the original price so far. New drawing using Ikea below. @AliG Wow, mind blown. You have skills....love it.

I would worry about leaks with the details above. You really need an upstand, then the roof light. Then you take the roof covering up the upstand. We formed our upstands from Compacfoam, not the cheapest, but cold bridge free, super quick to install so very low labour charge.

@cheekmonkey All good info above.

My advice is don't over think it. You're on the right lines. We didn't use Kingspan, we used a system from SBS via our installer NewForest SIP, but have 170 walls & 200 roof. Essentially same as your make up here but only have internal void if req. I deliberately designed service runs to avoid battening all the internal walls so just picked a few. ultimately to just save time & money & also have walls i can fix things direct to OSB like kitchen units. We also have batten & counter externally with 20mm half lap larch over glidevale membrane We didnt bother with vapour barrier or any special taping, i did externally tape the glidevale membrane with their recommended tape but TBH i think it was probably a waste of time. all panel joints were foamed on install & mastic around roof joint. we've achieved an air test of 2.56 (that's even with 14m of leaky sliding doors), an epc of A & the place is toasty warm with no heating on at all. it's very stable temperature, we also have MVHR.

First loft insulation looks poor, improve that first. Lag all pipes to and from cylinder, doesn't look to be inside heated envelope, so insulation should ideally be 25mm thick. Interim immersion timer, just look on Screwfix or similar, plenty available. But you have an oil boiler why do you need to run the immersion? If your looking to change to ASHP, just get something basic to do programming.

Structural Engineer

Thanks both. Have asked the conveyancer to ask the lender if they'll accept retrospective but no response yet. Have also asked the broker to explore other options, again not responding. Good to hear Virgin and BoI might be an option though, I will pass that on to him.

Check what legal cover you have with your house insurance. I agree with the comment that the leading edge of your tiles don’t look like they’d survive the first high wind blowing in the right direction. You probably ought to get a professional survey done that way you’ll have something in writing rather than just your opinion. You aren’t going to get anywhere with the roofer for the time-being. Priority number 1 is to secure your roof though regardless of anything else as you don’t want any other problems. This will cost some money hence why you need to speak with your house insurance company.

I liked my ride on mower 🤣

The dealer where I got mine was telling me he couldn't give away ride on mowers anymore. No one wants to pay more upfront and then all the fuel and servicing that they require each and every year. A replacement battery for mine is £55 so easily replaced. A set of blades is £10 and that should last a year.

Honestly lads, I'm too young for all of this. (71)

Whether she is stressed or not it’s her responsibility, plod on with building control it’s their decision. If they decide it’s not right they will deal with it. Ignorance if the law is no excuse.

@joe90 thank you - I was thinking much the same.... I was hoping to get away with leaving their roof unscathed but it seems I may not!

It should be relatively easy to unclip the pipes, put 50mm insulation down, clip them down again, then lay the remaining insulation. It's minutes of work. They just want to get the job done and be gone.

Doubt it. Just pull through a couple more cables through your duct when installing the EV charger and install an external socket where needed.

Why not just wire in a commando socket alongside the charger?

Insurance companies. They’ll do anything to wriggle out of paying. We don’t trust them and they don’t trust us. My step-sister works in the fraud side.

Fair enough. But having done the right thing and told them you are parking it in a garage, for them to say if it gets stolen from your drive it is not covered is bang out of order.

Insurance companies can do strange things. when I built a garage I told my car insurance company it was now kept in a garage. How much did it reduce my premium? £NIL. Then I asked what would happen if I left it outside one night and it got stolen. NOT COVERED. I now declare the car is parked on the driveway.

Don't be speaking to the roofers. It's the responsibility of your neighbour to ensure work is done correctly. There is no way re-slating with composite slates falls under permitted development. Say this to your neighbour that not only is the work not good enough, but that they are likely not compliant with planning or building control. Give them the opportunity to set it right. High chance the roof will need to be completely redone with natural slates... Gonna cost them a lot so tread gently

Do you have any pictures of what it all looked like before the installation?

How does one go about getting a professional inspection in a case like this? Is there an equivalent of an independent snagging team such as New Home Quality Control but for Internorm window installs? Or are you referring to getting it checked by FENSA or certass? Or a rep from Internorm? Asking for a friend.

Fair enough. I have just realised that Annex B page 44 is actually the building regs for England and Wales. So no weaselling out of those.

I have to at this point advise that is something they would need to take up with a professional inspection, due to the nature of how things may proceed. Whether GGF members or not, it’s very common for the guidelines set out in the GGF documents to be followed by pretty much all suppliers and often referred to even when not members. These guidelines are pretty standard, also similar to European guidelines tbh.

Ugh yes it is such a nightmare to have to decide how to take action on jobs like this under such a tight timescale. The key thing on any consumer law complaint is you must voice your complaint in writing (by email) to the company as soon as reasonably possible. I would strongly advise you to send an email detailing the points you take issue with early tomorrow morning at least an hour or so before they arrive to you so they have time to digest it. That way, even if they try and weasel out of it, you can read off the email if needed, and they have a document of what your issues are to look at. I would argue the main point (on the making good) is that your contract is contravening the Consumer Rights Act (2015), since it is a generally accepted industry standard that there is a duty to repair and make good to a basic level internally and externally on replacement window jobs, and it is not unreasonable for you to have expected this (despite their clause stating they will not make good, but don't highlight that). They are also contravening the Building Regulations for England and Wales and GGF guidelines- see Annex B page 44 building regs regarding remedial work and also expectations regarding damp course and moisture penetration which you mentioned is a problem (there is a more updated document here which is keyword searchable: https://www.window-warehouse.co.uk/app/uploads/2022/02/20.3_A_Guide_to_Good_Practice_-_Installation_of_Replacement_Windows_and_Doors_April_2016.pdf ) They are definitely Internorm 1st window partners, and are not adhering to the Internorm customer care standard point 8 ‘All work will be done in a careful manner, clean and properly and will be carried out by a reliable and competent installation team’, and say you will be complaining directly to Internorm about this. @craig other than the making good issue does the general fit look ok?

You need to leave about two threads out the end of the nut, other than that fill your boots.

>>> you'll make more money if you can get permission for something smaller rather than larger err, or vv, I'm sure you know what I mean

The quick answers are: 1 - If comparing blocks of similar density, yes. Otherwise no. 2 - No - standard blocks are more robust 3 - No - for airborne sound block density and thickness are the major factors. For impact sound, you either want a double wall or, on the other side, plasterboard on resilient bars / a fitted wardrobe. A 100mm 3.5N dense or medium weight block is a good compromise, cheap and widely used. Note if you need to chase conduit into the wall, then vertical chases are limited to 1/3 of the wall thickness, and horizontal ones to 1/6 of the wall thickness - so the thinner the wall, the shallower the chases permitted. Which may or may not be a problem, depending on what you're planning.

If you are well insulated I would put provisions in for electric panel heaters in bedrooms, many on here have no rads or heating on bedrooms. Upstairs bathrooms will need heat. Electric towel rail is good, would also look at electric UFH directly under the tiles.

You can get away with 10mm gap if you use interlocking PIR with taped joints, but that's such a faff to do properly, just got full-fill rockwool.

Looks great - particularly love the chestnut fencing.

My OH did lots of the internal fit work himself so all the electrics, first fix plumbing, kitchen fit, UFH pipes, all painting, wood flooring, internal doors, sanitary wear (but we had a plumber to connect up), and a variety of other tasks until he got sick and I needed to get trades in to finish things off that he had planned to do. The labour and everything else pushed it up to £760 m2 (excluding the plot price).

Currently on target to deliver a 168sqm 3 bed/2 bath with room in roof at around £122k so £720/m2 and that isn't including a VAT reclaim as its classed as a conversion. Pays to shop around and pick trades carefully.

The extra £20k is for better pictures than the ones I drew up.