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Thought that would grab your attention ! I am a retired IFA and relocated to Norfolk near the coast. We thought we had plenty of money to do everything we wanted on the old property we bought but as you know things are so expensive now,particularly if you use builders as we have. don’t get me wrong,they have done a great job.but now decided to build my double garage myself after our builders have just done the pad only. Joined the forum looking for help with this.

Rough opening for doors is too tight, you need to leave room to pack the lining and get it squared up. just think you can make a wall as soundproof as you want, but as soon as you put a door in it it becomes pointless.

Trouble is the big players like octopus want you have a system with a design flow temp of 50 degs. This maximises their profits, makes an easier install. Justification is a good selection of tariffs which are available (but for how long) so cheaper to run than gas. That starts to get difficult, even a 6kW ASHP will have a power required of 3kW at sub zero and high flow temp. Without accounting for in rush current on motor start and the various outlets for immersion heaters driven from the ASHP. Hybrid incentives are the only real way to get mass roll out. No internal changes to heating system required (you could though, to drop design flow temp). System runs 90% of the time on heat pump, if house has a combi no cylinder required. Just make weather comp manditory, boiler manufacturer have to provide an interface to allow this if boiler needs it. In nearly all cases a 4kW ASHP would be ok.

Hello Gaf. That's some response from a phone! I've picked out some bits from your text and quoted in italic blue.. it's late here and off the day job so forgive typos grammer etc. By way of encouragement and hope this helps. "I’m not sure banging on the architect’s door about this is fair" agree with this.. keep it low key.. that last thing you need is a full blown barny. "Builder has built both roofs differently than specified on the drawings." That's the rub really. I have chipped in as an SE and designer to say.. hey lets look at the overall picture for example in terms of stability. "Was lining up an SE until the architect said our house design was not complex and he was qualified to design, specify, and sign-off on the structural elements" Now that may be the case. Your Architect may have used the small buildings type of guidance and so on. It sounds like the Architect has lots of experience so that is good. I'll not go into detail here on this aspect as I use my own name on BH. "I’ll be pursuing the SE route and will be happy to pay their fee." Give your Architect the opportunity to respond first before involving an SE. This is the protcol. Take your posts on BH, format them and send to the Architect. Write in a fiendly manner and informally. The key here when writing is that you are not expected to be an informed Client.. you are a self builder.. so don't try and be smart technically .. just state your case the way you see it. Which is.. I have paid for something that is shown on the drawings and this has not been delivered or words to that effect. You can evidence this by way of photographs. Do not get emmotional.. just lay out the basic facts.. do not give your own technical opinion at any time however tempting that may be! Clearly the building work is ongoing thus time is "of essence" and this term has legal and contractual meaning so make sure you include this phrase or equivalent to where you live. I assume the same legal terms apply in Ireland. That's all for now. If you get stuck then give me a call on 0771 308 1597.. text me first as I tend to filter calls and I'm a bit deaf. Happy to chat for 15 min but no more! Yes I know I should not give my number on BH but it's splattered all over the internet anyway!

Despite the yellow weather warning we luckily had the coastal wind pushing it away, most of it fell on Tuesday but only 6mm The trench foundations are excavated and inspected. Then the concrete poured, and the first blocks laid followed by dolly blocks and internal supporting wall starter blocks Total man days of labour for week 2 is 13

Chuffed to bits, finally finished my diy install of my nice shiny 7kW Arotherm. Have only used for dhw but working a treat once I realised that my esbe diverter valve was wired back to front and I was heating the ufh ! Just need to finish off wiring the OEM stuff. Old boiler out : New unit : Primary Pro and anti-freeze valves

When our neighbour installed a wood burner I went in to full-on damage limitation mode, admittedly prior to even knowing whether there was any damage to limit! Instead of additional filters though what I did was install an air quality sensor in the intake duct and if/when it detects smoke particles (actually, it is not that discriminatory but smoke is within scope of what it can pick up) it triggers the MVHR to stop pumping in air for a while. There's some info of the approach here: Incidentally, it turns out that in practice my wife's cooking appears to be arguably more of a threat than the neighbour's wood burner! So, I now have *two* sensors - one that turns the MVHR down if the neighbour's wood burner goes wild and another that boosts it when dinner's nearly ready. 😂

Ooh you got a jenson.

Sorry for the lack of reply's I've just been crazy busy. i was speaking to the guys at rollerdoor and because my door is wide i would have to go for the 300mm roller box and not the smaller 205mm one. i was doing some thinking and i have 260mm of depth in the joists/wall plate and my total door height at the lower side of the opening is 2350 from floor to bottom of joist so will probably cut my noggins out and put the roller box up into that space. If i go up into the joist space by 200mm then have 100mm which i can trim over in soffit to match, this will give me an opening height of 2250 which is still decent.

That's good logic. But sometimes this works. Thinking of this as 2 small and simple buildings with a link. If the 2 areas are very different this gives simple connections. Fof self build if also allows phasing and you could move into half early. Yes, insulate extra to compensate.

Getting there. Really nice renders. What did you use? For context I'm an un-refrormable passive house disciple and cheap skate. Get rid of these areas. Complete waste of cash and add loads of external wall for no benefit meaning loads of extra heating. What way is south on your site,? The glazing seems very unresolved and not considering of sunlight at the moment.

May also reduce the likelihood of slug damage(!)

How much are you looking for a DIY battery install including inverter and batteries? How is the best way to size your batteries? I have a 5 bed house and all electric, i have only just switched and last week averaged 12 - 16kwh per day (no heating on) I am not looking to have solar panels at anytime due to my roof layout and which way my house faces so would the cost of installing a battery set up be worth it? I have just switched to cosy tariff and last week average £2.50 - £3 a day with no heating Looking forward to hearing some feedback on this as batteries is not something I have considered before as I ruled out solar straight away Many Thanks

That was from ovo. But they advised to check with ofgem who said what they say is not legally binding however as long as all the plant is not decommissioned up to the grid it should be fine. So a swap for repairs or cosmetic should be ok. It also says this on their website.

Unfortunately that seems to be the case, even the 3.5kW Vaillant can draw up to 14.3 amps (it is the same unit as the 5kW but with the output capped). However you would probably want a separate circuit, just as you should have for a boiler or an immersion heater. But an existing boiler radial circuit would do for an HP up to 7 kW. With inverter drives you do not need to allow anything more for inrush/motor start. A bigger problem though is that with an inverter drive you need to fit a Type B RCD and this is not allowed to be behind a Type A in your existing consumer unit, as discussed in an earlier thread. They are expensive and not available for all types of CU (and that includes Crabtree and Wylex until 2025). So in practice you may end up needing a new garage unit installed with Henley blocks. As I discovered, it becomes even more complicated with a battery setup as well.

The perimeter of the heated envelope is the best place, in terms of minimising heat loss. Blocking it at both ends could lead to greater condensation (than otherwise) between the blockages. Buanderie wouldn't necessarily be mentioned - utility rooms (with a water supply) fall under the definition of salle d'eau - https://www.batiment-ventilation.fr/outils/faq/dans-larrete-de-mars-1982-quelle-est-la-difference-entre-une-salle-deau-et-une-salle-de-bains-105 (a room other than the kitchen or WC, equipped with a water supply, but without a bath or shower) I'm not an expert on the text (and don't have time to read it!), however it could be because you only tracked down part 1-1-2, or because my memory is wrong (since I have a VMC double-flux). For a more definitive view, polish off your French and ask at the forumconstruire (which comes up with this, and others: https://www.forumconstruire.com/construire/topic-395665-bouche-extraction-buanderie.php)

I'm coming to make peace with hybrids in theory, assuming they are more like the Intergas ones, where they are running for 100% of the heating time, just topped up with heat from the combi rather than stopped and purely running on the combi. Then it's such a marginal step (psychologically) to full ASHP the next time people upgrade their heating / hot water in say 2035 / 2040... I would tier the BUS payment to be say £4/5k rather than the £7.5k for full ASHP installs.

Just ordered one. Generator out the back until the leccy is delivered.

build yourself a template for door openings, so you can block up to, and lintel over would be the one thing I took away from watching the brickie on mine (he had a few steel welded ones, but timber would work i'd think!)

That's kinda why I want Medium-dense concrete blocks, they're supposed to be a bit better I think. Luckily we don't have much in the way of internal walling in our ground floor. I'm keen and always happy to hear all views. It somewhat terrifying attempting this with our Architect having left the project and a number of incomplete details, it's certainly stringing the timeline out.

Yes, good point. You are quite right. My new-build house has huge thermal inertia. The concrete raft foundation for my bungalow acts as a 55-tonne heat store. The UFH pipes are embedded deep inside it. The internal temperature for the dwelling changes on a time scale of days (sometimes even weeks). This means that it is far less important when I add heat to the dwelling. Day or night makes no real difference. This all means that I can control the heat pump somewhat differently from most homes and I can try to maximise efficiency … to save money (and the planet). Hence the unusual slant of my questions here.

Update. After a bit of "persuasion", Vaillant swapped the board in my Arotherm Plus free-of-charge. All good. Many thanks for everyone's help and suggestions.

That looks like a similar cutter to the one I have … it works very well. https://www.roofingmerchant.co.uk/product-page/edma-slate-cutter-with-punch?utm_source=google&utm_medium=wix_google_feed&utm_campaign=freelistings&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADh2aGz86ARgMDWSyV8Xo_T_LhvmA&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI6Iq-wZjgiAMVYWdBAh3VeDiGEAQYBiABEgJ6TvD_BwE

At the moment the green taxes on electricity are much higher than gas. The current SCOP need for a HP to "break even" with a gas boiler is about 3.5 This is perfectly possible but requires quite a bit of installer knowhow to achive. There are many tales of people who installed HPs and ended up with higher bills. If the green taxes were moved from gas to electricity, that break even SCOP drops to around 2.5 which is very easily achievable in all but the most ham fisted installs. Secondly, the installation of HPs needs to be made vastly easier. The planning and noise requirements need to be drastically streamlined. Noise in particular. New HPs are getting below 40db. If we had a system where a HP could be given a "hush mark" or something which would allow it to be sited anywhere as long as it it 1m from a neighbour's window. It would make a diffence. If the HP required less than 13A draw, being able to have it wired in to a spur off a ring main or even just plugged into an outside socket would make life easier. Basically we need to remove as many barriers as possible. A HP is potentially easier to install than a gas boiler. Not (as some here have proved) beyond a competent DIYer and certainly not beyond a decent plumber. Make them cheaper to run than a gas boiler and easy to install with minimal paperwork and the country will switch pretty rapidly.

Looks like the primary pro stuff to me? Primary Pro 28mm x 19mm Insulation - 1 metre length (midsummerwholesale.co.uk)

no its a sealed unit that you feed from the top. They also do chiller drawers exactly the same design. Brilliant warranty from them as well.

It sounds like you can retain the concrete for the inner leaf and use a different lintel for the outer leaf. @Gus Potter is your man as per his post above 👍

I love the amount of work you have put into this as a concept. This is improtant as you have sat down and identified the type of house that would suit you and the internal spaces. For me Perthshire is stunning. Some of my family lived in Perthshire the rest now on the inner hebrides.. the white beach is the end of their garden there is no fence just the sea. The critical thing is the services and that is going to have a big effect on the overall build cost. Once you start to live in rural Scotland there are other costs.. travel.. just to get a pint of milk.. don't underestimate these. Take your car for a service.. you may not get it back for a week! But the land prices in Perthshire have rocketed but olocal services are still expensive. What is still affordable is Argyll for the self builder on a budget.

In France a laundry room does normally have mechanical extract fitted - I think the regs (DTU 68.3) require that - so I'd disable it and probably block the exit from the house in a reversible way, rather than strip everything out and seal it off permanently.

Here is part of my structural work and my wifes interior stuff.. we have yet to finish it off. This is an ex council house that we have extended in East Kilbride. The photo below is taken from my old phone so take it as it is. Key points we resolved. The hob is in the island. The grill in the ceiling is connected to a 125mm duct and the extraction unit fan is mounted outside in the external soffit. The fan I robbed from a Client that was chucking away an old kitchen extractor.. and delivers 600m^3 extraction.. is sucks like a devil and is pretty quite. The two pendant lights you see over the hob will set you back £ 500 plus.. but when offset with a standard extraction unit the lights were a bargin. What you see is part of an open plan space. I started out as a builder.. then became an SE and evolved into a "desinger". The challenge for me is to marry good practical design with good cost effective engineering at an affordable cost and do something special! Now over the last couple of decades I've seen folk wanting these massive open plan spaces as these have been all the rage. But for most families with two kids and a dog they are not that great. Kids and so on want much more pricacy for example.. our work patterns are changing. Our house is designed so that the social spaces are clearly defined. We have opted for other spaces that allow us to work from home, have a space that is entirely different. It's not for all but it is worth a think about. Here is a diferent view. The wall cabinets at the far end are from the 70's and sit off the floor.. The dining table is rosewood with space for 12 when extended.. the chairs contemporary. While the interior design may not be to your taste some key features are the shadow gaps in the vaulted ceilings. I set them myself and did the plastering but it allows us to easily change the decor in a weekend. You'll notice some boxes in the ceiling.. there are some pretty big steels hidden there.. but we accepeted that and use the boxing in of the steels to define the different spaces all be it open plan. Pick a kitchen that is not going to go out of fashion. Mine can be easily changed! Gray is not a good investment. If you look at my photos it may give the dry heaves! but think.. how easily could Gus strip that down and totally change the theme in two weekends.. and that is why I do this as a day job and you could be left with a crap gray kitchen!

I wonder. When we buy type 1, we are wanting the finished product to be as much like solid stone as possible. So we whack it but, importantly, also vibrate it so that the little bits fill the gaps between the big bits. No air is left. G9eocell seems to be single size with lots of gaps. Whacking it will break sandy shards off it (I assume) and you get the assessed performance. Doing it less, there will be more air. But presumably trapped within the finished product. I'd think working with 50 or 75mm layers will compact decently with a lesser compactor. Nobody will have tested it though.

I doubt it, get the work done and meet in the middle.... And both walk away. Building house is hard enough, without added emotions seeking compensation for this complicated shitty occurrences. If he does try to charge for it, use the cost of scaffolding etc to cancel it out.

How about a first floor rear extension (shown in red). Turn the rear part of the first floor into a Bedroom with a rear window. Provide a Bathroom shown in green with a side window. Slightly reduce the middle Bedroom following the introduction of a corridor. Then you’d need to turn the stair around so the landing is against the party wall side.

Not necessarily. As you say later, there is the space taken by the stair and landing x 2 levels. so take that out of the useful m2 and it all changes. It depends on a lot of other factors too. slate roof would be expensive, metal much cheaper, tiles in between. To me that is an economical shape and easy to build, and everywhere is near a window. Plus it is totally accessible for the future......the owner ageing, visitors, future purchasers.

Your builder may be a good builder But he’s clueless about K Rend Sand and cement and through coloured renders don’t mix All the renders come with the own backing coat I use Age-cide for staining Quick spray and the rain does the rest

Did we have our house rendered when you visited? It's Sto, part silicate, part acrylic, can't fault it. If you need a renderer, I can pass you Kevin's details.

Most older houses have an 'airing cupboard' with a cylinder in in which slightly damp clothes are placed (after 'drying') to finish the drying off process. Towels are also often stored there and they can also be good for proving dough. Basically if the cylinder isnt too large and the plumbing is kept compact the space above and in front/to the side has a useful purpose!

We only have the one triangular window in our sun room. It has no blind and never will. I would be very interested so see pictures or a video of any bespoke blind for this sort of window in use, ours have a 45 degree slope and I just cannot imagine any sort of blind or curtain that would actually work. But we knew this at design stage and knew there would be no blinds needed on this window.

We've been wracking out brains for two odd years now and none the wiser. We're likely going for a bi-fold shutter type thing hinged on one side of the reveal. Gonna cost £2k

To add a more rounded picture, MVHR isn't all about cost recovery / return on investment - the same as many kitchens and bathroom suites will never recover their investment. Apart from any cost savings (which can be real), if MVHR is properly specified an installed it can filter the outside air, maintain a healthy internal atmosphere, avoid noise transmission through trickle vents, reduce condensation & mould risk, and avoid blowing warm air out through rattling extractor fans. And probably some other things I've not thought of. As for air-tightness, the Building Regs standards are very unambitious. Passivhaus requires no more than 0.6 air changes per hour under 50pa of pressure, and values as low as 0.2 are possible. However that is only achievable if the architect designs-in adequate airtightness measures, if the various contractors and installers know what they're doing, and if someone is checking the quality of the work and materials used.

I think there are a number of problems involved with retrofitting ASHPs. The biggest one is general ignorance of heating systems and how they work (why many on here are trying to help). Once a customer gets a good idea of what is really needed, then they can shop around with confidence. Do your own heat loss calculations, then you can discuss requirements.

Is this to a bungalow? If not, then the roof enlargement would normally be covered under Class B (Page 33)… https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5d77afc8e5274a27cdb2c9e9/190910_Tech_Guide_for_publishing.pdf Do check there are no PD restrictions for the original extension.

I felt a cheap Backhoe loader was very handy to have around, although I still brought in the right size 360 machine for quite a few jobs. For the same age and condition the Case 580 are a little cheaper than the JCB 3CX and the Ford 550 are cheaper again. I paid £4.5K for mine, and it has needed a few hoses replacing. Smokes a bit but still loads of power. Good for clearing and grading as well as moving stuff around, but mine has very worn pins. If I was to buy again I'd go for 4 wheel drive, extending backhoe and a £10K budget. I can't tell you if they're easy to sell as I've always got another job in mind for it, but it seems there're are plenty of people looking for them, as I've had a couple of locals try and buy it off me.

One tmv on the hot outlet of the uvc set to 50oC to allow for any loss between cylinder and kitchen / utility, and then I'd feed a basin-only manifold with a secondary tmv set to 46oc ( "unassisted" doc M recommendation ). If you zoom in you'll see cold manifold on the left, a primary tmv ( grey cap ) set to 50/51o C ) feeding a 6 way 'full range hot' manifold, and then a secondary tmv ( blue cap ) set to the lower ( user definable ) temp for the wash hand basins only ( in this case 4 in No; and fed with 10mm pipe to reduce wait time for premium temp water to reach the tap. Given hindsight I'd have fed the secondary tmv directly off the hot outlet to reduce the dead leg before it ( 28mm to the primary tmv ) but was against the clock there ( as I had to make that airing cupboard before I could fit the tanks! )

>>> You need to play nicely. Yeah, our neighbours did - and their non-contentious application took the LPA a year. By which time the economics of what the neighbours were planning had changed for the worse and so having gained permisssion now, they don't intend to use it.