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Just wish I wasn't a tax payer, and then I wouldn't feel conned, every time read one of these posts.

When originally solvent welded and leaking you should have used gap filling PVC cement. Now that you've applied Tiger Seal I'd stick with that. It should work if you can find the hole, even if wet. The PU sealants displace water so should be good. As for not being able to see / get around the back, well...fire up the Bambu! https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4215459

I might have "nerd sniped" myself and done some 3D CAD and CFD.... This run is using the following table for air supply and exhaust: Room Supply m3 Extract m3 kitchen 100 (2 locations) Living room 45 Office 25 WC 30 utility 30 gym 45 family bathroom 30 en suite 30 master bedroom 35 spare bedroom 30 small bedroom 1 20 small bedroom 2 20 total 220 220 Definitely some issues with the CAD, but just playing for now. Not quite sure what I am aiming for though; do I want the longest possible runs between supply and exhaust, best coverage of the whole house with no "dead" zones, or just lowest main air age. Obviously no dead zones seems like a good start point. If folks want to interrogate more you can create your own SimScale account (for free) and copy the project and play (or just look properly at my results): https://www.simscale.com/workbench/?pid=1479988443212465839&mi=run%3A100%2Csimulation%3A99&mt=SIMULATION_RUN

OK. Thanks for this. I would not call slates (pieces of laminated rock say 16'' x 10'' - I think that's about 400 x 250 - too late to calculate) 'slate tiles'. I would call them slates, so you could argue that 'slate tiles' are likely to be synthetic. Or not. The OP , I think, said they were expecting natural slates ('slate slates'). In the end it hinges on what you paid and, as you say, that's hard to tease out.

I don’t get the heat pump and rads comments I could run a heat pump instead of a boiler with the same flow temps I’m running a gas boiler 13 rads with a flow temp of 30 - to 40 deg depending on outside temp - it’s an early 1980’s with some insulation improvements (loft insulation is mainly 70mm so sub standard) and I’m running it 24/7 with setbacks at night and during the day when there is no one home - rad delta is around 6 to 9 deg (depending on flow temp) none of the rads are in the traditional sense hot but room temps are comfortable.

I know we said only one present each but I couldn't resist this to slip into your stocking:

Absolutely this!!! Theres a lot of installers getting rich quite quickly. Always the same with any government scheme. Heat geek might be well ahead of other in the technical aspect, but they appear to be on an equal footing with others at taking the taxpayer for a ride. Same as my "free" 4g internet connection. About 250 quid on the open market. But they pay the installer 850!!!! And he does three a day. I guess the money run out now so they are onto EV charger installation. Funded by the welsh government. Again.

Tomato looks unbeatable in certain situations but, worth repeating if you have PV, Battery, Octopus Cosy and Fixed outgoing, still at 15p/kWh, run the finance numbers with care as that export can make a big difference, for example on my setup (6,000kWk pa, of which 3,000kWh exported, 5kW solar and 3kWh battery) I am £250pa better off staying with Octopus, and would need a much bigger battery and/or UFH batch heating to warrant a move to Tomato. Not sure there is a better tariff for my situation at the moment but interested to hear what others with a similar setup think.

Bit late to this, but in case it helps someone… I found ArchiTouch 3D pretty good. There’s a free plan, or you can pay by week/month/year. Easy to use, with or without an Apple Pencil, and the paid plan has quite useful outputs…

If the flow round the HP is much higher than the flow around the UFH loop you will get the warm water "short circuiting" through LLH/Buffer. The fact your two identical pumps are set to the same may be a clue. The pressure drop around the HP to LLH loop will be low so the flow, higher for a given pump speed. The pressure drop around the UFH loops will be higher, just because there is alot more distance. So the same pump.setting will result in a lower flow. If the flow around the UFH is lower than the HP, you'll get the HP short cycling. Ideally you want the two flow rates to be identical but that's near impossible. I would err on the side of the UFH loop being a bit higher flow. This will reduce the temp around the loop below the level the HP produces, but shouldn't be a major problem with the low temps a UFH system uses and should minimise short cycling.

Yes my plasterer always used SBR and I found it excellent.

Yes but that is what enables one to recharge batteries and thermal store several times every 24h. Admittedly it needs careful thought on how to program all systems to best advantage.

Hi All By way of an update: Heat geek have now agreed to honour the original price adjusted with the removal of the radiators and associated labour. I am much more comfortable with a final price of £11,054. Still perhaps a little expensive and I'll be interested to see what sundries they fit. I will updated this thread with comments on the quality of the install and the SCOP achieved which heat geek are guaranteeing at 350%.

20 minutes later you are finished. If your not sure what to buy or mix go to B&Q, to the bit with the sand and cement, and there will be ready mixed stuff you just add water. Mix stiff and trowel in place. Done. Procrastination gets you nowhere.

Managed to get your Chrimbo pressie in Lidl earlier today:

You can use normal wall ties with the full fill insulation boards. You need to really take care to clean up the snots and keep the cavity clean.

Oh I am sure there is (just sh1t stirring mate) for those of us that are interested what is your “to do list” like?

Oi @joe90 ! . Don’t you do a Labour on us LL’s ( get money for doing feck all ) . Still got a few years on my build aswell of work . Come and visit again and you’ll go “oh , there is still a bit too do “ 😝

That’s called “Sod’s Law” how long is that white pipe? 32mm is quite flexible to bend out of the way. If it’s a little leak wait till she is away tho whole job should not take more than a couple of hours !!! the trick is to get it done with no solvent glue applied, get the slip ring on one end and the pipes in line, smother the pipe where the slip ring is going to be then slip it over the glue in one go, using a threaded/screwing action. Easy peasy 😎 I once had to work in a downstairs maisonette and got the upstairs to not pull the flush or put any water down the drain for a couple of hours to do a similar job on the common drain down stairs 👍

I've even shown utility companies mains services they didn't know were there. Not on any drawing. It's seldom a good deal to buy a house in order to build an extension, unless you are a builder. It's done to avoid moving usually, and the increase in value is usually less than the cost......and then there is the disruption and, in your case, the risk

What if you cut that white pipe away from the boss, remove boss completely and replace. I have been looking for a slip ring for 40mm (or whatever size you have) in solvent weld but can’t find one but you might) i case you are not aware a slip ring is a straight joiner without the stop in the middle so you can “slip” it on then pull it back over the join. Otherwise use a straight joiner and carefully file away the stop in the middle. I have done this on jobs before and saves lots of work 🤷‍♂️

Ideal is made in the UK, which may have advantage for parts and support? Most heat pumps are good, the install is the important bit really Generally - Volumisers are ok, buffers avoid, lots of zones avoid. If the system looks very simple that is generally good. minimal install is heat pump, 3 way diverter valve to cylinder or heating system, one thermostat. Either run weather compensation or use thermostat on fixed temp of around 35 degs. A fixed flow temperature can yield performance benifits because it allows extended runs times and avoids short cycling. If installer suggests above 45 deg flow temp, move on to next installer. Cylinder size, two things drive this. number of bedrooms (minimum size), and life style (to make it bigger). There are two of us we have 210L and wouldn't want any smaller. If you have kids coming down the line, I would suggest 300L. Discussion on OVO over the last few days on here - have a search. But no thanks from me - based on their performance when I was a customer. Octopus may be a better choice.

>>> In economics, as opposed to accountancy, if you get your expected return on capital investment i.e. 6%, then it does not matter what happens to any excess. I’ve never come across an investor, who although planning for a 6% return wouldn’t happily take a 9% return.

1. Don't trust the drawing. It could be anywhere / not exist. I've worked in the utility sector, and specifically mapping side of things and they are rarely reliable. At our last property, the drawings showed a main sewer running right through all of the gardens, and if I'd trusted it, we would not have bought the house. In reality it was a further 8m back in an alleyway. You need to get somebody out to lift a few lids and tell you what is what. 2. It will likely be a small pipe serving just a couple of houses. Shallow, but easy to deal with. 3. Build over agreements are possible, you won't know until you have all the info and speak to the water company.

Hope this helps. There are three generic types of sewers. 1/ A private sewer. This serves your own house and belongs to you.. so you can do a lot. Now if you have a detached house this could run to the sewer in the road. Or you could be at the top end of a terrace.. if so there should be a rodding eye that allows for rodding of the drain along the back of all the other housese down stream.. you need to bear that in mind... keep the rodding eye accesible. 2/ A public sewer. These belong to the water company. These tend to be found along the line of a row of terraced houses at the back. But be aware that these can be deep if you live at the downstream end of the terrace. On occasion I find that these are not economic to get build over permission for if deep. I have seen sone at at least 3.0m which make a rear extension far from viable moneywise. 3/ A main sewer. These are big sewers (call them pylons in electricity terms) and tend to be very problematic to build near. Recomendations. Spend a £100.00 or so and get a utility search from an approved waterboard company.. could be Cornerstone etc. If you have 1 or 2 then it looks promising .. but check the ground levels. If 3 then make sure you get the place for next to nothing to cover your risk.

I would not. I would take the door frame out. Build shuttering either side and pour the concrete IN PLACE. When dry, put door frame back.

A low loss header, is just a hydraulic separation device. The flow goes in and out at the top, the return in and out at the bottom. If you are taking zone 2 off the bottom it's just getting the return water from zone 2. Think you need to post some photos Suspect the LLH is plumbed incorrectly.

Not sure that is true with low temp heating. Would be true for high temp radiators. A 20 deg room would need 26 at top of apex, our floor surface temp not getting that high, so top of room cannot be hotter than the heat source. Other day was -5 and floor was at about 23-24. Just did a check with the thermal camera, the ceiling at the top of the room is 1 Deg warmer than the external walls. Did the other day when it was cold and not much difference either.

I was referring to the temperature of the Rads Warm more than hot

That’s quite a list, I would be pi##ed off with that builder, makes me grateful for the brilliant builder I had. However I think you need to decide if getting the builder to put this right (replace whole roof with proper slate) is worth the grief you will suffer on top of the nonsense you have already suffered. The type of slate effect tiles installed are used a lot and as others have said will last a long time. I would however tell the builder (with a full list of his errors) that you are not pleased with his work and what compensation is he willing to offer (which will be cheaper to him than correcting his errors.)

I share your grief. I really do. In reality most domestic house builders tend to treat drawings as advisory rather than mandatory. They certainly don't spend the hours pouring over every detail like you and I have done. We had windows, walls, waste pipes, ducts, doors, stairs in the wrong place after I spent countless hours fretting every mm when I was drawing it. On most jobs, close enough is good enough, but to a self builder with an eye for detail it's infuriating. The only way to ensure it's done to your satisfaction is appropriate daily briefing to the trades, on the clock of course, and regular supervision. If I was to build again, I would lock the site and not allow anyone on it without my oversight. It took me about 2 years to calm down from all the frustrations like the ones you shared but now I don't think about them(much!) . I just get on with life in what is by any standards, a very very good house. Your house won't be perfect, but be fair on yourself, it's probably still much better that almost everyone else's.

Maybe it's not exactly what you had pictured in your minds eye but I would try to keep a balanced view. The house I grew up in house has manmade slates since 1951 and they're still up there, day in day out keeping the weather at bay. They have gone somewhat grey and are more brittle than new but they've never leaked. A similar aged house in the locality had theirs painted recently with specialist paint to smarten them up and reinforce them somewhat. Natural slate isn't without it's issues either. Some of the imported stuff can be of extremely variable quality resulting in lots of waste and high fitting bills. Welsh slate is very very expensive. It's far heavier and will stress the roof timbers more. We put fiber cement on our roof, even paid a little extra for the fancier type. Complete waste of money. Nobody ever noticed. I don't think anyone will spend too much time looking at yours if I'm honest. The builder is running a business and will naturally tender to the most competitive specification. I don't think you can really blame them. Just make sure the price tag reflects what you have and spend the savings on something more important like a comfy chair or a boiling water tap.

Above sounds about right. Depending on thickness of screed you would need to fiddle with thermostat hysterisis. So get one that can go as low as 0.1 degs hysterisis. Then if your overshooting, undershooting, you can correct with hysterisis. Trying to run two systems with very differing inertia isn't easy. You either accept one is always wrong or put a controller to limit it.

Then look at your floor U-Value, while 0.14 W.m-2.K-1 seems impressive, the heated slab is not room temperature i.e. 20°C [293K], it is probably closer to 30°C [303K], so losses are higher, and highest when you need the heating most. The ground floor/slab is also one part you cannot improve later. The Celotex XR4000 has a k-value of 0.022 W.m-2.K-1, which is a normal value for a PIR material. Increasing the thickness from 0.12m to .2m changes the R-value from 5.45 to 9.05 m2.K.W-1. That is the kind of improvement that would negate the last 2 years energy cost rises for that element. Many people on here have found that second floor (or is it first floor, upstairs) UFH is not necessary in a well insulated and airtight house. Natural convection and conduction though the internal fabric usually suffices. Having said that, not many people believe that is the case, so it does offer some reassurance, and is relatively cheap to install. By Buildhub standards, that is pretty poor, and if you are fitting MVHR, which you should be, then sub 1 ACH is better. Be careful with the air test calculations as the m3.m-2, air volume divided by surface area, at 50 Pa, calculation is for all exposed elements, not just the volume of air divided by the floor area. A Vapour Control Layer (VLC) is NOT there to improve airtightness, it is there just to stop the high humidity internal air passing into the structure and condensing into liquid water. It is on the wrong side of the insulation i.e. the warm side (in the UK) to improve airtightness. Ideally an air test should be done before the VLC is installed, but no one every wants to pay for several air tests, so very few people really know how effective the insulation is, until cold patches and mould appear. Some people have made their own fan units and test as they build. There is nothing to stop you opening windows, in fact, if you have to open a window, it shows the hard work of getting the airtightness right was worth it. And you have control of where the 'leak' is, not the builders.

I’ve run a plastering company for forty years Wet plastering labour is more but materials are less So evens itself out Settlement cracks are about the same I could have done either on our builds But chose dot and dab as it’s a warmer feel I used to use thousands of bags of Parge each year Mostly for sound deadening But even the housing associations have dropped it now it’s a complete waste of money Only self builders seem to use it You should be sealing the boards to stop the air getting behind them Our air test has tested as a 2 Traditional solid build Lotss of glass and three vaulted ceilings Which is good enough for comfort If you do decide to use Parge Don’t call it airtightness coat Tell the dry liners that it’s what it says on the back SOUND BLOCK coat Or they won’t bother sealing anything up Fifteen years ago when we used Parge on nearly every job the blockwork was shocking Gaps in joints and snots everywhere Then overnight BC clamped down and all joints where pointed and bar finished No need for Parge

Section B-B If that flat roofed dormer is only there for headroom for the stairs, then re design the stairs and avoid the dormer. Fewer steps on the first flight to the half landing then more steps on the second flight, until you achieve required headroom on the upper flight without the dormer. That will save you a lot which you can spend elsewhere. And why do you want concrete stairs?

Insulation seems very reasonable, your well into law of diminishing returns at that stage! Maybe eek the flood up a bit with UFH. Ours is 0.11 floor, 0.22 walls (shoulda done better but realised too late) and 0.14 roof. Air tightness either becomes a focused investment or DIY, you will need to be all over the trades at all times realistically. I used to drive past the house after work nearly everyday with expanding foam and sealant doing what I could around the edges (DIY). We then stuck a wood burner in with external vent and lots of sliding doors 🤪

As a complete novice, what I liked about the passive slab, was how simple it was to execute and understand. The EPS tub created a continuous insulation layer you could see. No cold bridges, and no extra steps. The power floated concrete gave you a finished floor, which needs no additional work, no screed no additional moisture being pumped into your build. I went with fermacell for the same reason, no wet skim adding moisture to the build. The simplicity of putting the UFH in a large piece of concrete with a lot of mass and the ability to hold a lot of heat. This suits the ASHP for heating and cooling. I had ICF on top of my slab, so this was even more simple, the continuous insulation layer around the whole house could be inspected and easily understood. I realise these options aren't for everyone and not applicable in a lot of builds. But don't underestimate the value of simplicity, even if it costs more.

You pair of bumders are really making a mountain out of a mole hill. @Pocster get your tube of tiger seal and squirt a great big blob of it onto a board, put one of your best latex gloves on and get that stuff slapped on, no gun needed no bendy farking tube. when it’s proper lubed up get a sponge and dip it in white spirit, smooth that bad boy jizm out with the sponge. winner winner chicken dinner.

No ! . Use the sugar !

Thanks ! Got yours today also

I know mate ! . Can’t do a list - I just walk around looking at 500 things and think “ must finish that “ …

Why what else are you going to do. It’s not like you have a day job? (Tin hat on).🥷

It’s like my tires a bit flat , I could put some air in it and see what happens or remove the entire thing and fit a new tyre . One of those is asking for trouble . I’ll grow some hair around it another day . Trying to generate work for me ffs ! 🤣

Come on you pussy, only an hours work, two at the most, she can cross her legs for that long surely. p.S. I always sand the areas to be glued to make sure the glue works best and lots of it from a fresh pot.

Wrong forum! We are all cynics and miserable.

Interesting. I had one that failed, that I kept for years, wanting to so a post mortem, but could find no way to open it to get at the bladder short of cutting it in half with an angle grinder, which would make it rather hard to put back together.