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TBH if somebody comes to me wanting to install £40k worth of renewables ( retro fit ) then I ask them if they really want to do that as they're never going to see the payback. Great for some who say its for their childrens' children, and also great for the few who actually instruct me to do as they wish regardless of RoI etc, something that happens more frequent that you'd think. The '20 year question' has a point, as in its the reasonable time to expect to see RoI and to actually see the financial ( removing morals for the moment ) benefits of pursuing such endeavours. One chap rang the other day asking about SA / PV / etc and how to rid himself of his oil combi. After finding out he wanted to move in 10 years or less to his 'forever home' I told him to change to a condensing combi, improve the insulation if possible, and maybe fit PV but only if he wanted to. I have to show due diligence so cannot be an eco-warrior with other peoples money, so my perspective may not be aligned with most on this forum, or anywhere else for that matter, but id still like to focus on that term, eg 20 years. Another question is would folk be better off changing to all electric ? eg switching from oil to an electric boiler ( high temp for radiators in most instances of retro fit ) and fortifying with PV ? Too multi-faceted to ask here, unless anyones bored, but the core question remains, regarding fuel costs for the next 2 decades so I can reinforce my case when clients come knocking for 'renewable solutions'. Im off to McDonalds now, and then to the off-license, and then to the betting shop with my Giro. Must be back home by 11 for the back-to-back episodes of Jeremy Kyle. Not.

It won't be multi-millions else I'm in trouble ? Good guess re location - not in Sandbanks, much cheaper than there but nice views as we're on top of a hill and get some views over Poole harbour

I feel the fine tuning of such an inspirational modern design should be left to a high-end professional after you have gathered opinion here. Is this some multi £ million pad to be built in Sandbanks Poole? Those pine trees look familiar.

I am on start of a self-build journey. I have never built a house before and like Velox ICF. Has anybody else used this product ? What do you think of it ?

So going on holiday in the middle of your build is not ideal. Best laid plans and all that. Holiday booked a year previously. With extended family so couldn't avoid it. House build delayed by lots of things. Resulting in our holiday being slap bang in the middle of the timber frame construction. Reluctantly we left for northern France, asking the build team at MBC to send photos. They didn't. [But a friend did, so we knew it was all going up] The problem is that we didn't see how much of the frame went up so had a lot of questions on our return. First day back and we spotted this. Actually this is a photo from the second day but we didn't spot the problem until the internal walls were up. The window isn't in the centre. This is our stair well which will have stairs that go up, along and back. It took me about 3 seconds to notice it once we got home from holiday and about 3 seconds to realise that OH wouldn't be able to stand it with the window off centre. Completely our fault. Should have spotted it on the MBC drawings about 6 months earlier. The MBC crew were great. We all set about solving the problem. Moving the opening was the obvious one but not easy due to a structural vertical support being to the left of the opening. You can see what we did in the next photo. Sadly, it wasn't possible to change our window order (already in manufacture) so we ended up ordering a new window....... Anyone need a window?

As for free labour - Mine, I spent my time doing general fetching and carrying and all the decorating. I am not useful for anything else but even so, I figured I have saved myself £1,000's by doing just these types of jobs. I would rather spend my time [hours] moving tiles etc into position than someone I'm paying £25 an hour etc.

We were I believe the first UK residential installation. Retail cost of rectangular units was circa £800 per m2 and shaped units (we have 3) were double that but we negotiated a substantial discount. Not sure what impact exchange rates will have had since then but, if your budget can accommodate it, SageGlass is such an elegant solution.

Is the CIL in your area? To qualify for the self builder CIL exemption you must do some paperwork before starting any work on site. I think you may need advice on how to proceed given he may have started some work. Perhaps if you now got permission for a new design (with no demolition mentioned) you can argue that no work has been done on the new application ??

One of the things that caught us out was what was included in each quote. For example, erection of timber frame kit. They were given the materials list and then supplied the quote. When it came to the sarking it was ‘not included guv’ even though it was in the list so we paid extra. So a detailed quote is really needed to catch everything, but builders tend to be pretty bad at this and self builders without experience don’t know it should be there in the first place so things get missed. Add to that the things you miss from your original estimate, the things you pay more for as ‘a little bit extra won’t hurt’, and the materials that cost more for a variety of reasons when you come to buy them, and all of that squeezes the budget. Then there are things you have to replace. Here it was a custom made cill as someone smashed one. The cost of having another one made and transported here was way out of proportion relative to the main order. Other people have broken windows, ordered windows that didn’t fit, smashed their new hob etc etc and that all adds to the cost. Plus the optimistic ‘I’ll be done in 9 months’ and then you are not and have to secure an extension to the site insurance that costs way more than if you had just added a bit extra to begin with. I did alter the spend on the kitchen and bathrooms to suit what was left in the budget so did land on budget as I economised in those areas. Do I regret it? Kitchen not really, bathrooms I wish I had spent more on so cost control is important but decide wisely.

Josef Fritzl

Gut feel is with you, that it's "tracking" from elsewhere.

Just remove all sharp objects from the house first

Would you even notice, what with all the watersports etc?

I'm desperately to fit my wall plate. To do that I need to drill into concrete that was poured on Sunday. Please can I try today? Please daddy please!

The blockwork nicely frames and sets of the dungeon window!

Any problem can be overcome, it just depends how much you want to spend overcoming a problem which is actually caused by your neighbour's "trespass"

Is it worth trying to get the TPO revoked/permission to remove? I can't see a 30yr old Robinia having such a positive impact on the street scene to warrant a TPO?

Yep, everything you have said is correct and it sounds like you are factoring in the correct things when assessing risk (though in every setting there are a great many unknowns - you may have a local busybody in any neighbourhood who likes reporting things for instance, and whilst Councils do not like these people, they can't ignore them either, and they tend to crop up were you least expect them). If faced with a decision as to whether to make a change to your plans without reverting back to the planning dept, the factor you have perhaps to attach most weight to in my opinion is: how serious would it be for me if I ended up having to change this back to match the original plans? Whilst you are quite right that an enforcement notice is not a big deal in itself (though it can upset lenders and buyers a bit), it's more the cost of doing what the notice asks of you that can be the hard bit. If you are thinking of adding a door instead of a window, you may decide to proceed without going back to the planners as the cost of having to change it back is not too bad if the worst should ever come to the worst. I'd probably do that myself. If you find that your roof ridge needs to creep up a bit on the other hand, you are in a different area altogether. The cost of changing that later if you had to doesn't bear thinking about, so whatever you do, go to the planners first.

Nice and a great design for the location. Having sailed in and out of Poole many times I have been able to eyeball the development of Sandbanks from seaward and can imagine the lifestyle such a property will offer.

Thanks, such helpful responses. @lizzie yes I was reading your challenges there on the film. @the_r_sole that could be a sensible approach ? there may be some economy there as well - for example bringing the wall up to the roof line and in slightly more on the left. The views are quite amazing though so we need to ensure we get the balance right (for us) regarding glazing/views/heat etc. Thanks @Nickfromwales will look into that - it is new to me. As the real issues are (usually) confined to 1-2 months of the year I was thinking AC prep would be a bit of risk mitigation for bedrooms. It's great to have suggestions to make us review (again) the design, after all - this is the cheapest time to do it! I'll have to study a bit more the effectiveness of different glass treatments to see how they can help with the top floor as there we are unlikely to need any solar gain in the winter.

@Adam2 I think I would go for solar glass if I were you, much cleaner..... I have a major overheating problem on south/west elevations and I am single storey. I have investigated lots of external blinds (can give you company names but not recommends as not used the product) and may yet get a couple fitted next year but for me that is now a challenge as building is complete and cabling is a problem. I think @vivienz is having external blinds and bris Soleil.. I am having external solar film fitted this week on my living area windows (S&W), I have had a long journey to find a film suitable for my laminated windows..... I have internal black out blinds in the bedrooms and I they are not very effective for solar gain. I am told you need to stop the heat getting in, once its in and internal blind will just help keep it in.

Solar PV would be 'interesting' with that shape of structure. All electric would be a neat solution, but its down to heat loss figures and matching the solution with the problem. Best to do a proper analysis on overheating as cooling ( with that huge amount of glass ) could be more of a consideration than heating ! The biggest issues will be on the upper two floors, so be 100% diligent in your investigations. Too early to have a stab at whats going to be best TBH, but I think you'll do well not to have to have active cooling on the upper floors, annoyingly just to deal with the peak months for solar gain. This could be mitigated largely with a good solar reflective coating / film as some have done with good results, and I think I'd start there. I don't think it would harm to run this through PHPP even if your not going that route, just to get a well defined breakdown of risks and requirements. A SA for DHW is a no-brainer, just to get away from G3 and discharge pipework more than anything, but with a heat sensitive house you also want too actively reduce standing losses from any such device. An ASHP is likely, as you'll need a fair bit of heat in the winter, but you'll also have a means to provide active 'cooling'. You could also go for wet duct heaters / coolers in the upper floors to accent the ambient eg do away with UFH for the very upper floor at least. Wet duct heaters for the gym may be attractive too, so you could run cooling just there whilst doing some thing called exercise. I'll google that later, maybe

Hi, yes exactly - it is a design consideration ? Glazing does face south. The existing house has ~75% of the planned amount of glazing in this aspect compared to the new one, will ask my friend that is staying there how he has coped during the summer! Current glazing is pretty old Natural shading/buildings providing shading: Basement level = very high cover so not concerned here LG level = partial shading from East through to S GF = somewhat less shading than LG 1F= not much shading For LG & GF we may need glazing that stops solar gain at the expense of losing some of the benefits in winter + the use of external measures - brisse soleil and possibly external blinds - any links and info on those appreciated. for 1st floor probably maximum solar reduction in glazing as we will not need the solar gain in the summer. Louvres in design for upper window and may consider roof projection a bit further but this is limited help as slopes upwards but in peak season may be beneficial. Have been looking at split single room A/C units and possibly we should incorporate wiring/conduit for these should we feel they would be beneficial in future. Not sure if there are add-ons to MVHR that could improve cooling ability if needed later. Having UFH with single floor zoning may be benefical in evening temp from S and N areas of the house? Thanks Adam

No but some people like to sleep at night ...

That said, I think you're right to underline this @lizzie. That's a LOT of glass. @Adam2, what direction is this heavily glazed elevation facing? Anything other than north and I don't think it can be overemphasised how important solar gain control will be. Be aware that while internal blinds will help, they're hugely less effective than stopping the sunlight before it reaches the windows. We have external blinds on some windows and they do a great job of cutting solar gain down to almost nothing. In the one room (east facing main bedroom) where we should have had external blinds but chose not to install them to save money, blockout fabric curtains still leak an awful lot of heat in the mornings.

Have you been mis sold a combi boiler in the last 10 years. If so we offer a no win no fee no hassle claim service. Has a nice ring to it.

Maybe consider Polarwall (assuming you haven't already discounted it), as Alan there is incredibly knowledgeable and extremely helpful. I believe Vijay on here is using that system.

You're probably getting a guarantee with your timber frame (presuming it's design, supply and erect). While it might be possible to ventilate a timber frame through rockwool/wood fibre and a breathable render would this void the timber frame guarantee? They may demand a ventilated cavity in small print someplace. In addition what happens if someone paints the house with a non breathable or acrylic based paint? I'd talk to the timber frame company and see what they'll approve unless you can convince your architect to take design responsibility and then use his insurance if it goes wrong.

I spoke to the seller last night and he is pursuing purchase of the strip of land, although it may take some time, as mentioned before. However, it now seems there is a slight difference in the boundary of the strip and the land already owned by the seller, so he is arranging for a site visit by someone from the Land Registry, who hopefully will give a definitive answer. In any event, I have told him that we only want to buy the plot if it includes the strip of land. Anyway, thank you all for your replies, they have been most helpful.

If it helps, as an LPA planner who works in enforcement I would advise you that if you stray from your approved plans in any way then you are exposing yourself to risk. Even if the chances are that nothing ever comes from it, you need to be aware that the risk exists. There are very few projects of any type which don't evolve at all between the planning application stage and finishing on site, and that's the simple reality. At the same time, the value of putting a set of drawings in when seeking permission is reduced if we don't then stick to those plans when we build, increasingly so the greater the differences between what we build and what we asked for permission to build. The idea that you should sweep all the minor changes up into one accurate plan is correct, but as best you can you should do that before you build, just in case the Council don't approve those changes.

Getting back to @Nickfromwales question. Taking a slightly different tack...... im always quite interested in this “what’s the next 20 years” type question. Are there any stats that show how long the average self builder stays in the house they’ve built? If the answer is (say) 10 years then the original question becomes a little achedemic? Or at least half as important!!

Is that the royal we?

Is that a mirror you're looking at?

Very nice design. With that amount of glazing, maybe worth considering a full ducted AC system? MVHR is a no brainer. Mains gas system boiler, sunamp. Wether you run a buffer tank Nick is your expert who actually knows his stuff! What ICF have you been looking at?

Managed to grab an image from the animation that may make this clearer to grasp (from a solar gain perspective). Some changes since this was created.

however you power it I highly recommed MVHR & UFH + heated towel rads. V cosy warm house,

As a non-alcoholic, median weight, UK (and Irish) citizen, with no debts and only a modicum of vulgarity (and normally only when provoked) I'd question the accuracy of this overly harsh generalisation of the general population and the members of this forum...

It's an exceptionally crude bit of kit, that even when produced by a reputable factory looks like it's been made in someone's garage. The only parts that needed accurate machining, rather than bench fabrication, were the barrel and breech block IIRC, everything else is pretty much just sheet metal or tube. The hardest part to make is probably the magazine, as that's a weird affair that feeds rounds in side by side over most of it's length.

No such thing at 6.5mm² cable, as far as I'm aware. You can easily calculate the cable size needed for a given load (remembering to apply the diversity rules in BS7671) from this handy cable voltage drop calculator: https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Technical/Charts/VoltageDrop.html Select the cable type (most probably two core SWA, as you'll need to TT the caravan installation) and also that it will be buried. Select an ambient of 10 deg C, as that's about the maximum soil temperature, then just stick in the 22m length and your estimated load and it will give you the required cable size and maximum voltage drop. As a guide, a 10 kW load at 22m would need 6mm² two core SWA, and I'd guess that 10 kW (allowing for diversity) should be more than enough for a caravan supply. Edited to say that I cross posted with @ProDave

Must be all that cosying up in a cold caravan. Thank God I had a rental flat ?.

Oh dear, I already know what's going to happen and my misses isn't going to like it. Roll on building it myself lol.