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Sliders - at 2.4m you have a good chance of them sealing and can get them triple glazed and they don’t cost the earth. I’ve seen so many sets of bifold doors installed thanks to the glossies that never get used. They are a structural nightmare and on a cost basis when you include everything, at over 3m they become about 4 times the cost of the same glazed area of French doors. We replaced a full sliding wall (6m) from an architects design with 3 sets of French doors for 15% of the price of the bifolds, they are more useable and they seal better !!

Been a while. Had no time. Contrary to the rest of the world, i did not have a minute of rest in 2020 and even 2021 looks similar so far. Finally managed to update the blog... https://tintabernacle.blogspot.com/2021/03/the-ringbeam-is-in-or-above.html Clickbaity headline , but i promise... Shuttering DID burst (even though nothing fatal) and Concrete DID explode (again , nothing fatal) More in the blog . Cheers ? P.S.: @Jeremy Harris , i am still missing you and this place has become less of a fascination for me since you gone, so get your s**t together and help us helpless noobs out ? . @Russell griffiths trying his best to replace you, but he just doesnt have the endless depths of statistical analysis and tables ? (still a big help though) Not to forget the rest of the very patient and knowledgeable Buildhubbers -thank you all !

There is still to this day details that come across my desk and I look at them and know instantly, that it has been the architects maybe even the clients last things on their mind. Windows and doors are integral to the thermal envelope and airtight layer. Without them, you just have a big hole in the wall(s) and airtight layer. https://passipedia.org/planning/thermal_protection

I'd agree with that, any of the lads I have living away wouldn't stay for anything less than 12 hours a shift.. Except on a Friday ...

Stop messing around with lawyers and get the gardener to dig a hole. Job done. You know the answer to your question ref proximity then. Also, I want to see this damn pipe now...it is becoming infamous. Lots of pics please?

Indeed. Days go much quicker too if you push on, which is important to me as I’m away from a wife and 4 dependant children. Sooner I can chew through the work sheet the better. Would ve differeht if the pubs were open,for the craic, but I’ve become almost unable to drink past a coupe of beers these days anyhoo.... Times have changed and it’s been a good respite in some respects, with being able to readdress priorities and take stock ( during Covid ).

Yup. I’m away a lot and it’s just far more cost effective to put in a long day, by the time you factor in travel / fuel / accommodation. I’d rather be grafting and earning than sat in the hotel bar getting fatter. If I’m near home, I do shorter days typically, but more often than not I’m on price not day / hour rate, so the sooner I get it done the more profitable the week.

That doesn’t make sense. UValue for a wall is made up of all the elements. If it’s the same timber fraction, same insulation and depth then the uValue is the same...! How much of a premium is prefitted vs on site ..?

Pcc every time. Never used warranty never had a problem

I fitted Hudson Reed thermostatic shower three way valve at my old place. Lasted about 2 years before i needed to replace one of the cartridges which was bloody fiddly to do. 18 months after that it needed replacing again. Never again! Now considering crosswater which is a bit more than Hudson Reed, but has a 15 year guarantee if registered on the tap itself and a 5 year guarantee on the o-rings, diverter and cartridges. Going to install a water softener too, so hoping taps will last.

Most I know start at 8 knock off by 3 or 4 pm. ... by the end of the day their quality of work is definitely dropping off... can’t imagine what it would be like after 10 hours every day!

An hour in the morning is worth 2 in the afternoon. Productivity drops off after about 6 hours.

It’s normal for you if you want it to be. Guys I know work 8 hours with 15 minute break in the morning and 30 mins for lunch start at 8 and finish 4

I have done some flat conversions and just did PCC. It was acceptable to all 6 buyers / their lenders and much cheaper than NHBC, who had not appetite for conversions. CML give a list of lenders who will accept a PPC. Not worth the paper they are not written on if you ever wanted to claim, but then structural warranties are not a lot of use either.

I would push the doors out to 15mm back from the outside face of the brickwork, bring the steel inside your insulation barrier ie wrap insulation round the outside of it all

Thats more or less what i m getting. I m getting 3.5m long sections out of I-Beams , all precut in factory. The issue is not the frame but the right guys... I m now finally at the stage to hire the team for this summer but builders are busier than ever

Since I’ve now been to your site Patrick I think I would get a factory made kit, in 3m by 2.4m panels and carry them in and erect on site. 4 lads carrying it in, and 2 erecting will have it up in 10 days.

Fwiw i dug down to find our water main on the other side of the road where i needed it connecting. Put a fence post on it and loosely filled it back in. Everyone involved with the pipe said i was a very bad boy and should never do such a thing again BUT it was very helpful and saved all of them a lot of time and effort. Pipe is now connected and no one got taken to court

Most Smart TVs now only work on WiFi so unless you have SkyQ (and specifically ask for it to not have over Wifi connectivity) then a single port is fine. Agree with @jack about PoE, and also consider running to a couple of centralised wall or ceiling locations to fit PoE access points. I did see a faceplate a couple of weeks ago that gave 2 access points from a single cable but it used all pairs and you would need to be very careful about not putting a PoE injector on that cable ..!!

Yep so if I’d paid someone I reckon £1k install and £1k unit ..? I got some decent eBay deals and also used things such as 63mm ducting rather than the “proper” duct. It does show it doesn’t need to cost loads and I think the issue is sometimes the “specialist retailers” tell you it has to be SAP-Q etc and that their ducting is coated with anti-COVID Unobtainium TetraOxide, so you soon end up a £5k bill for the kit alone.

Not explicitly, but I use PoE for the access points mentioned above. Definitely need to think about this if you want cameras, too. Consoles would be the obvious one if you or your children use them. I believe Sky boxes can use ethernet too (and I'd want a hard connection if I were streaming UHD), plus if you want a Plex-type box or DVR, that's another connection. I think two is the minimum unless you know you won't use any of these things.

Nope you can tank around a tray - it’s belt and braces.

Nope it was done by me - so about an hour per window..? MVHR ducts were probably a day, unit the same ..?

No one has mentioned power over ethernet uses so far. My priorities when wiring my house will be: Support for two WiFi zones that I assume provide automatic handover to the strongest access point. External WiFi zone to cast a decent signal into the main patio. Entrance door security cam+speaker via wired POE. A few external POE security cams plus an internal garage cam, probably won't wire these up until I am half way through retirement. Two wired telephone sockets because GSM is weak in the village. Extra isolated wired connection to the home office for network security. An extra smart router that can fail over to a GSM antenna in the attic because our rural broadband has multiple bad days each month when the data rate plummets from 35 to 0.5. A cable at each possible TV location. People often recommend two, not sure why?

? And there was me trying to big you up!

Ta. I used 4x50s.

Window guy I used to use built his own house. Stuck (litterally) the trickles on till it was signed off then whipped them off.

No consistency

Just checked and it was these ones we installed and they come with up to 1” brass inserts. Fitted them with Tectite sprint push fits in brass as it’s all exposed copper. https://store.sterner.co.uk/products/aquafilter-10-filter-housing-c-w-1-2-ports?variant=32896725712950

I just dug a 13m long trench, 700mm deep and 100-150mm wide. A mattock is invaluable and then some. Was using the flat to lift the spoil at the end. Less than my boots width. That was in clay. For digging straight down by hand, a relatively small hole then you won't go far wrong with one of these pronged digging tools followed by the digging spoons. Great too for general tilling of garden beds. Mine I think is Wilkinson Sword and has flat blade prongs. Don't think they make them any longer. This sort of thing but I'd say mine is more robust with the 4 heavy duty blades instead of round prongs: (Designed I think original for the elderly so save them bending etc).

Airtightness is a big part of my business Mostly fireproofing But the same thing The fabric of our first build is extremely airtight Just the compulsory sash windows that let it down I put a post on here regarding friends that had emitted trickle vents (no MVR) They have since had there visit from BC and been told it is ok to not have trickle vents if they are able to open the window slightly and lock it in place Worth knowing

your battery's a bit low...

Yes To the right of my picture we have a set of French doors Which are used everyday in summer

Well the one way to address that is to change the standards and then the skills will follow. Sad fact is most volume house builders have made their profit when planning is granted and everything from there on in is a cost to be reduced. Usually only 1:10 builds is inspected by BC (I got this figure direct from a BC themselves) so if that one barely passes then god knows what state the others are in. SAP has helped to a degree but we've all seen new builds with 'bolt on green' like solar thermal that the householders likely do not understand either. As a nation, we're not very environmentally literate - we like nature and the countryside and tut at litter and fly tipping but won't learn how to reduce energy consumption at home unless it's really hitting us in the pocket.

I’ve got 200mm of knauf omni fit in between my rafters and 70mm pir under for 0.14 far easier to fit than cutting all that pir.

My bifolds are between house and a conservatory , great for letting light in floor to ceiling and if the temp is above 20’ in the conservatory they are opened (to the kitchen diner and another to the lounge). I call it my solar collector!!!. In high summer when it’s hot we keep them closed to stop the house overheating, but that’s rare.

I think French doors are more forgiving if your just using 1 door all the time. Its a lot of expense to have opened up a handful of times but all depends how you live. I've always had French doors in my places and I never seem to open the slave door. We sit either inside or outside

I rewired a couple of years. CAT5e to every room, use 3 of them, one in the box room for the computer, and one to each of the virgin cable boxes. I also have one hard wired phone downstairs and one upstairs, as they will still work in a powercut. The cordless ones won’t and the mobiles don’t pick reception in the house unless they connect to the WiFi.

@Haku Trickle vents and extractor fans have a poor record of maintaining an acceptable level of air quality. Over ventilation in windy weather cools the house and occupants close window and wall vents. Noisy extractor fans get turned off. This is seldom rectified in still weather leading to high humidity, high CO2 and high VOCs through under ventilation. Poor occupant health and decaying buildings are the ultimate result. In essence it is a manually controlled system. It can work with very diligent house owners who have appropriate knowledge and time to alter the vents as required. Unfortunately most people don't understand and don't have the time The simple answer is continuous mechanical ventilation of some sort. This can suck out blow in or both. Simply replacing basic extractor fans with humidity controlled ones which run at a low level 24/7 is only a small price increase but will make a noticeable difference. No maintenance or knowledge required. We used to run the kitchen extractor in our old rental cottage when we were out. It made a measurably difference to mould and damp. Remember, as a developer,poor ventilation also makes sick buildings and you're more likely to have call backs from your new neighbours if you don't take care of it at construction. We installed MVHR. Cost <€3k Inc vat for 186m2 DIY. Wouldn't be without it. No cold spots, no drafts. No noise from outside. TLDR. Natural ventilation doesn't work in practice. Continuous Mechanical ventilation keeps occupants and buildings healthy. MVHR does the above, improves comfort and saves energy

Not thick enough by a long way ..!! Use tanalised CLS, set below the joists 22mm and then glued and screwed to the joists. Then cut the ply to fit the gaps, glue and screw the ply to the CLS. That forms your deck for the shower tray to sit on and will be bombproof. Tanking would be preferable but LVT doesn’t really sit well on tanking. You could add a 6mm ply all over to strengthen the floor and sandwich a tanking membrane to stop any issues. I would be cutting the bottom 300mm from the plasterboard all round and replacing with moisture resistant board.

Temp, the waste will go directly down through ceiling in the corner into 50mm pipe, see pic. So hopefully He won’t have to worry to much about heights of waste and tray and fall. TonyT, he did double up the joists when the extension was done so hopefully they’ll be ok. Think he’s going to get some of my roof laths and run them along joist for ply to sit on. I’ll get him to look at the tray you mentioned. Regards. James

I remember Jeremy saying 10 years ago the govt couldn't control energy prices. He might of been right but till you see energy prices double or maybe triple nobody normal is going to prioritise passive

MVHR (and PV IMO) are both no brainers if you are building a modern, well insulated and airtight house. I have a Zehnder Q350 unit and I can't speak highly enough of the unit - quiet, efficient and does what it says on the tin. Given your other choice is *shudder* trickle vents - I mean, come on!!!!

Phwoar!

We may have to have a quiet retrospective chat about my rates for tiling then !

Did you watch them ? ???

Fack me @nod you love to live dangerously don't you

390m apparently ? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodingdean_Water_Well#:~:text=The Woodingdean Water Well is,later%2C on 16 March 1862.

C'mon @AliG I know you jocks are tight but a man with a house as big as yours getting his hands dirty digging a hole like this?! Can't you get a local smackhead on the job. Is @ToughButterCup young strapping labourer available