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Showing content with the highest reputation on 10/01/21 in all areas

  1. If I think "I could have done a better job", then you know it's bad.
    3 points
  2. I am in the same boat (without a rudder!), can’t decide how much to invest in windows. I like alu-clad systems but concerned by cost, long lead times and horror stories about fitting. I am inclined towards a local aluminium fabricator who will supply and install ... and be within arms reach to remedy any faults if needed. Can’t make a recommendation but I have done quite a bit of due diligence on them, PM me if you want yet another option ...
    2 points
  3. Don't tell @tonyshouse! If you plaster instead you will have a nice airtight layer. With dabs you often find that cold outside air can find it's way in and move around freely behind the plasterboard.
    2 points
  4. I very much echo what a number of the others have said in that it's best to keep things simple. For my set up I have UFH downstairs and radiators upstairs. UFH has 8 zones. with 2 doubled up in larger rooms so 6 rooms/areas in total. My Loxone system controls the demand using the touch switch thermostats and then opens a zone valve for UFH or Rads as required using relays. The zone valves then trigger the boiler as would be the case in a normal heating set up. I essentially took the view that Loxone would replace the traditional time clock/programmer but with much greater control and configuration. I'm a Loxone partner so went with Loxone tree actuators on the manifold and AIR ones on the radiators as it made wiring simpler (ours was a refurb not a new build). @jack is right, there have been some issues with Loxone actuators failing with broken components internally. They have a 2 year warranty but it's a hassle to have to send them back for them to be assessed and then a replacement sent out. For clients now, I generally advise to go with a "standard" type heating set up and not use the Loxone actuators. It saves a huge amount of cost and, if you go with a heatmiser UFH control box (about £90 I think) then Loxone just has to trigger each zone demand and the heatmiser takes care of the valve opening and boiler firing. It means you can use readily available and cheaper 230V NC actuators. The advantage is that, apart form Loxone triggering the demand for heat, everything else is familiar to heating engineers/plumbers and electricians so simple to maintain in future. Hope that helps.
    2 points
  5. its just not pointed is all, if you want it to be pointed (better for air tightness) ask the brickie to make sure it is. Some sites its not pointed as its not seen and plastered over anyway. if its the the inner leaf the tie is on the wrong side ?
    2 points
  6. A bricklayer didn't build that. Some guy who has a trowel and lump hammer did.
    2 points
  7. First floor starting to take shape
    1 point
  8. I had a planner like that, went to appeal and won hands down, appeal officer even told her she was not abiding by their own policies ?
    1 point
  9. Quick answer is NO ive a render spray machine About 10k a few years back Yiu still need the same skills to straighten and finish it
    1 point
  10. He's serious. http://tonyshouse.readinguk.org/tonytray.pdf What a legend. Pardon my ignorance.
    1 point
  11. @pocster just round the corner from you eh?
    1 point
  12. I have but different building type , and the rules of process have changed. I am working on warrant application and trying to use plain language rather than too many references: I hope I am right. if i was the BCO I would prefer that. So in my case I am saying...clause 3.2 , not required , see this paper. in yours: is required, see this report, so am laying this product, and show the detail. No radon in Preston after all then.
    1 point
  13. I'm sure they'd love to hear from a real silly Billy...
    1 point
  14. Tape and plaster over is one way passive wise.
    1 point
  15. And get into your rooms and first floor void
    1 point
  16. We have a skylight at the top of try vaulted ceiling over the hallway (3 story void) and a rooflight on the ground floor extension flat roof. I open the skylight to an increasing amount based on the difference between actual and target internal temperature, and when that's beyond 10% open I also open the downstairs rooflight. For whatever reason the skylight supports setting an exact % open position whereas the rooflights are either 0 or 100%, hence this algorithm. For bonus points I calculate an "overheating risk" based on tomorrow's forecast and whether we overheated in the last 18 hours, and if so set the overnight target one degree lower as a sort of cooling "boost" mode. Finally, it all locks out closed if it's raining, rain forecast in the next hour, or if it's hotter outside than inside. I tried to also make interlock so that the LED strips around rooflight won't come on when they're open, to reduce fly attraction, but I found in practice we didn't get flies in anyway this summer, fortunately. Fly screens would be the other solution!
    1 point
  17. Velfac and IdealCombi are very similar and part of the same group. They have ali external sash and timber internal frame. I have used both and they are OK. I prefer the IC as they have an insulated bit near the glass, so less chance that the timber will suffer with condensation. Rationel are also worth trying. Same group but installers rate them slightly better. Sliding doors IC are OK if the sliders are smaller. Rationel do lift and slide which is loads better. The IC fitting was fairly crap. We did Velfac ourselves.
    1 point
  18. Photo is the cavity facing side of inner leaf.
    1 point
  19. Here we go, picture heavy! I used one of these: https://www.screwfix.com/p/flomasta-end-feed-adapting-90-wall-plate-elbow-15mm-x-/91665?kpid=91665&ds_kid=92700055281954514&ds_rl=1249404&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuIqVhqSp8wIVC7TtCh1QqA3mEAQYASABEgIMuvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds Securely screwed with st/st screws: Copper to brass soldered joint: 23 ish turns of PTFE tape around this: Wind in with a cut down allen key, I did: More in my bathroom thread.....lots more!
    1 point
  20. We installed a German kitchen and was persuaded not have the sink on the island We used quarts for the top With a 350 overhang
    1 point
  21. We're in exactly the same place as you. We were on AVRO's Simple & Super12M fixed price deal until April 2022. Electricity 14.99p kWh and Gas 2.546p. Seems unreal rates now and I was sure they couldn't make it viable. We were paying £95 a month for G&E, now likely to go up to £140/month. As far as Octopus's tarrifs are concerned, this is what I've discovered: Occupier Flexible Octopus September 2021 v1 Eco 7 Electricity Day unit rate: 20.39 p/kWh Night unit rate: 12.67 p/kWh Standing charge: 23.85 p/day Electricity Unit rate: 18.48 p/kWh Standing charge: 23.76 p/day Gas Unit rate: 3.24 p/kWh Standing charge: 23.85 p/day Occupier Flexible Octopus October 2021 v2 Eco 7 Electricity Day unit rate: 21.76 p/kWh Night unit rate: 15.02 p/kWh Standing charge: 23.85 p/day Electricity Unit rate: 20.12 p/kWh Standing charge: 23.76 p/day Gas Unit rate: 3.94 p/kWh Standing charge: 26.11 p/day
    1 point
  22. Hi John. Thanks alot for this, sorry only just spotted the reply. Been so blustery not ideal to keep gates firmly set to do this final job. So maybe put a bit of tape over the btm of the 2" long tube, insert into a 5" x 5" x 2" (D) hole filled with concrete ? I can nab a big handful of hardcore to mix with my cement & sand.. ithink this makes concrete. Maybe take out the big stones. Then press plate on, smooth of edges off downwards whilst setting ? Im sure simplest job for you, but even this is not so for me! Thanks zoot.
    1 point
  23. Thanks Jack, will do some research on theses products.
    1 point
  24. Yes I was surprised that it hadn't been picked up earlier given that we've had great service from them to date. I hadn't specified as such but I have had general chats about why we chose SIPs and KORE foundation system together, to get an airtight warm home. Re the north end of beam 4 - supporting post is moving inside the wall of the house and beam above is being reduced in length to bring it inside too. Have gone through the rest of the design with them yesterday and we haven't identified any others. They are now looking into splitting the balcony beam. Its great to have this forum to guide me thanks...getting involved in detail very new to me but I'm enjoying it!
    1 point
  25. Mine's piped separately via distribution boxes that are lined with a bit of sound deadening foam. I was concerned this wouldn't be sufficient, but it is effective - I have no discernible noise transfer between rooms. The PH principle is to avoid the need for traditional boilers/HPs and heat emitters, so that the space heating energy requirements can be supplied via the MVHR, with a direct electric duct heater, avoiding the capital investment for boilers/HPs and emitters. But, I personally didn't feel a house would be saleable in the UK without "central heating" and you still need to heat your DHW, plus I knew I would have some cooling requirements.
    1 point
  26. I like the idea of the prep sink. Getting glasses of water, or a cuppa while somebody is rushing around in the main kitchen. I used silestone at my daughter place with a 350mm overhang to one side, and One end. When i used to do a lot of granite they never wanted overhangs of more than 300mm. Quartz is much more flexible than real stone. I think 300mm for me is the minimun for stools and seating.
    1 point
  27. If this is the standard now, what’s the rest of it going to be like.
    1 point
  28. I think options like this are overcomplicated. The effects of different UFH zones and high levels of automation in a highly insulated house with MVHR add not very significant levels of value for the amount of effort. Keep it simple, as few zones as possible and enjoy your time in your house rather than constantly managing systems. I have no UFH upstairs, 11 loops downstairs with 4 zones. Zone 1 - big open plan kitchen living room area with a glazed gable, Zones 2 - donwstairs bathroom, dimply as I'd like a warm floor in there. zone 3 - everywhere else downstairs within within house. Zone 4 - which is my integral garage but rhats only like that so in future if I turn it into a room I can control it.
    1 point
  29. Yes it can...but, MVHR does not move sufficient air to deliver very much energy in to the house. Depending on MVHR size, perhaps 0.5kW - 2.5kW. Add to this, the lower temp you can run your HP the more efficient it is, so for space heating if you are running your buffer at 35°C say, that's not going to add much energy to the MVHR supply, so you'll be in the lower range of the scale. An Electric Heater on the supply duct, which could be at 80°C, could be more effective, but you are not getting the benefit of the HP efficiency. If you plan to be at Passivhais levels of energy loss, then it may be possible to heat 100% via MVHR, but using a direct electric in-duct heater. Heat Pumps are best matched with UFH, and if not large or fan convector radiators.
    1 point
  30. MVHR is just to do with providing ventilation without heat losses. It is not suitable for heat distribution.
    1 point
  31. Main reason it isn't done is that the energy transfer is low. Or in English, you have to shift a lot of air. MVHR is not designed to do this, it moves only a few litres a second. This can be overcome with larger pipework, doubling the diameter, quadruples the flow rate for the same airspeed, this helps to keep noise down. Also worth remembering that sound can easily travel through pipework. So a quiet chat in the kitchen may well be heard in the bedroom. Have you had your place properly thermally modelled?
    1 point
  32. The price cap increases today so anyone on a flexible tariff should expect their price to increase to 21p for electricity and 4p for gas. The way the system is set up it quotes as if the price on any given day is the price for 12 months so quotes based on yesterday’s price are less than people will be paying from today. I was looking at the futures and trying to figure out what the wholesale prices mean for actual consumer prices. I will do a bit more on this but from what I could see the price 12 months out is similar to the current cap. The problem is that the prices over the next 6 months are way higher than the cap. As I noted before despite what you would think futures are almost as volatile as short term prices and tend to follow them up and down. I cannot see any fixed prices being offered even close to the cap. I would take advantage of the cap and take a variable rate which should be fixed at the cap for the next 6 months. The situation will probably have sorted itself out by then, although there is no guarantee. Russia continues to be the main problem and that could change in minutes. There remains the risk that they change the cap. Any energy company not hedged is going to be losing money hand over fist in the next few months. If this happened prices could easily rise another 50% in the short term. Political expediency suggests that this is unlikely but something might have to give.
    1 point
  33. At least the joints are even Point the gaps and ask the Brickie to make sure that the rest is jointed as is he goes
    1 point
  34. Insulation? Zero carbon? Fire resistance? Other? Can raise relevant points in conversations.
    1 point
  35. No. It is the inner leaf. The rain will not jump the cavity.
    1 point
  36. Much easier to get mortar on the beds than the perps. They have done a fairly crappy job. It won't fall down but I would not be thrilled to pay for this.
    1 point
  37. We don't have anything like that here.
    1 point
  38. If it is sound I would leave it on and go over it. Sometimes with old walls if you hack of the plaster you find big chunks of wall want to fall out.
    1 point
  39. Bigger pallets can yield decent lengths of "shed" wood. Can be a bit of a mission to break them up successfully without a pallet buster.....like the one I made: (It now has the addition of a couple of strategically placed springs to stop the angles tipping forward).
    1 point
  40. I had a couple of ASHP quotes in East Mids (near Kettering). Ended up going with Cool Energy and 2 of their big units and am self-installing with a plumber. Will let you know how it goes. The others wanted about 10-12k on top of the parts to install which made it a non-starter. I only wanted a GSHP in the first place ? There is still an option there to get the RHI which is the only way to make it (close to) worthwhile...
    1 point
  41. Does not solve any of the problems I highlighted above except now you live in a fermacel tent instead of a plasterboard one
    1 point
  42. Who thinks that? Only people who don't understand engineering. The Latin is probably handy at aiding the best use of language, which is important and valued in Engineering too, but that is marginal. People who can't do maths assume it is all a trick. People who don't understand Engineering think it is stuff learnt, not the underlying understanding of physics and the world that is behind it. You upgraded Sir.
    1 point
  43. Floor bounce is another consideration plus the equipment needed to move long/heavy concrete floor beams.
    1 point
  44. Our experienced architect pointed out that foundation masonry to support partition walls often used, because ceiling joists might eventually sag and bear down on the partition wall. However, the advice was that mesh reinforcement in a concrete ground floor slab can overcome that problem.
    1 point
  45. In July also the I-Beams for the timber frame and the OSB (or should i call it GOLD - prices went through the roof since i first had some quotes)arrived. https://tintabernacle.blogspot.com/2021/09/1-house-on-1-lorry.html
    1 point
  46. Yep . I might turn up naked and offer my tiling skills for free
    0 points
  47. This summer was peak tinker, especially before lockdown eased. I think my wife was looking for "Loxone Widow's" support groups at one point.
    0 points
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