Dreadnaught

Thanks @Temp. Ah yes, this one: https://www.toolstation.com/content/tradecard. That looks like a MasterCard credit card. Not quite what I had in mind but might be an option.

Is it possible to get a discount from Toolstation? As a self builder building an entire house I will be buying a lot. Before I start spending too much, I'd like to lock-in some discounts if I can. Cash accounts only, don't need credit. I've signd-up for a Toolstaion account online but not yet picked up a "Customer Card" in store. Any tips about how to get discounts from builders merchants in general, but especially from Toolsation?

Thanks all! Very helpful. A busy day yesterday. The pipe is now (along with a fibre-option-cable duct) in and I have lots of photos that I can share with Anglian Water. In the end, we didn't remake the concrete road surface around the duct that I mentioned, with a road plate over for protection. This will enable us to easily revisit it again if Anglian Water requires it. Interestingly, a few days ago Anglian Water said that they don't come out to inspect the installation of a TBS. (temporary builders supply). I will send them the photos and see what they say.

My ground workers are moling my water pipe today in my access road. All going well. There is one duct for an electricity cable (see photo). They are proposing to go OVER the duct with the water pipe. The water pipe will be only 300mm deep at the point. Is that ok? Would it be at risk of freezing? Should I kick up a fuss and ask them to go UNDER the exposed duct SO its depth is 800mm as it is for the rest of the run?

Thanks @PeterW. That worked well. I bought 8x laminating pouches for £1 as an experiment and they come up a treat using an iron. Will be stapling them to the gate to my plot tomorrow. Three so far: 1) The house number (as my gate looks like a generic garden gate rather than a building site). 2) A sign saying "For site deliveries please call…" with my phone number. 3) And a generic site safety one like this…

Yes, my thoughts too. When I will prettify the cabinet, I intend to try to do it without calling out UKPN. I quizzed the guy from SSE about this when he visiting to fit the meter and he said it is a grey area, and suggested that it may be possible to swap the cabinet by simply moving the plywood backing sheet over with everything still attached and remain in compliance with the regulations. (By the way, I think it is UKPN's responsibility for moving a main fuse, not SSE as you mentioned, but I might be wrong.)

The meter box is temporary but the location will be the permanent location for the meter and the "main" CU. At the end of the build, I intend to replace this unsightly plastic meter box with something rather more attractive, perhaps one of those green metal kiosks or perhaps a brick cabinet. At this location, I also intend to be a EV charging point too. Wisely, I will let those more knowledgeable than me answer that.

@soapstar, here is a photo of the meter box with the meter, mini CU, and all-weather sockets beneath.

Yes, I now have a meter installed in the meter box shown in the photo (and two pairs of all-weather sockets beneath). When I have built my house, I will add a 80A fuse and run a cable underground about 15 metres to the plant room in my house, which will contain a second CU for the electrical distribution around the house. I believe it is OK, yes, but I am no expert and am following advice from this forum. I believe it is the 80A fuse that is key in this set up.

Welcome to BuildHub, Ommm. I am building in Cambridgeshire. Your tendencies have come to the right place. Good luck with your current and future projects!

Reached the stage of needing to buy my site signage. What signs do I need? Anybody got any lying about that they want rid of?

Yes, I have specified very few openers for my build. The only openers I am having are the ones required for evacuation from the bedrooms and even then the are the minimum size to satisfy the requirement. I have no openers at all in my living room. And none of my (9x) rooflights open either. MVHR will do its job.

News: Ebico (and all of Robin Hood Energy) announces its sale to British Gas. All customers are bing transferred. That might mark the end of zero-standing-charge tariffs in the market. Anyone know of any others? By coincidence, I transferred the electricity supply on my plot to Ebico from SSE just a few days ago. Hopefully British Gas will honour the zero-standing charge tariff for at least the guarantee period of a year. The email from Ebico announcing the move said (my emphasis) "British Gas will be in touch in the next few weeks to outline your new tariff and prices, which will be at least as good as you are paying today." Fingers crossed!

@the_r_sole, did you look at this one: https://www.aviasmart.com/choose-a-product/avia-secure-smart-lock/. Seems to suggest it can work multipoint locking doors. Here is a YouTube video showing installation.

Good point!

Actually that main motivation is regarding installing a smart lock in the future and for which having an uncommon lock-type will be a hinderance. Good points all, thank you!

Thanks all. @PeterW, as I am learning, Scandinavian oval-profile locks are slightly larger than standard UK oval ones (20mm vs 18mm). You can indeed get Scandinavian oval-profile locks here in the UK (for about £50) but they are rare in the UK. Moreover oval-profile locks in general are less common globally, which means smart locks are not usually made to fit them. @the_r_sole, thanks. Good points about multi-point & security. @redtop, thanks. Good to hear.

Thanks @ProDave. Idealcombi says the door without the lock would be completely blank, no oval-shaped hole. They said "the flush panel door can be supplied ‘on hinges only’ and then the door won’t have any holes for cylinder – just clear flush panel door + frame." I did indeed ask about the Eurolock but sadly not possible.

I just heard from Idealcombi that it is possible to order my front door without any handle or lock. Idealcombi's standard look is an oval one common in Denmark but harder to get in the UK and so getting keys might be a problem. Furthermore, if I ever wanted to replace the lock with, for example, a smart lock then it might be impossible. Could anyone foresee any problems adding my own handle and lock to such a flush-panel door? What are the common locks used in the UK? Would fitting a Euro cylinder barrel lock be a sensible idea?

Welcome to BuildHub! Yes, they are available.Earth Save Products do one, for example. A BuildHub member who installed one had problems with noise a vibration as the combined unit was located in the attic near a bedroom. As you may be aware, MVHR is generally not very well suited for heat delivery as the air speed is so very low. Ramping it up can easily cause noise in the ducting. Personally, because of this for space heating I am going for an ASHP heating under-floor heating (UFH) separately from my MVHR.

The "leaf itself consist of a wooden frame with a 0.3 mm aluminium sheet and externally a 4.5 mm HDF board painted in a variety of RAL colours". https://idealcombi.com/doors/entrance-doors/flush-panel-doors/

As you may well already know, most of the window manufacturers also make doors. I am getting my front door from IdealCombi (along with my windows) at cost of about £1k ex. VAT.

Have you considered spray plastering? I have been offered £220 a day for spray plastering in Cambridgeshire.

Are you allowed to cut in to a collar tie with constraints, like you are with a steel or I-beam? You can get those spots as recessed fittings. Having them recessed in to the collar tie could look good. Just an idea.

He must zero rate the materials to you; no choice in that. To help him with his cash flow, you could offer to pay him a small cash advance roughly equal to the VAT amount to be offset in full against the invoices you will owe to him. If you do so, get a written receipt for the advance to cover yourself as its a bit risky.