Dreadnaught

Perhaps the key question is whether your build progressing more slowly than planned, or even stopping for a period, would be a problem for you. For example, if your works mean that you both your kitchen and living room might stand open, exposed to the elements for an extended period, then that might be a problem if you were still living there. In my case, with a new build, slowness will be fairly un-problematic.

The compressive strength of PIR is an interesting one. Speaking to Hilliard Tanner he was saying that PIR is not used for load-bearing foundations, not because it could not take the weight but because it has not been thoroughly characterised. Its physical properties under load are not sufficiently well defined for it to be used. Unlike for EPS. (I am going to use PIR to insulate my insulated reinforced-concrete-raft foundations because the insulation will not be load bearing as I will have screw piles).

Very informative, @LA3222. Thank you! Water goes out of the house for what reason? Just an outside tap? Will you have any drop-downs in the slab for door mats, door thresholds, shower wastes, etc? Any cables or conduits going through the slab to floor boxes or to a kitchen island? Are you having a heat pump? Where do those pipes go?

Really nice job! I'm looking very closely as I'll be doing mine before too long. Those photos are before the installation of the UFH pipe? Is that 3x stack pipes? And what looks like three service conduits (green, blue and black), presumably in the area of a kitchen/utility?

Thanks for asking. Yes, all is well. Long story short: I had to change the design of my bungalow to have a green roof and pay for some expensive water calculations to convince the local SUDS-officer to agree to me being able to discharge storm water to the local drain. Quite a palaver but got there in the end!

Photo of the plot to give an impression of how overgrown it is. (Ignore the two small trees, I'll have someone else take those down).

Thanks @Drunkenmunkey. Very helpful. Not heard of NEC contract before. Looking at it now. Thanks for the warning on those items. Hand't noticed they were "allowances". No not level yet. Just a back garden, photo below. The site does undulate by about 400 mm because it has the concrete foundations for an old greenhouse. That's 200 m squared not cubed I think. No traffic management needed.

Getting close to starting now. Could anyone who knows about groundworks, or has had theirs done recently, have a look over this quote for groundworks and give me an indication of any areas where prices look high? I'd be grateful. (Note the inevitable South-East premium: Cambridge plot). (Prices assume 0% VAT.)

What's the pipe through the exterior wall for?

My tuppence on this subject. Smart lighting is currently developing at a huge speed. Strong rumours about Apple suggest in their next OS upgrade, scheduled for release to the public in the autumn, will include a feature to change the visible temperature of smart lights throughout the day as a standard feature (in Apple HomeKit, so called "Night Shift" for lights). Combined with this, as has been mentioned on BH before, there are initiatives to dispense with those little connected boxes needed to control smart lights (Project Connected Home over IP) which is supported by all the big technology companies, even including Philips lighting and Ikea. Thus within a year or two I think it will be cheaper and much easier to have lights that change their colour temperature throughout the day. In my case, with an Apple HomeKit home that works reliably combined and with a bunch of Philips Hue bulbs all running from HomeKit (not controlled from Philips own app), I wrote some routines using Apple's Shortucts app to make the temperature change. I works flawlessly. But I do look forward to it becoming a standard OS feature in the autumn. (Before others reply, I know that here on BuildHub some prefer not have any outgoing connections to the cloud for smart devices. My own view is that the privacy-first approach taken by Apple and the encryption levels inherent in Apple HomeKit are sufficient to allay such fears. Others may disagree.) Just my tuppence.

Miles off topic.@joth I think I recognise Half Dome in Yosemite as your avatar. Been up it?

@Weebles, sorry meant to say "I have noticed you have not named the supplier". My bad typing. Makes sense. Hope it works out well for you. As I say, I don't see any limitation on consequential loss in their standard T&Cs (from a quick read).

@Weebles A quick read of the supplier's standard terms on their website does not mention "consequential or subsequent" losses, at least from a skim read. I have the link to them but not sure whether to post it here as I notice you the named the supplier, possibly deliberately. Do you receive or sign any other T&C's during the purchase process that mentions consequential or subsequent loss?

I think you're reading the line for A-7/W35, which is 2.8. (Notice the minus sign.) The coefficient of performance for A7/W35 is 4.8, slightly better than your Panasonic monobloc (4.52). Edit: you saw it before I commented. Ignore this. Mods please delete.

Hi @Steve247, I too am learning my way with screw piles. But from what I have picked up by speaking to a number of suppliers is that their installation is considered to be quite easy. And that a competent digger driver should be able to handle the torque drive attachment. And a challenge comes only if ground conditions prove to be problematic (so that impenetrable rock is met during driving a given ground screw). Who provided your first quote (PM me if you prefer). I have a few names of suppliers and we can compare notes. By the way, I like the design that you describe for your build. Sounds great!

I am attending an official Fermacell one-day training course in Birmingham next Monday. Let's see if I the course sways me in favour. I will report back.

@Scuba, I heard back from my timber-frame designer. He is very much open to referrals, or just even a no-commitment chat or some advice, if that's something you'd welcome. PM me if you'd like his contact details.

@Russdl Yes, sorry you're changing direction. But its good that you can now forge ahead, renewed. Will you be still using the remainder of your Fermacell boards and just skimming them, or flipping over to now using plasterboard? Your experience has been instructive. It brings it home the importance in the regularity and uniformity of the underlying studs and battens.

A new idea. In the the latest House-Planning-Help podcast (HPH280), John Bootland (the boss of the Passive House Trust) mentions putting a little radiator near the front door to give a feeling or warmth as you enter. Interesting idea; never heard it mentioned before. Here is the clip (24:35): https://overcast.fm/+NC20Ux5Q/24:35 And the podcast: https://www.houseplanninghelp.com/hph280-a-beginners-guide-to-the-passivhaus-standard-with-jon-bootland/

Welcome to BuildHub, Matt. Airtight on the outside. Interesting approach. Touchwood Homes does that. But most systems have the airtight layer on the inside. I am currently using a timber-frame designer in Herefordshire, who has been excellent so far, and mine is I-beams. I will ask him if he is open for new business for you. (By the way, I am also using a specialist architect in Welshpool, so not far from you. She specialises in timber frame too.)

Oh I am an amateur, but I would think you can greatly simplify that. Here's a first idea. With a bit more thought, and close reading of the Part H constraints, I think you could simplify it further. I got mine down from 8 ICs, as originally proposed by my drains engineer, to 2x 450mm ones and 1x 300mm one. Obviously, check the above against Part H, especially for the distances allowed between ICs and whether it is permitted to have two soil stacks on a single drain as I have tentatively suggested. And for falls.

I am hoping to start work on site in May, about two-months later than my original plan. Things may well slip further and I am fine if they do. Currently, the timber frame is being designed, by a specialist frame-designer based in Herefordshire that was recommended by (and contracted via) my chosen local timber-frame company. And the frame designer has just sent me the line-and-point loads (see below), so I have in turn just sent those on to my foundations designer in Ireland so that the insulated concrete-raft foundation can be designed in parallel with the frame. (To save on VAT, I also contracted the foundation designer via my frame company.) In parallel, with this, I am in the midst of arranging a fibre-optic data connection to my plot. I already have electricity connected. The fibre connection comes from a local fibre ISP who have been pleasingly helpful. The connection requires a new overhead wire from the end of the access road about 40-metres to the gable of my neighbours house and thence down to the ground and on to my plot. My neighbour is being most obliging, partly because he also gets a connection and can drop VirginMedia, who has been unreliable for him. To my astonishment, the whole installation will be free as I, it seems, am eligible for a voucher from the government that covers the cost. The voucher does not cover the VAT but the company kindly agreed to absorb that cost themselves (!) when I mentioned zero-rating. I am getting closer to choosing a groundworks team and finalising the details of the groundworks. I am pushing the boundaries of what is acceptable for what is supposed to be a "no-dig" build but it will all be done with expert tree-specialist oversight. I need clay heave protection which will be 220mm thick so digging down about 375mm was needed if my final floor level was not going to be high in the air. For my screw piles, I will probably go for a supply-only deal for the ground screws themselves and have the groundworkers install them with a mini digger (in my presence). I am told that installation is simple. For the installation of the insulated concrete raft, I still have not identified who will be the installer. I am tempted to speak to all the local concrete pourers to see if I can find someone who has experience of insulated rafts. The raft design is going to slightly unusual. Because the insulation is not load bearing and because I have a ridge height restriction and want tall ceilings, the insulation will be thinner PIR rather than the usual EPS. To my distress, the local water company has insisted I make a water connection all the way 40-metres back down in the access road to the 5" water main there rather than 2" main directly in front of my plot, citing "the impact of another service". Oh well at least the water pressure will be good! I need now to apply for my drains connection. I had been waiting on the tree matters to be resolved as it has an impact on the trench routes. For the protected trees around may plot, I have just finalised the Arboricultural Method Statement (AMS) with my tree advisers. This unlocks the chance for me discharge my nine planning conditions, all in one go. It took a surprising amount of time to work out how this is to be done, requiring a counterintuitive use of the planning portal to create a new planning application (!). I have paid deposits for my windows and front door (IdealCombi) and my roof lights (Roof Maker, their passive-house-certified product). Bauder, my chosen warm-roof and green/sedum-roof supplier, has been very helpful with advice on matters such as waterproofing when the rooflights are too close to the edge, and on standard roof-edge details for my architect. As soon as the frame-design is ready, I will be tendering among the local Bauder-approved installers. I have identified my brick-slips cladding I will use (Eurobrick P-Clad) and worked with my architect so the corners and window openings are properly proportioned for the brick counts. I have just booked myself on a slips training-day for 2nd April in Bristol. On my to-do list are signing up for building control, warranty company (reluctant purchase) and buying site insurance. I also need to arrange some bespoke aluminium copings and profiles. The intention is that the frame will go up, the roof will go on, and the windows and rooflights will go in, in quick succession followed in short order by brick-slips cladding. With all of these done and installed, I will have a weathertight shell ready for first fix to start, perhaps around mid-summer time. Hopefully. (I am already dreaming about @nod-style metal framing!) I have been continuing to visit other Buildhubbers, with visits to two people installing Fermacell, and one Buildhubber all the way at the end of second fix. As always, I learn so much from these visits and am gratified by everyone's immense generosity. They are truly inspirational. And thanks to everyone at BuildHub for all the advice I havre received (and will undoubtedly receive in the future). The journey is just beginning. Comments, observations, guidance, suggestions welcome, as always ?

I think it is possible to locate the flow control away from the diffuser, presumably near the manifold, by using duct butterfly valves. This could be a solution. I wonder if anyone has used duct valves for attenuation rather than diffusers.

I see they have veins within but it looks like they are a form non-return valve. I wonder how a linear diffuser could be selectively attenuated for the balancing an MVHR system, either supply or extract.

I think they are termed "linear diffusers". I like them too. Here's an example: https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/monodraught/downloads/literature/linear slot diffusers.pdf