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Dreadnaught

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Everything posted by Dreadnaught

  1. Dreadnaught
    Very interesting. Hadn't realised that at all.
  2. Dreadnaught
    Insulation costs just once but pays back each and every year. I would say yes, upgrade it, for three reasons. Energy and so ££ saving. A more constant (and so comfortable) internal environment. Improved sound proofing. Value airtightness too. You evidently know about things if you are quoting U-values. If you haven't done so, consider thermal modelling of your building, even just a little. PHPP or Jeremy's spreadsheet. It can be revealing.
  3. Dreadnaught
    Very helpful, thanks! Now I imagine all I will need is a bit of plywood and some bolts
  4. Dreadnaught
    Brilliant BuildHub does it again! UKPN have just confirmed that I can attach a cheap meter cabinet to the fence (or at worst a concreted fence post with plywood). Thanks all!
  5. Dreadnaught
    Thank you all for your excellent and helpful advice! I have … contacted the UKPN surveyor (not the central service) asking if its OK to put a cheap cabinet on the fence (with @JSHarris photo as an example) as there isn't really any space for a ground-mounted kiosk. replied to the builder who supplied the original quote proposing we instead put a (cheap) cabinet on the fence or, failing that, attached on some plywood on a new fence post next to the fence (and with the implication that the bill will reduce greatly).
  6. Dreadnaught
    Thank you. Right, that gives me hope. If you don't mind, I will use the photo of your cabinet to show UKPN what I plan to do and ask them to pre-approve it, just in case on-the-day they turn up and throw a wobbly.
  7. Dreadnaught
    Oh interesting. Jeremy, did your DNO bat-an-eyelid when they saw yours attached to the fence?
  8. Dreadnaught
    @lizzie, wonderful. Hopefully soon, and with you new furry-friend ensconced, and with just the UFH now to tweak, you will at last be able to put house issues behind you and really enjoy your truly lovely home. Just in time to do it all over again with your new build in south Wales (although with smooth sailing this time).
  9. Dreadnaught
    Yes, I think so. Although it is slightly unclear exactly where the UKPN part ends and my party of the trenching starts. To that access road you mean. Yes, fortunately the other party having a connection at the same time is taking care of that, to my great relief. His building is much larger (a boathouse) and he is having a three-phase connection. One neighbour in particular is being greatly inconvenienced and I am not looking forward to his reaction.
  10. Dreadnaught
    Prompted by @LA3222, I am going to try and speak to UKPN and check if they will allow me to put a normal, cheap meter box on the fence. Sadly there is no wall near that location otherwise I would attach to that. Interestingly a search of google did not reveal a single picture of a meter cabinet attached to a fence, which makes me wonder if it's forbidden. I even checked building regs but it does not comment on it, I am guessing because it falls within the remit of the DNO. It is sadly, yes. Interestingly I wont know how much the connection part will cost until UKPN process the refund for the combined work after its all done. I am hoping it wont be enormous. I have paid the full price now and looking forward to some of it coming back. The (unclaimed) access road has a concrete surface.
  11. Dreadnaught
    Now I have noticed something that is confusing me. In the document from UKPN that accompanied my quote called "YOUR TO DO LIST, What you need to do to get connected" it does specify a £600 GRP cabinet, as shown below. Why do they say that?
  12. Dreadnaught
    Thanks @ProDave. The builder who gave the quotes above proposed a rather plush-looking Ground-mounted meter box for £600. I think all I need is a surface-mounted meter box for about £50 attached somehow to the old fence. Does that sound right?
  13. Dreadnaught
    Thanks @ProDave. It now dawns on me that I am bit short of time before UKPN install the supply on 28 March so I need to decide on the meter cabinet/kiosk type and location. Quick question: is it possible to attach a plastic meter cabinet temporarily to a pretty-run-down old fence?
  14. Dreadnaught
    Thanks @PeterW, as always. To be honest, I don't have a plan. I am having this TBS supply installed now as UKPN are opening up the road for someone else and I am saving ££ by combining jobs with them. Its a log story but all the saving comes to me, not split with them. I am putting the TBS just inside the plot behind the entrance gate against the fence. I do know that the service trench when we get around to it will pass directly through this location along the fence and into the house so I think the TBS is well positioned to then either leave it there or relocate it into the house somewhere. Does that make sense?
  15. Dreadnaught
    Hi all, I am breaking ground on my build (Hooray!) albeit only to connect my temporary builders electricity supply ("TBS"). UKPN are laying the main up to the boundary of my property (£££ ). Is the following quote generally OK for the extra bits that I have to arrange: Ground mounted meter box, £600 (zero rated for VAT as supply & fit) Excavate a short length of trench from my plot your boundary to the meter box location (perhaps 2 metres under concrete, 485mm deep), lay duct and backfill with warning tape, form concrete plinth, and fix meter housing £950 (zero rated for VAT) Electrical work required to provide the earth and tails: awaiting a quote. How much might I expect this to be? Any advice appreciated. By the way, does the meter box need to be ground mounted? There is a panel fence there but not much else.
  16. Dreadnaught
    On the subject of noisy fridge freezers: https://www.quietmark.com/products/home/kitchen/refrigeration. Is that a reliable source of information on quiet appliances or a glorified advertising portal I wonder.
  17. Dreadnaught
    Question from ignorance: is is possible to have a concrete (first) floor in a timber-frame house (such as with an MBC frame)? (Its not relevant for my first build as its a bungalow but already thinking ahead…)
  18. Dreadnaught
    Welcome aboard!
  19. Dreadnaught
    So sorry to hear the news, Moira. It was an enormous pleasure to have met Henry. You have my deepest sympathies. And your absolutely lovely house is, as you say, a wonderful achievement for Henry and you both.
  20. Dreadnaught
    Hi everyone, can anyone message me with the name of a good-value SUDS engineer to do a SUDS strategy for my local planners. I am getting quotes. I have one quote but its both pretty pricey and he cannot deliver the report until mid-April anyway!
  21. Dreadnaught
    My quote from December is: And without foundation (does not apply to me):
  22. Dreadnaught
    @Coops85, I have had a timber-frame company blatantly move the goal posts on me after a quote. In the quote, the company in question made a mistake by overlooking something which I had specifically told them about. When I double checked that they had included it they simply went away, investigated, and increased the quote without an apology. I bit poor in my opinion although they did then make a concession when I objected. Personally I would view payments terms as part of the quote and therefore would want to be treated fairly if a change was needed, with advance notice, an explanation and an apology. In your case, could it be a response to the Brexit uncertainties and import prices. By front-loading cash from you they can front-load their ordering too, reducing their risk?
  23. Dreadnaught
    Interesting comments. Very helpful. I think I will price up UFH, radiators, and skirting heating and see where it ends up. I won't base the decision solely on price unless the price difference is large. On DIY for laying UFH pipe, I have watched the pipe go in on a couple of builds and on video. With preparation and care (and the right equipment, such as a coil unwinder), it looks highly DIY-able. Food for thought.
  24. Dreadnaught
    Not yet Peter, no. I have spent the best part of a year preparing for my build and I still haven't even broken ground and I have already encountered other examples of suppliers inflating prices when they consider that the client does not know better.
  25. Dreadnaught
    Yes Peter, I tend to agree. I am seriously considering not having UFH, especially given the cost of the piping as quoted, and instead revert to the traditional approach of a few radiators. I will be having a gas boiler for heating so it is also what the person-in-the-street will expect to see and any future buyer will understand it. With the level of insulation I am planning, there won't be many radiators and, as you say, they are more efficient than UFH. When I get to this stage, I will do the costings and I suspect that radiators will win out.
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