magnethead

Fair point Russel, but this was 45mm within 3M , also the contractor is sound and expected 10mm levelness of himself. but you are spot on! I used one engineer for the foundation and another engineer for the superstructure(Manufacturer Eng), and I tried to make them talk but they were real hesitatant. As you said, the drawings for the foundation should have Specified the tolerance for the foundation on the DRAWINGS. on another note, there is a Pier that comes out perpendicular from the top right Column, (Only small one 550mm) , but as you can see above, it was missed by the foundation engineer, who had the superstructure eng's drawings .. I'm still going to stick the Pier in to the edge of the foudation, but it will be 300mm instead of 550mm now. Looks like I'm a big believer in too many chefs in the kitchen. No doubt I'll be back here crying soon (Looking for your support again) Thanks again everyone

Thanks lads, Yes this forum is fantastic, I appreciate everyone's feedback. The contractor apologized yesterday for the mistake and said he was going to come back with a something like a big wood planer , that will grind the concrete down on that high spot at the back. touch wood, the ICF guy will be able to deal with the rest.

They kicked it onto the local installer who is due to arrive next Tuesday for the first time, he said he needed to see it with his eyes for some reason. He mentioned chims, but as you said this is definitely going to need cutting too. I can't believe I was soo stupid not to know the tolerance. but as said above, the civil guy who did the foundation is responsible, he did an amvic house a year ago with a retired engineer who guided him through the whole process, he should have known better.

This gives me hope Maybe ICF can get me out of this hole.

Thanks @Oz07 That's an interesting fix, The foundation are roughly at the level for 3 courses of ICF blocks, each 250mm high. I'll put it out there as a suggestion,. the Builder is back onsite today, I'll let you know what happens in the end, but here's my prediction : Whatever is easiest for him

@joe90 you're right, I can't help jumping into action and grabbing a tool. This is my first Self-Build, experience building a house and there's being a number of errors already, and it's only at foundation.

I just spoke to the contractor and he says he can work up to 15mm out.....so it will just be the very top foundation strip that i need to correct.

Thanks Lads, for the excellent replies. Yes @willbish there will be starter track I'll get the grinder out now and do my best to level a track for the ICF (300mm) in width thanks @AnonymousBosch , yes it's a bit of a disaster , the brand is Thermohouse.

Hi, Yes, it was a contractor... I'm sure he'll come back saying I never specified that it had to be +/-5mm. With standard blocks you can level each course as you go up and I'm sure that's what he's used to. I'll give it a go anyway. @dpmiller yes the rising walls are ICF. Does anyone know what kinda equipment or procedure you would use/do to recify this?

ok, So now I know foundations should be +/- 5mm . It is a bit late Can you tell me please how I would fix the problem below...at the top of the Strip, you can see where it goes from -15 to +30mm , 45mm over about 3M in length Can this be rectified? with some kind of Concrete grinding machine? I take it a kango hammer cannnot be used on a strip foundation. I have one week, before the ICF builder is back onsite, to start the rising walls. Thanks for any advice

Thanks for the replies, @Alexphd1 yes, that looks like that cable is composed of thermoplastic https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low_smoke_zero_halogen I'll be sure to mention it to the electrician but not a lot of them familiar with ICF

Hi, I read this article here about a little bunch of network cables , causing a standard 40mm PVC plumbing pipe to warp and leak, by leaching their plasticizer into the pipe. Network cable causing leaks in plumbing so that got me wondering about what kinda risks are there really with ICF and electric cables, the manuals call out that electric cables should always be in conduit for that reason, so the insulation around the electric cable doesn't leach out all it's plasticizer and become brittle. Is this a real risk? How far do the electric wires have to be kept from the surface of the ICF? Would you have any comments on my mates, breaker box install? Thanks

Hi There, I was wondering if this is a simple proposal, I have a floor lowered by 30cm in one section of the house which lines up with a dropped ceiling area in the rest of the house. (edit: I realize the picture directly below is not showing the floor dropped, but the drawing links at the bottom, especially the cross section) I need to run penetrations through what would have being a continuous hanger joist. Please see pics and pdf's attached. Is there an issue on iCF, having most of the joists supported by a sipson strong tie hanger system, and then in a few area, connect individual joists to the ICF wall, I saw this ICF joist hanger from Nudura (a different ICF company from the one I'm using) makes a nice single joist connector. The Floor joists are on 400 centers and I was hoping to put some 150mm holes inbetween them Penetrations https://www.dropbox.com/s/0tgyhl4s6vl1apq/Ventilation Pentrations.jpg?raw=1 Possible hanger from Nudura http://www.eco-form.eu/products-en.html Drawings Cross section Floor joists over Thanks for your thoughts

Nice little article here on flashing ICF windows, one guy near the end went total overkill on his approach http://www.greenbuildingtalk.com/Forums/tabid/53/aff/16/aft/51770/afv/topic/Default.aspx Has anyone used liquid flashing here around their windows? or a peel n'stick? I'm using a company called 'Thermohouse' and they have a special ICF revel block, that uses a compression seal to seal the window against the house. I'm not sure if I trust window companies to fit them that well, I've seen some install when you'd get your arm between the window and reveal

Interesting @Mr Punter I didn't know that.......What do you think about @Adam2 suggestion of just insulating the inside of the reveal, would this cover that issue of condensation? and @Adam2 the KISS principle is my favorite .. (Keep it simple Stu***)

I guess the next question is .... How important are insulated reveals in a window opening? If a Aluminium or PVC window was put directly on the core, would it be a major cold bridge or just a small one. One builder I was talking to, said that the insulated reveals are overrated, would only add an extra 20 quid to your heating bill for the year? Does that sound right? Thanks

Hi All, I was curious of your thoughts on this recent collaboration between 6 different american ICF companies. What window sealing strategy would you use below....see the the link below the picture for the answers (Take your best guess first though) Here's the short report. https://www.icfmag.com/2016/09/weatherproofing-icf-walls/

Hi again, I'm still beaming after all the advice here @Russell griffiths The Software is called Chief Architect X8, and it's very easy to use, if you like those pictures, you'll love the photo realistic renders, but you have to fix your view before rendering it for 4 minutes, the latest version Chief Architect X10, you can render on the fly....Can't wait to ungrade. @AliG updated layout attached now, we redid the ensuite a bit, moved the support wall under second story(making the sitting room smaller) , we moved the stairway opening further north to make the kids rooms slightly bigger. We are still considering moving the toilet to the cinema area, but it a fairly major decision, so we'll think a bit more on that. Moved the support wall up to the edge of the kitchen https://www.dropbox.com/s/vphuloi6h0qdhaj/37-afterplanning-Layout.pdf?dl=0 The Idea is never to sell this house but you never know what life is going to throw at you. The entry is necessary because it gives the house a much higher BER rating, you have to quarantine the heat in the rest of the house from the front door or it rushes out when you open it apparently, can't imagine it's that bad, unless you're talking to someone in the hallway for ages. and you're right about the new passive doors, are draught proof, but the BER rating would also affect the house price majorly. We made this bigger now, so there's more room to get people in and a place for a table, hangers..etc I can't move the hall doorway(glass windows) over towards the garage as this would give people a view into the open plan Kitchen dinning area, small window beside the front door would line up if that was the case. I'm aware from internet research not to use a big stove in an insulated house ;p ...don't worry it will be a small wood burner only(Seal air supply and exit), and probably hardly ever used as we have underfloor heating. WOW! Rear Flue, bloody genius!! I didn't consider that.... Thank you so much Some Master bedroom shots of the tight ensuite... Lad is 1.8M in this shot.

My God, I'm overwhelmed with the Feedback and the high caliber of it!! Why didn't I come here last year....damn Thank you everyone. ok, Here is the two staircases, After talking with my wife who was only 'going along' with the spiral because I liked it so much, we've decided that the straigher type would be better. Something MORE like this: Lovely Curved Staircase - Stainless Nod: when you say impractical, what was the biggest issue you had with a Spiral staircase (bring a clothes basket down, or furniture up?)..baring in mind, this stairs was going to be a helical style one, about 0.5M inner diameter, 2M on the outside dia. AliG: My wife wants to 'hide' the entrance door to the Utility room, so that it blends in with the other cabinets. but that is a good point, there is no reason the blended door can't be the last 'cabinet' in that run. That is an interesting Idea about moving the Cinema room forward and putting the toilet in there (I need to talk some more with the Wife about that) Dudda: Well spotted: the kitchen light is something I am worried about, The height over the Kitchen at the moment is 2.7M. I see what you mean about making a vaulted ceiling all the way up...That would be HUGE We were thinking, of having a ceiling box, with recessed led lighting, which would be on almost permanently, lighting that area. something like this? or maybe this is needed ;p And the opposite idea is what we were thinking of in the sitting room, a recessed box, with recessed lighting, but maybe like you said, the Full height affect might be better Here was the only Full height area we had planned before coming here ;p ProDave: Yes, the west wing, was a result of planning unfortunaltey, the origninal house occupied slightly less then half the garden space, and the planners rejected it, and one of the main reasons were, that it left room for another house in this tight urban area They have too many requests for kids building houses in their parents driveways.. Extending the front face of the house was one way to placate them. The Garage is a workshop and will never have a car inside it ;p. JamesP: Natural light is not always on option unfortunately, we are hoping to compensate with a little artifically stuff. You are right about that shadow, but it's about 3pm before the shadown starts to affect the dining room, I'll make up a shadown simulation if you really want it. Nickfromwales: That Cinema room, is supposed to double as somewhere to kick the teenagers, when they reach the age in about 10 years. so not just for films. No chance of rotating that house in the plot The Front faces onto the main road (See Page 3 on the 'approved file in the first post) AliG: That's a big post ;p That's a good structural point you make there, yes the plan was to have two steel beams like you say, meeting at right angles, not only did we want more room in the sitting room, we wanted double hanging doors, that slide into the false walls, so that the sitting room can be fully opened to the kitchen/dining area. The stepdown you noticed, was the differene between, the poured concrete ICF floor of the bedrooms, and the proposed rafters (no floor was put in) over the Garage/Utility area. That's a pure genius idea, I didn't think of lowering the floor area over the Garage Utility to help out with the rooms upstairs, but if I leave the floor like original giving 2.7M of height over the kitchen, there would be a transitiion for the HRV ducts..might be manageable though. I hear you on the low ceiling heights, 2.4M is a minimum for the bedrooms, and downstairs, it's 2.7M everywhere we'd normally be living, but the Utility and Garage are up for adjustment I'll play with that now, using your standard "2m of head height at the front edge of the sofa" Would raised bedroom ceilings, not make the house less energy effcient? because of the extra space needed? We are using a warm roof, with 225mm thick slabs and hopefully an airtight finish. you don't think roughly 12M2 is enough for a kids room? If the upstairs toilet stays where it is(need to discuss the major idea of moving it to the cinema room with my wife), we'll move the window to the south for sure, so this means an AMENDMENT to the planning...so I better get any other ideas fixed as soon as possible.

Hi Guys, Yeah the ensuite is not settled yet, the Idea is that there will be no door there, and the doorway will have the splitter wall (between the toilet and walk-in wardrobe) directly lined up with the middle of the doorway. and Nick, any feedback for anything is welcome. Peter, yuor right about the custom designed staircase, It is a Helical staircase, but not that wide a sweep, so not a million miles from a Spiral Staircase. One fancy company out of Mayfair was quoting about 12.5K Why Do you say impractical, They do look beautiful though The ceiling height in the Cinema room is restricted, you can see in the section view of the 'approved' drawing.. It's above head height for about half the width of the Room.

Hi THere, I was wondering if you'd care to throw a few comments my way about this House design please? Overall appearance (Please see 'Approved' file) and of course, most importantly, the internal layout (Please see the second file) Thanks for your ideas/input The upstairs 'Cinema/kids room' will be accessed through a Stira Stairs over the Garage, THe space above the Garage will be just Storage/ HRV unit space. The Master Bedroom has an ensuite and Walk-in Wardrobe beside it. Approved.pdf 36-afterplanning-Layout.pdf