MJNewton

Same here. I'd suggest replacing the unit and making the most of the existing installation.

No. Notifiable work is limited to new circuits, replacement consumer units and additions/alterations in a special location (of which the kitchen no longer is).

I could imagine it could actually - the bound render effectively becomes a sheet and it wouldn't surprise me if it could gradually bend without cracking. Does it sound hollow when tapped?

It sounds like we might be talking about different things. I can't imagine anyone using semi-rigid radial ducting like the following for extractor fans. It's got an internal diameter of 68mm so it would indeed be a terrible choice given the flow rate of a typical extractor.

I'm nodding at all those points, although I've never measured its air resistance and it's not clear what the 'less work to do' is in comparison to (other than ducting with higher resistance of course!). Certainly as far as I'm aware it's working perfectly, and is doing so completely silently so I can't really think of any downsides. I suppose there is the issue that you have to buy it in large rolls and so you are at risk of over/under-buying. I sold what little excess I had though as there's often someone looking for just that little extra having run out themselves! If you've never had a piece in your hands more than happy to pop one in the post so you can get a proper idea what it's like. Of particular note is the internal lining which whilst ridged is what I'd call 'semi smooth', which of course is impossible to interpret accurately.

In what plane(s) is it bowed? It looks from the picture that it is certainly bowed away from the door frame (which you've confirmed is itself straight) but has it also bowed away from the wall too i.e. is your rendered wall bulging out? If it's just the former then perhaps the intended trim is indeed going to cover it. How big is the gap in the middle? If it will be covered, and the trim isn't a monstrosity, then that might be preferable to taking any other action (e.g. raking out the foam, removing the beading and render and redoing) in terms of the aesthetics of the end result. If it is bowed out from the wall then that would make me worry there's a void behind it now and that might cause issues in the future, but then that's the sort of thing I like to worry about and cause myself stress over... P.S. Forgot to add - the render (and the bead in the particularly) might well always have been bent and it is only the addition of the (straight) door that has now highlighted this. It's not something you'd necessarily notice if you're not actively looking for it, which again is something I do just to wind myself up.

Ah okay. The OP is in a house in this instance. Is drainpipe what's used in large installations? (Hope this isn't sounding passive aggressive - I'm genuinely intrigued!)

Are you saying it's an issue for MVHR (which I assume would be considered 'low volume low velocity')? What sort of issue have you seen?

Is that recommendation from personal experience? I've not heard that approach before. I found 75mm semi-rigid radial ducting perfect for the job and a joy (well, almost!) to use once I'd got the hang of it. No joins (barring the two end points of course!), easy to route around obstacles, swept bends, loose coupling with the house structure to avoid vibrations etc. I didn't find the pricing particularly offensive, especially given how quick it was to install, and it wouldn't surprise me if it was far cheaper the drainpipe given all the fittings you'd need. My case was a retrofit and so solid piping would never have been any option but I think my positive experience would be equally applicable to a new build with much easier access. P.S. Being more specific, I used Airflow Airflex (the red stuff) and whilst Blauberg do a similar (compatible) product in green I had a piece and found it far less flexible and not quite as self-supporting in making a tight bend should that be required.

No problem at all. Indeed that's one of the benefits of using a 5A socket for plug-in lights as it prevents you plugging something else in (e.g. TV) that wouldn't like being fed by a dimmer. Make sure your bulb is dimmable though.

You might as well make a weekend of it then it takes the pressure off the NSBRC having to live up to any expectations!

Yeah, not cheap. Good value though in my mind. To be honest given that durability/washability was an important requirement for me I was naturally comparing the Optiva 5 with the likes of Dulux Trade Diamond and Johnstone's Durable which are comparably priced so if you're just after normal paint I'm sure there are more cost effective options (I'd probably look at other Tikkurilla options such as their 'Super White' but I've no knowledge/experience of them).

For what's it worth, when my folks bring their caravan down they always stay in the Cirencester club site which is a very well kept site and within walking distance of Cirencester and not too far a drive from Swindon. I suppose in a motorhome you might be less reliant on the facilities though, and I bet you could almost get away with staying right by the NSBRC given it's tucked away in an industrial/office estate!

I sneaked into a professional decorators forum and by far and away the most popular 'white' emulsion paint was Tikkurila Optiva 5 for walls and Tikkurila Anti-Reflex 2 for ceilings. For the walls I may have been drawn to the desire for washability and so was drawn to that perspective when their preferences were stated, and similarly for ceilings I was looking to minimise the visibility of imperfections due to the large open-plan area we've got and full-wall glass doors. Certainly having used both products and been really pleased with them I can't imagine looking at other options now. P.S. Just spotted your 'Cotswold' username and so would also recommend Holman Specialist Paints in Swindon to get it from if that's within reach of you. Tikkurila isn't as widely available as the high-street names, although it can be bought online.

We use our boost switches often as whilst the humidistat captures showers, baths and simmering it is still handy to help shift smells from cooking etc on demand. I sometimes use app control for this but you can't beat physical switches that anyone can use.

You shouldn't have to calibrate these sensors. Were yours copies @TerryE? The genuine ones aren't that much more in the grand scheme of things.

.. which tend to run at far higher air flow rates than MVHR systems given their intermittent operation so I wouldn't be too concerned about that (and I'd normally expect 150mm for high-flow hoods). For what it's worth our Titon 1.25 (feeding 6 supplies and 5 extracts) uses 125mm spigots and ducts and is practically inaudible. Only on boost do do you hear anything but that's just the expected air flow sound at the ceiling terminals and not due to the system/unit itself.

Whilst I don't have personal experience of your situation to draw upon I wouldn't consider anything but the 150mm outer duct option. It's only 12.5mm all the way round which seems ideal for the likes of expanding foam or similar, and of course gives you a bit of wriggle room for accommodating differences in nominal pipe sizes.

Well spotted @AliG and @Mr Punter - the architrave is the original which has yet to be painted. And yes, the walls will end up much busier in due course - my wife is keen to have a lot of framed photos in this room and some small shelves (more decorative effect than practical). Splashback too.

The style/colour is 'Calacatta Stream Unique' but is unbranded, or rather it carries the suppliers name (Natural Stone Surfaces) and I do beleive it might be one unique to them. One revealing factor is that the colour-matched silicone they used was Silestone Blanco Norte and whose worktop of the same name does use the term 'creamy white' which I guess is what we've got... I think this really cements the idea that this is our fault in not fully anticipating that the off-white would be exaggerated towards the darker end of the room. This is particularly frustrating given that we thought we felt we'd put so much effort into exploring all the options, visiting showrooms, getting samples etc but I guess there's nothing quite like it being in your own home.

Interesting, thanks - I do expect we'll adjust as our expectations-that-weren't-met begin the dilute. And, yes, we are expecting that adding pictures etc to the walls will draw the eye somewhat and having something out on the worktops should help as even our desired white worktop would likely look a little stark with nothing out. And as you say different coloured walls is always an option, and an easy/cheap one at that. I suppose we're lucky in that the two walls are seperated from the rest of the room by a door on the left and the tall units on the right so that should give us a bit more freedom.

Yes, they are polished - glass like to the touch. Incidentally, the machining of them is great - perfect bevels, cutouts etc - we've been really impressed by those aspects.

Yes, always worth looking for the positives. If we're emulating natural marble here then perhaps we just got the creamy bit of the mountain.. right at the top...

Yes, I can relate to all of that @dangti6, and I won't be fobbed off with the tolerances. Their requirements made me work to within 3mm over 2m for the unit levelling so I expect them to match/beat that... ?

@MikeGrahamT21 and @dangti6, yes - the white walls and probably having a big impact. Re artificial lighting we're a big fan of 2700k unfortunately and so wouldn't be happy with cooler lights for other reasons. We can live with the 'warm' look in the evening though to be fair; I think we've trained our eyes to expect that and so the night-time look is less of a concern (particularly noting it's a 'family room' and so we're using the other end for more relaxing activities and didn't want too much lighting variation across the room... You can see the bank of dimmers by the doors which we use to tweak things and having lived in it for the best part of a year now like this (but without worktops!) we're happy with that side of things. If they cost £500 we'd just bite the bullet and re-start our search for something different knowing the potential importance of the whiteness but at £3.8k (£500 of that for templating/installation) that doesn't feel like a sensible option. I think we'll crack on with getting the flooring down, moving the kitcheny stuff onto the worktops and getting some wall pictures/shelves up. That, and a bit of time getting used to it, might be all that's required... I guess we should be reminding ourselves that if our biggest problem right now is the colour of a worktop we're not doing too bad at all. Edit: The island slab is a different issue but will see what the supplier has to say and take things one step at a time. Maybe a good outcome there is, rather than them replace it, they give us some money back and we'll take measures to ensure it is adequately supported from underneath. I don't think normal people would notice - only people like me that walk round with a spirit level or bags of marbles.