Sophiae

Thank you for your response and suggestions. my floor and roof will have 150mm PIR. The builders suggested the 100mm PIR for the walls as they knew I wanted to get below the target 18 for the walls over all.

Good morning everyone The SE specified 7.3N blocks for the new (single story rear extension with a beam for the bifold doors) partially filled cavity wall. With the new regs I am trying to lower the U-Value as much as possible taking in consideration that this wall now is going to eat up so much for my intended space. Blocks outer leaf 100mm finished with Render 100mm PIR insulation 50mm Residual cavity Blocks inner leave 100mm Plasterboards My question is are there any 7.3N blocks with a u-Value below 18 out there? All I found online was 18 and above. All suggestions are much appreciated.

Great idea. I didn’t know plans could have free access. ill consider it. Thank you.

I wish. 😔 😞 Looking back I should have moved in first then started the work. Fast forward regrets for being stubborn 😞 It’s unfortunately not a remote possibility till the roof is on and I can have doors to close the extension. The place has one water tap and one electricity outlet. Everything else has been disconnected and closed off. I removed the gas supply via Cadent because I truly wanted to go more eco-friendly from the outset. I dreamt big 😂

I looked already and sadly they only have links to the main one. The document is over 1500 pages. Luckily I have patience when I need to find something to guide me, so I already came across a few samples and have some initial guidance (general not specific) and because I am involved and invested this time, I will compile a list for everything tailored to my project.

I can’t thank you enough. I’ll start drawing a bit tonight.

That sounds like a good start into my learning journey. Thank you

Yes I have done some reading and I agree to your advice. Luckily it’s all straight forward and non of them apply.

I need insulation 😞 I discovered there are none.

Yes I have the SE’s drawings for the steel and flat roof. Now I am only looking for the rest of the extension. As all of you kind people here have assured me it is doable but time consuming. I honestly don’t mind the learning one bit (used to be a bookworm) but now love to learn for the sake of learning rather than exams. The down side is the time I will need to get it all done. Part of me wants to embark on this because I am managing the project myself so want to be there for everything, just don’t have the muscle to do it myself. The other issue is my OCD. Will it be as perfect as I would want it to be after I do all the studying? It probably would need a lot of my attention and I can easily get distracted by everything else around me, but still really craving for the challenge. 😂 The last down side is that I have to go to work to afford my current rent and expenses along with look after my little man. So in balance I think I will ask for a few extra shifts in the coming weeks so that I would be able to pay my credit card when the bills come. I will however try and produce my version of them on my own time so that I would learn how to do it. I am not technical at all, but I can learn from sources and easily produce documents fit for purpose. I already downloaded the local authority guidance. It’s a massive document. Will keep you posted. Any views on the website?

Good morning Has anyone tried to compile the whole document needs for the building regs drawings for a single story flat roof extension on their own? I am being quoted anything from £700-1500. I know it isn’t a lot of money for a lot of people but I am wondering if anyone has done it themselves and saved the cost? Unfortunately the budget doesn’t permit any further spending as it means everything will be put on hold till I can earn that money as ran into a few hurdles with the SE steel design and that has exhausted me financially. Anyone used this website before? https://www.buildingregs4plans.co.uk

Will do. what about the insulation? Shall I still excavate, insulate then lay new concrete for each room?

Thank you so much.

Good evening my family of experts I pray all of you are well. Did a bit of digging and found out the property (single floor detached bungalow) was built between 1965-1972 as part of a larger development at the time. There was no insulation put underneath the concrete slab for the full property, and no Radon membrane either. When I bought the property it was assumed it was low risk. A couple of weeks ago the BCO said we need one as it is high risk area. I went on the Radon UK website and said it was higher risk and needed protection. I am in the middle of getting building regs drawings for a proposed single story rear extension (planning granted) and want to know what do I do that would protect me and my little man? All suggestions are welcomed.

Thank you so much. I shall do that. Once written I will seek help in proof reading and editing should it need adjusting. I will keep you posted.

What thickness do you decide at the end.?

Now I need to address this in a formal way with the SE. I will start compiling an email explaining all the issues and will be asking him to respond back with a solution. Or I will ask him to refund me back all the financial losses I was burdened with and end my email giving him notice of seeking legal advice should he not want to cooperate. I don’t want to go through courts, but seeing the new design and being treated like I matter like any other customer should be treated, I know I deserve better than the extremely substandard service he provided.

Yes. I can’t even describe my happiness with this. He has provided all calculations and gone through every element of the design with me. Literally felt like I was having a private basic structural engineering class (express) and gave me a couple of options for the bearings too so that the new builders can execute the design with ease. I will be sending a copy to the BCO and wait for his feedback. I also checked the price from the same factory I bought the original beam, and it cost easily £500-800 cheaper.

Good evening everyone I pray you are all having a good weekend. I’ve been trying to get more information on my existing floors and just found out that the property was built between 1965-1972 and the solid floors (concrete) are assumed to have zero insulation. Now, how would I know what is the depth of that concrete slab other than dig lol ;0) If I dig, it would be placing 150mm rigid PIR then UFH and 65-75 screed. Would that be reasonable? What do I do about the DPM?

He gave me 2 options : 203X203X71 UC with steel bearing plates on the sides 305X165X54 UB.

In my case, the SE was chosen not by price, he was the closest to the property with excellent reviews. He named his price and I didn’t even negotiate, he even asked for £200 extra to give his opinion on the flat roof. He attended to the property, spent time taking measurements and pictures, spoke about my needs and hopes and he had open access to contact me with any queries. A few days later, he returned back with the final design and calculations and silly ignorant me thought he delivered what was needed to make our dream of space come true with no hiccups. No consults, no conversation, no choices, no options. Just one design.

@BadgerBadger @saveasteading Thank you both very much. I took about half a day off or so from brainstorming. I had a meeting with another structural engineer (a consult) to explain to me how the loads are calculated. Then I shared the SE’s calculations with him and he pointed out where the excess load came from. I believe the extra load was from the roof. He put a much bigger load forgetting that the roof sits on other walls too, hence the confusion. I have been given about 4 options and need to spend time this weekend doing the financial maths to see what choice would be feasible. i will start a new Thread and keep posting as I am sure I will need all of your wisdom and advice for everything to come.

It’s probably because of all the struggles I go through with people who don’t know me and recognise that I have difficulty expressing my self or communicating my thoughts in real life.

Thank you so much for your honesty and advice. I shall do that. As neurodiverse I have been learning basic structural engineering online and carrying out some beam calculations to check my understanding. It’s not something I enjoy doing, but my neurones won’t rest until I am able to make sense of it. I had nearly accepted the idea of having this beam up until he turned around on Saturday and said remove the beam, replace the walls it rests on ( I call them shoulders) and put it back up. This is when I stopped everything and put all work on hold till I figure out the truthful answer regarding the steel. I believe he truly doesn’t understand how huge this beam is, even for the builders protested and charged me more as they didn’t believe they needed to pay 3 more guys to come and help them lift it up safely on 2 genies. So they said this too will cost me extra because the SE changed his mind after he signed off to installing it the first and second time.

It’s my property and I am managing the project this time round.