JohnBishop

Right, so in my case the chimney is in central location of the semi-detached house. It use to be another chimney on the other side but it was taken down. I have seen someone talking about taking air from an air duct that runs in the floor but this would require me to demolish some of the concrete floor. The neighbour has a hole in the wall for the fresh air for his gas heater so I reckon no other option was available for him. This fresh air duct is an awesome idea and prevents the warm air in the room from being sucked into the chimney. I definitely ask the installers if this option is possible in my setting.

This vermiculite is a really good idea. I can see on the Internet they talk about insulation of the chimney so there is no/less condensation. Thanks. Will contact local Hepas installers.

Do you mean the DEFRA approved stoves that have this secondary combustion so there is less residue in the flue liner and it basically burns more efficiently?

apologies I wasn't clear enough. I meant to find out if they put a plastic membrane under the concrete. I reckon to find out I would need to drill or destroy some of the floor. Does it mean regardless if the membrane is there or not should I put plastic membrane on top? like this one? https://www.wickes.co.uk/NDC-1000-Gauge-Black-Damp-Proof-Membrane-4X12-5m/p/152859 and then these wood fibre boards? https://www.screwfix.com/p/diall-wood-fibre-underlay-boards-7m-15-pack/7824r this would only be 5mm thick but no insulation value or is it better to use https://www.carpetright.co.uk/underlay/timbershield-wood-and-laminate-underlay-3mm/ with underlay tape https://www.wickes.co.uk/Arbiton-Underlay-Foil-Tape---50mm-x-50m/p/220459 with wood fibre underlay on top, this would be 8mm thick in total I checked the doors and on the ground floor there is at least 18mm clearance in the dining doom and between 25 and 30mm in the living room. Upstairs it is at least 22mm clearance but I put the wood fibre underlay boards only. I aim for 8mm thick laminate boards so I need at least 16mm without cutting the need of cutting doors.

I talked to the neighbour and I think we should be OK. We won't be replacing roofs only repair it. I think considering he is a pensioner, it's a relatively short notice I do 60/40 split of the costs. The funny thing is I have two local roofers who I wanted to chose from as they are the most responsive of all BUT one of them wants to fix the ridge tiles while the other insists on installing the secret gutter but I am sure during the inspection otherwise - a less invasive job, fixing the ridge tiles rather than a secret gutter so he must changed his mind in the last 2-3 weeks. I dealt with at least 12 roofers, 4 came over and 3 other gave me quotes based on the images. The man who wants to fix the ridge tiles and use some Belgian tech in place of the mortar that apparently lasts much longer showed me that fixing a secret gutter if the roof is not replaced at the same time leaves a mess because they cannot match the tiles exactly in terms of colour and he showed me an example on a nearby roof. He also suggested to install some loft ventilation tiles. The other gent told me that ridge tiles are pretty much illegal these days and this should be phased out. He also said that whatever is to do with ridge tiles won't last 4 years as frost will crack it open. To be frank both sound professional and the man who suggested fixing the ridge tiles has twice as much good reviews.

That is why I am replacing all DG glass on all the windows. I see half of them had moisture in between so the seals are gone. I also deep clean the window frames including the gaskets.

ok, so I just put extra 170mm over the existing a bit dusty quilt. I understand I should not put it in parallel to the existing quilt. There is a bit of PIR on the hatch but not sure if this is enough. I could put a bit of quilt on top anyway. Yes, I have a proper mask. Having asthma otherwise I would cough my lungs out. There is 42sqm of floor space.

Now I have had many responses from roofers but most of them are quite sceptical the neighbour is going to participate. Only one of the roofers says about a split responsibility because it's a part wall but most of them say in 9 out of 10 cases neighbours don't want to get involved (if rented or council property). I won't be surprised when neighbour turns around and says that I have leaks so I should deal with them myself considering the ridge tiles are actually off centre not exactly over the part wall but on my side. If you look at the picture in the 1st post above. On the top ridge tiles start off centre then go down towards the centre at an angle. This could be indicative of some past dispute. Who would do it like that, not exactly in the centre? But then for instance it does not make sense to do half of the chimney. Some roofers don't care and do half of the chimney and seal the gap with something else. Other roofers don't mind capping the whole thing because it's just an extra bucket of mortar and sand. My question to you is that if the only option will be me fixing it by myself, fixing existing ridge tiles (that are in tact) and half of the chimney I understand this will still require neighbour's permission to work on some of his tiles but rather than a more invasive secret gutter it won't be that much work on his slate tiles.. I reckon in any case if he does not want to contribute to any of this work, should I at least ask him to provide timestamped pictures of the part wall on his side before the work commences? This is so in case after the job is done he comes back in a month or two and says that my roofers damaged his part of the roof and now he has leaks all over the part wall on his side and I supposed to fix it for him? A secret gutter is the best option and this would be the way forward to future proof the roof but looking what happened to people's finances in the last 2 years I reckon people are even less likely to spend money on roofs and why should I pay for it in full? The difference in price is not that much £300 but it is also more invasive so requires more cooperation. Not sure if he's affected by the leaks or any small repair work that has been done on his side led to even more leaks on my side. I don't know. What worries me is that this issue was reported, attended but not fixed for over 1.5 years and the housing association simply given up on this. And it does not look like the whole roof need replacing. I had a surveyor and one roofer looking at it from the loft and it's in good shape. It is just what revolves around the part wall.

Hi Gents, My surveyor has pointed out that the loft insulation - fibreglass insulation quilt is only about 250-300mm thick but it's uneven. I reckon since 2017 the recommendation is to use at least 350mm. From a Youtuber Roger I know that for the best insulation the quilt should not be compressed but expanded. So my pink fibreglass quilt is expanded but then how to measure the actual thickness so I can put a new layer e.g. extra 100mm? At the moment it is between 200 and 300mm thick. I red an article that from about 250mm the return on investment from more insulation is diminished. I reckon what would be better is to get a thermal camera and identify the weak spots. Thanks

Yes, I definitely build a pergola before a conservatory comes in. But pergola is definitely going to stay just moved a bit further. I know timber is pricey not sure how much the whole thing would cost.

I reckon you can paint it green so it looks better in the garden.

Exactly this is what came trough my mind. Yesterday I watched a video of a guy who made his plastic tool boxes for his pickup truck waterproof by attaching a rubber seal.

Is there any way of finding this out? This property was managed by the housing association so you would think they have modernised it at some point if they ever modernise these. I don't know. I have looked into the utility hole where the water and gas pipes emerge but I don't see anything because it looks like ceramic ducting but there is some plastic sticking out, not sure if this is to isolate the ducting or the concrete.

This is Brita Paini. The pipe is like 8mm but the plug I need I think would be 5mm.

Makes sense. Maybe I just invest time in building shelves in my small storage area to store tools. However it would be good to keep stuff like a bicycle, lawn mower, shovels outside. Or should I just make some roof to protect these items from rain?

do you overall think that tents are better than these tent sheds? I reckon you get some moisture barrier otherwise it can destroy things during rainy and cold season.

I think a decent tarp and some simple but strong DIY wooden structure would do better. All these under £200 tents won't last long.

what do you think about storage tents? e.g. this? https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1103372423937149?ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post&tracking=browse_serp%3A9ff45899-b3b9-446c-89b9-34fb5c91761a This cannot be used as a workshop but at least to stuck some stuff into it. Maybe if I put it against some thick bushes it won't get blown away.

a plastic shed? or walls made of plastic? How does it look?

So which one should I buy? I reckon a family tent with a wide opening makes more sense.

I think there are no compromises, this has to be a sturdy timber frame and a thick rainproof material otherwise English wind will destroy it, it won't stand winter. I don't think there is a point in investing in these pop up heavy duty gazebos. Maybe this Clarke garage/tent is not a bad idea after all but I see pallets for like £2-5 a piece I would just need time to build a shed but I won't be able to factor in a pallet shed work this year.

I hope no one finds out that this tent is almost 500 quid. One day I come to my garden and the tent is gone while the less valuable contents are left untouched. 😀

This is what my neighbour is erecting in his garden, made out of pallets. I need to get more pallets.

Yes, a scrap caravan would be a good idea, the problem I won't be able to park it in the garden, no access unless I drop it from a helicopter 😀

I know but I am not worried about security that much. Of course there is a risk of burglary but this is more or less a privacy garden, don't expect thieves to pay a visit.