newhome

So this is what I bought. The extra insulation on the outside is optional and takes the U value down from 0.14 to 0.11 so doesn’t form part of the delivered panel. Are you saying that if this had been delivered by a SIPs company it would be called SIPs? I’m wondering why the TF companies don’t use the term SIPs. Is that just a marketing thing, or is there a reason they want to avoid the term? I can see a wood frame in the photo showing the corner detail. Is that relevant?

I don’t think it’s a scam. I couldn’t get anyone to engage from any company and I was going to pay for a system so I think it’s simply that they have so much work they can afford to pick and choose.

I don’t have IPA (thought that was beer anyway ?) but I do have acetone. I’m always scared to use that TBH as it melts my nail polish off pronto and it wrecked a ring I was wearing once so I worry about it wrecking stuff (although it’s stored in a plastic bottle). What can’t it be used on? Is it ok on stone resin trays, steel baths etc?

The joiners who erected my house were amazed at how easy it was to erect. Absolutely nothing needed to be trimmed on site. We did get a quote for building using SIPs but it was significantly more expensive than the closed panel TF and the SIPs company had no reference sites for us to go and look at. With the closed panel system the TF company provided us with the details of a house a few miles away being erected using the same system and the builders were more than happy to show us round so that and the price difference won them the order.

What's the difference between SIPs and closed panel timber frame? My house was built using the closed panel system and the panels went together amazingly easily.

I believe that @Stones used an MCS installed on Orkney so maybe he can recommend his (or not).

So is this swanky Fugi kit something worth buying if you've never done any siliconing before? I know finishing off a bathroo is new to you too, but you've got skills that I deffo haven't. This would be for someone (me ) who's never even used a silicone gun thingy before let alone a finishing off tool ...!

Mine too actually ?

Jeez, I wouldn’t live at the top or the bottom of that! Stuff of nightmares!

That seems like a deal!

You have 18 months to sell one property that was your PPR when you move to another property. This is reducing to 9 months soon. You will likely become liable for CGT from that point when you come to sell but you need to take professional advice.

Don’t you need to worry about the joists if you use the biscuit mix because of the weight? I think @Redoctober had to upgrade his joists (or something). It’s probably in his blog somewhere.

I don’t have spreader plates. The supplier of the kit (Wunda) never specified them and we didn’t know we should have had them so the pipes were laid on foil as per the photo and then wood flooring put on top. The first thing @Nickfromwales said was ‘why don’t you have spreader plates’ but tbh now that the UFH is working ok upstairs and down it seems fine upstairs. I was told that I would feel warm bits of floor and cooler bits as the heat would spread evenly but I haven’t noticed that at all in truth.

Bugger! Still, you’re not tied to him presumably so time to start getting a few more quotes.

What do you intend to do with the annex afterwards? If it’s for someone to live in permanently you will need to fit it out better than if it’s for occasional use or whatever. Something cheap and free standing, even second hand may suffice as a kitchen if you are only living there whilst you are renovating the main house. You can then replace that later when finances allow. You’ll want to save your cash for work on the main house surely unless the annex is intended to be a source of income to help fund the renovations.

You could possibly go for a non VAT registered trader then if you could get one. You'll need to pay the VAT on the materials clearly but the labour might be a bit cheaper. Have you ascertained the position with council tax if you make it a self contained annex with kitchen and bathroom?

Yeah but it's probably as good or better than watching porn where @Onoff is concerned so it was bound to take all night

Welcome! I assume the main house has been lived in during the last 2 years? Just makes a difference to the VAT position if it hasn't.

Is that the same for UFH too (albeit the water comes off the bottom) or does the water from the TS circulate round the UFH? What happens with an UVC and UFH?

Sounds like something a politician would say. Where is the ‘how’ and ‘when’?

Call them out on Twitter and keep doing so until they address the issue. At least they appear to respond on there.

Costs for MCS installs up here are crazy numbers IMO. I only managed to get 1 ASHP quote and that was 14.5k. Given the cost of the parts it was several thousand to install and commission, way more than could surely be justified based on effort / time to install. Up here we seem to suffer from not having enough installers, a tendency for installers to concentrate on more lucrative commercial work, and the government providing interest free loans to pay for the installs. The final point is no bad thing of course but it means more people are applying to install renewables and demand outstrips supply. I wrote some Facebook messages on local groups when I was struggling to get ASHP quotes and was inundated with replies from others saying the same thing. The local ‘green’ consultants in the high street said the same thing and the woman from the Energy Saving Trust told me to widen my search area and try some in England and further north in Scotland. Great approach if something goes wrong and needs servicing. How likely would it be for someone to come to my house quickly to rectify? In addition the RHI scheme rewards those with leaky houses. A ‘D’ graded property stands to gain far more in RHI payments than an ‘A’ graded one so in theory their payback time would be less.

That’s how mine is set up but the AAV is on the ridge of the roof and not accessible from the loft afaik.

Not eligible for space heating. For DHW only it’s eligible but if you have a TS it will be used for both space heating and DHW I imagine so it would be ineligible in that scenario. God knows why you can use the sun for DHW but not space heating. Madness! I asked the woman from the Energy Saving Trust who came to the house and she had no idea either.