ragg987

A solution is a pump and return pipework - in effect circulate the water from the DHW to the other end of the house. Yes this will cause you to lose heat, but so will having a 2nd DHW with long boiler pipe runs. You can control the pump with a timer e.g. in the morning and evening when you need to use the bathrooms at the other end.

Agree - unless it is a very still day (or "windless back alley" effect), then the air temperature is going to be about the same. The cowl might warm up in direct sun compared to deep shade, but I fail to see how that would change the air temperature to a point you might notice it. Other factors for location would include noise and external environment (e.g. avoid facing inlet to a busy road).

I used one of these which I purchased off eBay, though mine was an older model with an analog dial and not a digital display (no batteries required!) http://www.merlinlazer.com/Hygrohood-Relative-Humidity-Floor-Box I probably still have it around, so if interested we can do a deal.

loose terminology - my apologies - i meant fibreglass insulation, have corrected my post

I did not mean inside the unit, but the main supply duct from outside.

Glad I could help! I'm sure we can help map the next 40 years too.

Just to check - the MVHR itself is in the piggery, so the ducts connecting the 2 buildings would be be at a more stable and relatively constant temperature flow at around 16 to 20C. Surely the risk of condensation is reduced significantly IF you insulate the ducts underground? In my install the ducts after the MVHR have shown no issues at all (admittedly they are both inside the thermal envelope), but the cold supply from outside the building to the MVHR has been problematic and I ended up cutting out the supplied foil-backed fibreglass insulation and fitting in Armaflex - great stuff, glued to the duct so a much better solution. Havea look at the Armacell website - they offer external-grade insulation that might offer an answer.

In our case extract is much louder than supply, and certainly too loud for a terrace you might want to chill out on. Extract side is a short duct run (1m) and a single 90deg bend from the MVHR fan, so I suspect the noise is mainly from the fan rather than the airflow. Our supply is 2 90deg bends and approx 2.5-3 m duct. An option might be to add a muffler / silencer after the fans (a bit like a car exhaust). You will need more space and there will be increased resistance to airflow. Could you point the ducts upwards (like a chimney) so that noise is channeled upwards? No idea if feasible and could cause other issues with airflow or water ingress. BTW - we also have a contemporary exterior in white render, and we have a consistent colour scheme around downpipes and other features like fascia boards (silvery / grey) - I think it adds rather than detracts.

Should you be talking about you habits in this public forum...

If your final plans include a power diverter like an immersun, why not rig that up with a cheap electric radiant heater to heat the space? I did something similar to assist with drying out our basement after screed had been poured.

hedgesdirect.co.uk supplied ours, 2-year old bare-root Wild Privet which I planted out about 3 months ago with a bit of bone-meal and compost mix to get it started. So far, they have all taken and not a single one has failed. Great price, too.

The role of PC does not have to be static - with our build I shifted that role over time. First to the groundworks contractor, then timberframe and finally finishing builder (even though I employed a few of the finishing trades direct - e.g. plaster, paint, plumbing, electrics).

In my experience, the beading effect of rain-x only lasts a few months on car windows, so it may be of limited use of growth takes hold after 1 year.

Cross posted. I mean external boundary of the walls, yes it is an insulation upstand. I think it is 300mm thick.

The basement wall is icf, the beam sits on the concrete centre and the perimeter is clad with the external icf insulation plus a secondary layer of eps.

Thanks for the tip and link. Vacuuming over Easter...

Our basement ceiling is beam and block. There is no cold bridging, beams are inside the insulated envelope. We have 50mm of insulation below the screed and ufh pipes on ground floor. I discussed the need of this insulation with my architect as i did not see it being essential, but he disagreed on the basis that we would be heating basement via the ceiling. In any case, the beam and block contributes to the heated mass and will help stabilise the room temperature.

Link to clone, no affiliation. http://www.filterworld.eu/vallox-145-filters

My filters seen pretty choked up with dust, so time to replace. Originals from airflow / vallox are about £100 per set (2xg4 and a f7). I found one non-original supplier at less than half that price. Filterworld.eu Would welcome any thoughts or experiences. A £100 replacement every 6 months is not something I relish.

Went down a similar route and looked at Marmoleum and rubber options in wet areas before settling on Amtico. Price per m2 was not going to be too different (we paid £20 per m2 for the Amtico), we did not like the colour choices with the other two - seemed like we would end up with a 1970s office space. We had Amtico in our previous house and after 10 years of hard use in the kitchen (2 pre-teen boys) it always came out like new after a good mopping.

Looks great and the price you found seems good value. We ended up with Engineered oak and by the time I add up labour and glue it probably gets close to the price you mention.

From a cost-basis, is it worth cleaning at all? £100 in specialist cleaning tools would require about 1,500 kWh of power to break-even at current FIT rates. Is cleaning really going to make that much difference?

How long before you noticed the growth on your panels, @jsharris ? Ours have been up about 12 months (though commissioned later) and i did not see any growth when I poked my head through the skylight.

Within about 5 degrees of magnetic south, 40 degrees roof pitch, almost perfect for maximising PV. We do have some trees on the east side that cut off early morning direct light, you can see that small wiggle on the left side.

Just saw this on my PV monitoring - a pair of beauties to remind me of the weekend of 8 and 9 April: It was great to bask in the spring sunshine and warmth on that west facing patio, barbie tongs in one hand and a drink in the other. Moments like this are what make that long 3 year slog of a self-build (from purchase of site to moving in) really worth it, so for those of you who are at the early part of the journey, I say "it all worked out excellent in the end, so persevere".