Ralph

The diggers have finally rolled onto site today to start clearing and making a road. They are actually a week or so early so I've not sorted out the Brinno TLC200 I've been given to do a time lapse of the build. I'm assuming it's filming for 8-10 hours per day but I'm not sure of the best Capture Interval and Playback Rate to set. Anyone got any advise? Thanks Ralph

Do you have an actual formal contract with the builder or is it a broad term agreement based on the quote?

That is a lot nosier than I was expecting. Does anyone know if that's typical and can you box it in somehow to reduce it?

I looked at these and decided against it. I felt the extra money spent on oil tanks etc would be better spent on insulation. I seem to remember they also had a negative impact on the SAP/CO2 calculations.

HI Paul, We are going with Mark Bruce at https://www.mbservicesgroup.com as we want the Daikin ASHP and he works with our contractor. Mark is based closer to Dundee but I know he's done installations as far north as Inverness. Good guy. There is also https://www.thenaturalenergycompany.co.uk/ similar situation to Mark, they were really thorough with the calcs and design.

We are just in the process of signing up to a JCT Minor Works Building Contract with contractor’s design. I would say you need to make sure you and the builder have agreed and are happy with the interim valuation dates and payment schedules and that they match up with any fund release from your mortgage provider. I think it also helps to have someone familiar with the contract, in our case the architect, as contracts administrator.

Absolutely but there are a lot of behaviours that are probably not safe or even desirable that we all still do. I wonder if sitting in front of a burning fire connects with something in our brain that other risky things you've mentioned do not? I realise I'm stretching this a bit but vegans make a slightly similar argument about eating meat or dairy. It's not necessary, possibly not good for the individual (i don't actually buy that argument) or the world as whole.

In the same way people have done since before they were homo sapiens. That's not to deny the issues you've outlined or that we need to change.

Ecology do what looks very much like the self build mortgage but for renovations. The other issue is whether it's classed as a renovation or new build from the point of view of the VAT.

Not just on the forum. When people find out I'm installing one I often get two reactions, "Yeah you'll need one because those heat pumps are sh*te" or "Why do you want one of those they stink"

Man I can empathize with this one. We have a lighty wooded acre with a burn and all the suggested names so far seem a bit boring to me. My wife is not having my favourite, The Wasp Factory on account that neighbours will think we're mental. The house is a black barn style and we have deer, foxes and have even seen a willdcat/hybrid passing through so I think it will end up as a combination. Safe but dull.

No but maybe the manufacturer could be responsible for poor milling process or not handling the sheets properly. Or the installer is responsible for over fastening or the roof deck being warped. My point is it would be difficult to prove either way so it's the chance you take.

I've had some contact with Tata Steel and it looks like while you can mitigate oil canning to a certain extent, through correct materials handling and installation, it still may occur due to the manufacturing. It does not seem like you have much comeback either way as it's not considered a materials defect. I get the impression you would be stuck between the installer and the manufacturer with regards to responsibility.

That is good to know. One of the reasons for going for Colour Coat Urban is that it is apparently suitable for cladding the walls of our first floor. While oil canning or dimpling on the roof would be bad I'm imaging it would be much more noticeable on the wall.

We are planning to roof with TATA Colour Coat Urban standing seam. My builder has been in touch to say that he's just seen a similar roof (not one of his jobs) that seems to "dimple" when it warms up when the heating is on, but pops back when it's cool. To me this sounds like an issue either with the installation of the metal or the insulation in the roof space. Any experiences with this or thoughts?

We had a bad experience with our first architect, mainly because he insisted the house he designed (which we loved) could be built for 1/2 what it cost in reality. We should have parted ways with him before we did and we wasted a lot of money. We started from scratch with a second with a much better outcome. I'm not sure about feasibility studies but being in Scotland we used the RIAS schedule of work and that sounds like the first couple of stages. Work Stage 1.0 - Preparation of the Brief 1.1 Ascertain Client Requirements 1.2 Obtain Site information from Client 1.3 Advise Client of his/her duties under CDM regulations 1.4 Visit Site and carry out preliminary appraisal 1.5 Identify Project and Construction Budgets 1.6 Develop outline brief 1.7 Agree Preliminary timetable Work Stage 2.0 - Initial Design 2.1 Prepare initial design proposal 2.2 Provide indicative guidance on cost and timetable This is where you have all the back and forth on what you want, what you don't want, budget etc. We compiled a design brief, including a flash drive of images then we had at least 4 or 5 meetings to discuss various ideas and hone in on a final design. We would have never have got to an acceptable design with just the brief and a single meeting. By the end of stage 2.2 the idea is that you have a design and outline plans that you're happy with. I think we even had a 3D Sketch Up rendering to play with. I don't recall if there is guidance on fees and obviously it varies from architect but I don't think getting you to the end of stage 2.2 should cost much more than £2k on a fixed fee basis.

There is a German company that makes something very similar, could be one of theirs. https://www.briefkasten-manufaktur.de/edelstahl-briefkastensaeule-designer-quad-edition-gira-system-106-599-7016-ksgi106-2.html

I think there has been some back and forth on this but I still thought you could apply for an exemption if the house was your primary residence for three years or more.

Frantic Googling of S106 and CIL as I've never heard of it. Reason being it does not exist in Scotland (for now), whew. I could see my garage getting axed for a moment.

Thanks for the response Conor, for some reason I missed this at the time. Ecology seem to be rocketing along, we were the hold up in getting back to them to be honest. I'm just waiting on a valuation appointment with a surveyor. I'm going to accompany the surveyor, I'm not sure how much you can influence them but I want to make sure he's aware of all the positives.

I'm just about to send in the application after having been told that it looked fine in principle. Does anyone who went for an Ecology mortgage recall how long it took to get it agreed? They are estimating 4 weeks but I'm wondering what others experience was. Thanks

I'm with you on this. I sat next to the microbiologist Hugh Pennington on a plane once and he said to get rid of washing up bowls. Not so much because they can't be cleaned but because you have more risk of cross contamination because of the smaller volume of water.He also suggested adding a little bleach to the water.

The only ones that I could find that you could deal with directly in Scotland were Ecology and Scottish Building Society. SBS were more expensive so we're going with Ecology. You need a design that is "capable" of getting an 85 or better on your SAP, which for a new self build should be easy enough. Buildstore will find you others but they are expensive and their reputation on here is not the best. We went quite far with them but and found them fine to deal with but Ecology turned out cheaper when you account for fees etc.

Yup

Yup because mine is coming out at under £25 psm