Temp

I wouldn't pay too much/anything for advice initially. I would write to the planners and say you would like to understand which part of the General Permitted Development Order they believe has been breached as the guidance says "as originally built" and defines that in your favour. If they don't come back with a justification/case law I would wait to see if they send a formal enforcement notice. They may never send one if they cant find case law to support it. If they do, then at that point I'd pay for advice, probably an initial opinion from a Planning Consultant.

+1 some of the tracks on the backside of the PCB might be burned. Not always fatal. The relay with the black hole on it appears available... On ebay from China.. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/383276724859 or Poland https://archiwum.allegro.pl/oferta/nf7-100-e24-nf7100e24-pk-zwierny-24v-16a-250vac-i10750260248.html Might be other sources in the UK.

Google says it is possible to buy a retrospective structural warranty or a PCC, but see if you need one first as they are probably expensive. Having the Architects cert might reduce the bill? Shop around. These mention retrospective policies but I've never used or even heard of some of them. Check they are accepted by the Council of Mortgage Lenders before paying up. They may not all cover self builds. https://ahci.co.uk/retrospective-insurance/ https://buildwarranty.co.uk/professional-consultants-certificates https://buildsafe.co.uk/retrospective-building-warranty/ https://compariqo.com/retrospective-structural-warranty-what-it-is/ https://granitebw.co.uk/knowledge/replacement-building-warranty-cover/ Several others found.

Our condensate drain is a small bore plastic tube with no trap at all. It discharges onto the ground near back door. Have never actually seen anything come out of it. Never been a problem. Your mileage may differ 🙂

Looking at this image the rafters definitly appear to have spread. They are still on the wall plate but that's moved to the right. Is there anything triangulation the roof?

I would ask the planners which part of the General Permitted Development Order they believe has been breached or can they refer you to case law, because the Technical Guidance here.. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/830643/190910_Tech_Guide_for_publishing.pdf Says you need PP if.. But it defines original as.. There might be case law which covers the particular situation you have. Hopefully they will cite it when you ask but they might not. If they don't you an either pay for advice or wait to see if they issue an enforcement notice. When the planners find something they think might require planning permission they normally send a scary letter with a heading like "Notice of Intended Enforcement Action" which says something like "if you don't remove the building within 4 weeks they intend to initiated enforcement action". Don't panic because nothing will happen until after they actually issue the enforcement notice and that will give you another deadline. Only once/If a real enforcement notice arrives do you need to do anything. At that point and can either take it down, apply for planning permission or appeal. In some cases they only ever send the first letter and never follow it up with the actual enforcement notice, especially if they can't actually find any case law. Keep the tenant informed and make sure he passes on any letters that arrive to you.

I can't see the drawing but think the answer is yes. After all the first floor is always way above the DPC 🙂

There are many ways to skin this cat. As a minimum I would recommend putting a WiFi Access Point on each floor connected by RJ45 cable back to a modem located where the phone line comes into the house. So for now that would be just two RJ45 cables. I would also put a power point in those three locations. Eg to power the WiFi access points and the modem You could also consider running RJ45 from the modem to the main TV area? Possibly even one outside so you can put a WiFi Access Point in the garden. As @MJNewtonsaid a wired network can be very useful but if really on a budget the above is the minimum/priority I would go for.

Our b&b company provided clips for fixing battens to and they worked out OK. Unfortunately I dont remember what they looked like. The battens run 90 degrees to the conc beams so dead easy to run services.

Can you remove a few stones/blocks to lower the boiler?

The more I think about it the less I like the idea. Can it possibly be rigid enough to tile over reliably?

I would fit big rads. Possible UFH in the walls? Aerogel is the best insulation known to man but is only about twice as good as PIR. We have 80mm PIR under UFH and wish we had more. If you really must have UFH perhaps look at a system that doesn't need screed. Even liquid screeds typically need to be 40mm thick because the UFH pipe reduces the thickness locally. This 18mm or 25mm system claims it can be tiled over without screed.. https://www.continal.co.uk/system/tilefix I think good floor tiles are going to be 10mm thick plus 5mm adhesive. Thin tiles might not be strong enough for point loads over these type of UFH system? 15+25=40mm It might be possible to find a 10mm insulation you can put under the UFH panels.

See page 20 and 21 of the installation manual. Looks possible if there aren't any openings nearby (I mean if the slope is ok).. https://mediacdn.baxi.co.uk/-/media/websites/baxiuk/files/product-literature/baxi-platinum-combi/baxi_platinum_combi_installation_and_service_manual.pdf

Clay soil can sometimes require special foundations. Depends if it expands and contracts with the seasons. Sometimes you need to line the trenches with compressible boards before filling with concrete. You BCO may have have a view on this. Sometimes they require a ground condition report/soil survey to support your proposed foundation design.

The government could regulate to require funds to be held in a separate client account until after delivery or possible even require use of a third party escrow account.

Normally the DPC is roughly 150mm above ground level so I would dig down 1600+150 = 1750 mm below the existing DPC. Then after the BCO is happy fill them with concrete to a suitable multiple of brick or block courses below the DPC. For example 1 block course on the inner leaf and 3 brick courses on the outer leaf should be the same height (but check your bricks and blocks). Alternatively 2 blocks and 6 bricks etc. Then when you lay those courses your DPC will end up at the same height as the house.

Think the strength will depend mostly on the screw, how secure it is in the wood and how many along the bottom. The plastic is just to protect the glass edge from the screw. Tiny stress cracks can cause toughened glass to shatter. For same reason never stand toughened glass on concrete, tiles or stone.

Just replace with similar gas combi.

Something like this? https://www.omegabuild.com/shop/shop.php?category=secondary-glazing-fittings-easyfix-edging https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=secondary+glazing+fixings&adgrpid=126785493076&gclid=Cj0KCQjwyOuYBhCGARIsAIdGQROLktcHw02jG1vgMCeVkQrLrjesB6eIJsXgyeUmyD3Fgjd2tuwMySkaAm7iEALw_wcB&hvadid=543083316377&hvdev=t&hvlocphy=1006818&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=7320255020270910883&hvtargid=kwd-360730112349&hydadcr=28181_1821134&tag=googhydr-21&ref=pd_sl_56z4dawksr_e

So possibly bad luck those of us who filled up their tank recently 😞

Just a heads up on earthing.. In many cases you shouldn't export the earth from the house to an outbuilding. There should be an earth rod at the outbuilding instead. A common set up involves: A MCB is fitted in the House CU. Rating depends on the cable. The cable braid is connected to earth at the house CU end only. At the outbuilding a "Garage CU" is installed. These are typically supplied with an RCD and two MCB (lighting and power). The Earth in the Garage CU is connected to an Earth rod hammered in the ground near the outbuilding. Edit: Your water pump could be plugged into a 13A socket on the power ring in the outbuilding. I think it may also be possible/better to wire it into an FSU.

A lot depends on your attitude to risk. Official advice in the UK from the HSE says keep stored hot water above 60 and cold water below 20C.

From the USA (yes I know their systems are different).. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31940510/

Press reports say they are going to do something for those that use heating oil.

Calculator here.. https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Technical/Charts/VoltageDrop.html Suggests 4mm^2 SWA underground is OK for about 7KW and 6mm^2 about 9kW. Main thing to check is the exact cable length. It's easy to forget you might need 4-5m each end.