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I think it might be a bit too late in the year to get a bat survey done. Think they can only be done May to September but might be wrong. Get on the phone ASAP. Personally I like builders that make such suggestions. Suggests they have thought about what the job might involve or they are anticipating what BC will want. Ideally speak to Building Control, tell them where your plot is and see what they want/ expect. For anything complex involving steel beams or non-standard construction they will want drawings and calculations. You might get sent a standard list or useful comment. Hard to tell. In some areas you will be lucky to be able to get hold of them. The gold standard for a new site requires test pits be dug and a ground condition report compiled so a structural engineer can design the foundations for Building Control Approval and your builder to work to. In some areas on known good ground that would be overkill and you can just copy what other builders have done or go with suggestions from the BCO. .

I consider man made climate change to be settled science. We know C02 is why the earth isn't -18C. We know we have and are emitting vast quantities of CO2. We know what happened to temperatures last time C02 levels were high. We can see the climate is changing. We can see and measure ice melting. We can measure the sea level rising. Can predict the consequences of doing nothing.

It works with any system that has a pressure gauge in the pipe to the stove. Think it was just part of the installation procedure for the auto change over.. You connect everything then open the bottle to briefly pressurise the pipe to the stove then shut it off and leave it overnight to see if it falls. If there is a leak you only loose the gas in the pipe not whole 47og bottle.

Just for info.. our regulator/auto changeover has a pressure gauge which can be used to test for leaks. You just turn off the gas bottle and see if the pressure in the pipe to the cooker falls overnight.

+1 only use pocket/sliding doors if no alternative. Pain for general use as you can't really open and close them as quickly.

We have plastic covere copper pipe all way from regulator on the bottles to Britannia dual fuel cooker. Comes up through floor behind it. Think we have one joint outdoors underground. Wrapped in denzo tape.

Does it detect that the bath has been emptied before someone presses it again ? I guess that's OK if its got an overflow that can cope with the flow rate.

Perhaps boiler outside with tank where current boiler is inside.

In my opinion most of the cleaning is done by flushing and refilling. Some cleaning products are mildly acidic and there might be some truth in old systems being held together by scale. I would flush it two or three times, refill, test everything works (so no trapped air) then put in corrosion inhibitor. If you measure how much water comes out when you drain the system you can calculate the amount of corrosion inhibitor needed correctly. See instruction on bottle. In general a bit too much inhibitor doesn't harm.

My choice would also be a system boiler and 300-500L tank. Perhaps with the boiler mounted on wall over the tank. If that's really not possible... Storage combi are just regular combi with small tanks built in. They help boost flow rates but only as long as the tank allow. With three showers going that wouldn't be long. Think I'd try and find a high power combi or possibly two small ones. Let's say you are happy with the flow rate from a 10kW electric shower. Then a combi to power three would need an output of at least 30kW. So I'd look at something over 30KW and check what flow rate they say the DHW side can deliver. Or perhaps 2 showers on the combi and one electric? Or you can measure the flow rate from your favorite shower and work out what flow rate you need for two or three of those and check the boiler can deliver that and more. Then you also need to check that the cold mains supply to your house can deliver it. Then check the CH of the boiler is adequate for heating the house. I'd also look for a fully modulating boiler. I'm not a plumber or heating engineer.

OK some figures... 8kW is about 35A 10kW is about 45A So 4 of those would be way over 100A single phase that many houses are limited to. In fact I think many houses only have an 80A fuse in their nominally 100A supply. I'd like to see the figures for a house with ASHP, Electric Shower and Car charger. Personally I like a better shower/ better flow rate than an 8kW can produce.

Not me but found Facebook page with links to a few installs but I guess they could be sponsored.. https://www.facebook.com/ultimateheatpump/ Main thing that would concern me with any supplier is the availability of someone to fix it if/when it needs repairs or just tuning up.

RSPB advice seems to suggest clearing it in February.. https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/advice/gardening-for-wildlife/plants-for-wildlife/garden-hedges/hedge-law/

A normal residential garage would be considered part of her home/garden.

If all of the land you are buying from your mum is part of her home/garden ("Principle Private Residence" in HMRC speak) then there shouldn't be any CGT for either of you. If some of the land you are buying from her isn't really part of her home/garden (eg it's a paddock or agricultural or similar) then their might be CGT to pay. This would/should be calculated on the value of the land not what you pay for it. The value could include any "development value" that is its value based on its development potential. If you pay a lot below its market value then it's possible HMRC might see the difference as a gift. That could make it subject to IHT if your mother died within 7 years. I'm not an accountant - this is just my understanding of the CGT and IHT tax position. I've mentioned VAT above.

Not quite sure I follow that. Bear in mind that a new build is only zero rated for VAT if all existing buildings on the site are demolished. In some cases this can make it worth demolishing and rebuilding existing buildings. Great for the Environment eh?

Search youtube for "overboarding ceiling" or similar. Several vids on how it should be done/look.

Liability for the CIL only kicks in when you start implementing your planning permission. Until then the liability can be transferred to a new owner. So it's not really an issue. The important thing is to get planning permission and then formally apply for the self build exemption using the correct forms and get it granted BEFORE starting ANY work on site. Note that the planners may tell you either verbally or in writing that it will be exempt BUT you must still formally claim the exemption or you loose it. Is the land part of your mother's garden? If not then you should buy the land BEFORE applying for planning permission. Otherwise HMRC may go after your mother for Capital Gains Tax on the full value with planning permission. Her garden is exempt from CGT but other land such as a paddock would not be.

Yes sorry it should be WBP. In case you get condensation on the outside of the tank. Most timber merchants have a panel saw and some will cut free.

Is the cavity ventilated? If so the new wall is effectively going to be.. Plasterboard. Batten PIR Single Block Leaf Try that in the online calculators?

It's common to dot and dab plasterboard to walls but ive not seen it done on ceilings. Some place recommend dots of acrylic adhesive and screws for ceilings but again never seen it done with just adhesive. Can't find any youtube vids.

182L is going to weight 230kg max. Call it 180kg of water plus another 50kg max for the tank? About same as three people? Think 18mm ply is fine but it does vary in quality a lot from the DIY sheds. I'd be inclined to buy a full sheet of WBB cut it in half and use both bits one on top of the other.

Gyprock recommend a method that uses dabs of adhesive and screws.... skip to 4:05... https://youtu.be/P8fFsnZVEL8

8s thus new plasterboard going on top of old plasterboard or is it being fixed directly to the underside of joists?

Think some clarification is needed. Its fine/recommended to put a VCL on the warm side of a cold roof construction. The VCL stops water vapour getting to the cold side and ventilation removes it if it does. Belt and braces. +1 to hybrid roofs. A VCL may help reduce the risk of interstitial condensation but should not be relied on as are rarely perfect. If you design a warm roof properly you can put some insulation between the rafters but you should not put so much that it becomes a hybrid roof. See my previous post.