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Thread already running on green building forum.. http://www.greenbuildingforum.co.uk/newforum/comments.php?DiscussionID=16177&page=1#Item_0 Featured on BBC Radio4 last week.

Where do you stand regarding the building regs, escape from fire part B? Thought you needed windows that open. I mean getting fixed and opening windows to match up might be tricky?

I had a look to see if I could find a design guide from Westminster Council. Google found this which includes Policy CM28.4 on page 21. Google says "you" were consulted about it in October last year so it may have been formally adopted by now. Hope link works. http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwifirbf28_jAhXwQUEAHeUnDFoQFjACegQIAhAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftransact.westminster.gov.uk%2Fdocstores%2Fpublications_store%2FDesign.pdf&usg=AOvVaw1Efq8zD6c4Z4Ik1p9NWxBK and I note it does NOT mention they must be setback only "subordinate" in other ways.

It's very common for planners to want extensions to appear differentiated or subordinate to an existing house. Sometimes it just looks wrong if you try to make an extension appear to be an original part of the house. The bricks rarely match perfectly and it can make the house look out of proportion. Many councils publish residential design guides that give examples of good and bad practice that mention this subordinate issue. Here is an example from Malvern in Worcs.. In a village near me they recently built a very large _new_ house and due to it's size (8 bedrooms?) they made it looks like a 4 bed house with about four side extensions on the left, each getting slightly smaller, some with set back and some in different materials. Looks fabulous.

We have a pocket/sliding door on an ensuite bathroom door. I would only have one as a last resort. In our case it was needed to save space. It may seem strange but the main problem is the extra time it takes to open and close them. You can't just whip them open and shut like a regular door. They feel heavier and you have to pull the door to get it moving then slow it down so it doesn't slam into the end stops as it opens or closes. That doesn't sound too bad but its enough to be annoying on regularly used doors. The door handle and set up also needs to be done carefully. The part of the door with the handle reduces the clear opening width because it cannot disappear into the frame (unless you have motorised doors?) so you need larger doors. If not set up correctly the handle can trap your fingers between itself and the frame when opened.

If I've understood your drawings correctly you want to add a room above the existing ground floor room. So the planners/architects proposal for a 200mm set back requires you to demolish the existing rear wall and rebuild it 200mm back before building the room above. Is it the need to demolish or the loss of 200mm that's the main problem for you? Would you have to demolish that wall anyway? You could stick with the original plan and offer to differentiate the extension in other ways, perhaps with a different external finish to the main house? Has anyone else done that?

Not sure exactly which model of the stat you have but the one I've been looking at has 4 wires (+,-,A1,A2). This will probably seem very obvious but the pinout is + A1 A2 - so make sure the pairs are connected like this.. Pair 1: + & - Pair 2: A1 & A2 not Pair 1: + & A1 Pair 2: - & A2 If that's OK you might try adding a 100nF ceramic capacitor between + & - at the stat end (but don't put one on A1/A2).

I don't think building it without planning permission means he has to pay to fix it. At best you might be able to claim damages for the cost of getting planning permission but that's just a few hundred £. Your best bet is to claim against any structural warranty he provided. NHBC policies require the builder to fix it in first instance and cover you if he goes bust.

The planners only have 4 years to initiate enforcement action (10 years if a change of use is/was required). So if it wasn't built with planning permission its now too late for the planners to do anything about it. If you wanted to regularise the situation officially you could apply for a certificate of lawfulness on the grounds that its too late for enforcement action and it should be granted no problem. Consider doing this before knocking it down. If the house has a structural warranty I would crack on and make a claim.

Their SmartStat has a feature called Ambient Light Dimming which if enabled turns down the brightness of the backlight when the room is dark.

I had a look at the manual and unfortunately there doesn't seem to be an optional feature to disable the proximity sensor. Earlier Heatmiser stats only light up when you press a button as they don't have a proximity sensor. Worth asking them to consider adding such a feature as pretty sure it would just be a software change.

Can they tell you how the proximity sensor works? Some sort of capacitive sensor or does it bounce IR off you? I think you have done everything to eliminate a faulty stat. I'm wondering if they have a design issue? Proximity sensor too sensitive? Picking up mobile phone? Noise on the wiring?

Where we lived in Belgium the recycling centre was in two parts for recyclables and non-recyclable. They had a weighbridge on the entrance and exit of the non-recyclable side to calculate your bill. However you could walk between the two sections. So drop the wife off at the entrance to the recycling centre with a bag. You drive into the non-recyclable side getting weighed on the way in. Off load and pick up the wife. If you aren't careful you can weight more on the way out than on the way in :-)

What does your planning consent say? Convert or knock down and rebuild? If its convert then you can't just knock all the walls down and rebuild them as that would breech your planning consent.

Typically the ground conditions dictate the design of type and size of foundations. When designing a new house on suspect ground, the first step would be to get a ground condition report done. That involves digging some holes and pushing instruments into the ground to measure its load bearing capability. That data can be given to an SE to use to design the foundations. Why did the SE say "underpin and keep fingers crossed"? Underpinning works well if the ground is suitable. If he thinks it might not be then perhaps best get it checked out. See what others here say.

If you really wanted to go to town on sound proofing then it would be four layers of plasterboard - two each side. Staggered offset studs... https://www.plinthandchintz.com/glossary/staggered-stud-wall-construction/

United Utilities refer to Appendix H4 in Approved Document H. The full text of _requirement_ H4 says... https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200135/approved_documents/71/part_h_-_drainage_and_waste_disposal The rest of the approved doc mentions building within 3m of the centreline, but I can't see any reference to driveways constituting building work. Forgot to add that you are required to protect a sewer during construction (eg from heavy lorries delivering stuff).

I hate the word deposit... When you buy any house (including one already built) the bank is interested in the loan to value ratio. Regardless of how much you borrow the bank usually holds the whole house and land as security. If you borrow 80% of the value the remaining 20% is usually referred to as a deposit but a better name for it would be "additional security" because its additional security the bank has if you default. It covers their ass if they have to sell after house prices have fallen. One possibility is that you might be able to (and want to) borrow a bit more than the estimated build cost. For example if the build cost is £250K and the land is valued at £100K you might be able to borrow 80% of £350K = £280k giving you £30K of contingency. Other matters: There are some legal issues associated with gifts of land. One is that you must formally accept the gift or it can be invalid. That might leave you and their estate with an IHT bill (even if they survive 7 years). So write your parents a nice thank you letter once the plot is registered in your name(s) at the land registry and make sure they keep it with their will. Your parents may also face a CGT bill if the land isn't currently part of their principle private residence (even if they give it to you for £0). CGT would be calculated on the market value less their GCT allowances at the time of the gift. Depending on their tax situation it might well be better for you to get PP after they have gifted you the land not before. eg because getting PP will increase the value a lot.

Perhaps look at one with a brush less motor. Should be quieter and less maintenance.

This is what I got.. SWA cable from MCB in house CU. Braid connected to earth in the CU at the house end only. Earth rod at shed end. Garage CU in the shed with RCD for power sockets.

The IET have a guide "ELECTRICAL INSTALLATIONS OUTDOORS: A SUPPLY TO A DETACHED OUTBUILDING". Not sure if link will work... https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://electrical.theiet.org/media/1695/electrical-installations-outdoors-a-supply-to-a-detached-outbuilding.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjp3-2y28TjAhUZi1wKHe0DCrMQFjAAegQIAxAB&usg=AOvVaw383FWw05Q6zVowQqp2B-0o&cshid=1563668016887

The NHBC have a guide on Building near Trees. Removing trees can be the wrong thing to do as on some soil types it can cause heave. We have trees virtually touching our house. I don't recall any questions on trees when we insured it. We have clay soil and didn't need piled foundations, just had to line the trenches with foam boards.

I'll be surprised if the moss is the cause.

Apparently when you convert an agriculture building you can keep all of the structure and still claim the VAT back. See Peters comment in this thread. I've not checked the details.

Is it in a conservation area?