Temp

I've heard this isn't an unusual problem. Sometimes changing the pump speed can alter the noise the mixer makes so it's probably due to turbulence in the mixer? Perhaps try sound insulation? Perhaps _lightly_ clamp some mole grips onto it or adjacent pipework to see if adding mass to it helps? Not too tight mind.

Soakaways didn't work on our site so stated in our planning application we would discharge to a piped ditch in the road. I believe the EA were a statutory consultee and they sent a letter back mentioning that there had been a flooding issue just down the road/hill from us. They didn't say no but said they said they "wouldn't want us to make flooding worse". So we told the planners we were going to install a rainwater recycling tank with the overflow going to the piped ditch. I don't know if they passed that information onto the EA but we never heard any more about it. The rainwater tank is only used for garden/car washing so in wet weather I suspect it's full most of the time and 100% goes out the overflow. Someone mentioned a trick he had used on other houses.. When connecting to the services in the road lay some perforated pipe in the trench and back fill with gravel. The services could well already be in gravel so you end up forming a massive long soakaway that conveniently leads off site, down the road, around the corner.... I suspect this is frowned upon so you didn't hear it from me.

TLC Electrical have a range of downlighters of different types https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Lighting_Menu_Index/Lighting_Downlights_Index/index.html The void depth is typically given somewhere on each page but I would also check the makers data in case of errors.

No gas in our village but an LPG hob is very practical. A 47kg cylinder lasts us at least 18 months and costs £50-£80. Might be expensive per kWH compared to mains gas but not much in absolute money.

I got a metal work kit from here http://www.ratrig.com/ . It included standard "2040" (20mm x 40mm) extrusions (cut to length), some metal L shape corner brackets, and a bag of allen key head bolts and "T" nuts. The two vertical extrusions came with the holes at the bottom end already tapped M5 (which I was expecting I would have to do myself). No other holes or processing is needed anywhere. Each joint between extrusions has at least one L shape metal bracket and one printed plastic bracket. You might be able to omit some of the plastic corner brackets but they have alignment ridges that help keep everything square even if the metal bracket is probably providing 90% of the strength. It seems there is a whole sub culture out there of people rolling their own 3D printer and CNC machines. If you know what you are doing you can buy partial kits containing a controller and stepper motors from Amazon and roll your own frame, rails and linear bearings etc. Most 3D printers seem to use the same standard heater block and nozzle also available on Amazon. Have a browse around that Ratrig site and you can find several different frame styles, some of which are intended as upgrades or to roll your own. I'm still exploring Fusion 360 but I'm amazed how powerful this software is and its free for home use.

Not sure if it will make it more accurate. It should help remove some artifacts like ripples from some surfaces and make bed levelling easier. Already managed to print this "impossible dovetail" which most woodworkers will be familiar with. I drew it up in fusion 360 and the clearance between the two parts is 0.2mm (as drawn). The two parts were printed separately (change of filament between) and slide together easily but not too easily. Sorry my photos are a bit out of focus it's my cheap phone.

Update: I've now almost finished printing all the parts needed to upgrade my cheap Anet A8 to a metal frame. The log on the printer says it's taken about 65 hours of printing time!! Not sure I believe it. That might be the total time I've had the printer on? Still it wont be much different as I don't leave it ON when not actually being used. I've gradually learnt how to speed up the printing process but this is clearly the big issue for 3D printing. If you are "time poor" then a faster printer would definitely be a better purchase. The box on the left for the control electronics was meant to be printed in two parts, a 5 sided box and the lid with hole for a fan. The main part should have taken 9 hours to print. In an attempt to print it faster (6 hours) I turned up the speed too much and had issues with the stepper motor skipping after about 2 hours. Second attempt also failed at a slightly slower speed. In the end I decided to salvaged the back from one failed print and broke the rest of the box down into 4 separate sides in Fusion 360 and printed each separately, then super glued them together. Most of the parts are from this design https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2263216 but I took parts from several other designs (the belt tensioners, electronics case, LCD mounting brackets, PSU cover) as people have improved these elements since the original was published. Think I have one more part to print before I tear down the original printer and transfer over all the rest of the stuff.

Has come up before but the devil is in the detail. For example "site clearance" can be zero rated... However the reclaim form specifically excludes muckaway and _separate_ transportation/delivery invoices.

What do you mean by eco friendly? 25mm of insulation isn't much to prevent heat loss. Building regulations for the floor of a new house suggest more like four times that. If you want to improve the performance of the insulation it might be possible to use PIR insulation rather than polystyrene but what's going on top? Tiles need sufficient support. I suspect the grey coating might be fibreglass/cement for that reason? Do you have solar panels or is electric heating considered eco friendly these days? I guess it's ok if you are on a renewables tariff.

Our showers are on first floor which is beam and block, insulation and ufh in screed.... We omitted the insulation and screed under the shower trays. Instead we built a platform from timber and WBP plywood to support the tray at the right height and provide a void for the trap and waste pipe. Used a top access trap positioned in a clearance hole in the plywood. Tray then lowered onto mastic on the plywood.Top of trap fitted through hole in tray into the lower part of trap. This allows top of shower tray to be say 5mm above the finished floor level so the door seal doesn't scrape on the tiles.

We have a lot of exterior oak that was similarly marked. Cleaned it up with a MOP fitted with a sanding disc.... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002QS1LZ2/ref=asc_df_B002QS1LZ258520862/?tag=googshopuk-21&creative=22122&creativeASIN=B002QS1LZ2&linkCode=df0&hvadid=309785472429&hvpos=1o3&hvnetw=g&hvrand=14935090843020364098&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=t&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9044886&hvtargid=pla-561971005126

I think the OP said PDR had been removed?

There have been one or two stories in the press about issues with selling a house with rent a roof PV. I wonder if being tied into a similar contract for an ASHP would also cause problems? https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5886950 https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5679637

Like the idea of double doors on the west elevation. Plan for possible conservatory that side as well. Would they let you run the ridge east west instead of North south? That might make an extension to the west easier?

If I've understood correctly yes. Strongly recommend showing the above to an accountant (which I'm not) to get their opinion.

Don a bit more digging and it looks like the situation _may_ have changed since the web pages I linked to were written. VAT 708 4.3 has this..

I think it works if you contract Red Kite to build it, then sell you the house and you rent it out because the sale to you is zero rated (rather than exempt). But the company might face tax on any profit it makes building the house?

If Red Kite rents out the house I don't think they can reclaim the VAT (quarterly or otherwise) because a lease is vat exempt so not eligible for deduction of input vat. My guess is this approach would risk a vat bill later.

Pretty sure its down to the difference between something being "reduced/zero rated" and "vat exempt". I think if something is reduced/zero rated you can deduct input vat but if it's exempt you can't. A sale is zero rated whereas a lease is exempt.

I've seen this issue of intent mentioned several times in this context. Be prepared for HMRC to contact your lender for copies of any paperwork relating to the mortgage. For example if you tell the bank that you will only need some of the money for a few years because you intend to sell the first house then that may come back to bite you later. Its also unlikely to work if the second house is near identical to the first. You really need some sort of reason for moving just 10 yards. I would consider re-applying for planning permission on the second house before building it, perhaps to make it larger as you "intend starting a family etc". Remember you also need to live in the first house for 3 years to avoid the CIL.

Caution. There is a VAT issue if a house is built by a developer and then rented out before it's first sale. Google found... http://www.glovers.co.uk/news-articles307.html and a possible way to avoid the problem.. https://www.macfarlanes.com/what-we-think/in-depth/2017/build-to-rent-vat-issues/ I'm guessing that instead of a group entity you might be able to set up a trust and lend the trust the money needed to buy the house from you. The "sale" to the trust would trigger the zero rating. The trust then rents it out to a tenant(s) and pays you "interest" on the loan you made it to buy the house. There might be other advantages, for example the trust might be able to offset the loan interest against rental income which you as an individual won't be able to do for much longer (Phasing out by 2020 see... https://www.theguardian.com/money/2017/apr/01/mortgage-tax-relief-cut-doesnt-add-up-buy-to-let-landlords) This is all speculation on my part - you need an experienced accountant.

No sorry. When we built our place I bookmarked a bunch of large shallow shower tray suppliers not all of which still exist, but in the end went for a taller travertine tray.

Not sure it helps but you can get pretty big shower trays like 2000*900 just 40mm high. Less 25mm would give you a 15mm step. Would that be ok for a wheel chair? https://www.nwtdirect.co.uk/shower-trays/1580-extra-large-rectangular-shower-trays-1800mm-and-2000mm-wide-includes-90mm-waste.html#/159-legs_panels_shower_tray_-no/497-shower_tray_size-2000mm_x_900mm

+2 for Hardiebacker board. We fixed stone to it.

I would write to your MP asking him to pass on the question to the relevant department. They will usually reply even if the answer is vague.