Temp

I never use it and only get the boiler cleaned/serviced every other year. Never seems very dirty.

"Warm roof construction" has all/most of the insulation above the rafters so that the rafters are on the warm side where no condensation should occur. Hence no ventilation of the rafters is needed. If the rafters or trusses penetrate the insulation it's a "cold roof construction". With a cold roof construction there must be some method of allowing water vapour to escape from the cold top side of the rafters. Either a ventilated void or a vapour permeable membrane. Both methods produce a "warm loft". The problem is that I think OSB is not considered vapour permeable... So there probably should be a ventilated void between the OSB and insulation. https://www.thenbs.com/knowledge/vapour-permeable-underlays-for-slate-and-tile-roofing So could you use open jointed softwood boarding instead of OSB?

When you lay your main sewer connection to the road it's usually bedded in gravel. I'm sure it's against the rule but it would be tempting to lay some perforated pipe in the trench along side the sewer and turn the whole thing into a giant soakaway.

Very good web site here for all things paving and drainage. Check out "D" the site index for drainage http://www.pavingexpert.com/ example http://www.pavingexpert.com/drain03.htm Try and grade the surface so it's slightly higher in the middle or at least avoid any hollows.

+1 As Nick said, you probably will need a new PRV but I wouldn't do it in that order. I wouldn't replace the PRV until after the bits have been checked and replaced if necessary. That's because for some reason PRV are prone to failing after they have been opened once or twice. I would start by checking the fill valves and the expansion vessel. If either are faulty replace those then change the PRV.

I needed to check my plot quickly so I spent a few hours tracking down the "Asset Register" for each utility and then I called them and asked if I could drop in later on same day to pick up a map. I had to tell them I was digging on site and had found a pipe/cable. They weren't very happy but I said I didn't need a meeting or anything and they agreed to leave a map in receiption for me to pick up later. They needed map references and scale required. Think carefully about the scale - they will probably rumble you if it won't fit on a sensible size sheet of paper or is way too small for your purpose. The plots were virtually identical to those my solicitor got some 4 weeks later. Afterwards it occurred to me that a solicitor might be a good source for their phone number and address. Finding that was the hard part.

If it's not too late I might have a 2005 Mk2 Ford Galaxy for sale soon. Only 215,000 miles. The special 5 speed gearbox (1,2,3,4,6) is in good condition :-) Doesn't drink petrol.

+1 See page 27 of the installation manual... http://net.grundfos.com/Appl/ccmsservices/public/literature/filedata/Grundfosliterature-4609706.pdf The shaft of the pump should be horizontal and it looks "tipped back" (possibly as much as 45 degrees) in the photo above.

In the op you mention that a pumping station is an option so is there a public sewer to pump to?

OK until the water level goes above the top of the down stairs loo ?

Reminds me of this story.. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/10/09/cars-crushed-against-the-ceiling-in-underground-car-park-as-floo/

You would hope that if someone called the emergency number to report people on the railway (possibly stealing cable?) they would send someone to check. Especially if the caller wasn't able to see any van markings as it was too dark/late and the company had no record.

I suspect it does but how are you meant to distinguish a contractor with rights from Joe Blogs out to steal cable from the railway or break into your house? I think a visit to the police station might be in order to report the suspicious activity. Tell them when you call the company to check the company says they don't know of anyone working on the site. Perhaps ask if the police would like you to call them next time someone turns up in similar circumstances. Let the police check their ID. With luck the police will get fed up being called out and ask the company to notify you. However be careful what you wish for... would you like them to call you every time they need access at 3am?

Where is her existing loft insulation ? If it's on the floor of her loft then the space above the insulation is meant to be ventilated to avoid condensation issues. If you now put insulation at the rafter level you would have to ensure that there is no ventilation below the new insulation it or it's just a waste of money. There are two conventional ways to put insulation at rafter level.... 1) Cold Roof construction: Insulation between the rafters. Leave a 50mm ventilated void between the membrane and insulation. This is to allow any water vapour that gets through the insulation to escape rather than condense on the rafters causing them to rot. As an alternative the insulation can be put in contact with the membrane (eg no ventilated gap) if the membrane is vapour permeable. 2) Warm Roof construction: All the insulation above the rafters so the rafters are on the warm side where there is no condensation. Aside: Marketing departments hate the term "Cold roof construction" because "cold" has negative connotations. Some places now refer to insulation between rafters as creating a "warm roof" but what they are talking about is the temperature of the loft NOT the temperature of the rafters/roof members. Spray foam... I think spray foam is normally sprayed directly onto the underside of whatever felt or membrane is there so it is most like option 1) Cold Roof construction. However if the existing membrane isn't vapour permeable I have to wonder how any water vapour that gets through the insulation escapes? Is there a risk of interstitial condensation occurring on the rafters? Perhaps they remove any membrane that isn't vapour permeable and spray onto the back of the tiles? If the membrane is in poor condition any water that gets under the tiles can presumably find it's way into contact with the rafters. However currently there might be enough ventilation of the loft that it doesn't matter. If you spray foam all over the rafters so they are no longer ventilated, so is there a risk that this water will become trapped causing rot? Some info here.. https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/insulation/article/spray-foam-insulation I'd want to know who pays if there is a problem.

We used Litofin stain stop.

It sounds like either a fault or a calibration issue. Its possible it got accidentally recalibrated? If you accidentally held down the ON button while trying to set the target temperature you would end up recalibrating it instead. The procedure is on page 25 of the Touch-N manual. https://www.heatmiser.com/en/heatmiser-manuals/#56-touchscreen-thermostat-series-1456694661 To recalibrate it you need another thermometer that you trust to measure the room temperature. The heatmiser is then recalibrated to that value.

One option might be to try doing do a factory reset on the stat... https://www.heatmiser.com/en/heatmiser-manuals/ See touch screen manual page 26 However I hesitate to suggest this as I think you have the optional central control panel which I'm not familiar with as I don't have one. Doing a factory reset would loose any programs set in the stat and I don't know if you would have to re-enter these into the stat or if the central control panel would magically do that for you. The stat and control panel may have to be configured to work with each other and doing a factory reset might also mess that up. Perhaps best only do a factory reset as a last resort before buying a new stat?

PS: The default temperature at which it calls for heat in frost mode is 12C but it can be set lower.

As Triassic says, the stat is OFF or rather it's OFF with Frost Protection mode (snowflake illuminated). The manual says.. So despite it only being 7-8 degrees it might not be cold enough to trigger the frost protection mode and turn on the heating. To turn the stat back on you have to press OFF again and the snowflake will disappear. This still doesn't explain why it thinks the room temperature is 20C unless there is a bug in the frost protection mode software?

On my Heatmiser stats if if it says "RT" or "Room Temperature" that's the current temperature not the target.

I think it's possible to calibrate Heatmiser stats but I thought they could only be adjusted a few degrees? Perhaps I'm wrong and someone messed with the calibration by mistake? Otherwise yes it's faulty.

At least with solder, if it leaks you can reheat the joint and give the pipe a twist.

Would you?....

Before you change to a combi.... The hot flow rate you get will depend on the boiler power so make sure it's big enough for your needs. Also they should check the flow rate from the mains is adequate/good before they do anything as that can also be limiting.

Perhaps Google boiler kettling?