Temp

I'm looking for a good rotary sander, can anyone recommend a cheaper alternative to something like a Festool Rotex 90 or 150?

As this is a rental property check the rules on appliances and furniture. We let a place through an agent some years ago and they wouldn't allow 2nd hand furniture unless it had the fire rating labels still attached. There might be a requirement to have second hand electrical appliances tested ??

Out of interest what did Scottish Power quote? Was the quote split into contestable and non-contestable? How long is the new underground route? Presumably we are talking lines on wooden pole not metal pylons?

Interesting court case in todays Times. Some time ago most gardens were thought to have been excluded from the definition of "previously developed land" in the NPPF. However the wording in the NPPF says.. "This excludes... land in built-up areas such as private residential gardens, parks, recreation grounds and allotments". The recent court cases appear to have held that rural gardens (eg those not in a "built-up area") are still considered to be "previously developed". This might make it easier for some people to get PP on some rural land.

I'm wondering if the charge is specifically for someone to post or email you documents (eg access via their web site/portal is still free)? I'm assuming you can also ask to see a file for free and perhaps photograph it?

When we built our house we had to ask Openreach to quote for a new connection. They quoted us for an overhead line but we ran an underground cable to the bottom of the nearest pole ourselves (with enough to reach the top) and the engineer was happy to run that up the pole and connect it when time came. Long thread here with link.

Looking at that table of charges I see it has an * against the £18 charge for electronic copies of a decision notice. The foot note says that this is for: "maximum 5no copies (single address only) and £3 for each additional copy." Huhh????

See if the council planning department publish a weekly list of Planning Applications. Sometimes these will turn out to be someone about to sell a plot. You might get to find out about it before it goes on the market. But do make any offer conditional on the PP being granted.

There are a few books on the subject: "How to find and buy a building plot" by Roy Speer. I think latest edition is 2010 3rd Revised Edition but perhaps check. Some of the info relating to planning permission might be out of date but still worth a read. Main thing to beware of is the huge difference in value of plots with and without planning permission which has led to a number of scams. Typically these involve what looks like a cheap plot with promises to get planning permission for you. In reality it's a very expensive field.

Got a feeling you can't move bats from May to October when they are breeding? Never had the problem myself.

Your fathers PPR should be exempt from CGT but it's not enough for the gifted land to be part of the same title plan as his house, it must be garden or similar. I think the words the HMRC use are "land required for the enjoyment of the dwelling".. http://www.wrightvigar.co.uk/tax-implications-sale-garden/ You should not fence off the part he is giving you until after the transfer.. https://www.taxation.co.uk/Articles/2014/02/26/321001/gardening-gains I don't think it's necessary to transfer the land to you before getting Planning Permission. It used to be the case that getting Planning Permission was classed as developing the land making it liable for CGT but I think the rules were changed some time ago... https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/how-to-build-a-new-home-on-a-garden-plot/ If you sell the house soon after moving in the HMRC may look back an any paper trail to see what your intentions were. So any loan you take out should be a regular or self build mortgage not a short term business loan or similar that would give away intentions. The VAT reclaim scheme is also only for people building their own home to live in and some types of warranty are only open to self builders not developers. None of this is a problem if you plan to build a house to live in but needs to be considered if you are building for sale or rent. If you build the house but decide to let it out then CGT will be payable on any subsequent sale due to the "first supply is a letting rule". I hate to mention it but... If your father were to declare bankruptcy within 5 years then the official receiver can reverse the transfer if he believes the gift was made to secure an asset from his creditors.

Most houses end up built over the supply cable... at least the bit where it comes up into the meter cabinet :-) Just a matter of protecting the cable where it goes through the foundations. Use a cable locator and hand dig to find it. Shouldn't really be necessary. I believe it would have to be at least 50mm deep if chased into walls or provided with protection. Fuse and switch needed in the meter cabinet but that's not usually a problem.

You can hire cable locators for around £50 a day. Start by finding any cables shown in the road and look for any branches heading your way. Then do a site walk over? I've only used them for tracing an electric cable not water or gas.. https://www.hss.com/hire/p/cable-avoiding-tool-cat3

OK Google says with render you still need cavity trays but might not need weep holes... https://www.labcwarranty.co.uk/technical-library/weep-holes-in-rendered-cavity-walls/

As I understand it cavity trays are intended to catch any water running down the inside of the outer leaf and divert it to the outside. The source of this water is rain penetrating the outer leaf (bricks are porous). However I though render was meant to be a waterproof barrier so do you need cavity trays at all if the outer leaf is rendered?

If the brick slips have texture will it be hard to keep them clean? Can't imagine trying to mop up a red wine spill or get mud out of our bricks.

When we moved into our house the improvement in air quality was really noticeable. First few nights we woke up feeling like we'd been camping out under canvas. If building again I'd definitely put one in again for that reason alone.

Can't the business just provide you with building services? That way the business never needs to own the land/house. There might be an issue with things like the warranty because I know the NHBC have different policies for self builders and businesses.

Yes that's what I was thinking of but Nicks air admittance trap is a better suggestion.

Thought I'd try and find the regs... http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2003/1511/regulation/4/made Seems it can be used in limited situations.. Para b is unclear. I can read it several ways. Looks to me like the retreated wood must be for industrial or professional use (eg not garden use).

I didn't know you could still buy posts treated with creosote? Its disappeared from all retail shops and most of the online sellers have "substitute" somewhere in small print. https://www.creosotesales.co.uk/

You might get away with an AAV at the end of the new branch? Would need to be indoors and accessible. Another option is to run the basin wastes all the way to the stack rather than share the branch with the WC.

WPB varies in quality so perhaps shop around to compare. Will also need priming before putting the stone down. Many people suggest using PVA to prime wood but some places advise against as water can soften PVA. Perhaps consult the tile adhesive makers like BAL.

Got our trees from.. https://www.barcham.co.uk In Cambridgeshire. Perhaps a bit late for planting but ask the nursery for advice.

A quote will usually come with terms and conditions and usually a list of other assumptions such as a provisional sum for the kitchen or other items that might be unknown at the start. If you have accepted the quote and that didn't include insurance then it's down to you to pay for it. They might be happy to arrange the insurance but you can expect them to want to adjust the agreed price accordingly. If you haven't accepted the quote yet then you can still haggle over what it includes or doesn't include. Edit: We used a builder that had his own insurance policy but because he wasn't starting for some time we took out our own site insurance policy to cover the intervening period. Our site had a public footpath across it until it could be diverted. As I recall our policy covered pretty much everything so there was some duplication but this was some 11 years ago.