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Everything posted by Nickfromwales
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32 or 40mm to 110mm Big Boss adapters
Nickfromwales replied to BotusBuild's topic in Waste & Sewerage
Use the force. -
Indeed. A good company to deal with, and from my most recent direct experience, certainly not shy of pouring the requisite oil onto the cogs. The lads from Elite were great too, and I’ve suggested to my current MBC TF PH client (who’s engaged with Norrsken) to ask to nominate Elite for the installation.
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32 or 40mm to 110mm Big Boss adapters
Nickfromwales replied to BotusBuild's topic in Waste & Sewerage
These are better than the push in ones imho, as once the band is locked and you’ve glued the face of the fitting to the soil pipe, it’s there for life. You need to abrade the surface of the pipe, and clean it with some solvent cleaner (made by the same people that make the glue). You need pipe cement filler not glue to do the join. https://www.wolseley.co.uk/product/polypipe-gfc100-gap-fill-cement-140g-gfc100/?srsltid=AfmBOoq47EOGcFFkFm0UUHAaMl5ntEYtF1-s87NcOwN9r8P9w6VwYv6WVTI -
32 or 40mm to 110mm Big Boss adapters
Nickfromwales replied to BotusBuild's topic in Waste & Sewerage
Can you get around the soil pipe? Id go for one of these, that clips together at the back, and solvent weld the lot in then. 👍 You can buy these with solvent reducers. Just a pic of the fitting for an example -
You need to mark out a bigger area, as you’ll need temp hard standings for most scaffold companies to put their stuff down on to. Also, you need that perimeter for the stubs of pipes / ducts that get left projecting until you dig back out for groundworks / drainage / services etc.
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You need a setting out agent / engineer, and just get them to peg the site. You need a dumpy site set out laser and receiver + staff for inverts etc. Use the laser to mark out TOC (top of concrete or DPC) and then transmit this level to a metal post or tree or fence post etc so you know you can always use that as TOC + 1000mm; helpful later on when you start removing spoil and you get lost when your reference points have vanished all of a sudden.
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Go for a twin wall Larsen truss or I-beam, and lose all this unnecessary complication. PIR is a complete and total PITA to cut and fit (properly) so just go for blowing cellulose and gain the benefits of a one man insulation process (roof and walls) and also the hugely improved sound-deadening that you lose with PIR. Your initial proposal is hugely over complicated, sorry. KISS wins every time, and will get you to PH targets quickly and simply, with far less to go wrong. The biggest issue will be getting all these layers, materials, installers to do their work meticulously, which most either can’t or don’t.
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Ducting extractor hob on a kitchen island to outside wall
Nickfromwales replied to CJER's topic in Ventilation
I’ve been very busy sorry, and it’s a complex situation so I’ve not bothered giving you bits of answers in my spare time as it would be of little value. I’ll reply asap, and I suggest you hold off doing anything until you fully understand all the options, actions and consequences. Whoever is advising you currently needs to be shown the door though. -
Listed Building and Double Glazing
Nickfromwales replied to DavidO's topic in General Structural Issues
Find some sample images of houses with the same windows in that you are considering, then send the questions and ask directly. Often depends which way the wind is blowing, unfortunately. -
Ducting extractor hob on a kitchen island to outside wall
Nickfromwales replied to CJER's topic in Ventilation
You're not alone in getting poor advice. For someone to recommend what I assume is through wall MVHR in any house that's not designed to compliment or benefit from it, is just bonkers. This isn't a dig btw, just another example of the nuts advice handed out by 'professionals' who just don't have a single bloody clue. Borderline embarrassing for them tbh. Take the replies given here with a spoonful of sugar, we're a good crowd and are only well-intentioned We just get frustrated seeing good people being given shit advice and having to pay the muppets for it. Keep posting here, and you can get a good end result. Whoever said that a through wall MVHR unit should replace the adventitious airflow to the WBS whilst your cooking is extracted needs a poke in the left eye, followed by one to the right. Such unqualified tripe is hard to hear without a coarse comeback, sorry. -
Cut rafter tweaking required
Nickfromwales replied to Digmixfill's topic in Roofing, Tiling & Slating
If that side of the house is "out of whack" then you can only build up the internal side and mask it, leaving the wonky stuff only visible outside; assuming the building is out of whack vs the plate having splayed outwards? -
Recommendations for Groundworkers in South Lincolnshire
Nickfromwales replied to TyroBuilders's topic in Foundations
Decent crowd on the current project I'm consulting on, have asked if they will service your area, but they defo travel. I'll PM you if/when they respond. -
Replacement heating for an Old Farmhouse
Nickfromwales replied to Iceverge's topic in Boilers & Hot Water Tanks
Yup. Simple, effective, and boatloads of DHW on tap with a...... Don't go plated, just have the instant DHW coil in there and it's deliciously simple. Gives the boiler somewhere to release its anger for the requisite full long burns that oil needs. Low cost? Buy everything second hand and strap it together with pushit pipework. Use copper for the primary stuff immediately off the boiler / to the TS. -
Batteries in plant room and 120 minute fire rated walls
Nickfromwales replied to jimseng's topic in Energy Storage
And here's where the fabric won't be saved. The things will just refuse to be extinguished for a very long time, so the fire brigade will be pumping foam or powder, or CO2 in, and then have to do so with copious amounts, retreat, repeat, and so on. Too many manufacturer sponsored YT videos showing how 'easily' these 'silly little fires' can be extinguished with a cup of tea in the other hand. Utter bollocks. I've punctured lipo's that we use for racing RC cars, and the amount of anger stored in a box the size of a cooks matchbox is mind-blowing (eg run away and come back in 30 mins to see if it's calmed down yet). When we raced in community centres or leisure centres etc they were adamant that no lipos should be charged indoors at any time whatsoever. Some charged in their cars, outdoors in the carpark, and some cars went up in flames. The facts dictate that these are minimal risk, so attempting to contain this type of fire inside a residence is a bit pointless; if it goes nuclear, feck all will save the building, you'll just have more time to wait for the fire brigade to smash the cupboard to bits and pump your house full of whatever they choose to use to attack the damn thing. Attics are obviously now deemed the worst place to put one, as that's the highest point for the devastation to then drop through the house / into, toxic crap and all; and fire fighters won't be taking their shoes off to come into your house and ascend into the attic space to then unleash hell (of a lot of water or whatever else). -
Would you risk pulling footings at the moment?
Nickfromwales replied to flanagaj's topic in Foundations
You'll be saying the same thing in 2030..... -
You need new plumbers!!!!!!! Have you asked your insurance company if you're covered for this? You need someone who will be proactive here, and cut the studwork out in 6" sections so the screws for the rear wall plasterboard will pull out without hurting the rear wall, IF you want to retain just the plasterboard to avoid decoration? Again, insurance should cover this and the entire wall coming out, decoration, everything. It's dogshit lazy plumbing. Is the shower valve being replaced?
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Batteries in plant room and 120 minute fire rated walls
Nickfromwales replied to jimseng's topic in Energy Storage
Spread of what exactly? Flames which are in the immediate vicinity, or the enormous amount of toxic fumes given off? The occupants will be killed by smoke / fumes probably at least 30-60 mins before being 'burned' to death. The extra layer of PB / other FR or intumescent material will just save the fabric of the build, and have zero whatsoever to add to the preservation of life. HMO or multi-level dwellings consider the preservation of the fabric, so fire-fighters can have safe access to rescue those on 2nd floors and above, but in a typical domestic residence you just "get out, and stay out"; this is preserved by the standard required by b regs for the obligatory 30 mins. After 30 mins in house fire, the last thing on your mind will be pondering about if the surrounding material can cope with another 90 minutes of utter hell. It boggles my mind that folk have such low comprehension of what this type of fire would do to the survivable interior of a family home. You'll have 5-10 mins max to evacuate, and at 120 mins your family members will be looking into your will to see what goodies you've bestowed. -
Batteries in plant room and 120 minute fire rated walls
Nickfromwales replied to jimseng's topic in Energy Storage
120 mins is barking mad tbf. If this is inside a domestic residence and the battery(ies) go up in flames, after 15-30 mins anyone near it would be gasping their last ever gulps of air. Early detection and a robust plan to GTFO is all you’ll have for a choice. Attempting to tackle it would require halon or CO2, but in an enclosed plant room that’ll kill you too. If these go up in flames, grab the cat and get out quick. The automatic fire suppression demos are all lovely, but unless it’s a bloody huge reservoir then these just won’t have the legs to keep a terminally ill battery from showing you exactly what it’s capable of. -
Raft foundation - close to existing structures
Nickfromwales replied to WisteriaMews's topic in Foundations
I’m up against this constantly. My attempts to steer folk away from expensive and time consuming misadventures is often rebuffed at first, then it’s an 11th hr dash to douse the flames with dampened £50 notes. -
Installing a roof window at wall plate height?
Nickfromwales replied to Digmixfill's topic in Skylights & Roof Windows
Your issue will be the lower flashing, and how close you can take that to the gutter. -
Batteries in plant room and 120 minute fire rated walls
Nickfromwales replied to jimseng's topic in Energy Storage
Current client has looked into this and we spoke in depth about what's "coming next" for the regs surrounding domestic battery locations. Attics are apparently getting removed from the acceptable list, largely due to the logistics of fighting a fire up an attic; eg not having a fire-fighter getting into such a compromised position to fight what is a bloody horrible fire to extinguish. I always design electrical systems to have multi-sensor smoke & heat detection in all plant locations, and I always run a 3-core to the garage if it's quite near to the house as an early warning of a fire in the garage, to give the occupants an opportunity to tackle it before it became fully involved. I also put "locate / test / hush" buttons, positioned strategically, where someone woken by the omni-directional wailing of the smoke detectors can press "locate". This silences every detector except the one which has been triggered, so if in plant or attic or garage etc you can go straight to the source of the smoke / fire vs searching every room in the house in a panic. Not many people put the TD up the attic though, lol. -
Red flags galore......good advice!
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Electricity tariffs
Nickfromwales replied to Russell griffiths's topic in General Self Build & DIY Discussion
I guess not!!!!!!! #anyone??
