Redbeard

Hi @flanagaj, I am sorry you have had no replies, and I am aware that you have already consulted 2 SEs, but I think any reply would have had to refer you back to whichever SE spec'd the windposts. They will, I think, have ad more information than we have. Sorry!

That'll be the one! (Though there may also be others). Thanks for that.

Since it seems they were trying to blind you with (whatever they were trying to blind you with!) I wonder if it would be worth getting a 3rd party involved. I cannot remember who they are, but I think some 'on here' have used a 'VAT Reclaim-Chaser'. Someone will know. I am not in any way doubting your ability to make a claim, but I know (not with VAT, but other stuff) what it is like when one party (which is not me) holds all the cards, and effectively only has to say 'no' and I am powerless. Having someone who has dealt with dozens of claims might get you a 'but hang-on; HMRC said the exact opposite in this claim, and that one....' re-balancing of power. Good luck, whatever.

...but, to be clear, I am not saying you do not need the 'paper' - you need, overall, to ensure compliance, probably via 'sensible conversation' followed by the document.

Agree with @Nickfromwales re desirability of RAMS etc., but particularly with @saveasteading re whether they actually mean anything. On one job of mine the EWI sub-contractor provided an impressive, unnecessarily lengthy, RAMS, but I am fairly certain the 'chaps on the tools' had never seen it. On another EWI job the contractor on the tools, their manager *and* the system provider's rep all showed an 'interesting' interpretation of a very obvious thermal by-pass situation. Again, in that case, the 'paper'work was great. In reality, in these cases, a jolly good talk prior to start on site, with clear understanding on both sides, would have achieved much more than the 'paperwork' did in practice.

I cannot see whether the wooden arch oversails by much, but if I were making it up from scratch I'd perhaps make the arch say 50-70mm oversize all round, build in L-shaped 'end soakers' as you roof, (maybe v thin alu - at one time - when I had a supply - I'd have used second-hand printing plates) then sandwich one leg of the soaker between the arch and a rear-face 'mini-arch'. I wish I could draw! Not 100% sure what you do at the top, but I am sure the solution would come to me when I got there!

You could just drive a few screws, or search "screw-in wall starter ties".

This is an entirely different thread to the one I was expecting! I thought it was about building in earthquake zones! (Flexible House Guidance Please)

Not necessarily. You have to tell him of the issue (preferably before he starts and with pics), explain your wish to get rid of the step in the 'unseen zone' (behind the ACO as you describe) and ask him to have a think about it before he talks it through with you on site when he arrives. Hopefully then it will feel like a joint strategy. You can perhaps talk about the mortar mix at the same time.

Thanks, I understand now. Depending on the size of the uprights it'll be load-bearing or semi-load-bearing then. From what little I know of 'certified' straw-bale I gather that private BC was probably the right call. I am sure there may be SB builds built under LABC supervision, but I do not know of any. PD and PC need not be a problem, but I hear of 'officialdom' having issues sometimes - not sure why, necessarily. The 'rules' refer to having the relevant 'skills and competences', not to 'being an architect' or 'being a builder', and if you're already building it's likely you'll soon have them even if you may not have done at the start! Keep having fun!

Err... this looks to me like a timber footing/base with load-bearing bales built on it - i.e. no frame. Is that right, or do I just need to see more bits of the dwgs? Have you got any which show the frame? (an un-clad elevation, for example).

Youtube seems to default to s---ty subtitles for me lately. Some of them are as hilarious as this song.

More like 'Canyons of your mind' (Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band) than 'Windmills of your mind'....

Again, out of nosiness, who is doing your Building Control, and will your architect be Principal Designer for Building Regs, or will you and your husband be Principal Designer, Principal Contractor and Client? Some threads on here relate to those roles.

Welcome! Is this wrap-round or infill? If the latter what are you doing to mitigate the thermal bridge of the posts? Out of nosiness what is the insulation detail for the floor of the oversailing part? Good luck! It'll be fun.

Perhaps explain briefly what a rough experience you have had before, and invite communication right from the start in the case of any doubt whatsoever. Not so easy, I appreciate, if you are not on site, but can they get you at short notice on your mobile to clarify any uncertainties, for example? Absolutely agree with @saveasteading re a dwg. Am I, however, right in remembering that you have only general, not detailed dwgs? Even an agreed scribbled (annotated with dims where applicable if not to scale)sketch can be invaluable in lieu of a detailed dwg, as long as the context is clear and understood.

...and is there somewhere for the water collected by the French Drain to go? A main drain? I'm guessing a soakaway would be too close to the building (?), though I have no idea of Scottish regs.

So where does that leave you? What's the fix/work-round for the Cemex stuff, and what are you going to use instead of the lump of 'clod'? If all orders are detailed, in writing, then wriggling out would arguably be difficult. OTOH total inactivity/failure to engage works for recalcitrant contractors all the time. Also, it just occurs to me that any 'obvious' description, especially in a product name, probably has to be queried. You said '...there is a clue in the name 'Easyflow', but maybe there simply isn't! 'Oh, we call it that, Sir, but it's stiff - and does not flow easily - when we think it should be.'. I am not sure I'd have queried that either, but it's a Life Lesson... Keep us posted on the next steps and, I sincerely hope, the success thereof.

... and logic does not necessarily seem to apply, anyway. I moved to Churchill as the renewal premium from the last insurer was silly-high. After 2 years with Churchill the price creep was not insignificant. I looked on Compare the Market. The best balance of cover and cost (not identical cover, but v close) came from the company I'd left 2 years before because of their silly-high quote!

Many thanks for this @-rick-. What you say about the BUS grant sounds entirely logical but was not mentioned by the surveyor, nor picked up on by the sales team. As explained by the surveyor the issue was load, not eligibility for BUS. My view was simply that 3-phase because of elec showers would be (expensive and) mad, so if I have to physically remove or otherwise 'incapacitate' them before confirmation of order or the arrival of the installation team then so be it - I've still got a tap!

Indeed. Had a survey recently with a view to getting a HP installed. He asked me to run both elec showers (rarely used, and never together) and clocked 75A. He told me I'd need a 3-phase supply. (!) What neither of us initially clocked was that elec showers would no longer be required once we'd lost the combi boiler and gained a 300ltr cylinder. It took a while to get agreement on that. I had (not unreasonably) to confirm that the elec showers would be put out of use (in his view, removed completely) before the installation of the HP began. Apparently handing over a pair of breakers would not be enough!

Quick fix - elec shower, but if you are selling then the costs of compliance may outweigh any savings. Is it a pressurised cyl? If so I cannot see any obvious problem. For various reasons I have only ever used elec showers, though, so others with more direct (or indirect?!) experience may come in.

Agree with @Nickfromwales, but if you do still want an 'interim' solution what about the longest 50x50 sawn you can get - probably 4.8 or 5.1 x 2 with ply or OSB between, as 'quasi I-beams'? 2 x 2 will come in useful in its own right or glued and screwed as 4 or 6 x 2.

If I remember correctly, if the bottom step can become a 'landing' (length at least equal to the width of the staircase) then it can have a different rise. We did this when we had installed drainage membrane and insulation and a floating floor in a basement kitchen.

You could scumble it... Search 'wood grain scumbling'.