twice round the block

Is that on a road junction or just a corner?

You may need a few coats but it dries fast. Apply with a medium pile radiator roller

This Indian sandstone in the photo has been down a few years that was repointed using easy joint on Sunday. Who ever laid your slabs hasn't got a clue. They never should have been jointed with a strong cement mix as they have been, which looks like it was applied wet, via a watering can and has ruined lot's of the slabs, as sandstone is porous. Two options to joint up sandstone are: Easy joint or A mix of 1 cement and 2 sharp sand is brushed into the joints as a dry mix and pushed down using a jointing iron or a length of blue water pipe depending on the size of the joints. The patio can then be sprayed with a fine mist nozzle or if rain is forecast in the near future. Let nature take it course, and that will set mix. Can't expand your photo, but have they constructed a step from cut slabs?

Big labour and skill shortage in the building and associated trades, same as there is for mechanic's. Mugs game when you can earn more money pushing a mouse around, than doing hard labour.

All steel tarmac rake, but you may need extra bracing welded from the head to the handle. Raking type one is no easy job

True cost would come in at around £1800 sqm using contractors, and the owner project manager.

Buy a 12 foot trailer or a long bed transit type pick-up, or Luton box van. I found the luton box was best, as I've owned all three. If your doing a self build (yourself) you will need one, unless your getting builders merchants and sub contractors to supply everything.

Does the father pay maintenance? Will this stop when the children are out of full time education? Will any of the children go on to university to continue their education? Will the family member take on another partner next year, 5 year's, 10 year's? It's your savings and your the only person that will know if your going to need the money later in life. Life and circumstances can change overnight. We helped all our children get on the property ladder with large handouts and kicking them out! we discuss now if it was the most sensible thing to have done with a chunk of our savings now we're getting older.

Not a bad price if that is muck away and all materials included.

Garden center's sell potting grit of different grades which is ground granite. If this is mixed in with your sharp sand / cement in equal quantities and swept into the joints and tamp down, this will definitely withstand pressure washing. If you treat the patio with Algon that will help to retain the colour. Easy grout is £27.30 landscape supplies upto £43 in B&Q.if you go down that route. Buy yourself a Nilfisk pressure washer that comes with a rotating patio brush.

I found the stringer on the wall side was moving and causing the squeak on mine, so put a couple of long screws and plugs into the adjoining wall and that cured that.

Why didn't they hire in a JCB hydraulic breaker in the first place? the sound like a bunch of amateurs

Not if its back filled with compacted clay layers, it will not compromise the footings as it is only holding back the sides of the excavated trench. The depth of the dig will be stipulated by building control and your architect and results from the soil survey. The stump root ball even in clay will not go down more than two meters in depth, probably a lot less than that once the top soil around it has been scraped back and saved separately.

Couple of points. The 1.5 ton digger quoted for is not going to dig a 2.4m deep footing (if required) on the whole plot Muck away should be by grab loader and not skips, for speed and cost. I removed large stumps and back filled the holes with clay that was removed from drainage runs on the site. This was compacted down and re excavated for footings. That gave me the same ground make up through out the plot.

Welcome to the forum. There's lots of us on here that have done barn conversions of different types of constructions. Certainly a challenge of the unknown doing barns. What's your anticipated timescale ?

Can't you put joints into the RSJ void 200mm, put the insulation between them, plasterboard below and ply sheets above, then flat roof membrane. Is the drawing you've posted correct? I'm not sure why it shows plasterboard above the RSJ.

I think I would be inclined to put new post's in on your side of the fence and put these at a midway point between the existing post's so you don't hit the concrete plugs of the original post's. I'm not sure there is another option due to the heavy duty original post's used, and hence fencing contractors suggesting the same. As for arris rail brackets. Due to your rails being square you would probably have to use a modified joist hanger to get a fixing.

Remove 3 courses of brickwork all round to get back to the level you should be at.

Can't you just set up a couple of trade accounts, so you get the materials in? All depends if you want to manage the renovation and your knowledge level of building and related trades. You buying all the materials from Wickes for your contractors probably won't go down very well. Are you thinking of doing this to try and save money?

@Stubblemonster Have you got openings both ends?

https://abbeypynford.co.uk/products/treesafe/ The above do an engineered footings and slab when building close to tree's

They can't find the plots for the right money. They dont have savings/ disposable income to undertake the project. They don't have take risks. (Done the survey)

Shouldn't the patio be 100mm below the level of the air bricks?

All fencing and groundwork first.