twice round the block

£7 from screwfix. Put some ptfe tape around the thread on the new one as they have a taper thread, then quick swap, do it live, live dangerously. Skins waterproof.

Surely that has just bled down from the motar mix when the coping stones we're put on top. As it is directly in line with the joint above which absorbs most of the water, snow and frost thrown at it. That's why most walls now use a course of creasing tiles, and a row of on side engineering bricks to stop any rain ingres.

Someone jointed up the gaps between the ridge tiles at some stage and also pointed up the haunched sides where the ridge tiles meet the roof tiles. As this was a thin skim of mortar a tiny amount has now seperated. Nothing to worry about.

The cracks above the doorway don't look that bad. Hack off the plaster and see what lintel is over the opening. Cut out a couple of bricks where the extension meets the original build and see if it's tied in properly. I would say it's tied in with some frame fixings or similar to the original part of the house. Lift up the carpets at the front of the property if that's where you think it has dropped and see if there is a gap between the bottom of the skirting and the floorboards. Do a ball test on it and see if the ball rolls down hill, towards the skirting. Samples from the bore holes don't look too bad, little bit of sand and gravel but not excessive. When the property was built by it's owner the building regulations we're poles apart from where they are now. so tieing in the extension with galvanised frame fixings every 6 course's, and thin prestressed concrete lintels over doorways we're passable then especially with lax planning departments.

@Brickie as per your reply. The window section looks like an add on extension done at a later date to the original build. @azureblueA photo of the side of the property would be a bonus.

Hope the wall ties in the cavity haven't started corroding, as you'll be in for more than piling and under pining to guarantee the structural integrity of the building. Have you made enquiries from a kit house company to see what the cost would be? There's a lot of experienced builders on here that have worn the T shirt, hence why the advice to demo the original and do a new build. The cost's on renovating will spiral.

subsidence. I know the feeling

What's the footings for? garden wall or a building

For the 5k with the original contractor I'm not sure it will be financially worth pursuing. Put it down to experience. Stick with local authority building control now he has now smelt the coffee, and woken up. It is what it is and the new builder will get the job back on track even if there is a slight delay.

Abbey Pynford trees are foundations could work for you. www.abbeypynford.co.uk

There is permeable and non permeable resin bonding available. Guess which option is the most expensive ???

We don't use the sealer on the natural York slabs only the dark ones at our rental property.

We've got black limestone slabs and we used the resin grout system when we laid the patio 4 years ago and it's still in perfect condition. I also give it a coat of screwfix no nonsense clear exterior sealer every year which stops the sun bleaching the colour and helps to stop water ingres. If you drop something from the barbecue you won't end up with a greasy mark on your patio as well.

Find a contractor with a trenching machinery, normally an agricultural contractor that is involved in land drainage. Very efficient way of getting services in.

I had an old international digger with 3 into1 front bucket on my first build in the 80's, this time I've got a small Volvo 360° with 3 buckets but I've purchased a ripper which is great for removing tree stumps x26 and redundant footings and concrete piles. I've hired in diggers over the year's for various projects, so I consider myself a skilled operator. It's handy to own your own so you can use it when you get a dry spell. I never use it when the ground is wet because in a short period of time you can turn the site into a quagmire and end up making more work for yourself. If your confident in operating one, buy one but be careful you can cause some expensive mistakes. Never trust a CAT Scan for pipes and cables, a tooth on the bucket will find them for you. Wear a seat belt when pulling out as it is easy to get the machine on its side and also when tracking backyards when you find yourself in a hole you dug out earlier. In the right hands it's a precision machine, in the wrong hands it's an extra 6 cubic meters of concrete in the footings. Insure it, they get stolen daily. You can't get your VAT back on one. Buy from a dealer if you don't know what your looking for. Resale weekly site has most of the dealers advertising on there.

While he had the digger on site he should have flat packed your greenhouse 🤭

£6490 adds to the price of the job if it was expected. When it comes in later, your a bit stuffed

Get cutting, once you get it setup it's not too bad. They didn't allow for flemish bond and cutting a fairly hard brick is the reason for the uplift on price.

You should be proud of yourself for this one

Price to match the existing stonework may extend your budget. Listed properties can put potential buyers off.

That will come out with a mini digger providing your using a ripper attachment. If you try using a bucket to dig it out you will cause yourself all sorts of problems. I've just removed 26 from a walled garden plot and lots of them we're tight to the wall

Can be long haul from purchasing a potential plot to getting planning on it, not months but sometimes years. You need a fair bit of disposable income to tie it up on a bit of land.

Double wrap it and take down the local council tip. Only conditions are 200gsm polythene sheeting and apply for your free asbestos disposal licence. When they opened up the skip so I could put mine in, there we're all sorts of split random rubble sacks of the stuff in there. So it was obvious some people don't take it seriously. I can take three loads in per month but they don't log your visits... fine by me.

Hope he's got insurance and you have

A client can quite often get a better price on materials by using a cash account than a builder using his 30 day credit account.