Iceverge

MVHR won't heat or cool your house as the air transfer is too low. Regarding overheating there's a simple formula somewhere relating to glazing vs floor area. I'll try to find it. Stack ventilation via your velux will work but you're better off not having the issue in the first place. Don't discount cavity walls. With 150mm full fill dritherm 32 or EPS beads you could achieve the same U value as your ICF. Less issues with finding specialist materials and experienced trades.

@Dave Jones Did you install one of these units or something similar in the end? Was it a success?

Get them moved, withhold any payments until it's done. Mistakes are made but they're making excuses to avoid doing the job properly. The only thing I'd be careful of is to make sure the base of the window is properly supported. If it isn't the window may deform over time and not function properly.

My hunch was that losses from a cylinder are largely related to the amount of plumbing connections. Hence I decided on a plain direct UVC cylinder heated by an immersion. From my reading about sunamps the electrically heated models had issues. I don't know if this is still the case.

Welcome Welcome. Congrats on having gotten this far. I had a nose on google maps and if you could get permission for a detached house to the style of those on the main road It'd be easier to build and probably be worth much more given the extra kerb appeal. I went through 3 planning permissions before we settled on a house. I'm glad we did as we'd have run out of money otherwise. If this isn't an option I'd look at squaring out the ground and first floor and binning the internal garage. Make the house a full 10250*7440 box. A simple external car port will prove more useful in day to day use and I'd increase the size of the utility, make a proper plant room and make the kitchen larger. For noise I'd bin the bifold doors and get triple glazed doors with proper compression seals. For a construction method, if you're stuck with external brick, I'd use wide cavity walls like @tonyshouse. As i remember the only noise issues he had were through the ceiling and would recommend double boarding them. I'd also probably use a dense insulation like cellulose, rockwool or woodfiber. In preference I'd move all the bedrooms to the North of the house as this is where you'll be most noise sensitive. A top plan. Combine this with a vertical service shaft from a plant room and you're onto a winner.

Yes I can agree. I reckoned 37 years with a air2air heat pump and about 10 with direct electric. That was with free wood also but our heating demand is very small. I know! Hence my occasional is just that.

My preference would be dense concrete blocks at 20% cheaper. What was the reason for the lightweights? Good. More if it'll fit! Good plan. Have you priced EPS blown beads as an alternative It'll help for sure. Get him to cost it. Where does the bottom of your wall insulation stop? That steel is probably more of an issue mind you. My preference would be wet plaster internally. Although dot and dab can work it usually doesn't rate very well for airtightness. Nice solid walls too. I'd get rid of the studs and build internal block walls. Better for sound and cheaper as far as i can remember. These can be built on the blocks that are there. Avoid anything that seals with a brush seal like bifolds or sash windows. They're really drafty. Triple glazing is a no brainer. Beyond that it's how much you want to spend. Nope! That suggests you've been able to get to sleep in the first place! Have a look at this series of videos from the GreenBuildingStore. They're short and cover 99% of what you'll need to do to have a very comfortable house.

You have crafted not only a beautiful home but a matching existance. We're almost in the same position as you with no central heating. In fact I was almost to the point of buying that same charnwood stove last year. I bawked at the price of combined flue and stove (€5000 in Ireland) and the prospect it would be impossible to convince anyone to install it in an acceptably airtight manner. For me burning timber became like smoking. I enjoy the odd fag but I wouldn't like to have to do it everyday, and it's easier to make the choice about such things if they're not in the house, although looking at those pictures....................

No Idea, Much pricier than tile paint I'd wager! They paint rooves the time on the continent. I don't think the render do a whole lot for the dormer. It draws attention to the irregularly spaced and sized windows. I did draw a wider porch but given the extra cost involved It didn't add too much to the aesthetics. If I was to spend more cash I'd probably put it towards doing something to break up the vast brown flowerbed /rockery as as well as the paving. If it was me I'd start with a tub of tile paint and PVC paint and see how it went.

With Black window frames like the rear of the house. I personally think unless you've super slim window frames this isn't as nice.

Standing Seam Metal roof

Rendered and painted

Remodelled Porch

New Door

Painted Roof tiles, windows and fascia+soffit. Extra couple of meters of Fascia board above door for aesthetics.

BEFORE

What are the floor junctions between the two halves of the house and what are the proposed floor coverings? 20mm is very little. You could loose that in a door saddle and nobody would notice. Otherwise what @MikeGrahamT21said.

Stockholm syndrome! I reckon I'll take 6 months off anything building related. Maybe rationalise the fleet of bangers as I hear scrap metal is making good money ?

Good grief. i just looked it up. Someone actually went and did it. Still though, you can’t just blame houses for all of society’s woes. It could have been lovely.

£215,000 Smaller houses are more expensive per m2. The only houses I've seen built to mega low prices per m2 have been enormous >300m2 or have been terribly finished or have had huge amounts of unpaid labour by the owner. Often a combination of all 3. A better place to start with is your budget and needs both now and the future.

This design is 145m2. It's unlikely you actually need 180m2. 350mm cavity wall. 2650mm ceilings downstairs and 2400mm upstairs. It allows for 4 beds, 1 ensuite, Walk in wardrobe, entrance hall, generous Utility, kitchen diner, large living room, study, family bathroom and a ground floor shower and W/C. I think unless a very large family demands it you could loose the study, a bedroom, the walk in wardrobe, the ensuite and make the living room smaller.

I'd work on reducing the size. What I've drawn is little more than a shed and wouldn't be pleasant. With some decent packaging you'd manage 4 beds, 1 ensuite, a showerroom, a walk in wardrobe, a utility, a kitchen diner, and a utility in 120m2.

No I don't think it's required to have more than one WC for 4 Beds. This is more of a thought experiment rather than an actual house you'd want to live in!

@Amateur bob This is quick impression of what it could look like. Not pretty but it's a house. Footprint 10.4x10m 4 very large bedrooms, 1 toilet/shower. 2 receptions and a study. Large kitchen. Utility. Apart from reducing the size from your 180m2 I can't see anywhere else obvious to reduce costs.

Impossible to say without further details of site, access to services, ground conditions, planning constraints. For instance it's possible that if you were given a totally free hand and perfect conditions and were willing to accept a very basic standard build you'd come in well below £1000/m2. Things that spring to mind for ultimate cheapness. Square floorplan. Only windows where absolutely necessary for fire safety. Bathrooms Utilitys etc don't require windows. Keep the windows narrow to avoid anymore expense on lintels. Strip foundations. EPS under a concrete slab to building regs minimum. Some floor paint to keep the dust down. No carpet or tiles etc. Get rid of internal doors unless required for fire regs. Block cavity walls with mineral wool to building regs minimum allowable standard. Pointed internally and externally for cheapness. No render. White pvc double glazing. Again only opening sashes where required for fire. Standard lumber floor joists with exposed chipboard above and plasterboard with tape and skim below. One socket and pendant ,light per room. No CAT 6 data cables etc. Run cables through surface trunking. Basic kitchen and bath ware, One electric shower and ground floor toilet. A single pitched sheet metal roof insulated with building regs minimum amount of glasswool No extra airtightness measures. Trickle vents and extractor fans. DHW using an undersink water heater split between the WC basin and kitchen sink. Space heating using a Air to Air split unit in a central area. I reckon you could build the above for about £400/m2. It'd be a horror show though!