zoothorn

No. Andy. Its precisely -halfway- between what you have just proposed here ^ is what's needed! Nothing more! IE YES my builder's gonna be responsible (he's said so, he's happy to). NO he's not doing build plans himself, but instead, simply asking me to do them. Simple as that. Just the critical dims tho not full detailed plans!! (where do I want my door exactly? [MY DEPARTMENT]. But NOT what membrane & insulation U factor [HIS DEPARTMENT]. So for room1 give him a box of 4x4.5m, with door position X, of TF inner +100m block cladding construction. That is all I give him (its better I put a good industry std wall thickness, just cos it looks a bit better but for no more reason than that). That is all he is asking me for. From these 3 basics HE takes the reins: HE builds the walls to satisfy BCO: HE decides the membrane & C'tex "U factor" etc etc.. all the bread & butter basic guidelines he knows like the back of his hand from 45 years being a builder who now, has the best reputation around here. I do not need professional support. I just need someone to tell me a common timber frame inner course thickness, & I can pass the buck on to my builder whom I trust. That is what he has asked me to do: and is expecting -nothing- more complicated at all than that from me.

My builder has given me a set of plans to go by. These are 2x block course. All I need do is replace the inner block course (the usual 100mm width chap Id be 99.9% sure of regardless of an unlimited host of other variables) with a simple timber frame. Its the -outer- cnr point he needs, not me to be critically correct re. the minutiae of wall construction: HE will take over this department! its the door placement, ceiling H, outer wall cnr points ---only--- he needs. Perfectly do-able for me, with a few Q's on this great site. If anyone can help with my timber frame (inner) + std 100mm block wall, just the basics, many thanks. But if you prefer to lecture me instead, this is not helpful to me at such final stages. I have explained 3 or 4 big reasons why I am doing this plan not an arctct & I'm not repeating them. Thanks- zoot

No. This is exactly not what I need. I have explained quite clearly that my builder is perfectly happy to do this -simplest- of extensions, with decades of experience/ the best reputation around, via a Build Notice. A Build Notice doesn't neccessarily need Full Plans. And he has personally given me a set of plans from which he is perfectly happy for me to use as reference, to make the basic plan, of which this thread is -solely- asking about. I have explained this. Please, if you can help on this simplest of build plans- appreciated: that's all that's needed on this thread. Thanks. zoot

Mr. sole.. you see this is exactly the info I have been striving for, for almost 2 years. A simple step-by-step "guide" to give me the customer a brief guideline from which to proceed. I have had absolutely nothing of this sort, rather a total myre of my trying to establish what these steps might be: impossible frankly via a series of wild guesses & trial & error attempts. Eg even the very pg1 basics of how how on earth I get a quote, has been almost impossible for me to establish (& still I have no certainty I actually have such a 'quote', or an 'estimate', or a 'pricing'). At the moment though, having got to this last 2 steps (of my 20 steps I have had no other option but to have taken, fishing blindly in the dark, even with great help on here).. I can forget what I might have done/ should have done. I am here & from here I will see it through to getting the fkn thing built even my having gone round in 5 whole circles, 25 cul-de-sacs, 10 dead ends to get here. It doesn't matter now. I have 2 things to do. The build plan. And applying for the build notice: I have all ready to send off for this/ today/ I know where I am with this (after 3 full days of attempting to understand how it is done). So ONE tantalising step to do!! The Build Plan. So if you can advise on this alone, I'd be very grateful. Any advice on what you'd have done better, or what I should have done.. are all n/a now. Thanks- zoot

Can anyone help regarding wall thickness basics. I have a timber frame inner skin & its to be clad in block. Are there industry-standard dimensions for these 2 skins? & if there's a cavity between, an industry-std dim for this too? Then I can make a start on hand-drawing. Lower room is a box with a door in: surely I can get on with this. I have room size (outer), ceiling H, door width/ height, door placement. I have ceiling beam H @ 150mm. I have room to be stepped down 350mm. An internal 'entrance step' of 750mm. That's all the info my builder requires for ground floor. I just need to draw this as well as I can.

I just don't understand this. Afaik I have been given my quote. I need to do my build plan. I've explained in #1 that my builder is happy to do the build via a Build Notice. He just wants me to do some basic plans. He's happy to build off these, & I've explained why.

But this is exactly why I need to do the build plan for him. He's quoted from my 'architctural consultant' plans submitted for PP. These are not sufficient for build plans, afaik, & separate more detailed ones are then required for him to build from- hence my thread.

@andyscotland yes good advice: I've dipped in to a free software thing, but immediately can't tell my arse from elbow to even do a rectangle.. would take me a week to get the knack. Ok. Assuming I go the draw myself route. He said I don't need to do plan of existing house/ just the Ext. And its a simple design. Would 3x A3 sheets be sufficient, physical A3 size do you think? (2x for overhead views of room 1, & room 2 above.. 1x for front view).

Bela or s'thing? was wondering mfr in spain? he bought £180 18 yrs ago, it lives outside permenantly (that's tough here/ like rainforest moisture all year) & never has missed a beat he says, bar a crap switch design. I am scared of it- being a mixer:virgin.

Hi Onoff- yes that's bang-on my new plan in fact: now I have the 2m to stream centreline (boundary) I needed, pro chap suggested exactly this too. All good ideas- but 1st I need to do these top 2 footings: tricky for me alone. Its the rebars- whether to add, say I lump hammer 3x in each ~0.5m into ground/ so 3x 1m rebars in each foot. What you think- may as well, or not neccessary (I can rtn if so/ helps £save beans).

Pro chap & me did these two bigger/ tricky/ low stream-side 2x footings last 2 days. 1m deep (2ft dia). Very happy/ less obtrusive than I worried they'd be.. & we put well into bank so side of cabin will be the 2m away from my boundaryline (other thread). So the 2x upper corners to do myself. Easier @ 0.5m deep (but still a big job myself- esp as 1st time using a mixer). Pro chap has left me his mixer, tamper bar, angle grinder, shovels.. v.good of him. I have mixer set ready, barrow to pour in > then shovel or pour in me' ole. We put 3x rebars in each big'un. He's told me once I get my two 0.5m holes dug out on the top-side of slope (tops ~1m above lower 2), to 1st tamp the base as won't be as 'stream bed' solid as lower 2 we did. Do I need to add the rebars in these top 2 too?

Hi- can anyone lend any advice on this plan I need to do?

Hi chaps- thanks for the replies/ back from b'hol break & seen replies. Hi PeterW- sorry I'm not understanding catch troughs, retarder, or the talking to plants bit.. Yesterday the big b'stard pillars, low-down @ stream side, have been set!! 2x 1m high (x 2ft dia) drainage tubes solidly dug into my bank down to stream bed level. Took all day of a pro & me helping. Today PM we concrete: mixer used here obviously. Rebars in too. Pro said only 2x needed on stream side as pretty damn big [3x would be OTT: log cabin's corners @ 2.3m.. so a 2.5mx2.5m cabin, smaller than orig idea of a 3mx3m job]. So if I use the now spare 3rd 1m tube, halved, for the 2x upper side corner footings. Pro outlines idea of 1/2 sleeper uprights (IE 'ripped in half' lengthways), set into resin-bolt-set brackets fixed in the 4x concrete tops > very sturdy 9x2(?) beams coach bolted etc > joists across > Cabin on. So if this idea is seconded/ ok'd perhaps by you guys.. I have 2x 0.5m high (x 2ft dia) concrete corner footings to do myself.

Interesting points @JSHarris there.. understood. So sounds like postcrete is too small for the job really. Ok maybe I can dangle some money to 'hire' my n'bors mini-me mixer just for these few footings as of when. Can't wait to get them done, then onto the brackets > pillars & timber base work. cheers chaps.

Hi Peter- I like the sound of this idea.. understood. Ok good a few options here & seems not too much of a job for me. @Onoff actually I have pretty heavy clay here so may well be able to get a nice neat square dug/ but I like the bucket to contain idea. Might do a combo of yrs & PeterW's idea. Cheers- I'll come back to this once I'm ready to do them.

I have thought of this.. but storage tricky, & cost, & I won't use much tbh/ I only really have ~this job to do. I may be able to borrow one.. if I play my cards right.. with a nice n'bor. Yes I do have one!

No of course.. probably not right for the job. Ok so as I'm here, & say I'm going with the 4:1 ballast/ concrete + splash mix.. can I just dig a hole in ground & put in? or does it need to be 'contained' in a (maybe smaller dia) section of tubing set into the dug hole. And is rebar neccessary for these? IE these three 'easy' footings will be on the high slope side, actually the ground's somewhat a level 'shelf' here, so the cabin will effectively sit on them (base between).

No thank god.. 2 ft width Russell.

Ok PeterW won't do this then! 4 ballast to 1 concrete.. plus a splash of frost-proofer admix stuff, I think is my chap's recipe. But can I mix by hand in a barrow?

Ah ok. thx for the tip.. ok will do the other ballast ton & cement bags later. Is it feasable to barrow-mix using these? I won't have a cement mixer you see. The easy upper-side footings I'd hope would 'only' need to be 1/3 size of stream big sods- these 80cm high due to allowing for stream @ max swell.

What Ive done is go 2 ton ballast (not 3) & 12 bags cement (not 18!) > & just do these 3 big lower pillar footings.. then later, go postcrete for the upper easier ones.. or another few cement bags + the leftover ~1/2 ton of ballast. Ive only got a small area/ shelf Ive created near the job, on the upper part of slope up next to road / for my delivery.. & can't accomadate 3 tons/ dumpy bags + mixer + 18 cement bags you see. cheers

Thanks very useful Onoff- well my chap wasn't SO far off as I thought: 15bags + 3 tons ballast he said.. & I said to myself WTF? ! Calculator says 12 bags + 1.54 tons ballast for the 3 big pillar footings.. plus Ive 5x other small ones to do (3x on upper/ easy side of my slope) + 2 midway. Strewth.

Hi again chaps. I'm at the final stage of prep for my extention: to form a Build Plan. My builder's happy with me to go the 'Build Notice' route, bc A) its a simple, small design, B) he knows the BCO well from many years & builds (& calling the BCO, whose been helpful, said he knows my builder very well too).. & C) he's known to be the best builder around here = I have confidence in him. So I need to do the Build Plan with just the basic/ critical dims on (Doors & window positions, corner points, ceiling H etc). I asked if he had a prior plan I could use for reference- & he's given me this. So not a "Full Plans" one like this below.. but a simplified version. I wonder what method I could use. Anyone know if there's a simple PC 'draw' software something that I could use for eg? Thanks- zoot

Hi- I need help on a basic Q. Approximately how much volume does 1 bag of cement, plus added ballast equate to? I guess its 'dependent on what sort of concrete/ what sort of job'.. so in my case its to fill 3ft wide drainage tubes (+ rebars) > to form pillar footings. Thanks- zoot

Wow- very interesting what a career.