Furnace

@IanRThat's really helpful. It seems a bit crazy to lay in a duplicate pipe, but if the rules require it... Deep ploughing 1200mm???? Not on any land around here. It's 'min till' all the way in these parts. I think using a larger machine is the way to go. My digger is only a 3ton job and will struggle with such a deep trench. I've probably got 250-300m to dig and in the winter the clay sticks like **** and in the summer it's like concrete, so power will likely be the answer. Of course, the route that avoids tree roots will likely smash the clay land drains, leaving another problem to be resolved. Did the water company require barrier pipe because it was a farm? What diameter conduit did you install for the Openreach connection?

No worries. My head is 😵 too....and that's just dealing with the environmental, archaeological, conservation, forestry, ecology etc. I can only hope the build itself is not quite as bureaucratic.

@Susie That's really helpful. Many thanks. Did the water company require barrier pipe?

@Susie Does your ducting contain water, electricity and the Openreach pullcord? Or did you have to install the services in separate ducts?

I've asked them what and when they need to inspect. It could be they need the entire trench to be open prior to any pipe going in but I'm awaiting their reply. It all seems crazy since there's already a water supply here, but the rules may now forbid using it for a new dwelling Another big sigh

Thanks Temp, SES Water require 750mm minimum depth so about 30inches. I hadn't thought about using a tractor (I have one) and was considering digging a trench (I have a small excavator) and possibly using it to also lay fibre optic cable. The village has FTTC, but the properties on the farm are served by very old and unreliable copper.

I own a farm and have applied for planning permission for a new build. There is an existing water pipe (shown in pink) running 250m from the road to a manhole (marked by red X) by my current home (the farmhouse). From the manhole, there are 3 pipes that serve the 3 properties on the farm. I had intended to obtain a separate water supply that would run 30m from this manhole to the newbuild's location. The water company is saying the Water Act does not allow this - all new dwellings must be connected to the water main, and has offered 2 options. This suggests I am required to install a duplicate pipe running 250m from the mains in the road to an almost identical destination. Do I have any options?.

That's really kind. I'll pass it on Mark

Do you mean the difference between swapping from steel to thermalite blocks could be offset by only 15mm of additional rockwool? Given they have a 100mm cavity, could they improve the performance significantly using an alternative material to rockwool? Cheers

@IcevergeThanks. Do the thermalite blocks assist much in insulation terms? The only difference I can identify is that the current wall buildup replaces a bit of thermalite with the steel. Is rockwool a good option for a brick and block cavity wall? Any better alternatives he could use? Clearly better to do this to a high level now rather than later when the wall is closed up. Thanks a lot

Thanks @IcevergeApparently it's like this. I thought that the steel would be an easy route for room temperature heat to enter the rockwool insulation - certainly easier than through the thermalite blocks. The cavity is only about 100mm. Would it not make sense to put an additional insulation barrier in the highlighted areas? The steels are fully exposed to the internal air since there is glazing above the brick/blockworkshown. The glazing sits outside the steels. I'd appreciate your thoughts/explanation since I'm not up to speed on this stuff and trying to help out a friend. Cheers

That's what I thought. I'll pass on the suggestions. Definitely easier to deal with at this stage of his build than when it's all covered up and dripping with condensation.

Their request is for a ADBA of the site. That's what I wrote and have sent them. Ground works will only extend to an area of about 35m2 outside the barn's current footprint. If requested, I could dig a trench in that area for them to inspect. I'd hope that would cost less than the £2500 they want just for the ADBA.

My planning application determination date has been deferred due to the county archaeological officer requiring an ADBA prior to a determination being made - I could not have avoided this delay. I've submitted my DIY version to the planning officer, and this has been forwarded to the county archaeological officer for consultation. I'll report back on the outcome. It may well suggest that my submission is not 'professional', although they would need to demonstrate that it contains insufficient information to form its conclusions. I'm hoping that if they don't accept it meets the requirements, they will recommend a condition be applied to any permission rather than requiring more consultation prior to a determination.

These steel members apparently form part of the inner leaf of the cavity wall, sitting on the warm side of the rockwool. Since steel has a high thermal conductivity (and higher than the surrounding thermalite blocks) will that not form a localised cold area on the inside wall? Apparently the architect has not detailed any insulation around the steel which seemed odd to me.

Clearly it depends on the architect, but I'd start with a planning consultant. The rules are hard (not impossible) for a layman to navigate, and local knowledge is valuable. As others have said, there are numerous traps than can trip you up (nice mixed metaphor) and completely mess up any plans. Keep it as simple as possible and de-risk the exercise as much as possible. Get that certificate of lawful development first and without taking risk. Without it, your plans could be a non-starter. Bonne chance

A pal of mine is having a small extension built to his cottage. I'm not sure thermal efficiency is the builder's or architect's strength, but before it gets covered up I thought I'd ask the assembled experts what they would suggest to mitigate cold bridging around the steel.

I used Excel and our resident window guru thought it was ok.

Those aren't included in the £2500/m2 pencil number. Guesstimate number is 60k.

I really, really feel your pain. There seems a very tenuous link between practicality and requirement, and apparent logic is often absent - and we foot the bill for costs and/or delays. It's not clear why a DBA was required. The ones I've read focus on the potential for the site to contain viable remains and if further investigation is required. It sounds like County had already determined there must be invasive fieldwork. Big sigh.

A lot of copy and pasting from the various Heritage/ Historic websites.....that I've already done. I may have to bite the bullet, but since I have a digger it would be cheap (although inconvenient) to dig a couple of trenches where the foundations are going and have them take a peek in them rather than spend £2500 on a report that may suggest digging trenches....

Urghh. Did you have an ADBA beforehand that 'recommended' field analysis?

I've just had 2 quotes for an Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment. One was £2200 +VAT + costs of accessing data (c.£160). The other was £1975 +VAT +data costs. Both DBAs allude to "further work may be required" NPPF Para 194 states (my emphasis) "Where a site on which development is proposed includes, or has the potential to include, heritage assets with archaeological interest, local planning authorities should require developers to submit an appropriate desk-based assessment and, where necessary, a field evaluation." I've therefore declared that submitting my own DIY ADBA is appropriate given the site's particulars and the very limited potential for any remains to exist.

I had pencilled in £2500/m2 as a "finished and move in" price. My estimating spreadsheet still has holes in it so I'm not sure if that's going to be in line. However, I'm a numbers man and if it looks like the build cost is too high compared to the plot value (I already owned it) I may not build.

I've not decided yet and am still awaiting the last quote. My guess is I will go for a supply and erect package up to watertight, and then arrange follow on trades thereafter. But until I form a more definitive project plan that I think addresses the numerous areas that might trip me up I'm undecided.