MDC

I have a plot that has a [say] 30 year old weeping willow on the north side of the existing house, and a group of oak trees on the south side. I like trees, so want to keep them all, but owing to the proposed size of my design of replacement dwelling, something has to give. The gossip is Weeping Willows are not welcome on building sites. They have shallow roots that spread a considerable distance. Funny thing is, the existing house [built on piles 70 years ago] is unaffected. The tarmac driveway shows no evidence of roots, so I'm in two minds. The willow is less than 16 metres from the existing house. It offers a good screen to the neighbours [not close]. Is it prudent to remove the willow?

Hello, I guess that bedroom has high humidity because the rest of the house is warmer, so the moist air is drawn to the cold space - same principle as moisture on a cold surface. What's the orientation of the room? My house is on a north/south axis, the bedroom on the north west corner is the coldest [except in the setting summer sun]. It also has an overhang and wooden French doors with a Juliet balcony. The walls are masonry and the walls over the overhang are timber frame - plenty of room for bad insulation. All these factors make it colder than anywhere else. As your bedroom is over the kitchen, perhaps the extractor fan duct is in the ceiling/void and the sealing around the outside vent is poor, allowing a good draft to flow round between the floors. Does your bedroom feel like it has a cold floor? We had a thermal survey done of the whole house. Missing plasterboard sealing was the key issue. The warranty is with Protek, who said they don't insure for poor workmanship if the house doesn't fall down, or something like that. Hope this gives you some ideas for solutions.

Hi Robert, this is an interesting thread to me, as I am proposing my build down the road from the application as referenced. I had a look at your planning application which looked much more comprehensive than ours will be. I note you withdrew the application and wonder if this was to do with the planning application process? Also, the Architects you chose were designing to Passivhaus. Do they have local builders they use who know about Passivhaus principles in construction? I hope I'm not being intrusive and trust whatever you did next has proved to be good for you. Mark

Thanks for this useful information. I'm a least said soonest mended person, so we'll just put in the application and see how it goes. I hope its not contentious. I've read many planning officer reports on local applications, and have a picture in my mind of their point of view - so ours in non-contentious [I think]. I agree it's the luck of the draw with planning officers, and hope ours will have a more contemporary than traditional bias.

Who did you use?

Yes, it's the Actis insulation that's a concern. We're considering the main contractor option, and Scandia-Hus do say we can use any insulation we choose. Given their chat up lines, you'd think Scandia-Hus would have improved air permeability above 3.5, but then perhaps this depends who is actually doing the building. They say it's going to take 6 months to get planning [assuming a success], so I've plenty of time to weigh it all up. Many people have said cellulose is the way forward. Thank you for your input.

Our house is on a north/south axis. The difference in temperature at the front of the house to the back is sometimes impressive. So I bought some gadgets to measure temperature and they happen to measure humidity too. The north side humidity is higher than the south. Right now, we have 57% humidity (19.9c) south side and 67% humidity (17.1c) north side - no heating on yet. Measuring the humidity on the window sill is always higher than by the internal wall - so there can be different measurements of humidity in the same room. Humidity is an interesting thing. If I was you, I'd block all the drafts from wherever they come, as best I can.

I'm not sure I'll get planning permission, though I'm replacing an inefficient 1950's chalet-bungalow, so maybe, maybe. There seems to be a lot of hanging around waiting, so I like to have a think about things is all.

Hello, I'm new to this forum. I've designed a four bed house which I've been discussing with Scandia-Hus, who are local to me. During the process, I've realised their thermal performance isn't as I'd hoped, so I'm now considering MBC, but I've no experience of them. We watched a Scandia-Hus being built near us a few years ago, and it seems to be a well built house. Another has recently gone up, a variation on one of their catalogue houses. Again, it's been a fast efficient build. I'm here in the first instance to find out any comments / experience other members have of Scandia-Hus and MBC thermal efficiency. As I can't see a straight line, we'll be opting for a main contractor option. Thank you.