TheMitchells

Forgive my ignorance, but how would that heat them? By heating the storage unit during the day? If so, I'll take a look. We didnt think we would change the ehating system until we did the whole renovation and are hoping the storage unit will carry on for a few more years. It is about 50 years old already and one electric coil did break recently so it is being heated by 2 coils. But as the place doesnt have radiators, we hoped to not have to install them with a change to a new heating system. Particularly as I would like UFH in the new extension and kitchen. I'd leave the bedrooms and bathroom as is. (ie no UFH). I would like to insulate the floor and would look to dig out the kitchen but leave the rest (bedrooms and bathrooms) so we can add insulation and UFH to the rear half. The windows are okay at the front - maybe I'd just need to add airtight tapes to minimise draughts/airflow, being in mind I would like MVHR. The bedrooms are next to a fairly busy road and I would hope to be able to have fresh air without having the windows open as I am a very light sleeper.

It could be because of the distance between the bungalow and the garage where we were planning to put the battery. we'd need a trench and armoured cable. At the moment, we have put the PV on hold till we know we can do it without it being affected by later works on the extension. And the extension would increase the roof slightly, so it may be worth waiting till we can do the max size we can fit.

which can be quite a lot. They seem to have the washer on most days and dont seem to understand the concept of defrosting food during the day, rather than trying to cook it from frozen! 😄 I dont mind the long payback, we hope to be there for many years after Mum and Dad no longer need it.

After my OH's reluctance to go for PV soon, I needed a plan. We had already talked and visited a local Eco Architect company when researching for our planned Passivhaus for the time we thought we had a plot. I therefore got in touch to see what they offered. We had a zoom meeting when i explained my plans. Basically i wanted someone to help me plan the stages we could do now to help improve the parents comfort, with the intention to do the whole extension renovation when they don't need the bungalow anymore. So I was thinking cavity wall insulation/triple glazed windows to the front bedrooms (we wouldnt change this when extending) and PV with battery. But on talking to the architect, it was suggested for them to help, we needed the long term plan finalised first, which i guess makes sense. They suggested they help us come up with a plan for the extension and then they could make suggestions for several levels of build - Passihaus, AEBC retrofit standard at 50kWh/m2 and EnerPHit. they produced a proposal;- Helping to prepare a phased approach will be a further cost which could be up to £2k. But when I said that my planned budget for the whole job was £100k, I was astonished when the architect suggested we'd need up to twice that! That just would not be doable - the place would never be worth that much being spent on it. I dont mind spending a good amount to make it a lovely place for us to live into our old age but at that rate, it would be cheaper to just make it comfortable with a standard extension and spend the rest on additional heating to keep us warm. We'd never get anywhere near that back, even with lower bills. My calculations - PV and Battery 10k new windows to front and cavity insulation 10k new extension to rear 80k including airtightness tapes, underfloor heating in the rear half, MVHR. But maybe I am being unrealistic. It woud not be a huge extension and we'd keep most of the internal walls. The plan above shows the extra space we have to work with. When he did the shower room, Patrick moved the wall out slightly in the porch, and when he put in the window, he added a lintel suitable for the front door to be moved to the side, leaving the old front door as the door into the new utility room. we were already thinking ahead. The plan now is to have a chat with our builder, Patrick, and see what he suggests. I know he has done a Passivhaus and so knows how to build well. I trust him to do an excellent job and with the advice of folks on here, I hope to be able to come up with a plan for the extension then a phased scheme of work which hoepfully Patrick can help with. And I am going on an airtightness tape workshop soon so I can help with work too.

While my parents are still in the bungalow, we are reluctant to do any major work as they would not cope with it. However, I am keen to make improvements if possible. The heating system is a large very old solid block in the centre cupboard, heated by electric coils overnight (economy 7) and then blown around the place. It works fine and is quickly heats the place up, which they like. There is gas in the road but not to the property and when they needed a new hot water tank, we installed a new one. But their electricity bills are rather large! They like it warm with a couple of extra night storage heaters on full most of the time and an electric fire in the lounge for when its cold🫣. So as their roof is south facing with no shading, I thought it makes sense to add PV and could be used to help bring down their bills (the OH says it will not be of much help). Adding a battery is an option though it may have to go into the garage which is abuot 15/20m away from the main building. We had a quote done but someone a friend recommended. - DATE: 24/05/23 Page 3 of 8 Description of goods and services we will provide… ........................................ Limited recommends the following price proposal based on the information and suitability of your property. This seems quite reasonable and is about £3k less than one we had from Scottish Power who didnt even come and have a look. At least the first chap came and measured up and had a good look round the whole property. BUT, the OH is quite worried that if we had it installed now, when we did do the main renovation, it would all need to be changed. he thinks it would be better to wait and do it all at once. Which I can understand. On the other hand, we could be having free elctricity for several years..... Time for a think........

We bought the bungalow in 2018 to move my elderly parents closer to us following Mum's stroke. While she recovered, they needed help most days, i was spending a lot of time travelling back and forward so it made sense to move them closer. As they lived in Windsor, we could not afford to move that way and I was very suprised when they agreed to our suggestion to move closesr to us. But it has proved very valuable in the years since. I think we were very lucky in that when we started looking, this property was up for sale. Its a 15 min drive for me but not too close. The layout was workable and it came with a garage, workshop and a large garden, mostly on the outside, wrapping round the corner plot. And it was perfect fo a Motorhome, which we'd be wanting for years but had nowhere to keep it. 😃 Our first change was to add a shower room as they both struggle to get in and out of a bath. We had a good builder, Patrick, who we had used on our previous renovation (Scooby Cottage) though we did have to wait nearly a year before he could start work. Having the shower room made a big difference to them and as we had applied for planning permission, we had a free shot at another for 6 months. So i drew up plans for an extension to the kitchen, as it is not very large with only a small amount of worktop. After receiving pp, we decided that the parents would not cope with the disruption so left it. But now we are looking to the future and what we can do. In the long term, when parents no longer need it, we want to extend the kitchen and across the back, to give a larger open plan space, and move in ourselves. Selling our current house to pay for the renovation. We dont need a lot of space and the bedrooms are fine, we'd use one and convert the other into a dressing/storage room. But after wanting to build a Passivhaus for years, and hearing about the benefits of living in such from many on here, I am hoping we can renovate to a good enough standard to give us a warm, low energy, home without any draughts. So thats the plan! I hope you'll enjoy the 'journey' as we progress through the renovation. Next time - Using an Architect firm. 🤔

Wow - this is on the market for £1.2million. Seems Passive House, as thye call it, is worth paying for. Tho' maybe thats a normal price for 3 bed detached in St Albans? https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/145215260#/?channel=RES_NEW

If I add cavity wall insulation to my bungalow, with the intention of making it as airtight and insulated as possible for a limited budget, do I need to cap the top of the cavity? I do plan to remove the first couple of layers of tiles and try to join the cavity insulation to the attic insulation. So presumably not. I shall add something to ensure airflow into the roofspace. Then i need to ask about the vapour barrier and the best way to add that. But one thing at a time. 🙂

Have plenty of them in the garden - yucca leaves, that is. just need to find time now! 😄

well, I did not think they had anything to do with flower arranging but seems they may be. Also found a cuple of pictures which use them to shred flax. Thanks all - will keep them, just in case I need flax or similar shredded.😃

These were found recently in a tool shed and before I get rid of them, I hoped someone could tell me what they are. They are very heavy (all metal) and the prongs are exceedingly stiff and sharp. Any thoughts?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/116085674437?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=x2Pf-3PUSXi&sssrc=2566055&ssuid=x2Pf-3PUSXi&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY Metal lathe available for anyone interested. £150

Things to use to retain the gravel could be many things - I use tiles on edges, sleepers, block pavers at an angle, wood or even slates. But I agree that making a border with climbing plants would add to the look of the area. Plants in front of black fence panels can look really good. You'd need wires to tie/support the climbers to the fence and I'd look at something like the Star Jasmine - Trachelospermum jasminoides - as it is evergreen (as long as the garden is not too cold) and gives lovely small, highly fragrant flowers in summer. Good luck with it all.

Found on Gumtree today. Selection of UFH pipe. £15. Could collect for anyone if needed. https://www.gumtree.com/p/other-dining-living-furniture/underfloor-heating-pipe-/1458442215

me neither but I expect someone can. Maybe I could get a load of sticks and make a model? We are looking to use an architect soon to give advice on the whole renovation thing, so I can come up with a plan of action. I shall quiz him on the roof and also, I have tickets to the renovation show at NEC near end of March so may see if anyone there can give me some ideas.

There are all sorts of extensions around here so I dont see there being any problem with the planning application. But we are restricted to the current ridge height. we can stand up in the attic so its not too low. Glad to hear there are lots of truss types. I'll stop worrying and will post plans when we get them eventually. Also hope to do a blog with details as renovation is popular and I'm happy to share my experience. Thanks all for comments.

We are looking for something similar to this. Except ours could be wider, once we go to the side of the kitchen. would the width be restricted by the permitted pitch of the new extension roof. I believe they only allow a minimum of 15o.

No, the main roof is staying but we want to add a new extension, into the garden, across the majority of our side, with a pitch roof going into our half of the main roof. Does that make sense? I shall try to get a photo of something similar today as I am useless at doing drawings, via CAD or similar. It should not affect my neighbour apart from having an extension with a pitched roof, instad of a flat roof. It is the angle that I am wondering about and if it is possible to give a vaulted roof in the new end, tying it into the current roof?

Any update on this?? What did you end up doing?

We are looking to add a full width extension onto the back of our bungalow, after knocking down the flat roofed extension. We are also extending 6 ft to the side of the kitchen, to join up to the porch (behind the red gate). this will hopefully give us a good sized kitchen/dining/living area. It would need to be quite wide. The 'old' bungalow is about 6m (the two front bedrooms are 3.22 and 2.32m wide) with a 2.1m side extension for the new shower room. We had permssion to square off the kitchen in line with the shower room but our new plan will widen the lounge too, right across the back. It is a small bungalow so we hope to make the back into our main living space. The pitched roof would be over 8m wide. Is that too wide to pitch into the current roof and how easy would it be to make it a vaulted ceiling? I dont want to go to the architect with unrealstic plans. Thoughts welcome.

Looks great - I do like a tidy site too. Well done!😄

Well, after a night of rain, we checked the attic this morning and the wood to the side of the soil pipe was wet. It looked as if it was coming in from the roof, the far side side of the pipe so probably not the soil pipe/flashing at all. its going to mean removing the tiles off that corner of the roof and seeing if they or the felt is damaged, as well as re-doing the mortar along the whole roof line at the side of the house. It will give me a chance ot paint the wood too as it hasnt been done since we built the garage, 22 years ago. The pipe flashing could get re-newed too, as belt and braces. now i just need to find out how we can get scaffolding up there or if we can do it from ladders (unlikely).

Thats what we thought but nothing. we're waiting till heavy rain and we'll get up there to have a look. just clearing the insulation in that area is helping to dry it out. But there's been no rain for a few days now.

Hadnt thought of that. 😄

On reflection, I dont think the way it is done is causiing the problem. Partially as its been that way for nearly 40 years so if that was it, the house corner of the roof would be rotten. But also, due to the shape of the tiles, each side allow water under the flashing, but then it drains out as the tile curves back up, stopping it from getting to the actual hole. But i do think we should ask an expert to come and check it and maybe replace the flashing as it is either that or water going into the broken mortar.