Square Feet

Hi, does anyone know where I can watch back issues of 100k house? It doesn't seem to be on Netfix and I don't know much about the other offerings like Now TV and so on. Anyone know? Cheers

Rather you fit the membrane and tapes underneath than me.... Best of luck with it all - it's a really interesting concept.

I have long been interested in the Segal method and also passive house and off-grid houses so it was very interesting to read some of your blog and see your progress. I shall be particularly interested to see how you go about insulating the floor as that seems to be the biggest issue with a Segal type foundation system. I came to the conclusion that Segal and passive were mutually-exclusive, but I would be happy to be proved wrong on that!

In reply to your Velux question - I just fitted a similar roof window in 8 hours and that included recutting the slates to fit around the window (by far the longest job). It was the first time I had fitted one so I was taking it slowly to learn what I was doing. If you have planned for the Velux from the start and fitting it doesn't involve cutting and re-bracing rafters, then it should just be a matter of cutting the membrane and sarking board and dropping it into place, then fixing to the framing you have accurately (you hope!) provided. This is a job for an hour at most I would think - you could easily do it yourself if you are physically able to lift the window into position and there is scaffolding there to work off. It is helpful but not essential to have someone else on the inside of the house during the cutting and fitting. I think from the time I started to when I had the window itself fitted was only around two hours for me and I had to remove the slates and old window first. As I said, refitting and reshaping the slates afterwards was by far the most time-consuming job, but presumably the roofing will be done later on your job. Edited to add: there will be a skirt of some sort at the bottom of the window which goes over the roofing material - this will be flexible so you can leave it folded back over the glass until the roofing slates or whatever have been fitted. The slates go over the top and sides of the window obviously to keep it watertight.

Will do. Postage is on me - just glad it's not going to waste.

I bought a set of those recently for an attic conversion I am working on. They are very good - suprisingly strong and stable (ahem) and a lot easier to use than paddle stairs. I only paid £118 for mine though .... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Madrid-Wooden-Space-Saver-Staircase-Kit-Loft-Stair-Ladder/161243883154?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

That a no then? Still up for grabs if anyone wants it.....

I thought cladding went vertically in Scotland and horizontally in England....or have I got that the wrong way round....? Looks nice though!

For some reason Passive House Plus have outdone themselves this month and sent me two copies. If anyone would like my spare copy for free then send me a message with your address and I will post it over.

I recently received a bunch of messages from them saying that if I wanted to continue to receive it for free I had to 'opt in' it was related to the raft of similar messages about email subscriptions and the like that happened recently. If you didn't receive that message or didn't respond then that would be why they stopped sending it I guess.

I paid £25 for a one-year subscription three years ago and they keep sending it to me! They recently confirmed that this is what they do - I guess sales revenue is less important than ad revenue and circulation or something. No complaints from me either - I love it, just which it was more frequent than every two months.

40 m is an estimate on my part - the land falls away towards the main road and it is there that the drain would need connected. This involves running through the seller's property, which he has agreed to. The architect didn't think it was a problem when he came out for a site visit, hopefully he is right. I would of course make sure of this before paying for the plot.

Hi Newhome, I have been reading some of your posts - be interested to hear where you are sometime. The plot is very cheap so I won't be able to swing that one, unfortunately. The seller has said though that I can run service trenches through his land as part of the deal which will make a big difference I think.

I should have said that the seller has agreed to an offer subject to planning. We haven't hammered out a price yet, but once we do I will be able to sort out things like service quotes etc as well as the planning to make sure there are no nasty surprises awaiting me. So the final plunge won't be taken until I am absolutely sure about everything. Thanks for the links though - I had read Christine's tale of woe already, but not the other one, which I will do now.

Thanks, I hadn't come across that - will have a read.

Thanks Ultramods. ICF doesn't appeal to me I must admit - as far as I understand it, it consists of two of the things I really don't like - concrete and polystyrene. Would much rather build a timber house if at all possible. I haven't got quotes in for service connections yet, but I have established that all are very close to the site. ie water 10m, electricity 10m, drainage 40m, phone 5m. No mortgage here - cash all the way. It is both a blessing and a curse.

Thanks Peter, that is good to hear. I think that because of access restrictions, it would need to be a stick built structure so hopefully that would lend itself to a DIY approach.

Thanks. I have to admit that I am not quite sure what is meant by 'existing drawings' in Stage 1. Do you have any ideas? I wasn't quite sure how Stage 1 and 2 were seperate.... can you enlighten me? Sorry - edited this because I think I have answered my own question from the architect's contract: Work Stage 1.0 – Preparation of the Brief 1.1 Ascertain Client Requirements 1.2 Obtain Site information from Client 1.3 Advise Client of his/her duties under CDM regulations 1.4 Visit Site and carry out preliminary appraisal 1.5 Identify Project and Construction Budgets 1.6 Develop outline brief 1.7 Agree Preliminary timetable Work Stage 2.0 – Initial Design 2.1 Prepare initial design proposal 2.2 Provide indicative guidance on cost and timetable Work Stage 3.0 – To Planning Consent Application 3.1 Consult with Local Authorities and Utilities as required 3.2 Progress Stage 2.1 design 3.3 Prepare application for Planning Permission 3.4 Submit application for Planning permission 3.5 Advise on procurement methods 3.6 Report on timetable, agree revisions The architect's headed paper says 'Building Standards Approved Certifier' at the bottom - anyone know what this means and would it be worth keeping them on for the BW stage in that case? Cheers

Hi Ultramods, thanks for your reply. The flat is owned outright and will be sold to fund the new build. It is 20 miles away from the plot and I think I would prefer to live on site for convenience, security and also because we would prefer to live in the town where the plot is. The plan is that the old building would be rented out to airbnb guests once we had finished the new build, which would provide a much-needed source of income. Architect is RIAS, not RIBA. I was planning on doing the timber frame myself, to save on costs.

Hi all, I am looking at a plot in Southern Scotland. The plot is a 0.15 acre garden plot in a small town. It has PPP for a new house and there is also an old stone workshop building which could be converted to residential (as long as it is a 'satellite' of the new build and not an address in its own right). The idea is to convert the workshop into a 'tiny house' for myself and my son (it is 55 sqm, so bigger than our current flat) and live in it while building the new (passive) house. The PPP that is in place doesn't cover the workshop and is not for the style of new house I wan't to build, so I would need a new application for that, one which will need to address a couple of contraints the LA have placed on the design, ie overlooking issues etc. Funds are extremely tight, so I will need to do as much of the work as humanly possible myself. My son is 14 now, so he can help a bit too. I would like to build something that sings to my soul, and doesn't just provide us with a roof over our heads. For that reason I asked an architect to visit the site with me and to quote for the design and planning work. The quote has come in much higher than I was hoping for, but to be fair this probably reflects the fact that this is in fact for two houses. I wonder if you would mind having a look at the quote for me and telling me what you think? I would also like to get some idea as to what parts of the work I could do myself (no architecture or engineering background, but I have been involved in numerous renovation projects over the years). Works: Proposed New House and renovation of workshop Fees: £ 7,545.00 + VAT The above fees includes all expenses with the exception of postage and printing costs which will be charged at the rates shown on the attached sheet (one set of all drawings produced will be issued free of charge) and cost to obtain OS Location Plan which is estimated at £ 40.00. Payment Schedule: Fees to be paid in instalments as follows: Stage 1 £ 910.00 + VAT following site survey and preparation of existing drawings Stage 2 £ 1,885.00 + VAT on agreement of design proposal Stage 3 £ 650.00 + VAT immediately prior to submission of Planning Permission application Stage 4 £ 3,380.00 + VAT immediately prior to submission of Building Warrant Stage 5 £ 720.00 + VAT on receipt of Building Warrant & Planning decision In addition to my fees the following other costs are likely to be incurred should you proceed: 1. Planning Application Fee (payable to the Council) which is currently £401.00. 2. Building Warrant Lodging Fee (payable to the Council) which I estimate to be £ 1,755.00 (please note that this will subject to a discount as both myself and the engineer are Scottish Government Approved Certifiers of Design). 3. Structural Engineers Fees the services of a structural engineer will be required to provide structural advice, design, specification and certification (required for warrant) I’ve estimated this fees to be: £ 2,400.00 + VAT. This fee would also include a site investigation report.

Hi all, I don't know if any of you read Passive House Plus magazine, but I have found it a useful source of information and inspiration. They are Ireland based, but put out a UK version of the magazine. It is probably more geared at Architects and the like and so can be a bit technical, but I like to see which way the wind is blowing and learn about new ideas early, even if I don't always completely understand them! Anyway, they have just launched a new trade directory online which I thought might interest some. It has only just gone live, so hopefully will grow a bit in future. https://passivehouseplus.ie/directory?featured=0&geolocation=0&radius=100&resetSearch=1 If anyone is interested in seeing what the magazine has to offer without subscribing then they will send you two free copies if you give them your details: https://passivehouseplus.ie/enquiries

Nice one, thanks for that.

Hi, I am looking at a plot in Scotland where the boundary wall and a couple of other bits are Cat C listed. I am wanting to make an offer subject to planning. Can anyone advise the likely length of time it will take to get planning approved (assuming no issues) in this case? I believe my local council are pretty good at hitting the target times, but I have heard that once Historic Scotland gets involved it can take longer. Cheers

Thanks again folks. Yes I would rather keep the use of concrete to a minimum, but it might be necessary though. I found an answer to my own question of 'how far can concrete be pumped' on this page. https://www.easymixconcrete.com/resource-centre/concrete-pumping-faqs/ Just mentioning it in case it helps anyone else. To save you the bother of clicking, it says this: How far can a concrete pump hose reach? All pump lines are made of interconnected metal pipes and flexible hosing. We can add additional pipes to extend the reach of our pumps. Please be sure to call the EasyMix team to discuss your individual job requirements. A ground line pump can reach over 150 meters, with possible extensions if required. A boom pump can extend up to 72 meters. with possible extensions if required.

Thanks all. No, craning over other properties is not an option I'm afraid. Yes it has PP, but not for what I want to build so I will need to make a new application. It is all flat so no issues with fall for drainage etc. Sorry, I should have been clearer - the narrow road is the first that you come to when you turn off the main road, the wider road comes after. The main issue is the right angle turn from the 3m lane into the 6.5m street that the plot sits on - there is no pavement or other wiggle room as the walls of the adjacent buildings are right on the street. If the vehicle delivering the materials was less than 3m wide then it could park across the T junction and a tele-loader or similar could take the materials off and trundle them up the 6.5m street to the plot, but it would require neighbours to park elsewhere and so on so it couldn't be done every day or without some pre-planning. That is interesting re your kit house Dave, thanks for that. Do you happen to know the maximum distance for piping concrete? It might be possible to bring it from the next street over but distance-dependent. Failing that it would need to be mixed on site, yes. I am meeting an architect on site next week who I can discuss some of this with, but practical advice from those who have faced these sort of issues is always valuable. I haven't discussed price with the seller yet either so obviously all these sort of potential difficulties, while challenging to work through, might help to keep the price down.