kandgmitchell

The pump came with the house package so there was no discussion with the installer prior. The didn't know me from Adam. The house functions well but with energy costs so high you have to wonder if the set up is performing at it's most efficient. Seeing other examples of energy usage for comparable homes does help to put it into context.

Trouble is the installer does presumably do this but then leaves the system set as they feel is appropriate. A short briefing on the the operation, the manuals (mostly installation rather than operation)handed over then off they go. Two years down the line how does one assess whether that set up matches your lifestyle. Finding accessible information that is understandable to tweek the system is hard. Many posters on here have got a very detailed knowledge of the operational side of these units whereas some of us are loathe to fiddle too much; especially just before the heating season........ My last full year was 5210Kwh for all in power (no gas) in a 178m2 house with two people and the occasional guests. The next hi-tech addition I'm working on is clearing more plot for a washing line to reduce tumble dryer use!

I think this just makes my point.......................

This is what I find frustrating about heat pump installations and probably so do many other people considering them - you need a degree in physics to understand their control for the best performance ........

Those flippin horses can be mighty nosey........

But only if you were in the woodland or paddock. Not sure an extra couple of feet of glazing below an approved cill level is that material but agreed it does vary from the approved plans. This is exactly what I was trying to say - different people perceive risk differently. I'd run with this because a) the chances of someone seeing it are low, b) if they did, were they aware of the approved design in the planning application and c) should the planners find out are they going to have a meltdown and threaten enforcement?

I tend to use the assessment: would the planners have approved this if I had proposed this in the first place? In this instance I cannot imagine that if you had suggested the smaller windows they would have said "oh no they must be larger" and we won't approve the scheme until they are..." So, the chances of this change from a planning perspective not being acceptable are vanishingly small. Personally (and everyone's acceptance of risk is different) I'd press on and just ignore the change. However, to formalise this submit a VoC application to cover yourself but not stop building (they could take months to deal with the application). But and it's a big BUT - check the means of escape situation as mentioned above because that is a significant risk to the final approval of the scheme by BC.

Quite! One way is to have a drive around a likely location, you often get private signs put up with a phone number. Usually on the urban/countryside edge. Units on farms? Ask on a local facebook page? You need to get creative to find this sort of space, local commercial agents just don't handle it.

We fitted Amtico floating LVT in the extended kitchen at our last house. The extension featured large bi-folds looking south across the hills, lovely view... However, the first summer it all buckled between the island and the bi-folds. I chased Amtico and they said the product wasn't suitable for conservatories, having pointed out that this was the ground floor of a two storey extension, they changed to . ..... we wouldn't recommend it in that location due to the heat. Eventually they sent a technical guy down to help the kitchen fitter and between them they glued it down in that area.

Or use the exemption in Part 7 .... CLASS 7 Extensions The extension of a building by the addition at ground level of— (a)a conservatory, porch, covered yard or covered way; or (b)a carport open on at least two sides; where the floor area of that extension does not exceed 30m2

Generally storing a chattel on land that is movable does not require planning permission ( this is a basic response 'cos planning is a complex subject - national parks, AONB etc) so you could argue that your boat is a personal possession will be movable in due course, is not permanent and thus should not be liable to PP. It all comes down to the attitude of the LPA and how much fuss neighbouring owners make. On a piece of industrial land there are likely to be fewer complaints and thus little LPA interest compared to doing this on the verge in a Cotswold village. In the latter situation the LPA can be very creative in order to pacify the public and so the aggravation factor is going to be larger. Stick to somewhere where you will blend in more. My biggest concern is whether you have been instructed to build this boat and collect animals two by two in the anticipation of .................

That's not going to need a separate vent as a 50mm bath waste can run 4m without venting and a shower runs much slower. If that was a WC sat on that 100mm pipe instead of the shower trap there would be no question. However, consider a) access for cleaning the trap and that bit of 50mm pipe plus b) the 100mm branch cannot connect to the main stack closer than 450mm from the invert of the rest bend at the base of the stack.

If this is a question about means of escape in case of fire, then kitchens are excepted from the requirement for ground floor habitable rooms to have an escape route through a hallway or a suitable window. Mind you I'd think about making that replacement window suitable to get out of anyway (especially given my cooking abilities!).

ST don't allow building over for new detached structures if the sewer is 300mm dia or more. They may have been more flexible for an extension eating into the working area either side of the pipe. Thames Water for instance will not allow new works over their larger sewers but will allow extensions to existing dwellings. The neighbour may have applied for permission for the extension and have been granted it subject to conditions. The garage could have of course been done on the fly or before any stricter policy has been brought in. You will have some idea as to the depth of the sewer from the neighbour's experience. You could try an application stressing the nature of the building, the depth of the sewer and agreeing to remove the structure if major sewer works are required (and that's pretty unlikely unless it's your works that have caused it).

Good point, can't remember the last grey drizzly February Sunday afternoon, mind you I haven't been to Scotland for a while!