AppleDown

Thanks @IanR. Yes, we’ve gone out to a few of the insulated raft providers, so they’re all looking at it from a remote POV. They obviously need soil bearing capacity, and the only way I can see us getting that is from the (plainly ridiculously expensive) ground investigations. From the timber frame guys, it’s not that they need the same info, they just want to know what they’re sitting on from a foundation standpoint. And I can’t give a solid answer until the first bit is done. I’ve reached out to Tanner Structural for the SE main designs, so waiting to hear back from them (sounds like they’re super busy at the moment).

Thank you @saveasteading. So with Phase 2 we’re still looking at a lab test to inform loads etc? No contractors signed up yet, all needed to get a solid quote so we can fully budget. Frame design isn’t dependent, but will inform the foundations. Just ensuring we’re getting each stage to a level of information we can move forward with.

Hi everyone. As we ramp up the next stages of our build, we're looking to get info over to a number of people to help finalise quotes and designs. The major one at the moment is a ground/soil investigation. Foundation and timber frame guys both need the info on their sides, so I'm looking at what options we have there. From reading on here and research online it looks like 'Phase 1 - desktop research' and 'Phase 2 - site investigation' are the go to. My questions are: Does 'Phase 1' actually contribute anything? Looks like it just brings together local soil types, water tables etc that aren't super specific to the exact location Is 'Phase 2' enough for structural calcs? That seems more robust and actually has specific location details For BC, what do they need to see? And finally - does anyone know someone in the SE who can do these for us? Thanks as always!

Just a question - as I really like the idea too - is porcelain strong enough to not crack under the load of a car, say with a nice rock sticking out from the tyre treads?

Thanks for the info - and just read through your blog posts. Lots of research coming my way then. When you say 'overall cost', is that for the set up and actually driving the piles, plus materials etc.? Also - I saw you mention a trusted SE, any chance you could PM who that is? Thanks.

Hi everyone. I've been posting about the design we have for our self build, and one of the biggest limiting factors we're coming up against is an oak tree in a conservation area. It's a big boy - no TPO - but would no doubt receive one if we made an enquiry to remove, which we wouldn't want to do anyway. The question I have is regarding a mix of foundation types. One of the proposed ways to build closer to the oak is piling based on a radar scan for where the roots are, and do a raised foundation to allow water/air etc underneath (believe it's 2.5cm, but may be wrong). But as this is just in one small corner area of the house, is it possible to have that as a piled foundation, and then the rest as an insulated slab? I'm assuming it should be ok, but then need to take into account that particular corner of the house will be less energy efficient than the rest. Any thoughts/info appreciated. Thanks!

This has divided the household opinion 😂

Would love to see some pics if you mind sharing?

It's great to see alternatives! Playing with the layout too - and making more use of the south east corner area as well. Tried to ensure bathroom is near the bedrooms as well. I'm rubbish at perspective drawing, so please excuse the effort, but had a go with the two front areas extending, and introducing an initial 'step up' behind this, so the roof line is able to accommodate the head height easier. Edit: just to note on the floor plan, there should be no wall between kitchen and living area and the playroom area can be screened or something simple. Not sure whether there's a better alternative to the downstairs bedroom and bathroom mini hallways too.

Thanks everyone - all very good points. @Iceverge appreciate your help with the drawings too. I won't quote everyone, but answers to most questions below: Photos - I can't seem to find the photos we sent the architect so we please accept some obscure angles used for selling a car! I'll try and get better ones when next visiting. Also another photo looking at the plot from the SE corner where we were playing with layout on the grass. The house is where the monopitch and triangular shapes come from. Us and usage - two 30 somethings, 7 month old (probably stick to just the one) and a lab. Study/office needed as I WFH 4 out of 5 days, and wife will WFH 2 days also (so needs to fit both of us in there). 3rd bedroom is seen as playroom/bedroom, so pull out sofa is fine (but needs to fit a double bed). When not in the study/office area, we probably spend our time 60/40 in the lounge and kitchen/diner respectively. Rooms we 100% want and spec: Utility/plant - needs to be big enough for washer and dryer, plus a small low level shower area for the dog (trust me, it's needed), and plant will house DHW cylinder fed from ASHP, MVHR and network hub. Study/office - needs to fit two of us and our desks/chairs Master suite - we want to maximise this space to be our own little getaway hub. I know it was mentioned before that some prefer the master being near other rooms for their kids etc. but we don't see that as an issue, it's not like it's 100 metres away. We love that the current design has the walkway over the hall. Lounge/kitchen - we see the kitchen/diner as one big open space, and the lounge as an area we can relax and watch TV. Current design is OK, and we've already noted some pocket doors/double doors between the two. Layout on plot - the current design is too close to the current house, so we want to pull this back. Our thoughts on layout - attached is what we've put together based on an altered version of the architects plan. Has everything we need in a more simple design. External - @ETC we want to use your 'EAST FRONT' on the attached pics for the utility/plant and all the way back to the kitchen, that gives one uniform module, with a nice vaulted ceiling for the kitchen area. Middle section will stay similar to the architects design - but the rear would be a box/rectangular dormer to give the headroom on the second floor and also allow a bit more style. From our POV it makes most sense to have the first floor mass in the centre of the build rather than on either side. Then the west side of the house will be mono-pitch as in the architects drawing at the front (giving that lovely shape/height internally), join up to the current middle section of the roof, and then return to mono-pitch at the rear with the new extended section for the bedroom. But all of that will most likely change as always!

Looks great - really like the modular separation, as well as the extension of the outer end walls and roofline past the footprint. We've got some great examples now to go back to our architect with. He's actually been really good at listening to our feedback and ideas, so I'm hopeful we'll get something better. Will update once we have something - or if we have more questions!

Thanks - very helpful.

We do really like this - and the modular aspect is something we both originally wanted. Another potential issue is ridge height of the current property on the land, 6.2m and we can probably get away with a little more.

Any suggestions on how to improve? Lots of restrictions which have lead to the current design - so any ideas are appreciated.

Definitely given us more to think about. The bedroom section of the house makes sense, and does keep it all quite standard and simple. Really appreciate the input and effort.

Entrance is from the very north of the plan, off the lane and onto gravel - which covers that entire middle section. Idea is to eother park next to existing garge or in front of the new build. Entrance and gravel area would be part of the access although owned by the other property. Boundary to east is the existing fence, south is just past the big shed (which will be going) and east are the yew trees.

Cut and paste site plan attached. I've tried to make it the correct size - but please forgive me if it's not quite there. From a 'views' perspective, the south is where we want to be looking. That will be private garden, with a lovely forest setting past the boundary fence. The yew trees on the east provide a natural boundary edge, which will separate our land from the existing back garden. To the south east we have a huge oak tree, where the root protection zone means we can't build any further back, and obviously the existing house is there too. There is a corridor free of root zones to the south west, past where the rear bedroom and stairs are, so that would be the most practical area to investigate a design change. Super helpful - thank you for taking the time. Agreed on a lot of these points. Chimney - we like the design, but agreed that air quality and practicality win here Corner windows - agreed, not worth the added expense and loss of thermal performance South facing windows - yes, we need to do something with these to stop overheating Apex above entrance - this mirrors the existing house on site as a little homage. We aren't agreed on render at the moment, so could be brick, wood cladding etc. But you're right, simple solution would be to join the two. Ensuite/downstairs bathroom - noted no window in both, so will get that changed Mystery walls - believe that's more counter space or storage, but will raise Utility area - this needs a rethink in general. Maybe a simple WC in this area too. Wow - thank you for getting so detailed with it. This forum and you all are great! We love the idea of the fully open plan lounge/kitchen/dining, but with the site plan it wouldn't work as is, but shift it round and looks more possible. Happy to go more simple, but still need a bit of wow factor here and there.

Thanks for all of the replies. I know style/design is subjective, so appreciate it might not be everyone's cup of tea. The house currently on the land has the high monopitch design throughout (as seen looking at the north aspect, on west and east sides, of the proposed design) - we love this, and really want to have some reference to it. Same with the extended 'poking out' parts of the building, in our eyes - and on houses we've seen - this adds so much more character, than a simple rectangle and standard roof. We're building our 'dream' home - or as close to it as possible - so we want to push as far as we can, budget dependent. Great point on shading. Within our idea for the 'box' amendment, we are looking at eaves that stick out past the usual spec. We like the design element of it, but also the practicality for shading. If that doesn't work, we'll definitely look at an overhang for each section. Chimney was definitely a 'nice to have' spec, so if the costs make me wince we'll go with a fake version and electric fire. We like like the design aspect of it breaking up the long roof, and signifying the start of the double height space. Plant and utility are on the list of questions to go back on - agree that it makes more sense for the study to be dual aspect, and combine the other two areas. We're not too worried about the east and west views, as east side is butted up against (outside of the root zones) a long line of yew trees, and the west side is against the neighbouring property which is commercial and screened by trees - so no real viewpoints that'll matter. Maximising space 100% - we're working within the confines of the root protection zones in anticipation of not being able to remove the trees. Plus we have the ridge height limits, which adds to what we can do second floor-wise. Agree that it's not going to be a simple or cheap design, but for what we want, that was never going to be the case anyway.

Sorry - did the silly 'tab > return' and it posted before completion. Should all be there now.

Hello everyone. We've had our V2 designs from the architect and we're happy he's taken our thoughts from V1 into consideration. We'd love to get your combined thoughts on it too. We asked specifically for a three bed, that references the current property on the land with the roof angles and pitch (plus their double height ceilings). We need a study for working from home and enough space for a growing lad. The front aspect would be entrance and gravel driveway, with the rear aspect a nice large contained garden, with views off into the neighbouring woods. Preferred build option is MBC TF. Our main 'build' on this design is that we'd still like something more modern and boxy coming from the rear where the bedroom sits, rather than the pitched roof idea. So that the flat roof, more modern box, extends from the rear roof line, giving more head room and space. The ridge line is at max height because of matching the house on the land already. Other considerations are that it's in a conservation area - so trees can't easily be removed, meaning we're at max width for the plot.

Hello everyone. I preemptively posted a while back asking for a little help and those that replied were super helpful, so thank you. Now though it’s time to say a proper hello. So, hello! My wife and I (plus our 7 month old) are in the initial stages of building our own place. We’re incredibly lucky in that my parents have enough space in their garden for us to potentially build our dream place. I’ll definitely have more questions regarding that in future (shared access, shared sweage treatment etc). I’ve spent a lot of time researching and reading up on here, and it seems the best option for us would be a TF supplier - specifically MBC and their insulated slab too. The plot is within a conservation area, which I’m well aware can cause a plethora of issues. We do currently have planning permission to turn their three car garage into a single dwelling, so we’re hoping this can play somewhat into precedence for a new dwelling on the land. Trees are an issue, but thankfully we have a potential design that navigates them and their root protection areas. We have a version 2 design from our architect which I will post up in the applicable thread soon. Looking forward to learning more and chatting to you knowledgable experts!

Out of interest who did you end up going with? Trying to collate a few shortlists for different jobs, and in your area. Thanks!

I'm sure you get get a simple version from Fiverr on the cheap.

Hi Nod - this look interesting. Any downside to using a clay plaster?

Thank you all for the very helpful replies. More research needed based on all suggestions - but that's the fun bit!