torre

I'd pull the shower room forward and also add a new doorway next to the annex front entrance straight into bed 1. That would bring its kitchen wall forward for more living space and also free up that corridor/lobby space in the main house by the boiler (but still have a door between annex and main) If losing bed 1 is your main motivation for the roof lift then a much cheaper compromise option would be to make the front of the annex open plan sitting room + kitchen then the shower room and the bedroom at the back. Keep bed 1 for the main house. There's a chance with a large side extension plugs a roof lift that you spend an awful lot for limited gains, versus finding a property already better suited or doing the minimum to be workable, but I appreciate when you need the annex for family decisions aren't easy

You could enquire whether you can use fibre reinforced concrete instead of mesh. Cost more to pour but less labour faffing with mesh

I'd suggest installing a WWHRS to your showers if it's not too disruptive. Waste water heat recovery saves about half the hot water needed to run the shower at the same temperature. That means your 300L tank will have an effective shower capacity of 450L and your running costs will also be lower as you won't be paying to heat a larger cylinder.

Or are you lifting the roof slightly to turn this into a dormer/1.5 storey? Presumably the annexe is intended to be self contained but you've not shown a bed? If the annexe will be all on one storey I'd consider juggling proportions and/or bringing the front forward so there's a small snug/lounge at the front and bedroom at the rear. (Guessing a bit based on limited info)

I've used both, the Isover is much more of a slab and very easy to cut accurately with an insulation saw, but itchier to handle and sheds more small fibres into the air. Dritherm is more like wool, much nicer to handle, but somewhat harder to cut accurately.

We insulated with a windproof membrane like you but thermafleece between. With the membrane well taped at wall junctions it makes a huge difference. We decided the wooden joists weren't enough of a thermal bridge to merit extra mitigation effort. Thermally broken fixings sound like expensive overkill to me here. How about stapling 10mm XPS tile backer board in strips slightly wider than the joist, from below each joist? That would reduce the thermal bridge and also help support the wood fibre

@Onoff nice job and that's closer to the size of floor I've done when renovating. The method works well, room or two at a time, even if inexperienced. I don't think I'd have been confident to handle another 10 times the volume of concrete being poured in the next hour or two throughout the house though.

Not something I've done lots of but this looks quite challenging to me given all your walls are in place and you've got to work your way out via three or four rooms, much harder than having access from all around the slab. You've quite a lot of concrete and limited access and working time while aiming for a finish you can tile on. How are you setting your level throughout the building? You don't want high spots and I'd be prepared to accept being a bit low in corners that are hard to reach if you're feeling pushed for working time and budget for some self leveling compound. It looks tricky to get back through to trowel over too. Would it cost much more to do two pours? looks like a single doorway divides the top and bottom of the floorplan. That might take the pressure off a bit and let you see how the first one goes. As @Iceverge said this is messy if it goes wrong.

Thanks @craig that video highlights one reason why the installer might want to do this themselves (and to be fair the earlier video says at the end fixing tape to the sides is the best method) as I can see they may not be too happy to have you faffing around taping to the sides of their frames while they're trying to fit, but I'd at least want to know that's how they'd be taping and whether it's them or you responsible for priming reveals etc and what products they use. Personally I think insulation and airtightness details tend to fall between trades and are sometimes seen as inconvenience and done badly, so I prefer to do them myself - time and attention to detail are things I have more of than a trade working with limited time to a fixed budget.

You'll see the word "subordinate" used frequently to describe this. Sounds like your architect is just trying to set realistic expectations of what they expect would be approved locally. It would be rare to get permission to build over a garage forward of the main property line and examples I've seen haven't looked good.

Nothing to stop you using steel but as a double stringer

As @G and J says, this is all stuff that you do need to have a real plan for, so that development can run smoothly, so think in those terms not just about getting the condition discharged. I remember how much tighter our site felt once we started moving earth around and materials came in. Things change so you just need to come up with a reasonably workable starting point and mark up on a site plan. Wheel washing as hard standing and a jet wash/hose near the site access etc Have you already submitted a statement, is it just the plan that's missing? You don't necessarily need to provide parking for all workers for example, you can point them to nearby available parking and encourage car sharing. In your case, the HGV turning and routing look like points highways will be most interested in. If you can't turn them on site then document a plan where they have to to reverse in and specify that the site manager will designate someone to help guide them, that you'll encourage deliveries to be made outside peak hours etc

Agree with @Roundtuit that it could be the foundations of the pillar were made less substantial than the rest, perhaps poured as a separate pad and so can move separately Have a read of this RICS guide to cracks - these may be closer to a category 2 than 3. I'm not a surveyor but suspect it's more a cosmetic issue than a major structural one. For future mortgageability and saleability though I'd want a survey that ruled out subsidence and would be discounting my offer quite a bit regardless (say 10k+). The vendor probably wants a quick sale but has a prominent crack that no potential purchaser will miss. If neighbours have solved with lintels and rebuilding the corner say, know on a couple of doors where they've solved the issue and introduce yourself maybe?

What shape is your roof? Hip or gable and are any gables front/back or at the sides? Winding anticlockwise from the door into your store and back over the bathroom toilet might work and lose only a limited amount from corners of bed 2 and garage. You already have some quite long but relatively narrow bedrooms, I'd try and avoid anything that narrows them further. What use do you hope for from the loft? Extra bedroom and ensuite?

I think this is very subjective, I'd try and put together at least a rough render of the alternatives before making a late change. Chatgpt may be able to come up with something close. I can easily see cill height working well on the side elevation. If it's the front where you think cladding may be too much maybe consider taking the stone up to full height around the entrance?

Sounds like your agent has dropped the ball here, how would waiting until after a deadline make any sense!?

Maybe by 'cramped' they mean it's too large for the plot, squeezed in, and then it's consequently 'overbearing' on neighbours? If the planners are open to discussing your application, you could suggest agreeing an extension to give you time to submit updated drawings if they think the reasons for refusal are addressable (without hurting their stats) If you withdraw, you'll lose the opportunity to get full details of their reasons for refusal, which may be a bit thin in which case consider and appeal, or be substantial and with merit in which case at least you'll know exactly what obstacles you face next time around.

1.2 is used for the 'notional dwelling' in SAP assessment but 1.6 is actually the upper limit for new build. So you can use a cheap but poorly performing window, but will need to spend more to improve insulation elsewhere so may not end up saving as much as you think.

Probably depends on the inspector. One thing they may well check (and you do want to get right!) is whether safety glazing is used where it's required. That should be marked on the glass.

Personally I prefer to choose architect and builder separately, on their own merits, so I'd treat this as a recommendation much as you would from someone else; consider them but don't feel you need to give them the initial brief in hope of securing the builder. I didn't quite understand this - do you mean the builder wants to charge you and they'd be engaging the architect? I definitely wouldn't consider that, I'd want to be engaging any architect directly at any stage. One of the challenging aspects of a self build is that yours is a one-time deal, whether for the architect, builder, or suppliers. Most will want to maintain their long term relationships with each other and the closer they regularly work together, the more that may mean they lean towards each other rather than to you when things crop up, big or small, that need a solution further down the line.

Don't forget to send your CIL commencement notice. You should be fine to clear the site but If you're going down the full plans route for BC and haven't submitted yet I'd try and speak to them before doing anything else.

Yes, nothing to claim back off scaffolding @nod but you shouldn't be charged VAT on the labour of erecting and dismantling in the first place. HMRC guidance

Our scaffolders were happy to show hire and erect separately, and zero rate the erection

I think the only advantage is for the developers, who can get away without the cost of installing MVHR

Buying a hoist was probably the best £100 we spent and it sounds even better value now!