Bitpipe

in a domestic setting they don't seem to care, as long as there is grey BT duct popping out of the ground next to the pole. They're also very happy if you pull your own cable and just leave 10m or so coiled up beside the pole - only mistake I made was not to run it up the metal shoe at the base and through the 2m plastic shield on the side of the pole - OR just tacked my cable to the rear of the pole by a hedge (out of sight but not otherwise protected).

We ran grey underground duct from the site boundary to the basement plant room wall, when we crossed the road to the pole, the ground worker just used black electricity ducting and finished with a grey BT hockey stick. We pulled through our own gel filled 5 core cable (bought from TLC) as it was £50 for 100m vs £5/m if pulled through by OpenReach (total run was about 50m). We have two active lines on this cable, one domestic (voice only) and one business (with DSL). Internally things were a bit more complicated as we'd made contingency for a traditional drop wire to the loft if the road crossing was not possible for any reason. Sparky therefore had a multi-pair telephony circuit that ran from the basement plant room, to the basement media room, to the ground floor study and then up to the loft space where the Cat5 rack & switch is located. OR initially put the DSL master socket in the loft, patching that incoming circuit through the whole run with the voice line running back down to the study. The BT Smarthub was located in the eaves and patched straight into the Cat 5 switch and distribution. The voice only circuit master socket terminated in the media room and was then patched up to the study where the DECT basestation lives. This initial arrangement did not give good enough WiFi coverage, so we re-configured it to have the DSL master socket in the basement plant room (there was already a box here, just needed to change the face plate) and the signal is patched up to the study where it comes out of a standard Euro plate double BT socket, along side our voice only line. I needed to use a microfilter here to split out the DSL and voice signal so I can have have the Smarthub in the study. I just patch the ethernet from the SmartHub back up to the distribution panel using an existing Cat 5 data circuit, and it then gets sent around the house through the distribution panel. The loft BT socket is redundant now - I used the old BT Homehub 5 to act as a slave WiFi for upstairs, hanging off the cat 5 distribution rack. Hope you all followed that Didn't recall it being that complicated when I started typing.... Anyway, the advantage I have is that the DSL master socket is next to the incoming line (with the built in filter) which is best to measure performance and remove any internal wiring from the equation. I also have the BT hub in an accessible spot which is useful for checking status and connecting wifi using the WPS button, plus wifi coverage is maximised across four floors. Lesson learned, build in redundancy (we lost one pair in the internal circuit) and flexibility in where these services are located - you may not want your DSL hub right at the master socket if you're relying on it for WiFi also.

I didn't even have the hard hat..just looked a bit scruffy. Only challenge is the small talk every time I went in 'How's business? Much on?' etc... always felt a bit of a fraud.

We have an independent garage up the road, I use it for all my MOT, servicing etc. They reckon that they'll be out of business in 10 years as the 'repairability' of cars in plummeting. ECUs were the first issue, they're not cost effective for the small garages to remove, refurb / replace and reinstall. Now the issue is s/w which needs to be licensed (no such thing as 3rd party / after market spares there). So soon they'll be reduced to consumables. At the same time, many cars that are mechanically sound are not economic to repair - case in point the auto gearbox ECU on mine is a bit flakey (I use a pen in the dash to override when it locks out) - a new one from Audi is going to cost a significant proportion of what my car is now worth. Telsa is an extreme case I'm sure I've read that the difference in range options is entirely s/w controlled and not a h/w dependancy. Can be activated remotely as an upgrade?

Just need to ensure that they don't have trickle vents if you're looking to minimise airtightness. We used Gaulhofer passive windows from Austria (via a UK reseller). As the ex rate was 1.45 back then so they worked out cheaper than Internorm (who's idea for cost reduction was to choose uPVC instead of timber). Very pleased with the quality and aesthetic of our windows - we opted for substantial external blinds which came pre-fitted to the windows and have been a godsend in the summer, only wish I'd specced them on a few more windows. Internorm only did the blinds in window system which i didn't like. We used a local installer, who gets referrals from the reseller, and he was great - super knowledgable and very professional. Still amazed how they slid in the 500kg sliders between scaffolding poles.

I frequently drive my diesel A6 when it says 0 miles left in the tank, mostly because I'm lazy and can only be bothered to fuel up once a week (the joys of not having a commute), so not worried about range anxiety Planning to get a Tesla S for a weekend's trial (£150 - viewing this as a bit of a treat) and then try others on the market over the next 6-9 months. If you have a ltd company (i.e. family business or are a contractor) then you can offset the purchase or monthly lease cost of a ULEV against company profit, so save 20% and (potentially) VAT. You then need to lease the car to yourself and pay benefit in kind (BiK) tax, currently 7%, rising to 16% in year 2. However it does work out cheaper than just buying it as an individual, for IC cars it's cheaper the other way round. Apparently this is why the BMW i8 has become the car of choice for many IT consultants...

No, my brain was asleep! Meant to say 2100mm high and 1000mm wide!

We have a 1750 x 800 shower tray with the spray at the far end. I ordered a single piece of 900mm x 1000mm 8mm glass made and fixed it to the wall with 8mm alu profile. ^^^^^ (should read 2100mm!) Used 2mm spacers on the floor and sikaflexed the base, when cured removed the spacers and filled the gaps. Added a bar for stability and it all works fine.

Just to be clear, these are not EWI boards but standard 12.5mm renderboard. No, whats been initially proposed is whole new layer of Maite (undercoat), mesh and DPR (topcoat) - subject to the option of Parex obv.

@PeterW figured it all out for me in my RWH thread above.

Installer's site manager came out and straight away agreed that it's not right. He's bringing Parex rep (who I've also been talking to) on site and will discuss remediation with them. Best case is if they determine that the boards have moved as much as they will, in which case it's a re-application of a base and top coat. More serious if the boards themselves need attention. Stay tuned, must say I'm a bit more relaxed now that they're not running away from the problem.

Welcome! It's the spec of the dimensions of the beam type - http://www.parkersteel.co.uk/Product/0851205/Universal+Beam/203+X+133+X+30KG+S355J0+Yel

As more and more warning lights appear on my old '08 A6 Avant TDI, I'm looking at ULEV for my next car. I plan to keep the A6 (as its resale is pitiful, especially with the knocks and scrapes it's picked up during the build). As we're in Berkshire and the wife's family are in Lanarkshire, that's the max distance we need to cover (about 380mi). Interesting to look at the location of charging points on the main UK routes, for me thats where the infrastructure investment needs to happen. Widespread access to rapid charge facilities (getting you to 80% in 30 mins) are the only really viable options, until then we're still going to be somewhat dependent on hybrid and range extender models. Regarding the 'millennials' - sure, they're more likely to live for the moment unlike us Gen-X and Boomers but then again, unlike us they are burdened with uni debt, are unlikely to purchase a property until their late 30s / early 40s, don't have long term job security plus an equally uncertain future of pensions and NHS and they are bombarded with realtime reminders of how their peer group are doing with all the associated pressure to keep up and put on a good show. I don't envy them one bit...

Thanks, i'm not accepting any blame, just realising that there was more due diligence that could have been done. Installer coming to site on Friday so will see what he says, will keep my powder dry on the information from Parex. They're not fly by night contractors and when one of their guys accidentally scratched one of our alu framed doors with a float (despite applying protection etc) they were quick to pay to have it repaired so hoping that they do the right thing. Now that the weather has cooled, the effect is more subtle but still noticeable.

Have had an email exchange with Parex rep (kindly supplied by PM) who confirm that the render board expansion gap is the likely issue, further compounded by the render board used not being one of their approved types. I need to review the site video and photos to see if I can determine the render board expansion gapping. My error was accepting the installer's spec and not knowing that I could/should have checked it with Parex first. So, installer is coming out to survey but feels like the remedy is to take it back to batten and re-do, which will be significantly expensive for them (especially when scaff etc is included) so I can't imagine them offering that willingly. Any suggestions on how to take the next steps to ensure that it's put right?

There's an IC just out of shot at the top right corner where all the rainwater pipes (house and garage) converge. The outflow then descends to the pipe you see in the picture - needs to be at that level to allow a deck to run above it and be inline with a window into the basement. The jaunty angle means that there is some rain water retained in the pipe but it doesn't seem to impede the flow at all, it fairly pelts out when it's raining.

I've got this far - tanks were cheap but needed some cleaning (had PVA glue residue). One has a wooden base which I'm not crazy about but forgot to mandate plastic/metal. I have all the bits aside from the incoming filter, the one I wanted to get (that has a side access to clean the filter) is too tall so going to get a shorter 90 bend and just undo it and flush out every now and again. The incoming pipe has settled and now slopes about 2-3 deg the wrong way, we dug out on the other side to see if we could fix but it's been cased in concrete and this has obviously settled. Still works fine, quite an impressive flow when it rains and on one day last week, the tank was almost full after a few hours.

1000l IBC tanks are cheap, can be had for £25 each plus delivery. I have a thread here on building a 4000l rainwater storage facilty, tanks are now in-situ and just need to plumb together. They cant be buried direct in ground though, you would need to excavate a chamber and build a box to hold them in, guessing by the time you did that you'd be better getting a dedicated tank.

This is a good idea - some, non obvious, things that we have done (and a few we forgot). - Permanent kiosk for external electricity meter, removing need for site temps (and the associated costs). Especially useful if demolishing an existing building. - Internal and external power for seasonal needs - we have a lovely large window where we locate the xmas tree, unfortunately no socket so had to put a hole through wall to the study (face plate either side with brushes). - Cat 5 in kitchen for internet radio / TV (forgot this, will need to rely on WiFi) - Cat 5 in plant room for Solar PV controller (remembered this) - Ducting between wall mounted TV and wherever the boxes are - Speaker cable in walls / floor / ceiling - allow for things like Atmos where you may need additional audio channels - IR sensors to activate hot return circuit for DHW and MVHR boost, removes need for dedicated switches and timers - one of the big tips I got from this site, plumber was impressed - We have a large rear square lawn (well, mud for now) where the caravan sat during building, so we had a 25mm MPDE water main running to it. Will now relay this to the centre of the lawn and will hide in small gully - this gives us a central point to water the lawn from in the future (when the RWH tanks are empty). - getting the FFL correct for sliding doors to allow a level threshold (managed this). - noggins for bath cabinets, sinks, mirrors etc - but allow for FFL and read the instructions to see where the actual fittings are. If in doubt, ply the walls. - cheap electric UFH for bathrooms (we did a very last min scramble to fit the conduit and electrics for ours, just after tacking). - lead flashing under external doors (inc, sliding) only remembered this for the front door. - power for velux integra (or equivalent) windows that will be inaccessible. - built in internal / external blinds to minimise solar gain, especially on roof (the Velux external ones are great and patch into the window power system). We omitted one window on the south and regret that, thought it would have more natural shade but forgot about low sun in spring. - allowance for MVHR duct and soil pipe routes, especially if you have steels anywhere, we had to get creative in a few places. - pocket sliding doors for bathrooms - really free up floor space. - running power and control cable for potential future things like video intercom, gate control etc. - ducting for underground BT to avoid overhead cable. - provision for LED lighting on stairs - our bannisters have a strip in the underneath that comes on with low lighting - low level led lighting in hall wall that comes on when it's evening (together with a timer) - useful if guests or kids are popping out to loo or getting a drink at night, also saves having the full hall lighting on in evening I'm sure there will be more...

Have you talked to Magic Man? Their quotes were per visit for me - was here for a good few hours doing my sink, wouldn't leave until it was perfect.

I lost pretty much every design based argument, for the better as it turns out

Is that a Lusso Stone sink? Looks like ones that we have. We had a similar disaster just before moving in. Tackers put a screw through the cold feed to cistern in the ensuite and we only discovered leak after the bathroom was tiled and fitted. Leak was right behind the sink which was Sikaflexed to the wall in the corner. When trying to free it from the wall the sink cracked from the corner. We got the local MagicMan to come and repair it, he did an excellent job, could not see the damage. Fee was £165, which the plastering contractor covered. While he was on site, we got him to touch up a few other bits such as a scratch to a veneered door and the RK Front door. They can seemingly repair just about anything. enquiries@magicman.co.uk

Talking to Joe from MBC, he thinks its lack of expansion joints in the render board. Have taken it up with the contractor, will see what they say. I think the recent warm spell has exacerbated what ever the underlying issue is.

Thanks all. No counter batten, just batten onto the external panel of the TF. Boards were square cut, not taped but tightly butted up and the render process was pretty thorough, acres of green poly mesh between coats etc. I'll try and clean a bit to see if there's any difference - running my hand over its amost completely smooth, no noticeable depression. Strange thing is why it's only noticeable now - I'd have been straight on it even a few months ago when they came back to do the garage.

We had quite a large garden fire last week after demolishing an old timber greenhouse, chicken coop and a pile of hedge and tree cuttings that had dried out nicely over the last 6 months. Was about 12ft high and 20ft wide, I missed the actual burn but the lads said it went straight up, virtually no smoke but big flames (even they had a minor panic) and I can see scorch marks in a few nearby trees about 20-30ft up! Was all done and dusted in 30 mins, no complaints although I pre-warned immediate neighbours. Then before going home they dumped a bunch of freshly trimmed hedge cuttings and it smoked like hell, got a few complaints then so they just put a hose on it and killed it.