G and J

Methinks reading the above that for us there’s not a clear justification for a solar diverter day one, but like a battery, I will cost up making allowance for one in the future. Clearly the diverter needs a direct connection (16A?) to the immersion element, and a supply connection but what other connections does it need? Is it a wireless or Ethernet to another element like the inverter? I don’t think anything but the inverter could know when excess solar is available and exactly how much. Are diverter typically mounted next to the inverter or the immersion?

That’s exactly what our architect told me. I had a little wobble, thinking that meant a slack lightweight underlay which would billow noisily in the wind and be more likely to allow crap to collect next to where the horizontal battens cross the trusses. I also definitely like the idea that counter-battens help cool solar panels. But I’ve other things to worry about for now. Sometimes, it’s tempting to give in to the inertia of the ‘everyone does it this way’ and save one’s energy for other debates.

Remember that they have seen all sorts and it’s not safe for them to assume you are competent and will complete the build. Worst case is you bugger up the whole thing and leave the house unsellable and then default, leaving them with nothing. So they simply can’t actively agree to your plan.

Certainly possible, but arguably unnecessary. I suspect had you just gone and done it it would have been fine, I’m sure many have in the past. Simplest above board way may be to pay off your mortgage and if you need that money to finish the build then raise a self build mortgage against the new pad. Shame about the fees. Of course you could decide to abandon the whole plan, then tell the mortgage company so (to their relief). They don’t often pop round to check that you are looking after their asset, do they?

I’d assumed as much. When in the process are you intending to sell the current house?

Regardless of the size of mortgage it sounds like the whole plot is against a single title. The charge against that title is the mortgagee’s security so they’ll be loath to release it, understandably. If you are going to sell your main home then the spilt will happen then and it’s nothing to do with the mortgage company as your mortgage will need to be redeemed at that point.

Paint that changes colour when dry so you can see where to paint second coat - brilliant. However, I’m guessing if my airtight strategy is principally based on taped membranes I’ll have little use for this?

Following much head scratching I conclude that I'm not sure about where what goes. So I went back to the drawings from our architect and read around a bit and here's my understanding so far. I'd like to get this clear in my head before I think about variations to it. What have I got wrong or could be improved.... In case it helps here's a bit of the drawing the architect provided - sadly he made the assumption that I had a clue....

Given that we have 2.3m walls downstairs I could use that to be my downstairs VCL and Tony tray all in one go! The fewer junctions the least taping and faffing perhaps….

Odd thing, power cuts. We live just a few miles outside of densely populated areas. When we first moved in and for a decade or so after we had regular power cuts lasting often many hours. Just a symptom of where the ever growing network needs developing. I’m assuming that as we as a nation get greener then more lecky will be needed so more network capacity will be needed and where that isn’t put in quick enough then power cuts will ensue. Plus extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and they do lead to long power cuts. So the woodburner stays in the plan. And if the freezer defrosts then I’ll just have to eat lots. Especially ice cream.

That’s exactly what I’m planning. Not a clue what to make the tray out of mind. I’m also not clear yet how wall junctions are handled, but will study that nearer the time.

So pretty much three potentially airtight layers. Wow. I’m impressed.

Was it difficult to find soft furnishings to coordinate? 😉 Being serious why 18mm OSB? Is that directly behind your service void just inboard of your frame?

I’m building timber frame and I’ll be putting a vapour control layer inboard of my studs and that will be part of my airtight strategy. I’ll use Tony trays to maintain the layer between floors though I’ve yet to fully get my head round the precise detail, partly as I have an offset upstairs frame. Im not sure I’d get any benefit from vapour block OSB and it sounds more expensive.

Is the idea that the hole enables you to have a first hand look at the depth? 😕

I do like a long bath with, of course, music, and I do like laying there with my head under water. I’ve looked at bath speakers before and instead I have gone for the cheap option of earphones. This time I’ve got some bone conduction ones, so I can wear them when exercising without destroying them - they’re supposed to be ok to swim in. They are great to listen to as I lay there with my head out of the water, more comfortable than in ear types. Today, (yes, bath night already, that month went quick!), I did my normal thing, long soak, take my phones off to immerse, but I hooked them over the side of the bath and accidentally left them running. Only to find that underwater I could hear the music at a good volume and beautiful quality. So I will be installing a steel bath and I won’t be spending out on special speakers. It’s amazing what one doesn’t know that one doesn’t know.

And that’s an organisation who it appears, at least to me, habitually oversized heat pumps….

So roughly ignore the worst two days each year.

But what should we sensibly dimension for? We’ve known -15C in Suffolk once, many years ago methinks. But if I dimensioned for that I’d over engineer it.

I follow a different procedure. 1. Look at the job. 2. Wonder why I’ve not done it already. 3. Think about all my failings, including failing to decide what to have for lunch. 4. Realise I’m hungry. 5. Discard tools (to be cleared up much later if ever) and stick nose in fridge….

We certainly intend to get a cylinder with a coil specifically for a heat pump, but heating slowly might conflict with the idea of heating in bursts using the two or three low rate tariff periods each day. I think that reinforces the case for a solar diverter or a battery (but not both).

I use Makita 18v so when I needed one I bought a basic Makita 18v SDS. I’ve just looked it up, it’s 2joules. It’s a lot heavier than my other drills but it has a lot of up h so for DIY I feel it’s more than powerful enough. It does eat batteries though. I also bought a cheap 13mm chuck which means I can use all my drill bits and tank cutters in it, saved me no end of time over the last 5 years. https://www.makitauk.com/product/dhr202.html

Crumbs. I’m glad I live in Suffolk!

It feels to me like there are more and more instances of regulations being added for the 0.1% of cases, as we don’t, as a society, take a balanced view. Instead each instance is driven by litigation prevention. Sigh. So we pick our way through, complying with everything, but still trying to build as best quality we can despite the regulations.

I’m hoping (having read round the subject lots) for a COP of 4+ on DHW, even better on heating. I think that turns your water heating cost of £255 per year into less than £65, reducing the payback period considerably. How long are you staying in your house and what’s your guess re future lecky prices? I like the plate exchanger idea but I’d shy away from having another pump and more stuff to go wrong. But I’m tight so I’d try v hard to sell the cylinder.