G and J

Is that to create an unbroken layer of cement board and window?

We don’t have either built in steps or a permanent roof ladder. But the view from our ridge, across the fields, is something I’d sit and look at every day if I could. Whenever I’m on the roof doing anything I’ll often sit on the ridge and just enjoy. I do tend to be roped up mind, no point taking unnecessary chances, but I love those tile steps as that would make it quicker and easier and I could crab a rope to them as I go up. Brilliant. So I want to know where I can buy them for a 40 degree slate roof. That way I’ll be able to clean my solar pv every other sunny Tuesday morning. 😉

Just looked that up. Is it just for the ends of PIR sheets?

At the moment buyer ignorance is allowing some companies to use the MCS scheme to milk the buyers/system. I’ll call them skimmers. I refuse to believe all MCS accredited peeps are skimmers. There simply must be good guys. I think I’ve found one such good guy (fingers crossed). Market maturity, which I think is still a fair way off, will erode the excess profits for the skimmers. I would expect large companies will increase market share whilst there is still a high profit margin. That should stabilise end user prices nearer reasonable levels. Thence local good guys will always have to work under the margins of the large companies and generally buyers will get better value for money. But that process only happens because there is a market in the first place and without the grants there might not be. So it’s rather awful in places, but the MCS has got to be a good thing medium term. Scary thought, if you want to accelerate market maturity set Martin Lewis on it.

Sadly I’m also saddled with that belief. I just can’t see why I would design it in.

Is the foam flexible enough to continue to fill the gap after shrinkage?

Ok, I get that taping is needed to give a second layer of protection to help stop screed infiltration. But what does foaming bring to the party?

If one has two layers of PIR with staggered joints is taping and foaming really needed?

I have read on here many times that in cooler months upstairs bedrooms run a couple of degrees cooler than downstairs with what appears to be almost standard running setup of MVHR, ASHP, single zone UFH downstairs, no heating upstairs, decent level insulation. MVHR doesn’t, it appears, force all rooms to the same temperature as it simply doesn’t move enough air round to achieve that. That’s why it’s not the useful for cooling. It might distribute heat a bit, but not enough to equalise. Given that lower upstairs temperature I think the super simplicity of that setup is very attractive.

+1 But you don’t have to do it, you could get a chippy to do it. Take the door to them, shouldn’t cost much at all. But once you start playing with a router you may well become addicted to the precision, accuracy, and the finish.

I’m struggling with that. We’ve a gravity system in our ‘91 build that’s always been good. We’ve had pressurised systems in other properties and they’ve worked fine too, but no better. I have replaced the ball valve in the loft once in 33 years whereas the pressurised systems have needed much more regular attention. If one was comparing a poorly designed/functioning gravity system with a modern system I can understand the conclusion, but not otherwise. (Yes ok, in some areas I’m a Luddite!)

I know that feeling. So a hot wire won’t set the PIR alight then?

I wonder if two staggered layers of 6mm are better than one layer of 12mm. Can imagine 6mm cement board sheets being quite fragile to handle.

Is PIR that bad to work with?

If you did that for me I’d have to draw Everything, Everywhere, and all at once! :-0

I’ve been thinking about our loft, insulation and access. We will be storing v little or maybe even nothing up there, but there’s Solar and probably a hot water header tank which may require the occasional bit of maintenance. It occurred to me that I could use soft insulation between the chords of the fink trusses, then put a walkway down the middle made out of a sandwich of: 1. the cheapest material I can find (or salvage from the demolition); 2. some seconds quality PIR or EPS; 3. topped with again, cheap or reclaimed boarding. Then that’ll give me a sensible walkway, good insulation under that walkway, and I can put loads of soft insulation to the sides of the walkway and never need to compress it or fart around finding trusses to stand on whilst worrying about popping plasterboard ceilings. Could there be any mileage in something like that for you? Would one even need a walkway in the bottom or, given the rare use, just put the PIR straight on the trusses (which sounds sooooo scary!)

We’re talking to a timber frame kit supplier (who do not erect) who provide circa 8’ x8’ panels sheathed with 9mm OSB. So the architect is simply suggesting the fire resistant layer goes straight onto the OSB with the breather membrane over that. But I’m not keen on paying for Supalux!

Fab, ta. Will investigate

I need a recommendation for a fire resistant board for our upstairs walls. We are within a metre of our boundaries on both sides. We have a rendered blockwork skin on the ground floor, but not upstairs. Upstairs we are having fire retardant treated vertical wood cladding, so we need a fire resistant layer between the frame and the cladding. We are assuming this layer will go on battens on top of the breather membrane. I did look seriously at Magply, which it appears can be the frame sheathing too, but then discovered that warranty companies really don’t like magnesium based boards. Our architect has proposed 15mm Supalux, and whilst it’s rather whizzy it’s also eyewateringly expensive, so we need an alternative, kinda pronto. Help!

How long a run are you looking at between the ASHP and the house?

Great minds or two fools not differing? 😉

You bet it is. I can confirm that if one’s initial assumptions are of too narrow a wall thickness then many hours are spent boiling one’s brain and an enormous quantity of scrap paper is produced. At least we’ve now got a good supply of stuff to start fires with this autumn. 😕

👍

You could purchase an Ethernet cable on eBay of roughly the same length and see if that behaves the same. If it does it’s not your cable.

Only 90 odd. Crumbs. I'm sitting in a house with 20meg broadband tops, and everything works fine and dandy and quickly too. What benefit does one get from the extra speed or is this just future proofing for the invention of 32k TV (as standard)?