Moira Niedzwiecka

@Thorfun My windows are IC Futura so they are aluclad timber, triple glazed. Sound eduction seems very good but I do live in a rural location, so not much external noise.

@Thorfun I am really happy with my doors & windows from ideal combi. Been in for 2 1/2 years now. Not had any problems. They look great. The large sliders work really well. I just hoover the track to get rid of any dust & leaves every few months. The locks & handles re really robust. Front & back doors also great. A self builder friend has Internorm & there is no noticeable difference in quality in my opinion. I had ridiculous quotes from Internorm. Velfac are very similar to ideal combi. I managed to knock them down on price considerably by playing them off against the quote from Velfac.

Just beware of expanding foam. It's the work of the devil.

Thank you all for the suggestions. Much appreciated.

Any suggestions for the best fixings for 15mm plasterboard fixed to 50mm battens on a timber frame to hang pictures, coat hooks & shelves?

Virtually at a standstill in the house until end of lockdown, but plenty to do outside. Extreme gardening, digging its a crowbar & lump hammer to remove builders rubble. Keep me going for a few weeks. ?

Thanks Peter. Long time coming. Final push came when immersion heater packed up in the cottage. Tried to get a plumber without success & just thought why am I bothering. Just decamp to new house all heated by the sun.

Well, just over 4 years since breaking ground I have moved in at last. Covid 19 was the kick in the rear I needed to get on with it. Still a long way to go but liveable. Upstairs nearly finished. No kitchen but utility fine. After all the trauma of the last 4 years has it been worth it? Oh yes, it is heavenly.?

Wow, I am really impressed. They are lovely. Nice hobby. Hope to do it myself once garden up & running. May take a while?

Why not take up flower arranging?

Had an argument with a piece of cement board a while ago. Heavy stuff, fell back on me. Also fell down the stairs 3 weeks ago while cladding wall with birch ply. No idea I had done so much damage until the following day. No fracture but soft tissue & vascular trauma. Lots of swelling & bruising & lost blood supply to toes Crutches & keeping leg elevated for 2 weeks. Got infected & needed dressing every day for 2 weeks. Healing now but will be 6 to 8 weeks before completely healed. Fun this self building lark.

www.moduleo.com Download the Moduleo brochure & the skirting is on page 100-101. I have transform dry back.

I have a charcoal coloured schock sink in the utility room. An absolute horror. It is a bugger to keep clean & only looks good when wet. Sooooo wish I had gone for stainless steel. The only choice in the house I regret so far.

@BotusBuild Best plan is to buy a site loo from ebay. Renting one is very expensive. I bought mine for £500 delivered & have just sold it on ebay for £425 buyer collected. If I had rented one over 3 1/2 years would have cost a fortune. I used accompany called D-tox to empty, clean & refill it for £25 =VAT As my build has been sporadic there were long periods when it wasn't used so it didn't need servicing that often.

Has anyone experience of using hidden fixings for plywood panels?

My windows are Ideal Combi. Single self build. It was Nick Brigham I initially dealt with. He then left the company but has since returned. I visited their office & showroom in Milton Keynes after I saw them at HB & R show at NEC. Couldn't have been more helpful. I would try calling them.

I'll find out from the BM tomorrow.

I've had a couple of strikes on the large patio doors. Think I am going to hang something decorative & twinkly that dangles along the length of the overhang.

Thanks for all the lovely comments guys. Still pinching myself to believe it. Still a lot to do inside, but getting there. One of the best decisions was to have the open plan living area spray painted. Its a fantastic finish & was so quick. It would have taken me a month of Sundays & the large ceiling would have shown every roller mark & streak. Wish I could have afforded to have the whole house done. It has taken me ages & the vaulted room upstairs was a real PITA to do with all the angles & being so high. Working on the utility/plant room at the moment. Should have shower room finished in next couple of weeks. I did supply & fit for the landscaping. I think the gravel crates were about £12 each 1m2 with the weed membrane on. Expensive, but cheaper than block paving or resin. I wanted something low maintenance that didn't move when driven over & didn't need constant raking. I also like the look of gravel.

No longer a muddy building site after nearly 3 1/2 years, Hooray. Landscaping just finished during the wettest 2 weeks of the year. Never mind, it is done. Used the plastic honeycomb gravel crates with the weed membrane on the back. Lawn & wild flower meadow to sow, fencing & planting to be done, so still a long way to go, but at least some progress.

+1 to all of the above. I will come in at about £1900/m2 about £400/m2 more than originally planned for. This will be for everything, soup to nuts, including buying neighbours land, easements, all fees & utilities. I have increased the spec on quite a lot of the interior than was planned. As the build developed I felt it warranted it, however, tried very hard not to get too carried away.

Agree with @PeterW about GD. It was terrible. Dying on its feet. Some interesting stands at UK Construction. Some of the exhibitors that used to be with GD have moved over to it & some stands with interior finishes I haven't seen before. Enjoyed meeting Peter & having a good chat with a fellow 'hubber'.

@PeterW. Coffee on me if you fancy meeting up to say hello. PM me with mobile.

@PeterW are you going to UK construction tomorrow?