scottishjohn

and concrete can out last wood by 10 fold at least --go to rome and see the 2000year old concrete there so long term the actual co2 etc is probaly less than building from wood ,which will be replaced many times . If you were building with green timber that was not processed + sourced on site then your argument would be more valid ,rather than kiln dried stuff which will probably have come from deepest russia or canada--cetratinly a long way cos most home grown wood is only good for chipboard /osb--which has lots of chemicals in glue and energy in in processing . any way these interior walls for thermal mass --are they dry built from rock ?-if not you have concrete there and your slab. you could always build a "cobhouse". LOL

sounds like you need a better architect . unless you really trying to do a grand designs build any good one will have a damned good idea of what is required and ball park costings only once design is finalised would there be the need for final detailing of certain things by structural engineer how much a sqm you allowed for £1500 -£2000 -- that will give the architect a clue on what he can do

easy to see what happened there you built it --then you found you should have got a building warrant FIRST you can do virtually no improvements to a house in scotland without BW permit outside the PD scope so they made you jump through the hoops they could have made you flatten it -- just do it the right way next time

I certainly won,t be fitting them to my new build ,but will design it so i can run ducting. Its the old story design eveything before making anything and there willalways be compromises along the way . the way the yanks use to build houses was quite good .they would have a "wet wall" . which meant on one side of house -- north in this country you have a walk way behind actual living area for all services to go in from floor to floor which made maintaince + remodelling very easy

I think you need to elaborate on "high embodied energy" term . what are you actually saying .?

your engineer will tell you but wet ground will be twice the heat loss of dry ground so maybe you lay foundations (strip type) some block work then use a block and beam floor above the water table with suitable insulation ? i read a very good article on insulated raft system ,which strongly suggested that if it was in water all the time it would eventually absorb some water ,which would then drop its insulation value by up to half . so maybe better to just not get your insulated floor wet to start with. you have to remember this insulated raft idea came from countires that have permo frost or very cold winters ,which we do not It strikes me a its all about selling us something we don,t really need, I know all the guys that have done will get defensive --but just think about it logically . yes insualet founds --but 300mm !! a bit OTT for cost verus actual savings possibly quite a fair bit of controvesy in Ireland as they have been pushing htis for a while now

your air tightnes goes even with fewer holes --but that is a red herring as you block up mvhr when doing air test and as they will work together balancing in and out with the controller option i feel you are being over critical the man wanted a solution that was easy to fit --thats it

blauberg do a de centralised system which will be easy to fit https://www.ecoenvelope.co.uk/ look under mvhr and see the blauberg system there

I like velox in some of its points ,but would not use the internal wall panels --stud walls unless need support for something further up . then just same as outer walls then there is durisol or Isotex plenty of choices

Hi, so why build outside with wood when you could just as easy do it all ICF of some sort so many different types some of which it would be quite easy to hand mix and fill as you go -no need for pump,if cost is the primary concern and wanting to do it a bit at a time

I have sf60 in my loft over mineral wool in gable ends and under my suspended ground floor as insulation,stapled up and all sealed together with correct tape as my ufh is set in floor boards seems works very well is all I can say ,whether it is the sealing up of all the underfloor or the insulation that is doing most I cannot say , but when I have had to pull some down to do things to wring + plumbing behind it --then you can feel it is a barrier to heat loss +air movement,as the air trapped in between joists is very much warmer than the cold draft under the house

I was told by an ex mosquito pilot that most were sent out to asia after the war ,sold onto the commonwealth countries unfortunately not a good climate for wooden aircraft most got eaten by the bugs in very short order. he was one of the few that flew the anti tank version fitted with a 4lb field gun he said he had to be ready to get nose down and full throttle when you fired it . cos the recoil nearly stalled it every time,due to going slow to get it lined up on target LOL

even builders with joiners buy kit houses a lot of the time for small projects ,because its cheaper that way

I have been studying these and contacted importer + checked info from maker all I can say is that the information given by them and some of thier written info does not agree with what the italian maker says example "do you need bracing ? answer NO up to one story 2.25m --non required GREAT --thinks me -thats saves alot of money on multiple pours and pump hire and bracing hire -then goes to product data and its says every 5 or 6 rows fill with concrete --so that 1.25 to 1.5 m It is really worrying when you get these sort of answers no BBA approvel --could be june before that --no Uk spec inf in writing ,still making pproper Uk spec info so to me just as well I,m in no hurry . I will wait for UK spec to clarify these points I am not saying product is not good ,just beware of sales men save me from salesman that do not know thier own product and just say yes to everything then do the quick shuffle when you pick them up on it ,and say its up to you to decide whats right for your own build -- beware of all salesmen and check tech info yourself

only reason i can see for using solid internal on most builds will be to give support to upper floors using shorter joists or to support main ridge beam on a sips panelled roof so smaller gluelam can be used other wise stud seems easier . as for cheaper --don,t know - but doubt it

reasons for isotex over durisol would be of help As i have yet to decide on choice of ICF system yo use post or send message if you prefer

also look at fixolite.be. there are a few different versions then you have VELOX as well

I have a portal frame building with concealed gutters . having had this for 30 years here are my exploits of the year If gutter or down pipe gets blocked --where is the overflow going to go? my gutter was made from galv steel --not my spec ,but what they did . a perfect cold bridge which after 10 years rotted through --and probably from underside as it is sitting on a galv beam . so It must be grp or something plastic to my mind It must be sat on insulation if any part of it is exposed to heat from house or condensation will be a problem even zinc will corrode over time if not a clear air flow on underside .same goes zinc roofs must be air flow on underside .not sat on osb more down pipes than you think you need would be my suggestion + how you going to get at this gutter to clean it out -- mesh on top will not stop build up of fine sludge over time . the solution for my building was to remake the 8" x 8" gutter by lining it with 3 layers of grp condensation problem never cured ,but as i don,t heat that area much now and have tried to seal it off --its not a great problem

you notice the video when showing use on cars --are always at top of engine --not down the side or behind things where you need to secure pipes and wiring from chaffing a gun will never fit lots of places you can hardly get your fingers in

I think for use on cable looms in a production application they are perfect where you using one size ,but most people are needing to use lots of different size ties for jobs and they are so cheap to buy now Me, in the car trade I use about 6 different sizes and lengths for different jobs.plus places where the size of the tool would be a problem from wheel trims to micro small ones for small wiring jobs

I think the first most important part is to get the money right from the insurance co. I am guessing they think it is cheaper to just give you money and walk away than rebuild . so you need YOUR OWN quotes to re instate as it was before ,including all site clearance costs . And will SEPA require removal of contaminated ground from fire ? --include those costs so you will need a good claims adjuster+ solicitor that YOU are paying for to get best deal and if possible and you are going to take the money you want to have the option to sell the site on as it is could be it would be cheaper /better to buy somewhere else and sell that ?. I am aware that normal terms of insurance always say it must be rebuilt --but if they wanting to do a deal --then no reason why you shouldn't have it to suit you all insurance is interested in is doing it as cheap as possible My experience of insurance companies giving payouts rather than actually paying for reinstatement is they are looking to get it cheaper--so get the money bit sorted --do not be in a hurry to go started ,they will use that to get a better deal once they pay you any other problems will be yours !!!. you get one bite at the cherry

I would avoid any sort of mechanical pumping at all costs --it will only be a headache sometime in future

sounds as though it would simpler to just build a brick pillar or an RSJ and have 2 windows rather than one corner window

why do you have to connect to the neighbours very shallow system --why not go direct to the main sewer manhole? then his problems are never yours. for sure if there ever are any you will be blamed as you have connected last on the system . maybe a conversation with the BC is in order ?

thank you for the up date in modern thinking