Jilly

Thank you Nick! 😊

Did you get thin surface mounted downlights? I've got the same issue and don't want to chop into the insulation.

Does it need a party wall agreement?

Overthinking seems to be the bane of self building...

We could start a thread of ‘things which ought to be hidden whilst we ‘think about it’. ‘ I think an under shelf light is a good idea tho! Better my first thought of threading it through a hole in the shelf and jug….

What about fitting a window restrictor? https://www.ironmongerydirect.co.uk/browse/window-furniture-and-hardware/window-locks-and-security/window-restrictors A friend has a barn conversion with a full length window in an upstairs bedroom, with one of these and no balcony, so it must have passed BC.

Presume it's a safety thing? Can you offer some other mitigation instead?

Sounds like the landlord has taken out a policy which isn’t much use. Do you have an agent? They usually have a list of decent trades

Well done for persisting. I’d have been tempted to stay with the Class Q option….

One builder/ carpenter did the main building with nails (gun) very quick but unforgiving. The other builder (day rate) prefers screws, as you can remove without wrecking the wood if needs be.

My SE made a few oversights (excuse the pun) (not errors of calculation) and so I asked to see their boss for a site meeting. I think they thought I was going to kick off, but I simply wanted an explanation of how things work and reassurance the builders were on the right track. It was very helpful and I offered to pay, but they didn’t charge as a gesture of goodwill, no doubt. It is important to understand everything and possibly only you have the bigger picture.

Take your time (unless it’s class Q) think about if there’s a way you can live or at least stay on site in a static caravan or similar. It’s an unbelievable pain not being nearby and rent will eat your budget. A lot of things need to be decided on site and if a builder is presented with 2 choices, you can guarantee they chose the one you didn’t want. One way to manage the budget can be to get a part liveable and signed off and do the rest later

We have left 2 spare ports for an extension, we plan to come through the wall rather than go close to the existing pipes. I’m not certain exactly how it will work! it would be cheaper/less complicated than having another manifold, I would think, we need to ask the plumbers on here who seem to have missed your thread. How about asking Wunda for suggestions? They do a pipe map if you buy their kit (many folk on here have used them)

Exactly! I don’t fancy that

The little cast iron Everhot Stove is expensive but looks authentic and has a mini oven. It could make sense with PV. https://everhot.co.uk/Everhot-Electric-Stove.aspx I've wondered about bioethanol too, instead of a WBS, especially for outages. Is the water vapour given off an issue?

Might you not find yourself wishing you had a house and garden when the baby grows a bit?

He’s persuaded himself ‘you can afford it’ and he ‘isn’t ripping you off as the house will still be worth it.’ That’s none of his business and your risk to take. You won’t be living for free during the build, rent can get out of control with build delays. Also, I’d want to build in a profit margin for myself, not the builder. Don’t underestimate how stressful self building is, it would be nice to have something back. This is the tip of the iceberg.

If you get good quality solid wood or free standing units the backs look ok against a window. It’s quirky but I’ve seen it done well. You can put plants on the soil or other tall attractive stuff.

Welcome back. Yes, you don't know what you don't know... I think a conversion can be more difficult than a new build as there are so many compromises to negotiate.

@SteamyTeais the expert on this. You are right need loads more insulation than you think so you don’t heat the ground.

Phew that was lucky!

Can you look on planning applications near your site and see what it is that might be there? And maybe see names of suitable survey companies. If it's anything like ecology, it can be quite an expensive exercise.

Make it liveable and do the rest slowly.

It's very ironic that they are building a Passive House... I think we need a 'conciliatory hug' icon.

They are not unrelated. I would present myself as 'extremely worried' , show the bill, and say you need to take a raincheck as you are running out of money. It will slow the build down, but to me it's the only way to get control back if you are not on site. Everyday they are on site piddling about you are haemorrhaging money unawares. Say you need prices as its got out of control. Let him sense your panic so he panics that he might lose the job in the nicest way. I ended up with a day rate, so I was there constantly. I really wouldn't trust anyone otherwise, its too open to accidental or intentional abuse. All the best.