Jilly

Ahh ok, we've had to change this cos of bats, so yes, it's now a cold ventilated roof. Yes going to put 25mm PIR plasterboard. Thank you

Have you got a SuDS planning condition?

We are chopping PIR insulation to fit between the rafters, it's quite PITA and there are some gaps and a lot of broken bits. Whats the best way to tape this? I've just seen Gapotape used on all the cut PIR PIR edges to seal all the bits of insulation before pushing into the gaps. Is this a good idea or is stuffing the gaps full of foam the done thing and then taping over this on to the rafters? Can anyone steer me towards a resource on making the building airtight (a bit at least), it hasn't been mentioned, I think because we are a conversion. I'm not sure I (or any of the builders) fully understand the principles, nor how it relates to the vapour control layer. Thanks!

I'm on clay too and it veers from what you describe, knee deep mud, to setting like concrete. Is there any chance there could be an underground spring keeping the land wet at the moment as it's been pretty dry and we are in a concrete phase? I would second placing the aggregate over a geo textile (coir will rot eventually) and I'm led to believe its better to do this job when the ground is drier as it seems to work better, as when it's wet, the clay can seem to swallow it (without the geo textile). It might be worth speaking to a local drainage engineer.

Yes, it is a long road, someone on here took 8 years. Whilst I'm not suggesting that long, it's less stressful taken slowly, and your new babies will take up a lot of your time soon, so start researching and enjoy the ride. You can go to the local planners for a 'pre application ' meeting, which lets you sound out what they do and don't like.

Am just cleaning the window corner steel as I made them remove the ply etc after finding the frame leaked rain onto the unbitumened steel. There was a nasty rust place about 5cm2 below the cill, so I feel vindicated. From previous reading, I've cleaned the mastic off the steel, but regarded the rust as sacrificial and reapplied 2coats of FeO (rather than hacking it off), and am now on to 2 coats of bitumen. Should I put a bit of sand on bitumen onthe surface of the steel below the DPM? It needs to be encased in concrete. It is half encased already so I hope it's OK. This part (ie below the cill) *is sitting on the slab, below the DPM and there isn't anything under the steel. Any tips gratefully received.

Bad luck. I had the same, so many mistakes I noticed, that I asked them to stop whilst I got up to speed finding the ones I hadn't noticed. They never did finish it and I now need to rectify. It can be very difficult to get anyone else to come on mid project, so I hope you find a solution. One thing tho' start to read every last detail of the drawings etc and you may now find where they were winging it or whether they are stringing it out, and wish you had a fixed price contact. On a daily rate tho', there seems no good to reason to cut corners apart from ignorance. Agree with the above. As I am a first timer, it's less stressful to have good gaps between trades.

Congratulations! I read someone on here took 8 years to do their self build, so take heart, I did!

I was at the very naive stage when our bat mitigation stage was done, I didn't realise any of it was up for discussion. Next time, hey!

Make friends with your ecologist, as they can be like Building Control Officers: either very helpful and reasonable, or the exact opposite. One problem I had was the specification to use F1 bituminous felt. If this is specified, take care as it is not breathable so you need to ensure there is good loft ventilation, particularly tricky in parts of a pitched/vaulted ceiling. John Wayne forgot to do this and it's given me a headache. Another thing to note is that a membrane called 'Batsafe' is not,so beware, you will be made to remove it, it is like the usual polyester breathable membranes (tangles in bats' feet and entraps them). It's the subject of ongoing lawsuits but is still for sale to the unwary.

I've got the same problem, but John Wayne has encased bits of the steel below the DPM without coating it, just wondering what to do, assume the cement needs to be chopped off. Rust has definitely appeared over this winter.

Steel and window update: The window people finally came back to look at another problem, so I showed them the mould and got them take the cladding off so I can bitumen the steel. I also asked them to change the ply as it was swollen at the bottom. There is some rusty filings not sure where from, so my plant is to apply FeO paint. Should I ask for marine ply? I've got some tape, so I'll put that on when they come back and then bitumen. I'm thinking they'll want yo get do d and not let it dry tho...

I think you could DIY something a little like this cortex steel effect https://www.etsy.com/listing/906126337/custom-made-corten-steel-flexible-steel?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Search_UK_DSA_GGL_Main_General_New&utm_ag=UK-EN_DSA-General&utm_custom1=_k_Cj0KCQjwktKFBhCkARIsAJeDT0jf-Wbmxqkzgtu4YeUhsDTX3f9XpDf52MFcyFfIzR2oUq6R-umenCUaAlxCEALw_wcB_k_&utm_content=go_11120727342_112118310227_474876607394_dsa-19959388920_c_&utm_custom2=11120727342&gclid=Cj0KCQjwktKFBhCkARIsAJeDT0jf-Wbmxqkzgtu4YeUhsDTX3f9XpDf52MFcyFfIzR2oUq6R-umenCUaAlxCEALw_wcB

That's a really big question... land without planning will be cheap, but its a great risk, so then its expensive...

I imagine you end up with a house full of insects ??

Have you tried Freecycle? Lots of creative folk who care about the environment as well as people just wanting a freebie.

That's interesting. How about getting some house plants? They will absorb CO2 in the day and increase oxygen levels in the daytime (opposite at night, so not in bedrooms) There are some plants which scavenge toxins like formaldehyde too.

Bad luck, that will be a pain to redo.

Above is what it says on the BC drawings, however, the blocks seem like pretty heavy concrete to me, not very 'lite' or airy.

Hi everyone, how to get the services into my conversion is giving me a headache. Background: the main stable is on a 150mm slab with 600mm foundations Hayshed: Has E shaped foundations (6m piles in clay/trees) to form a small extension, but allow for future enlargement. Best/ easiest is to bring the services up through the new foundations but I can't afford to fully convert this to habitable right now. BUT I need to move into the main stables to save money, so need to explore how the services should be brought in (as I don't think what John Wayne 'planned' was correct). See pic of the hayshed foundations as the builders left it? My questions are about how much an old foundation can be safely chopped. Electric: My main query is can the foundation be drilled (as another builder has suggested) through to bring the cable up vertically? There are metal bars in it and it seems like a mighty job, also the old building had cracks, so my instinct is to be gentle with her. Options: Could make some kind of waterproof kiosk on the outside (which will later be inside the hayshed) BUT still might need a lump of foundation to be chopped out. Or could build up the wall so it stands off? Water: The water connection can be seen going horizontally through the bottom of the wall so will need moving or some boxing in arrangement. As it stands, the water will need a joint in/under the insulation in the kitchen. The other builder suggested doing the major drilling thing with this too. There is a temporary water supply from next door correctly installed in the slab, would it be mad to use this for a while (maybe with a sub meter?) Sewer The sewer pipe can be seen incorrectly following the wall of the hayshed that needs to be changed. John Wayne drilled a hole through the bottom of the wall of the main stable (through brick, under the DPM) so there is no lintel, does that matter? Again, the run will be horizontal initially unless the slab is chopped away. Can anyone suggest how to vent it as we can't have a chimney (conservation area, article 4 directive). Thank you ?

My stable conversion is built as 140mm block and we have plans accepted by BC for external (PIR) insulation on 70mm (U value 0.23 W/m2K on BC drawings). This has already been installed by John Wayne and friends. I'm thinking about adding extra wall insulation, my options/concerns are: Interstitial condensation. How do I mitigate? I have some spare sheeps wool insulation (think the builder has got the wrong stuff as it looks very compressed in the bags) can it be compressed and used by battening against the walls, then plaster board? Need to do something to prevent sagging. Other option is insulation backed plasterboard, we weren't going for airtightness, except in the pitched roof, but maybe I need to think about it and explore the whole MHVR thing.. Or just proper plaster rather than dot and dab will be more airtight? Clay plaster looks great, am I being bonkers here? I'm wondering if the walls would act like a big thermal store. Will IWI stop this benefit? Does it matter? Will nice warm walls override that concern? Awaiting Steamy Tea's physics lesson...?

Probably! I'm sad about it as I have a source of free wood and am in touch with my inner self sufficient hippy.

The company have said they will replace them. One was an opening window, the other a leaf of a French door. On the WBS discussion, has anyone researched masonry stoves? They seem to have a pretty clean burn.

Two of my new triple glazing units have blown already ?