BotusBuild

Do the ones I was subjected to during the week count? 🙂, and thanks for your kind offer to be on the end of a phone. My electrician did this via a switch, so the installer was able to commission today. Over the weekend or early next week I'll swap that out for a thermostat. They've set all the actuators to manual (open) on the one manifold we have loops connected to, and we've deactivated the hot water and its setup to gradually changing the flow temperature over the next week. All the loops are embedded in the foundation slab (250mm) which sits on top of Jackon Atlas insulation (300mm if I recall correctly) which has been in for 4+ years so should already be fairly dry. Next week I'll be getting a temporary kitchen and bathroom setup for when we camp out there in February (long story) so both the heating and the hot water are going to be tested. Pics next week if I remember.

Thank you all, and apologies for being short. It was a long frustrating day.

Our groundworker stripped the topsoil from where the temp track was going, we laid terram, and then had crushed hardcore (50-75mm) spread on top. MOT1 tends to be a little dearer

It is what it is. I need a thermostat in there right now. I need answers to my questions, not more questions. Sorry that your response may have factual info in it, but right now, none of that helps me.

I have been left in a jam - I need your help to try to be in a position for the plumber to commission the ASHP etc. tomorrow. I bought the wrong type of thermostats and now want to make sure that what I can get at short notice (SF or Toolstation) will do the job. Setup: Wet UFH with actuators wired back to a wiring centre. All one zone so just the one thermostat controlling the lot. The wiring centre has four connections for the thermostat - L, N, a symbol with an arrow, and another one with what looks like a dial. The thermostat would appear to need to be able to send a signal to the wiring centre and my electrician has told me those latter two connections should connect to the thermostat on "clean" or "clear" contacts, and he also described them as being volt free. Does anyone have any recommendations if the following is not suitable I have found this at SF - Honeywell Home DT4 1-Channel Wired Room Thermostat. From the terrible installation manual I see this. Would the A/B <-> T1/T2 be volt free?

Open the window for the niche. Measure and cut four pieces of stud timber (same width & depth as already used in that wall) Pop each short stud through the window and screw hold with screws through the backer board. TIP: put a screw in each short stud to hold onto while putting the final screws in. Ask the other half for help on this seeing as they changed their mind!! 🙂 Put backer board in to create final niche size. HTH

Exhaust air heat pumps are designed for flats. Also helps with humidity reduction -> mold reduction -> health improvement. A Win, Win, Win

They are skewing the market and need to go too. Do it over a 5 year period starting now. I do like this idea if MCS is overhauled instead of being scrapped. Regarding the fuel poverty aspect of this, owners of property must be "carrot and sticked" towards properly improving the insulation of those properties. We need to get all homes upto a minimum C EPC rating - I would suggest 75C to start with, but with a road map outlined for steady improvement over a 10 year plan, so those who want to can move faster if necessary. How about linking stamp duty not only to value of house but EPC rating as one of a package of incentives?

Scrap MCS - period. Scrap BUS and do not introduce any other form of market skewing grant or subsidy system. Maybe the only concession I would have is that OFGEM force all suppliers to offer a ToU tarrif to incentivize adoption. Make @Jeremy Harris's heat loss calculator freely and widely available (assuming he is happy for it to open sourced). Let market economics take over. I predict that more properly sized heat pump installations will take place and prices will fall as uptake rise due to the reduction of the negative stories about cost of installation, cost of running and poor CoP. It may take a few/several years but this is the way to do it.

To answer some of the other feedback and questions My plumber and electrician are fitting the kit, that is being supplied by Unitherm, who themselves are the MCS umbrella company, like Cool Energy. They are charging £1000 for the MCS side of things - this was all part and parcel of the quote from my plumber. My preliminary SAP report gave a 79C (laughable) and used MVHR and a Mitsi 8.5kW as the ASHP, and a flow temperature of "Normal (>45C)" 🙂 Now, I have had an interesting couple of conversations over the last 24 hours, and it turns out that what I have been saying to the plumber, who agrees with me (and the forum heat loss calculator) has obviously been taken on board by Unitherm and they have specified a 7kW ASHP, (not the 9kW that I was originally told), and a 250 ltr HWC has not been agreed. It's being shipped tomorrow, ready for installation next week. All told, this is going to cost us about £4,000 after the grant comes back to us.

Tried this, but they all have to use the MCS calculation guide

Thanks for reading and all your replies. I just needed to offload my frustration. I had delved into the numbers, and I know what they have come up with is cr4p, but this is the only way you can get the BUS, unless you can find someone to "bend the rules" in your favour, and I have spent far too long trying to find a reasonably priced ASHP/HWC solution. I am going with what has been spec'd and then I will tweak it all myself once they have (expletive deleted) off my land. If we end up spending any more that £1000 on heating/HW I will be p1553d off. Heads up for anyone reading this in the distant future. I hope things have changed (but I doubt it). If you can DIY, then JFDI (just ** do it), it'll be cheaper and you'll get a reasonable sized system.

I just had a document from the people processing my BUS grant, which of course means I have to have the design done under MCS guidelines . Their summary of running costs has come out at £2677 per year !!!! WTAF? FYI - House is Jackon insulation slab foundation, Nudura walls, triple glazed windows, warm roof, good air tightness with MVHR, and about 270 sq m. Oh, and the MCS calcs want to put in a 9kW ASHP when even the installer says 6kW would be more than enough. This MCS sh1t has got to stop!!

It's all about the ballast you use to hold them down. I know of someone who followed the "breeze block" method but used the lightweight versions instead of the heavy concrete ones. Fortunately someone heard what they'd done and they got changed PDQ. My preference would be the plastic bucket kind as this reduces chance of wind getting under the panels and lifting them up. Heavy ballast still required obviously

Probably down to a lack of ventilation in the roof space. You may need to draw back some of that rockwool from the edges. Also make a visual check that there is ventilation through the soffits outside. We had this in our last home, and got some clever plastic thing to "open" the felt to allow airflow across the the roof space. Something like these: https://www.diy.com/departments/10-x-felt-lap-vents-prevents-loft-roof-condensation-attic-space-ventilation/0700425346027_BQ.prd?=&=&=&=&msclkid=d0a4d322cabd1b66400fb45872788afd&gclsrc=ds