Mike DC

It’s a good point, jobs evolve, issues arise so I’m always prepared to take stock and adapt as required. I try and be as informed as possible at the beginning and start with a clear end in mind. It avoids that slip into bodging territory if challenges are present.

Thanks that’s helpful, I’ll take a look at the knauf website.

Hi Gus As per the original post, I need to install a party wall which needs to be fire resistant. I’m not sure what more detail you require? There is no wall at all currently with a brick wall ending at ceiling joist height. If you can be more specific about the detail required I’ll gladly provide it if I can. Thanks for the steer to the white book, it is very helpful with a number of options, making things a bit clearer for me. I assume a surveyor or building control would be satisfied if I followed a spec in the book for 60 minute burn time and submitted that for evidence to them?

Thanks Nod, Gus, I can access both sides no problem. Apologies for clarifying some of the materials, I’m not familiar with some of the terms used. I take it 50mm wide is the size of the cavity/width of the metal stud. I assume 400mm centres. Do I need to double up the boards on both sides of the wall if so what thickness boards? 12.5mm. Can I use a single skin of 15mm boards on each side instead? Any recommendations on what to fill the cavity with? Apologies for seeking out more detail, building standards are a waste of space I can’t make sense of the building regs and the buyer is nailing me to the cross with a Level 3 home survey. Thanks again both the fog is starting to clear.🙂

I need to install a party wall in a property we are currently selling. I understand it needs to be fire resistant for 1 hour and If constructed from timber then two walls parallel need to be constructed with fire resistant rockwool in between. Blockwork isnt an option. I’m being swayed towards a metal framed fire resistant plasterboard construction and wanted to check if this is acceptable. The intention would be to build a single wall with fire resistance plasterboard either side, sandwiching insulation of some sort. Any gaps filled with foam. A few questions for starters. Would the metal frame be appropriate for a fire wall? If so is there a prefer type or size? What is the minimum thickness for the fire resistant plasterboard what is the most appropriate insulation to use? Thanks all.

The slater is well known locally. As mentioned we worked with him cutting the bullets etc otherwise the cost would have been prohibitive. My son on slate cutting duty below. The extension was fine, planners seem to want a clear differentiation between old and new. We mirrored the pitch roofs, corners and gable ends to tie it in. It also has a stone apron not seen from the road. In time the original woodwork will be painted to match the extension. The planners were insistent on some awful finishes though but we stood our ground. They took 5 months to make their decision which was only made when we gave them a deadline. They then wanted another application to change the windows. This took five weeks at our insistence. The planning for the new build is another story for another day.

Hi all, as the title suggests we are in the Scotland currently completing a conversion/extension/renovation on an old cemetery lodge. My son and I have been doing the majority of the work with the assistance of a few trades where we are lacking in skill or speed. We are a non building background other than the usual DIY so it’s been a steep learning curve especially groundworks and structural work. It took a while the get the digger under control though I’m yet to master perfectly level trenches! The lodge is a cemetery gatehouse, more recently used as offices by the council as a base for their park keepers and groundsmen along with associated machinery which was stored in a 175m2 modern unit on site. We’ve added two en-suite bedrooms, a third bedroom bathroom and open plan living space. We also have planning permission to build a good sized detached 1 1/2 storey house on the site of the shed, which we may build in time. It wasn’t very well looked after with the usual council magnolia and Lino treatment to make it usable. We towards the tail end of the work now and are looking for another project to move on to. Planning takes a year or so up here once submitted, so we are actively looking now. The property certainly threw up a few challenges, not least the 2ft thick walls. Knocking through wasn’t easy and we also had to contend with poor previous work and rotten wood lintels. The roof turned into a labour of love with us working with a brilliant slater, sorting, holing and cutting all the bullets from welsh slate for him. The local planning department were totally unhelpful, with us initially treading on eggshells for fear of upsetting them to then telling them what we thought, giving them hard deadlines with consequences if they weren’t met. I use the term “totally unhelpful” but there are other words unsuitable for a public forum which are more accurate.