Declan52

A complete overhaul of the building control system has to be a start. How many houses in a development are actually inspected, 2%6%10%, who knows. How about checking them all and having teeth to punish the serial offenders. Then you can lower the target regs for u values and be in the knowledge that if they aren't met then the developer gets penalized heavily. Once you start to lower the regs then you are into the realms of improving airtightness which in turn makes mhrv more of an option. But it all starts with building control regs and how they are enforced and this comes from government which jump to the tune of the major developers.

Price all the different thicknesses up and price the different lengths of screws you would need. If it was me I would be looking at a minimum of 50mm and if the budget allowed then as close to the 100mm as I could get would be my aim. What you will save by not using the TX gold stuff will help towards covering the extra cost. You can also use 500gauge polythene as a vcl. It doesn't have to be a £200 roll of some fancy brand variety. Again suit your budget. Some builders use it some don't. Some like it some don't. But it would be better than nothing.

Yep pretty much that. It has to be the higher density roll not just your standard loft type stuff. It's specific for this application. The thickness of the pir( Kingspan,celotex all the same) will depend on your budget. The thicker you go the better it will be but will cost more. If you tape all the joints it can act as a vcl. I taped mine and put a separate vcl in as well. Jeremy used to have a spreadsheet on Ebuild where you could play about with figures and see the difference in 50,60,70,80,100mm of pir and then weigh up with what your budget allows. Not sure it has made it over here yet. After the pir then if you are going for a service cavity then it's done if not then plasterboard screwed through to the truss.

One of the high density earth wool type products. Very easy to fit as it springs out and fills the rafter. Not as bad to work with itch wise as it was years ago. cuts with a hand saw. Mine was from knauf but there are others available. If you cross batten the roof on the outside and use a breather tile membrane you don't need to leave an air gap so you get the full depth. 200mm of this type of product will get you a u value near 0.16 so you could get away with 50mm pir under the rafters. Then your vcl and a service cavity if you want then your plasterboard. And as has been mentioned before the insulation underneath and the plasterboard buy it separately will be much cheaper.

Nope you are asking them to measure up. If you do it wrong and it's a mistake it's on your head. Ats came out with the laser tape he had. Stood on a trestle at each corner and used the laser. 2 secs it took at each corner to get the width and length. Asked about the pitch and head heights up stairs and was gone in 10mins. How many times have they measured it up. Think they are taking the piss. Tell them to meet you on-site and measure it up or you will go elsewhere with your money.

My architect used his own insurance to certify that all was built correctly. I had local building control visit at the appropriate stages as well.

Did you check to see if all is included like the bracing and hangers etc.

For that type of Screed the guys who laid it are meant to return and test it for drying out and if dry enough sand it to remove the laitance that forms on top. Then it gets sealed and sealed and sealed until it won't absorb any more. 1 day per mm up to 40mm and 2 days per mm for over 40mm. Don't rush the drying out or skimp on the surface preparation or you tiles won't stick.

My build is attic truss do is a room in the roof type build like what you are planning. I went with a cold roof as at the time money was short. I have 140mm of high density earth wool between the rafters and 50mm pir below on the underside. I then have my vcl and my plasterboard. All my joins of the pir insulation is taped and my vcl is taped at the overlaps and glued to the floor and the walls at either side. The problem with putting pir between the rafters is it's not easy cut to fill the gap and not leave a path for cold air to travel through. It will be labour intensive to do correctly. If I had to do it again and had the funds available it would be a warm roof construction pretty much like Prodave's that I would end up with. Both a cold and warm roof build up can meet and exceed the poor building regs. The choice is yours to make. Consult with your architect and builder and see what decision you can agree on.

For your build a cold roof will have insulation between the rafters and on the underside. You will also have an airtightness membrane in there as well and maybe even a service cavity. A warm roof will have the insulation on top of the rafters. A lot of different methods to do this using sarking and pir insulation or you can use wood fibre board, read prodaves blog where he explains it in more detail. With a cold roof it's best to cross batten the roof so you can fully fill the rafters. Still do this on a warm roof as well but the battens will be on top of whatever material you choose to make up your warm roof. An advantage of a warm roof is that you wouldn't be making the rooms smaller by having no insulation on the underside of the rafters.

I would stick with keeping it as simple as possible. Use standard non tenting roof membrane for under the tiles. Costs approx £60+ a roll and for your roof you would need 3 rolls depending on the shape of it. Would fully fill the rafters with high density earth wool. Much easier to cut and fix in place and will save you money on the labour costs. Then you have your choice of either a warm roof or cold roof set up. If going for a warm roof then you can use 100mm of pir insulation or even the wood fibre board that Dave used on his. For a cold roof then the extra insulation and vcl will be below the rafters. First thing first is decide on either a warm or cold roof and then pick the best way to get you a roof with a low u value.

Put them in a big pile and burn the plastic of them and then bring the copper to a scrap yard.

Not sure why the pic has made the light purple its blue.

I have led lights around my bathroom mirror. Same strip of Colour changing lights that I have in the kitchen. Will take a pic when it gets dark and post it later on.

Depends on the timescale of your build. I was in no rush so I bought enough for 6 bays. This was enough to scaffold a peak at a time but mine was a bungalow. If you intend to take a real go at it and build it, roof it, tile it and plaster it all quickly then hire at them rates would be fine. Realistically you would be looking at 2 months work from first floor height to finish all the above jobs. Could be done quicker if you are very organised and have all the trades lined up. Depends on the charge to erect it as well.

Michele got a flat roof done on her build so she would know more about it. Could you move the window over to avoid the ridge or have 2 narrow Windows either side. Don't like flat roofs as they are very expensive and unless a lot of care and attention to detail is taken they will leak.

All about spotting the little things. And that is a pretty impressive weapon.

Will building control allow you to have a door that's only 600mm wide?? Think my elbows would be wacking the frame each time I used the door. Can you not have a 1200mm door with a center bar in it so it resembles what you are after.

Look at that lovely shinny shackle on the back of the bucket. I bet it makes lifting a lot easier for you. And if you need a few inches of extra height just open the bucket out.

Once dried and a few coats if paint it won't be seen at all. No sockets close to the stairs you could get power from?

Anywhere from a 2.5t to a 5t should do the vast majority of the jobs you will have to do.

A mini digger won't have the reach to get to first floor. I doubt it would have enough power as well. A 10 tonne might get you there but a 13t def will. I have loaded out peaks with a 13t before up to wall plate height. What materials are you looking lifted up to first floor height. If it's a 5 year project then you will have plenty of time to get used to a digger and when all your friends and neighbours know you have a digger you will get plenty of practice.

Could you use a larder unit 400/500 wide with a 50/50 door. The bottom door is glued so won't open. Bring the chute up to slightly below the top of the glued door and level it of with ply. Most bathroom places all have books full of units, just have to pick a style to suit. My upstairs bathroom has a 900 quadrant shower and it's fine to use. It's not the main shower. We had an open ended shower downstairs but ended up buying 2 glass doors as the splash that came out soaked the floor each time. And that tray was 1200*900 but still splashed out.

Cheapest about for rolls of lead. Always have good deals in the shop. There was only a few quid price wise between Ats and Quinn's but both were a lot cheaper than Haldane fisher.