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Had a search through the forums but not found anything definite. What is the approx cost (supply only) per m² for passive slab / insulated raft foundation formworks? Likes of Isoquick, Kore, kingspan? Also, is there a way to do it yourself by just using standard EPS100 for the floor and EPS300 for the load bearing parts? I'm assuming that would require sign off by an engineer and BC.

Second the comments referring you to local policy. In my case, we are going to use "grasscrete" which is a honeycomb concrete paving material that you fill with soil and sow grass. Gives you a hard area suitable for driving or parkin on, but is a green area that blends in with your garden. Using it on or site where it slopes to the read garden.. will be good to use for extra parking when we've visitors and also solid access to the large rear garden if we ever need to drive round to the back of the house.

I had previously discounted Isotex and durisol for a few reasons, please correct me if I'm wrong: They are heavier and bulkier to get to site. As I'm in NI I assume his will be cost prohibitive as will require multiple HGV deliveries that will be over night trips plus ferry!! Cement fibre is an open matrix and therefore is not inherently air tight - secondary air tightness measures required? Re above... Additional tanking steps would be required as water proof concrete would not work. Happy to be proven wrong! Have to say, does seem a fair bit easier and faster to put together than EPS blocks. And less mess from cutting.

Jjjj@ragg987 @Russell griffiths Totally agree re handrails. I'd be putting in a proper system. Had considered erecting scaffolding around the outside to use as the working platform. Or would that get in the way? (Edit - how the hell do I delete that tag I put in by mistake?!)

Oh we've been in planning since last September! In a conservation area, have trees around us, river at the back linked to a protected hydrological site lol! But at the last stage now, awaiting sign off from senior planner. So hopefully FPP in July, detailed drawings august, out for tender September, award and construction start in November. What I meant was we've not started detailed building control / construction drawings. Our strategy was to apply for the biggest, boldest, most impactful design we'd consider building. Now at the point of reigning it back in, reducing balconies, glass, fancy claddings etc. Want these decided before we start paying engineers to spec foundations, steels etc.

We're in exactly the same boat re budget. Have a read of my thread in ICF page. We're going to make savings by simplifying the design a bit and me doing the PM work and using subcontractors rather than a main contractor. That suits us well as that's actually my day job, and I'm pretty handy and actually looking forward to a sabbatical! Also helps that my partner earns more than me lol

In ACAD you call out DIMS from a chosen object in your selected later... So either he's pulling out DIMS manually or from a layer that's in behind the outermost visible layer on the drawing. But even then you'd expect the DIMS lines to pull out equally from either side of the drawing

That would easily explain your difficulties in setting out!

You're right. Definitely need the basement for at least utility and storage. Tanking is required for any heated space here, but not garage/storage etc. But I think we'd be mad not to make it fully insulated and compliant for living. We can save a load not by just leaving it bare min to pass regs and for it out at a later stage when finances allow. We're still in planning, not started the building control drawings yet. I'm trying to get as a realistic picture of building costs and practicalities as possible before we pay the next £3k for drawings... Get it right first time to avoid rework. In my line of work, I'm acutely aware of this. My drawings are in my post in "Introduce Yourself". But we've already decided on a raft of changes - full basement instead of partial (couple builders have said additional costs won't be that much compared to deep footings and rising walls) maintaining current ground level at the rear (rather digging down to have ground level at same as basement floor level), losing all the big retaining walls, stores, and garage. That's knocking off £90k alone.

I'd never rely on setting out using set squares or similar. Best way is to use trigonometry and measuring everything from two initial known points - ideally the two front facing corners of the structure. From there there's very little you can't set out withing a couple mm using survey tapes. It's worth sticking a drawing together and using Excel to calculate all your required hypotenuses, radii etc. Print it off and get going But as a former surveyor, I highly recommend getting a surveyor with a GPS/TS kit to set out all your points. Just give them the CAD drawing in national grid with your required setting out points and leave to it. Half days work and expect you could get a self employed surveyor do it for less than £200. All points will be setout to a couple mm. Also you can get the correct levels sorted at the same time, which is an awful lot harder with tapes and levels! On that subject, it's worth having a couple permanent trig points setout on the site that will allow to measure and level off any time you need to.

Yep. I've met with Johnny Balantine a couple times, Malachy Fox, John McClatchy and Patrick McKenna. Also spoke to another guy that used to work with Johnny Balantine but has started up on his own. I'm sure there are others but that's all I've found so far. Good impressions from all of them and will happily send them tender packs to price when the time comes. A single contract for getting a thermal shell completed by one of those guys is plan A. Plan B is groundworks contractor, then us doing ICF.... and I know a really good spark, carpenter and plumber. All fun and games.

Had actually considered that at the very start. May revert to that if it's more cost effective. I'm confident in doing basic joinery, all the plumbing apart from boilers, kitchen fitting, bathrooms etc... Certainly ways I can save money.

The plan is to stay in our current house (different site) and move in to the new house as soon as practicable. Envisage getting the basement livable first while we do the finishing on the floors above. A mobile on site is plan B if we have to sell our current house to release funds to get the house water tight. With the basement level and wanting to get to passive spec, ICF is the best choice and fastest way. I'm open to other methods if budget force us in that direction, but I'm sold on ICF.

Free. Existing water connection is lead and will be replaced when we connect new house up. Existing sewer connection and the mains sewer runs along the back of the garden. One service charge we have is £1200 for NIE to disconnect existing supply and reconnect to new meter location. We have a house to demolish but the reclaimed materials will offset this cost and hopefully generate a few thousand on top (Belfast bricks and Bangor blue slates and loads of lead and copper) We have plenty of room on site to spread out excavation material so hopefully site works costs can be kept down. Tbh I've not spoken directly to all of the of suppliers as I've been concentrating on getting in touch with the contractors. We're in a weird situation where we have a large plot in a town and have to have an appropriately sized house to meet market expectations for valuation and resale. No acces for a second property unfortunately. That means 4 bedrooms. As it's a sloping site, we have a basement. Currently designed as part heated and part unheated. We've an obvious cost saving by having the whole level as unheated storage and utility space. Big saving on tanking and finishes, or forget about it entirely. But may be a false economy a we'll always have the structural costs regardless (rising walls would be 1.5m high at the back). Definitely more thinking to be done and another meeting with architect once planning comes through next month.

Back to the off topic ? We spent a few hours last night going through our plans, the cost estimates and quotes we've got so far, took out what we can do without, and factored in cost savings from me doing some of the PM and labour.... £260k construction costs (Inc fees) for our build - 250m² habitable and 40m² unheated area. So roughly £1k /m². We need to get that down lower so I think there will be some further cuts and compromises!

Fancy a trip over to NI later this year? I brew a good IPA...

Not committed to a supplier yet, first choice is a MC to supply and fit, I'm just trying to establish feasibility of a DIY route in case it's needed. I've spoken directly to two of the Irish ICF manufacturers and neither are prepared to supply directly, have to go through one of their approved installers. I'm waiting for a call back from Integraspec (castle forms) to see what they can provide.

Yep, I've got the gist of what's required and I've a few ideas myself. I'm sure I'll go through a few prototypes!

You could well be right, but I'm hoping to get as close to that as possible, at least one advantage of being in NI is that both labour and quarry materials are cheap. We're going to greatly simplify our design shortly as well.

Cost estimates are coming at almost double what we can in reality afford (£1800/m2) so we're considering not using a main contractor. I'm am engineering project manager so taking a few months off to build and manage is a no-brainer. My partner is the primary income earner anyway. Building ICF blocks myself seems like an obvious way to save a few grand. I know a few on here have done it and it seems possible. My question is bracing... Anybody used a timber bracing system for the likes of Nudura, Logix, amvic etc? We will have hundreds of 6*2 and 4*2 timbers form the demolition of the existing house... Seems like a good option? http://www.greenbuildingtalk.com/Forums/tabid/53/afv/topic/aff/4/aft/78488/afpg/1/Default.aspx I'm in Ireland and I've no idea on the cost of bracing hire. Figure I could make enough braces for a couple hundred quid - just need plyboard, bolts and screws. ICF_bracing_3.pdf

Cheers, but this is for intermediate floors in the house and I'm looking to maximise thermal mass - so precast slabs or poured concrete floors. C.

Thinking of something similar for my ceilings - using EPS panel roof system but have steel joists that are a cold bridge. Plan to fix 50mm or 75mm EPS sheets on the underside then baton out and fit plasterboard or a panelling system. Thinking a combo of low expansion foam and mechanical fixings for the EPS and screws through to the batons for the boards/panels. Any fundamental flaws?!!

Hi. Costing floor types at the minute before committing. What is the approximate cost per m2 for hollowcore bison slabs for typical spans and loadings? Nothing more than 6m length 200mm thick. Want to be able to compare directly to floor deck system like comflor or metfloor. Cheers

The water company will connect their "communication pipe" into the supply side of the boundary box. You will leave a tail of your pipe (couple metres excess) exposed at the BB location. It's normally 25mm MDPE 12.5 bar pipe. They'll connect up and turn on your supply at the ferrule (connection on the water main). The BB will have a half or quarter turn butterfly valve that will allow you to isolate your supply. You need to check who is responsible for supplying and installing the BB... It's normally the water company unless you are a developer that is installing multiple connections to a new watermain.

Try IKEA. Should be about half the price of other places if you are happy with basic shelves and doors. I did my brewshed for about £250 and it's about half the size of that utility (4 units, 3m of worktop, prep sink) our entire kitchen (Units, drawers, glossy panels etc, no appliances or worktop) was £2800, and that had 16 units, mostly drawers.