Steptoe

I've gone all quivery at the knees now,

I was thinking that,,,,, Errrmmmm, Perhaps a new cellar too, And a pic for @Barney12 dunno if this needs removed,,,,? [EDIT- Picture removed by sensitive moderator]

Flat plate sockets usually require a deeper than normal back box, Have you mentioned this to your electrician at first fix stage,?

The main advantage is less points on a circuit, so better segregation under fault. Ring circuits were mainly used during copper shortage as a smaller CSA cable could be used for the same rating of 'fuse' Radial circuits are much more efficient to install, generally use less cable, and much better segregation of points, I have a mixture of ring and radial in my house, I also have a mix of loop in and spider lighting too, Whatever suits the circumstances best.

The only thing I would advise is to be very careful of your timescales between trades, or you may end up getting billed for standing time, is, if a trade turns up and job isn't ready for him, you can't expect him to go unpaid for his time waiting, That is one of the main advantages of having a main contractor to liase all the trades together.

Well, Things in order, I can NOT afford your house in the highlands, I'd love to move there, but, I don't have another saleable kidney, and I quite like not getting divorced,,, I did notice OnOff, I pulled present house apart 9years ago when we moved in, still putting bits back together, but that has hastened now due to the potential move. @Redoctober PD met me on a private type adult forum He thought it was about time I grew up and became a responsible adult,,,,,,

Hi, I'm all new here, dragged in by ProDave from another forum, I'm an electrician currently residing in the NW of England, But, circumstances are forcing a move, as its not looking practical (read affordable) to outright purchase the type/size of house SWMBO would like it may well be a self build, or quite a large extension type job on whatever we purchase, So here I am, Prepare for some inane beginner questions,

Thank you @ProDave But you may not be saying that once I start with my inane stupid questions, This is one area where I am now the diy Bob and have not a lot of clue as to what I can and cannot safely do for myself regards structural stuff etc.

This is one of the times you really do get what you pay for, why save a few pennies for safety,? and, it literally is pennies.

Make sure they are double pole switches though, and not single pole. Personally, I wouldn't have any sockets that weren't switched, double pole of course.