Russdl

If you make the external mesh size much smaller it’ll be that which is bunged up in no time. You have to decide which filter you want to give the most regular attention to. Personally I knocked up a pre filter to sit between the two, and now, on the Mk2, it’s all going very well - but it does need frequent cleaning, pretty much every 3 months.

I would have thought only you can answer that question for your circumstances? For my circumstances the sectional option was much better than the roller option. I don’t have any roof storage space or lights to obstruct when the door is open and I did want good insulation so it was a very easy decision for me to make.

That’s a bit like me with CAD software. I’m a God with Sketchup I’m a Dog with CAD. But I’m determined to get there.

When you get it. You get it. It’s brilliant.

I would say it’s pretty bomb-proof if you do it yourself, it’s very easy and you’re more likely to take greater care than most pro’s.

I’m with @Jolo on this. I think a coarse filter of some description should be part of the package, if only to keep spiders and fly’s out. Either way, it’s been fun messing around making something that does the job and does it well it seems.

I was quite taken aback by how dirty it got in what was a relatively short period of time. I suspect the farming going on close by may have contributed significant dust. It’ll be interesting to see what the new filter is like in three months time with very little farm activity.

Likewise.

3 months after commissioning the new and improved Mk2 Pre Filter box it was time to change the filter material. The muslin seems to be doing a grand job and the increase in useable filter surface area is being fully exploited by dust and flies.

And I think very necessary. Previously it was just some thin foam on the inside (and not very well attached, definitely not airtight). I’m hoping the new set up will improve performance thermally, waiting for some proper cold days so I can check the temperature of the boxes, the Mk1 was definitely getting cool last winter.

As it happens, that is exactly what I did during the mid life refurb! It is so much better, shame I couldn’t work it/you weren’t available when I made the Mk1! I’ve also increased the insulation and air tightness with some left over bits and pieces. My pre filter material is now some fine mesh muslin material that costs pence and works like a charm.

@JoanneP We moved in 4 years ago. Hugely stressful. Hugely rewarding. We had no prior knowledge of the building trade and no idea of what we didn’t know. Community Infrastructure Levi is probably the first ‘gotcha!’ waiting in the wings. That will suck huge amounts of cash out of the unwary so make sure you look into that as a starter for ten. Find out as much as you can about every aspect. Treat the professionals with an abundance of caution until they prove beyond doubt that they are actually professional. You won’t regret self building, well, when it’s finished you won’t regret it but there may be wobbles en route. Good luck, almost unlimited knowledge and help is available from the good people on BuildHub.

That all sounds like a top plan to me. Let us know how it goes.

Certainly looks to be, that may be just what you’re after, and cheaper than the Combimate 👍🏻 If you install a water softener, over time it will remove the limescale that will already have built up in your system, my guess would be that a phosphate dosing water conditioner will not however I suspect that will not be a big issue for you now the Quooker has been descaled.

Actually, I should have done the above myself. I wonder why I didn’t 🤔 I think it may be because I knew about water softeners and knew I would need one and then at a later date discovered the Combimate by which time the softener was firmly fixed in my plan and I lacked the bandwidth to rethink everything.