PI build

We would quite like to move into our house to avoid yet another winter in the yurt in our back garden. The dilemma we have is that the house is not finished (watertight with first fix electrics and unplastered walls etc). Currently we have site insurance but that will become invalid if we move in. Are there any requirements on finish before you can have normal buildings insurance? eg. does it have to have a kitchen & bathroom or is living in it enough? Our house is officially a renovation of a 1930's bungalow but as it eventually ended up with only 1.5 tiny bits of original wall left it is almost a new build. So is the year of construction 1930 or 2021 for insurance purposes?

Hi Hilldes, Just noticed you referenced my post, we got the parts from City Plumbing. Stop cock looks like this: Still waiting for SES to connect us to the water main. I think we are at the bottom of the queue as they are connecting for free to bypass the existing lead pipe.

Thanks for the photos - it looks great. It was thinking of just having a timber window board and plastered reveals. I did a quick model on CAD: Window frames are anthracite and the board would match. I cannot box all round as the windows go up to the ceiling:

I liked the idea of the end of the board being flush with the walls to match door frame and skirting. The shadow gap would go all round the board including reveals.

We are planning to have shadow gaps around the skirting board and door frames but are not sure about the window boards. It seems odd to me to have flush skirting and frames and then to have a window board that protrudes. I can find no images of shadow gaps around window boards - has anyone done this?

Glassrock board is a new one to me. A quick search implies that it is fitted similar to plasterboard but is stronger and moisture resistant - is this correct?

Our renovation has a 50mm cavity wall between the house and garage. We would like to fit insulation on the garage side of the wall. Our plans have plasterboard coated PIR for this. I do not like the idea of plasterboard on the garage walls as this is an unheated space and would prefer something less hygroscopic. Some external wall insulation systems look over the top - What would be the simplest way of achieving this?

Thanks for all the replies. We spend ages looking for a valve with for 32mm MDPE inlet and 28mm Copper outlet with compression fittings, then found out that Plasson make a compression copper adapter set so you can fit a 28mm copper pipe to a 32mm MDPE compression outlet. Our supply pipe installation has now been approved by our water supplier

We are having a 32mm MDPE mains supply fitted and SES our water supplier does not allow any fittings before the shut off valve. Are plastic valves suitable for this? I found one source that suggested they were not.

There is no formal contract, just an agreement on the quote. BC have said his work, whilst not strictly to standard practice is acceptable but it is not acceptable to our structural engineer. The other issue is that due to his changes the timber frame needs remedial work to fit.

Our builder quoted to work to architect & structural engineers drawings. We have had issues with the build quality and he does stuff off his own back without consulting the structural engineer. Structural engineer says parts are not good enough and need rectification and the top floor timber frame will not fit without mods i.e. not built to drawings. We have had poor communication throughout and his reactions to us asking questions about his work are very defensive. We have kept some funds back for remedial work - we do not want him back. He has issued an ultimatum. Pay up by Tues or he will remove all equipment - which we believe includes the scaffolding needed for subsequent work. The scaffolder has confirmed his contract is with the builder, not us. As we see it our options are grind our teeth and pay up but get the scaffolding contract moved to us or we stick and see if the scaffolding disappears and pay for more scaffolding. Any views?

Our builder has not turned up again today as it is frosty at his house so it it too cold to lay block work, he says. It is 4 degrees outside with no frost at our place. The forecast looking forward is similar, cold nights but warming during the day, or wet (we are in the south east). Is it possible to use mortar near freezing? I have seen something about additives/accelerants? It is frustrating as we have builders on sites all around us.

Is it normal for a roofer to be able to supply a flat roof warranty? Most of our roof is pitched but there are 2 small areas of flat roof at the front that the insurers require a warranty for. The roofer quoted for the roof but has gone very quiet about the warranty.

We got over excited by our architects plans without really thinking about how we are going to cover the upstairs windows. They mainly follow the line of the pitched roof and have an angled top. We are not fond of curtains (which may be tricky anyway) and conservatory style blinds are likely to be super expensive. Our current thoughts are cafe shutters which would only cover the rectangular part of the window which can be tilted by hand for privacy. Any other thoughts?

We have started an extreme renovation on or property. After much of the house was removed we had a wobble, stopped the builder and applied for planning to demolish entirely and new build. 8 weeks later due to budgetary constraints we have decided to stick with the renovation. We did not have a contract with the builder so have been advised by the architect to use a JCT contract and ask him to requote so we can understand our final costs better. The builder will build to plate then a timber frame company will fit the first floor with the builder returning to tile the roof. All other trades will be organised by ourselves. The question is should we use a contract? They look incredibly complicated and may be happier paying to have it set up but then the builder may be miffed as he is only doing part of the build. We have no reason to distrust the builder but we are novices and want to ensure it is built correctly to drawing and will take the timber frame. If there is no contract do we have any redress if it is wrong? To make it more complicated my partner who was over-seeing the build has been taken ill so we are considering a project manager to do site visits and take some of the strain. Does anyone have views if this is a good idea or if it will erode our builder relationship.