ToughButterCup

What a fandamntastic place for a build..... I am soooooo jealous. Port Patrick is a really beautiful place. Some photos would be wonderful, but appreciate you may prefer to keep those to yourself. Swum to the other side yet?

There is no hard and fast minimum time between pours. I have personally heard more than a little bragging about complete houses done in one pour. Complete expensive stupidity to even try. The workflow is (often) build to first room height, pour, continue building to second floor, pour and so on. So the gap between pours equals the build time between first and second floors. Concrete maximum strength occurs after a good few years.

Forgive me, I'm tryung to save you time and money. To Bowdlerise Eliot (Gumbie cat?): Cats will do what they do do and there's no doing anything about it, so If the cats have been walking across the material, then their feet aren't so hot that they won't use the roof.

Welcome. East Ayr - that's where the Jock side of my family comes from (half Jock, half Bosch) Precisely our motivation too. Still building after 4 years and I'm 67 ... and its still worth it, provided I dont pop me clogs soon. It took 35 years for the Planning framework to be right for us : a bit of a wait.

Heres a site search for which icf A lot of tripe is talked about in ICF comparisons. Each has strengths and weaknesses. And your situation is unique. So go and look at a range of methods being built. Come back with a shortlist and ask us again. In the meantime use the site search facility for each type. There's a week's reading waiting for you. The question you ask is well rehearsed here. Ours? Durisol. Yes. Because it suited us.

I'm really tempted, sorely tempted but my better nature prevailed. Just. ?

I went to the factory to see ours being made. Talking to the lads, the key thing they pointed to was the quality of the timber : before use, they dropped each piece into a former - a sort of guage - and if it didn't fit, then it was rejected. Without the jig for both the timber and the assembly, I would hesitate even if I were as Just-Bloody-Do-It as you are John.

The dogs sort everything - everything - out. Bar their own. And that's my fault.

You just might find too much advice on BH, but you won't feel anything like as 'exposed' after submitting your plans to the Commentariat sometimes called Hive here. I have a strong feeling ( zero evidence - just a feel) you need to network: find out who's good, whose bad, who's indifferent and who to stay the Hell away from. Network, with the emphasis on work : Its hard work.

Here's a really good breakdown of how to both spray and roll at sensible prices. Top bloke is Peter Millard, top bloke.

We let our chickens graze it - food and bits are removed almost before they hit the floor. If the chickens don't, the dogs do. Dead leaves and the like - a blower - with the wind not against it. (Getting your own back). We now have docken leaves growing through the matting, and one dandelion.

Does SWMBO know? Or are you asking me to delete this thread? All part of the Mod service ?

Make a plan of the area Do a soil profile Look at the local land drainage with care. Look at similar buildings in the neighbourhood: what can you learn from a simple look-see? Design the garage Give those documents to (a) builder(s) Agree a price. Sit back, relax There are a few ways of doing those things: professionals will prepare documents so that your risks are lower, or you could do all that prepapratory work yourself. It depends on your appetites for risk and cost . If you don't write it down and present it simply, it opens up all sorts of opportunity for mis-communcation

It ain't whatcha do it's the way thatcha do it/ It aint whatcha say its the way thatcha sayit/ thats what its all about ..... Fun Boy Free (1980s wannit?)

Ooooooo, you bad boy ......

Might you ( @Nickster14 ) be thinking of the recommendation for protection against rain splash - 150mm above a flat deck?

Gary, I'd be so glad if you would please. I'm working on the same issue.... Thanks

You are a Domestic Client. My reading of that status means that no duty is imposed on you. I am not an expert (except at cocking it up) It would be informative to ask the HSE what their opinion is.

You can't waste time on this board Karen. It's not easy to drill down to the core message sometimes but mostly a bit of effort repays handsomely. Or you could just PM @Russell griffiths, he knows everything.

Had more confidence in speaking out when I saw poor workmanship. The extent of local tradespeople's networks. The goss on .... Which local tradesfolk are shite and why. The levels of distress and poor personal performance caused by frequent sleeplessness The levels of blarney talked by tradespeople The need to forgive and move on - eye on the main prize. The range of meanings of unreturned phone calls The balls to kick people off site instantly when evidence and fingertip feel matched

The manufacturers will have a downloadable data sheet.

English is a Germanic language. So zis shud hev been ezee to verstehen, Heil Hitler

In my unqualified opinion, the quotation from the HSE site above could have been worded more clearly to read You must now enter the details for the DOMESTIC client, principal designer and principal contractor In other words, if an F10 is to be submitted at all, acting for a DOMESTIC client, the contractor should complete the form FOR the Domestic Client. And later on the same page

There's a simple hierarchy.... if it ain't permitted it cant be financially viable. So work on permitted or not first. Here's a copper bottomed rock solid bloke. His writings need some work, but hey if theres money at the end of it..... http://planninglawblog.blogspot.com/2013/10/permitted-development-excluded-in-aonb.html

Thanks folks, got the thinking juices flowing now..... like the idea of repurposing stuff: and tada .... I have some toughened glass somewhere. (but where? FGS) Could get that frosted innit?