ToughButterCup

Then the bill sent appears to me to be a try-on ....

Good. But, were they needed ? In other words, were you given prior notice that they would be needed? If not - 'Please Go Away'

Don't bother. We haven't. We've given them an outside 'hut', it faces downwind and is out of the rain, put a soft, easy-dry lining in. Result - an initial yodle or two, followed by resigned feline fury : now they put themselves to bed as and when. Keeps the murdered rats, voles, mice, bluetits, wood pigeons at bay. Result. Don't let a woman near the decision-making process. Just Bloody Do It. Sexist? Yes. Too old to care. It's brilliant being old.

Is the email a spoof? And, if not, ask them what 'Extra Services' actually means ? And, impolitely , ask whether this bill come out of the Inspection Company's arse ? Because if it did, tell them to write to you giving a detailed quotation and ask them to outline the policy that allows them to charge beyond what they initially quoted.

The pain unites us. That's why almost all of us are here. Getting grief from @Pocster or @Onoff or if you are really lucky @SteamyTea only serves to lighten the load. Don't believe me? Try drafting a post with the terms 'walkon glazing ' or 'killerwot hours' or 'bathroom tiles' Then sit back, watch and join the fun. Easy. Welcome Ian

Yes. And here's what we've done..... This was all build rubble. All of the planting was done by SWMBO. I can't stand gardening. We are surrounded by GCNs - loads of them. 15 at least in this pond , and many hundreds in the 2 ponds either side of us. We named the house Salamander Cottage. Can't beat them? Join them then. The pond is fed by the rainwater from both our roofs, through a rain-garden - here's what happens during a recent thunderstorm .... The water is ducted off the roof into a sand bed - 4 tonnes or so of sharp sand - that is over-planted with water loving stuff. If there's enough rain this happens ... The rainwater pipe terminates under that concrete planter. and a few minutes later Next stop - the pond. The BCO could not have been less interested in our SUDS compliance if he had tried. But we have a healthy population of all sorts of aquatic creatures. And vast numbers of dragonflies - no idea why. The key issue for you is Planning and Sustainability . A similar 'process' simply explained in your Design Access Statement is one of the keys that could help you unlock your Planning Permission Cost? 4 tonnes sharp sand 20 meters of 110 foul drain pipe 5 tonne digger for one day Pond liner Some planning time Visit to RHS Manchester show to look at practical examples £500 max.... maybe £600 Hell of a laugh doing it: especially the grandchildren. Not sure we'll ever tell the parents what we actually got up to but during the digging out but it rained hard that day ......... among other things they got to push their grandad into a pond. No photos .....

The only reason for doing any more survey work is to assure risk reduction. And the only question to ask is - of those to whom you will pay money - who will require further evidence, and in what format do they need it? For example no foul drain, no dwelling - Percolation Test (aka 'Perc Test') Structural Engineers (SEs) suck their teeth - a lot : more even than plumbers - Ground Condition Survey (aka Have some cores done) Bats? GCNs? Lesser Spotted Uninhabited Barn Dweller? Stage One Desk Exercise ( aka Ecology Survey) Wince and bear it. Sorry. Ian

I suffer from that after a skin full and a kebab

Move. A house isn't a home if every time you look at it and its surroundings, you see issues that you need to placate. I mean you might as well have the MIL next door.

Ugh.... analogous problem here. Bottom line? Keep your soft and smelly stuff to yourself. Why? If they are like that about this issue, they'll be like it about everything else. Evidence? See posts above and almost every post on BH about shared resources in this context. Look at the garden dig as an opportunity to ..... And ++++ when you sell and you are (still) in dispute about it you'll need to declare it ++++. We have shared drives, poop processors and lawns now twice in our life. Each time - initially - all was sweetness and light. Then someone moved out..... Change eh? Everyone hates it. Frame it as a positive.

Yes. One wall collapse. Two hips replaced. (6 months apart) Every day now I look at errors that were made because I was in so much pain Family disaster(s) - no more than average : but significant and on-going A few very poorly behaved trades folk. Run out of money .... and still there. Self building is a test of character. When I'm down - which is once a month or maybe a bit less frequently - I remind myself of much harder tests that I survived and (more importantly) failed at. But learnt from. Make sure you have a support network. At the very least you have BuildHub. Head-Down-Arse-Up-Go.

Welcome. The good is just as valuable : but harder to write about. Easy to 'sound' smug. Give it a shot anyway. Love your screen name Ian

Thanks @Marvin. The idea of a 12volt PV panel coupled to a pump appeals. Both bits of the water feature will be placed on the south-face of the house: so plenty of opportunity for PV. But everything I have read about PV pumps and water features is that - to the limited extent I have read about it - they tend to be fairly weak. We have outdoor A/C available a meter or so away. Sketch diagram to follow soon. Might you have pump specification or maybe a trade / product name please?

U 2 don't know when to stop do ya? Phhhh, (Good idea) 😳

I remember a video of a very gifted Irish architect ( I'll look it up later) who built his house out of containers. In planning terms, the issue of local vernacular is quite important locally - may not be where you are. For us, it was a useful lever in securing Planning Permission. PS https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/life/features/grand-designs-architect-offers-his-shipping-container-home-for-auction-to-help-the-homeless/34297141.html

Welcome, That was exactly our brief. We used ICF (won't mention the name because it triggers some here) and clad the build with (now) contraband: Siberian larch. It fades to a colour similar to local local barns: '... the local vernacular...' Good luck with the build. Ian

Really? I trust you @Onoff, but I'm going to do a little experiment today. A little competition as it were between some Sika Resin stuff I have leftover and CT 1. Thanks for the image - brilliant idea - @Pocster, I'm going to CT1 a naked Barbie to the RSJ on the water feature. There's one in the kid's toy box upstairs That'll light the feminist fires among Debbie's lecturer mates when they visit and have their girls-who-lunch meetings. Mind if I tell them it's all your fault? Second thoughts I'm dobbing you in anyway.

The intended water feature is a 'diversion' in our SUDS water flow. At the moment, all the rainwater from our south facing roof is ducted to a sand filter (four tonnes of sharp sand buried under a water garden) and then through an attenuation pond (tiny) down to our pond - called Great Crested Newt Central. Debbie counted 15 the other evening. As many of you have hinted it is maintenance - not the construction - that's the long term issue : though at the moment its the construction than concerns me. I already have a diverter in our south roof rainwater downpipe (a swivelling 'S' bend). The water feature will need a holding tank (yet to be designed) and a system drainage point. Since we're on a slight slope, thats not going to be too hard to arrange. It strikes me that the essential thing to do is to make sure we can drain the water feature quickly and easily - so we can protect it from frost and for maintenance. Refilling it will be achieved with the water from one sharp rain shower, I should think.

You might like to edit the image above to obscure your number plate. Apologies for the public post, but your account doesn't accepts PMs. Ian

Errmmmm, Mr Ambrose, sir. ( @Alan Ambrose above ) Our two male grandchildren need no encouragement. However, perhaps something a little more subtle would be Ok. Ideas?

@Russell griffiths to the rescue. Cheers Russ!

I tried that one. It didn't work. She says she'll do it. Oh God, I'm just going to have to do this aren't I?

Against my better judgement, I went to the the RHS Flower Show in Manchester recently. And let myself be enthused about water features. I looked at all the beautifully designed displays. "Look at that one sweetheart, she says - and we've got all the materials left over from the build - lying around - doing nothing" Trouble is she is right. And the displays were brilliant.... she's right .... too right. Damn. The jaws slammed shut. She'd got me hooked. No way out now. What about this one she asks looking at Pintrest - that SelfBuild Torture Chamber "We've got the bricks, we've got the cobbles left over. Our mate has a few RSJs lying around " Eyelids flutter...... She knows me too well. So I'm here scrabbling around for an excuse not to do it (just like @Pocster ) I bet those bricks will move won't they ? How do I secure a low stack of bricks like that (above) such that they never move?

Plank. Eye.

Best comment of the year so far. Coffee spurting out my nose, cornflakes blown everywhere , dog looking decidedly worried, cats scattered in shock. Not all bad though. SWMBO is already cleaning the floor, the table and the milk splatters from the window. Dentists later today to replace the bridge that's now stuck at an uncomfortable angle. Good start to the day. PS the bridge popped itself back into place. This is a GOOD Monday morning.