ToughButterCup

Not that many of us about @lizzie

That precisely why I'm suggesting planned labour exchange. Maybe it's not a runner though : I have the strong feeling that we all invest too much in our own builds to have anything spare for anyone else. Pity. The other biggy is (say) @Alexphd1 needs a bit of help and I can go up to his place, and he can come and sort something here in Lancashire. Between us that's four days travel. The Buck Stops Here, eh?

Hmmm: makes me wonder whether there's any mileage in - for key parts of our builds - a Labour Exchange. Off the top of my head, for my build, I can think of at least four things that would be sooooo much easier with just a bit of help. Just a bit of muscle and good humour. I'm not talking about specialised (say) Sparky work, or the clever bits of plumbing that many here seem to do. In exchange for a similar amount of time and effort on 'your build' .... Or is that too hard to organise? Or make work?

"How's the build going?" Is the most common question I get asked by people who walk past our build. One gorilla of an instructor once whispered in my ear. "Lad, you have got two speeds: dead slow and stop" So, in reply to 'Hows the build going ' I say. " I'm on my own, and doing the vast majority of it myself: well, me BuildHub and YooChube. " Well, Sergeant Williams you were, and still are right. I'm making slooooow progress. My only 'excuse' is that I'm really, truly doing it myself. And , uncomfortable truth to be told, feeling sorry for myself occasionally. Yes, I have the odd hour or two of help and Debbie always offers to help out. But, there's not a lot she can do. (Lifting a few tonnes of concrete aside) DIY. How many of us (non-builders) are doing the vast majority of their build mostly on their own?

... let me describe a commonly observed (by that I mean I have seen the following happen), local (West Lancashire) approach to ecology. Out of nowhere, trailer loads of pig manure have been deposited in strategic places , roof spaces have been fumigated , fires left smouldering for weeks. The following year, an application for Planning Permission is received, surveys done: bats, GCNs, badgers and other delicate flora and fauna are found to be curiously absent. Motivation? In the case of GCNs - if my case is any guide - £6000 and a year's delay saved. Similar numbers for bats, and as for badgers - I'm still too upset by my experience of the financially motivated destruction to detail it further.

Welcome. If ever there was a project that demanded thorough research, this is one. And you'll be doing it on top of a full time job. The list of challenges faced is longer than average, but all of them have already been covered here in some detail. I mean - It's just a house. And you'll have lots of local advice on tap I'm sure. You now have a few hundred BH addicts hooked. We all want piccies so we can wince over our cornflakes, and splutter into our cup of tea. ' Eeeer, sweetheart! Seen this?.... Proper job that. Wonder how long it'll take @Onoff to find an excuse to visit?'

Hmmmm, had you down as a Babysham lass. Phhhhh.

Isn't that the phenomenon which causes many to fit a radiator directly under a window? There'll be a descending column of relatively cool air being delivered to SWMBO's feet. And, since wimmin are generally freeeeezing all year round, you'll be told about how extra cold the bathroom is (because, at the time of the complaint, her feet will be both wet and uncovered) Solution: shower with slippers on. Simples!

I might have put it a little stronger after a year.... The question now is; why the lack of progress to getting the issues resolved?

Gary, have you tried putting a broom where the sun doesn't shine and sweeping up as you go along? Cos frankly it makes me knackered just reading the amount of work you get through. Give Deborah my regards, Ian

We all know that Macivity is the Hidden Paw don't we? Maybe you've found him Joe! But watch out, he's the Napoleon of crime!

Resilience. Read this set of posts for a bit of inspiration. OK, the optics weren't good. Neither were the vibes. But that's all they were, optics and vibes. Her head was elsewhere. She knew how to play the game. BUT.... Her decision has to be evidence-based - to an extent. Thats the thing - extent. Her mantra - Settlement Boundary is interesting. Martin Goodhalls Planning Law Blog covers an Appeal Court Decision about this very issue. I think I summarise accurately: Settlement Boundary is not a concept that should be slavishly applied . https://planninglawblog.blogspot.com/search?q="settlement+boundary" In essence the last paragraph (quote directly below) says it all, but the whole thing is worth a close read '... It is clear from this judgment that the prescriptive and restrictive interpretation that some LPAs have sought to put on paragraph 55 of the NPPF is inappropriate, and that a more ‘broad brush’ approach is required when considering the application of this policy. Lindblom LJ’s observations on the boundaries of a settlement are particularly interesting, and clearly envisage a more flexible approach in this regard than the rigid adherence to designated settlement boundaries that LPAs commonly seem to adopt. This guidance from the Court of Appeal on the approach to be taken to the interpretation of paragraph 55 is extremely helpful, and it is to be hoped that it will put an end to sterile disputes about the acceptability of developments that are outside a designated development boundary. ... ' (Goodhall, M, April 2018, accessed October 2108) She has been pointed to a body of evidence to which she must now refer. If she doesn't, and you apply for permission, then she risks an Appeal which will take account of those earlier decisions - because they will form the core of your grounds for appeal. I would guess that about half of us here have had really depressing but high-stakes conversations with key people in the Planning Food Chain. You feel sick and despondent for a bit because you lack control. But you can do stuff to keep your pecker up.... Keep abreast of the local decisions. Read every single Appeal judgement in you LPA : those will be especially closely followed Read her decisions - get used to her style Ask around about her - quietly diplomatically Talk to estate agents Go and visit the sites about which she has written : look for similarities and differences with your case Keep a really close eye on Martin Goodhall's blog. His written style is dense but beautifully crafted. Keep talking to us Don't let the bastards get you down.

Chromecast if she has taken the Android shilling

Could not agree more. And it might also be thought unwise to attribute motive to action.

Hmmm. Sure?

? Its all coming together for what in my case, passes for a brain these days. First ManFlu of the season . ? Go on, show some sympathy I dare ya @Hecateh, @lizzie, @newhome. No point in asking more widely: they're all brutes

There's a man who knows just when and how to throw a life-belt.....

Yes: but my eyes watered at the cost of shaped insulation: and local 'advice' ? told me it could be done more cheaply. Neither am I : I think it's a case of 'S Passiv'ous innit mate - load a shite that ' The planning conditions: the parapet has to remain where it is in terms of level. Maybe its me, maybe I take Planning Conditions too seriously: when the very local evidence is that others couldn't give a stuff and just do what they want. Here you are Thats as detailed as it gets (got). Just been out to measure the gap in the POSIs 126 ish mm..... Originally the MVHR quote required a space of 165 between the top and bottom chord of the POSIs. Well, we've got 125ish . Rather than a Genvex which we'd set our hearts on. Bum. If we use this system instead, magically we can shove the pipes between the top and bottom chord and the height problem goes away . The ducting is 75mm. Jus' like that. Not like this, like that

Hmmm, as ever a pragmatic approach, but how do I get a perfect gradient? I expect I'm being thick..... Roughly chop it to profile and then use a Surform rasp ? Anyway, why can't Kingspan just cut it for me FGS? They are cutting blocks 1,2 and 3 after all.

Yes. And when I asked the Kingspan man - how is that (less one side than the other) then ? - came the response that It didn't matter. Thats not how you calculate the U value for the roof. And a few alarm bells went off in my head: hence the post. I don't know what to expect so '...proper detailing...' means little to me. At the moment. I am now doing it myself. (CDM 2015 Domestic Client). When the architect did the drawing I think he expected to liaise with contractors - his argument is (and has been several times over different issues) that no matter what he draws on paper, contractors do it their way anyway. The MVHR piping was meant to run within the POSIs, but now - as specified- can't - so they need to run under the POSIs. Bang goes 200mm or so. I suppose I might get the MVHR people to squeeze the pipes into the available space. Maybe need to go down that rat run..... I don't want to get into a sideshow about how why or when. I just need to just bloody well do it (to misquote the Nike advert line). I know exactly why we aren't going down the cold roof route. And here is their quote for exactly that.... Blocks 4,5,6,7 and 8 are the ones I have been told I need to cut to shape.

Exactamento! Been there, got the T shirt - jus' cant do it (in the space available). Honestly we've gone into it in great detail. They are the ones who are telling me I have to cut it..... ! Gottcha!

After much research we now know our flat roof can only be built using shaped insulation. And elbow grease. '... Much research.... ' disguises a long , nitty gritty detail process, much head and withers scratching. However, good progress towards conscious incompetence has been made. Not bad when you consider I started out unconsciously incompetent. Help me on my journey please.... One quote shows that, to create the fall, some of the PIR panels will be cut to shape by the producer - here's the twist we have to cut about 8 sheets to shape. Calamity, calamity. Just a simple wedge of cheese shape, but still currently - without a mountain of waste PIR - beyond me . Ah the joys of DIY eh? I know now that if I stick at this little sod of a challenge, I'll get there..... The lovely old guy who daily walks past our place -facing the friendly overtures of our fearless tom cat- says I should hot wire it. Memories of modelling glider wings Anyone done this before?

Morning, welcome! All of us, every Man-Jack (Woman Jackie ?) one of us here is working towards conscious competence : well, almost all. The unconsciously competent will be along in a minnit. Welsh plumbers, weapons experts, computer whizkids, people who know how to keep smoke inside wires, the odd planner, some poachers turned gamekeeper, ex engineering lecturers, and modest lawyers. Theres even one special guy who really can make mud stick on a wall, I kid you not. My strength is ferreting. So, here's yer spreadsheet. The search engine on this site is good: not the best, but good.

Hello, welcome. Do you have Outline Planning Permission yet? I ask because of horses and carts.....?

Well, @Sue B, and @Christine Walker there's life after self-build is there? Thats good to know. And we're all so nosey here on BH that we'll be following yours too. Ian