ToughButterCup

@PeterW Top Banana.... waragoodidea!

You are in the risk reduction game. The evidence base does not have to be perfect, but you do have to have a clear tipping point. A moment you can without too much financial damage simply stop. If we were to do that now, it would be very damaging indeed. But how many thousands spent working out how far to go down the runway before aborting the take off is a matter for each individual. Never underestimate the determination of a committed self builder. Get all the family onside if you can. Network like hell. Go down the pub and listen to the response you get from those whom you trust when you tell them you're thinking about it. "Ah, I've always wanted to build my own house [....] It must be brilliant to be able to even think about it" Don't underestimate the huge amount of support you'll get here. This group of people has saved us many thousands of pounds. Emotional, technical, hysterical, and then of course there's plumbing. We apologise in advance for @Nickfromwales. He's tame really

See, told ya! If you sing the Hallelujah Chorus @Onoff performs well. Even if he did half inch his best mates post knocker to do so

If they are saying that, sing the Hallelujah Chorus. No poo disposal no house. Its that simple,

And that's why the more quotes you get, the better. And, good luck with that process. I got a scaffy by accident after trying hard and failing to 'connect' as opposed to speak with someone who was even slightly interested in quoting.

Hmm, @Pete, our scaffy offered that route, for a much higher initial price.

If outgoings reduction is the real end in mind, and you can make a compelling evidence-based case for doing so, there is no question. The only thing to worry about is your evidence base. If you are certain of your facts, Just Do It.

To do what? Act as a walkway? Enable access to work on a balcony? For how long? There will be an initial price, and a subsequently a hire price - often chargeable after the first month. In our case 5% of the initial cost per month. Part of the cost (the hidden cost) is the mess scaffolders cause on their way in, and out of a job. To be polite, they don't ever give a flying fig about anything much. And there appears to be good reason for that round here. It is fairly common (on the Fylde anyway) for half their wages to be paid in currencies other than cash.

Quite. Lets try defining the following Working height Platform height Tower height 'Lift' Working height = does this assume a standard human height above the platform? Does that height exclude above head height working? Platform height = simple, exact, measurable (is this the only measure we really need?) Tower height = with or without adjustable feet? And does this include the guard rail height? Lift = one complete section which could form the base for a platform? I have tried to find out the answers for myself by doing a Google search, but the results always disappear into way too much discussion of detail. And so I also looked for images which might simplify the answer to the questions posed above. As ever, just trying to keep it simple............

Yes. I'm fitter than I have been for a good while, hands harder than they have been for many years and my back seems to be holding up well. My hips are giving notice of their intention to quit in the near future, though. Anyway, stuff it, I'll sleep very well tonight. Ian

This post is part of a series (I will write it all up as a blog one day when I have had time to develope a sense of perspective) ; but now I am raw - angry, knackered, wiser. After we had parted company with the builder, a specialist Durisol company were given a brief to take down any face of the house which showed any evidence of poor building practice or any other error. Down came the west, south, north walls: the east wall, bless it, was the one that got blown down: so we just built up the bit that fell down. Massive, massive error when the original builders (I now know having reviewed the time lapse imagery) had spent a significant amount of time hammering some of the east wall Durisol blocks back into place, when they could have re-laid them with some care in the first place. We poured the west, south and north faces (the ones we rebuilt completely ourselves) with no problems at all. You can hear this coming can't you? One whole section of the east wall just burst during the pour. About a cubic meter of concrete landed on the floor from two meters up. Cue an hour of shoveling. And swearing and murderous feelings channeled into demonic shoveling. I used to think that I wanted to spend our money locally. And since very few companies 'do' Durisol, most building firms were going to need training. Which we attended. And here's the thing: the company staff didn't. The MD did, but the staff didn't. And frankly they couldn't have given a stuff about the build. So when the boss absented himself for extended periods, it was a recipe for disaster. Worse, even his staff couldn't contact him by phone. Sadly, my little attempt at investing in localism died a death today. Garstang and South Lancaster does what it does. If something isn't known or isn't always like it has been, and forever will be, they don't want to know. I suspect that's not unique to Lancashire. One potential roofer came round late today, and sneered gently at everything we showed him. Passiv? Whassat? MVHR whaaafor? He'd never seen a roof designed to our spec - no call for it; shakes? Good luck with that; Sikaflex? Never heard of it (its the brand name of a Preston-based roofing materials production company; local people in the village work there); vaulted ceiling? Don't have much call for that. "But I've been roofing round here for 25 years and I'm sure I could do an excellent job." I'll bet. But not on our cash. Yet another post that has to end with..... Still, if we can't take a joke, we shouldn't have started should we?

Hmm, well, I've got shed envy then. I could just about put both our houses and shed and cars and garden in the section of shed shown in the photo. Well, nearly. The answer to life is excellent storage.

In that case, you need to read this document, the General Binding Rules, and follow them to the letter.

Hello, welcome. One step at a time. Pre advice is just that; advice. Permission doesn't automatically follow. And the Conditions relating to the granting of permission seem to me to be hinted at in your post; That bit about ALWAYS nature land might well be important. The bit about levels is -really is- important. Why? Foul drainage. No foul drain, no house. 11m square. How are you going to organise foul drainage? Where are you discharging to? Welcome to the Sleepless Nights Forum There will never be a day or night from now on that you don't worry, fizz, think, hope, fantasise, agonise, hesitate, procrastinate, fulminate, dream about your house. Making a compelling case for permission to build is important. Assemble your arguments, choose your planner carefully. Ask focused questions here - that helps us think with you. Good luck Ian

You need to meet Debbie.... Her idea

Let's say the worst comes to the worst and we have to pour (Tuesday and Wednesday of next week - architect's on holiday and so is Tanners) without a decision on placing T pieces inside the ICF . Could we 'bolt it on' (the Wintergarden) from the outside? For the sake of interest I attach the Briefing Pack I prepared for expressions of interest in doing the steels and the cladding WinterGardenBriefingReducedSize.pdf

Forgive my lack of understanding.... racking?

Hmmm. I feel a phonecall to Tanners coming on..... Ian

Have a look at this; This is a view into our Winter Garden from way above the roof. The yellow column represents (way out of scale) one of three vertical steels, each of which supports horizontals which in turn support the barn-style cladding. For clarity, I have omitted the other two verticals and all the horizontals. The winter garden is an empty area, outside the heated envelope (see the slats allowing air to circulate) The steel structure is linked to the house : how is my question? We could drill into the ICF and bolt it on that way or we could embed anchors in the ICF and drill the steels to suit on site The first is messier than the second. There is no guidance from the SE (Tanners) on how we should marry the house ICF and the Steels. But, (I have learned to ask), how hard can it be? I mean we could just pop down to Halfords and buy some cheap M6 nuts and bolts eh?........ well perhaps not.

I'm in to that. Just think .... The first time Debbie sees me doing that

Ok @Andrew, that's about what we were charged. Ask for the PDF to be unlocked and NOT flattened, or to put it another way, for all layers to enabled and the document to be editable. I suggest that because there will be times when you want to illustrate an idea based on the pdf. If it is cluttered with irrelevant information, it makes that job hard. A locked, flattened document will prevent you from showing only relevant information (or conversely switching irrelevant stuff off) Making sure you can switch layers on and off at will will simplify and clarify the message you want to give. And God knows the building sector needs to learn how to give clear, accurate information to those who need it.

I've been up and down our scaffolding often enough to qualify as the Local Yoyo Impersonator. Today I had the blower up there, cleaning off the boards ahead of the rain due later tonight (its easier to clean while dry). Climbing a ladder holding a blower isn't ideal. And while thinking how to do this a little more safely, who should come by but our local scaffolder. "Eeeh lad, 'ah've gorra pulley in't van, ye can tek it if ya wants." So there is sits in all its glory stored on my stillage, a nice shine new pulley, some scaffold clips and two new poles. And some rope with a stainless reinforced eye and a new hook. Suddenly I'm fantasizing about doing all sorts of exotic stuff with my pulley. And then caution kicks in. H+S and pulleys....... And scaffolds. With extreme care, this little beauty's going to make my life a lot easier. Where can I look for advice? I've looked - not hard- but I've looked. Any quick ideas apart from leave it on the stillage and admire it while standing on the ground.....?

Lots of ways of reading that @SteamyTea

Or socks that already have holes in them and you can't be bothered to darn them? (I'll get me coat)

Site size? 10 hectares? 100 m square? Ian