joe90

My JCB was brilliant, a bit of a beast and turned the ground up when wet but did so much with it (and thoroughly enjoyed driving it) probably a bit too big for most sites but the greatest of fun.

I plumbed for 200mm cavity as middle ground from building regs to full passive , regarding lintels I used concrete internal lintels and brick arches in the outer skin. No real reason to have a lintel crossing the cavity and mine was dead cheap, if you don’t want arches then use single skin lintels in the outer skin. Just make sure a DPC crosses the cavity with weeps over doors and windows.

When my late wife worked in America she said they had a system where main roads were 30mph but housing estates were 20mph, far more sensible IMO.

Crap job by your chippie, would worry me about what else he might do.

My new access was a nightmare, planners just said no, made up things (like I didn’t own land the splay was in, but we did) it was me that got highways involved after much badgering, when they turned up they said “no problem” but would not tell the council this, they would only “not object”. Only after quoting chapter and verse of their procedures to the appeal officer (along with appealing up the actual build) did I win on everything, L@@dy planners 🤯 so do your homework .

But what about lightweight aircrete blocks (my second hate for fixing into).

I do like simple solutions, a former member here who had a very well insulated and draught proof house postulated that controlling the slab input temp to 1 or 2 degrees above what you want in the house is a self regulating and simple solution that should work with a slab with UFH.

I think that’s a finger joint not a scarf joint, not sure of its integrity structurally, really depends on the glue used I guess. The SE in me says put it on blocks either end and jump up and down on it in the middle 🤣

+1, sounds like a good solution without a wall to fix too. 👍

Get them to do it then 😱

4 of these (one in each corner) of every cabinet join https://www.screwfix.com/p/inter-screws-m4-x-10-pack/65152 perhaps a length of 3x2 screwed underneath along the front (behind where the feet will go) and one along the back underneath 🤷‍♂️.

I always use these. https://www.screwfix.com/p/stretcher-plates-zinc-plated-38mm-x-28mm-x-25mm-10-pack/12920

They have a reputation of not paying out, despite that mortgage companies still recognise them but there are many others, as I said I got a retro one when I had to sell.

Yes definitely, otherwise your worktops could come away from the wall, simple small L brackets from cupboard sides at the top to wall/timber before the worktops go on, just behind the cupboard back board (you need to screw slightly down hill over the back board , I can supply a CAD (crayon aided drawing) if you want 🤣

Oh we all have 20/20 hindsight,, at my age it’s called experience 🤣

I also like those fixings but mine came with a spanner that stopped the plug spinning in the plasterboard. However my new home had a coat rack fixed with these on a dot and dab wall, typically too many coats and the whole lot fell off complete with chunks of plasterboard 🤯, fixed by filling the holes with plaster and long screws and rawlplugs into the block work. (Radiators full of water are heavy!!!).

But if memory serves from their document they don’t say how big the cavity should be? (Best to check) so make it 10mm bigger and use the methods @Iceverge suggests above (but if it were me I would still put in more insulation, you only buy it once and save heating costs forever. With my 200mm full fill cavity the heating only came on occasionally for a couple of months a year (and was only 4KW).

This is the only time I like thermalite blocks, dead easy to chop bits out 😇

Just the top will do, feet on the floor give three points of contact, as said above careful you can get washing machine/dishwasher under it.

I didn’t have a warranty but when I HAD to sell got a retro one.

I agree but @Lewis88 problem is the HSBC won’t pass any full fill insulation for his warranty.

I second rear discharge, various fittings available to cope with mis alignment.

Not had time to read it all but skimming through it I saw no mention of rendered walls 🤷‍♂️ https://www.nhbcfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/RR10-Full-fill-cavity-wall-insulation.pdf

Ah I understand now, I wonder why NHBC are so strict when the insulation has a bba certificate for cases like this? Perhaps ask NHBC what they will accept 🤷‍♂️

https://insulationgo.co.uk/blog/does-mineral-wool-need-air-gap/#:~:text=As a result%2C mineral wool,wool on its outer side.