joe90

I have just had mine done by a VAT accountant and he was brilliant, he also had a VAT solicitor who oversaw my claim and recovered another £800 (minus fee). Others on here have used him and got good results. I simply supplied all my receipts in no particular order, he even contacted some suppliers who did not supply a proper VAT receipt (that I had not noticed) to get the right paperwork. It scared me that HMRC will fine you if you make an error (something I am very likely to do) so it was paying the relatively small fee to get it done properly. His fee was more than recovered by it being done properly. Andrew Jones the VAT man Ltd.

I was lucky I had a brilliant builder but I did think he got the DPC wrong so I called him to site to explain my concern and he showed me (politely) that he had modified my DPC level and the reason why, he was right. As said above, your the customer, your paying fir it so speak up, they may just show you more respect for challenging them.

Because of our high water table I did this, just backfilled after footings and blocks up to 150mm below DPC with 50mm stone and a membrane against the soil/clay. 100mm drainage pipe out to a ditch, works very well and the land is a lot less soggy around the build.

Thanks @nod just looked it up but it’s fir oiled wood, says it must only be used on previously oiled wood, mine is a form of lacquer finish . ?

Just got round to removing the protective cardboard and scrap carpet over my engineered oak flooring in the lounge and I am disappointed how dull and dirty it is. Surprising how crap can get past the best protection. After careful vacuuming, brushing and cleaning with a damp cloth, great when it’s wet but quickly goes very dull again ?. I guess it needs a cleaner/polish to revive it. Anyone got any recommendations as there is sooo much out there in the market place.

????? Not heard of that one?

I think it all comes down to common sense, and he had none of that. Having car boot sales made me laugh unless he had rolls Royce’s, bentleys etc.

Ha, I,ll be dead by then.? I cannot argue heat loss figures but my DHW tank at 48’ hardly warms the airing cupboard at all.(like @ProDave).

And if he does not do what you want you don’t pay him, your the customer, man up, ask him the questions and if the answer is not what you require remind him who the customer is and you are paying him to do what you want.

Brill, I find it difficult welding with my bi focals, never looking in the right direction.

Time to put up a flagpole and a Union Jack ?.

Ha, your not starting with mine! We planned a finish party, but the work never ends, (landscaping in the rain is messy).

Why?

Relax man, concrete will go off under water, chemical action. Why do you think the floor is 9” too low?, they have not built it yet! Just confirm with your builder that it’s level with your existing floor. If not why not?

Update , cheque paid into my account, here is the VAT specialists link, I can highly recommend her as well as Andrew (the vatman).https://www.wrongly-charged-vat.co.uk/

Exactly what I did in my new build (but in hep20).

I agree, it depends where the pipes are, loft, underfloor but worth finding or re routing.

And the losses are only losses in the summer!.

Try these, up to 32tonne lorry https://www.grabtipgo.co.uk/

I re plumbed an en-suite because of lack of hot water flow, customer wanted a pump to make it better but I noticed lots of 90’ bends and tees etc, I replaced it with 15mm plastic pipe straight from the tank and only one 90’ bend, (able to wind the plastic pipe around obstructions etc) customer very happy with the result, then I told him I didn’t use the pump and he could get his money back ?. It’s amazing how restrictive 90’ bends are to water flow especially in 15mm pipework. In my new build we only have a 25mm incoming main and the water flow is excellent.

Yes, used them in Bristol, called “muck away”, 20 tonnes with grab bucket, job had no where fir a skip, was a LOT cheaper than skip hire and left the ground cleaner than I expected.

Why? Did you not have a plan, sketch etc to show your builder what you wanted, he is working fir you, if you told him, make him put it right.

It will be fine, my founds were poured in rain, it stopped the concrete going off too fast ?. Let the guys get on with it, it’s their day job.

Actually makes me think of Brunel (Isambard Kingdom) although he had great success when he built the suspension bridge in Bristol he ran out if money (investors money) put the build on hold for decades and he even sold the chains to fund something else . The bridge was only completed after his death as a memorial and paid for by new investors and the new chains came from his Hungerford bridge which was being demolished.

No, you can only claim costs if you prove they have done something wrong, interpretation of planning guidelines are not deemed wrong just opinion (they did get a rocket from the appeal office tho!).