joe90

I have bifold made by a local company ( oak) didn’t get a price as all house windows were included. I specified an upstand so a compression seal was used all round, yet to do an air test but I think they are very draughtproof. It’s not our part m entrance and the up stand is about 20mm.

If it’s timber then why not piles ( screw or stone columb) and concrete floor, someone will be along with an example in a mo .

Well I will kick this off with my newly finished stairs, stairbox for wood and a foundry in Hull for the spindles.

When I asked a local land drain expert about my French drains ( we are on yellow clay) he advised against membrane as it can clog with clay silt, he advised against slotted pipe as well, just 50mm stone in a trench, plastic on top ( to stop top soil going into it) then topped with top soil. It’s working very well on my very wet site.

Simon, I paid an SE to calculate a raft for our block built garage, cost me £400 and the raft would have held up a three story block of flats it was so much over engineered, and cost a fortune to lay. I got the building inspector out to ask his advise and he simply told me how deep and what width for foundations. Not sure where but there is a gov website with all the dimensions reqd for block walls, not sure it covers timber, your building inspector is your best bet ( unless I am lucky with mine!). P.S. don’t call it a workshop, call it a garage, then you can claim all the VAT back as a new build, workshops don’t count!

Perhaps I am wrong but are we barking up the wrong tree?. Rather than predicting weather is it not better to monitor how the ASHP is reacting to the weather conditions, I.e. “ am I about to defrost?” Just an idea!

Yes ST and I discussed this as I initially thought the ASHP could turn off just before defrosting occurred, therefore you could get the highest water temp for given weather conditions. I thought the ASHP should know when it’s about to defrost ( then go into defrost mode) but perhaps it recognises when it’s frosted up, too late?. Does anyone know how an ASHP knows it needs to defrost? ST, you can monitor mine when I get round to wiring it up ( among the other jobs on my most important to finish list ?).

Yes Dave, ours is not loud but a constant hum. We are not able to remotely mount the pump as it has a timer built in and two air pipes to the inside ( produces large bubbles for a time then small bubbles for a time) but like you if you lift the air pump it’s quieter, perhaps foam under the pump. Actually, if I extend the pipes a little I could mount the pump next to the unit on a concrete slab which would stop the plant lid acting as a drum!

Well our Vortex treatment plant is in and working, I am having it commissioned properly by a local firm next week ( which may tweak the settings) . We live in a very quiet place but the plant when running produces a low hum and water turbulence can be heard at all times. We love to sit outside and listen to the birds and wildlife that surrounds us but it’s detracting ( a bit like a computer humming away in a quiet room). As mass is good for absorbing sounds I stacked bricks on the lid ( plus the lid acts like a drum I believe) but it’s not done much good and the lid is beginning to bow with the weight. Eventually the plant will be surrounded by dense bushes/shrubs to hide it. I think the next plan is accoustic foam ( closed cell/ waterproof) stuck to the inside of the lid and the inside of the box on top that contains the air pump. Any suggestions will be very welcome ( plus good supplier for said foam)

I think several people on here have said they have reduced the airflow from what BR say.

My MVHR which I think is the same as proDave,s has a paper filter and no condensate drain. When I investigated this a couple of years ago I believe the paper filter allowed some air moisture through so we may not suffer from the dry air with ours!!!

Our bungalow burnt down during our planning application and people used to wink at me and say “ what a shame it burnt down” but I had to explain it was not insured, the premium was due and we were going to demolish it soon!! Ours was clad in asbestos and I did not know asbestos explodes in a fire so the site was covered in flakes of asbestos. The EA man turned up and instructed me to scrape the whole site clean and dispose in asbestos skips. No tests were done on what type of asbestos it was. He also never returned to check the Work was done. It cost me shed loads to remove all the bits, it would have been a lot cheaper to dismantle the sheets and put them in a skip to take away.

I live in Devon, I don’t think anything gets dry down here ?.

I am yet to commission my MVHR but just looked and my RH is 67%, I don’t see how moving air around can dry it out if it’s not heated?

Yes these are the type I fancy for our kitchen, my only worry after reading Jeremy’s stuff is Hong Kong electrics and radio noise?

Yes, we are just outside Bude. We asked for pre planning advise and it was pants! Our council is Torridge district council and they don’t have a good reputation , we ended up going to appeal and won hands down but it was a two year fight.

Just to remind people of my mistake, bought two electric towel radiators and they get to 98 degrees, way to hot, going to change the elements to thermostatic ones.

I know two people who were put on statins and felt terrible, they both told their doctor they would not see them, changed their diets and exercised, one changed job, and they both feel much better and no problems. Don’t talk to me about statins!.

Some people can’t handle the truth, I like doctors like that myself.

We had planned evergreen shrubs around it but if it could be recessed even better. I don’t think it would flood as the outlet is as large as the inlet, rainwater cannot enter it and there would still be 40pmm from water level to base of container. Best not to alter a good design tho ?

Interesting as I have just installed my Vortex and err indoors said” wots that orrible box in the middle of the garden”. I just looked at it and the water level inside is about 700mm below ground level and I think I could lower the box into the lid to make it almost flush. Might muck up the warranty but would look a lot better.

After years of I’ll health and the death of my wife caused by cancer I am fairly well read on diets and health. A fascinating read is about blue zones https://www.bluezones.com/ this is places round the world where people live the longest and what they do and eat. Apart from diet ( mostly fresh, mostly vegetarian) I was fascinated that happiness and family integration was a key factor that lead to long life.

Well done Ian, remember the hare and the tortoise, plus better to do it slowly and properly, if you rush you make mistakes and these are even harder to put right. From my perspective I wanted to enjoy my build ( which I have mostly) and so must you if possible, oh and yes, foam.

I agree, I think a lot of alergies and medical issues are due to a sanitised world. Someone I know Is forever wiping surfaces with antibacterial wipes and keeping her daughter away from anything dirty. The daughter is always at the doctors with something or another and the mother is always asking for drugs for her. Children need to build their immune system by catching bugs and learning to deal with them. I once read an American paper that found children born naturally were less likely to develop medical problems over those born by ceaserian . Rant over ?

My take on this from years of trying to understand it is, yes you need airtighness to stop drafts but a building needs to breathe so that if/when any vapour gets into the fabric it can escape slowly. For example, my roof make up is engineered joist with OSB clad inside ( glued joints), mineral wool insulation between joists with vapour permeable felt, battens then slate. I remember on another forum a long winded discussion about using OSB as the airtight layer and whether it was good enough, well I think so?.