Rmawdsley

Hi John, I'm looking to potentially do similar. Maybe look at the Hikvision AX Pro, i haven't got one myself but looks like it could work as it says it will work of ethernet, wifi OR a GPRS/3G/4G sim. I'm guessing you would need a control panel £120, and then you can add to your system as you like, a wireless PIR system camera £95. And once your house is up you can use it as your main security system by adding door sensors, PIRs etc. Again, I have never used it so don't know if it works as I imagine but its an avenue you could explore. Maybe ring up a supplier and ask them. Thanks, Rob

Hi, My Rationel Aura Plus quote inc. fitting works out at £551.95 per m for 38m2 of windows alone. They were also quoting for a sliding door and a front and back door, so maybe the price per m2 for glazing alone might be slightly higher if there was less in the job for them. Thanks, Rob.

Sorry, it wouldn’t be the MVHR that I would be cooling it would be the UFH to cool the floor, If that makes any difference. I think I’ll end up insulating the duct for piece of mind.

If we were to run the ASHP in cooling mode in summer could that potentially cause a problem then?

Hi, I may be over thinking it but does anyone know for the potential of condensation on the extract and supply ducts with UFH pipes being in close proximity. I will likely be using galvanised steel spiral wound duct which will pass through a PS10 253mm posi-joist and attached to the underside of the 1st floor T and G will be the underfloor heating pipes in a spreader plate. I'm sure the designers of either of the systems will have a good idea but I'm just trying to keep on top of things and would appreciate peoples thoughts? Thanks!

If it’s a twin wall ducting and not rigid and your not going to blind it with sand, make sure you avoid back filling directly on top of it with any big lumps. Otherwise it could squash and you won’t pull anything through it. For the cost of a role of tape I’d put some over it. Any future excavations will hit the tape before the pipe and should do a bit of hand digging!

Once over 40mm depth your drying times increase greatly. Under good drying conditions (a warm, well ventilated room) Gyvlon Screed dries at a rate of 1mm/day up to a thickness of 40mm and then at a rate of 1⁄2 mm/day for thicknesses above this up to 70mm, the rate may further increase to 1⁄4 mm/day at >70mm: so 80mm of gyvlon screed would take 40 days for the first 40mm and then 60 days for the next 30mm and then 40 days for the last 10mm. So nearly 5 months! I used 45mm of gyvlon THERMIO. I will be using it again on my next project.

What is your site access like? I see you are planning sheet piling down each side of your plot taking up to a property on each side. What’s the foot print of your plot? Is it a straight dig or are there services running through the plot? What’s happening with the excavated material? There are many variables to digging a hole and so the quote you receive of people will be down to their interpretation of the job, are they all like for like? And then you will get some chancers and then you will get some people who just don’t fancy the job and so lump a load on.

Our 13 and 7 ton machines have pumps ? and the 3 ton machine it just ends up all over your jeans and in your boots if your preoccupied.

Diggers don’t work very well if you don’t put diesel in them, factor that in to your cost.

I ran cat6 cables to places I potentially wanted cameras from a central location which I knew I would put my DVR whilst the sparky was doing the 1st fix. A 100m box of cat6 doesn’t cost a great deal! And then I bought a hikvision DVR and have gradually added Poe cameras to the system. No batteries required, no potential issues with WiFi signal and no subscription. The latest cameras hardly ever give false detections/alerts either.

If your having your UFH in the slab just make sure that the subbase is bang on for grade so that your slab is a continuous thickness. Make sure mesh is used and packed up on concrete bar spacers (They wont squash down/collapse in areas like with plastic spacers, which will ensure your UFH pipes are at a constant depth). Make sure you have contraction joints in all the right places once the slabs in or you'll end up with random cracking. If you want a really shiny finish then make sure sealer is applied shortly after power floating.

Looks like he needs a bit more stone in to bring up the levels, can see a lot of day light under them shutters!

Ferdinand, I have attached the location plan so you can see where it is sat on the plot. The existing building that is on the plot is a black timber shed that has been in the family for 70-80 years hence why the timber has been added by the architect. I am still unsure as to whether I like the idea of it or not. dangti you are correct! The plan has been annotated incorrectly, it should be the other way around. No I don’t intend to put a car in the garage and it will be used for storage to begin like you say. It does need to be able to serve the purpose to a reasonable degree of being able to fit a car in, with out me having to get out the boot ?. 002 - Proposed Plot Plan - P01.pdf

I see what your saying, I will nip down with a tape tomorrow and see how it looks to be sitting on the plot and whether it would be liable to reduce light coming in to windows on them elevations if we gain a few ft.

Hi, Me and my Fiance will be beginning our new build project in the new year, obviously before that we need to know what we are going to be building. We have received the first draft of the proposed house yesterday and would like to know what you think. I understand a house is subjective and has to work for your lifestyle but i am interested in peoples thoughts and opinions, would you change anything? The plot is long and narrow, about 10.5m wide by 50m long. It is an infill development with a house on each side . I know integral garages compromise air tightness but space is limited. I look forward to hearing your thoughts. Thanks, Robert 003 - Proposed Elevations - crop.pdf 004 - Proposed Plans - crop.pdf

Plus if the 2 of 3 course pour your proposing doesn’t equate to a full load you will get a part load charge which can be £50+ for every cube not carried.

We got all our tiles from mandarine stone, have a look at their website. We are very happy with them!

That would be for 50mm base, 30mm SMA. I’m not sure of the rate for base only but you could get a quote for 80-100mm base only and may get it to £15-20pm. Your back would thank you ?. I’m not sure about your area, but a m3 of the concrete you’ll want to use is between £86-95 + vat. You’ll want to do it full width if you concrete as you can back the wagons in then.

Tarmac will be your cheapest option. You’d probably be looking at £25-30 per m if it was in the northwest of England. If you grade and compact it yourself and then get a tarmac contractor in with a road paver, it would only take them a morning to lay it and you’d be able to run on it the morning after. Concrete you’d have to shutter the edges, set the mesh and then leave it a week before running on it. Robert

Hi Dominic, Do you have any technical drawings of your insulated raft design? I'm a groundwork contractor and about to build my own house. I'm considering an insulated raft for my build, not only for the added insulation benefits but to also give our company experience in using the system, as like you say there doesn't appear to be many people offering that service in the North West. It would be a great help if i had some working drawings to be able to price a comparison between the insulated raft and a traditional footings/insulated slab. Thanks, Robert.

Hi Chris, Your price will vary on the complexity of the design. A simple square will be cheaper than something that has more corners/angles. Insurance companies require you to have 2 water proof systems in place eg. Voltex along with caltite cementaid. So depending on how labour intensive the systems specified are and the cost of the materials, that can add a degree of variability to the cost. Do you have any drawings of the proposed basement yet? Kind regards, Robert

If it is piped then you may be able to look for an access point/manhole cover somewhere close to your house. It would most likely be in the road/footpath or on public property. If you are successful, ring up a drainage jetter and get them to trace it to your property. If you cant find a manhole cover or any access, get digging like Dave said. If you get to virgin clay at any depth you know its not there. If it looks to be back fill, you will need to investigate further.

Where does the culvert run? is there an outlet further down the line?