Thorfun

We had lots of compromises and at the time it feels like a really big deal. But after a while you just move on and then it’s like it always was supposed to be and you wonder why it seemed such a big deal at the time! I know I’m not the only one on here to experience that either.

Nice idea. Could potentially look at a rain chain running in to said potted plant?

or is it the cement particle board? I think the external build up looks different to most timber frames I've seen. definitely different to ours! from out to in we have vertical timber cladding 45mm batten and counter batten breathable membrane osb 140mm timber with 140mm frametherm 32 80mm PIR AVCL (IntelloPlus) 25mm battens 12.5mm plasterboard skim I pretty much copied MBC https://mbctimberframe.co.uk/closed-panel-wall-options/ didn't read @IanR's response before I posted. he got there first! 😉

we have 4 ovens. if running all at the same time there's no way a standard 2.5mm ring would handle it. each oven is on it's own cable and RCBO.

+1. for our induction hob we needed a 10mm cable. that's one chunky (expletive deleted)!

the outside membrane needs to be breathable. the layer inside the insulation needs to be airtight. think you've got them the wrong way round? at the very least get an interstitial condensation analysis done to ensure that moisture won't be trapped in the wall nor in the house!

just be aware that trying to fit drywall backboxes to that thickness will be tricky or require more expensive backboxes. you would be wise to cut bigger holes in the OSB before plaster boarding (or even just leave a strip empty of OSB at socket height. trust me, it's a pain to try and cut out OSB/ply after the fact without wrecking the plasterboard! my other comment/concern is the benefit of the OSB? yes it will make the walls more "solid" but is 11mm OSB enough to hold shelves etc? also OSB is expensive! 25mm battens are cheap. and as @Kelvin said, if you're using the OSB as an airtight layer then you're penetrating it and making it pointless. personally, I would forgoe the OSB, use 25mm battens and use an AVCL as your airtight layer. can then also wrap that under the ceiling to maintain that airtight layer. and finally, you don't need a cold loft! you can insulate between the rafters to make a warm loft and carry the airtight layer around that. means anything that's stored in the loft is nicely inside the insulated envelope and any MVHR or pipework running there won't be cold.

Only 11mm service cavity? Are you sure that’s enough? I presume your cladding is horizontal as well? If so can you reduce the battens to 25mm? we did 140mm frametherm 32 equivalent glass wool between the studs and 80mm PIR internally to get similar U-values.

Don’t know about 150mm but we used the 140mm soap bar blocks for our CLS timbers. https://www.dwnye.co.uk/shop/stowells-concrete-soap-bar-blocks-140-x-100-x-440mm-132-blocks-per-pack probably not much use for 150mm timber though unless your ok with a 5mm overhang each side.

we also had a balcony that was causing issues with height and finished floor level. the architect's solution was a hybrid roof in that area. we had an interstitial condensation analysis done and it was ok. it was the only way to get a decent level of insulation. initially they'd specified vacuum sealed insulation panels but they're stupidly expensive and very hard to work with. so the hybrid solution was cheaper and gave similar levels of insulation.

ahh...ok so yeah i understand not wanting to raise it further! ours was a floor level window so raising it 300mm or so wasn't a big deal. our roofer recommended the Alwitra solution and he raved about it. for me, i got a 25yr insurance backed guarantee so that was good enough for me! happy to let someone else make that decision for me as i had plenty others to focus on

our roofers used OSB with the Alwitra VSK membrane.

we had this situation. the window as designed would've been below the level of the green roof. we had to bite the bullet and purchase a new window and raise the wall to bring it up. but probably easier for us as ours was timber frame so i just built up the frame to the required level. we couldn't return the window that was too large so we cut a hole in a wall elsewhere and fitted it there. now we wouldn't even know it wasn't part of the original design!

@ETC is an architect

Each to their own. I prefer to plug devices in with a cable rather than use WiFi. So I’ve run a lot of network points on walls for things like printers, game consoles, tvs, PCs, Sonos, streaming devices and so on. Not to mention CCTV. I could’ve run all that over WiFi but cabled is rock solid. It’s mostly mobile devices, laptops and IoT devices that use the WiFi.

Very considerate having two toilets! 😂

Ps. We utilised their 0% finance so I hope I’m right! 😂

Why wouldn’t it? The invoice just shows the cost and so the Vat can be claimed back. It’s just a loan at the end of the day and if you can’t claim VAT back for things you borrow money for them we’re all screwed as most have large self-build mortgages!!

Time, quality, cost. you can have two of the three. So costs can be low and assuming you don’t want to compromise on quality it’ll just take you a long time to do! @nod is your man for self-building for low prices but he is in the trade.

Evening all, we have a double garage that connects to our house with a room above it. I am aware that we need fire rated plasterboard on the ceiling on the garage but the BCO attended today and said we need it on all the walls as well. that's the wall that adjoins the house and all the other external wall too. this is news to me! anyone else had to do this? I'll go through the building regs later when I have more time to see if I can find any information to refute this one but thought I'd ask on here first.

Make sure you only need the LXN4! I thought I’d only need the LXN5 but seriously regret not getting the LXN6 as I ran out of room and will have to put my audio server in the network cabinet

I’ve been looking for filters for my Zhender unit recently. I came across activated carbon filters that fit in the machine. https://cleanfilter.eu/en/product/wernig-comfort-vent-q-350-600-filters/?attribute_filter-set-comfoair-q-350-450-600=Multipack+10xG4&wmc-currency=GBP&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhomg2e_bhgMVc5RQBh18ogEhEAQYAyABEgJfavD_BwE&v=79cba1185463 I’m surprised there isn’t anything similar for yours. NB: I have not bought them nor ever purchased from the company. It was just a Google search.

backhanders? 🤷‍♂️

thanks Gus. all seems to make sense, kind of! and it's good to know that it is possible. it is a balancing act of aesthetics, cost and risk and we need to decide which route we want to go.

we used these https://www.retrotouch.co.uk/crystal-pulse-retractive-switches/crystal-pg-retractivepulse-light-switch-1-gang-black.html but in white to match our touch switches. reasonably quiet and look really nice. come in multiple gangs too. bought from these guys which were the best price i could find. https://www.ashdownhomestore.co.uk/retrotouch-switch-range-181-c.asp edit: sorry just realised you said that worked with the round back boxes. sadly these use the square backbox.