Fallingditch

When they quote '257 sq m' - is there an agreed method for calculating this? One which all estate agents use?

Looks excellent Tom! Being in rural Hereford, are you able to say how much real interest there was when it came to trying to sell a 'modernist' house? Is there unsatisfied demand out there? I don't think I have ever seen a Developer-built modernist house - so its great that the tradition (it all started in the 1930's after all) is being kept alive. I know the standard of your internal fixtures and fittings was very high - it retrospect, are you able to say if that made a difference?

Concrete! We like concrete!! Well done, and appreciate the journey ;-)

The trays were supplied by an eBay Plumbing supplier based in Sheffield. They were bought by my sub so he will have to do the chasing. Off we go ...

I am employing subcontractors on a T&M basis. This should have been spotted but it wasn't. I am going to have to negotiate something here. It will be a real PITA to replace and there will be costs but at the same time I don't think we can live with this. So the next question is, anyone know where to source trays of these sizes (which are flat FFS) ? (And how does the industry get away with this level of quality control? do end users just accept shower trays which don't drain? Do manufacturers send them out of the factory door whatever the quality? Do Distributors accept them and resell them whatever the qualiity?)

Thanks for all the constructive comments! Really helps. I know nothing about shower trays and how to lay them :-( Trays are 900 x 1500 and 900 x 1800. I am pretty sure that both are standard builders merchants acrylic capped stone resin. They have been laid to flat: The surface of the tray itself shows an incline, so water should be flowing towards the plug: However, the surface of the tray is not itself flat. It is bowed in the centre. The tray is bowed in the centre: So it sure looks like this is the reason why water is not draining adequately: manufacturing defect.

Problem. Two shower trays have been installed. (I did not source them; I don't know where they came from but I can find out). One is 900 x 1500; the other 900 x 1800. They are walk in showers, with simple glass screens. There is a problem. Neither of them are flat. They are bowed in the middle. So the water on the plughole long side drains away, but the water on the opposite doesn't. 12 hours after taking a shower, puddles of unclean water remain in the tray. So even though they have tiled in, sealed etc, I am not a happy bunny - this problem is not going to go away. Suggestions, please?

To pick up on @recoveringacademics point, I use not only Opensignal, but also Cell Map and Network Cell Ino Lite to try and see where the mast might be. Thing is, they all report differently as to the location of the mast my phone has locked to - its almost random! And none of them agree with Mastdata :-(

We're in a rural location. We moved in five weeks ago. We have a BT ADSL line - about three miles to the exchange - but it is regularly interrupted for days at a time by weather related problems. So I decided to use a Router capable of working from two separate Broadband feeds (TP-Link R470T for about £30.00) and capable of switching between them if one was interrupted. Also, we fitted a static antenna high up (12m) on the gable end, so there should be no problem with signal. So far so good (although I am still trying to understand how the Router should best be configured). However. The Mobile Broadband is supplied by 3. When we moved in, I was pleased to see that Speedtest.net reported that we were consistently getting 3MBS download speed (and 3MBS upload speed). About the same performance as the BT ADSL line. But two weeks ago, the 3 performance became suddenly much worse. It would typically start the day at 3MBPS, then fall of a cliff and drop to 0.1MBPS where it would stay for the rest of the day. Or, it would sit at 0.5 MBS all day. Whatever, there was a big deterioration. I reported the fault to 3. They said (last week) they were going to be working on the mast. After the work was finished, they asked me to check performance. There was a slight improvement. I asked 3 to explain. The only cause they were able to give me was "the mast can only take so many connections. Clearly your mast is really popular, and its the load put on it which is causing the issues". (Well they would say that wouldn't they). They wouldn't tell me where my mast actually is (so I can go stand next to it and measure performance there). They wouldn't tell me what their engineers did. . (The obvious solution for me is to switch to Vodafone. But there are reasons why I am reluctant to do that). So, can anybody point me at resources which allow me to find out more about how individual masts work? How to locate your mast? How to check your masts reliability? and performance and loading? How to find out whether or when a mast might be upgraded to 4G? NB at exactly the same time that 3 were working on their mast, the Vodafone service available at the house jumped to 4G - I assume this was coincidence??

Welcome! This place is an absolute goldmine. Search for 'How To' specifics - but if you don't find what you need, post and you will invariably get a response. Couldn't have built ours without it (and yes, we are still building too, and yes, our bats are still around )

"Anyone know of good online reading about LEDs in house builds? " A few comments Try searching the site for "24V" - there's quite a lot of stuff under that heading. When you say LED's, I assume you mean strips. Or you might mean panels. LED square or round panels are IMO an excellent alternative to compact fluorescent to provide general background lighting. In fact, we have done the whole house in LED panels (as have others). Very few negative comments. For rooms of size say 3m x 4m, I have found 2 x 18w panels provide ideal illumination. Here is a picture of the kitchen diner with an array of 4 + 2 panels over the worktop: You can also get LED sconces, btw. (NB all from ebay - I cannot provide assurance as to the interference or longevity but at £9 each I will take that risk). We are also planning to fit strips to the plinths etc. One more thing - I do think lighting plans are worth doing. Makes you think it all through - especially switch positions and how it will work in practice. Here's my amateur effort for that big kitchen/diner. The row of four is at the top of the plan. Two-way switches at each end of the room allow the array to be switched on/off independently: It worked for the electrician I originally thought about putting is a 24V circuit to drive all panels and strips - but in the end I couldn't justify the expense. So all the individual panels come with their own transformers (which may come back and bite me) but the 4 strips are run from 2 x 24v transformers.

This is a somewhat unusual request. Here is a Hansgrohe Focus E bidet mixer with the head removed: The parts list for this mixer can be found here: https://spares.hansgrohe.co.uk/etk/UK/product/31720000/8796459937635.seam?fsid=&q=31720000&lang=en_GB&wcms=UK# The problem with this mixer is that the rubber tails are at risk of failing and should therefore be replaced. According to Hansgrohe, the mixer can be completely disassembled. New tails and other parts are available ex stock. However the white plastic component, visible in the top of the mixer, has become very securely wedged in place, and none of the people round here has been able to shift it. Without removing it, we cannot get the tails out. So my question is this does anybody know of anyone offering a service who would refurbish a mixer tap? I would simply buy a new one, but they discontinued this model in December 2016 (wish I'd known) and every other tap in the house (six of them) is a Focus E - it would be really annoying to have to put a non-matching one in at this stage of the proceedings! (I know that many people will thing this is a bit OTT, but thats what happens when you build a house …)

Near to me there is a big plumbers merchant. They must have fifty vanity units on display, from well known brand names. IMHO - all crap. Badly put together. Doors slam shut. Drawer runners cheap Chinese rubbish - but the thing which really gets me is the price tag: £300.00 ... £400.00 ... £500.00 The best I've seen is from a well known German manufacturer - but their prices start at £500 and go up to several times that. What I don't understand is that while there is a very big market in self assembly kitchens, and which makes use of quality runners, hinges and handles, I cannot find any supplier of DIY vanity units which use runners etc from Blum, Grass or Hettich.

There's a company in England which imports extra long worktops from a German company called Getalit. I ordered a 4.5m one. Cost around £500 including shipping etc. Took three weeks and arrived today. I believe they go significantly longer than that. So its not the cheapest, but its good to see a long run without joins.

100%. If you want top reliability, its Miele. And there's not much downside to buying secondhand. New prices are high, so save searches on ebay/gumtree for the specific models you require. So far I have sourced W.Machine, fully integrated Dishwasher, LPG Gas Hob, Kitchen Extractor. All about half price. Just takes longer and you have to go pick them up. But I can attest that they all last for more than ten years and I cant recall the last time a repair was needed.

And here it is: 'the Ramsay Original' ... ("Note: We DO NOT supply the trapdoor cover".) Pull it down with a pole; nip up; nip down; push it up with the pole. So I wonder - can any of the creative handiworkers on this thread suggest a trapdoor cover which I could use to get a good seal? and a method of insulating that cover?

Did you have any joy? A cheap and cheerful one got fitted for me and it is absolute rubbish. I understand many people's focus has been on sealing the thing, but I have to say I am most interested in the ergonomics - sourcing a ladder that that can be easily raised and lowered - pulling it/pushing it with a pole? My dad had an aluminium one years ago - worked a treat!

Er, that didn't come up. My Project Manager didn't mention it, and he has built a few houses. Guess I'm following Scottish regulations ...

We originally said we are definitely not going to move in until it's ready. But the build is going on longer than we thought, and we planned for. The rent is a significant drain on resources. So never say never. We have two working bedrooms and an office. In the kitchen we have hob, granite worktop, dishwasher, sink and kitchen table. Bathroom-wise we have one WC (3 to go), 0 showers (1 promised for tomorrow), 0 basins (there's always the kitchen sink) - but hey there's a door on the WC. Balustrades and handrails, kitchen extract, nine more doors, washing machine, freezer - who knows? The big question however is whether the fact that we are on site will cause the builders to take longer (because they can't find anything anymore) or complete the work faster (because having the customer on site is so irritating.) But ultimately, 13 months since we demolished the house we've owned for forty years, we've now built and moved into its replacement. Feels strange. But I have to say I absolutely could never have done it without the help and support of contributors to this site - so a big thank you to all. And for anyone thinking of embarking on a similar journey - well I think it's a pretty cool thing to do. ?

Seemed to work ! Thanks @Carrerahill !! (Via UPS in the end)

Thanks for the suggestion but they seem to insure to a max of £50 ... and I need more than that. (Also BTW its a stainless steel sink so it not actually prohibited with Interparcel)

I would not recommend this supplier. They just suggested I "fill in the UKMail Form". UKMail have a subsidiary "https://www.ukmail.com/parcel-services/ipostparcels". Unfortunately IPostParcels only carry items up to a certain size - and of course my sink is slightly bigger than their standard size !

Yes. "UKMail". But they are set up for the business market. Getting a one off with them is very difficult - they dont answer the phone. Seems to me that sink suppliers do special deals with courier companies, who then only courier in one direction!

I bought a kitchen sink. I bought it in haste. It cost a little short of £300.00. 1050 x 600 x 300. 15 kg. I then bought a different sink. I contacted the supplier (300 miles away in the North East) and arranged a return for the original sink. But ... Now I that just about every courier company includes sinks on their list of excluded items, viz: "Prohibited Items: The following items (or any item similar in description or content) can not be carried on any service. Any person sending such an item may be subject to their order being cancelled without notice: Active Model Phones Outside The EU Aerosol Aftershaves Airbag Ammunition Animals Of Any Form (Alive Or Dead)" etc etc etc Help! Anyone any suggestions for a courier who will ship the sink back ?!? Can't leave it too much longer ...

No. He is now banned. Its all been relaid to acceptable standards - I think all in all I took a £500.00 hit on an area of 50 sq m but could have been a whole lot worse. Have to say that in hindsight, the tiling in all aspects has been one of the biggest problem areas (for different reasons, including us not being able to make our minds up).