PeterW

I’ve got a spreadsheet somewhere that maps the usage to the rainfall - basically I need 3300 litres and we would be able to use that for toilets and garden etc, an outside tap would be used to top it up if needed but to be honest I can’t see why we would go to that currently as it’s decades on payback.

Soakaways are now pretty mandatory for new builds - 5m from the house, make it 2.5m deep, 2m square, line it with geotex and then dump 4 tonne bags of 20mm gravel in , cap with geotex and then fill it back in ... That works on most reasonably porous soils - if you hit clay or gault then you may get away with a combined sewer.

The door openers are usually a lot stronger than just the locks as they hold the door tight into the frame at the centre. Mine has a Kevlar reinforced belt and when it’s shut due to the worm gear motor you cannot push against it even with the power off. From memory I believe a lot of the motor manufacturers say they are more secure than a standard door.

C’mon, let’s see this coffee roaster ..! BuildHub coffee anyone ...???

If you do DPM line it then it means you can treat the timber with a preservative without any fear of the trees being affected. 600mm DPM is ideal for this job.

Knowing the warranty companies well, I would turn that back on them. They will have had a set of plans and will have been given the opportunity to specify any amendments or terms. Ours will not cover the wine cellar for example as it’s a pre-existing structure that could not be fully inspected. If they required a certain standard then they need to state up front, not make an unreasonable demand at point of inspection ...

Brickie and renderer will want full runs - they set corners and work inwards. Your minimum run will be the largest length of the building in that case.

Yep - can be a pain to get spares for, and watch where the water comes in. With Geberit you can service the whole thing through the flush plate, not sure that’s the same with Grohe.

They are produced by a process using foamed plastic extrusion, where about 30% is virgin PVC and the rest is a mix of thermosetting and thermoplastic re-grind. The new plastic forms the “glue” around them. We discussed this a while back but that’s about blocks I believe...? Nothing wrong with them per se but they can be variable in quality and consistency based on the type of regrind used.

Yes if you are using it to seal big gaps - normally caused by poor dot and dab - but there are foams that are designed to bond plasterboard to block walls. They deliver a more solid feel tbh and are quicker but the blockwork needs to be near perfect as you can’t sort the problems like you can with D&D adhesive.

No but ask for one with a door ..! Wheeling up 4ft is a long way up ...

More about the howling gale blowing from one side to the other ..!!

Wondered if you were using those ..! Where did the intumescent pads come from ..?

So..... very tidy work but how are you dealing with the holes in the back of the units from a fire resistance perspective where they go through the walls ..?

Yep same thing.

I would pull the door back to the wall and hinge from there, and then have a single panel to the right. 8mm tempered glass should be £450-500 at most

Do you mean they have fully breached the cavity with block..?? Thats a monumental cold bridge and should have a cavity closer in it instead. We used these, and they perform both the DPC and insulated closure. I then taped them to the inner block with air tight tape. Graphite blown bead into the cavity following this. The contractors know that they don't drill or fill directly above the window opening so no issues there. Beads will fall and compact over 8m, and a width of 2m easily so you get no cold areas.

Yep no issue with that as long as your "I" Beams or roof joists aren't being manufactured to order as they will be x or y mm too long. I regularly increase a steel to just buy xM of a standard size using the minimums needed. For example I had all of six of my steels as 7.7m 178x102x25 as the main roof needed 178 but the side 152 - difference in price was negligible and we didn't need to try and work out which went where, we just trimmed 50mm off two to fit... If you look at the SV timber table, and then look up the Spec for GL32c you will see the flex/strength spec for the beams. Check with Tanner that a GL28c is not strong enough as that has a significant strength especially as you don't need a 10-12m length.

Nope. Wrong again. Standard Build here, trench fill with medium weight block and then EPS infill ground slab. Poured slab in a single day (10 cuM) at 11:30am, bull floated only as used self compacting flowing concrete and by 4pm we had done and levelled 94sqm of concrete. With the exception of a piece about 20cm long to the side of an existing internal wall which we had to float from one side via an existing doorway, the slab is +/- 3mm on level across the whole of a 22m x 4.5m L shaped slab. Total difference in cost from cheap as $h!t C25 to flowing was £24 per cube so an additional £240. No power float needed, and no hassle. And that was by me, my brickie and a labourer so not a skilled team. So you can get level, just sounds like you are employing the wrong team....

PEFC is just that it comes from a sustainable forest. GL32c is a standard beam spec for that size as it relates to the strength - SV Timber do what you want, give them a call https://www.svtimber.co.uk/glulam.html

How much do you actually need ..??? Give us a rough idea and we can help with the numbers. Most self build policies cover scaffolding, and your contractors have their own duty of care to ensure that the scaffold they use is adequate and fit for purpose. I used to check our kwikstage every day, with a sharp tap on every wedge to ensure it’s tight and all the boards are in place. I will be selling mine soon as it’s done me well over 10 months - works out to about £20 a week for 48x16ft all told.

If you are that worried then specify in your brickwork tendering that all splits must be machine cut. Its not a big issue - that is the least of your worries ..!!

Taylors round here use timber frame - as do Bovis and a number of the other volume builders. Faster to market, easier to finish, quicker to first fix. The list goes on. Labour is your biggest variation not materials.

None at all ... it’s only an offence to restrict reasonable access to the highway. A court would not find a temporary restriction - especially as you’ve tried to give notice - unreasonable. @Stones may be able to give you a definitive answer

It’s good to know we can help other people - it can appear pretty lonely as you stand looking at a muddy hole that’s just swallowed £20k of your savings and you think “why did I start this.....?”