markc

If you need to cut into the down pipe, holesaw for round holes, dremel type machine with a cutting disk for straight lines / squares etc

I wouldn’t worry about that, no signs of settling away from first brick course, loads of bearing either side and brickwork above looks good. Lintel looks to be cast in situ so good chance it cracked while drying out.

I reckon this is just wind blown water with you saying stormy weather.

I’m guessing detergent .. looks too white for anything else

Inchworms are the larvae of geometer moths … 2.54cm worms doesn’t have the same ring to it.

You should use max. “Potential” voltage or open circuit voltage

I use Tapo plugs and you can control by app but also turn on/off using the button, nice bit is that if you manually over-ride, the next schedule cycle reverts back to auto control.

I would go simple heater (thermostat) and add any control for timer etc. far too much stuff now that requires an app to use it. i have just put two oil filled rads in my workshop but controlled with smart plugs for timing

A guy I used to work with was ok in metric as long as they were whole numbers in 100mm increments - everything else was an imperial add-on. 3500mm - 3.5m 3600mm - 3.6m 3612mm - 3.6m and 1/2 inch it made setting out conversations interesting to others.

Generally you don’t want any “pooling” points in ductwork, but if air is always moving then any condensation that does form should be quickly moved as it evaporates again.

Really depends on whether you need the drain, if it’s all redundant, seal it up. You don’t need to excavate anything if the end is in your house and it’s not used, just pour some concrete in. If you cannot get to the end that’s in your place, dig as close as you can, find the pipe and break it, then backfill the hole.

Keeping the post inside of the thermal envelope is the best option. A post inline with the outside looks great but presents you with a big thermal bridge.

Do you mean the glazing bars or the capping strips that retain the glass? Glass on outside keeps windows cleaner and easier to clean. In the past when glass panes were smaller, glass would go in from outside and finished / sealed with putty.

To keep cost down, Keep It Simple. If you want the brick facia, why not double skin blockwork and front / fascia using cladding although the design / render must be above 3m high so you will probably have to lose the step and thin down the roof / facia. definitely insulation under the slab and you might as well do walls while doing blockwork - or blown beads later on.

Motor?

Builder will have asked fabricator for a quote so you could ask to see it, remember nothing wrong with builder adding his cut, probably 20% because it’s not a simply buy in and there would have been some messing about. assuming you get the quote (remember you cannot really ask for any discount etc now) send it over and I will take a look, peace of mind rather than anything else.

Free standing gate? Rolling gate would be much easier than a swing gate in this case. as above, a 205l barrel filled with concrete will be around 500kgs, that doesn’t give you much unless it’s a light gate, quite narrow or end of gate runs on a support wheel.

Excavation costs come down to access and muck-away, obvious proximity to water means constant pumping until concrete is water tight. But your “big” item here is the coffer dam to hold the canal away while you finish the approach and gate etc. CRT (canal river trust) can be a pain to work with on something like this. i would be erring towards the upper end of @Conor estimate

In an off grid system you take the neutral and earth back to the inverter terminals, no need for any earth spike etc. - this is similar to an inverter in a motor home or boat etc.

You could start by asking where all the rubbish has come from? They may say other jobs and we are lumping together to then get one grab wagon etc. (more efficient than lots of small skips). If so then you should have been consulted and you will expect a discount and/or the area made good at their cost.

Gutter on outside of the envelope and then cladding in front with access to downpipes if needed (removable cladding section etc). haven’t read rest of post/s so might be barking up the wrong tree

I have been in a few jobs where the piles under a pool were to hold it down, not up. Many of the boat shaped fibreglass pools have recommendations to build the earth around then rather than plant them in the ground.

Hi and welcome, a 4”” sewer won’t be from many or only one property so a move is not difficult at all. If it was a bigger one that would be a different matter altogether.

I am just installing a pretty big system using Victron inverters etc. from EnergyMonkey

I used garage doors online and bought a sectional insulated door from Teckentrup, had to fit myself but it’s a good door and garage doors online were really good.