markharro

It will be 1 and 1/2 storey and 230m2 internal floor area if that helps.

I need to agree this with the installer in the next month or so. We are building a 4 bed passive house. the current predicted performance is - Heating demand kWh/(m²a) 19 Heating load W/m² 10 Vaillant offer 3.5 and 5kw pumps. Looking for views on which option to go with? thanks.

Thanks - looks like the White Book is a good resource for soundproofing etc. For what its worth on at least a couple of passivhaus projects I have been to see resilient bars were used for the GF ceilings for soundproofing. Seems to be an easy and hopefully cheap option. On a separate point when our house is built later this year we will need the best solution to soundproof the "TV room" that will be an offshoot from our main living space. The issue is that we will have a wide sliding pocket door between the two spaces - 1.5m from memory when closed. I think its too wide to use a generic door panel but in any event I want the best acoustic option. Can anyone suggest a good option for what we could use?

Basic point I know but what is the "White Book"? Building Regs or something else?

Interesting to read this given that I was planning the same kit as the OP. I had asked Paul to requote adding the Comfopost from memory at the height of last summer I think. My hazy recollection of the logic was to give some cooling ability during the hottest weather. This would then add to running the Vaillant ASHP we plan to get on reverse. Having read this thread I am also wondering if it is worth the extra cost and hassle!?

We had a 2 year battle as well with the first application turned down on pathetic, vague and sketchy grounds. I had no budget for a planning consultant but second time around and via a subtle "complaint" and some psychology we prevailed. But a whole load of stress and time I won't get back. I'm convinced that without the professional skills I have in my day job I would still be at it. I shouldn't have needed to deploy those however.

Hi @Mr Punter - I dont suppose you know where Scottish regs are on this? thanks

I'm trying to understand our 3phase eventual cabling setup. Right now 3phase is on site in a box by the boundary. We have a newly installed smart meter put in as well. When this 3phase supply was installed our outbuildings were connected up to the box and now have power. When our new house is built later this year we plan to take power for the house and associated equipment ie 22kW EV charger and ASHP from the box via a conduit into the new utility room. What I am trying to understand is how this is done with 3phase? eg will I be using one of the phases right now to power the outbuildings? Does this mean that I only have 2 phases left for the main house and everything else? If so, does this mean 2 cables will be brought into the house? How best to plan the wiring in very general overview? Would a 22kW EV charger normally be dedicated a whole single phase? Will any decent electrician know how best to split the 3 phases between the various demands? For info we are building a passivehaus. As well as the EV charger and ASHP there will be the standard MVHR. If budget allows we also would like to fit solar PV and potentially storage. thanks

I'm with Octopus in Scotland and (finally) got 3phase smart meter installed after 6 months of trying with succession of b*lls-ups along the way. Just waiting now to see if it connects properly!

Hi @AdamSee can I check which length of track you were using for the cross cut? I think Makita do 1400mm and 1500mm lengths? Were you using the 1400mm? Keen to know as I need to buy some track soon. Thanks

Anyone have any opinion on this - https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08XZPHKTS/ref=twister_B08ZX24XHL?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1 ooks like by far the cheapest with M class filtration!

Hi and sorry to hear about this. A verbal contract should be binding in a situation like this I would have thought. With verbal contracts the problem is establishing what was agreed. In the first instance it would be useful if you could press them in writing to say if they do at least accept that they did reach an oral agreement with you and, if so, in what terms.

hi @peterw do you have this kit? How do you find it? I have a Makita 18V circular saw and thinking it may be a good way to avoid the cost of a plunge saw?

Hi @divorcingjack how did you get on sealing the floor? We are thinking of the same when we come to lay our slab but to use the Proseal W just after the powerfloat is done. Did you end up using this product? If so how did it go?

Hi @Visti how did you floor go? Any issues? How was it done?

Hi @Dudda we are planning to have our 150mm insulated passive slab as our finished floor surface in our new passive house. There will be UFH pipes laid 50mm below the surface. The company laying the slab will power float it to finish but have cautioned that they cant guarantee the finish. They have also raised the issue of cracking and recommended "expansion joints" but said that they wouldn't install these. From some reading I think I would probably need these crack or contraction joints you mention but my concern would be hitting a UFH pipe. Our slab will be on 2 levels and a total of about 150m2. Is cracking inevitable without joints? How bad could it be? Can cracks be filled if they occur? thanks

Hi we are planning to have a power floated slab as our finished floor surface. I was thinking of applying Sikafloor ProSeal W - https://www.rawlinspaints.com/home/floor-paints/floor-sealers/1542-sikafloor-proseal-w.html?gclid=CjwKCAiAmuKbBhA2EiwAxQnt72lVa5Y-KR9dS83fdH9pL4WPUkN7B6KcZVjnsokdhLAhIF5tM2oVfxoCrF4QAvD_BwE - after the powerfloat. How does the Sika product compare to this Watco sealer? thanks

Ah there may be a problem - this seems to output at 5V and 2.4A and from what I have read online the Homepod needs a minimum of 9V to operate! Thats annoying

Actually, I think I may just have found exactly what I need - https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/SF8909AT.html?source=adwords&ad_position=&ad_id=&placement=&kw=&network=x&matchtype=&ad_type=pla&product_id=SF8909AT&product_partition_id=&campaign=shopping_excluded&version=finalurl_v3&gclid=Cj0KCQiAsdKbBhDHARIsANJ6-jdkcwWJPpdPbp34vpSIt5vrNwm1uBoRWfpm-70j4HK5Bj9iTgLu_NMaAmNMEALw_wcB Would this work?

I have very basic knowledge in this area - I know that normally shaver plug sockets only are allowed. However would there be any option to provide USB C power for this gadget and if so how? thanks

I am trying to plan for whether I need to instal an aerial for Freeview. Does anyone know if there is any likelihood that the full set of Freeview channels will be provided over a standard hard wired broadband connection at any point in the same way you can access eg iplayer? thanks

Thanks very much @AliG - it does look like its the radon area issue that has thrown this up. My argument as you say was that we will put a radon membrane but apparently that's not enough for BC as additional mitigation might be needed if the readings are too high! So that means the hundreds of existing houses in this area can bask in the radon but not us! More £ down the drain and more delay....at times I get so so fed up with this process.

Building control have now thrown a request for a "Geo Environmental" report at me focusing it seems on radon and more general potential contamination although the latter is a compete mystery. BC state "our records show that the property in in a radon zone and very close to an area where historically the land use may have been contaminated". As far as my own research goes the area was all farmland etc under housing was built. In any event I have just spoken to the BC officer and he says that I need to get this report and that its needed for all new build houses he seemed to say. I don't know why my architect didn't flag this up with my months ago as it is now going to hold up our warrant but anyway. @AliG did you need to get one of these reports? It seems like Aitkens can do them - I really wish I knew about this when I got them in for the soil capacity report,.

It is MBC - yes prefab timberframe but that SIPS is it not?

https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/ is a good audio forum. I am trying to decide on my own audio requirements for our new house. I'm lucky that I already have a separate garden office hifi den but I would like to instal something half decent in the house. Like you, we will have a double height kitchen/dining/living room. Ideally I would like to plonk an amplifier in our plant room and then probably use my Innuos Zen as the main source as I can control it via its App on my phone. The only issue with this is how to control the volume as the Innuos Sense App doesnt let you do that I think. This may dictate having to bring the amp into the main living space so I can get line of sight with its remote control. For speakers I was thinking about floor standers but I think they will get in the way. I may get a decent pair of bookshelf speakers and wall mount them. The other option is to use flush mounted ceiling speakers but I am not sure the audio quality would satisfy me. I am also trying to decide about audio in the bathroom - this would be via ceiling speakers but here the issue is the source and volume control - I may have to look into raspberry pi media servers and work out if I can use that as a streaming source and control content and volume from a phone app. Something like an Apple homepod probably makes more sense for hands free but there is the issue of how you use that in a bathroom and being too miserly to pay for the Apple music content.