jonM

@Ferdinand No, the framework pergola doesn't defray sunlight much.The two struts at the far end are however much further apart and will at some stage be used to support a retractable canopy over the picture window which will give some shade outside in the summer and help to minimise any temperature gain inside. It can also be retracted or removed in window to maximise passive solar gain. Pitch on main roof is 34 degrees. Dorma is finished with EPDM (folded not cut).

No blog in a year and then two in one week ! Having finished and moved in, I would like to pass on my sincere thanks to my fellow forum members for their help and inspiration. Whilst the decision to follow a fabric first / passivhaus approach had been made before I discovered the forum, the information in the blogs and posts was a huge help. Some of the areas where the forum had a direct influence on my decisions included: Inspiration - Many of the blogs - Warranty - Finance - ASHP coolant (CO2 or not) - Suppliers - Services - Where to get good prices - VAT refunds - CIL exemptions and many other things as well. Finally, a special mention to that administrators for working on a voluntary basis to keep the forum going. Hopefully, when things get back to normal, I will have an opportunity to meet a few of you face to face and thank you in person.

My Warranty was with selfbuildzone. They were fine with me using a passive slab.

@Nickfromwales Thanks for the kind words. The brief I gave to the architect was quite concise and is contained in the thread above. We looked at putting a study downstairs but that would have made the utility quite pokey so then took a look at the landing. Most of the good ideas were the architects interpretation of my brief and he came up with some ideas I would never have thought of. The study window is raised up from the desk for example so I can see out of the window but no-one can see me working at the desk. I am working from home full time at the moment and the space is working really well for me.

First all my apologies as this blog entry is about about a year late given that we moved in August 2019, but better late than never as they say ! Moving on from finishing the shell, we moved onto completing the inside. We knew from previous experience this would be the most intensive part of the build and had tried to make as many decisions up front as we could regarding bathrooms, kitchens and flooring, nevertheless there were still a lot of decisions to make. Everything went broadly to plan with the electricians, plumber, carpenters and decorator all working well round each other and coordinated by the builder who had put up the shell. There was an awful lot of work ordering everything and making sure that material was on-site at the right time. There was the occasionally thing that didn't go to plan, most notably the kitchen where i had the bad luck to have my kitchen delivered with many missing and damaged components and a supplier who took 8 weeks to sort everything out. The trades were proactive and happy to suggest how we might achieve what we were looking for which was a great help, but by the end of the project we were both fit to drop. Self build is a very rewarding but exhausting business. Here are some pictures of the finished house. There is still a little bit of landscaping work, the fencing and some furniture to sort out and I guess at some stage we will sort out some blinds to replace the high-tech cardboard that is doing the job at the moment. Following the build, we sorted out the VAT refund - 500+ invoices and a £32,000 refund for VAT. I ordered just about everything and given the number of invoices I got someone to prepare the submission to HMRC this for me which was money well spent. The electrical certificate, certificate for the unvented cylinder, building certificate and warranty were sorted out and finally the last submission for the CIL exception was made. The Dog seems to like her new home ! Still a bit of work to do in the garden View from the study window

You can get an 11.5kw Mitsubishi with a 250L Mitsubishi tank for £4600 + VAT from Secon. https://www.seconsolar.com/mitsubishi-pre-plumbed-standard-cylinder-package-3364-p.asp They are trade only but should give you an account if you let them know you are a self builder. If you have a Mitsubishi registered installer locally who will install the ASHP, then this would would work out a more cost effective approach. I have a ASHP with oversized radiators. The system works very well, but my house is well insulated and airtight.

My delivery was 150 miles away. The first delivery driver seemed very unhappy with his job which may have gone someway to explaining the damage.

It took 8 deliveries over an 8 week period for DIY Kitchens to get my order right. The first delivery had damage to 6 units. In spite of advertising to match appliance prices, they wouldn't match when I found some cheaper prices on the ovens. When I raised a ticket they said they had a 2 day sla to answer the ticket although I did eventually find an individual who helped me out more quickly. My support ticket had 21 updates on it ! couple of the girls on after sales did their best for me, but they seemed understaffed and the production side of things left a lot to be desired. The units that made up the island were 3mm out of square. One more point worth noting is that they won't zero rate the invoice to supply/fit the granite / quartz worktops if you order off them as they outsource this. If you have a local worktop place, that might be a better bet. I have self built 2 houses and they were the worst supplier I have dealt with. Problems do happen but it was really hard work trying to sort it all out. A It really screwed my schedule up and increased my labour cost. I did get some money back off them but it nowhere near covered my additional costs.

We laid an unfinished engineered wood throughout the house and then applied an ultra matt waxoil finish https://www.peakoak.co.uk/wood-care/wood-finishes/blanchon-hard-waxoil/ Early days, but we are delighted with the results. We have previously used Karndean, but found that it would scratch.

PM'd a recommendation as well.

It depends on what the quote includes and the size of the house. My house was a stick built 174 sq.m house and to give you an idea the I-joists and glulam beams required cost £9200 ex vat.

@JSHarris - I think you are right. The team that built the frame put the windows in and their attention to detail was excellent. I am not sure if 0.08 ACH makes a discernable difference to how comfortable the house is to live in compared to other houses built to passivhaus standards but it is reassuring to know that such care has been taken in this area.

@jack - We just moved in this week ! Still a lot of boxes around to be unpacked. You are right, no sliders or bifolds which does help. Second pressure test also came in at 0.08 ACH @ 50 pa. We have a big picture window at the back with a window seat. Thought we would get more use from that than sliders A few bits and pieces still to finish off, but hope to be totally finished in 3-4 weeks apart from the garden. Will post another update as soon as my broadband gets hooked up.

Thanks very much. The house is 174 sq.m. Completion to lockable shell of house including groundworks and foundations cost around £175,000 excluding professional fees. I didn't do any labour myself, just ordered the material in. We are just about to move in, so another blog posting is both over due and imminent ! Interior costs will come in at around £800 sq.m. Architect designed a house that looked good but was cost effective to build. I feel that his fees were a good investment.

My conveyancing fees were £850 for my remortgage. It will work out at about £1100 when I sell my house.

The highest scoring coffee machine in "Which" is a Delonghi scultura which is about a tenth of the price of a Jura https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/household-appliances/small-kitchen-appliances/coffee-machines-and-accessories/coffee-machines/delonghi-scultura-ecz351bk-coffee-machine-black-10012308-pdt.html It takes either ground coffee or capsules, so if you wanted to use coffee beans you would have to grind them yourselves, but then again if you only drink black coffee, much of the functionality in a bean to cup machine would go to waste. Bean to cup machines are also very big !

Looks great. Well done on getting this far.

We have a range cooker (gas hob / electric oven) at the moment. It has been a trusty workhorse which has done us well for 15 years but have gone for fan ovens and an induction hob in our new house. In terms of responsiveness, temperature control, features the latter seemed to win on an every score.

Me neither. We have an isoquick slab and warranty.

In terms of price, Nibe is the Rolls Royce of heat pumps. I had a quote for supply and installation of a Nibe 4kw heat pump and cylinder of 11K. I am using a Mitsubishi heat pump and cylinder which I paid £3.7K for. Your Stelrad rads are about £300 each online so again a significant markup. We are not bothering with RHI as the house is passivhaus and the cost of the monitoring equipment required would outweigh income.

I have 2600mm ceilings downstairs and cathedral ceilings upstairs. I think the extra height is well worth it. Just the bathroom and en-suite have standard ceilings which give me a small amount of storage space.

You can start putting together a list of requirements for the house even if you haven't found the plot. That forms a useful basis for instructing an architect if you choose to use one and is a great way to evaluate a plot as well.

I used Isoquick. My groundworkers had used the system once before and so it wasn't too much of a stretch for them. In theory I don't see why groundworkers without experience of this system couldn't be used as long as they are open to a using a different system and are able/used to working to a high level of accuracy. https://www.advancedfoundationtechnologylimited.co.uk/# do supply and install. I did take a look but didn't use them. Not sure how expensive it would work out.

Your UK price is very similar to the price I paid for an order of 440 bags.

I've built most of my current house on T&M and have been very happy with the way that has worked out. It requires trust on both sides but I've found that trades working on T&M have done a great job and been good value. I have also purchased almost all of my own material and it is quite staggering how much money you can save doing that. If you have a limited amount of time available then I think that the best way to save money is to purchase your own material. None of the trades have been able to match my prices. Prior to my first self build I did an NVQ in bricklaying. I was about 10 times slower than the professionals and the results weren't as good even after 2 years of evening classes. I came to the conclusion I was better off earning money to paying trades who knew what they were doing.