openthegate

Hi Tuftythesquirrel in Narberth How did you eventually get on with the BCO. Did you do the work yourself and then have the BCO (or a sparky on their behalf) inspect the work after first fix/second fix. Cheers Chris (just down the M4 in Bridgend)

That is interesting - the kitchen sink is directly above the proposed location of the HWC so should be ideal. I hadn't thought about using 10mm but that makes really good sense. Yes it is irksome you can not easily get hot filled washing machines - apparently a means of cutting costs rather than anything to do with economy. Although I did come cross some from EBAC https://www.ebac.com/washing-machines/features the other day (and made in Britain as well) Timber frame - Twin stud with 300mm breathable insulation in the walls. Aiming to get to passive house levels of insulation/air tightness etc. (although I don't think it is worth all the effort and costs of actually getting certified)

Many thanks for the super suggestions - taken a number on board and attached a revision of the plant room plus included the ground floor plan to give a bit of context of positioning. (still waiting for elevations from the architect so cant show those). @PNAmble - sounds like our builds are quite similar! - our kitchen is also above the plant room. What are you doing for heating(UFH/radiators?) on each floor. MVHR input/output placed on the same wall to keep air pressure equalised. ASHP moved further East to allow space for MVHR intake. Positioning on the southern side is not an option (too close to the bedrooms), although it seems that there is no real noticeable difference in ambient air temperatures (locating on south side v north). Unvented HWC (HWC) - moved close to the ASHP and run pipes in the space rather in a slab via a long duct - simpler and easier to change in the future should the need arise. My initial thought was place the HWC as close as possible to the bath/showers in order to shorten pipe runs but energy expert Dave Hilton ( https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/advice/air-source-heat-pump-positioning ) maintains distance from the manifold/HWC is key. A bit of conundrum, so going for a compromise and will place the manifold/HWC to be roughly equidistant between the ASAP and bath/showers. Combined the two rooms into one room but retained an internal door - I think it feels better to keep the sink well away from the electrics. Inverter - retained to be outside the thermal area - it is out of the sun and weather , my understanding is it will (hopefully) last a bit longer working in a cooler environment and avoids having the extra heat internally in the summer. Battery - retained internally, I get the concern over the potential fire hazard - in (hopefully never) event of a fire then it will kick off the fire alarm and the sprinklers which you will not get quite so easily if located on the outside wall. Using Kiosk alongside the plant room is an interesting idea to reduce slab duct connections - will look into that.

Hi all - The combined wisdom on here is unrivalled and I have picked up countless tips - ever so useful. So I thought I would pick your brains! We are still getting plans ready for the planning application. The house is going to be built into the side of a hill (with a gap of around 1.2m between the house and retaining wall.) It works out best for the views (and light) to have an upside down house with bedrooms on the ground floor and living areas on the first floor - where the front door will open out to the roadside. The light on the North/West sides is quite limited and it makes sense to put the plant and utility spaces here. Attached is an my initial thought on the layout of the plant/utility space and where to place any ducts - the plan is go for a fabric first approach which includes ensuring all the external connections go through the slab rather through the walls to reduce the cold bridging. My rational for the layout is: ASHP on the north façade - placed the un-vented hot water cylinder much further into the centre of the house so the bath/shower/washing machine are all close to minimise the hot water pipe lengths. By moving this to the Utility space I though it would then be a sensible option to have all the water centric kit (washing machine/dryer/UHC/UFH) separate from the electrical kit. Placed the inverter externally to avoid over heating (as suggested by Jeremy H) - it is not in sun light and there is a cover over as well. Is the layout sensible - any suggestions - all thoughts gratefully received. Thank you.