Alan Ambrose

Won’t the eps / compactfoam compress with the load tho? i should say I have a similar detail coming up, so I’m v interested in a robust solution.

OK that's interesting. I can see these plastic battens: https://www.kedel.co.uk/battens/BS2505150.html - 50x25x3m solid 11.67 each Low Profile Composite Decking Joists/Battens 3m | Dino Decking 50x30x3m hollow 7.50 each Brown Plastic Square Sub Frame W 40 x H 40 x L 3000mm - F H Brundle 40x40x3m solid 7.30 each Strikes me that with all the plastic waste we get through, that recycled plastic s.b. cheap and plentiful. Thermowood prices seen a bit more elusive atm. This could be cut down to 25x50mm at about 6.75 for 3m length. Thermowood Pine Batten | 25mm x 100mm | Woodlands DIY Store

Having monkeyed around with some blue 'graded' roofing batten a couple of days ago I was unimpressed - a pilothole-less screw driven through it would cause it to shatter. Is there a better quality of batten? e.g. What are the people with fancy cladding, cedar, larch etc using as battens for their nice hard wood rain screen?

New datacentres risk doubling Great Britain’s electricity use, regulator says: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/feb/23/new-datacentres-risk-doubling-uk-electricity-use-ofgem-peak-demand

Can I ask what went kaput with the old one - I was about to buy one of those.

Maybe it doesn't matter much practically ... by the time the LPA has sent the enforcement peeps around to take a look and they've worked through their processes ... then you'll have gained PD rights anyway. You put up PV panels and didn't have them on your planning drawings? Please take them off again. But drat, now you have PD rights - damn you can leave them up.

Yeah, that's a good solution. Here's my OCD non-exhaustive mini-analysis for anyone that cares: I figure I want W1 & fire protection, so am inclined to use Illbruck ME050 FR.

This guy is hilarious

As usual, I've got into this in an 'over-enthusiastic' manner... I see some membranes with fire ratings of A1, A2 (OK for high rises), B1 (does burn a bit) or none (you can bet it burns). I see some with UV ratings of from 3 to 12 months (or none at all). I see water penetration of W1 (just doesn't) and W2 (leaks a bit). Some at 2 quid / m^2, some 8x that. Question is: how much do we care? how much does BC care? I'm thinking all re clad timber frame, of course.

I guessed 😄, congrats on your new grandchild.

@LSB >>> looking at baby prams Congrats :). We have the 21 degrees guy calling in at our home address i.e. IP6 late afternoon, so would be pushed to make 5pm. Agree that seeing it in the light would be better than stumbling around in the dark😄. Shall we all make a date for say Thurs March 19th? Sunset is about 6pm then apparently. Happy to host a plot visit - might be marginally more interesting as by then we should have the structure of our walls 'watertight'.

>>> Don't they still have / utilise 'exchanges' for fibre? Surely it's not direct from source? As I understand it a direct fibre from exchange to you. In a bundled cable with other fibres of course - except for the last drop to you. Cables joined every few km I believe. >>> Although it worked, we found it to be sluggiish and very tempermental at best. The speed of mobile connection, of course, depends on where the local cell towers are and whether you have good sight of then, which networks they carry, whether they have 5G or not, whether you're using an antenna and how good it is, how well it's positioned, and also how clever your router is. I was surprised to see I had 60 Mbps download yesterday, and we're quite rural.

But...AI datacentres are slurping up all the leccy and the ram and the hard drives ... so maybe not for long: Western Digital Has No More HDD Capacity Left, as CEO Reveals Massive AI Deals; Brace Yourself For Price Surges Ahead! https://counterpointresearch.com/en/insights/7times-memory-price-surge-threatens-telcos-broadband-router-set-topbox-supply

@G and J @zzPaulzz @GaryChaplin @Nick Laslett @JohnnyB @marshian Well if it's just us - am I right in thinking you're IP17 too? If so, you're quite welcome to take a look at my plot else The Poachers maybe? What time suits?

It shouldn't do - are you sure it's not just your own router or OR's ONT going dead?

A4 80 - We have to use it for fasteners into oak and we also used it for resin anchors into our slab. The galling this isn't a real problem if you use some anti-seize. It does have the advantage over standard steel in that it won't have all rusted away in 50 years if it's mildly damp.

I have scraped those off pretty well in the past with a scraper but ... I believe people are concerned about the asbestos risk these days.

It depends entirely on your neighbours. My LPA has taken to fabricating nonsense sourced from my evil neighbour and has recently segued though: i. The building is too high. ii. You are planning unauthorised engineering operations. iii. Your intention is to raise the ground levels on the site. iv. There is unreasonable overlooking. ... and asked me to submit a VOC covering whatever it is they're actually talking about. I've submitted a VOC essentially telling them they need to get better training - I'm sure that will go down well. ... I should add that none of the accusations are true and the Enforcement Officer has not produced any evidence. Doesn't stop them being a nuisance though. p.s. submit a VOC and they won't bother you for 8 weeks or so, and they never will (at least over that issue) if they approve it. That is, you don't need for it to be approved before you start, although you might have a backup plan in case they don't.

That’s all a bit concerning, but are there implications for self build?

Me too. There’s a slightly more pricey ‘hydraulic’ one which is quiter. I’m finding that we drive most screws though with combis or drill/drivers.

Strongest would be good.

@G and J @zzPaulzz @GaryChaplin @Nick Laslett @JohnnyB @marshian Next Thurs work for you?

>>> At the same time, I'd like to raise the ridge height 200mm so that FFL is a bit higher than the surrounding ground level. Don't most elevation drawings have ridge relative to ground level anyway so FFL is generally unimportant? Agree VOC's are a bit odd, also the question of whether to file them for inconsequential stuff. Currently my planners want me to do a VOC for a dumb clarification on the elevations. Nothing changes (i.e. it's not a 'variation') - it will just massage the ego of a junior enforcement person.

Great

>>> Should I favour any specific brand? +1 Plasson