Oz07

Your better option is maybe to buy new then sell. If you can stand the outlay you will get good money back on little used tools. I bought a post hole auger the other week. 2nd hand ones in my area seem to be around 80-100 with some dreamers wanting more. I managed to buy a brand new one online for 120, delivered to my door. 20 quid of that was VAT. I've done the fence I bought it for now at our new plot. I am seriously considering selling it as have had bad experience with little used petrol tools clogging up. Maybe it doesn't happen with 2 stroke but my whacker plate needs a new carb due to sitting with this new rubbish petrol we have (another win for the eco loons). Anyway I could sell mine for a 20-40 quid loss when a hire firm wanted 60 quid for a day or weekend. I got to use mine at my leisure, no rush. Bit of admin selling it on but no charge on marketplace.

Plans have changed slightly. I misread the original approved floorplan, the previous depth was 9m overall not 8m. I have stretched the depth on my design not quite the full metre. Works much better for the extra depth. I am now considering binning off the gf ensuite. I end up with a much bigger front room/play room. My thinking is I could always run a drain into that corner of the bedroom and cap it off. Would be simple to retro fit a low level shower then if ever it was needed. TBF a stairlift would probably be the better option at that point! My main concern with the preferred GF layout without ensuite is the utility/ plant room is 3m long with 1 wall to place everything I need. MVHR, Cylinder, hot & cold manifold. I do also have the contingency of the airing cupboard on first floor for possible MVHR or cylinder location. Saying that these MVHR tend to get a bit noisy after a few years when the bearings wear. Is there any noticeable noise from a cylinder if on an ASHP / immersion set up?

I'd love to see the finished article when you're done as it's exactly the kind of staircase I want, down to sapele handrail too. Where are you getting it from? Nobody dowels their spindles into a base rail. However if you want the clean, no baserail look on the landing you could just have a nosing to finish off the edge of the floor boards, painted or stained and your spindles doweled into that. It wouldn't be hard to do for any decent chippy just a case of setting it out and drilling some holes.

Yes it was always planned to change. I replied to the consultation and commented on here previously. However now they have actually given us a likely date it will commence. Think it requires some new legislation so hopefully this comes in time.

🤣 Magic soil theory incoming 🤣 sorry I couldn't help myself

Biodiversity Net Gain. Another one of these eco loon schemes. Completely shafted the SME and self builders submitting planning for small schemes getting whacked with 14k off site contributions plus the cost of a BNG metric report. Luckily for us it was the vendor who went through all that aggro and the purchase price reflected the 14k

Unsure if this has been discussed here or not? I've not logged on for a while due to the off topic discussions taking over! Anyway there is a proposed date of 31 of July to exempt all sites under .2 hectares! I think it's not set in stone yet but looking pretty good. We have bought a site with a near on 14k off site bng contribution conditioned as part of the permission. I always intended to change the planning and tick the self build box to gain the exemption. This would still have required me to sign a unilateral undertaking with the LA with can cost a grand or 2. It will now be a lot simpler to submit after the changes now. I may even go down the route of a s73 ammendment if after 31 July this would be considered a 'new' permission and not require the BNG. There will be no restrictions on occupancy, UU costs or silly BNG metrics to submit. Happy days looks like sense has prevailed.

I'd keep it trapped if on a foul system

I don't wash in cold water and do like a warm house i was just wondering how far these rules go. Do we all have to fit stairlifts soon? We do have an ageing population.

Till you pull it all out you won't really know if you can make the bend to fit the gully to the ic. It looks tight. If it's only rainwater and softened water going in you could use a back inlet gully. Connect that one to the ic, maybe even where you want your softener, then connect some 110mm into the back of that gully and run it to the corner where you want this downpipe to finish. Might be even easier to keep gully where it is then used some dished channel drainage or similar and put a shoe on the bottom of downpipe

Once its mist coated it will show the imperfections and cracks easier. I'd do all the filling or caulking after that. I wouldn't be dremelling any cracks to make wider. A wet easi fill mix is pretty fine seems to get in cracks ok.

The units are very expensive for what they are aren't they? I'd be trying to keep it to 1.

With much difficulty, d4 glue getting everywhere and swearing. Does the stud come right up into the first floor too? 1m is quite a wide staircase. Maybe you should be looking to have it made at 850, 900mm?

Just as a question. Not trying to strawman or whatever. If I built a house to basic b regs u values, would I be obliged to fit a heating system? Or for that matter even a water heating system?!

Maybe. When was the last time they fired up the boiler on the way round though