Oz07

Alternatively do as the pros do and I was taught about 20 years ago. Always tap the back plate of the latch with your hammer. This means as the door shuts and the latch extends into the hole it tightens the door into the frame.

Doubt 2.30 is labour and materials. Compo, blocks, labour got to be more than that. @AnonymousBosch does your book clarify? It's ok having a book that tells you what it should cost but it's a sellers market at the minute (labour).

Having previously mortar filled the gap between water mdpe pipe and duct I now understand cement rots mdpe. Originally a water inspector told me to do that but must of been wrong eh. So what's best plan of attack foam and wire will? Any foam? Insulation instead of foam? Thinking for other things like drains. Any wire wool? Or non ferrous?

Bco's like beam and block because it's simple to understand. Everything is bearing on the walls which sit on the foundation. Some are not open minded enough to see the benefits of other methods

@ProDave don't forget you've got a suspended ground floor with void which helps I understood some sycamores to be strong rooted. I built within 7m of a London plane. 1.5m deep. 1m of clayboard never had any problems and was a lovely tree

Really? Still? You're near me aren't you

Check it out but usually you get 5% vat on over2 year empty properties. No reclaim scheme though so has to be invoiced through contractor. Ok if you have your own firm not so great otherwise. I'd prefer starting from scratch but you'd have to do the sums

The heavier flush or patterned doors are just as expensive as the oak atm. The firm's are all geared up for knocking out the oak cheap as they can

Outside would be 1 brick lower if you are extending dpc across the cavity, creating a fall outwards, with weepholes. Not sure on the specific requirements for this, i've had to do it before as BCO suspected methane could be present (not radon). It's not normally done with the floor DPM anyway if spanning cavity, usually a roll of DPC as you say.

Ask them if they have sorted through the issues with their spray shop and lead times

You can leave the perimeter at existing ground level and demonstrate your 1m depth off this. Providing you've scraped all the veg off. They don't expect you to take foundation level from reduced dig level

@Vijay no disrespect think you've got the blinkers on with regards to trying to marry your open webs on floor joists and attic trusses. I'd not worry and go for timber. Like you say plenty of room in eaves for services

point it out now to the builder

I think a lot of nods work is to other VAT registered contractors so doesn't really have much impact. They reclaim Any way. That being said I wouldn't apply vat on part of the invoice. All or nothing

How so the percentage is added on isn't it? It's not as if the margin will improve if vat at zero. Or am I missing something?

On the bright side it all sounds fixable with the help of you guys. Another problem bites the dust!

I usually find pipe wants to be around a inch off finished wall to accept pan connector. @Nickfromwales is there a standard for pan connectors?

Had access to twin drum but like you say probably sensible to spread it out and go with something smaller

Interesting thanks @MikeSharp01 I was going to go for full 150mm depth compaction with roller in one go. obviously was going to bed in 10mm and cover in 10mm too

Got some drains to put in below a ground bearing slab. One long run ends up only 50mm ish below the top of the sub base (to top of pipe), other two should easily be 100mm minimum. Owing to the depth and the fact that these drains will start out in the sub soil but rise up into the sub base whats the best method? Install drains before spreading sub base. Keeping drains surrounded in pea gravel as per norm then compacting in one go (roller) Get sub base spread and compacted with roller, then re dig out channels for drains. Option 1 would be my preferred. I'd just be wary about loosing any of the fall with compaction. Is this a valid concern or will it only be the subbase compacting around the pipes? Would it help if I played planks over the pipe runs and missed these with the roller and went over with a smaller plate? Option 2 would be a bit messier and kind of doing things twice, but i'd be 100% sure of the fall on my drains then.

So if you don't want to go through again but don't want to stay forever where will you be next? Taylor wimpey?

Yeh that's about as far as my sums got before I had to rely on collective knowledge of forum to advance my understanding cheers @BuildHub

Yeh cheers @PeterW No way is a floor slab at 100mm and partitions plus live loads going to equate to 2t per m2

Kpa into kn though? It's too much for my head!