Barney12

Ta Da ......... http://www.papercrete.com/images/EPSCreteAndMixer.pdf

I hate to be a kill joy but I'm really not convinced eps is going to go through a garden shredder. Most the ones I've seen have a relatively narrow neck (to stop your hand going in) and shred using a sort of crushing corkscrew. It will just squash the eps rather than shred it and most likely block very quickly. But hey.....I love being proved wrong

Thanks @Frogeye excellent info.

If you really are serious about taking a course then there are a number of options. The three that spring to mind are: At the most basic level you could take the H&S Awareness course: http://www.citb.co.uk/training-courses/health-and-safety-courses/health-and-safety-awareness/ Or you can "tick the box" by going for the IOSH Managing Safely cert: http://www.iosh.co.uk/Training/IOSH-training-courses/Managing-safely-course.aspx Finally the "proper" course for site supervision is the catchy titled SSSTS: http://www.citb.co.uk/training-courses/health-and-safety-courses/site-supervisors-safety-training-scheme/ None of them are hugely expensive or contain content that is "challenging". In fact if you can't get through the content then you should probably reconsider self building as you might die along the way I was going to say "its mainly common sense" but that's a phrase that will cause most H&S professionals to spontaneously combust ! Now the word the H&S pro's really love is "practicable" (Note that's NOT practical!)

If it had been there a long time without any issues AND the ground wasn't going to be disturbed by other works...........probably not.

This is a VERY broad brush statement but.......... If you have suffered a loss as a result of a third party and you are unable to claim from that third party then you should expect your insurer to accept that claim (provided the loss is within the terms of your policy). Expect to be able to demonstrate that you have tried to get redress from the third party. Give your insurer a call. Also be prepared to go past the FNOL team if you get a "computer says no" response.

Box ticked

Thanks Nick. Looks like getting them in first is the way to go. Doing from underneathernjust seems like a major ball ache. OR.....go for the screed option on the first floor.....? All, Is there any any other advantage to the 50mm first floor screed other than sound deadening (and ease of UFH install)?

The point about the internal walls sitting on top wasn't one I had thought of. Bugger Perhaps our resident egg spirt @Nickfromwales has got some insight on fitting from underneath?

I knew this thread would turn into another debate about IF we should fit UFH upstairs but we ARE going to and will just take the risk that it might not get switched on but I'm pretty confident it will, we are in a high and exposed position and we get some pretty grim weather! SO............. How to fit as per my OP?

Putting the "car" in a "garage"....?.....? thats crazy talk! :-) As for the cars well we live 500m above sea level on the National Park. I'm not quite sure how I'd get any of those cars here unless towed by my Landrover

You should see it now. FULL of cr*p! You can barely see the floor!

I created a tiled skirting in the garage. I don't have a close up pic to hand unfortunately but the second image below is a zoom. It was just a cut tile with a PVC tile trim on top. Looks fine. But, it is a garage so slightly more industrial! As an aside screeding, tiling and grouting that floor nearly broke my knees The tiles were the "rock" commercial jobbies that they use in car show rooms. To top it all I bought them on line and they delivered on a pallet. delivery truck couldn't make it down the lane so I had to hand ball each pack over 150m. Far too much like hard work

There have been some good topics over on eBuild and here http://forum.buildhub.org.uk/ipb/topic/533-ufh-in-passive-house-build/?page=1 regarding the need for UFH upstairs in a house built to passive standards. We've decided we will fit an UFH circuit upstairs. Mainly as we're intending to have no carpets and don't want cold feet! We're hopefully going for an MBC build and thus construction will be webbed joists with 22mm Chipboard Decking. I've seen a couple of posts that suggest people have fitted their UFH from underneath? On paper that sounds like a right ball ache? Or do MBC loose lay the floor to allow lifting and adding of spreader plates and pipes? Or.....the quote states the floor is capable of taking a 50mm screed so is putting the UFH runs on the 22mm floor and screeding an option? (I'd need to satisfy myself of ceiling heights). Just trying to get the order of events right in my head! TIA!

Can one of the knowledgeab folks on here explain how this would be fitted in a underfloor heating scenario?

Interesting thread and I was only thinking exactly the same at 5am this morning after a bladder induced early wake up . (Getting older sucks!) I'm fortunate in that I do have storage space on the plot. Blocks I think could be a no brainer. (accepting of course that the decision is an educated guess!) Windows - Hmm would want to be darn sure they're going to fit. Thats an expensive thing to get wrong. Plumbing/Kitchens etc - My worry is that once you've seen the space as the build progresses then plans might change and you are left with a load of parts that no long fit your need.

I would echo what @ProDave has said but also add a very important factor "time". Not the time they charge you but the amount of time you've got to manage them. The key to day rate labour is being absolutely clear on what you want doing, by when and ensuring they do it.

and just to prove the point......A very familiar example of trading as your own name........ John Lewis opened a drapery shop at 132 Oxford Street, London in 1864

It is perfectly viable to trade/run a business as your own name.

I popped onto the SunAmp stand today at the Build Show in the NEC. The young guy I spoke to was very friendly but had almost zero knowledge of the product beyond how it worked when combined with a combi boiler. When I asked him 'application' related questions he said "I don't know I just make them in the factory. Feel free to take a leaflet".

I've always liked Fernox LS-X. Its often described as a leak sealer but the specs clearly state it can be used for jointing: http://www.fernox.com/files/Fernox/Content/PDF/English/Updated PDFs/LS-X V.001.pdf a quick light smear around the olive and threads works wonders and it doesn't set hard. Oh just in case................this isn't Rocol

Depends a lot on the strength of the concrete and the area you've got to dig up. It will probably do it but then so would a standard SDS drill with enough time, sweat and tears! I would want something with a bit more ooomph. https://www.speedyservices.com/11_0266-h-heavy-duty-breaker-29-9kg-te3000

Imdeed! Even more so than a trip to the dentist [shudder] just fit and forget, you'll have much bigger things to worry about.

Dry lined walls are the work of the devil. Maybe I've just been unlucky but I've never seen one that I'm impressed with.

There are a good number of critics of dotndab on this type of forum because of issues with airtightness. But, actually if done properly that's not as big an issue as claimed IMHO. As someone said on another thread this week airtightness is a sum of parts and an attention to detail across a number of areas. I for one like dotndab and I side with your contractor that it is forgiving to uneven walls etc etc. It's quick, efficient and effective. Its also proven and works! I would say that ive not used the low expanding sticky foam but I can only beleive it is less forgiving. I would let your contractor use the method he's familiar with and just ensure it's applied properly and not bodged or corners cut. But that advise applies to any system. just my 2p's worth!