Stones

Yes, you do end up loosing the tongues to be able to slot the boards back in although they are located with the remaining grooves. Time will tell but provided the board has a good bond (which it should as it was weighted when going off) I can't see why there would be a problem. I am planning to insure myself by getting another box of flooring for a rainy day, as most of what I had left over has now been used. Doors came from Buildbase, but from what I can see all the BM's do a version of this door.

It's been a couple of months since my last update, during which time we have (almost) finished work and moved in. In this entry I'm going to talk about the joinery work. As readers may recall, our UFH was switched on 2 weeks before Christmas, which meant there was very little activity on site until the builders came back after their Christmas fortnight. The joiners were first back, and got to work straight away laying around 105m2 of engineered oak flooring in the main living area, hall, bedrooms and upstairs study. We opted to fully bond the floor to our concrete slab on the ground floor, and went with a simple floated floor in the upstairs study. We sourced our flooring from: https://www.luxuryflooringandfurnishings.co.uk/150mm-oiled-engineered-european-oak-wood-flooring-14-3mm-thick.html having gone through a fairly extensive process of obtaining samples from various suppliers and matching the finish to the Osmo Oil used on our skirtings and facings. The flooring has an understated Matt finish and came in random lengths. Having heard reports of random length being code for very short lengths, I was pleasantly surprised to find a good mix of short, medium and long lengths in each pack, each pack having virtually identical contents. Our flooring adhesive was supplied by the same company - Thomsit (now Ceresit) P618 Parquet flooring adhesive. Like similar products used by other forum members, this is a flexible polymer adhesive that allows the bonded floor to move with the subfloor. The Joiners laying our flooring certainly commented on how easy it was to use compared to Sikaflex, which they had used previously. Coverage worked out at 1m2 per kg. This was a bit less than we hoped for and meant I had to buy a another tub of adhesive locally, at a significant premium to the Thomsit to keep the joiners going. The adhesive was spread onto the slab with a notched trowel, and the boards pressed down firmly and pushed snuggly to the row of previously laid boards. Upstairs, we used 18mm flooring and 2mm underlay so the finished floor was level with the top step of our staircase (20mm). The boards were glued together as they were laid on top of the underlay. The joiners spent just over 4 days laying just under 105m2 of flooring. In general it has turned out very well, and the random lengths provide a more interesting (and in our view more attractive) finish. Unfortunately, we did find after the floor had been laid, that a few of the boards hadn't bonded to the slab / lifted slightly as the next few rows of flooring were laid. The two areas affected seem to be on the edges of where previously identified dips in the slab were filled with self leveling compound. This really goes to show how critical it is to have a near perfectly level sub floor. Visually of course there was nothing to see, but easily detectable when walking over the floor - a hollow sound and a bit of give like a floating floor as opposed to the rock solid feel of the fully bonded floor. To remedy the problem, the joiners used the approach shown on this film: In summary, a plunge saw was used to cut the boards out and new boards inserted with sufficient adhesive, then a heavy weight placed on top (in our case buckets of sand) until the adhesive had set. Fortunately, I did have almost a pack of flooring left, and even more fortunately, the random lengths were all of a standard size so it was easy to select and replace exactly the right size board. Hopefully this fix will stand the test of time. I have to say I'm still a bit unsure of the underfoot feeling that a bonded floor gives. I'm still finding the experience a little alien, compared to floating floors we have had in the past. Having laid all the flooring, the joiners moved on to lining the door openings, hanging internal doors, fitting door ironmongery and all the oak facings and skirting boards. In previous houses this phase has never taken that long, as door sets were supplied as part of the timber frame kit, and skirtings / facings were fitted very rapidly. Oak by its nature (IMHO) demands a much greater level of attention to detail when being fitted. Each and every mitre joint on the door facings was sanded silky smooth for a flawless join. Skirting boards were all scribed to the flooring, being hand planed to ensure a tight fit rather than the more common 1mm to 2mm gap you see in some houses. This really does make a difference to the final visual appearance, and although it did take the joiners longer to do this, it just one of those little details that elevates the finish from good to outstanding. We opted for unfinished rather than pre-finished doors, purely so we could oil them ourselves to match the rest of the oak finishings. Whilst they were £30 a door cheaper, I spent just under an hour per door, sanding and applying 2 coats of oil. Add in the cost of the oil itself and you probably exceed the cost of a pre-finished door. I'm really glad we went down this route as they are a perfect match. Pre-finished doors would have looked fine with a varnished woodwork, but would have looked completely out of place against the oiled oak. The remaining oak finishes were handrails fixed on top of the studwork balustrades - and shelving and hanging rails in all of our built in bedroom cupboards / waredrobes. Oak veneered MDF, oiled to match our other joinery was used in the cupboards, simply to ensure a pleasant finish within. Overall we're delighted with how the joinery sits against the white walls, and the quality of the finish. It's unfortunate that a few flooring boards did not bond, but my builder, without hesitation, has rectified the problem. Next entry : Kitchen and Utility

This is what we did in our timber clad section (the DPC being cut into the ICF block and sealed in place with soudal) simply to ensure that any water that does find its way behind the cladding will run out over the horizontal batten over the windows where it can find its way out, rather than tracking back to the seal between window and ICF blockwork.

Having been through the process a few times with SEPA, that's my experience as well. They only seem to allow as a very last resort. The Biorock we had in our last house worked on this principle. A settlement tank then the separate treatment plant which relied on a constant supply of air being drawn through. I've related my experience of the Biorock before, but needless to say we had problems. I think these systems have to be very well installed and probably have a far lower % of tolerance from ideal conditions before they stop operating at there optimum. I think the electrically aerated systems many of us have or intend installing are far more forgiving in this respect and therefore should be less susceptible to such issues. When you look at the capital cost of these 'passive' systems, they cost a hell of a lot more than an aerated system. You have to ask yourself will you ever see the additional capital back in energy savings and is that worth the hassle / risk with a plant that by its nature requires a far tighter range of operating conditions than a cheaper electrically powered plant?

This is exactly what I did. Processed that day, live with Royal mail a couple of days later. No charge.

I've never had a problem getting references either. Every builder I've dealt with has been more than happy to show off his work, and consequently, I've been happy to speak to prospective clients and if required, show them our house.

A boiling tap is something I considered, but I've had too many disappointing 'scummy' cups of Tea visiting houses with boiling taps. I believe the Quooker is different in that it actually boils (and stores at 110C ?) as opposed to the cheaper taps which only go to 97C. In the end it was a budget decision, having gone for better quality appliances elsewhere in the kitchen. Like @jamiehamy, I couldn't justify the spend to myself. It would be a nice thing to have, but I don't mind waiting a minute or so to make a cuppa.

Thanks for the kind words. Yes, relieved we are in, and while there are various odd jobs still to do, it's so much nicer than being in the rental. Dorris visited us last night and I'm pleased to say, the wind was barely audible, not a peep from the roof tiles (when I compare it to the clattering roof of the rental we've just left). Oodles of DHW, a steady 20C inside with ASHP barely ticking over. As for another build, I suppose I should never say never, but I certainly don't have the appetite or drive to build or move again (no need to) compared to when I started off 20 odd years ago.

We had a Biorock installed at our last house. Have a read of the user review I did on the old forum http://www.ebuild.co.uk/topic/13972-user-review-of-biorock-sewage-treatment-system/

Some may have noted my absence over the past two or three weeks. The curse of self building - not enough hours in the day! After a final push, a lot of cleaning and packing, we are at last in our new house. A few bits and bobs to finish off, but we do have a Temporary Occupation Certificate, and really have nothing much more than pulling together paperwork for our Completion Certificate. Watch this space...Blog update to follow in the next few days.

Rob, just another voice to add to previous comments ( given it is a holiday let) don't whatever you do be mean or skimp on the provision of DHW. You get this right and you will get a loyal band of annual repeat visitors, probably willing as Jeremy says, to pay a bit of a premium for something that bit better than a run of the mill offering. Obviously location and view are going to be the initial sellers, but to get people coming back, spotlessly clean and uber comfortable - warm, dry and plenty of DHW. And yes 50% discount to BH members a fantastic idea...

When I did some additional wiring at our last house, I did just that. I spoke to the electrician first to ensure i was installing the correct size of cable etc, ran all the cables to their final point, wired the light fittings and sockets but left the CU side to the electrician. He was more than happy, and checked / tested all the fittings & sockets as part of the deal.

We (in Scotland) don't have any choice but to use local authority building control. The price differential being referred to in this thread is really quite astonishing.

Nearly £1500 for us...

You have to remember that there are usually two values for any house, its market value, and its value for insurance purposes. I do wonder whether it is that usually higher insurance value figure that is used by the production company.

I looked at retrofitting an ASHP or an GSHP in our last house, heating demand 5000kWh/yr. When our took into account the cost of running the ground loop circulation pump, the GSHP actually had a higher running cost than an ASHP despite having higher CoP. The significantly higher installation cost (vastly inflated because of RHI) was the other nail in the coffin.

That's a nice neat installation! I've added an extract to the cupboard housing our UVC for that very reason - easier now than later.

I'm guessing you're not using a local firm (Danwood perhaps from your description)? Assuming that's the case, it may simply be a logistical issue given your location. It's not going to be difficult arranging these things yourself, and if you are worried about certain things being put in the skip, notify the builders accordingly as part of your agreement / contract.

I went with fully bonded onto the concrete slab, and a floating floor in our one upstairs space. Have to say comparing the two, far prefer the solid underfoot feel of the bonded floor. Interestingly, there was no real difference in the length of time it took to lay, as all my flooring was T&G. It may well have been quicker (but would have carried a higher material cost) to lay a floating click system, but we wanted random lengths rather than long fixed lengths.

Will do, might be a couple of days.

They have just been fitted, will report back in a couple of days. Electrician didn't seem at all fazed fitting them (connection strip and choc box) and they certainly look very neat in the ceiling.

I think what @TerryE may be referring to re previous discussion is the normal way windows are fitted into timber frame houses in Scotland. A 50mm x 50mm batten (firestop) is fixed to the outside of the window frame to close the cavity between timber frame and rainscreen (be it block wall, timber cladding etc). The window itself therefore sits partially inside the timber frame protruding 50mm from the outer face of the timber frame.

Im guessing they don't want people reaching across the depth of the hob, scalding themselves in the process! From my perspective, it's a very sensible design for the taller person.

Another ADW / Rational customer here. Like @ProDave I had a few quotes, but ADW eventually came back with the best price. We also went with the granite / slightly textured ALU finish rather than smooth and have to say really pleased with how they look both inside and out. I had my cills custom made by a firm in Glasgow (MSP Scotland) to suit our ICF build system. They also quoted me for matching rainwater goods but sadly my budget wouldn't stretch that far.

We were initially very keen to go with a handleless door, but have conducted a test run in the showroom, trying to open doors beneath a quartz worktop, we quickly abandoned the idea -because of the high likelihood of continually grazing the skin on your fingers on the underside of the worktop.