Stones

Like quite a few others here, I bought my MVHR and ducting from BPC. As part of their package they supplied two ventilation boost rocker switches, to allow remote boost activation of the MVHR. Having left in drawstrings for cables, I'm now at the point of deciding whether to bother with these switches at all, as I can program a timed boost to the ventilation rate to coincide with morning showers (this is in addition to the inbuilt humidity sensor), and I will always have the ability to boost ventilation rates from the master controller which will be located centrally in the house. Firstly, just looking for any feedback, good or bad about the switches and whether those who have installed feel they are worthwhile. Secondly, on an installation note, BPC instructions indicate a 1mm 3 core cable from switch back to the MVHR unit. Which terminal connection on the unit did you use to connect these switches?

We had a Nibe F470 in our last house, an all in one solution for DHW, whole house ventilation and heating. The downside is that the unit was an Exhaust Air Heat Pump, had a very small compressor and whenever ambient temp fell below around 8C, it had to use immersion back up. Very expensive to run, although this could be mitigated by pairing with an ASHP outside (which would provide the back up rather than immersion). On the plus side the control / user interface was very good.

40mm overhang is what we went for on both our rendered and timber clad walls.

@Rossek9 Garage is 6m x 6m, 2.4m high frame, roof trusses to 30 degree pitch, ridge height 3.8m

Part 4 of the order relates to temporary buildings. Part 5 relates to caravan sites, which refers you to another act. If you look up Schedule 1, para 9 of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Eliz2/8-9/62/schedule/FIRST that details use of a caravan as accommodation for persons employed in connection with said operations.

A gallery and studio was built near my parents house, the studio part being fitted with fixed glass in the roof to give the artist enough light. Chatting to him not long after it had been built he said his biggest regret was not fitting Velux roof lights, firstly as he would then have the option of being able to open them (something I would have thought useful given the garden use of the space in question), and secondly, that the final cost of fitting the bespoke opening he had turned out the same as buying 4 Velux Windows that had the same coverage. As Declan says, make it easy and install roof lights.

I'm not sure what they define as equivalent standards but here are the MCS standards: http://www.microgenerationcertification.org/images/MCS_020_Planning_Standards_Issue_1.2.pdf

Yes, let's get back on topic... It's a useful illustration of my builder not being an approved installer (this and another house he built at the same time were the first time he had used Rationel windows) and how things like this can be missed if assumptions are made. IIRC your builder is an approved installer? I can't say it crossed my mind, and clearly not the builders or joiners when we installed, as previously every other door I have fitted (and the builder has fitted) has had a higher threshold meaning this issue didn't come up. The aluminium threshold is straight on the slab. Yes I could argue it's their mistake, but TBH I really don't want to go down the route of moving the door up. Given comments about how challenging it would be to grind down the slab, and having discussed with the builder (who said he would do it if I wanted) I'm going to go with the most straightforward solution of a mat well. We should be able to frame the well on all sides with tile (albeit it will only be a small sliver of visible tile in the door reveal) and finish the edges with a metal trim. It's a compromise, for my wife at least, although I can't say I'm that upset about it, and my thinking is very much in line with @Nickfromwales in how to handle this. I had originally planned for mat wells but was overruled by a higher power...

It is now, provided you meet certain criteria: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2016/126/article/3/made Amendment of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Scotland) Order 1992 3.—(1) The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Scotland) Order 1992(1) is amended in accordance with paragraph (2). (2) For class 6H(2) of Part 1A (installation of domestic microgeneration equipment) of Schedule 1 (classes of permitted development) substitute— “Class 6H (1) The installation, alteration or replacement of an air source heat pump on a dwelling or within the curtilage of a dwelling. (2) Development is not permitted by this class— (a)if it would result in the presence on the same building or within the curtilage of a building of more than one air source heat pump; (b)in the case of an installation, alteration or replacement of an air source heat pump on a dwelling if— (i)any part of the development would protrude more than 1 metre from the outer surface of an external wall, roof plane, roof ridge or chimney of the dwelling; or (ii)the air source heat pump would be within a conservation area, unless the air source heat pump would be— (aa)at ground floor level; and (bb)on the rear elevation; (c)in the case of the installation, alteration or replacement of an air source heat pump within the curtilage of a building if— (i)any part of the development would be forward of a wall forming part of the principal elevation or side elevation where that elevation fronts a road; or (ii)any resulting structure would exceed 3 metres in height; or (d)the air source heat pump would be within— (i)a World Heritage Site; or (ii)the curtilage of a listed building. (3) Development is permitted by this class subject to the following conditions— (a)the air source heat pump must be used only for the purpose of providing domestic heating or hot water; (b)where the air source heat pump is no longer needed for, or capable of, providing domestic heating or hot water it must be removed as soon as reasonably practicable; (c)the air source heat pump must comply with MCS Planning Standards or equivalent standards. (4) In this class— “MCS Planning Standards” means the product and installation standards for air source heat pumps specified in the Microgeneration Certification Scheme MCS 020(3); “principal elevation” is a reference to the elevation of the original dwelling which by virtue of its design or setting, or both, is the principal elevation; “rear elevation” means the elevation of the original dwelling that is opposite its principal elevation; and “side elevation” means the elevation of the original dwelling linking the principal elevation with the rear elevation.”

There is certainly scope to do that as it was packed at the top (threshold is sitting square on slab edge), but with everything rendered and weather sealed, I don't think it's a route we would go down. Talking to one of our joiners about it earlier he thought that in future they would probably end up packing under the door threshold (Rationel doors) to get the required clearance. The concern he had with that approach was maintaining a robust long term weather tight seal between slab and threshold.

The door already has hinges which adjust the height. We adjusted them to their maximum extent earlier today - just not enough unfortunately. I think my builder has something that will do the job. I was just interested to see if anyone had done it themselves. I've watched a few You Tube videos and with the right gear seems straightforward enough. That would be the obvious solution, but I have been told in no uncertain terms, that there will not be any change in the choice of tile... It's a timber door with 3G glass, Alu clad outside. I'll have to look in the morning to see if that is an option. We had Kardean in a previous house and liked it. Very nice product. Sadly a no go for the reason above. Agree with the potential for grit etc to get trapped under the door and dragged over the surface of the tile. Forming a mat well and cutting a mat to fit in it will I think be the final solution. I mocked up a mat well earlier with the tiles and I thought it looked pretty good, certainly good enough to appear a considered and well thought practical design feature. Of course the door mat product of choice that SWMBO prefers is natural coir, but we wouldn't be able to get that thin enough (based on the existing slab level). Grinding 5mm or so off the slab surface would let us use coir, but there are plenty of alternatives available in terms of mat material and finish.

We've hit a minor snag. Unfortunately, the external doors we have (Rationel Auraplus) fitted do not have enough adjustment to open over our proposed tile floor covering. Having laid tiles direct onto the concrete slab at the door openings, the doors, when fully adjusted only just clear the tiles (less than a mm I would say). Assuming a 2 mm bed of adhesive that means I either have to reduce the height of the slab by a couple of mm in the relevant area, or abandon tiles and form a mat well. How easy is it to grind or polish off a small area of concrete, say 2mm depth? My concern is that even if we did this, the door would still only just clear the finished tile surface and be susceptible to getting caught on grit etc. Anyone faced a similar situation? What did you do? Any other ideas welcome!

One of the other things I noticed was the amount of space underneath the worktop you lose (albeit the showroom installation may not have been optimum). Perhaps @philkenny could take a picture or two of his installation ductwork to give a better idea.

All of our services came up through our slab. No pipes or ducts embedded in the ICF block at all. We do now have the flow and return pipes to the ASHP, and two electric cables (cable to heat pump, cable for outside light) going through the wall but these were cored through long after the pour. We didn't for example actually decide which heat pump and therefore know pipe centres etc until a couple of months after the pour. The biggest challenge with ICF is getting the concrete to flow properly without it being too wet. The use of a vibrating poker greatly assists in this process but if the space which the concrete has to flow is restricted or partially blocked, you may well find you end up with pockets of air in your wall.

When we were given a demonstration of the Bora extractor, it certainly seemed very effective. I do recall asking the chap in the showroom about recirculation option rather than vented direct outside and he advised against it, indicating performance of the extractor was compromised / not as good when recirculating. How much of a difference there would be performance wise, I'm not sure. I guess when recirculating, quality and performance of filters is important, and if additional filters (compared to venting outside) are required, there will be some impact on extraction rates.

I ended up using the file claim process after an order failed to materialise. Can't remember now if it was out of stock or they wouldn't deliver up here. IIRC you have to contact them first and if they fail to respond, file a claim (time limits apply). Having filed my claim, my money was refunded. I think the sellers refunded rather than Amazon in my case but from what I remember, Amazon operate an escrow type operation with sellers accounts. https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201889730 I don't think you have anything to worry about. You should get a refund if it doesn't arrive / isn't what it's advertised as, it'll just be the hassle and delay of going through the process.

We stick built in 2005. No real reason for doing so, just thought we would give it a try. We did price out using a TF, but there was very little difference. I had plans drawn up to my own design, an SE did the technical design and drawings ( panel design, bracing etc ) and signed the build off. Good savings to be made if you are building the frame yourself rather than employing skilled labour. I'm a convert to ICF, so probably wouldn't go back to TF, but I do think it's definitely worth considering.

Having lived in several houses with MVHR, and currently renting one without, I can say hand on heart that you wouldn't regret the decision to install MVHR. Setting aside potential energy saving, the biggest benefit and the one I'm interested in is the superior air quality and elimination of internal condensation. As Crofter says, if nothing else cheap to run and peace of mind when you are not there.

We just have a box outside our front door (rented house) for post and parcels. If we are home the postman opens our door and drops the mail on the mat, if out in the box. If we are here we sign, but if not parcels etc are left, it's just that sort of place. All I'm planning for the new house is a wire basket or similar fixed just inside the garage for parcel delivery, as the garage will be left unlocked. I am however planning a metal post box for letters, although I'll perhaps speak to the postie first and see which he would prefer / find easier.

I find Jewson pricing particularly frustrating at times. Yes they can give you good deals when buying in quantity but if you just need a single item, price can be eye watering. The same applies to the other building merchant we have here, so Jewson are not the only ones at it. Had to buy a tub of flooring adhesive from them the other day. They had previously priced to supply 6 tubs of adhesive at a reasonable price when I was considering sourcing all of my flooring from them, but having purchased it elsewhere and finding I needed an additional tub, the only price offered was full retail and they were unwilling to budge - take it or leave. Of course, given my location, I have to weigh the higher price vs the delay incurred waiting for a remote delivery (and delivery charges).

If visual appearance is the main driver, have you considered Kickspace heaters?

Sorry, should have picked up on that bit in your earlier post.

One question you really do have to ask yourself is do you want to put yourself through the discomfort of a few months / a year or more in a caravan? I know a couple up here who have been in a touring caravan over a year, with NO hot water! Much as the financial savings are helpful (if you get a reasonable van and work on the basis you can sell again afterwards for pretty much what you paid for it) you have to weigh this carefully against being comfortable. Will a few months in a caravan really generate sufficient savings to make the hassle worthwhile? I like my home comforts and am past the point (young and in love ) when I would want to live in a caravan. With two kids, it strikes me as a recipe for frequent crossed words, and hair loss.

I take it the various different temporary tracks you can get wouldn't be suitable? Just thinking back to several events that I had the misfortune to be working at and how effective metal track was at keeping 40 ton articulated lorries from sinking into the mud.

It was something I was considering for the house we are currently renting, but we took the easy way out and went for a small dehumdifier. The only issue I can see with individual units is getting them all balanced with each other as presumably, they will be extracting / supplying at different rates? I would certainly agree with @TerryE that a dehumdifier would be the simplest and easiest way to dry the build out inside.