George

I'm no biologist so explain How? Presumably the cells of bacteria and fungus decomposing still undergo respiration so will produce carbon dioxide. Still, all the carbon released has only recently been removed from the atmosphere. Making the emissions from digging up fossilised carbon equivalent to those which can be considered part of the carbon cycle (although concentrated for human benefit) is a bit of a con that only serves to benefit the likes of BP, ExxonMobil and Shell et al. Edit - remember I'm not digging up roots to burn those, just the above ground stuff.

Well the carbon hasn't been dug out of the ground. It was fixed from the atmosphere a few years ago. If I let the tree rot away, most of it would have gone back to being carbon dioxide.

Imo the best low carbon back up space heating for a heat pump - especially in a victorian house - is a log burner. Probably a bit more motivation this year if lighting the fire will save on the electricity bill...

Just checked - it is a 20 year agreement. I have my own RHI payment on a heat pump... So... It was my mum who signed up and paid for the panels (my parents and I now share ownership but they were full ownership at the time). The paperwork I have here is with EDF. I have actually changed electricity supplier for the house supply a few times over the years. Presumably that's not a problem? EDF just look at the generation meter and carry on paying FIT rates?

Pretty sure it was a 7 year agreement. I need to look into it again, really.

PV has always looked good when you assumed you used 100% of the generated electricity. But until recently this wasn't an option... although the extra £8k needed for a house battery does knock down the ROI considerably. I've a 4kW on a FiT which is ending soon. Will certainly look at a house battery in more detail but I'm wary of being an early adopter!

I'd go further and drill a few extra holes in the back boiler as well. Don't want any condensation coming out as a jet of steam.

My water supply is connected via my neighbour and is sub metred. Never caused any issues.

You know, I worry now about the designs I did where I didn't put in frames, and relied on the house for lateral support. At the time I know I was happy there was either replacement lateral stability or enough remaining, but it seems frames are so common, should i have used them as a default?

The deflection in the calculation is dead + live. The dead load deflection will not effect the bi-fold doors. You need the SE to look at only the live load deflection and to keep that controlled. It may also be useful to consider what the likely loading pattern will be as you've got 3 sets of live load and it is unlikely to be fully loaded simultaneously, although without knowing exactly what these are, it's hard to say for sure. Pre-cambering is OTT for this application. End conditions should be taken into account, especially in regards to live load if you do need a more realistic deflection calculation. Steel beams with masonry on top don't actually deflect as much as is calculated due to the effect of friction forming a composite beam (steel + brick). However, while this was researched in the 50s, there is no recognised guidance on actually accounting for this effect (mainly because if it does crack, the effect is lost). (As an aside, I did take advantage of this in my own house by attaching frame ties to the top flanges in the perps of the blockwork, then reinforcing the blockwork with bed joint reinforcement. No idea what the actual effect was, though! And the beam was within tolerance anyway.)

Lofts aren't supposed to be storage spaces but if you stick to 60kg / sqm, you're unlikely to have any issues.

Any update pictures?

Only need a water bar if the concrete is water retaining/potentially water retaining (for example, base slab of a basement floor).

I've never heard of an issue with too steep a gradient. Soil pipes start vertical after all! Backdrops are preferred because it minimises excavation - but you do need to have the right components available.

Pretty much yes. I used a box section steel lintel above my bi-fold. However... lintels are designed pretty tight (even relying on masonry arching/friction to limit deflections) so they are not as adaptable as a steel beam. If you had a situation with no arching masonry, a high point load from a roof beam or something, then you could potentially run into problems. However this is where a structural engineer should come in to help.

A normal angle lintel would be OK wouldn't it? na overhang of 25mm is generally acceptable. And if it isn't, just cut down a single row of stone slightly to accomodate. I don't think you'll find any one piece lintels for a 200mm cavity, so it'll need an inner and outer leaf lintel.

Look more to be plaster shrinkage and minor differential movement than anything structural.

Sounds like an unmodified standard detail. Concrete blinding is great but is a bit OTT for a concrete drive.

Did they not put in any bracing for temporary stability?

No no no no, don't use spray foam on roofs. A lot of spray foam companies should be shut down for fraud. You should be able to find a roofer or general builder to install pitched roof insulation, the required detail can be given by Kingspan or similar, or by an architectural technician.

Is it definitely a foul sewer rodding eye? If it is, then that is fine. If it's a surface water sewer then no, not allowed.

Ah well... Norfolk tends to lag behind a few decades...

Some of my doors are original (or very old) but are relatively lightweight. Due to wood decay and damage I rehinged them - but only used 2 ball bearing hinges for those. On the oak veneered engineered doors (replacing 1980s doors), which weighed a ton, I used 3.

Strange, they're usually not mandated until foundations are 1.5m deep. Heave can cause issues as the ground reuptakes moisture.Ideally you'd have a good idea f the full soil strata and site history. But as that would mean a huge expense, only a very blunt 'worst case' tool is available. Because I'm an SE my BCO just left me to it on the structural things. He pointed towards a nearby tree but due to the local geography I assured him it wouldn't cause issues.

It's a complicated area. Building control have a very blunt tool when it comes to determining foundation depths - some of which is based on research/recommendations from BRE and NHBC who had more of an eye on insurance claims rather than engineering accuracy. Personally, I cannot see the potential for volume changing once you're well away from organic matter/root zone. What's the point going another half metre deeper into identical clay strata. So on the face of it I agree with your SE but they weren't in a position to contest it, unfortunately.