ProDave

I did a "cost / benefit" analysis on a 2G vs 3G velux and decided the extra cost of 3G was not worth it for the tiny energy saving. That was the wrong thing to be thinking about. That en-suite window is the only window in the house that gets just a little condensation around the edges on a very cold day. I wish I had spent the extra on 3G to lessen the chance of that. Re trickle vents, I objected to the principle of paying extra not to have something fitted, and in the case of velux windows, the vent is built into the handle / opening mechanism, and when shut is a very good seal, so not paying extra to have the vent omitted was the right choice. Centre or top is personal choice. I chose centre, I am uneasy at a dirty great big spring built into the top hung versions to counter the weight of the sash.

If you are a "few miles" from the sea I doubt you will have a problem. but go and look at peoples satellite dishes. My own one here, 3 miles inland is probably 20 years old, and still sound. I can tell you for a fact that houses right by the sea, they would be lucky to last 5 years before they have turned into a wilting mess of rusted metal. If the satellite dishes around you are fine, then so too will be an ASHP.

You can't have a socket in a bathroom, so pass it through the wall, where I would fit a switched fused connection unit to power it.

I don't know this particular unit so this is just some general thoughts. Are you sure the fan(s) are free to rotate, i.e. nothing you have done while changing filters has gone back wrong so they won't spin freely? On my own unit, a Kingspan / mitsubishi, I know on power up it operates the bypass mechanism which goes whir whir whir for a few seconds. If it does not detect the end stop switch operate it registers that as a fault and stops.

If you take it up outside, it will have to be quite tall and with stays. How about up the corner, then following the roof line and out at the ridge, a bit like ours in the bedroom, though in your case as close in to the roof line as you could get it.

Yes that is what you need. But why exit there? Ours goes up inside the room, up through the bedroom above and out through the roof. Don't forget a smaller hole, lower down about 100mm diameter for ducted air intake.

It looked like something similar to our twin and and earth copper, but twisted at each joint then welded. I am unclear if that is a just a joint, presumably sleeved? or if the twisted and welded joint then goes into for instance a socket. Not enough detail.

I believe that video was in Spain. Has this been used in the UK? Is it even allowed in the UK. If it was it would seem to be a build method that is truly within the capability of a self builder without needing the concrete pour stages of ICF.

I stumbled upon this on another forum. It looks like giant polystyrene bricks, a sort of ICF, but without the hollow core and concrete.

For those wanting to join a boating forum in order to read it https://forums.ybw.com/index.php?threads/epc-energy-performance-certs.593805/ The opening post of the thread was

That looks just like the one I wired about this time last year and posted the picture of some of the plumbing above.

Going back to EPC ratings and properties requiring upgrades, I am following a thread on another forum. I can't post a link as it is a members only forum so would not show to any non member. That thread has shown that the original EU "Energy Performance of Buildings" directive, some 15 years ago which is what gave us the EPC in the first place, has provision for demanding all buildings are updated to certain standards by certain dates. It also appears that we are still obliged to follow that directive, even the amendments to it that may alter what standards a building has to meet and when. We seem to have a lot of silence on this here, no mention of it in the UK main media but it is being talked about openly "over there" If in a number of years time, it is suddenly announced to the UK public that you WILL have to upgrade your old house (estimates are 75% of the UK housing stock WILL need upgrades) and YOU might have to pay for the upgrades yourself, then there are going to be a lot of angry people. What's more I estimate a little over 50% of the population will become even more angry when they find out it is an EU law that is still telling us what we must do.

It just looks awkward to use.

Of course it won't happen. The plan is to get the votes of the gullible who believe it will, and then figure out who to blame other than themselves for it not happening.

The UK had a whole series of home designed and built reactors from the early Magnox upwards and 30 years ago we could have designed and built our own new generations of power stations. Now the only relic of that is the small PWR's that only lived on in the subs. the last remnants of our own nuclear industry.

Not at all. My timber frame was stick built by a local building firm, so not quite a "kit house". After their initial quick assembly of the frame, it then took me 5 years to complete it myself. For me the main advantage of timber frame is almost the entire thickness of the walls can be insulation of some form or other. Vs Masonry where the actual bricks or blocks add little insulation. So you can get a very good indeed passive house level build with masonry, the overall walls thickness will be more than it could be with timber frame. A lot depends on what is normal where you are, in in this part of Scotland, Timber frame is normal so no problem finding a competent builder to do it right.

Well the "environmentalists" that are proposing hydrogen as a green energy source, damned well need to start getting interested in the leakage rate and the harm the unburned hydrogen will do as a greenhouse gas.

Are you not building some form of wall to fill the gap between the stair and the edge of the opening? If so the wall you build would support the extra beam?

I believe the new EPC system being talked about will be based on kWh per square metre per year of energy use.

Google the latest developments in the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. The EPC system is being overhauled (much like the energy rating of appliances) so the new system an A will be a poor rating and E or F will be good (nothing like confusing the consumer)? And they are setting a target that ALL buildings, new and existing will be carbon neutral by 2050 with a set of dates when all buildings must meet particular standards. I have not seen an explanation yet of what happens if they say your house has to meet a certain standard by a certain date and you can't afford to pay for the upgrades......... Something needs to happen, because we have a situation where consumers mostly buy houses with no regard to the EPC, and then are the first to complain at high heating bills. It has long been my opinion that houses with a poor EPC should be worth less than the same size house with a good EPC to reflect both the high ongoing running costs and the eventual cost of upgrading them.

This is the real issue. The poor state of much of the UK housing stock, and who is going to upgraded them all, and when, and more importantly who is going to pay for it? That is the can that is being kicked down the road hoping it will go away. How you heat them is almost the secondary issue compared to how do you reduce the amount of heat they need.

I despair of journalists when I read something like: But no surprises when a boiler manufacturer writes an article trying to sway the argument towards hydrogen boilers instead. WHEN someone comes up with a cost effective way to produce a lot of hydrogen and zero emissions, and a reasonable cost perhaps we can take it seriously. but we are not there yet, not by a long way.

Here's one I did earlier. Well I only did the wiring, not the plumbing. UVC and volumiser supplied as a package with the ASHP. I am not sure I agree with the plumbing, but there are two UFH manifolds a second one just to the right out of shot and the only circulating pump in the system is the one in the ASHP. And no thermal mixing valves on the manifods so water circulates at temperature set by the ASHP.

UFH manifolds with a circulating pump and a temperature blending valve should be used. I used 22mm pipe but the plumbers may have a better recommendation. the Grant install manual will specifify the minimum system volume, they sell their own "volumiser" that can be used as s a simple extra volume or piped as a low loss header, again I will leave that to the plumbers.

When I bought my flue pipe, I bought an "insulated sleeve" made for the purpose. It fits tight around the flue and because the manufacturer has declared it for for being in contact with the flue it must be non combustible so that is fine. And the outside edge is >50mm from the flue so anything can touch that. I have not been able to find this on sale lately but surely someone makes one still?