ProDave

Even an existing long standing discharge from a septic tank to a watercourse no longer meets the GBR and should have been upgraded to a treatment plant at least 2 years ago.

The screw screws into an expanding plastic fitting that is inserted from the top so it is a blind fitting. The screw and both the plastic fittings will need replacing, easy enough to buy replacements. The hardest part will be extracting the old one if the screw is just spinning. The tip above about applying upward pressure wile unscrewing the screw to get it to grip is a good one.

Yes we are. Many of us use wood burning stoves in an appropriate situation having assessed what harm it might or might not do and concluded in our case a very rural very low density populated and usually windy location, there really is not an issue so have chosen to use a WBS. I would not have made that choice if I lived in a more densely populated settlement in a windless valley where the smoke was likely to linger. But even when we make reasoned choices we are still told how bad we are and how irresponsible we are again and again and again by the same person. This whole environment thing is a case of each of us making the best choices we can in our individual circumstances. Few will be able to do everything possible, but just the best we can. And the "experts" don't help. If burning wood is "bad" then someone really ought to tell those running DRAX who keep telling us how carbon neutral and environmentally friendly it is. So prime example of even the environmentalists can't agree what is good or bad. No wonder a large percentage of the population is confused or frustrated by it all and many just can't be bothered because the message we are being given is too confusing and contradictory. All we should do on a forum like this is highlight pros and cons of different options and let the individual make their choices and don't keep slapping them down because their choice is not the same as yours.

There is more to boiler electrics usually than "plug it in" There are usually time clocks, thermostats, motorised valves etc and then it depends if it is a system boiler or combi. So get your electrician to look at the boiler first and see if he can move the electrics first and keep the boiler powered until moving day with some temporary cable(s) but even that may not help if the plumber is moving motorised valves and pumps etc.

There are only 2 heights relevant to building regulations. A domestic stair and landing, 900mm, and "everywhere else" 1100mm In a similar situation but only a 2 storey house, BC tried to tell me that "landing" only referred to 1 square metre at the top of the stair, and my galleried landing came under "anywhere else" and should be 1100mm high. Trouble was our chosen domestic handrail system was only available in 900mm high. A many week standoff ensued while our BC sought clarification and came back and said 900mm was okay. If you don't feel comfortable with 900mm then 1100mm is what you want, but it is likely to restrict your choice somewhat.

Surely even if no permit is needed (it is in Scotland, you won't say where you are) you would have required building regs approval for a new treatment plant? Have you asked the EA (or SEPA in Scotland)?

That's a big drainage area. Our previous house required 85 square metres and that was a 5 bedroom house with slow draining land. Have you started to look at alternatives like composting toilets?

The drainage field for our previous house and at least 2 others in this road, is under the field behind us, which is Arable land growing usually wheat or barley. So there does not appear to be an issue growing "food" on the land. The drainage field is quite deep deliberately to be well below the depth a plough would turn the soil.

Yes my Pi Music box seems to run for weeks on end without needing a re boot. What does still upset it is losing it's internet connection when streaming, if that happens too many times it just seems to lose the ability to re start streaming. But that is much better now we no longer use a lousy ADSL internet connection that was the best available when we got it, but frankly it was always a lousy unreliable service delivered over a copper cable network in such poor state is was a wonder it could actually handle a voice call.

Our Utility and downstairs WC is all in one room. Some think it a strange concept, but most just accept it. It's a long thin room so has the usual run of kitchen type units for washer and dryer and a sink, and come cupboards and then a gap at the end of the run for the WC. It would have been possible to divide it with another room and a door, but we just did not see the point and building control had no issues whatsoever with the two being combined.

What you REALLY need to find is a GOOD local gas safe plumber and an electrician. Then you know who to call when you have a problem and you only get charged a fair price when you have a problem.

I think it was Jeremy that worked out with his super insulated passive raft foundation, that 8% of the heat into the UFH was "wasted" heating the ground under the house. But when the total heating into the house is not a lot, then 8% of not a lot is even less. We have a heated floor area of about 40 square metres at a U value of 0.14, so say 30 degree floor temperature and -10 under the floor worst case, that's 224 watts lost through the floor heating the air under it (suspended floor) With a total whole house heat loss of about 2.2kW at +20 inside and and -10 outside that is about 10% lost through the floor in our case.

It sounds like they are suggesting a hidden gutter drain which sounds very sensible. Drawings and pictures would help.

Was there a flexi before? Personally in a situation like that, a flexi is the very last way I would connect that cistern. Just a straight bit of copper to a tap connector from the isolator.

What an odd fitting to put the lamp so far recessed? And as for having to unclip the whole thing from the ceiling to change a lamp, by about the 4th blown lamp the hole in the plasterboard ceiling will be too big and crumbling. Choose something different.

Mine are made by Eclipse, bought from Screwfix and have just the top and bottom ball race. No problems with them.

Never yet. It is usually some admin person that pays the invoice, and they were not present when the job was done. The person that was present and witnessed the job done to their satisfaction probably does not know the details of the quote.

I have said this before but I seem to be a lone voice. I don't give quotes. I give estimates, am open with my hourly rate and materials cost. Most jobs turn out lower than my estimate. If i am forced to give a quote (usually commercial customers) i have to think of absolutely everything that can go wrong to make the job take longer and price on that. Almost always the job takes less time than what I have allowed. But it is a quote so that is what they pay. People on here tell me customers don't like paying by the hour because they then expect you to just sit and drink tea while charging your hourly rate. Some might, but surely they would never be recommended? I don't and all my work comes from recommendations, I don't advertise.

Where? Link? More to the point will the kind government be dishing out grants again next winter like they did this winter (that funded my entire years heating bill)?

Why do you need a water tank? Not mains water?

I should have gone and re submitted planning to move the house over, then I could have had a double garage. The house was put where it is on the site on the assumption we needed to provide a filter mound drainage system alongside the house. Building control then rejected that and eventually the solution found was discharge to the burn. That meant we no longer needed much land for drainage, so could have re positioned the house on the plot, but that would have meant going back to planning and all the delays before we could start. It's a shame planning and building control are not one integrated function.

Strictly speaking mine is referred to as hybrid. It has 100mm of wood fibre board over the rafters and then 200mm full fill insulation between the rafters. It means the entire loft space is inside the insulated air tight envelope so you don't have to worry about insulating mvhr ducts etc or ceiling penetrations.

As you are still in construction phase, is it too late to change it for a warm roof? That puts all the insulation and air tightness at roof level and makes all the internal work, ducts, lights so much easier, and you get a nice warm loft space as well. That is right up there at the top of the "I am glad I did that" list.

That is not a 240V connector so it must need an external driver. That is a very misleading label, it refers to the input voltage to the driver not the light fitting itself. sorry that does not get you any closer.

Check the small print. Mine said it converted to normal buildings insurance upon completion. I don't known if that means once a building is physically completed, or signed off as completed by building control?