ProDave

What is this rule that stops you claiming the VAT of a garage built at the same time as the house?

There is no hysteresis in our house. We don't have any overshoot issues with the UFH It heats up gently and slowly and when the thermostats switch off it does not get hotter. I think the secret here is the UFH runs at a low temperature and only heats the house gently. Any "control system" that overshoots has too much "gain", and that could be in the form of a heating surface too hot or too much heating power for the size of the building. As we have said before if you choose to use panel heaters on the wall, they would be more efficient than electric under floor heating, not because the heaters are more efficient, but because UFH will result in a bit more heat loss through the floor. Re the ASHP Vs Willis. Our heating bill for last winter was £234. If we assume the ASHP was running at a COP of 3, then that would about £700 for resistance heating instead, so the ASHP is saving us about £400 of electricity or more each year. Considering it cost a lot less than £1000 I think it is very well worth it.

Exclude the basement, and you get £242,060 for 180 square metres, which is £1344 per square metre which is good. £162,450 for a 41 square metre basement is £3962 per square metre. you would really really REALLY want need that extra space and not able to get that extra space any other way to pay that much. (that basement is costed at more than my whole house build!!!) Electrics at £11,250 is on the steep side for me.

So learn from the experience and start from the bottom.

Have their been any nearby planning applications recently? I got our visibility requirements reduced by pointing out PP was granted a year earlier just down the road with a lesser requirement.

What am I missing? Why do you want to knock part of the wall down? there's a dirty great big gap where it looks like an old fence has blown down. Reinstate the fence with a gate through to where that car is parked. Job done.

I am not sure I would be too bothered with air gaps. I would just fill the entire frame width with as much insulation as you can fit, tape and / or foam all the joints

Someone will put a computer and a GPS receiver in a phone next.

I would first be getting the deeds for all adjoining properties from the Land Registry first to see what they say. Particularly that pub car park. If you are saying there is already a door in the side leading onto that lane, then why not put that back into use? You could always (once you know exactly what the deeds say) see if you can enter a lease with the pub for a parking space and right of access?

I dealt with one on the "squirt and run" principle last year, Run up the ladder, long squirt in the hole, quickly down the ladder and hide for a while. Once squirted, it seemed to deter the returning wasps from going back in. I previously dealt with one by dressing up in all my motorbike hear including helmet and gloves, then taping all the joints and going in to do the squirting.

I filled all mine with a hose and a funnel. Hose on top and bottom of manifold. Open the valves for ONE loop of pipe at a time. Pour water / inhibitor into top hose via funnel until it runs clear without air bubbles from the bottom hose. Repeat for each loop of pipe.

Invert the unit so the heater is at the top, and apply a blowlamp to the area around the element would be my line of attack.

That would be a big worry for me. What happens after the guarantee has expired if the heater fails? You won't be happy if you have to scrap the whole thing, I suspect you will be looking for a way to change it yourself?

Small point. Looking at your rear boundary (wall) it appears the hedge alongside your neighbours front garden is already on your land? If so instruct him to stop trimming that bit and you will take over that duty, and of course allow it to grow taller. then you just have the hedge along the road to plant and grow then.

Yes but the plan on our planning application was all that was available then, a very basic outline plan. In the last few years the plans on the LR site have been vastly improved including much more detail of old houses, not just new ones.

What on earth did you do wrong to blow up the pump? You don't want to run them dry for long, but they should not instantly blow up?

20mm engineered oak flooring directly on the battens. the gap between the battens filled with biscuit mix.

If you mean using a biscuit mix as the heat spreader, yes that is exactly what I have done, only mine was above the joists and battens on top of the joists (with notches where needed for pipes to pass through) My pipes are at 200mm centres with the biscuit mix and working very well. Engineered oak floorboards over the top. But the house is well insulated so it doesn't need much heat anyway, but we did use the same system in the previous house with less insulation and it worked there as well.

The "flashlight" app does not use the screen but turns on the camera illumination (an LED) to act as a "torch" Is there an open source version anywhere that might be free of malware?

Very grey area. In the old days you would definitely have needed PP when the definition used to be "between the building line and the highway" Now it just mentions "adjacent" to the highway, but the "highway" includes the footpath. So if you build it right next to the footpath, you would need pp. Someone posted a similar case where it went to court and the ruling was when stood on the path, he could not touch the fence so it was rules as not being "adjacent" to the highway. You could always do as your neighbour and plant a hedge. I have a BIL in a similar sited house and he now has a mature Beech hedge all around his garden including around the side and around the entire front garden, and it has made a massive difference to the feel and usability of what was a tiny enclosed garden before.

I was idly looking at the Land Registry data this morning for our house. (which in Scotland is at https://scotlis.ros.gov.uk/) 3 things struck me. Our plot correctly shows the house name, in spite of still not managing to get the address on the postcode address file. The maps are far more detailed than any OS map of the area showing all the buildings outlines in remarkable detail. The outline of our house is correctly shown as is the outline of the static caravan. Neither of our sheds are shown though most neighbouring houses do have their outbuildings shown. I was pondering how and when that was surveyed, I have never seen anyone walking round with a total station but I suspect that must have happened at some point? When we bought the plot, there was one bit of land between us and a neighbour that appeared to be unregistered. We decided not to try contesting it or claiming it. It would not have added any useful space for us and in any event next doors septic tank is on that bit of land. It is curious that it is still not shown as enclosed by next doors title plan, so next door appears to have his septic tank on a bit of unregistered land. I am surprised they did not try to correct that (e.g by adverse possession) when the house changed hands, not long after we bought our plot.

If it has been in use for a certain time don't you acquire a prescribed right of access or something like that?

You probably don't want to read this, but some of us bought Hudson Reid shower mixers for considerably less than you paid, and they look awfully similar Fit it vertically and your space issues go away.

Up here a double check valve is also required on the pipe into the house and the pipe into our static caravan, as well as the outside tap. I "discussed" this with the SW man at the time. The incoming underground stopcock that SW proved has a single check valve. The in line underground stopcock that I fitted has a single check valve. But no, neither of these are any good, I also had to have three double check valves as well. I did "suggest" to SW if they are that worried, why don't they supply an underground stopcock that has a double check valve fitted and I would not need to bother with this nonsense.

Tie or weight it down, or it will all go awol next time the wind blows.