ProDave

The standard BT duct is "duct 56" which I guess means it's 56mm diameter. but I dodn't have any, the Open Reach surveyor only had small van so could not carry it. they told me I could make the 50 mile round trip to their depot to collect some free issue. Instead, I had a length of the identical but black ducting, that had been left outside for some considerable time and had gone grey, so I used that. It is only the bit under the road in duct. Being SWA cable the rest of is is direct burried in the ground.

Re fast fix boxes. They have a bad reputation in some places. Three things can go "wrong" with them. They can pull through the wall because the fixing lugs are too small, the fixing lugs are not held in position properly so when you try and screw an accessory on, the lug just pushes back out of the way, and lastly the screws can jamb and the nut spins in it's plastic moulding. The fact is, the design of a LOT of fast fix boxes leaves a lot to be desired. but there is a simple solution, just buy a decent make of fast fix box. I only ever use Appleby fast fix boxes and they have none of these problems.

"No evidence of original ground level? They could have taken a look on street view? There are no worries in our case. I submitted a site plan with existing levels and a site plan with proposed levels. I am pretty close to the proposed levels. Basically all I have done is taken a sloping site, and built up the downhill end of the site so it is now very much less of a slope (but still a slope) so more of a useable garden. The build up also minimises the height from floor level to the ground at the "back door" so fewer steps needed from that down to the garden. It has worked out well as I have already used most of the soil that was excavated for the foundations. any that doesn't get used up when we finish the final details later on, will simply get used to smooth out the ground on the other side of the burn, which is otherwise being left at the original level. So no muck away charges whatsoever for this job.

I can't recall what temperature we run the UFH but it's not particularly high. If you walk on the floor bare footed, you certainly don't think "gosh that's hot" but of course neither do you think it's cold. In fact about the only time you really notice the UFH is if you lift the rug in the living room and then you can feel the warmth that's been trapped under the rug. Likewise in the morning if you pick up a pile of clothes from the bedroom floor, the bottom of the pile feels warm.

This is definitely something to think about. Present house has surround sound system for tv, all free standing speakers (though the satellite speakers could be wall mounted) I don't like the theory of all the bass coming from one place, as technically it sounds wrong, but it does seem to work quite well. But for listening to music, I am sorry, nothing will get me to part with my pair of floor standing speakers. If you want small but good speakers, I have seen (heard) some good results from Bose speakers. I recall walking into a hi fi shop once thinking "that sounds good" and was amazed at just how small the speakers were. The price tag wasn't small though, and I know some people detest Bose. The "issue" for us is two living rooms, the open plan "familly room" and the snug living room. My inclination is to have the decent hi fi and big screen tv with surround sound in the snug, and an ordinary sized tv in the familly room, though it will want something better than the rubbish speakers built in. So I guess I will end up cabling both rooms for surround sound just in case.

It was probably a case of they had a surplus of Maple to get rid if, and they spun me a yarn then? But it still seems fine.

I think I am qualified to make a judgement. When building the present house, 13 years ago, we paid a man with a JCB to install our septic tank. It was in March, so the water table was quite high. He had dug the hole, and had the tank slung from the bucket of the JCB. He was just starting to lower it into the hole when "plop" a bit of the side of the hole fell in and deposited a big rock right in the middle where the tank was about to be placed. Without thinking, I put a ladder down the hole, climbed down and moved the rock. Even the JCB driver told me that was a very very silly thing to do, even though it would have meant him untying the tank and using the bucket to remove the rock, then slinging it and trying again. That's why in our ground I would never ever go into a hole that deep again. I would say you have to be pretty damn sure of your ground conditions before you can say it is "safe"

Yes each bit has been seeded as I have done it, which is why some parts are more green than others. The bit I finished today will be seeded when I get some more seed next week. Infinitely cheaper than turf and a lot easier. I am not after a perfectly manicured lawn just now, I just want the grass to get established before the weeds do. I hope it wil all get some growth before the winter sets in rather than spending the winter as bare earth.

When we had Open Reach survey our plot, they just gave me a drum of SWA phone cable and it was up to me to get it from our house across the road to where the telephone cable is. They will then connect it hen we want to go live. Total cost £nill. It worked out fine for us as we had the road up once and put in water, electricit and telephone cables all in one go.

I haven't repaired it yet, I have been using it very carefully. I needed to burn off some fuel so there is less than 20 litres left so I can drain and remove the tank to get the welding done.

I am sure most of you will think I am bonkers landscaping the plot of a house that's not yet completed outside, and barely started inside. In the last few weeks all the ground around the house has been leveled and final garden levels established. I have even started to grow some grass. It was completed today, here's one view of how it now looks: (the nice green lawn in the foreground is my neighbours front garden) There is more on my blog here http://ardross.altervista.org/Wilowburn/landscaping-part-1/ The motivation for doing this at this stage, is that is was something very cheap that I was able to do, and this now completes most of the jobs that require the digger, so just one more little job and that will be for sale.

Last time around, everyone advised us against using Oak with UFH. The one recommendation of a hardwood that was okay with UFH was Maple, and they would only warrant that in the narrow 90mm wide planks, no wider. So that is what we used ad 13 years later it's as good as new, no warping, no cracks, very little shrinkage.

It won't help but might be a comparison. I paid £350 for 50 good used Kwikstage planks (so 8ft long and 2" thick so they can span the whole 8ft without intermediate support) that's £7 per plank, so your £8.50 new sounds good. Transport is the killer, I collected them myself 25 at a time on my own trailer, they were only 5 miles away.

I have a friend using satellite broadband. The price goes up with the amount of data you use (no "unlimited" option.) He moans with two teenage daughters with ipads surgically attached they are paying about £80 per month. It would be a lot lower if you used less bandwidth. Even at £80 per month, that install cost is nearly 8 years worth of satellite broadband. Aren't Open Reach supposed to pay the first £3K of the install? so that should knock it down to £4.5K Is any of this work contestable like with water and electricity connections. Get a quote from an independent contractor to mole under the road and install a grey duct with a draw string (Open Reach should free issue the duct to you) and then get a quote from Open Reach to just come and pull a cable through that duct and connect it to the pole and your house.

Not just "interesting" but bloody dangerous if you ask me. With the ground we have, I suspect it would be more likely to cave in, and in any case there are so many rocks and stones in the ground the chances of driving the angle iron in that fare would be very slim.

A man with a number plate on his head? A man with a spade on his head?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/wadkin-Thicknesser-/282160625212?hash=item41b215763c:g:9UIAAOSwMgdXyy82 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WADKIN-BAO-S-12-X-7-415-v-3PHASE-SURFACE-PLANER-THICKNESSER-/401175895151?hash=item5d67f25c6f:g:908AAOSwV0RXvKif http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Wadkin-Bursgreen-Planer-Thicknesser-12-X-7-Ex-College-3-Phase-895-00-vat-/262606525719?hash=item3d24919517:g:OKUAAOSwGtRXydTW this one is single phase http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Planer-thicknesser-/252527061087?hash=item3acbc9285f:g:BdEAAOSwdIFXzZGO The seller of thios one will also be selling the phase converter http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sedgwick-10-Planer-Thicknesser-/322247159516?hash=item4b076d6edc:g:XoUAAOSw9NdXq1Di

Slightly old news as I finished it about 2 weeks ago, but only just got around to writing it up on the blog. The house roof was finished some time ago, but it's the garage roof that has been waiting while I do more important things like cladding, rendering and drainage. So just to show the finished thing here are a couple of pics. There is more on my blog at http://ardross.altervista.org/Wilowburn/roofing-finally-finished/ After fitting something like 1800 tiles to this house, I have 34 tiles left over. I would say the roofing supplier that specified the quantities from the plans, got it about righrt.

Mine is anchored with about 6 tons of concrete. We have a seasonally high water table here, and I would not be the one volunteering to climb down into a deep soggy hole to bang some angle iron stakes into the side while hoping it doesn't collapse while I am down there.

Yes cost is a big issue. For the same reason, there are now 5 self builds in progress within 2 miles of me, and 4 of them are using Rationel windows, no doubt because they are very keenly priced. The 5th one is being build by someone with seemingly bottomless pockets, nothing he does is to save money. Once installed your unit will perform well I have no doubt about that. The no legs thing would have been a PITA for my self install. Once we had lowered the unit into the ground it then took us the rest of that day, and then most of the following day to mix, barrow and pour concrete. My aged digger with it's (slightly) leaking hydraulics would not have held it in position that long so we would have needed to find some other way to prop it. P.S I have done the ferry ride to Westray. We did a little tour of the islands, fliying to Papa westray, then to Westray, and ferry back, just so we could fly on the worlds shortest scheduled air service from Papa Westray to Westray, takes about 2 minutes in the air.

You don't need a window in a bathroom or en-suite, but see if you can get a roof window in if not a proper one. Failing that another sun pipe to at least get light in so you don't have to turn a light on in the daytime. Re sliding door gear, I bought the cheap sliding door kits from one of the sheds and it was nothing like £150 and they work fine for me.

I know Jason's choice was limited by transport costs, but seeing that makes me glad I opted for the Conder. I am sure the Biopure will be fine in operation but disadvantages over the Conder as I see it: No legs, so you have to hold the Biopure upright while back filling the hole. (conder has legs) I don't see any lifting eyes to lift it and hold it (Conder has 4 lifting eyes) It looks like you have to lift the pump unit out to empty the tank (Conder has separate access point for emptying)

Normally the cladding (timber in your case) would go on after the windows are in, and that would bridge the gap you are talking about. Yours are Rationel aren't they? any moisture that gets between the wood frame and the ali cladding can drain out of the bottom of the gap onto the cill.

If you are sealing a timber framed building properly, I cannot envisage a situation where later shrinkage is going to open up leaks, at least not unless said shrinkage is enough to rip your air tightness tape down the middle? Yes details like a tony tray (we used that, even before I knew the name Tony tray) are essential things to build in at construction stage. How many mass builders even know about things like that, let alone implement it. And do any mass builders seal the building then put a service void so all services run inside the sealed envelope without (or with very few) penetrations?

When I was an apprentice, we picked up a mini, and "parked" it in an impossibly tight space facing the wrong way in a 1 way system.