ProDave

In a new build you should just fit hard wired, 3 core & earth between all of them. RF linking is really for retro fit to save taking up loads of floor boards to run interlink cables. Plenty of cheap Aico stuff on ebay but watch "replace by" dates.

No 1 question, how are you going to provide enough insulation under your floor? That might be tricky in a flat. If you don't add lots of insulation and just fit some low profile UFH, you will be paying to heat the flat below you and they will be your best friends.

The motor connections can be seen on my original picture if you enlarge it: RED: YM 310V DC That will be the main power (rectified 220V ac gives about that, it will be a bit over in the UK) Blue: GND I take that as power ground. Brown: VCC 15VDC I take that as power for the control electronics inside the motor. White: FG Functional Ground? Ground for the control electronics? Orange: 0-6.0VDC Probably speed demand input Violet: Reverse logic signal to tell it which way to rotate. When I do get around to opening the motor, I will take pictures.

Before you do that, do a sanity check and replace the flow switch with any manual switch, even a standard light switch will do, and confirm the pump turns on and off and runs properly with no excess voltage drop anywhere.

That's the plan but I would rather wait a few weeks until we are done with heating so there is less pressure in case something goes wrong. From what I know of this motor is the main body is plastic. The front where the spindle emerges is a metal plate held on by I think by 4 screws. I suspect the front bearing might be easy to access, but I suspect the rear bearing is pressed into the plastic housing so may be harder to extract and replace without breaking something. Disappointing that unlike other motors there are no details yet emerging of anyone repairing one.

Yes I am leaning that way. There was only 1 review of the motor on alibaba and that was to say it arrived broken and they were not interested in resolving that. That does not encourage me to buy from there. My thinking is once the heating season is over I should be able to remove it, open it up, identify the bearings and put it back together in a day. IF anyone has replaced this motor and has the old one I would be interested in that to repair it off line so to speak?

The HP was installed in mid 2018, so coming up to 6 years old. Yes it is disappointing but it has not yet "failed" I am hoping someone else who has had one fail might find this thread and let me know where they got a replacement, or did they replace the bearings. I have never used Alibaba so not sure whether to trust them or not, the worry being in some way it may not be the right thing and resolving that may not be easy. I generally only buy really cheap stuff from China on the basis I can afford to lose the money if something goes wrong.

I have been aware of my ASHP getting more noisy than usual all winter. When a passing neighbour enquired today what the noise was, I thought it was time to have a look. It is the fan motor looks to have failing bearings. It's a sort of high pitched whine sound that varies with fan speed. It is not the compressor, that purrs as quiet as a quiet thing. So probably time to start looking for a sollution. Here is the fan motor: Googling the part number FMEC531LGB and the motor is available, most places seem to be charging between £250 and £300 but Alibaba have it for £150 with postage https://www.aliexpress.com/i/1005003764026412.html I'm torn between buying a new motor, or trying to replace the bearings in the one I have. Trouble with that is it will take time to dismantle it, find the bearings, order them etc, all the while the ASHP will be out of action so that will have to wait until we have finished with heating. Or I might buy a new motor and then look at fixing the old one as a spare. I have not yet found anyone dismantling this exact motor so have no clue if it is easy or hard and if the bearings are obtainable.

Why so shallow? For our 5M span we have 300mm by 100mm posi joists at 600mm centres Same span downstairs has 300mm I beams at 400mm centres.

What's the steel structure in picture 7 that looks to be framing some form of internal bay window?

I put our static on site before we even had full planning (we did have planning in principle) and got the water and electricity connected to the site. BC are not interested in those. BUT we did not occupy it and we did not have drainage. It was then a long process to agree an acceptable drainage system with BC so would could not even think about installing that before the building warrant in the hope it would comply. Note a static caravan itself is exempt from building control, but the drainage connection to service it, does come under building control and sure enough BC wanted to inspect and pressure test the spur of drain pipe branching off to the static caravan.

Timber frame, as long as the frame is not rotten, is easy to upgrade to add extra insulation. Much more so than many other build types. so there is probably a good argument to keep and update the building you have, and extend it to gain the extra space you want. The problem I would say is the floors. If it is solid concrete floors with no insulation under it, then it really all wants digging up, digging down deeper to add insulation and re lay the floor.

Our static caravan was 28 square metres. 3 of us survived in that for 18 months. BUT the house shell was already up and wind and watertight, so plenty of dry storage, a second loo available in the house, laundry set up in the house and an office with my computer etc.

There do seem to be a lot of cables through the membrane, Why? Obviously mains in, telephone / broadband in, and water in need to penetrate the membrane. Those come up in the utility room in our house, each individually sealed where they come up. A few outside lights. That is a single cable to each, with just a small hole just big enough for the cable and the single cable entering taped to the membrane. All tv aerial etc and some notwork cables all come up through a hocky stick that enters into the AV cupboard under the stairs. With all cables in place, the ends of the hockey stick were foamed to seal the remaining space.

The FIT has not been available for new installations for something like 10 years now. But if you do have solar PV on a FIT contract then it is true you get paid for what you generate regardless of who uses it. Any modern PV system can get paid for exporting surplus, but you only get paid for the amount you actually export.

Not much info there. About all I did glean from that is is is a split unit. No idea of power, price etc.

The design flaw is why to so many cables need to penetrate the air tight layer?

First check the fan is extracting (enough suck to hold a sheet of paper up to the ceiling when on) If not it is usually the poorly installed cheap nasty flexible ducting that is full of condensation and hence blocked.

There is a good argument in Scotland for having vertical or near vertical panels. That will give more generation in winter when you want all you can get.

And it still would not produce any power as it has no grid to synchronise to. You are just limited to the low power UPS output.

I was going to ask the same. In what way does the window to the family room not comply as a means of escape? Make it bigger, wider, opening and correct height so it is a means of escape.

How are you achieving means of escape windows in the bedrooms?

I fitted the UFH manifold in my bathroom into a 100mm space. I had to turn the pump in it's side and remove the knob from the blending valve. You can usually borrow 50mm space behind the kitchen cabinets as well.

You are over thinking it. A grid tied inverter is designed to shut down when it loses it's grid connection.

That looks very awkward for washing up. I am used to space one side for dirty stuff to be washed up and draining rack the other side to put the clean stuff.