ETC

Screw the trusses closed?

Get Sky Glass. No dish required.

What on earth is going on with the elevations and why are the internal walls so thick?

My attempt. First floor to remain as is.

If you’ve given your agent the budget they should be designing to it. I suspect this proposal is more expensive that your budget and I’d look again at your brief or your budget. Consider leaving the upstairs as it is and reconfiguring the ground floor to give you the kitchen/diner you want.

Seems a bit petty really. If they are really concerned about IPR suggest that the drawings are “exploded” and set on one layer before they send them to you. They could also remove all the notes if they’re really concerned. You will be able to measure but all the editable information will be removed.

I think you could build a more rational and less expensive house - even with a few curves - that will also meet P80 (PPS7/P55/P79) standards. The spaces are practically un-useable and no matter what your agents tell you not only will you have trouble finding and fitting furniture but there will be a lot of useless space in the rooms. Where you want to install fitted furniture it will be bespoke and expensive. The bedrooms are tight and the amount of natural light into and views from many of the bedrooms will be negligible. You said living on the site is more important to us than the design of the house - if this is really true build a rectangle that will be inexpensive to build and living in. Forget about this design before it is too late and the bills keep coming and coming. If you need to build a house of exceptional design quality look at cheaper options. As an aside what was the concept for this design and how did you get there. I am genuinely interested. Thanks. ETC.

Watch the programme on Sky Arts.

https://www.fosterandpartners.com/projects/dolunay-villa/

Madness! Looks like someone’s HNC project. It will be a b*tch to build and very expensive.

No issue.

Add a batten to the underside of all rafters giving you an even plane to fit your insulated plasterboard to.

Firstly I’m surprised your design team have let you get so far without a roof plan. Secondly I think you you’ll need a roof frame - probably steel. Steel hips and a ridge and purlins to break the rafter span and pick up the ridges of the dormer windows. You might also need a couple of steel portal rafter frames, a steel trimmer and steel ridge beam to help trim out the large return to the front and back. You will also need steel ridge beams for the single storey gables. You’ll also probably need something to anchor the steel to the walls. In hindsight the building would have benefitted from a steel portal frame with infill steels. Or as previously mentioned - trussed rafters. This will be a bespoke design and quite a complicated roof to design. Difficult but not impossible.

The words “shed” and “load” come to mind.

Go ahead….

Can you post a section please?

You will definitely need cavity trays and flashing. I don’t think you’ll get away without a 150mm upstand between your roof and underside of your cill - but check with your local BCO - they might accept lead flashing directly to the cill since there should be a DPC directly under the cill under which you could chase the lead flashing into. Best job would be to put in cavity trays and lead flashing throughout complete with stop ends and bedweeps and a 150mm upstand.

Get a contract. NEC or JCT.

The engineer’s drawing is wrong. You don’t need the outer leaf lintel (there’s nothing above the window on the outer leaf) and the beam is shown too low in the inner leaf - the bottom of the beam should be the top of the bi-folds. The architectural detail looks like it has everything in the right place. For bi-folds and the stability of the wall panel I would expect some sort of goal-post arrangement - a couple of posts at each side and a steel beam as a lintel to make sure the bi-folds don’t buckle. I wouldn’t go off at the deep end with your engineer or take too much advice from a public forum but I do think you need to tell him that you need site specific - not generic details for the build. Good luck.

Who are they?

Unfortunately in architecture very true.

Not available.

Get the supplier to clarify where the stamp is located. It might be hidden under the glazing strip. Otherwise get your supplier to confirm in writing to BC that the glass is toughened. If it’s not put a toughened glass balustrade across the lower half of the window (up to 800mm above FFL). This is common practice in historic buildings where there are sliding sash windows with the lower part of the opening sash less than 800mm above FFL.

Give Structure and Fire Safety a good read before you put pencil to paper. The rest can be looked at as you go.

Post your drawings. Let us see what you designed.