Cauk

That's why I'm confused - the house is 600m away. Our supply pipe runs in a field for 600m from the mains to the house - hence why I requested a 50mm connection to increase potential flow rate (based on comments on here ?) The meter will be at the mains in the footpath (which is also in a field!) - so mains, short comm pipe, meter, our 600m supply pipe. They know this as I sent a diagram and the Clancy person they sent to survey phoned me on the day to walk through everything (and was the only person i've spoken with related to Southern Water that has been helpful so far) I'll try phoning them tomorrow as it sounds like the P25 meter and bypass is not something that makes sense in this setup..? edit: when I speak in present tense I mean future tense - none of this exists yet, I'm trying to get all the information before i push the button on a purchase.

? Hmm. Does that 32 feed back into the 50 to go up to the house? It’s a 600m private supply so the plan was just one 50mm connection. Is the 32 bypass always open or does it get opened/closed depending on whether we are on fire..? I can ask the water company but the have a 28 day turnaround ?

Context - long private supply pipe for new connection where I made enquiries on whether I could get a 50mm connection to main. The quote has come back and it refers to “1 x large diameter connection 63mm” and them installing a 50mm comm pipe to our supply.. however the meter arrangement gave me pause.. ”Lay 1no. 50mm comm pipe and install 1no. Tagus P25 meter with 32mm bypass arrangement to serve new house.” Does this mean the meter is only 25mm? Don’t laugh at me for my plumbing ideas but I’m wondering does the 32mm bypass mean that when water is on almost half goes through the meter, the rest through the bypass and they do some maths to work out how much water has been used? Why wouldn’t they just use a 50mm meter? I’m guessing at accuracy of recording given this is just one house?

Thanks all. Yes, intention would be to go for full planning. The vendor already has, but it is dragging and also doesn't represent what I'd like to do with it if we bought it. Might seem a long way around but my plan would be re-imagine the class Q, get windows and floorspace as i want it and then start my 3 year class Q clock as fallback before going for full planning. Another thing that isn't clear, if the vendor's full planning gets approved after i've bought the plot, do i have to use it and does that lose me Class Q options? His submission includes a house on the plot next door which currently has class P (or something!) and he is attempting to use fallback position on that one..

We're still looking at buying a class q barn and a couple more options have come up. One had class q approved ~18 months ago and no work has commenced. The last one i looked at was down in Devon and when I spoke with the local planning department they said it was possible to resubmit a class q submission, even where a prior one had been granted, to restart the clock and to incorporate changes as long as no work had commenced. I'm looking at one in a different area now, but i cannot find any documentation that says whether it is or is not possible to request class q more than once for a given building. Any pointers?

Thank you all - very helpful. Will design with space for accumulator just in case.

Thanks; cost was reasonable too. This was 7 years ago: cabinetry, appliances (Bosch oven, f/f, dishwasher, hob, beko washing machine due to something to do with the door), Franke sink, decent tap, worktop - just over 6k all in. I find it best to stay away from ‘complex’ cabinets and keep it simple - pan drawers and normal units wherever possible rather than fancy pullout contraptions.

I’m going to put a 50mm pipe in while we have the trench. If I can only get a 32mm connection my understanding is that the larger pipe on the 600m run won’t cause any issues? One of the laying quotes included sanding, the other said it’s not necessary. Substrate is chalk. Ive read that pipes can oscillate and so sanding or conduit is recommended - for peace of mind and the small additional cost it seems sensible to get it sanded or in conduit too? Final question - the final 100m of the run is also along the path of where we will bury power - can they share a trench or do we need to dig two? (I’ve done no research yet, just asking while I’m here!)

I just remembered I fitted a Hacker too - handless middle of the range I think (Laser brillant G238 according to the quote; photo attached). It was nicely put together and nice to fit. I’d say the Schueller was still better built but for the money the Hacker was a good kitchen. Good quality fittings, all parts present and correct. Doors on this were a foil wrap and were smooth (I’ve seen some have an orange peel type issue, these were glossy smooth). The Hacker was sourced from a shop in Cambridge (still around) while the Schueller came from a shop in Wales (no longer trading). There was a great Schueller shop up near Inverness that also quoted me when I got the Hacker and the guy there was very helpful; they’re still trading.

I’ve lived in a building with concealed drain pipes and i would say one thing: don’t do it! The smallest amount of rain, over time, can get in and run down the pipe; they run off in strange ways and you can spend a long time trying to find the leak. In one heavy storm the pipe blocked, ran all the way back up to the top and splurged out at odd angles getting inside the building. (That’s the technical explanation) Looking at the photo the main issue with running one continuous length across the windows is because of the aesthetic and because you would see the drain from inside? What if you just blacked out a strip at the top of your windows with some blackout film on both sides? Something matt like this (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rabbitgoo®-Blackout-Privacy-Protection-Blocking/dp/B077X8HDQ9). From floor level I don’t think you’d spot it, and from inside it might not look too bad..? You could mock up a trial of it and see if it’s bearable before spending too much on other solutions..?

I fitted a Schueller kitchen in our old place - lacquered doors and the finish was good. They offered lots of nice touches - the way the lights were integrated into the wall units, the soft closers used (all in one unit rather than the extra clip-on which was the norm at the time). They were also able to make some custom parts to our design for odd shapes. The cupboard backs were screwed on rather than stapled. Ours was a mid-range Schueller rather than the higher end next125 range. It came with some spare lacquer for touch-ups. When delivered, not one part was missing and everything is numbered along with the schematic for fitting. 10 years later it still looked like new. I also fitted a Pronorm kitchen in a renovation place. The quality wasn't as good as Schueller but was still better than the units i've had from Howdens at a lower price. Post-brexit I'm not sure what the prices will be like for German kitchens but I'd definitely have one again.. although in my next place I think i'll be looking in the UK for something Shaker-ish and paintable.

Thanks all; apologies for not being clear. Looking at more documentation I may have used the wrong terminology by calling it a communication pipe - maybe it's 'supply pipe'. The water main is 600m down the road. Height change from one end of the proposed pipe to the other is ~2.5-3m. There is our plot, a neighbouring plot and a field. The cost from southern water to bring the main to the site is significant, so the current proposal is for us to run the pipe to them and connect to the main. There would be 3 pipes - ours, the neighbour and one for the field - they would all be laid in the same trench. All 3 pipes would run independently - each would connect to the mains and the meter would i believe be at the mains end of the pipe (i.e. 600m away from the property). Each pipe would serve only one property. SW would only guarantee the pressure at the meter which will be 600m away; I'm having a hard time getting information out of them so I don't know what the pressure available actually is. I've asked SW if i could have a 50mm connection, to answer that question they want to know my required flow rate. 4 bed/4bath with 4 adults - so likely we will need to use 2 showers at once, maybe 3. I'm looking at GSHP for heating - I assume the question of vented/unvented for that would depend on water flow and pressure - so it's a bit chicken and egg.

Typo that I can’t edit for some reason - height change over the run is about 2.5m.

I’m still investigating costs for our build. Nearest water main is 600m down the road, height difference is from one end to the other is about 7.5m. We have an easement to put the communication pipe in the field next to the road and have costs for the trench, all reasonable (sharing with a neighbour who is also going to put a pipe in). Current quote is for a 32mm supply and this is the default for Southern Water. The house will be 4 bed 4 bath and I’d like to look at GSHP for heating ~3000sqft. Some have suggested I need a 50mm supply to account for the length of connection. I don’t have a read on the pressure at the mains. The nearby houses describe it as ‘good’ but that isn’t science. Do I need 50mm? I’ve enquired with Southern Water to find out if 50mm is even possible; their response: 1. As southern water cannot advise the customers on the pipe sizes required, please consult your plumber for the required flow rate and confirm the exact required pipe size. 2. Please confirm the flow rate if your requirement is 50mm pipe size. I’ve spent time on google but it looks like flow rate is hard to calculate? Is there an easy button? I don’t have a plumber involved yet as I’m still investigating everything.

A symptom of the environment rather than my normal approach; plots in this area are rare. This was listed and went straight to offers, of which they received ~40. Offer has been accepted and we are looking into everything while we await the searches, etc. If it isn't viable, we haven't paid anything (other than some searches). Viability is also based on a longer term view - we've been looking at both plots and houses for a long time and plan to stay for 10+ years. If we need to sit on it a while before commencing works, that is also an option. Someone might have, or maybe they've just assumed something too I'm checking into whether any proper checks have been done and if not will make my own. There is no mains sewer within miles, so it will have to be a private system. If that isn't possible it feeds back into the point of viability; my poops need somewhere to go!