saveasteading

I had missed this, now obvious, option! Sedum is very heavy so out of the question. But PV? It's likely this could work. If you were to ask an SE to look into it they might find a bit of spare capacity. Specifying joists is simply choosing the next size up that takes the load, so there is usually some spare. Then they might consider the gantry spanning between structural walls, not all bearing on the roof. OR joists will have little capacity at midspan but more near to the supports... fix there. If the task is to make this specific thing work, then they can look at several options, review other loadings more critically, and even take an overview if it is not quite there. First find a lightweight PV system.

This is top of my head reaction as I dont know your roof product in detail... and given read back. I'm assuming that absorbed heat from direct sunlight is the issue, rather than outside temperatures. A reflective surface would help hugely, but it gets dirty if flattish and looks poor if raked. Might it be more effective to fit an additional roof covering... a sunshade effectively. If this was raised by 50mm or so then it would radiate some heat, have an air gap and also allow air cooling through draughts. The outer material could be metal cladding (uninsulated), board and any waterproofing, or tiles. If the roof was flat then paving slabs on pads. This would reduce the absorbed heat massively.

Your wish is my command. Being a nerd I stopped to look at this small development with finished and in progress together. I thought some of you might like to see both. Mostly small windows with shutters. One bigger opening, also with shutter. Of course if there is a wonderful view then that would affect the design, but if kept rectangular, the blind can still work. My puritanical streak on this is that some people expect to walk around in T shirts all year. We already have the technology of jumpers and opening windows. And really, how often does a UK house suffer from overheating?

Because I've been looking at garage doors, I've come across several external rollers for windows. They are not as expensive as I had assumed considering they are outdoors and motorised. I can vouch for how effective these are in Mediterranean weather, keeping sun out in summer and heat in, in winter.

Exactly so. Hence fines and points for traffic offences.

Yes. With an absence of work, the trades will charge less.. perhaps a lot less. This usually takes a year though for realisation, expectations and pride to change, and perhaps some nagging to reduce the day rate and get earning. Land prices can also drop, but big landowners are less likely to need the money. Bigger contractors may also reduce margins in the short term, but this is only a few %.

And the paper ones don't break down fof a year or 2. I guess they are woven like J cloths, so are no softer than cotton... and will still clog drains and treatment tanks. Out with the nappy has to be correct. For trade use, eg mastic wiping, have a bag to hand? Toilet paper is made of loose fibres collected on a mesh so are not woven or even tangled, so come apart again.. I've been to the factory... (the glamour of my career) cardboard boxes to loo rolls.

If you search that article and link to a small film , you will see some surprise flushed items. And it says the ban is 18 months away! The caring shops could stop stocking them now.

So long plastic wet wipes - but should we be flushing the new ones I'm amazed they were still being sold. But even paper ones take years to break down so they shouldn't be flushed away to sewers, and especially not to a digester.... perhaps this is why some need to be pumped out annually. It's ne of those things though.... how much of the popuation care? So it needs legislation. BBC News https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdjr4gk7v38o

I think occupants will want to hear the cooling. It's a luxury and the sound will remind everyone that 'something is being done'.

Be aware that the house will be moving a lot seasonally. So going too deep would make the new foundation too much stronger than the existing. Your SE should tell you exactly how to do this. Width, depth, length, and how to ensure that the new concrete is jammed tight under the existing. Presumably the new extension will go before the bco. Your SE will need formal calculations for all this. What will the new foundations be?

No and no. You don't need us here to tell you all these basic things. The Internet will tell you the cement to ballast mix, or look at rhe cement bag, or ask at the merchants when buying 8 bags for starters. Report back on completion please. You didn't say why you couldn't dig a hole for a post. What will the gate be an opening in? Fence/ between buildings?

I look at the weather forecast time- related charts for your area with interest, and so often see the rain stopping after the eastward moving weather front passes the Cairngorms. But on a newspaper simplified forecast it will show rain. Don't tell anyone how good the climate is though or there will be thousands more white box estates. Bracing tomorrow though as Norway sends its unwanted weather south? The light blue produces the peaty water to go with the barley from the yellow. Mmmm.

This appeared in my Facebook stuff today. An ad for maps. Perhaps you will find it as interesting as I did. Eg the vast area of blue which is mostly uninhabited. Of course we all look at our location. What struck me was how tiny and precise some shaded areas are, especially where the brown which is showing as a long strip but very narrow. I haven't yet looked to see if there is any geographical feature coincident. Ahhh the quality has diminished in copying. But eg see Morayshire where I'd guess the brown band is 30 miles by 3 miles. Is black best for solar panels... sunny and regularly washed.

I prefer to catch leaves here.