saveasteading

Yes that's the thing. Choose a size that is mid to high in the range of diameters for each size. The rubber is severely stretched due to the angle. I've often had to go on the roof to do it properly after bad efforts by roofers or plumbers so ensure care. Make sure you use use mastic that is long term flexible. Cut through the flat of the cladding, not a ridge, or all strength is lost., but also ensure the flashing doesn't fill the whole width of the 'pan'. Cutting an oval in the cladding isn't fun and needs a recip saw or snips. Or best perhaps hire a nibbler. Any hole in the roof is a compromise. Can you use an aav here and provide end of line venting elsewhere? It is to release blowbacks so could be a pipe off the end of line manhole. Even a manhole cover with holes in it. Away from the house of course.

I think* that yellow tube is just that, a hollow tube for an air pressure activation. Maybe it could be extended and still work????? * on the basis that it looks like that and mine doesn't work as well as the mechanical ones.

Id rather speak to a local SE. They will know all the typical ground conditions and the implications. They will say if they can't be sure and need a hole or borehole dug. That is unless the site has been used for another purpose that might have involved fill material. But your searches before purchase should confirm that. A good point. I've found a site to be much smaller than offered because neighbours had moved fences and now had the rights. It made it unviable. Look on Google Earth too. Especially look back using the timeline to see what was there in the past.

If you mean metal cladding about 1mm thick then I have used very ordinary 110mm hole saws from toolstation. One use and throw away. That was on high quality steel cladding. Most is softer. Yes, as above, beware of wrist wrenching, especially if it isn't a flat part of the sheet. If you could find a saw with smaller teeth and made just for metal then it would be easier, but they cost a lot more. Yes, you need an arbor. It has pins that lock into holes in the base of the saw. Your link shows the cutter with an arbor but it will be extra.

That's the most elegant solution, and easy to handle. then stuff all spaces with mineral wool. the heat transfer through he bolts is tiny but you could cap the ends if you wanted, to avoid a cold spot. The bolts make the whole thing into one mechanism so it is stiffer horizontally.

Good advice and ideas above. I'm torn. A fabricated boxing may be vulnerable to bashing and difficult to repair. However it would flex with the building if the door is bashed, and in wind. Block can be tied to the steel and will be robust, but the render may crack.... but is easy to patch. If you go the block route then use self drill, self tapping tek screws with the correct head (called a 'heavy') for hot-rolled steel (ie not for cladding or light weight steel). They are easy to find at a specialist fixings merchant, and a driving head to suit. Then you can use standard L wall ties. These screws are much easier to fix than hilti nails, using a normal drill and you can be certain they will stay put. Paint the steel with bitumen paint and it won't rust. or a fancier, coloured steel protection paint. If the base plate is exposed, then paint it and any mortar packing too. And pack the cavity with cavity insulation.

When you start to make your own textiles or ropes in your spare time, remember to show us. I saw a basket being made from yucca (or was it aloe?) leaves, first shredding the leaves with a comb version of these.

But beware of signing off too early and not getting the VAT reclaim on the rest. They only accept a single claim. AND remember the VAT for cashflow if the project is done in stages. The BCO may well be sympathetic and find a way to let you live in a bit of it without giving full sign-off.

I did top end land surveying for several years. But I haven't used a theodolite or its descendants for decades. For a straight forward building I use two tapes and pythagoras. Pegs are good, measured a set distance (offset) from the line so it isn't dug up. For concrete I like a pin in the ground to show the finished level, then no mistakes are made.

A false trilemma in my opinion, invented to market expensive products. With the right design in the first place, you get the optimum result. The right design requires a knowledge of design and of the construction process (weather and all) from the outset. An integrated process. Not the linear process of client , Architect, Engineer, builder.

When I have looked really seriously at similar products ( there used to be many competing in a new market) I couldn't make it stack up commercially against other methods (mostly using frameworks.) However, that may be different now. Also I can see that it suits diy, as it doesn't need specialist skills, and may suit a small general builder, even groundwotker.

I met them on Sunday. £72/m2 he said. I wouldn't be likely to specify it but there is nothing wrong with it and I can see the attraction.

That will reduce risk massively, allow you to tweak the design, ad it generally suits trades to have smaller tranches of work.

We are here to help it be £2.5M and not £3.5M. When the time is right, what construction methods do you intend? What stage are you at? Too big for much self build I imagine.

My immediate thought is no. Air bricks are there for a reason. I'm confused though. You say it is a raft, which means ground supported, and which no need, or scope, for vetilation.. But suspended.

Zteel for ultra accuracy. Big brand fibre tapes are OK too. They have the advantage of being more robust. There is an EU standard for accuracy. NOT silverline. I had two that were out by 100mm in 30m. They obviously had zero quality control. An expensive error.

Foam isn't very controllable. You would have to position the pipe very precisely, on supports and load it down. Then squirt foam slowly so that it doesn't force the pipe up as if expands. Check the pipe all the while. And repeat. How would you prop the pipe? Not on anything hard, so gravel at intervals. There will be plenty of instances of people using crumbled pir, or expanding foam. Mostly it works, presumably. But perfection is worthwhile.

Seems they collaborated, pinched ideas, then went after them. Add that to celotex fire test cheating....not a nice company. What can we do? This spreading of the word. Don't say celotex when meaning pir, and only buy any other brand. They own British Gypsum, Isover, Ecophon, Pasquill, and lots more. Perhaps materials enquiries could state to the BM..."do not quote for any St Gobain products". This is from the Grenfell inquiry almost three years before the 2017 disaster, colleagues alerted her that a safety test had been rigged with fire-retardant panels to boost the insulation’s fire performance, but the modifications were left out of marketing literature used by architects and specifiers.

If it works, the world will benefit.

That attention to detail will ensure that you deal with it as you progress. Perhaps slightly lean on the gravel that lies under the pipe, to press it into any gaps.

Pea gravel.. it is more important to lay the drain to be stable and run efficiently than the small heat loss. The air gaps in the gravel will add some insulation. The air in the pipe is the main loss of insulation and can't be prevented. Gravel up to the top of the pipe, then lay what eps you can over it. I wonder what insulation pea gravel provides. 30% or so air pockets, and lots of very tiny gravel to gravel contact. Much better than sand.

Yes. Over a tiny area the effect is minimal and directly proportional. So if a 100mm x 50 mm bit of block was sticking up 10mm, the pir could crush there and so you hsve still 90mm of pir. A small reduction, and heat is still retained. Meanwhile the remainder has the full thickness of pir instead of screed. Perhaps put down 10mm or 20mm of eps first as it will crush more readily and make full use of what depth you have. "About 100mm", could be 100 pir on 20 eps for example. Great to be thinking of other solutions but they don't seem practical so far....i have thought through adding insulaton underneath before but discounted everything to date. It would be great to find a solution, and a big market opportunity.

If it is fitted high enough to be clear of a tall persons forehead, then it needs a powerful fan, otherwise it won't do its primary job. It could also be noisy. Ever heard them in a commercial kitchen?

Struggling to see how you fix pir under this floor. If the block levels are only very locally high, then pir may crush locally and so save you the screed and increase the pir thickness. That's all I would do as eps beads underneath is rather experimental.