saveasteading

The thing about a practical SE is that they are quite likely to say that the dead tree is irrelevant, where a bco might not. I see where the worry about engaging an SE comes from..the nhbc implies that you need an SE for deep founds and that an SE will design piles. Not so. An SE will specify only what is required, and that is probably mid depth standard footings.

As ProDave says. When exposed, lift the float and see if the water stops. That means a very simple adjustment may suffice. Where does the water go next? To overflow or disappearing into the pan? A cause of the latter can be muck in the syphon seal (which can be amazingly primitive) , causing it to keep dribbling into the pan.

I prefer threaded bar in epoxy, at least a week after pouring.

You teased me into looking up the tables. Cypresses are high water use....and a felled tree is often a leylandii....so maybe. Other conifers are listed as medium demand. Anyway a long dead tree has zero demand. And I thank you as I had never noticed the chart for distance from London. 50mm less every 50 miles. I don't remember that being in the original BS document. My hunch is you will end up with 1.5m depth close to the stump, and less elsewhere (depending on the other trees....but rowan is low demand.

No , it would mean 2.4m footings which is about 1/3 the cost of piles. But if we (or SE or bco) discount the long dead tree then everything is shallower. I think I would discount nhbc depths for the dead tree as the ground has had 2 winters to recover.* But I would locally take the footings below tree roots. * I have done this several times, the difference being it was my decision and I was there to see the circumstances. No it isn't. Do you know what type of conifer? Some have very little effect.

The layer of gravel confuses me. Am I forgetting some need for it? Gravel moves all over the place so can't be walked on. Rebar is jargon for steel reinforcing bars. Mesh is made of bars at preset centres for convenience in slabs. If the bars are different sizes, remember that the big ones may have to go in a certain direction. My other concern is that the floor plate sits on a narrow strip of concrete. Also the fixing is very near the edge and likely to fail. And take it deeper....the first 25mm doesn't provide worthwhile resistance. With that tiny amount of side insulation, I'm not sure that the 200mm under the slab is necessary. It's just all a bit weird. Sorry I don't have time to draw something else up. On the other hand, I assume it won't be used an awful lot, and nobody is sleeping in it, so it is somewhere between a garden shed and a house.

Some builders don't take advice from anyone. Seriously, anyone. It doesn't sound complicated. You are 90% sure you will find clay. Calling it high plasticity will increase the foundation depths for trees but that is cheaper than site and lab tests. I would be redesigning armed with the tree tables and bco agreement as I went along. Dig your footing as designed and check the strength at the bottom. How to, later. This is traditional building, but you have multiple advisors on here. 99% of advice on BH is good. The other 1% just aren't agreeing with me. Because you are being sensibly cautious we don't expect you to cut corners so can give this pragmatic advice. Ie if you weren't, we might be saying to get an SE. In any case, your house will have normal founds, and it isn't always great to build extensions much deeper.

Yes, £20 well spent on 2 x 10mm (or bigger) rods at mid height of a 300mm footing. I was just imagining the finished construction, with a tree stump sitting there, rotting. It has to go, if there was anh doubt remaining. It won't, be fun for whoever has to dig around roots and cut them , but has to be done. When you have the trench dug, you will likely have small roots sticking into it. Prune these flush with the sides so they don't stick into the concrete. Photos as you progress would be good.

Bad wording, sorry. They are rated. Look at the slip ratings. If they don't have them, be very afraid of slips and falls.

If I may enter this. Passivhaus is good for providing strict, proven methods and attention to detail. Far too many houses are flawed because of corners being cut, lack of attention to detail, and basically not being a holistic design. So an option for control of this is a good thing. My own choice would always be to design the building I want. If that means that the big windows face south for the view, and have bifolds, then that is the priority. A wood burning stove too, if in the country. Then make it work efficiently, but appreciate that sometimes the doors will be left open, or the windows opened on a whim. But I don't trust 'others' to get it right and so I interfere and observe throughout. Not everyone can do that. And then there is the cost. It isn't available to everyone. Passivhaus is good design. Non Passivhaus can be good too, perhaps even better.

As a minimum there is the blue roll of foam that keeps the screed away from the wall and lets it shrink with minimal cracking. I would try to add PIR vertically to this, or only use PIR. The thickness depends on how much the wall will cover (and physically protect) it. Stud,service void, plasterboard, skirting.. Chances are you will have lots of off-cuts you can use. It needs a detailed, scaled cross-section through the wall to floor interface to work this out. Then draw arrows to represent the easiest route for heat to move, and try to improve it. It is my opinion/feeling that there isn't a huge amount of heat loss through this junction, because the screed is thin and so the actual heat loss is not huge, with the insulation in the way. So getting 50mm in there is a big deal. Of course it is more significant with UFH as the screed is at 30C or so. Not enough is made of the area of the floor slab, ie distance to the cold outside. The ground is a good insulator. So a narrow building will lose more heat to the ground than a wide one. In theory you could put lots of insulation depth near the outside walls and less near the centre. In fact you can use none in a very large space.

Just so I am sure. I'm thinking it isn't needing deep founds. What type of pine? What is your ground? Clay/sandy whatever? Distance rowan to building and other pine To building.

BCOs don't tend to know much about groundworks or trees. Well, about Engineering really. Groundworkers main asset is being prepared to get dirty and wet....no training apart from seeing bad examples. It's a pine so doesn't bother the ground too much. Dead 2.5 years so 2 winters to wet the ground. Shouldn't be a problem. Rowan and pine would have to be close to be significant. The easiest way to measure is on Google earth.

If no shoots have emerged from the trunk or roots then it is dead. If they do, just lop them off or spray. This is tricky. Must not upset the wall. Also, ripping out the root ball might destablise lots of ground that will be under your new wall. I think the whole trunk should be removed. A labourer can expose the roots, then cut them. If there is a tap root then that is a problem...perhaps just scrape with the excavator to see if it comes away. OR heave it all out (carefully for that wall) and build the foundations to below any roots. You say nhbc dont cover it. That is only because the distance is zero, and so use 1m, or whatever is nearest. How long has the tree been down? What does the bco say? This isn't a situation of ticking a box. You do not want the ground to heave dud to the tree removal.

Of course you are right. Mine had to be set out of reach.

Noted: not for everyone. I rather like the ir heaters that are built into a picture frame, so it gently warms the desk or sitting area. Also saw a few years ago, an electric wall paint. Low voltsge to opp corners of the wall, and the paint emitted low heat. I saw it as useful in corridors or work stations in big workshops or warehouses. Haven't heard any more about it though.

No, that is what i meant. I hadn't thought on it before, but the IR is hitting only about a sixth of the body, including one half of the head. Btw I notice that all IR heaters appear to be made to glow visibly recently. (Mine is black, with a few tell-tale spots of red where the coating is thin.) Marketing i expect, but it does remind you to turn it off.

Of course. And i should have included water supply. An empty bucket is no use. If the ground is permeable it will need 2 buckets, or the same bucket refilled.

Tne way the brokers questionnaires ask the questions can lead to a yes or no answer. Dan saf, we have a pond 10m away. There is no risk of flooding because of slopes. When they ask whether there is a watercourse or pond within 20m the answer is yes. Then the premium is huge or cover is not offered. Others ask if there is risk of flooding. Obv that may be a matter of opinion, but there were plenty of decent offers of cover. I used one of the money supermarket sort of online searches. Friends had a house 50m from sea flood risk acc to the maps. They couldn't sell the house. In reality they were 10m higher than the flood level. They found an insurer who understood and gave them cover.

That is my opinion based on our heater. 4 people sat around a table, with the rays reaching fronts/sides/backs, above table height only, all feeling cozy.

You should still have to prove that the ground can absorb it. Will you be doing a percolation test? It is easily done diy, requring a spade, a bucket or hose, and a watch.

I've got one on a patio, and it works really well at extending the sitting out period after an outside meal. No complaints. Have now enclosed the patio and it gives instant comfort when required. But it is a lot of power. The benefit being entirely the instant effect. That may have been the issue for the dried up friend ...simply too powerful for the proximity, blasting one side?

Slip resistance! They should be rated. I would expect a suitable porcelain tile to have a texture that would then hold dirt....but I'm guessing and hope someone knows.

In our village BT reps have offered all sorts of services and speeds, anything for a contract, and then not been able to fulfill most of them.

sorted.