saveasteading

I have one of these. Wet and dry, battery powered. Einhell. Its great for builders stuff straight into the drum, and no cable to trip on or find a plug for. Being so portable, it is easy to use for a few seconds tidy of dust or small rubble. Downside is the biggest battery only lasts about 10 minutes, so a spare is required, or recharge. Or there are mains equivalents, much cheaper.

Just what I was looking at yesterday. £7k for a double garage, with these heavy (40mm) t &g walls. DG windows incl, but no erection. Dunster House. Who 's is yours? Could do with being higher though as the doors are under 6 ft high. Also, getting any roof rack thing in might be tight. I was thinking of doing a visit to the show field and cribbing the design, then stick building, but that might not save much if these manufacturers are getting great timber prices. Fire at boundaries does not necessarily apply if the adjacent area is 'unlikely to be developed'. eg a road or agricultural land. I haven't checked if it applies to ancillary buildings, as most garden sheds are probably on boundaries. Re the 30m2. these kits are made to just under 30m2, for this reason. If we were doing our own it might have a canopy/ oversail. Some planners and bcos regard that as extra m2, other don't.

The b and q example is good. I often suggested to clients that they looked at the floors to see what they would be getting. They had never looked closely, of course. I am told that b and q and the supermarkets install extremely conservative construction ( overdesigned), but they still crack in shrinkage, and most then cover in resin or other finish. All concrete cracks, but it can be controlled in location and width. The b and q type floor has a cementy paste encouraged on the surface, to get it ultra smooth, and this emphasises the cracks. If you were to grind off the surface and expose aggregate, then the cracks would be less visible. Presumably you would seal the surface. Cracks can be microscopic, as in dams and reservoirs, but this is complex design.

Yes. And offcuts get used as noggins, or go in the woodburner. If you need to extend or brace, then another bit of wood. And there is more at the BM if you are short, and travels well if surplus. I do like metal stud in the right situation...usually subdivisions of a commercial building.

But I bet some of them complain that they are overcharged because it didn't take long.

As it has supposedly been doing for 20 years, but hasn't. Metal stud for big open plan work, timber for the fiddly or small scale stuff.

An interesting subject. Having been Engineer, estimator, architect with small e, and contractor, sometimes all at once, I have knowledge of this. A. 1. they don't shop around. Well no, they won't. They are preparing an estimate, using a lot of time without payment, so generally they will use the going rate at the moment, or perhaps what is expected in a few months. A small builder usually only has a few accounts with merchants so can't shop around anyway, unless paid in advance. Adding 10% waste is the norm, through mistakes, offcuts, damage and being bothered to spend the time making best use. 2. They have a cut on it. Yes of course they do. They will be buying, involving admin, then handling, and taking the risk on damage or shortages. Imagine somebody asking you to get them some bricks. You would charge something I expect. You can offer to buy the materials, and save this margin, but you are then responsible for it turning up, being suitable and for all waste. 3. adding a healthy margin in their own role. That is business. they otherwise might as well sit at home or work as a charity. What is healthy? B. On top of all this, there are layers of cost. Cheapest of course is diy, if you have the time, resources and skill. Let us call this best price. =£1 per hoojamaflip. Next level you hire some specialists, on a series of small fixed price contracts. If you can remove their risks, and they work fast and well, then you only pay for their time. Say £250 /day. which you pay them from your taxed income. Next are packages of work. Contractors have to quote for these jobs, getting perhaps every 5th one. This takes time. If successful, they then employ workers and have admin and overheads. and they will add a percentage on everything. Probably about 20%. Then there is the full project by a main contractor. They need an additional level of overhead and profit, and a lot of management. Their margin is on top of margins already applied by others. Your job at £1 is now somewhere about £1.7. Add for risk. who is paying for unforeseen problems? If you want the contractor to take it then add 5% if he likes you and the designer. More if wary. And every 10th client , or so, doesn't pay the last bill; not because of faults but because that is how they behave. Unfortunately everyone else ends up paying some of that. C. If everyone had the same ability and cost structure, then you would need only one quote. But they don't, so some will be genuinely better at a particular project than another. Do they charge less, or more? It varies. Combine A, B and C and your £1 can become £2 or even more. There is no right answer. then there is D, how good / flash is the design? and E: weather and F, G , H : inflation, competition, access.... On the £/m2 issue. I could tell a potential client the approximate cost of a project, based on known £/m2 from experience. I didn't always because they might pass that on, or think it was too cheap. And then that was for our price, with our own control of everything. But any involvement from outside, such as inefficient design, fancy features, nasty contract terms, would likely add. So the advisors are rightly cautious on the question, until they know you, the project and the current market. The RICS and some other bodies publish tables £/m2 for different types of building. But , as C, they all need to be well designed and go to tender. If you think I have left out any issue do remind me. Edit: of course this all assumes that we have already decided the method of construction, and have made the right choice.

OK. Happy to look at your solution when you get closer. A good cladder may be more help than a specialist, approved dealer. Good luck.

You have a wood burning stove and a chainsaw I trust! Can you show a picture looking up the slope. ie a cross section of the cladding and flashing? If you can post a sectional drawing of a standard sheet that would be helpful. My understanding of the seam tool is that it involves some training and expertise. I have handled one on a course, but it was a different product. So renting one may be tricky and costly, then you need to use it while walking up the slope. The big worry would be if a replacement panel didn't fit for some reason (tolerances between batches can be a problem) A replacement panel would probably cosy £1,000 by the time you had it made, palleted and delivered. I had not heard of Greencoat or SSB. I see they have a UK chat line though., and if you get an Engineer or technician they will probably help you with suggestions. I can try to help if you can get the section drawing.

This is why I never used standing seam. I have repaired some though. We always left the old sheets on, bashed down any protruding bits, and made flashings to apply over the damaged areas. Looked like new. In your case it looks as if only thd edge is damaged so you could fit a new barge flashing. I would recommend a shape, more interesting than a rectangle, and reduces the contact points. What is the reason for the ridge flashings being as they are?

Not on straight U value comparison. Superior is an overstatement. Firstly let's call it PIR, then there are fewer thoughts about fire on blocks of flats. You will likely choose another brand name on cost anyway. It is the U value alone. twice as good as mineral wool or polystyrene. The downside of it is installation, as it is more rigid and so there are more likely to be gaps unless rigorously supervised. It is generally thought that it shrinks over time, so gaps will appear between boards. Gaps can allow air movement so cause more heat loss than might be expected. It is also tricky to cut accurately so it is better used in full areas than cut between obstructions. For our conversion, we had limited spaces between rafters. Installing 100mm PIR was fiddly and wasteful and it really didn't fit well. But we needed those U's. So we used 50mm PIR, which was much easier to install, then 50mm mineral batt which squeezed in and closed the gaps. In your case, the insulated plasterboard would have the similar benefit of providing a separate layer. You might combine it with a service gap which also increases insulation.

Yes, very likely. I looked into this recently on the basis of designing a timber building with both options. Timber produced in the Highlands is only C16 at best, because it grows quickly in the great heat of a Highland summer. (that is the case when compared with Siberia/Finland/Canada) It is a little bit cheaper than C24 for structural timbers, and a fair bit cheaper for big sections. But for stud, the guy at the timber mill told me they couldn't compete with imported. Since then perhaps Siberian is off limits, or perhaps it is coming a roundabout route. Whatever, I don't think they have much, or bother to transport C16. First ask the merchants to check as discussed above. It is probably sitting there with the wrong stamp on it. Not the yard man, you may need the manager. Secondly the SE can change the design easily, if a little tediously. They will either simply change the input to their design programme, or look at span tables. Somewhere I have a book of tables of every possible section in the 2 grades, simply supported or fixed, and they should have this too. The building regs even used to have it, but I'm not sure about now. It was very conservative.

Agreed with Carrerahill. We got these chambers cheapest from a local drainage specialist. They are easy to put together. You will need a base of some sort...probably gravel is easiest. Then to cut holes for the pipes use a rotary hole saw. No need to seal. With such a chamber you can inspect easily, and can operate by hand instead of a tool. To seal the drain pipe duct, to keep out vermin and muck, stuff the end with a polythene bag then finish with mortar.

If air is going up the flue from outside, at say 5'C and the room is at 20'C then there must be a slow and steady heat transfer, and loss. Perhaps not significant though, esp with an insulated flue, heat shield behind, ceramics inside. Not worth a knitted flue cosy. Perhaps not worth worrying about at all. Another perceived problem resolved by the BH think tank.

The site team think there is not a total shutoff of air available. We will find out later.

Not sure that an electrician tends to be trained in fire protection. However, the protection by plasterboard tends to be better than the tests show (it sells more plasterboard), so the wires should be protected long enough for most situations. Tidy is always good though. I would insist on a thorough clean before the screed goes down, and taping of the joints to prevent the plastic lifting or screed running through. At least 3 sources of plastic there suggests any old offcuts of stuff is being used. I hate to think what the dpm is made of.

It is normal to trade insulation levels. Do you have areas where you can still increase insulation to balance a reduction in the windows. It is area dependent, so an attic area, for example, gives the opportunity.

I don't think we can shut off the external air completely. That would be a good feature though. I will enquire.

Agreed, of course not 100%, but many of the landowners call themselves farmers but either rent out the land or contract out all the work. If you watch 'this farming life' (recommended) on BBC I think most are tenants, and they are usually on leases of 10 to 25 years. I await being corrected.

Unfortunately not. Most farmers rent the land from large estates, who make the money and' of course' are 'the system'.

Roadside ditches belong to the LA. The likelihood of a farmer installing anything but the cheapest drain, is low. so it is likely to be a perforated coil pipe, and may not even be lined with membrane or surrounded with any sand or gravel, or even be laid to consistent fall. (In which case it may silt up or be blocked by roots in the future.) In that case it would already be a primitive french drain, and might suffice in itself. the amount of drainage field the reg's require for treated water is crazy. if i was a bco I would allow less when properly justified. It seems from discussion on here and with installers that very few installations are to the rules. Therefore connecting to an existing water course has to be favourite. Talk to BCO and he may just advise a simple soakaway.

A common worry. But is that not better in the long term than a home full of prolems and risks? What if he leaves? You have a delay. What if he carries on in the same manner? Firm but diplomatic is the way.

No, good people please put yourselves forward, or the others will run it.

The experts in the ground source industry now advise caution. And also admit that the ground needs warming again from solar or water movement. So nowadays, clay boreholes needs warming from solar arrays in summer. Near me they used 40m boreholes into clay. Half of the installations work , half have been replaced by air source.

Interesting point made recently was the air flow through the intake and up the flue, when the fire isn't lit. It will take room heat from the stove. So I am thinking we need a seasonal external cap on the intake. On a positive, a stove can provide stack ventilation in the summer for quick air changes (flue door open). I agree that insulating the intake pipe is a good idea, but you can simply stuff the void with leftover mineral wool.