saveasteading

Yes it is pine weatherboard. Some will be very old. I can see one advantage in gloss paint, in that it seals the laps and reduces draughts plus keeps insects out. The water blast had removed a lot of the loose stuff, even getting behind blisters and yanking them off. Is bedec msp a barn paint to a higher spec? I'll try this then I'll have to fill any 2mm gaps to keep the wasps out... they love the cavity.

It's a very long time since I looked into them. At that time they were quite noisy and the power produced was very poor. They were a gimmick to tick a planning box. I haven't seen them at a construction exhibition, or been targeted by publicity for 15 years.. so my hunch is they are only worthwhile for remote locations and need a big battery. There is an interesting article about them on the Isle of Eigg.

Understood. I'd rather get the builder to sort it, but I'm stroppy and determined like that. From my experience they sometimes sort it as long as you agree not to tell anyone, because bad publicity can be ruinous, esp on an ongoing development.

As @Andeh and @JohnMo. The fundamentals are soft surfaces, clutter and especially avoiding large hard surfaces facing each other and parallel. There are also distances between surfaces as related to the wave lengths of sounds but that is going too far! After furnishing, do you have any such large bare surfaces? I think you just have to see how it turns out, then maybe add hangings etc. I was privileged to visit the acoustics dept at Delft Uni. They had an anechoic and echoic chamber. The former had no hard surfaces, being entirely lined with foam in egg box form. They fired a starting pistol and qe had no ear defenders, and it was just a pop sound. In the echoic they had deliberately hard and parallel surfaces. It was impossible to speak, even alone. Another awful space is a round room such as an oast house roundel. It acts as a dish and your voice is bounced straight back. These are the principles. If you are minimalist it is a challenge.

I know that the last 3 treatments are dulux wearhershield, undercoat then top. No idea re the ancient history. I'm hoping to be lazy/ efficient/ economical and paing stripping it all won't be that. Maybe locally.

I don't know how you would find who they are. Ask the BCO at the LA I suppose as they should have been informed.

Your advice please. The photo is the worst bit, randomly in the middle of my spiel. I've painted this once personally, plus once by trusted workers and twice by professionals. It's a big area, perhaps 200m2, so I'm keen to avoid high cost. Some area are absolutely fine, being areas of replacement boards to a higher spec. It needs doing again. Last year's heat caused more flaking than normal and I chose to scrape those bits off and let the heat carry on getting at it. Then the winter has released more layers and areas. It has exposed some bare wood which will be either 10 or 90 years since first painted. Also sometimes a yellowish layer and sometimes a clearly dirty, unprepared surface. In other areas it all stays put. My hunch is that letting blisters come off has released tensions that had allowed the surface to cling on to the dirty layers for many decades. So today I have scraped more off and pressure washed it. I don't mind the indents where up to 10? Coats have been removed ("character"). Obv the manufacturers would like me to buy lots of expensive paint. But I'm wondering if the sheer thickness is an issue. So do you think I can spray paint it for speed and economy. 1 or 2 coats? Perhaps the raw wood needs a brush of primer. Where the timber is clearly cracked or eroded I guess it needs filling. First or after a coat of paint?

Tiled? Can we see a picture? It can probably be fixed in the same spot with the right fixings.

That's your money though. Demand first. A little local pressure might help too. Such as asking thd selling agent fof "advice" " they won't have any but might pressure (oops can't think of a better word) the developer. Ask them for the specifications. Then social media... without being too disparaging at first... I've got a new house by Bodgit Ltd on "Used to be an orchard" Mews. Does anyone else have this problem of know what I can do?

What material is the wall? If you could refix it in the same place solidly would you prefer that?

I cant get the saw moving after a foot or so. Has to be a circular saw I think. BUT we have professionals doing it on Monday Monday EPS Tuesday PIR, so I will be watching closely.

Yes. But fundamentally the water is going somewhere now, or sitting on top and evaporating. French drains feeding a pond then an overflow with a hydrobrake going to sewer or ditch or... something. Without knowing a huge amount more it's guesswork.

That would be good practice and ' the right think to do" for society even if not a condition. Rain in the sewers is what causes sewage works overflows. Have you room for a pond?

I've stopped feeding the birds. A lot of the food is lost to the ground and rodents clear it. Also i read that we are fattening up our resident garden birds in winter, which then dominate the birds we see less.. esp the migrating ones arriving after an exhausting journey.

What happens currently with rain that falls on the site? It goes somewhere.

Steel post in front of the usual impact spot? Farmers don't like to damage their kit, and may try harder. And/or try lime mortar at that vulnerable spot. Whatever you do, don't replace the base and footing. It has joggled along fine for 400 years. OR speak to the farmer.

Our patio doors started going in today.... and the threshold levels were wrong, or incompatible...it doesn't matter except that they didn't fit. That's with me and mine being perfect, remember. It's sorted now, due to collaborative working...and us paying a daywork guy to sort it instead of the intended work. It will always happen.

If it is on the invoice as walls then that will becend of story surely. Don't use the word wardrobe.

I like 2 layers of grey in preference to one of pink. The ends can lap, and cutting-in gets tidier. If they think it has to be pink, then use pink as the outer layer.

I've never known a faulty one. The other huge advantages are in being a one person operation and bypassing obstructions. I think it's cheap to buy one to reduce amusement.

Good professional measurers can, and do. Some people charge money and think they can do it. Once they've been charged consequential costs a few times, they'll stop offering it. Hence back to my mantra.. after they've gone, check the fundamentals with tapes and a level, however primitive and mainly stand back and consider if it looks right.

That's best. Even if all used, the driver will swill out thd drum and drop it on your land. It won't go very hard. If you have surplus you can either spread it thinly as a running surface or kill the strength by reraking frequently and pouring water into it.

you should be ok for manpower then. Have you thought where the surplus and slops are going?

That certainly applies for outdoors stuff that isn't shown, eg a pond or tree. But a worktop is part of the kitchen. I wonder if the vat check is that this isn't a replacement of an original.

I've been reading the Andrew the Vatman brochure that I collected at a recent exhibition. It's all very good info for the uninitiated.... and it turns out me too. We have experience of running a construction business, so won't need the help, so all I can say is best wishes to Mr Jones, and it's good to be so forthcoming with free info. My question is for those of you have reclaimed VAT, and anyone else who wants to guess. There is a list of the likeliest issues to be raised by the Vat inspector, and it intrigues me. Why are Granite worktops frequently queried? And fireplaces, log burners, burglar alarms? The list is long.