saveasteading

Agreed with @Russell griffiths. I did what you are suggesting, 15 years ago. At the time that seemed like a big deal. But with experience it's not my suggestion now. Difficult to cut, and you will have gaps. The timbers remain a thermal bridge. So I'd use mineral baths. They squeeze in tight. But there remains the cold bridge. Can you fix a layer inside? Yes, add a breather membrane.

It's good for them to learn about building from real people.

Everything is in the spring mood today. My outdoor goldfish are chasing each other around and spawning in the greenery. The other fish following for an eggy feed. Ducks being territorial, chasing others away. A pheasant atop an earth mound to attract a harem. Everything except my beans, courgettes, chillies etc.

@zzPaulzz it could be that your se has simply taken the thickness off a drawing by others. It happens a lot in linear design, with no feedback in the design chain. Then it reaches the contractor who costs it, and client who maybe questions it, but usually accepts it.

I hate waste. 50mm of concrete and a layer of mesh is costing you about £20 /m2, maybe more when all is considered, and then margins. I don't see any harm in asking your SE if it can be reduced because it will cost you whatever .... £5k? A good SE welcomes feedback.

Good question. That is the spec for a warehouse with 10 tonne forklifts and 8m high racking. But it seems to be typically specified with some kit type "raft" packages, all built on polystyrene, to spread the load over the eps. I would need some convincing of the logic. Genuine structural rafts can be optimal on low strength but not hopeless ground, to spread the load of the walls.

My first 4 of scarlet emperor beans rotted. The next 6 are in and look like yours. 8 in the ground haven't come up either. 4 French beans from pots are good though and 6" high in the ground. But this last 2 days lots of other things are coming through after many weeks...it is indeed the temperature. Very tidy BTW. I won't show mine. How much do you like beans though? 32!

The pressure from a tracked vehicle is low: that is the point of them. It is much the same as a footprint, and plenty for topsoil. Any more is too much.

and anyone else likely to note the name. It's good advertising. Otherwise they could print on it 'this side faces the installer' I guess they could add that anyway.

That's exactly the stuff. but not yet. Let it finish curing and any loose bits/ dust wash off, plus any shrinkage. But you could show Grandad to reduce the stress.

Ok. 59% of the worlds organism, by weight, lives in the ground. We don't need fertiliser at all. We are healthier from vegetables grown this way. ( alleged but i beleive it). Only bindweed, ground elder and couch grass need keeping out of the compost. Imho couch grass breaks down too.

No it was a lovely man who collects locally, food, garden and forest waste, gives an annual bag back to those people, and sells the rest. He starts with an additive, then mixing drums, then a long pile. As of today I am adding my breather hole down the middle. Did you know that....no you must watch. And Monty Don uses a 4 heap rotation (he has staff) plus a great big pile ( he has space).

The sort of thing that gets found when a car is stopped for other reasons. A highish proportion of speeding cars have no insurance or mot....perhaps they'd find red in there and other issues. Or crime of other sorts gets the van checked out.

Composting information on Gardeners' World tonight, BBC2 . Really interesting. About 15 minutes in.

Because most builders have no training, and not the slightest interest in it. I've even had concrete gangers who clearly think I'm deluded, and they will nod then ignore. Of course concrete dries, what harm is more water. I guess everyone knows (not understands) that drying happens with heat or wind. Not many will have understanding that chemical reactions happen. They suddenly take it seriously when told that if they add any water to the mix, they won't be paid.

@JackofAll A heart isn't enough. So to emphasise @Nickfromwaleshas it dead right on all counts. In reality concrete doesn't shrink much after the first month or so and that is a chemical reaction, not evaporation.

It's good that the concrete has added fibre. That gives crack resistance. 8m x 8m. It is just about OK at that without contraction joints. I'd suggest you leave it a month or so before doing any aesthetic remedial or colouring work.

What a shame. Not to diminish the issue, but I suspect most people won't notice any problems, and it works physically in providing a hard clean surface. What are the approximate sizes, in width and length?

It's a good thing. So much power available and so much better ecologically. But I do think it is a local resource and local people should be charged the real cost, and not the price based on gas.

Moray has yet more power as of this week, none of it needed locally. Nearly all being sent Spouth. There should be a meter or 2 at some point between there and London. "It's Scotlands wind". Logically there is slightly less wind reaching the land. news item.: Moray West in the Moray Firth has 60 turbines each standing 257m (843ft) above the surface of the sea, making them the tallest turbines to be installed in UK waters according to the operator. Ocean Winds, the consortium operating the wind farm, said it would have capacity to generate up 882MW of electricity - enough power for 1.3 million households.

The tanking needs to be outside or it will be forced off. Unless using Newtonite which catches the water inside ....but that's for a tunnel not a house. Waterproof concrete works for dams, pipes and tanks, keeping water in, not out. But it is not damp-proof. We don't see the dampness because it evaporates It requires a huge amount of small diameter reinforcement to make the cracks tiny. I wouldn't trust bitumen paint as cracks could form or widen. For complete water exclusion I used an expensive membrane that was wrapped under and around the concrete, and allows for future movement. Worked really well. And the concrete must extend above ground, leaving a very simple, non tech, interface. And any drainage be pumped out and over the concrete.

What are "these"?

Polyethylene, which I think the cheap ones are, gets munched, and I think shrinks and stiffens over the years. But it's much cheaper. I don't know what the difference is between what is called "economy" and " bylaw quality".

A joint between civil engineering and building. You're right. This sort of thing goes wrong through lack of forethought or understanding of the power of water to get past an obstacle. Easily designed out but difficult to put right after the event. Then someone wants to cut holes through it. Was expensive tanking the solution?

Is that dry graphite powder in an aerosol? This is at B and Q so might be easier to get. Also it's a known brand, and not Amazon.