saveasteading

Def keep it within the footprint of the rest. Will cost 3 x as much as an above ground build. It is a skilled design followed by skilled construction. So a basement is justifiable if land is expensive.

Again overcomplicated. Screws instead of bolts. Simple rectangles of ply above and below the pipes. Both sides better than one side.

Rust. The chances are low, the severity low, but you have one opportunity and it is cheap and easy.

I go with the PIR encasement, simply boxed against it. Thinking long term. This will be hidden away for ever. Don't be tempted to use mineral wool as it will be lovely for any rodents to live in if they ever find a way in. PIR will shrink , but it isn't a big issue. Sticky tape will fail in time. Use wire bands as ties. Bitumen paint the steel first, just in case.

and lined, not libed. I've only done it in ugly plain concrete . Call it brutalism as an excuse. But you could stain it, roughen it or clad in stone.

You would drill into the rock, perhaps 4 or 6 times, and insert rods of 12mm or 16mm. So it won't fracture. Then build a small shutter, 500m square or so. Libed so that the concrete foesnt stick. Some reinforcement in there. Let's say 500mm high for now. Fill with concrete. 0.125m3. That's just one or 2 mixer loads to barrow to position. Dismantle shutter for reuse and repeat.

What sort of rock? Is it a natural outcrop or under soil? A photo? In principle you can build straight on rock but you would expect to make a concrete base, bonded to the rock with steel rods in epoxy, then above in whatever material, probably steel. But if it is only about 1m, as suggested, then concrete or masonry.

No problem then. Also, the floor boards add extra strength if well fixed.... but don't burst the pipes. You can fit these first to be sure.

And are the pipes half way up the joists? If so , no problem. If cut through near the top or bottom that would be bad. What depth of joist snd span?

These are static loads so any deflection will be a one-off , not a bounce. It follows that any pedestrian movement will be nearer to the walls, where strength is greater and bounce is less. If these joists have been designed for domestic use then the weight of beds and wardrobes is included. If the holes for pipes are through the centre of the joists then they have very little effect on strength. On the other hand if the above don't apply please give more details.

You've made your case. It seems that silence is your best reaction....make them aware that you aren't panicking.

Be aware that a 2.4m x 1.2m board may be shorthand for an annoyingly longer and wider actual size. You don't want to be cutting ends off.

It is likely that there is a lot else you don't know. Keep asking. What is the project?

I'm so pleased with the way this turned out. It is a covered way through the whole width of the wing with the main glazed entrance behind the photographer. The floor is entirely of harvested glacier cobbles. These were formed when the glaciers had streams running beneath them, rolling stones along and forming these shapes. The cobbles are in bands in the sand , and were recovered when digging foundations and drains. They were carefully selected from a huge pile, one by one, for size and being flattish on one face. Most are rounder than these. The right hand wall and the arch are original, repointed in lime mortar. To the left, off camera, is an original timber clad stud wall, including a door, retained for heritage and interest, but there is a new wall behind it. There are pencil writings on the wood cladding, concerning numbers of sheep etc. Everything done by my daughter and SIL. 'except the straw bales' as they put it.

Hijacking the post. Apologies. Wouldn't it be useful if members could publish the cost of their windows divided by the area? Somewhere I have a little black book that says that (at the time) windows cost £w/m2 for upvc or cheap timber windows, x for aluminium, y for timber, z for curtain walls. It was remarkably accurate for a first run though a feasibility costing and could be useful for new members on BH.

It's often specifically excluded. Shouldn't be but is. But that would need to be clearly expressed in the quote or contract.

That's likely. The big fan is outdoors. They will all publish noise figures I think. The prices range dramatically for what looks similar. Efficiency and noise are the obvious differences.

@Caversham Passivhaus Amazing. Can you show what the printer looks like?

I hadn't seen this idea of no outside unit. Tidy. But the in and out vents would need to be far apart or it will draw the exhaust straight back in. The other type (with external wall mounted unit) is a standard thing in Mediterranean areas. Off the shelf in the diy stores. They seem to be optimised for cooling but reasonably efficient for heating too. ( X 3.5 ish). They can be a bit noisy.

They exist. The ones I used were sole traders, not employees in a bigger firm. They had been planning officers, knew the system, knew the planners. They made it easy for the planning officer.

so they didn't test it with fans , or smoke sticks and the room fans running, while the fire was lit? ie n accordance with the BS?

disagree. They are professional bullies and don't have time* for due diligence. * being a bit polite here. If they understood contract law then they'd be lawyers or consultants.

It will be a portal frame ( columns and sloping rafters, either forming the gable glazing opening, or full width, then a ridge beam sits into that. The timber frame companies that I have come close to have always excluded these frames, which you have to get designed and fitted by others. The pedestrian door in the gable end doesn't need a frame as the wall can provide the support. So send it to some suppliers , but expect these exclusions. They need more information. ceiling heights (are the ceilings other than the feature entrance going to be at eaves level?) Internal arrangement and whether any walls can (or are intended to) provide support. They will ask for any more information they need. a single sheet on battens, or a composite panels with insulation?

Yes very similar, except water knows where downwards is and behaves differently in open channels. Progress, for anybody interested. The residents have done this work, not me. Apparently it is expensive or perhaps impossible to get a Hetas registered business to test and approve an installation by an outsider. A closed shop in effect. allow £1,000 if you find one. You'd also worry that they might be keen to tut-tut and fail it....although they could fix it. Cynical me, sorry, perhaps unfair. BUT a local chimney sweep will do it, and assures us that it will be accepted by the bco, and he is doing it next week for a reasonable sum.

That would be refused by small claims, as it is too technical, but they might try. @Tom what are they actually arguing? Not that some work is unfinished but that your pay less is too much? How much? Give them difficult work to do, and ask them what sum they are claiming and the justification. From this stage I nearly always start to notice things that aren't right with the job, and add them to the claim. I'd get a friend to witness the current condition in case they argue that you have caused damage in use. They might now offer some compromise. You say no, as you have already tried to find a solution and they refuse. And @Tom well done so far.