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Selfbuildnewbie

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  1. @Redbeard - just went over to site to check. Contractor has used Soudal expanding foam: Soudal Expanding Foam Gun 750ml | GB DIY Store And then he's gone over the top of the foam with decorators caulk.
  2. We are midway through our build and have started adding the plasterboard etc so quite a way along and airtightness has been an afterthought. Before we finish boarding up, I just want to get a sense of whether what we're doing is sufficient or whether there is anything else we should be doing that would significantly improve the airtightness (at this stage, I don't want to do things that would only give little gain) What we have done / are planning to do: We are adding OSB boards to the underside of the first floor ceiling and sealing all joins with expanding foam. We're then painting the entire ceiling with Passive Purple paint to form the airtight membrane. We're going to lap the passive purple paint onto the external ICF walls to ensure airtightness where the first floor ceiling meets the external walls. Compression glands have been installed around cables as they pass through the heads of studs. I don't think we can easily apply passive purple paint around these glands on the underside of the ceiling because the internal stud partitions are in the way, so is it worth us applying purple paint on the cold side of the attic? We haven't done anything about airtightness around the spot lights in the first floor ceiling - what would people suggest? On the ground floor, the gap between the screed and the external walls has been filled with expanding foam, which has been cut off flush and then sealant applied to form an airtight seal. Do we need to go any further and apply passive purple paint as well to this wall/floor join or is foam and sealant sufficient? The same goes with penetrations through the screed for services and drainage. We've applied foam and sealant. Does this need anything else? Airtightness tape will be installed around windows. Again, it's been suggested to us that we apply passive purple paint on top of the tape but not sure whether this would give much added benefit? Anything else we should be doing?
  3. @Redbeard this is the best pic I have. Trusses up and metal studs in but not plasterboard yet - that's going in this week. Sounds like fitting membrane round the studs with lots of tape will be the way forward - was just wondering if there was an easier or better way What's the passive purple stuff? Airtight paint? Presumably you're suggesting just around the studs where we've cut the membrane and used tape, rather than painting the whole membrane?
  4. Build is coming along nicely. Currently nearing end of first fix. And then we've realised that we should have put an airtightness membrane in at first floor ceiling level. Too late now that stud walls and services are in. Any ideas on what is the best approach to retrofit a membrane? or another approach to getting airtightness? Building with Nudura ICF in case that's relevant.
  5. Thanks, we actually did this prior to our initial notice being submitted for building control, but assumed for them to be able to sign off at the end we would need to prove that something else had been put in place. Will speak to them again. in other news, they’ve just started installing full fibre free of charge on the next road to us 🙄
  6. the regs say that if the total cost including VAT exceed £2k (which is the case for us) then we don’t actually need to install FTTP fibre for now but we can instead install “gigabit ready infrastructure” (by which I think they just mean ducting?) from the house to the road and then we can just pull through a copper cable and use “normal” broadband for now. what we can’t work out is how to get hold of that ducting from openreach without paying them the £2k for the full FTTP connection. Seems We can only speak to someone at openreach if we accept a contract to install FTTP and pay the £2k. Very frustrating!
  7. Brilliant! I’ve just registered myself as a company, let’s see if I fair any better than the builder…
  8. Ah - I thought we could have the next best thing if the cost was too high (which it is) but had to make sure appropriate ducting was in place for when the fibre upgrade time comes. Thank you for the practical advice - from what your saying it sounds like I just have to stop complaining and get on with it. Seems a bit of a cheek to force you to pay for something which no-one else has to. It's a demolish and rebuild, so we already have a copper cable.
  9. Following changes to building regs in December we either need to install FFTP to our new build, or install the infrastructure necessary for a FFTP connection. Even with the developer cap offered by openreach, we can't justify the cost of installing FFTP connection now that we don't really care for, we plan to install a 'standard' FFTC connection, and then all being well be upgraded at some point along with everyone else in the area. The problem we've reached is how do we find out what we need to do to install the 'infrastructure necessary for FFTP'? Our main contractor tried registering via the developer portal, and got to the stage where we've got a contract for FFTP, which we don't want to accept - and now were stuck. They are yet to manage to speak to anyone helpful and all the numbers I've tried now claim to be closed. Has anyone been in this position and can share how they moved forward? Or how to contact open reach? Any and all suggestions welcome!
  10. Caught us a bit by surprise that this has made its way to the top of the decision list… Groundworks for our house are starting shortly, and our contractor has suggested laying the sub base for our driveway and patio at the same time which sounds sensible to us! Top layer to be finished later our initial choice is block paving but we are researching resin. Current driveway is mainly lawn with some block paving, and so he has suggested the following: Excavate down 400mm. 150mm clean nougat recycled hardcore fill. 150mm 6F5 recycled hardcore with fines. Roller sub-base down to compact. Leaving approx 100mm to allow for paving finish covering at later date. Does this sound about right, any ideas if it would work for resin toon? Ground is clay. We got the impression he doesn’t usually do this stuff (though have great confidence in his house building skills) and there seems to be lots of mention of geotextile membrane on the internet? Thanks in advance.
  11. Just giving this old thread a bump as one of the suppliers we're talking to has also suggested using this product. This in theory being an easier way to achieve u-values of 1.2 or less to meet SAP, without spending lots more on triple-glazed windows from the European manufacturers like Internorm. Has anyone had any experience of using this or anything similar? C.U.In Glass : Eco-Friendly Glazing for Your Home or Commercial Project (cuin.glass)
  12. Hello We’re looking for suppliers that can make front doors with a u-value of 1 or less and wondered if anyone can suggest options for us to look at? We’re aware of the green building store and internorm (though the style seems a bit modern for us) and I've sent a enquiry to solidoor as it’s not clear what u-values they can offer. We’re after something quite traditional but this isn’t one of the items we are going to be particular over, just looking to meet the requirements for a reasonable cost. Thanks in advance
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