Ferdinand

Prices in London are undergoing a low multi-year correction aiui. Basically I think that is a good, necessary thing. Those flats will presumably be sold at low enough prices to cover the work, or go bankrupt and be fixed. That's capitalism. Interest rates are coming back down at quite a rate. Developments I keep an eye on where I would love to have a flat should I get he spondulics one day are showing falls of 10% to 25% over several years, which for central London has to be a healthy development.

Hmmmm. Highways confirm - with a single phone call remarkably and handled by the first contact at the County Council - that the road is not adopted at this point, and confirm that it may involve a decade of nitpicking negotiations to get it adopted. A chat with a Groundworks company suggests that - this being the case - they think they can rock up and JFDI. Interesting.

For a house on an estate which is built and sold off but not yet adopted, how does one go about creating a crop kerb for a second driveway? Would I need to ask the developer who is no longer on the estate, or is it: 1 - Check with the Highways Authority that it is not adopted. 2 - Do it. (The standard approach round here is just to remove the fence and drive over the kerb, going back 30 or 40 years. And the LHA just sit on their butt, as is their habit. This is not Lambeth or seomwhere where any attention is paid.) Thanks. Ferdinand

Probably. New ones will probably be in the 1.5% infrastructure part of the Defence Budget. (Ironically going to Poland !!)

Some roads are very thick; others are not. This from an American living in Germany, a Youtuber - comparing German and Usonian roads. (German Autobahnn is twice as thick. UK motorway is halfway between at 18" thick.) Video:

The Dutch redo their streets on roughly a 30 year cycle. But they plan ahead, and invest, and have decent design standards, all of which are anathema in the UK. Here's a video an online friend made when his was done. 12 minutes.

It depends if anyone notices. Horse stiles need "repairing" by removal of the pieces that block wheelchairs. Sometimes.

I'm not sure what records you have - thermal photos etc - but I'd be wanting to make sure that the cavity is sound if such exists. That depends on construction method, but that means that it is properly sealed to the window. Key indicator - cold bridges and detectible drafts around the edges. A smoke pencil may help detect drafts. At this time of year a thermal camera from outside may be helpful. if it were me, I would be thinking about plasterboard backed with PIR, even 10 mm, but I think your window openings make that impossible. F

Ben I'm interested if you learnt anything about "accessible" windows, designed for wheelchair users, and have any comments. Whilst you were looking into the design, did you come across anything with the handles at the bottom (rather than half way up) to be easier to reach?

Just on this point, get 2 or 3 of these cheap £10 min/max things to measure temperature and humidity. They cost little, and can be used anywhere. I use one to keep an eye on the drying of my washing for example, which I do in the shower cubicle with a dehumidifier in winter. The only thing is do not put them where they may fall on the floor; they do not bounce very well. There are lots of different sorts. This is an example not a recommendation. I buy several then gradually break them over 4 or 5 years. https://www.amazon.co.uk/HOTUT-Thermometer-Hygrometer-Temperature-Humidity/dp/B0DS25WWL8/

"The German company that makes the mechanical ladder used in the Louvre heist has used the image to advertise, with the text 'When you need to move fast' "

There are reported problems and an audit with the ECO4 programme, which is tragic as these ECO programmes have (imo) been highly successful for more than a decade. It seems to be around lack of sufficient supervision / audit, which left room for con-artists and fly-boys to move in. I'd also mention at a move to more complex products ie external wall insulation not internal wall insulation. I've been fed ads all over Youtube for this, as for solar panels, marketed as "you can get free Government money". It's worth a read for general awareness. From a BBC Report this morning: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3w965gz8zgo From the National Audit Office: https://www.nao.org.uk/reports/energy-efficiency-installations-under-the-energy-company-obligation/

Good morning everyone. @ToughButterCup for architecture it's "God is in the details" - that was your compatriot Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. This was perhaps after he ahd the details everso slightly wrong in the previous 20 projects in ways that no one else noticed, but drove him to distraction. On the giant compost heap, I think it's a little low in energy density. I think this was one where one of those mad-scientist hippy types did some experiments in the 1990s with ginormous compost heaps like long barrows. What would the emissions per kWh of heat be? For me, it's in the same niche now as things like interseasonal heat storage and domestic wind turbines. Potentially of inerest in niche settings comprising about one house in 5,000 to one house in 100,000. My recommended domestic alternative would be to have a sealed, insulated basement, a long-drop loo, and to eat lots of curry.

Indeedy-doody. My suggestion is that principles likely still hold, but at any time a tactical reassessment is helpful as teh marketplace chnages constantly at a slow rate and significantly over several years.

You perhaps also need to apply the revenue from export - I get 15.5p from Octopus. Plus there is the possibility of EV charging. My house is built to ~2010 building regs, and with 2015 FITs and Octopus (35 panels on EW orientation) I now break even, with no House Battery or EV. Ferdinand