Ferdinand

I have done 2 separate projects very similar to this ... essentially leantos. One was built with a box section corrugated roof ventilated beneath with a membrane and insulated subroof, and became a 4 season lounge type room but North Facing. Span 4.2m. Roof angle was under 5 degrees. The other was a covered way with a polyprop roof and no insulation ... think car port style ... with a roof angle of under 10 degrees and a span of up to 3m. My approach has been to put an 8x4 or 6x3 wall plate attached to the wall with thunderbolts, and run joists to that with (I think mini) joist hangers. I then flash properly into the wall above, and that has worked. SPec your joists to be strong enough to walk on and spacing to match the roofing. THen insulate and ventilate as necessary. To keep beasties out just use normal insect netting. I would say that for a new roof all your materials should come in at very roughly £500-600 more or less for plastisol coated box section corrugated. FErdinand

I haven't weighed in on this one yet, but an alternative suggestion. Consider a suitable Site Services or other type Portakabin, and just run it in on skates or fence posts as rollers, then jack up on hydraulic car jacks if you need and insert breezeblocks. These come pre-insulated and wired. A further alternative is the back of a Luton type van or similar, either a normal van or a refrigerated van, which makes delivery easy. I appreciate that these may not be available on your island, or the next one, but if they are it could save you a lot of work and possibly money. IF somebody has one they may be keen to get rid of it given the removal cost. Ferdinand

I love the WTF Happened feel of picture 5. I have seen that look on many students waking up in the bathroom of a different house!

Looks good. Are you sure this post isn't a diversion to avoid rellies?

Normal wooden posts in concrete are a NO NO. They will rot in a ridiculously short time, even if you use Postsaver. You will be repairing posts within about 10-12 years. Creosote? Maybe, but I do not have recent experience. I do it using post spurs and bolted on 6ft wooden posts to keep them off the ground if it has to be in concrete with wooden posts. For materials, I think (bit of a guesstimate) you may be in the £20-40 ballpark per 1m. Not a cheap thing. I would check - 1 Independent local fencing companies, both for materials and a turnkey quote (VAT reclaim?), 2 Seeing if they will make dyed brown concrete posts for you (many will for quantity), 3 Look at panels designed to look like closeboard - bolt rails to your posts and attach the panels to that with Timberscrews or attach directly, and 4 Guaranteed or plastic posts. A quote from a significant local fencing company for the whole shebang might surprise you. F

I would say just copy the posts across with some piccies, then use the forum for questions, and the blog for a record or for what you have learned which may help others. The blogs are more useful as a longer read, whilst the forum is like fishing for goldfish at a funfair. I would doubt whether *that* is enforcible as it seems contrived deliberately to preserve a law which has been abolished, though if the OPP was pre-April 2015 they may argue that CSFH applies under "legacy project". But if you have a working understanding with the Council that will save you the unnecessary bits, then it is probably better to put the effort into building it. F

Heh. They replied to your deemed discharge notice in less than 2 weeks ! Everything can effective have legal weight, depending on the circs - eg Courts would give more consideration to a party that can demonstrate that they have acted reasonably, and that can in turn help face the other party down and perhaps prevent them needing to actually go to court. It is another thing that could help the planners decide to put their effort into somebody else's case rather than yours, as yours may seem more difficult. But the other commentators are right - this is comparatively small beer. As I said: A lot of weight attaches to being no nonsense, getting on and doing approximately the right thing, and not upsetting the neighbours. F

RIght. 1. Oho. Aha. So when did you get Planning Permission? Exact date. AIUI CFSH cannot lawfully and enforceably be used in a Planning Condition in England for a planning decision reached after March 28 2015 (ish). And an unenforceable condition is unlawful anyway. See here: https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/its-official-goodbye-code-for-sustainable-homes/8680639.article If that is the case and your PP is after that date such a condition is null and void, and you can probably stop juming through some spurious hoops (after taking advice). Therefore you probably need to check the exact facts on your date and the applicability of the CFSH, then if I am right have a polite conversation with your planner, then if your planner sticks to the guns take a cluebat out of your briefcase and apply it to the occupit with a modicum of vigour. The basic issue is that CFSH is horribly out of date, and was horribly over-complicated even back in 2006 or so when it appeared. (I was in construction at the time and did not like it. The problems stuck out a mile.) Most of the basic bits of CFSH Level 4 are in the Building Regs now, I think, anyway. 2 Sounds Ok as long as it is high end insulation. That amount of eg eps would afaics not do it, if you are on the 2013, or maybe even earlier, regs. 3 Is this for internal or external lighting? I do not see how they can condition the technology, as it is acceptable in planning law to achieve the outcome by a satisfactory alternative means. They could probably condition for eg glare next door to an observatory, or nuisance for neighbours, or arguably to prevent disturbance for bats or badgers, but there would have to be adequate evidence that it was a material planning matter (ie not de minimis). Not a huge issue, imo, as LED is the best solution for nearly everything, but perhaps a small red flag concerning your planners and their excessive enthusiasm to micromanage your project. Ferdinand

If you'll forgive my candidness, it is a pity you were not here 2 years ago.. you have completed the cost-unpredictable stages, and we may have been able to help you save a lot (like 10s of k) of money by asking awkward questions and referrals to good contractors etc. However, that is a literally sunk cost, and we go on from where we are, and hopefully can help you save another lots of money from here. F

One initial question, how are you handling the Buildign Regs insulation requirements for your floor now that you have poured a naked slab? WIll you be doing another slab at Ground Level, but insulated this time? And what stage are you actually at now? Ferdinand

Welcome to the forum. WE love new people. IT sounds as if you have been a little derailed by the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, but at least there wasn't a badger sett where you wanted to dig your hole. IT happens to the best of us, and if you are managing your own build you should at least be aware that it could be 2-3 years not 1, and also that taking time gives the opportunity to spot an issue before the next issue appears on top of it. But this place has a range of experiences and professional opinions that can help if you ask. The South and Lancashire? You are now double enemies in Yorkshire unless carrying a pudding and wearing a cap, or at least bearing a stick of rhubarb. THis looks like a well structured story, so may I suggest you get a blog from the off (ask a moderator such as @PeterW), which will help keep a coherent account rolling?. The first two posts here would be fantastic starter articles. And we love photos, too. Ferdinand

I have a conservatory which is approx 100mm over 4.2m, and that has been fine except when the wind blew water back under the point where the flashing attached not quite sufficiently to the roof. if you use a formed piece of roofing at the wall that should be OK .. I used the original Ubiflex, which was problably a bit too much Ubiunflex. THe lighter version of that should be fine, or a formed piece. F

+101 CHampagne, wine and Rupert the Bear outfit. Essential items that must always be easily accessible without fail.

TBH that seems not to be excessive ? . I also have TV, coffee machine, coffee grinder, coffee storage unit, knife block, lazy Susan, microwave, Wok, griddle plate, cutlery basked, tea and coffee pot tray behind the kettle, chopping boards and trays behind the knife block, flower arrangement In a demijohn, and several unidentified items ?. And grain container, cake container and fruit bowl on the island. Suggestions If you re a tidy sort, then my sink came with a glass Chopping board on wheels which runs along on top, a chopping board could be inset in the worktop or put next to the cooker as a dual purpose hot pan stand, and there is much to be said for as island. WE used to have chopping boards which slid into a pair of runners above the top of a drawer unit ... not so common these days I fear. Another useful item is a mobile storage trolley can be a good supplement to an island or alternative in a compact kitchen. like one of these: https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/kitchen-products/kitchen-islands-trolleys/förhöja-kitchen-trolley-birch-art-80035920/ F

How do those numbers change if you have an in-roof version of solar panels and save 25-30% of the cost of your slate? F

LOoking at this page, suggests 8l from a mono bloc kitchen mixer: https://www.harwoodandassociates.co.uk/faqs/guidance-on-flow-rates-for-taps-showers-and-baths/ Useful looking numbers and I love his quote on showers: That may be true, but it also sounds like a bloke selling showers. F

I have family to stay at present, and we have had a slight water pressure issue, which has prompted me to turn it up a little. the pipe is 15mm. Just a quick qu ... what would a typical max flow rate for a kitchen tap be when everything else if off? it is a monobloc. My first measurement was 8l / minute via the mixer tap with hot and cold flowing. I have now tweaked it and we are now at 9l/minute. The mixer tap set to cold is giving me 8l/minute. Is there a sensible number I should aim for? Cheers Ferdinand

I would test there with a jet washer from a distance. IDeal if the windows are upstairs using the washer to project an arc of water, as there is a horizontal velocity component to the "rain" ... just as if wind blown. I haven't tackled one of these, but shouldn't there be universal robust details for something as common as windows and doors (said the giraffe)? F

Spunds like a report for fly tipping required .... ?

YOu have created an instant hidden door design hinterland ?. IT does sound like a LATER thing, but could be really simple in principle. IT could just be a slab faced bifold with a puh-donk spring thing to nudge the central hinge open, and a couple of magnet plates to keep it closed until prodded. Then decorate or ornament as required. Or a different custom concept may be what you want. F

Here is the first version of that video, with different examples: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9SqWcywqoGE And here is a video of the Scooby Doo door from Grand Designs, which is good but does not meet your need. WHat is interesting is that the bearing is a £7 effort that might be in any Lazy Susan. https://metro.co.uk/video/fbia-embed/1334563/ I think the takeaway is to work from the other end .. come up with something really simple that does what you want to avoid the techno-health-and-safety-thunderbird-2-as-heavy-as-an-elephant-buggeration that we are at risk of chasing up our own posteriors, then design the rest of the wall to hide or distract from it. At its simplest the concept would be to decorate the wall with a row of doors, one of which opens - but to do the same with shelf units or mirrors or panels or cladding or trompe l'oeil or a bit of this. AN example would be a lightweight shelf unit on a slab door on 3 concealed hinges that rotates away from the shelf unit to avoid clearance issues, then build 1 or 2 identical shelf units to one side of it. Use a simpler roller closure to keep it simple. OR if there are elements that have to show, then put the same elements on the similar things that camouflage the door. I quite like the idea of misdirection ... put the door exactly where a hidden door would be expected, but do something else that makes people lunge at another thing that looks like a hidden door but is really a piece of wall. i also like complete concealment in plain sight. I think it was GD that had a hidden door in a row of tall kitchen cabinets at the same face level .. the key was an opening built out 600mm proud of the wall behind. Or use an an element with a different point of interest that is a door as well. E.g. Place a door sized mirror at the back of your shelf unit to reflect a forest print or a window or another shelf unit to make it look as if there is another false room behind the mirror to create fake space. They think it is a not quite perfect visual device due to the shelves, then the mirror turns out to be a door as well so that there is actually a real room there. ANd do the unexpected. THere is a hidden door in this wall of windows on the first FLW Usonian HOuse: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_and_Katherine_Jacobs_First_House#/media/File%3AJacobs_First_House_-_back_02.jpg Which one opens? Actually I beliveve it is all of them. F

I think I'll be starting to plan the next project, which will be a self-do loft conversion in a 191x tall, deep semi. Have not done one of these before, so lots of questions to ask. It is probably a (very) less grand version of the house Paddington Bear finagled himself into in the original stop motion cartoon. And I will be doing some admin. Ferdinand

Welcome. A good time may be when everybody else is whinging about not having anything else to do when they do not want to watch James Bond or the Snowman in Christmas Day, and vanish for a Spreadsheet Nerd-Out with a cup of decent coffee and some nuts. Ferdinand

eg Compare Germany vs UK vs Poland. The difference in wholesale vs retail prices for Germany is huge. Fine - Germany is an outlier, but there are at least half a dozen or ten other not dissimilar outliers just within the EU. Retail 2018: 0.33 vs 0.22 vs 0.16 Euro per kWh. Wholesale: 0.0356 vs 0.0596 vs 0.0442 Euro per kWh. Ratio Retail/Wholesale: 9 vs 3.7 vs 3.6. Obvs there are issues of definition, and extraordinary political shenanigans from time to time or constantly (eg in Spain where retail prices do not seemed to have shifted much since about 2010 whilst retail inflation is about 12-14% and there is a corresponding massive subsidy iirc, never mind all the Solar Tax buggering about), and we do not know where France will end up after their current "Reform"-"Burn-Down-Paris"-"Cancel-Reform" cycle (perhaps exactly where they started). Suspect that the real thing highlighted here is that EU stats are not really "wholesale", but "wholesale after political messing about", and that Germany is subsidising energy for industry - whilst the UK refused to do so for large intensive users and we now have no aluminium industry left. There is also probably the hangover of Frau Merkel's (I think it was Mutti) anti-nuclear spasm after the accident in Japan, but that impact seems to be less than I thought, and perhaps also a residual headache from the subsidies for the now-gone solar manufacturing sector in Germany. Comments most welcome, as I think is probably about elucidation not basic disagreement. F

I'm not entirely convinced by this statement that wholesale electricity prices do not vary that much globally. Here is the graph of retail prices from your link: Here is a graph from the EU of wholesale prices in Europe in Spring 2018, which shows a variation of more than 100% relative to the lower price. (Source: https://ec.europa.eu/energy/sites/ener/files/documents/quarterly_report_on_european_electricity_markets_q1_2018.pdf) And here is the "bandwidth" (max/min) graph for the EU countries from the same source. That wholesale price data is a lot of things, but consistent is not one of them. ? It could be the variation in quotes for an identical building job ! Comments on further post. F