Ferdinand

The number of FIT installs is more than quoted here - somewhere above 800k. https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2018-12-06/HL12105 >To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of how many homes in the UK have solar panels to generate electricity installed. >17 December 2018 At the end of September, we estimate there were 805,000 domestic solar PV installations1,2. A small proportion of homes may have more than one installation but it is not possible to identify these in the available data. There were 789,122 domestic solar PV installations in Great Britain registered on the Central FiT Register at the end of September 2018, as published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/sub-regional-feed-in-tariffs-confirmed-on-the-cfr-statistics There were 17,267 sub 4 kW solar installations in Northern Ireland, registered for the NI Renewables Obligation as at the end of September 2018. It is estimated around 90% of these would be installed on homes. This is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/759558/Solar_photovoltaics_deployment_October_2018.xlsx Answered by Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

I've just had an email from Octopussy saying that my payments will be reduced by £67. Current monthly payments are £65, and the credit balance continues to tick up. Plus an FIT payment is due. So I am now officially in profit ! Until it reverses...

Great feedback, thanks. I have a worktop pizza oven which is also great for things like reheating Yorkshire puds (eg frozen ones), pasties, oven chips and similar. It has a kettle type element above, and pizza stone below. As it happens the £50 microwave from Curry's just conked too, as did the kettle and the toaster recently. So shopping incoming. Now to think. Ferdinand

IIRC that's one option for starting off in snow to stop too much torque on the wheels causing wheelspin. The other option being start in 2nd or 3rd and slip the clutch.

Really good comments so far. Mine: 1 - I think you could enlarge your shower trays. Something like 1.2x.8 is better than .9 x .9, just to use. 2 - I can see no provision for boots and cloaks. Is there space at the end of the utility by the back door for a big cupboard? 3 - Not really sure about the front door area. If this is Scotland do you not want a porch, or at least an overhang? 4 - The upstairs bathrooms look as though they could be improved wrt plumbing runs - especially soil pipes. 5 - I might go for a sliding door on the plant room entrance, to help the door clash and carrying things around vs swinging doors. 6 - Think a bit more extensively about how to manage heat wrt views vs window size. There are solutions like Sage Glass or verandas if you want both. 7 - I think you need to consider carefully integration of indoors and outdoors for doors, windows, walking routes and so on. Especially as it is in a national park. Try drawing a location plan with views, sunrise-sunset and so on, and matching that to your room locations, times of day when you do different activities and so on. 8. I would consider windows sites to give you sunlight into the stairwell and the interior - perhaps including a roof window over the top of the stairwell - to give shafts of light in the heart of the house that can be viewed from the entrances and rooms as you walk around. Also some thought about glazing in internal doors and perhaps even walls. I can see a fully glazed door to the snug / lounge working well with a rooflight above the stairwell, for example. Or a tall narrow stained / frosted glass panel from the lounge to the stairs. Also possibilities of using mirrors to reflect light around. A subtly placed floor to ceiling narrow mirror in peripheral can create the impression of an entire extra room, and make the space with the mirror seem much larger, for example. My thoughts. Ferdinand

I made my neighbours move their boiler flue round the corner onto their property, rather than over my drive.. I think the issue is around the need to ensure and undisturbed exit, which for a discharge over a boundary cannot be guaranteed. May be different for low / high level. Check with your BCO.

The air temperature is design to be warm enough so that the Maillard reaction happens. I'm presuming, but that would surely be the basis of the claimed crispiness, which was the usp of the air fryer initially. Ferdinand

For BHers I'd say use bulk bags that materials came in. Fill with leaves, possibly stack up 2 high, and leave for 18 months-2 years. It contains little nourishment, and is good for soil structure - which is why I'd guess the person quoted suggests mixing with compost.

If you don't use them they become utility room clutter 🙂 . I'm trying to find out whether I would use it. The R4 piece you linked before compared them to a fan over with an ultra strong fan, which seems a good analogy. Which! apparently have 14 different recommendations, and they now come with many different programmes. They deal with the Mallard reaction by you making sure that the Mallards are dead. I have one in my freezer waiting, and hopefully it won't react. Taste reports seem good. Ferdinand (*) *innocent face*

I'm having a look at one of these, as a general rapid cooking device for the kitchen. Does anyone have any experience or recommendations? Household size is up to two. Thanks Ferdinand

You hope... :😇

Correct, or you may not. Which doubly reinforces the point that you need to use your skill and judgement, plus advice you think appropriate. And be sure where your appetite for risk is on the scale, and that you will still be standing if you buy this relatively-less-expensive opportunity and it goes tits-up.

I think fencing off the roof from behind might be easier. Suitable height fence then grow a similar height hedge behind it?

Call @pocster ...

On the seller motivation for not going for Outline: 1 - it may be the cost of getting outline. Applying for PP for a potential 6 or 8 bungalows is not cheap. Quite a few thousands. It could also take 6-12 months. 2 - It may be an elephant trap in the plot that is not in the sales literature reducing the probability of getting PP, and the same could be the reason for going to auction. Could be a former use of one building requiring expensive land investigations, or services or drainage being difficult, or a mineshaft, or a former oil leak from a heating system, or made ground, and so on. Do some digging (research, not literal 😁). Have you spoken to the people in the bungalows on the other half? 3 - Has it been marketed before? What happened if so? 4 - Or it could just be a quick sale required for any number of reasons. Death, divorce etc. In situations like this you need more information to allow you to trade off part of the risk. F

Is not the issue with the downstairs loo is that wheelchair accessibility is a Building Regs requirement? I am not sure whether the shower is required to be accessible. But this is again your subject, so I guess you have that covered. Also I think I recall that a raft of new Building Regs came in on I think June 15th this year. I'd encourage you to do the more relaxed stairs to the extent you can - you lose about half a square metre and it makes a noticeable difference. F

I like the project as well, especially the upstairs open to the warm roof. You should know being an AT, but check if the number of bedrooms you submit with requires an extra parking space or other stuff (minimum private outside space is a common one - may require an opaque tall front gate so your front lawn is private) under policy. It should be easy peasy to leave it as 2 big bedrooms upstairs and divide one later. Does your downstairs shower room meet disabled 'turning circle' regs? Personally I prefer roof windows to be towards the top more than you have it, so there is a sense of light from the sky - unless they are ones you need a view through. Keep your staircase gradient as shallow as possible (ie towards 35-37 degress rather than 42), as it makes the whole house feel more luxurious. If you can. F

At least two Rolands have won Nobel Prizes.

I don't know, but I'm getting the impression that LT has some competent back room staff who have been working on this for some time. Also hearing interesting things about developing the relationship with the European Commission.

Judging by R4 this morning, fixed rates will be capped to the pro-rata £2500 cap for 2 years.

Yes, I'm teasing a touch. I'd suggest that the "limited return" point will be somewhere beyond where you are now, so I'd go for at least 50mm of PIR and perhaps a bit more given energy prices and that I only get to do it once. Framing or dot and dab is the choice of method. If you are already inside an insulated wall then your cold bridge is well limited. I'd suggest the 62.5mm or 72.5mm PIR backed plasterboard, or perhaps use separates if you can get a really good price on the PIR (but will require framing) - the last one I did a few years ago I found non-foiled 50mm PIR at £10 a sheet, which was OK. If you dot and dab remember to make sure your glue lines prevent air circulation in the gap. And you do need to check the requirements for a thermal element under Regs. ATB. F

Make sure you consider what you might want to replace it with in the future, and that that can be done without messing all your plumbing and electrics around again. Remember that gas boilers are on the way out over a decade or two. Personally I would consider boxing it in suitably where it is, too. The lattice sheet stuff that rad covers are made out of can be very useful, and can be bought in sheets relatively inexpensively. F

Remember to make the EWI thick enough and to discuss permeability and ventilation.

It's sometime 1976-1979 ish. https://h-frame.weebly.com/79-001-timeline.html There's a Yoochoobe channel called "WorkMateGuy".

>Macerator at WC ( no bitching about that ) The bitching is for when you are trying to mend it if it breaks. "How are you getting on, dear?" "I'm in the sh*t". That's one heck of a vintage workmate. I inherited one of those from dad 10+ years ago, who himself had it for at least 35 years. F