Ferdinand

Cheers for the reply. Leaving aside my own slightly tangential opinions, I think that protective films applied to the roof dg units may have potential, or perhaps an oversailing awning - but that is less aesthetically appealing. Jeremy specifically mentioned the "too transparemt to notice" brand he uses on the bedroom window here: Ferdinand.

Hmm. Difficult. Can you put a name to them (will the oldest BCO in the Council know?) ? How many do you need? And are all houses in the area similar? My BiL added a new tile hung dormer recently on his 1930s semi. He did it by knowing what they were and watching Ebay like a hawk for about a year first, and buying anything within range across Surrey and South London, and further afield for the specialities such as corcer-cappers and valley tiles.He ended up with way more than needed just in case and flogged the hundreds leftover off again. If you only need a few and they are used within your area for similar-looking houses, then I might try doorknockiing up and down the road, or putting a card in a newsagent, or even Freecycle. Ferdinand

I'll dip out of this one, because I think the basic concept is mistaken, as to my eye it looks like accepting a compromised - perhaps unusable - conservatory and trying to put a sticky plaster on it. People should not be living in a conservatory repurposed as an inefficient air to water heat exchanger. The better way is to catch it on the roof, and keep the living and heat gain separate. Make it a faux sun lounge which is suitable for summer use with a separate roof or canopy or put the conservatory where it belongs .. on the N side .. and have solar panels. But do you have a calculation of how much water can be heated by air extracted from a conservatory as a sanity check? According to my information x volume of water raised by one degree stores the same amount of extra heat as approx 3000x volume of air raised by the same one degree, and the volume of your conservatory is approx 60 cubic m, of which perhaps 12 cubic m are above head height, but there are many other factors involved, from insolation to efficiency of your heat capture process, at which point I decided I am offered more personal utility by going to bed. Though crudely that implies with 20% system heat collection efficiency you will need to reduce the temperature of all the air in your conservatory above head height say 10 cubic m by approx 15C in order to add 1C to the temperature of a 100l bath of water, ignoring running costs. Does @JSHarris have a suitable spreadsheet :-) Sorry for the ramble. Ferdinand

Most of that sounds sensible but would it be more efficient to have panels outside and a usable conservatory? You could probably mount PV panels on a separate frame above the conservatory ... or perhaps on the wall above as a Brise-Soleil, which would come out over most of the roof. (Underhill House on GD did this and it is a still one of my favourites.) And could you use one of the anti-solar films to help keep it cool? Ferdinand

Clickbait has been a thing for a loooooonggg time. Here was one from the Guardian: "Five reasons hen and stag parties should be saved" But the Mail, Buzzfeed and the Huffington Post are probably the best outrage-trolls. The Huff Post specialise in outraged complaints about women as sex objects and their own pieces about bikinis and side-boob. No - OnOff - I am not finding you any. If you want something really funny, try this ... a greatest ever from Buzzfeed, The 29 Stages of a Twitterstorm Savour the detail. We had one last weekend when a poor guy called Neil Taylor was roasted on Twitter because he had the same name as that footballer Neil Taylor who broke the other footballer's leg. Ferdinand

Interesting site, with oodles of potential. However (if I may) ... are you going to tell us you changed the house design? The practicality and utility of this one looks to be quite compromised to me - are you the victim of "Mirror Image Pair" house design? Has someone really thought how it will be used, and to make best use of the context of the site - relating the inside to what exists outside. If this is architect designed then imo it is a shocker with some really basic errors. I would apply a few changes to the facilities for a start. You have to tramp through the gym with your muddy boots, sandy wellies or oily overalls on to get to the loo :-). Then anyone wanting the loo while chillaxing in the family room has to go downstairs or use an ensuite - not ideal for a cocktail party. But I won't start on that if that is your future story :-). Ferdinand

Personally I probably would pay the extra £15 for a Mira and the 5 year over 2 year guarantee. I have one Mira that has been going strong since 1994 with only new shower heads. Ferdinand

What do I look for to see if mine has any flow regulators in the house? Will they be under every sink? (Do not like plumbing).

End panel from left over cladding?

A standard bar mixer. That looks impressive, and the one review likes it. And a 5 year warranty. Given another £5 off that by various means, it is tempting to buy a couple for stock. Can anyone shoot the product down in flames? Ferdinand

@Crofter Responding to various but not clipping all the comments - busy day. You may still want a lockable mini-store or cupboard for eg cleaning materials or spare crocks and glasses etc. On suitcases, that means you need space for them to be stood on something for the stay where they can be opened easily. The other type of unit which I think may help would be the slide out larder type from kitchens. Are you planning a dryer? I am guessing that in the location normally a line is ideal, but there are some occasions when all the wind does is blow the rain in horizontally through the fog. Personally I would not delete the washer - for some people (eg with a small child or baby staying for a week) that may be a show stopper. I have family who simply put the washer on a trolley similar to one of these with a flexihose and have the dryer stacked on top - easier for access and could just exist with the wheels locked in a 2m high 600x650 cupboard: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Washing-Machine-Universal-Appliance-Trolley/dp/B01LZDCNPK?th=1 I think if you have time to reflect on furnishings I would say visit a few hotel rooms and see how they do wardrobes and bathrooms - both because of design ideas, but also because these days facilities are much improved. Now real coffee machines are standard in mid range hotels. A nice permanent offer is Use the Accor Hotels Happy Mondays offer and you can eg bag weekend overnights close to the Royal Mile for £25 or a little more per double room in nice hotels eg Mercure booking on the preceding 2 mondays or Tuesdays. You need to join the Club but it is worth it. If i recall the space you have a mezzanine over the bed and shower room? One thought on open plan. You could not include a wall between the shower and bedroom, and instead go for low 1-1.2m wall or storage divider (does that help with the wardrobe?), or even a variation on the feature as included on the recent House that 100k Built (Series 2 Episode 5 I think - excellent house): If they are couples (which they are unless you have having push apart beds) maybe then only really need toilet/shower bottom half modesty rather than a cubicle. That one, while it looks chunky, is studwork with a skin of painted mdf over to curve. The round terminus is a seat to perch on, and has a hinged lid to be a laundry basket. Something like that between the bed and shower but less expansive could give a good suitcase rack cum built-in seat on the end with storage under. It would just need a little care integrating with your shower screen. On the doors, I agree they take up space. 1200 sounds good for a double :-). I *hate* double doors where they are so narrow that any normal sized person has to turn sideways or open both even if only carrying a small box; people who install those should be fed to rabid dogs for elevenses. They had a pair on Homes Under the Hammer this morning. Admit I would be tempted to move those (the issue is wallspace?) - but perhaps not until it was proved necessary; the stove view is good if you can do it. Ferdinand

@CrofterI am not sure I was clear. My suggestion was to put the shoe rack on the other side of the outside door as a set of shelves under the end of the worktop (if that is what it is). Our student bathrooms have a 760mm x 1400 mm shower in, and I do no think the 760mm has been a problem. However, the extra may help disabled access for "holiday home" mode. My other last comment is that if the division of the wardrobe is awkward and deep, you could use a tall set of freestanding shelves, or even trolley-shelves on wheels. Like this one designed for shopfiting (1.875m high, 1.2m x 450mm plan) but chosen to fit your cupboard size. They could go in a slot end-on and roll out to get to the stuff at the back. Your shoe rack could be similar. I think your 1.6x1.1m space will work .. it is just how to do the jigsaw. I suppose one other point is that if it is a holiday let, you perhaps want somewhere lockable that is off limits to guests to keep your own stuff and whisky. For me that would be important. Ferdinand

A good idea. But I would be inclined to make it as a separately mounted piece inboard the 3G or 2G unit, so I could consider changing or moving it later or take it with me - treat it like secondary glazing. Only problem would be the need to dust it. Mine is inside a 2G unit made by a local manufacturer. There is a photo somewhere. is HUT3 celebrating Bletchley Park and the decoding of Planning Law? Ferdinand

Coats would hang above a washer, if necessary split but a shelf halfway with the door on the other side. Or the washer only needs half of it at 1100x1600. A shoe rack would fit in an open unit in the end of the run of kitchen units by the door ... or just open shelves across the end 400 deep.

These days you buy ice at any Aldi for about 50p per kilo, or Tesco (including our local tiny Tesco Express) for about double that. No idea how that compares to the volumes @JSHarris used to purchase. Good for cocktails. There are also pretty effective 24 hour+ (depending on required temperature) flasks available now. The phase change cool bags I am familiar with are for insulin and are called Frio. I suspect there are bigger ones that are as good. Or can you DIY a super cool box from vaccuum panels or Aerogel? Ferdinand

Yes, but I bet the slight self-builder eccentricity has bulged out somewhere else instead :-).

Is it not also the "rentseeker" problem ... where the standard setter is such a monkey upon the backs of the regulated that the cost features more largely in the minds of the regulated than the benefit. When the extra cost of PassiveHaus certification is equivalent to e.g. the cost of multiple visits plus paperwork by Building Control, then PH certification is too expensive. We clearly need a market in regulators. Ferdinand

I think this phrase and reflections thereupon may give a good portrait of self-builders and their motivations, when examined by a philosopher. Nah. Everybody here is an internet troll on holiday. Welcome. Ferdinand

Discount Programmes with Hospital Cash Plans eg Westfield Health This thread has been quiet for a bit, but I have a good new one. For some time I have gone green when employees talk about the savings on their staff reward programmes (iirc via "RewardGateway and similar) at various retailers. I seem to recall figures of 5-10%, whereas the rest of us are at about 3% on Quidco. I have been looking for something for self-employed and not-employed-due-to-building-a-house. Anyhoo, Hospital Cash Plans seem to offer similar programmes. These are those plans where you pay £x per month, and get a grant when you buy glasses, a grant when you buy teeth, a sum for each inpatient day hospital etc. Examples are Westfield Health and NHSF (formerly Birmingham Hospital Saturday Fund). Usually you get nearly 100% back by just claiming the common grants (there must be a tax shelter or subsidy in there somewhere). Westfield Health offer for example Westfield Rewards, a programme which gives discounts on 600 retailers, including: Boots -15% Sainsbury -4% B&Q -10% Wickes -10% Halfords -10% M&S -7.5% etc It operates via a preloaded cashcard where you get a 10% discount on face value when topping up. So that should stack with topping up using Reward Credit Cards etc. So you may not want to have too many of them as it seems to be a card per retailer, but for the ones where much is spent it looks like a good opportunity. Feedback on other Hospital Cash Plan providers would be useful. I am also looking for a way for non-employees to access the Easy Cash Saver card, which is similar to the above but gives a single card for umpteen retailers saving 7.5%. It is usually a perk in Employee Benefits programmes. Ferdinand

Let me add a little more. I think that you may gain significant value from a small number of face to face interviews. Given your position in London it may be a good plan to aim to speak to BSOs (or perhaps Planners except that fabric efficiency is a BSO responsibility) at a few Boroughs. I am thinking of at least 4 and less than 10. I have worked in commercial construction research, and we regularly did surveys *and* interviews as complementary exercises to provide context and specific insights. You could include one or two questions about nZEB to expose whether it is known, and how BREXIT has affected it. And then include questions about your other related area of focus. It ought to be possible to get 45-60 minutes of time with the occasional BSO. I would suggest starting with a clear hypothesis or two about the status of nZEB in BREXIT context. Ferdinand

Hi Ted. Welcome to the site. I wish you luck and a future MRiCS, but to be honest this won't go anywhere. My attitude to the 2020 EU nearly Zero Energy Buildings Directive as a context for UK self-build homes, is that it is not a context for UK self-build homes because we are leaving the EU in 2019. No one - whether self-builders or construction companies - will spend any time on it. And having gone through the last Zero Energy Buildings Initiative as wished on us by Mr Blair and Mr Brown, which imo was a bit of a dogs' breakfast requiring a scattergun of ideas wished on us by an out of touch Government relying far too heavily on technical gimmicks rather than quality building, I am glad that it is not coming here. The only possible bit of context I can see left is for people importing their kit homes from the EU. Is it possible for you to refocus your project on something that is actually going to happen? For your interest in energy saving there is potential in: 1 - comparing self-build standrds with corporate build. What difference and why? 2 - perhaps perceptions of why individuals feel a need to import "low energy" kit homes rather than build them here. 3 - related to 2, my suspicion is that far too much money is being spent on expensive solutions that happen to have particular country labels on them ,which is a success for Brands over knowledge. There may also be something about a related lack of clear information concerning the UK industry and what is available. 4 - Jeremy's point above about the proliferation of planning and compliance costs is an area that needs work. Could you reframe your project around barriers to achieving high energy efficiency for self-builders and corporates? One angle would be the massive increase in people and bodies who have a right to be consulted in a Planning Application over the last 2-3 decades (this is one of my hobbyhorses). 5 - Exploring the enforcement of building regs standards and declared designs in what is actually built. This is a Jeremy area of interest, but your target audience would probably need to be Building Standards Officers in Planning Authorities as the enforcer, and corporate builders, and self-builders. I think you need a rather sharper focus, and perhaps a project redefinition if it was set up before June 23rd 2016. I am sure that people here would be willing to spend a little time on advising you publicly or privately. There are also people here who could introduce you to the right industry people to interview. Hope that helps a little. Ferdinand

BBC 2 Series 1 Episode 14. http://www.radiotimes.com/tv-programme/e/cxnvp5/building-dream-homes--series-1-episode-14 My kitchen table. Mothers' Day this w/e ... so we are getting a very posh lunch with a side order of Gin From The Gin Menu.

Just caught Building the Dream with lunch. They built a Passive Haus certified home to meet Mobile Home regs on a 5 acre site in the New Forest. For £350k. Apart from an I "Omigod This Is So Difficult and Unique and Has Never Been Done Before and PH Is So Revolutionary" stance from the architect (generally rather exaggerated), it seemed quite interesting. Tempted to look up the PP. Ferdiinand

That is one good strategy to find a plot that hadn't occurred to me ! I am reminded of Henry VII marrying Elizabeth of York. (Takes care to choose relatively admirable English King who did not behead the wife). Now where is an heiress who owns half of Gloucestershire and has the fortune to pay for me to develop it? Ferdinand

+1 electric boiler possibly unless EA says it could scare them off. Would count against new wiring needed for E7, perhaps.