Ferdinand

Shower Room Pods? https://taplanes.co.uk/ There are others, including one I looked at near Manchester which I can't find. You will be looking at more money but easier fitting. I think I saw them for down to a couple of thousand. If you have the one with double sliding doors you will be forever mending it. And if a hinged one with the seal slightly wrong you may be forever letting volunteers out of it when they overshut the door. I went for large shower tray and fixed shower screen when redoing our student bathrooms, and we did 4 for 10k including all fittings and finishes. They are still fine 4 lots of students later. eg http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Walk-in-Shower-1200X760-Tray-760-8mm-screen-Free-Waste-/301995192561?hash=item465050f0f1 If you spelunk through this Landlordzone Thread titled The Tenantproof House, my studentproof bathroom conversation starts at about screen 8 or so: http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?35033-The-Tenantproof-House Here you go - post 103: http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?35033-The-Tenantproof-House&p=420089#post420089 Ferdinand

To me that would be almost a full day of work if you get a report and a conversation. Ferdinand

How nuch extra nion-chargeabve does he do? eg is thinking time, travel time and report writing time charged? Ferdinand

Thanks. So where does that 315mm rule you cited some from :-) ? Or was that a typo? /pendant Ferdinand

On the OP, I think they could be after anything. Might this though slightly off-topic be a good place to have a conversation about how to prevent badger digging etc, though some may choose to encourage them? Badgers are formidable diggers as you know, so perhaps: 1 - Appropriate fencing, which may be a 1.5m - 2m brick wall? Subdivide the garden into "domestic" and "woodland"? 2 - Can something badger-dig proof be put under the lawn when it is laid, such as a metal mesh or terram? 3 - Outdoor dogs or geese. Will mainly be disruption by presence as obviously badgers are nocturnal. 4 - Block their regular run. Creatures of habit, and cautious. 5 - Gravel the garden. 6 - Human urine. Badgers are sensitive to change and smells. Commit acts outraging public decency in your own garden when no one is looking eg in the gloaming. Or have some in a plant sprayer, CLEARLY LABELLED. 7 - Play Brian May music, or import him to live in a Yurt. Badgers probably have better taste and may leave. 8 - If you have a big enough garden, why not create an artificial badger set (heap of tree roots perhaps over appropriately sized clay pipes in a partial network), then perhaps they will live and dig in the bit you give them while foraging elsewhere. Is there a minimum foraging distance? Phil Drabble had an account of building one of these in "My Wilderness in Bloom" iirc. Badgers are so protected, despite having a huge population and being under no conservation threat whatsoever, that some of the above may be technical offences and need a license to do. So do some homework. Also, animal welfare respectables and animal rights fruitloops are in a lot of places, so take care. It is possible that you may get good advice from your local badger or wildlife group, or not. Ferdinand

Can't you just put it on a bit of board for now? Ferdinand

I'd have it out in this case. But where is that 315mm rule? TPOs for example, commonly say 3" or 4" as being a tree, or if it is a Woodland TPO it (ludicrously) protects any pruning of anything (I think). Ferdinand

I'd have said: "No. So divorce me."

Given that a bathroom can probably be tiled in a single day unless it is a stonker, I'd do it all at once. if you want it working then put something temporary down eg Visqueen. Ferdinand

In the absence of a boat, perhaps a Citroen DS Convertible?

Does anyone have any indication of what sort of weight will crack a Pressed Council Slab (ie the 2" things that cost next-to-nothing on Ebay) laid on a gravel base? I am wondering how safe it is to lay a row of these on top of a gravel drive as a path, which would be down one side of the drive for ease of use by postmen etc and only need to be driven on when particularly wide vehicles come into the driveway. I'm think that anything car or 4x4 or transitsize will be fine, but I am unsure about 3.5-7.5 tonner, larger lorries or 4/6-wheeler tippers. Thanks Ferdinand

OT: I envy people flexible enough to be able to work from a squatting position. I am trying to develop flexibility via a local gym, and it is agony-in-spurts.

I have sufficient rental properties to qualify as a professional landlord if they ask. They did what seem to be standard credit checks only as far as I can tell. I am also planning a number of projects over the next couple of years after I recently sold a housing site I have taking through PP over several years - so they will see a decent throughput on the account if they query it later (which they won't). Ferdinand

Insurance policy? I'd hate to find I needed them 15 years later for some reason.

This T would set her 6 dogs on you for that !

Hmmm. Different factors. I'd say that up to about 450x450 are probably OK before some people may struggle, but if you get really big ones that are difficult just for manual handling for you, then you will have problems laying them - and be more restricted in cutting. A 600mm x 600mm porcelain floor tile could weigh the best part of 10kg. And they come in up to 900x900 iirc. Imagine trying to cut that with a power cutter or just leaning over to lay it down. Also, breaking one tile can get expensive when they cost £30 por £40 each ! I like about 400x400 or so or 450x300 for walls. I have had no problem laying this size if the base is done properly. It feels modern without being awkward to lay. Ferdinand

Wash your mind out with soap, Mister Sir

Welcome. I think you need to ask your estate agent Principal. If you are selling soon they will give you an opinion for both options - but you need the staff member with the long trousers. Ask several EAs, then you will need to use your skill and judgement. Ferdinand

Sounds good. N-E is a good angle for a conservatory. Other points: 1 - Put a couple of underfloor ducts in to likely points in case you want wiring in future - eg if you are going to want a run for an outside wall socket at the far side in the future. I used this: http://www.screwfix.com/p/tower-corrugated-conduit-white-20mm-x-10m/38177 2 - I put a 300x300 underfloor space into a corner of mine, which I used to hide the gubbins to drive the electric ufh, with a loose tile on top. 3 - Electric sockets at head height are surprisingly useful for eg televisions for extra wall lights etc. One of my recent 2 conservatories had these especially for the tenant to warm her puppies from ir lights. 4 - I think I might suggest, though it easy to add later, putting in a Switched Connection Box spur now, in case there is anything in future you may need to hard wire in. 5 - My top tip for inexpensive conservatories if you are so inclined is to take advantage of the silly people who put them on the wrong side and are replacing them with real rooms 5-10 years later. Ebay has a lot of decent secondhand conservatories for a few hundred or a couple of thousand, and there are companies that will collect it and install it for you for perhaps £3000-4000. That is cheap enough to throw away after 7-8 years use if you get a posh one new. See: http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&LH_Auction=1&_nkw=conservatory&_pgn=2&_skc=50&rt=nc eg 20 x 10 ft but this one is dismantled so caution is warranted. You need to decide whether you trust the seller. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Conservatory-UPVC-/222225971804?hash=item33bdb33a5c:g:ImcAAOSwbsBXlm0j The keys are to take your time and wait for the right one, then go and look at it first and make sure it is a good one. I bought a 4mx6m conservatory - full height upvc type not dwarf wall - for £600, and installed it on a proper slab with a solid roof replacing the polycarb roof, insulated below, above and to windowsill height with 70mm celotex, and full electrics, and a radiator, to give a 4 season sunroom at about £270-280 per sqm all in except for my time. Ferdinand

That is fixable, for example by paying a credit balance onto the card account.

It is a "complete rigid kitchen package". Ferdinand

Late to the party. My supplier just phones up their tech. dept for the mix for competitor's colours. One thing not mentioned is that you want to know whether your existing paint is solvent or aqueous based. If dated from 1995 it will be the former imo, and you need to make sure that the aqueous paint you may get now will be compatible. Appropriate preparation and primer will probably be the remedy, or sanding right back, or specifying solvent-based. Ferdinand

So I just opened my Howdens' account, thinking of replacing 2 x 1000mm base units in a newly bought terraced house with a galley kitchen, due to a relatively minor damp problem (back of units discoloured after 10 years under previous owner - may start a separate thread on diy DPCs in solid party walls), and this offer appears. This is the offer available: Which is a whole kitchen for little more than the price of those 2 units. At the price it seems a steal - if I wanted to fit out my own utility it may be worth buying and throwing the oven etc away. I would expect the appliances to die after a few years, but even replacing these then with a decent brand it is astonishing value. My impression of Howdens' units is that the usual 18mm carcases are solid, but the range tends to be quite conservative (not necessarily a problem). Does anyone have any experience of their more basic range? Thanks Ferdinand

I need a convincing citation for the 'total' interpretation, since the one you supplied is ambiguous, Richi. But probably not worth it unless someone is going to go back to the Statutory Instrument or Law. I won't be. Far easier just to pay the first £100 on a Credit Card for belt and braces. F

Further comment. If you put your pipe work in the patio now, you will have to spec the slab to be conservatory-suitable and insulated, as you will not be able to add anything under the pipe work later. That may limit your conservatory options - dwarf walls need nearly normal foundations etc, and digging those round an existing floor is fiddly though possible. A slightly thicker slab and full height panels may be preferable. That may all be doable if you plan ahead, but think through the whole process and do a full cost model as if you were building the conservatory now. Further options could be a full sun lounge with a real roof, or a Crocodile style enclosed veranda with sliding glass wall(s) and a patio heater setup when needed, but there are imho better suppliers out there. You want to pay for your your house not other people's TV adverts. Perhaps the thing to focus on is your intended use ... Full room implies sun lounge or good spec conservatory, dog pod or plant winter space implies something cooler that could be less heavily protected and outside the thermal envelope. If you want 4 season use and it gets sun then you something radical in the roof to protect it in summer, or you may roast your occupants. Ferdinand