Ferdinand

Welcome. I love the title quote - it could once have been said to Trotsky by an innocuous man holding an ice axe !. Ferdinand

OT: Have we got a sticky for useful software packages? I have never heard of loopCAD, but then mine was installed by the previous people :-). Ferdinand

Or you could use an agricultural wire tensioner or turnbuckle. Or build the little darlings a capstan wheel so the big one can enslave the little one. Ferdinand

I'm quite possibly out of my depth on this one, but the latest version of the General Permitted Development Order seems significantly to extend the definition of "Public Highway" to things that were previously private roads etc, and therefore brings more projects within the scope of Planning etc under "fronting a public highway". I picked this up from a thread on Gardenlaw where a Council has decided that Planning Permission is necessary for a front dormer window overlooking a private road on private land that was not thought previously (by the Council! in writing) to be a Highway. The thread is here: http://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=20055 Quoting two relevant bits: http://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=196575#p196575 and this: http://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=196630#p196630 Some of us renovate on private lanes and paths, so this could be significant. Can anyone comment, or have the time to explore this a little? Gardenlaw's resident Planning guru, Pilman, was reduced to "probably". You need to read the thread. Thanks Ferdinand

I don't see any problem here in havinig a candid conversation with your planners - they should be willing to give a straightforward answer. When they have given you an answer, confirm it in writing referencing your conversation by date and content, and officer name. Also check your "pre-commencement" conditions, which may identify things that you must also have done and evidenced. Ferdinand

I seem to recall griff Rhys-Jones stating that his vintage wooden yacht had absorbed half a million, to be worth £195k. http://www.classicyachtargyll.com/q-a-by-griff-rhys-jones/ My most favouritest self-build *ever* is the chap who decided to build a shooting punt and punt gun from scratch, after he'd built the workshop to build it in. The thread is here but since 2012 the pics seem to have vanished: http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/topic/217901-making-a-gunning-punt-and-punt-gun/ How many self-build houses have all the screw heads at the same angle? (Expects at least one person to go "meeeeeeeeeeeeeee !! " Ferdinand

Rockwool probably good and cheap, if you have enough thickness. Space blanket (=multifoil) is best left to spacemen and mountain rescue people, as being very expensive for the insulation it actually provides. There should be lots about this already here, even though we have just started. Try a search for multifoil. Ferdinand

Need to know about your area and prices of 2 vs 3 bed houses. My guestimate, as a LL, would be make it 2 bedroom and put ensuite shower rooms into both bedrooms at the lower end of the diagram, then make the downstairs bathroom into a wc/utility for all the kitchen noisy things. Ferdinand

How does 30cm x surface area plus 50% sound?

I honestly don't know. You need someone else to chime in here who has more experience. Ferdinand

Serious warning. DO NOT skimp on water resistant underfloor in the bathroom, loo etc. Our previous owner who renovated seems to have cut this corner, and we now have entire rows of cracked tiles on very neat 8x4 centres. Ferdinand

I guess you could use it eg for a non-grid connected solar setup. But it is pushing it now. Ferdinand

Hmmm. Don't know how the Planning Inspectors approach batmen and their recommendations, but they are required to follow only Planning Law rather than politics and personalities. We won our (non-bat related) Appeal in a few weeks (perhaps 10-12 weeks from receiving Refusal from LPA to receiving go ahead from Planning Inspector), but the Council case was a mess of pottage and the refusal was before an election in the face of a 200-300 sig petition. And we had a hot planning consultant who could have been a barrister. Obviously there are still problems such as the ridiculously low levels of proof required of bat activity before the monkey jumps on your back, but are there any cases about alternative mitigation strategies being allowed if they are as effective? Would it be a case of find a more appropriate expert Expert then Appeal? What is the general level of training of Bat Experts? Do they just have had to go on a couple of courses for the Bat Conservation Trust? Ferdinand

I refused a Smart Meter, and they accepted my right to do so. Ferdinand

Round here they use chickenwire on plank bridges.. Another option would be aluminium tread plate, which looks cool. You need the tools to cut 3mm metaul, but I guess most of us have that. Cost is about £75 per sqm. Ferdinand

Our local drive-round-with-a-truck man is called "Sh*t Shifters". We get him past our gate about once a week, but a washing machine left outside would be gone in a couple of hours. Ferdinand

Could you just use wire mesh as they do on rural plank bridges? Ferdinand

I say get a plunge saw and make the treads into fretwork.

I think you want an electric plane, as used for taking extra bits off the side of doors etc. Less cumbersome than a belt sander. Get a template to draw the line on each, then radius it from the outside going round with many passes. Ferdinand

The Grand Design with the Geodesic Roof Structure in Whitehaven (?) or Cumbria did that if I recall. Ferdinand

I think that is exceptional for 10k or thereabouts. Love the 3 or 4 frying pans.

The crocodiles that will eat you are the ones you don't know about or haven't looked for :-) F

Without giving a specific opinion (sorry) ... I think anybody needs to be aware of possible changes and how it may affect your particular project. While that may not mean rechecking things every day or every week, it is perhaps a good thing to do it at significant milestones in your project. Certainly over a several month timespan there have been significant changes, and there is a possibility of an interest rate change soon - which may impact on mortgage products etc, but then the selling process takes 4-8 weeks or more anyway. Were I currently looking at a new project, I would be having a bigger contingency and working through implications of bigger changes than would have been the case 3 months ago. I might also be inclined to reduce as far as possible the time between making a decision and implementing the decision, so that there is less chance for any sudden changes to undermine my careful workings-out. Here are a couple of articles looking at post-Brexit mortgages and property. I think it is all more volatile, which can work for or against, so in my opinion an emphasis needs to be on resilience and nimbleness. It is perhaps not a time for taking balls-out risks with projects, so eg do a smaller self-build now with space on site for an extension rather than going up to the neck in mortgage finance. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/buy/carney-advises-mortgage-prudency-what-should-prospective-buyers/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-36641090 http://uk.businessinsider.com/britains-property-price-analysis-post-brexit-2016-7 Ferdinand

Yay. 1st in topic. Given that the mortgage and house market has changed rapidly recently, and may change some more, I think we perhaps need a thread mainly about different ways of financing self-build. I'll do a separate thread about tips and tricks to cope with the volatile environment at present. This post is a combination of what I know, and questions where I don't really know. Note that this area may change rapidly, and for each category all kinds of limitations apply and homework is critical. It would be useful if others could add more specific comments for each category, perhaps particularly about specific Buillding Societies and other gaps. This post is a list of thoughts - not financial advice. Savings The most traditional route. Perhaps pension draw-down (you can currently have 25% of your pension pot tax free at age 55) comes into this category. Normal Mortgage Take out a normal mortgage on your existing home. Self-build Mortgage. The best known providers are probably Buildstore (who are a broker (?) working with financial institutions) and the Ecology Building Society. Differences are that some providers will insist you start the build yourself before financing, which reduces your savings and your flexibility. Some providers may let you borrow against the value of your plot, eg when Outline Planning has been achieved. Local and regional building societies may have offerings for their area. Buy to Let Mortgage If you make your project (or your current house while living in a caravan) a rental, Buy to Let mortgages can be available. In the current market interest rates from around 3 per cent are availalble, with a brokers fee of perhaps £500, which (from where I am sitting) seems cheaper than self-build mortgages. You will need to talk to a broker. Build to Let Mortgage This is a possible future market segment. Make your project a rental, and then pay off the mortgage with a normal one once it is built. You will need to talk to a broker. Worthy of note for some expenses: In a low interest rate envirnoment there are other options for some expenditure: Personal Loan. Currently available at around 3-3.5%. At present packages are sometimes done for loyal customers - move your account some time before, or take out another one? Credit Card Balance Transfer or Interest Free introductory purchases. These are available for up to around 2 years at present for as little as a 0% fee, or for longer periods as a eg 2% fee. Ali-Shuffle: Buy something else at as % interest rate, eg car or nearly new car, to free up the cash for your build. It goes without saying that the more solid a credit rating you have, the better. Ferdinand

Indeed, and thanks for the reply. Our main cooker is a range (ironically you can see it reflected in the built-in oven door), and we do not use the microwave for anything more than say 10-15 minutes. And the previous one was also a standalone in the cavity :-). Just measured, and the unit has 60-80mm of space each side, and 100mm top and bottom, around the Microwave. The limitation may be on adequate vent-space at the front. The previous one was there for 8 years, though. But at this price it is almost a disposable. To be clear - the Baumatic is the warming drawer, and a separate unit. Ferdinand