Ferdinand

Re: Grand Designs. Generally, don't. Imo. Find a more sympathetic programme that won't put your build into play to create a storyline. GD are quite notorious for that. If you do, have a couple of pre-manufactured crises lined up with pre-identified answers. Like a diversionary Nasher Stick for your doglet. Isn't there a 'best in Scotland' thing on TV somewhere, or two. But perhaps they are more egalitarian and your build is exceptional ? .

This is beginning to sound like rather a lot of work for one piece of unused glass. Why not make it into a table? And paint the wall with bathroom paint or a scene of palm trees. Or get a huge piece of wall-art that fills the most of the wall. Not expensive in the context of self-building a house. Even one of your own photos. eg https://www.photowall.co.uk/ Hilton Hotels use them to great effect in the entrance corridors to their rooms. In their case they put a mirror opposite.

If you are up against the wall that handle won't fit when you turn it. Unless you are some way away from the wall. You would perhaps be better with a fencing bar and an earth grabbing tool. Both inexpensive. Pay a bloke £30 to dig it, and watch whilst drinking tea and gnawing on a gingernut.

Personally I think that there is an element of cat with fur stroked the wrong way here. They will probably have a legal right to maintain their walls under the Access to Neighbouring Land Act, subject to certain conditions. But your position seems very reasonable indeed - 800mm is plenty for access, and offers no impediment to putting scaffolding in. Perhaps introduce them to narrow scaffolding, or to a hire place that will rent them a scaffold tower that fits your proposed gap. eg https://www.hss.com/hire/c/access/access-towers-and-platforms https://www.zarges.com/uk/products/reachmaster-mobile-scaffold-tower I would also consider optimising your walls to have insulation that makes them as narrow as possible. 100mm extra in a 2m wide room is the difference between a fat man feeling squashed or comfortable sitting on your loo. Ferdinand

Consider a scaffolding tower. I have one of these, for example, which will easily do that height. And won't be that much more than your £900. And it will go in an estate car. None of your named jobs will require it to be up for months. https://www.zarges.com/uk/products/reachmaster-mobile-scaffold-tower

It looks .... complicated, and expensive to deal with the complexity and the buggeration. I'm inclined to ask whether you have considered the alternative of moving house ?? Perhaps even to an identical one without the existing extension. Then extend that.

Is that down a step? If so, a PITA to get out.

I checked Octopus - they are 20% more expensive, I'm afraid. £105+ a month vs under £90 from eg Avro. I know they are popular, but that's a bit of a gap. ?

My fixed tariff just ran out, so I need to switch. Does anyone have any views as to current good suppliers? My current usage is approx 16,000 kWh pa gas, and 2,300 kWh pa electric. I think I may need a fix as a price rise is pencilled in for the autumn courtesy of changes in the 'Price Cap'. MSE is saying Avro, Utility Point, the Utility Warehouse, Outfox the Market or Green Energy - none of which I know very much about. Except that Outfox are quite idiosyncratic. Any thoughts would be welcome. Interestingly, BG estimates calculate the Elec as double that, and the Gas as 10% more than actual. Ferdinand

You are familiar with Underhill House, which is a similar vision? https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/apr/10/top-uk-eco-homes-underhill-house-gloucestershire There was a GD about it: Also this one in Bakewell is concealed from the road at the top https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/grand-designs-couple-spend-16-670402

They could try a Pro Bono barrister plus crowd funding for the rest. The best known is the Good Law project, and Jolyon Maugham. But they are losing a few recently, and tend to like politics. (And Jolyon just lost his own Planning Appeal.)

If you get into the Appeal Court you are up for 100s of k of expenses. It' a problem for LLs because all the horribly drafted legislation has to be sorted out by years of Court actions in precedent setting Courts. It took years and years to sort out Deposit Protection schemes.

A present you get a good extra margin if buying as a main residence due to the Stamp Duty holiday, I think.

What will be the return on finishing it at that price?

My dad once made them move a wall that was 18" too close to the boundary as the house design did not fit on the claimed size of plot. If he had not caught it at foundation stage it would have got restrospecive permission.

This is interesting: Bye bye gas boilers? How does a woodstove produce zero emissions at the point of use? By 2024? Good to see the move to total testing for leakage; that may be easier due to more Timberframe in Scotland. That now needs to be total inspection. Now for England to catch up; I don't like being behind. F

One of our former members wrote a series of former posts on a former blog about his borehole saga, which may well have covered that as well as everything else. Access the entries via the link on the right. https://web.archive.org/web/20200815110812/http://www.mayfly.eu/

You could plant a hedge of these: See Salix Viminalis as a shelter crop for what you actually want. You can of course make your fence less prominent without removing it. What about a swimming hole?

Get yourself set up with a trade account and a membership with further 10% off. It helps.

Creative farm diversification by someone with background? Not as if there is much local competition ? .

Oh it's better ;-). It's Preston, Queensferry or Tunbridge Wells. https://www.trycurling.com/play/find-a-rink/ How disgusting.

Photoblog. With Construction Lolcats.

Unfortunately, your closest curling rink is probably somewhere like Gretna Green.

Good to see. With that sweeping action, Curling is indicated.

On boats a Dalek Toaster is compulsory.