flanagaj

So our new planning application was submitted Monday. Best case scenario, I'm thinking 6 months if approved, otherwise, 12 months before rejected (after appeal). I get 8 weeks holiday per year, and am thinking of jobs I can do in the meantime. Regardless of whether we get our PP approved or have to fall back to the original PP grant, a retaining wall needs to be put I along the boundary. Can this be done, or would this be considered as development, and I'd need associated conditions signed off first. I just don't want to waste any leave, if I can crack on and get some stuff done.

In the end I decided to do just that. Fingers crossed it will be ok.

I should have been a bit clearer. These reports were done as part of the original planning application, by the vendor who we purchased the land from.

So the LPA have stated that so long as the reports used in the previous planning application are not > 3 years old, then they are happy that we don't require new ones. The planning consultant at the architects has however just stated that we will be in breach of copyright if we do this. Just wondering whether this is the case, and is there anyway around it. The biodiversity report is from a company that I think has stopped trading. Their phone number is now a solicitors. Would it be risky to submit them?

Is that a telescopic boom on the concrete pump? I like the look of that, and I suspect it really helps in getting the right amount of concrete in each place. I will be short handed when I pour our footings, and I think something like this would really help me to get the concrete where it needs to be, and not be frantically shovelling vast quantities to the far corners. What was the charge for the pump?

Ridge height, dwelling location, and footprint are the same. I can obviously show the previous site plan with that of the current, to show that it's not changed. Given that the I am worried about being granted planning, it would be better if they could be submitted retrospectively. Saves wasting money on reports, if the LPA won't approve the scheme because of design.

So the biodiversity report quote has come in and it’s £2000. Seriously considering scrapping the revised planning application and simply seeing what revisions could be done to the original application. I’m ranting now, but it’s an utter xxxxx joke that the LPA can request these reports when you’ve already provided them for an approved application, and nothing has changed. Unless, the bats have introduced a new flight schedule in the area. Sigh.

I think I'll drop the planning department an email explaining that we are submitting a revised application and can the biodiversity report/tree reports be referenced from the original application. As the site is now fully cleared, there are no buildings, so not bat survey should be required and the trees are all gone, except one at the far end of the garden, which will not be affected by construction.

Thanks all. It's the Architect who is stating that we need to have these reports submitted with the application. Seems a perverse waste of money to get revised reports for a what is simple a different design to that of the original planning application, especially considering nothing is changing in that regard. So can I just push back and tell them to submit the application?

We still have one Cherry tree.

We were hoping to use the same consultants who did the reports for the original PP, but I have tried contacting them, and they are not responding. Does anyone have any advice oh how much I can expect to pay for these reports, eg, Tree Report, Bio Diversity ... Thanks

Interesting topic. I've discovered one of these on our plot. Thinking of throwing in the asbestos roofing sheets in that I need to discard and then filling with crushed concrete. Thoughts?

I am starting to suffer sleepless nights over our proposed design, and would appreciate some wisdom. The Architects we are using have not really made much comment about the fact that we are just inside an AONB. Although the designs we have put forward are smaller than the bungalow that was granted PP, the glaring issue that I see, and I might be mistaken, relates to the fact that we are building a property that has a lot of glass at the front and will be visible from the lane. No properties look at the front, and you will only see it when you walk along the lane (no through) or drive up it. As it is an AONB, my fear is that they will simply reject it on the basis that it has windows that you can now see from the lane. When we submit the application, will we get any chance to make changes so as to try and address any issues. We did think that we could instead, put 300mm windows at the front upstairs, and turn that into the landing, and then have the bedrooms looking out over the paddock at the rear. The Architect doesn't seem too concerned about the amount of glass, but I am worried that he isn't that experienced on sensitive planning applications, and we could potentially be submitting something that will be refused by both the LPA and on appeal. Below is the finalised design, and you cannot deny that there is a lot of glass upstairs that will be visible from the lane. Although the ridge height remains the same as the bungalow, and we have shrunk the footprint by 60m2, I fear that it's the two storey with a lot of glass aspect, that is the killer. Any advice on how best to proceed would be appreciated.

https://www.bes.co.uk/shalloduct-water-service-pipe-insulation-835-x-32mm-19170/ £19 for 800mm foam! They have stipulated a 4" external pipe with the internal pipe insulated.

It was a joke. Good point regarding the 32mm, but that part is done now, and I don't want to go back to Southern Water and get it changed.

I want a shower with a 50 litre/ minute flow rate

Southern Water sent me the attached diagram. TBS Standpipe .pdf

I am trying to source the parts to install a temporary water supply on site. Pipe is 32mm MDPE, and I need to put a double check valve in, but I balked at the cost of an MDPE one, and was thinking of going MDPE to brass dcv and then back to MDPE, before having a 90 degree elbow and tap. So far, I've only found https://www.pipestock.com/double-check-valve-brass-threaded https://www.pipestock.com/mdpe-male-adaptor And wasn't sure whether a bspp male works with a bsp female and you simply don't need to use PTFE?

I am considering just buying one and then telling her post purchase. The only issue is knowing what is a good price to pay. For example, there is this one. It's been used by a self builder and has quite a lot of parts replaced, but it's a 2006 model. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/256701241635?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=qzptpbWuSDS&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY It does make sense as I've got so much excavation related work to do.

"go and tell the wife" - you can lead a horse to water ...

So I spent 3 days with a 1.5 tonne excavator and a pecker breaking up the huge amount of concrete slab. Thankfully, it wasn't reinforced and all I can say is that I didn't envy the neighbours. I am just finishing off pulling up the broken slab with a 3 tonne machine and getting the concrete collected with a grab lorry. There is about 5-6 loads to collect and that is going to cost me about £700. I could have hired a concrete crusher, but I calculated that to hire a crusher, 5 tonne excavator would have exceeded this cost. I also do not have any water on site for the dust suppression, and there was a lot of large lumps, that would have not fitted into the crusher without having to broken up smaller.

"the topsoil you skim off where the drive is going you can put where the concrete came from to turn back into garden" - great tip

So I spent 3 days with an excavator and pecker, and finally broke up ~ 250m2 of 4" non reinforced (thank goodness) concrete slab. It was absolutely mind numbing, but glad it's done. I did originally consider getting a concrete crusher in to crush it, so that it could be reused for hardcore, but you are looking at £700+ for the hire of a crusher and 5 tonne excavator to load it. I did consider contacting local farmers to see whether any of them might want it. What have others done? I also have huge amounts of garden waste from hedge removal / tree felling, and once again I am not sure what the most cost effective method is for getting rid of it. I suppose it could always be burnt, but once again, there is a lot of it.

Given the water bill, it must be close.

This might sound a bit daft, but given the recent news that OfWat is apparently allowing water companies to hike bills, I started to wonder whether instead of getting a mains connection which is around 3.5k, I instead pay the monies now and get a bore hole installed. Yes, it's an expensive initial outlay, but you could say exactly the same about solar panels. The wife is notorious for high water usage and no matter how much nagging, she's not going to change. At least with a borehole, you are not at the mercy of the PLC water company.