Kelvin

Thanks for the thoughts. We’ve contemplated exactly what you suggest. The formal door has a vision panel to the left of it so could the extend that idea to the util door so it looks like a big entrance with glass either side. The challenge i see with this is when the dogs are in that room (it’ll be their sleeping area) they’ll woof and scratch at everything that goes by. They did this at the previous house and wrecked the door. Of course we could switch it round so the glass is actually the front door. Worth considering a bit more. Fundamentally I am quite stuck on the concealed door as done well it could be great but needs to be done well.

That is the plan. It could be as simple as a basic hardwood door clad to match the profile being careful with the depth of the door reveals so that the cladding is flush with the wall. Add a pull handle made from the same cladding and an automatic lock.

The other thing they think is slightly mental is the upstairs. Their original layout was two bedrooms upstairs but we are building this for us so have done this instead. Master bedroom suite effectively. Master bedroom, dressing/occasional room (we’ll build in wardrobes at the gable end) which is open at the top of the stairs. There are two bedrooms and big shower room downstairs.

That will be my son and daughter’s problem 😂 The architect’s solution is one door and an outside shower. There’s no other way in that isn’t through the house or to re-arrange the rooms. In any event the warrant drawings are done and I don’t want to change the layout.

Ta. 😂 Perthshire

It is likely we’ll do the same which is fine when out walking but when they are in and out all day in all weathers I’m not likely to wash them down every time.

Hi all I am going to have two front doors. Our architect thinks we are mental but it’s our house! The door on the left is into a formal hallway and then the house. The door on the right is into the utility room. The reason for the door directly into the utility room is because we have two dogs who get into a right mess when we are out walking. Despite cleaning them off before we enter the house they still bring a load of filth in, shake themselves off and splatter up the walls. This used to annoy me in our previous house and entrance hallway in the front and back ended up manky. The original layout had the util on the end elevation with a door on that side. However, I’ve since added a cinema room so the util room is now in the middle and can’t be moved. So that explains why it’s there! The problem is having two front doors side by side does look a bit daft (according to the other half, I’m not so bothered) and makes it look like two houses (almost) My idea was to clad the util door to match the house cladding so it is effectively concealed. I’ve seen a few like this and it works well. The issues are: 1. Our windows and door supplier (Nordan) can’t do it 2. The cladding profile is board on board profile A so not convinced it will work that well on the door 3. where can I find someone that can build a custom made door that could be clad like this? Any other suggestions?

This is interesting and something I’ve been pondering too. My timber kit deal is they install ever Including windows and doors and I was also concerned about it getting damaged. Something to discuss with timber kit company

Wow indeed. Although we looked into this last year when buying our plot and considered buying a house too and my solicitor was very non committal. I found the same info posted above

Yes done that with the three immediate neighbours.

We submitted the application on the 3 June which was validated on the 24 June. During that time I had a bit of a falling out with architect. Too long to explain here. But the long and the short of it was I wasn’t happy with the site location plan. We worked on a different plan and submitted that on the 24 June through the official variation process. The planning portal still has the original drawings and none of the new ones. Planning made it clear not to contact them until after the decision due date (24 August) However, our neighbours have been notified and one has asked me about the plans but his questions were based on the old drawings. I showed him the current drawings and it answers his concerns. We’ve contacted planning and they’ve confirmed they have the new drawings and will update the portal in due course but it’s been another week. My concern is anyone looking at the application might/will be basing their opinion on the wrong set of drawings. Not entirely sure what to do. I don’t particularly want to chase planning again but also don’t want delays caused by folk looking at the wrong drawings.

Having managed big IT jobs in the past the lesson you learn very quickly is to talk every major aspect of the job through with the folk doing it making sure everyone knows exactly what is being done and how it’s going to be done and never assuming they ‘know’ even if they are the pros that do know.

Yes but what is his specific issue with them?

Thanks for the info. Is it warm enough in the winter? Would it be possible to partition one end and add more insulation to that to use it more like an office?

If it’s a new self-build with good insulation and air tightness then an ASHP is the best option. It won’t need a lot of heat input to keep the house warm. I used infrared panels in a workshop but had to fit a one on each wall to try and create a bit of heat around me. You need a second opinion

My plan is to partition it at the window end into a more comfortable space. I’ll go with the 40mm insulation option for the whole build but do a bit more at the partitioned end eventually. My original idea was to also have a folding wall between the garage section and the workshop section so I can extend either area if I needed it.

Costa is rank. Down in Harris there’s a great cafe called The Temple Cafe. Had a lovely lunch there after walking miles on the beach.

Got quote back. Decent price. £22k ex VAT for 40mm insulated roof and walls for 10.5mx6m with single roller door, personal door and double window. That’s supply only. Single skin is £16k. They have various insulation levels.

They are generally quiet when running but not silent. I doubt you’d hear it above the TV. You could also acoustically treat panel

Nice website. We loved the remote rugged terrain too and the beaches! Harris looks like the moon in places. We just couldn’t live there. I got chatting to a retired copper. Born on the Island but moved to London to do his collaring and retired back to the Island.

We did see quite a few derelict houses on our travels and we debated about whether we could live there. We are building a Heb Home and there are a fair few on the islands and we even cheekily knocked ok the door of one and the owner showed is round.

There are loads of wind turbines on the islands but fewer than I expected. They are dear to install though. Have you seen the flower turbines? I’ve contacted the company that does them but they haven’t been very forthcoming with info.

There was a sort of similar case in the paper the other day where someone installed a 2m fence around the land that was part of their title deed but the council forced them to take it down because it wasn’t in keeping with the rest of the estate. The argument being that if they let everyone build 2m high fences on all these bits of land the estate would lose the openness

Oh and we did it in our leccy car with no issues charging it. Even cooked breakfast powered from it

We are just back from a week long camping trip on Lewis, Harris and a night in a hotel on Skye. Loved it but it really is a remote and somewhat bleak area (well Lewis is) But it is very beautiful.