Redoctober

This is a key element too - all in the preparation. As for a woven geotextile membrane, we were advised against having it by the landscaper. His thoughts were it would only get torn over time - the sub base we had down with the 20mm on top would be good enough and I have to say he was right. No weed growth as such, just what gets blown in. Easy maintance all round.

We have a fair expanse of lawn too - It was never "accurately levelled" at the onset of the turf going down, just raked and pulled by the landscapers to a level, which seemed about right ! Given our location, we were happy for this to be the case, as it didn't need any accuracy as such . Yes, since mowing it, I do notice a very slight gradient but nothing that causes us an issue or is obvious to the naked eye. We didn't have to worry about drainage as such. Since the lawns have been down, we have never experienced any standing water, due to the decent soil it sits on I suppose. As for any slope, I suppose it depends upon your situation, how level you want it to be and how obvious a slope would be / sit, in the overall scheme of the garden? Another photo to hopefully help and put things into context.

We have quite an area of "driveway" and opted for 20mm granite chips. In my view they work much better than any smaller stone, as they do stay in place better. Anything smaller would be too easily distributed I feel - see photo for our set up - Occasionally, / rarely, I will rake them over but other than that, job done.

Hi @BHACHA16 We moved from MK to our current location some 7 years ago. From what I can recall of MK, land / plots are scarce and come at a premium. Your introduction raises many questions, which if answered, may assist you and other members, to provide you will more informed details. Have you secured a plot? What size house or you planning? How much of the work are you intending to do yourself? What is your preferred construction method? etc ..

welcome @Stratman you are certainly in the right place. It is interesting to read that you have designed your house along similar lines to one you have previously lived in. This is exactly what we did. We found that our exisiting house layout worked well for us and would do so in future years, so opted for a similar layout with additional bits. You may wish to read thriough my blog which charts our progress back in the day. Be mindful though some of the "figures" are no doubt well past their "best befre date" as we completed our project back in 2018. That said, the process remains pretty much the same I would argue. Anyway, good luck and keep us all posted.

I don't think there was any meaning in his suggestion, other than simply trying to offer me a way, that would re-assure me that the mositure in the slab had been dealt with. I did employ this method and it seemed to provide me with that re-assurance I needed prior to tiling etc. 👍

When we had ours put down, the UFH guy suggested a way of seeing whether or not the moisture had gone. He said tape down a large square bit of plastic sheeting to see if any "mositure" apperared on the bottom of it overnight. He also recommended using a particular progrmme on the UFH system which ran the heating for a period of time - warming the slab up nice and slowly - reaching a peak of around 40C - before coming back down.

Needed for sign off ! How close to the threshold were you? I have known people who have "been allowed to leave a gap" somewhere in order to raise the figure in their favour. But that said, your feeling has hit this debate square on the head. It does carry weight though, as you have lived without such a thing for a good few years and one could argue, your lifestyle hasn't been affected by it not being in your life. No one can really argue against the benefits of such a system, it boils down to whether or not the individual considers it a worthy investment, on balance.

@bmj1 for our Indian sandstone slabs outside, I have used "easy joint" - comes in many colour ways. It has done a very good job since it has been down, so worth the investment I feel.

Likewise, I'm in full agreement. In fact we have them in our house - Kitchen / hallway etc. and they look a treat with the finished grout. Not sure how you will "grout" them in outdoors though. Have you considered what product you will be using for that purpose?

Hi @Mike DC This is very close to us - we actually pass it on a regular basis into "town" and we have been enjoying its development / progress for many a month now. The roofer needs to mentioned in despatches because the slates are just wonderful. - The work going on inside looks equally impressive. Was the rendered extension a cause of concern for the planners? I though they may have insisted on stone to tie it all in?

Hi @Tarrel and welcome - Sounds an interesting project and it seems you are well equiped to make a good go of it. Photos would be nice and should you have any specific questions, just ask away. Enjoy the ride.

hi @brenthope welcome to the forum. What is a small home developer and as for what direction would you like to be pointed in, can I suggest you give us a clue as to where you want to go!?

@Post and beam We too have a cold roof and had a very similar issue just before Christmas - I purchased this item and touch wood it has solved our problems - It is very pliable and what I did was I rolled it up and "wedged" it between the sarking board and insulation within our loft space. It still allows for ventilation but stops any unwanted guests entering. https://renew-store.co.uk/products/200mm-bird-mesh-kit-1-roll-x-30m-black?variant=47686595019091&country=GB&currency=GBP&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&srsltid=AfmBOoppwgXeEqjbpFoBT4kdziLXJWRo-lYXpB7x7j4Ahyq3uY_BNi2BsaY

Very interesting - didn't know that - every day's a school day👍

No creaking whatsoever coming from the upstairs floor - all nice and solid - Pity I can't say the same about our staircase though. There is an annoying creak on step number 4 - oh well, all part of the fabric of the house🤣

This is exactly what drove us to do what we did and also, it is our experience having lived with it for the past 5 years or so. I'm so pleased I went the " extra mile " on this part of our build and put in UFH upstairs. Yes, as always, there are alternative options, but for the reasons stated above by @Dunc I'm more than happy. Not only that, it allowed us the freedom to place furniture etc where we wanted, without having to navigate radiators or panel heaters etc.

This is exactly what we found when researching our build. We looked very closely at Border Oak but just couldn't make the remaining wall space work for us with a "frame" that was within our budget. So, like a few others here, we have incorparted "oak" in to our TF house with a stone external wall - Even to the point of introducing two 4 metre oak beams into the main rooms downstairs. Not structural, just aesthetic.

Blimey, are you suggesting that you are willing to put up with the smell to save on the energy costs? The reason we don't have ours emptied every year is because of the work done by the pump. How much does it cost you to empty annually? A bit of research may reveal that you don't need it emptied every year. Perhaps you could look at getting a more effeicent pump! If you are seeking some sort of validation of your proposal, then I'm not sure you are going to get it from here.

Hi @Yardmaster Perhaps some more detail would help - Firstly what type of Condor unit do you have? Is the pump "built in" so to speak or can it be replaced without interefering with the treatment plant itself? What type of pump is it? As for desludging, that can depend on many factors - How many occupants / manufacturers guidance etc. Switching the pump off is not to be recommended for any great lenght of time, I would suggest. It is there for a reason. We have a Bio pure treatment plant which is similar to a condor one, in as much as it runs on a pump - The manufacturers suggest that our tank can go for 3 - 5 years without it being emptied. We have also "operated" our unit without the pump for up to a week, due to a power cut without any dire consequences.

The company you purchased them from should address your issue surely? If not, then look at companies such as this one for replacement "units" - https://www.cloudy2clearwindows.co.uk/

Just want to say that I found this post from @Iceverge to be a very reassuring post 👍 Clearly @Gaf is concerned with the final product and at such times a balanced view, with real life experiences can often help to keep one grounded. It is human nature to comment in the negative the majority of the time, so it is important to recognise more worthy posts.

On the face of it, the cost of scaffolding does seem steep but it is a necessary evil unfortunately - Yes shop around as prices will vary - that said, the industry is full of H&S requirements which is often reflected in the price. Cheaper operators may be out there but does that come at a cost? The price I paid for scaffolding irked me but I put it down to just one of those costs - a bit like pouring money into the ground for foundations ! Welcome to the world of self building😁

Hi and welcome - Your list is a good starting point and as @G and J has mentioned, keep reading stuff. That said you may wish to view my blog - link below - it may assist you as we undertook this process some 6 years ago. Bear that in mind though, when you come across costs etc.🤣

Not encountered this problem at all - ours is a house name and in fact the "postie" at the time said that they prefer house names rather than numbers in rural areas! On the subject of house insurance though, we have had a renewal through and it has increased by over 30% !! I did my checks and research and found that the insurer I'm with, and who are wanting me to renew with, are in fact the cheapest still, depsite the sharp increase.