Post and beam

Thats sort of the reason i jumped into this thread. I saw numbers being mentioned here that appear to be at odds with what i have learned so far. I need a breakdown, itemised line by line of the elements that are lumped into my 'weathertight package' phase of my build. At the moment i have an opaque figure for the package as a whole. It might turn out to be great value but as of today i dont have enough info to determine this.

Apologies dude, you are of course correct

Hi Craig Ambiguous, How so? i would have thought per square metre is as close to objective as we are likely to get.

Thank you so much and cool. I have approx' 32.4 square metres of Rationel aura plus double glazing to compare and get the best price for then. Do any of you wise folk know if the Aura plus and forma plus are the same price. It appears to just be a style thing so i believe they should be. I did pick up a hint when i spoke to the Rationel guy on the phone that they were thinking of moving towards just offering triple glazed

A recent conversation with Rationel for my potential build had the person i was talking to say 'about £700/square metre for double glazed'. This was for their ALU clad windows. I had been asking about what premium for triple glazed and was told plus 15%, ish. When working out your square metres is it glazing only or the full window opening? I think its time to get a little more specific with them and also ask whether its fitted or supply only of course. Thanks keith

MVHR is indeed on the quote and yes it is an expense i was not expecting. However, reading about the benefits i am content with its inclusion. My only real concern is the potential increase in spec of the insulation, liberally spread throughout the quote, towards a target not of my choosing. If that makes sense. I live in a house that was built in the mid 1980's. Even a developers mass produced estate house would be much better insulated that what i live in now. And to be honest i have never previously thought of it as a cold or draughty house.

Agree. The point i am trying to get across is that i did not specify the value for air tightness. It is in the quote but it has nothing to do with me. Hence my subsequent question, am i being led towards an airtightness value and a U value that i did not specify? I am not trying to build the cheapest house that will scrape through the regs nor am i trying to achive passivhaus. I am trying to get a house from the frame builders catalogue. I was, until i noticed this value in their quote, confident that they would deliver a comfortable and well built home to the budget i nominated.

I get that better airtightness means less heat loss. What are the min and max values range. Is there a value that planning or building regs require? I did not specify the value attributed to me and therefore am intrigued as to what the consequence might be. I have also been told that increased insulation thickness and Triple glazing might be required. Am i being led towards spending money to achieve a value that was not my chosing ?

Hi Guys Todays question is, the frame build and weathertight package quote from my frame builder has this line in it..... Air tightness requirement: You have advised a target of 1.5-3 is required. Apart from the fact that i dont believe i have actually advised this value, what is the consequence of a higher or lower figure and why should i care? Of course, i know a more airtight house is a good idea in general but why this value. Thanks in advance again keith

Thanks dude. Since posting i have done some more reading of reviews that i can find. I think this will be a good choice and am content to keep this in the build B.OM Regards keith

As always i value the input on here so today i am looking for opinions of the Bifolds i have been quoted for.They are 3.1 metre 3 panel. Thanks in advance Regards keith

To be sensible for a moment, the 7 watt laser would not cut anything of substance. It might be useful for learning new skills but it sounds like you lad is a number of useful steps ahead of this already.

You need this then, a proper laser cutter. E bay link = 115639993259. Sorry i could not resist it. Its mine by the way.

Thanks Nick. I dont mind straight talking in the slightest by the way. Regards keith

Guys I am very impressed with the level of input, even though some info disagrees with other bits, Thank you all. The 'by others' phrase is liberally spread throughout the documents i have been presented with so far. Also the phrase' extra over'. Its this phrase thats starting to make my numbers look less than achievable for the house i have submitted planning for.

And... part owning an M&E and services consultancy that specs and installs for architects and builders - so have first hand experience of the standards in a fairly broad range of companies including Potton (in 2020/21 most recently). Hence my comment that there are better ones out there !! PeterW I have sent you a message

I'd agree with that. Paying for a portaloo and a warm shed is something i am happy to do. But credibility and enough relevant experience to be credible with respect to HSE and CDM2015 is another thing.

I guess not then. Have they gone out of fashion?

Working from home should speed things up if anything. A year is seriously taking the p1ss

Hi All I am looking to hear from people that have had a Potton home built. Interested to hear what the experience of living in/with one is like. Thanks in advance keith

Thats a surprise. I was only told this a month ago at one of their one day seminar's at the show centre in St Neots.

I cannot get the Archealogical survey until i have planning permission. All of my other surveys are done. I think this is becuase the archealogical trenches need to be where the footprint of the house is, which makes sense. I would like to think the same holes will fulfill both this and the trial pit need. The land is an old orchard and pig small holding. Not had anything on it for at least 125 years other than pig shit and farmers boots. I see no reason to think there would be any issues with foundations for a house.

So is there a recognised spec that 'trial pit' needs to satisy? 3 holes 1 metre deep at some number of metres apart or such like. I am much happier when i know exactly what it is that will satisfy the requirement. For the sake of £6k i would dig the bloody things by hand so long as i knew i was not wasting my time.

Hi Guys Planning documents finally submitted and an advice note from my potential build company that trial pits may be required. Is this the same as a soil survey? How much seems reasonable as i have been given a cost of approx' £6350. This appears a tad much. As i will be needing an Archealogical survey anyway i would hope that the same hole in the ground could serve both purposes. Any thoughts? Regards and thanks in advance as always. keith

With reference to the 'copy and paste ' comment earlier. My preliminary ecological survey was what subsequently resulted in a recommendation for me to get the Reptile mitigation survey, at £1066 i might add. I spoke to the woman that was going to do this and asked her what time i should be on site. The reply was' oh, this is a desk top survey, i dont need to come to site' !!! When the report was then presented to me it was almost an exact copy and paste of the previous Preliminary ecological survey. I challenged the cost of it and got a bland response from the consulting agency. So i challenged it again and showed them a comparision between the two reports to highlight, in bold colours, that there were no more than 6 sentences of original content in the Reptile plan. 6 sentences for £1066 They relented and gave me back £828 Know what you are doing , what they are doing and dont be afraid to call them out. Regards keith