MarkH Posted May 23, 2016 Share Posted May 23, 2016 As a longtime harvester of forum knowledge for a boat build I completed a while ago I am familiar with the bizarre ecosystem of online forums and the need to pan for the nuggets of gold amongst the crazy gravel and try and ignore (or resist the urge to participate in) the aggy clashes between dogmatic keyboard-pounders foaming at the mouth in dark rooms sometimes half a world away from each other. I was therefore very surprised when I found ebuild which seemed to be an oasis of informed and good-natured conversation populated largely by apparently pleasant people - with an added sprinkling of Obi Wan Kenobi build-gurus sporting almost laughable levels of in-depth knowledge. I was sad to see ebuild die, hope this place will be as good. The signs are positive. I'm building a small (not tiny) house in West Wales, solid wall with EWI. We are off-grid electrically already with PV and a small wind turbine (live on site in a caravan). We intend to have an unecessarily deep bath. We might not have a woodburning stove now (partly seeing sense, mostly seeing the price of decent room-sealed stoves). Our windows are going to be bigger than is wise. We don't really know what we're doing. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack Posted May 23, 2016 Share Posted May 23, 2016 Welcome! 3 minutes ago, MarkH said: We don't really know what we're doing. We were all there at some point (some of us haven't moved that far away). If we all knew what we were doing there'd be no need for a forum and the world would be a poorer place! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToughButterCup Posted May 23, 2016 Share Posted May 23, 2016 11 minutes ago, MarkH said: As a longtime harvester of forum knowledge for a boat build I completed a while ago I am familiar with the bizarre ecosystem of online forums and the need to pan for the nuggets of gold amongst the crazy gravel and try and ignore (or resist the urge to participate in) the aggy clashes between dogmatic keyboard-pounders foaming at the mouth in dark rooms sometimes half a world away from each other. [...] We don't really know what we're doing. Join the club. My screen name hints at my past, but I'm now retired Ha! Every day I get up and go about jobs related to our house build. And one of those jobs is networking - because I don't know the answer to most of the problems I face. Just like you. So there's a natural push to lurk and ferret information out - reassurance that you're not the only eejit who has put a window in upside down, or had to post 7 meter steels through a living room window (my son's place last night..... don't ask) That's the power of a community like this, everyone's keen to do a sensible job at a fair price, almost within their budget. Ever found anyone coming in under budget? No, neither have I. I have heard of people who did that, but never met them. But, for me it's the massive reassurance of coming up against some form of knotty problem and suddenly thinking.... I'll ask about that on buildhub, and almost guarantee an answer. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onoff Posted May 23, 2016 Share Posted May 23, 2016 My advice is whatever way you think of doing something if new to that particular task then ASK for the collective's comment first. G'teed there'll be someone on here who's done it before. Same with the "where to get" questions. And speaking from experience nobody'll think less of you for asking loads of what you think might be real numpty questions either. (Or will they? ). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted May 23, 2016 Share Posted May 23, 2016 1 hour ago, MarkH said: We don't really know what we're doing. If that's the view from your site i would settle for living in the caravan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted May 23, 2016 Author Share Posted May 23, 2016 (edited) 20 hours ago, ProDave said: If that's the view from your site i would settle for living in the caravan. It's part of the view - the rest is pretty good too! If the caravan wasn't slowly being absorbed into the woods we might be less inclined to crack on with the house... It's a very remarkable spot here, we're surrounded by woodland with no neighbours within a half k, down a long, dead-end track but only ten minutes from the nearest town. I've got a 1970s scrambler I ride to work on (I drive a boat around the island in the photograph) with most of the journey on a green lane that no-one ever goes down. It's a good commute! We're very lucky to have snagged this spot. I grew up nearby and played around in the ruined cottage that was still standing here until a few years ago, even at 8 years old I quite fancied living here. A series of very unlikely factors (including amongst many other things a freak storm off the coast of Morocco and the death of a 1930s Olympic rower) all aligned to let us buy the place at the exact time we were able to. Edited May 24, 2016 by MarkH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 We had an interesting conversation yesterday - what would the minimum height be from which you could drop a £6000 window and still destroy it? An inch? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 Got a good aerial shot of the place though. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdinand Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 Quote We intend to have an unecessarily deep bath. I think this phrase and reflections thereupon may give a good portrait of self-builders and their motivations, when examined by a philosopher. Quote an oasis of informed and good-natured conversation populated largely by apparently pleasant people Nah. Everybody here is an internet troll on holiday. Welcome. Ferdinand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onoff Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 On 23/05/2016 at 10:02, MarkH said: We intend to have an unecessarily deep bath. I know a bloke put a huge bath in. He's finding he doesn't really have enough HW to fill it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Harris Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 3 minutes ago, Onoff said: I know a bloke put a huge bath in. He's finding he doesn't really have enough HW to fill it. It also tends to be very slow to fill when you have compliant flow restrictors fitted, and may present a problem if building control ask for water usage compliance to be demonstrated (they did for me). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 Since that post the bath idea has been scrapped. Not for lack of HW reasons or for compliance (that'd be very unlikely to be raised by our BC), just to use the space in our bathroom more effectively. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdinand Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 (edited) 1 hour ago, MarkH said: Since that post the bath idea has been scrapped. Not for lack of HW reasons or for compliance (that'd be very unlikely to be raised by our BC), just to use the space in our bathroom more effectively. Yes, but I bet the slight self-builder eccentricity has bulged out somewhere else instead :-). Edited March 25, 2017 by Ferdinand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 2 hours ago, Ferdinand said: Yes, but I bet the slight self-builder eccentricity has bulged out somewhere else instead :-). Mmmm, yes. The bath idea has become an outdoor wood-heated tub. Not a hot tub, just a one-person seated thing. And I'm eying up the field behind us for a microlight runway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToughButterCup Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 2 hours ago, MarkH said: [...] And I'm eying up the field behind us for a microlight runway. The tree line in the photo - which are probably up- wind looks perfect for causing some nice rotor: and so could well make for fun take offs and knock-kneed landings. But living next to your own runaway : what a treat that will be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvinmiddle Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 10 hours ago, JSHarris said: It also tends to be very slow to fill when you have compliant flow restrictors fitted, and may present a problem if building control ask for water usage compliance to be demonstrated (they did for me). How did they do that? And why does that part of building regs even matter when you are on your own water supply Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Harris Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 (edited) 14 minutes ago, Calvinmiddle said: How did they do that? And why does that part of building regs even matter when you are on your own water supply Long tale, but we had a change of building inspector, and LABC brought in a retired inspector, part time, to help out. He was very old school, and started on his first inspection by stating that he wasn't at all happy, because, in his words, the house had no foundations. Bear in mind that he only came in for the completion inspection. He kept failing the build, and like an idiot I kept trying to keep him onside by doing things he pointed out were non-compliant. The last straw was him insisting that we needed a completed water usage certificate. When I asked what evidence he needed, he insisted that it was up to me to prove that every outlet met the flow rates needed to show compliance. In the end we agreed that he would accept photos of me installing flow restrictors on every outlet (no joke, I spent two days crawling around fitting the damned things). As it happens, the senior building inspector decided to come out for the next completion inspection (the fourth.........) and I had all the reams of paper lined up in the kitchen, ready for him. His first words were that he wasn't interested in any of that, that he could see the house was well built and just wanted to check Part M compliance with regard to wheelchair access................. Needless to say I spent the next day or so going around removing half of the flow restrictors, but I left them on some of the taps, as they made them easier to use, with less splashing. Edited March 25, 2017 by JSHarris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Temp Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 When we submitted our drawings prior to starting work the BCO asked us how we were going to comply with Part E (sound transmission). He said he was mainly concerned about our first floor which is beam and block, insulation and UFH in screed. Started talking about needing sound tests because apparently there wasn't an existing "robust design detail" for a B&B floor with UFH on top. To my surprise he was right. He had me calling every beam & Block company I could find to see if one of them had any kind of test certificate that might help me avoid a sound test. Not only are they an unwanted cost but there is always a risk you might fail. Anyway when we started building a different BCO came out to site and we never heard any more about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted March 26, 2017 Author Share Posted March 26, 2017 On 25/03/2017 at 19:45, recoveringacademic said: The tree line in the photo - which are probably up- wind looks perfect for causing some nice rotor: and so could well make for fun take offs and knock-kneed landings. But living next to your own runaway : what a treat that will be. No, that field wouldn't be fun. The runway field is behind us and has clean air from most of the compass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted March 26, 2017 Author Share Posted March 26, 2017 On 25/03/2017 at 10:49, JSHarris said: It also tends to be very slow to fill when you have compliant flow restrictors fitted, and may present a problem if building control ask for water usage compliance to be demonstrated (they did for me). Would anyone capable of removing their own compliant flow regulator not do so before BC had reached the end of the road? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Harris Posted March 27, 2017 Share Posted March 27, 2017 7 hours ago, MarkH said: Would anyone capable of removing their own compliant flow regulator not do so before BC had reached the end of the road? Pretty much what I did for a lot of them. I did leave some in place, though, as they made things like wash basin taps more controllable, with less splashing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack Posted March 27, 2017 Share Posted March 27, 2017 Good idea getting rid of the bath imo. The one in our ensuite has been used once in over a year. The ensuite would be a much more pleasant place, layout wise, if everything hadn't been shuffled around to make room for this white elephant. My next house will be perfect, concluded (wrongly) every self builder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdinand Posted March 27, 2017 Share Posted March 27, 2017 What do I look for to see if mine has any flow regulators in the house? Will they be under every sink? (Do not like plumbing). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMitchells Posted March 27, 2017 Share Posted March 27, 2017 Think its about time you started a build blog. Where about in Wild Wales are you based? We keep thinking about that area but just cant move quite yet. Welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted March 28, 2017 Author Share Posted March 28, 2017 On 3/27/2017 at 16:14, TheMitchells said: Think its about time you started a build blog. Where about in Wild Wales are you based? We keep thinking about that area but just cant move quite yet. Welcome! We don't ever plan on selling our house (having by a very unlikely sequence of events landed this place) but just in case a blog might be a bad idea. We are to some degree making it up as we go along. We're in Pembrokeshire, down in the bottom left-hand corner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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