Hi there.

[L Dimmock]

We purchased a plot near Perth in Scotland just before Covid broke! As two retirees it is meant to be for our forever home and being keen gardeners we fell in love with our 0.6 of an acre. Big enough to take us through retirement!  

There is water and electricity adjacent to the site. It has an old roofless church ruin on it, which is of no 'historical interest' and we are currently trying to finalise a design we like as the original one was too big, expensive and complicated for us. We have had our first steep learning curve getting to grips with drainage. Trial pits have revealed that our soil is clay and our dreams of having a soakaway and keeping everything on site are falling apart. We now look as though we will have to connect to our neighbour's cesspit outfall to drain into a local burn at the bottom of a local farmer's field OR connect to the mains 150 metres away. Either way it's likely to take a large chunk of our budget. The cyber attack on SEPA's site has also delayed responses!!! I

n addition we have had a wide variety of quotes for re-pointing the church which is a lovely pink limestone and covered in a century's growth of ivy etc. It has been left in a state of disrepair having been re-pointed with cement instead of a lime mortar, so has absorbed a lot of water and is crumbling. The original plans which were passed were based on retaining the walls and using them as a courtyard garden around part of the house, but having had quotes of 20-30k just to retain the front wall and a small side return, that again is way too big for our modest build budget. We would like to re-purpose the stone around the plot if we can get permission to demolish it and have currently instructed the architect to submit a pre-planning request to gauge their response. The alternative would be to remove it from site but then that seems to be expensive. Suggestions as how to get rid of the stone as cheaply as possible would be welcome. if we get permission to demolish it, we'd be happy to get rid of the stone for nothing but I suspect that won't happen. We've been quoted £6 a ton to remove it by one person, but as we don't know what a ton of stone looks like that doesn't help. The church walls measure something like 400 square metres in total, so it's a big building!

  In the meantime we have been clearing away a lot of shrubbery with regular trips to the local recycling centre. We have attended two self-build shows in the past and will be attending another soon where we hope to focus in on the finer details of finishes. Our design is for a three bedroom house which will take advantage of the views of the garden on a fairly square plot. We have designed what will work for us and will give us the things we will need to go into our old age. We have planned for a 3 bedroom main rectangular 1 1/2 storey house with a 'utility' area in a single storey building at the rear to house a spare bedroom, plant room and utility/shower/toilet. The house will be around 200 square metres, but if necessary that can be reduced, as our budget will be fixed at a maximum all in figure of 300k. We are aware that build costs are rising so we understand that compromises will necessarily have to be made. Therefore we are happy to go with a fabric first approach and go for standard fittings where required which we could replace in the future putting our remaining money in to things which can't. We will be looking for advice and recommendations on things like windows and heating systems etc. as we want to be as eco and self sufficient as we can afford to be. We look forward to hearing from others and hopefully contributing at some point as we move further through our self - build journey.

[saveasteading]

39 minutes ago, L Dimmock said:

The cyber attack on SEPA's site has also delayed responses!!! I

 

I got a response in 3 days just this last week. Perhaps my question was easier.

 

Welcome to the Buildhub community.

 

Briefly for now. 

Drainage. Don't panic, there are ways. Tell us more, without giving away names and location.

 

41 minutes ago, L Dimmock said:

The alternative would be to remove it from site

 

If you speak to a mason, they will have a use for the stone and should take it free or cheaply. Or use it as an occasional quarry?

 

43 minutes ago, L Dimmock said:

heating systems etc

Lots of experts on here. The heating system may influence the building design so best decide soon.

However I predict that you will be urged towards Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP ) and underfloor heating (UFH).

 

Depending on your preferences, add a wood burner for the aesthetic and for a quick heat boost.

[saveasteading]

I forgot to tick the 'notify replies' button, so doing it this time.

[TonyT]

I doubt your neighbour or SEPA will Let you use their connection.

 

I would get the quotes for the underground services sorted to see what’s left for the build 

 

Maybe build in stone?

 

 

 

[Russell griffiths]

Hi, try and keep your questions short and sweet, I gave up reading it after the first paragraph. 

Itemise each question into an appropriate topic and you will get better response from people who have experience in what you are doing. 

[Russell griffiths]

Why can you not put your treatment plant directly into the burn, do you have a direct route for this. 

[saveasteading]

1 hour ago, Russell griffiths said:

keep your questions short and sweet,

 

Yes I have found that helps. there are lots of seriously knowledgeable people on here, and they will browse through new posts and pick the ones they are best able to help with.

I too rather skimmed through and may have missed some points.

 

So, hI, you will get lots of help here.

Why not run with the point that most concerns you first?

[joe90]

We are also on clay (used to be a moor), we installed a treatment plant discharging into a ditch that is only wet part of the year, it’s a Vortex. Advertise your stone locally, someone will gladly want it. Once you get planning post your individual questions as you will get a better response (certain people have specific areas of knowledge.   Good luck and ask away (oh and we like pictures).