Hello from Cornwall

[Roz]

Hi everyone, 

 

Realised I never did one of these intro posts so thought I should say hello and thank you for having me, seeing as it looks like I'll be having lots of questions!

 

We're just waiting for our planning permission to come through (fingers crossed - planners have implied they support it) in a few weeks after lots of pointless surveys and delays, but hopefully we will get there in the end. We have a very small old granite barn, that looks a lot worse than it structurally is. We're hoping to convert and extend it into a 2 bed modest home, plus build an insulated workshop/office in the garden. 

 

Attached is a quick screenshot of our elevation plans!

 

Would welcome any suggestions of suppliers and tradespeople in Cornwall.

 

Thanks again for all your advice and support. 

Edited September 19, 2018 by Roz
addition

[newhome]

Welcome! Not specifically about Cornwall but have you checked if you qualify for the VAT reclaim scheme? The rules can be complex, especially for a conversion so best to check if you tick all the boxes (or not) from the outset as that may determine how you source your materials etc. 

 

There is a post here to read up on it but you must check the restrictions in your planning permission as that can affect whether you qualify or not. 

 

 

[ToughButterCup]

22 minutes ago, Roz said:

[...]

after lots of pointless surveys and delays,

[...]

 

First of all welcome..... That'll do,  ( ☺️) now then.....

 

Which  surveys have you had done?

I ask because that's how I felt (they're pointless) about surveys before I started. At every build stage where the question (Have you had a survey of [xyz] done yet?) was asked by other professional people, being able to send them the relevant report was reassuring. And in one case (piling) had we not had a survey done then nobody would have taken us seriously.

 

Surveys are about planning:  risk identification and reduction.

[Roz]

1 minute ago, recoveringacademic said:

 

First of all welcome..... That'll do,  ( ☺️) now then.....

 

Which  surveys have you had done?

I ask because that's how I felt (they're pointless) about surveys before I started. At every build stage where the question (Have you had a survey of [xyz] done yet?) was asked by other professional people, being able to send them the relevant report was reassuring. And in one case (piling) had we not had a survey done then nobody would have taken us seriously.

 

Surveys are about planning:  risk identification and reduction.

That's a good way to look at it. We're not too exasperated really, as we know it's getting us in the right direction really. I only say pointless because we had to get a tree survey and ecology survey. The tree survey was mostly pointless because we're using plinth foundations (e.g. jackpads) for the workshop area in question and they won't affect the roots, which the survey confirmed. Then the bat survey was pretty pointless as my partner is an ecologist so knew we didn't have bats, but we had to get someone with a license to do the report

 

Anyway, in the grand scheme of things it's not so bad, it'll get us there in the end! Plus I am sure we have had to do a lot fewer surveys than some people here!

 

Thanks for the welcome

 

[Roz]

8 minutes ago, newhome said:

Welcome! Not specifically about Cornwall but have you checked if you qualify for the VAT reclaim scheme? The rules can be complex, especially for a conversion so best to check if you tick all the boxes (or not) from the outset as that may determine how you source your materials etc. 

 

There is a post here to read up on it but you must check the restrictions in your planning permission as that can affect whether you qualify or not. 

 

 

Thanks! Had assumed we would qualify for the 5% VAT but will make sure I look into it in more detail 

[newhome]

You may qualify for 0% VAT if you tick the right boxes. 

[ToughButterCup]

Read about our fun fun fun experience with ecology have you? Here: have a good laugh

[Roz]

4 minutes ago, recoveringacademic said:

Read about our fun fun fun experience with ecology have you? Here: have a good laugh

 

Oh noooo! The idea of your kids being the ones innocently transporting them around... I'm glad you still like the newts!

[PeterW]

@Roz how close is the studio to the house..? Could be a candidate for your plant room..? 

[Roz]

55 minutes ago, PeterW said:

@Roz how close is the studio to the house..? Could be a candidate for your plant room..? 

It's about 5.5 metres. I was reading about having water tanks and boilers in garages etc and people kept recommending it was a waste of heat for the hot water to travel any distance. What do you think?

[newhome]

5 minutes ago, Roz said:

It's about 5.5 metres. I was reading about having water tanks and boilers in garages etc and people kept recommending it was a waste of heat for the hot water to travel any distance. What do you think?

 

Not sure about the travelling aspect but I find that any heat losses from the hot water tank in my house directly contribute to the temperature of the house so it’s not wasted. Depends what system you have but I would definitely notice the difference if my thermal store was outside somewhere. 

[PeterW]

5.5m is nothing - I've seen internal garages wider. You just use an insulated buried pipe and for hot water you use a bronze circulation pump.