The first room almost finished

The first room is almost finished; we still have to add a mirror, a towel rail and lighting (the light at the moment is from a portable lamp) to go but it is possible to have a bath (with hot water!) and use the loo.  The bathrooms have all come from Ocean Bathrooms in Bridport.  We are very grateful indeed to Joe Muhl, who gave us excellent advice and was incredibly patient with all our deliberations (I seem to remember it took us 3 visits and each visit lasted between 4-6 hours before everything was finalised).  Anyhow, in the end we went for Duravit white goods, Mereway vanity units and Hansgrohe taps.  This has been expertly fitted mostly by Aarron from MJP Bathrooms, with carpentry by Matt, whilst Adam (with a little help from David) sorted out the water heating.

The ventilation tank is now in its final resting place (sitting very proudly in the centre of what I had once hoped would be a spacious airing cupboard) - not connected yet but you can't have everything.

And last but not least.... this morning we registered ourselves for the FIT (Feed-In Tariff) so that any surplus electricity we produce can be sold back to the government for 12.6p per unit (registrations received after 1st February - deadline has been moved back a month, will only be able to claim back 1p per unit) so it was quite crucial we processed this in time.

December 10th: David's Birthday - We can but dream!

We can but dream of a house with yellow walls!

David with his cake on his 59th birthday.

Lorries deliver stone for hardcore on the drive and take away piles of unwanted muck.

We now are able to park off road!

And not a moment too soon, we are very relieved to have retaining walls on the northern and western boundaries, holding back the earth where the levels on the surrounding properties are higher than our land.

Scaffolding has gone

Although from our regular crew, I have only had the company of one builder for two days this week, there has been progress as on Monday the scaffolding was taken down.  Marc has been busy carrying on with the Aquapanelling around the garage (much easier now without the scaffold in the way); I did offer my body to him (purely as a builder's mate) but I'm not too sure he knew what to say about this suggestion.  



This rejection left me on 'clearing up the site' duty, ( a very theraputic and satisfying job) again, easier without the scaffolding, but I have now made friends with the staff at the local tip, who today even helped me to unload.  

Never mind, David will be back next week and I do believe (but have been disappointed before) that we will be back to our full complement of people, both inside and out.

Ecohaus Internorm:  Another black mark

I am primarily writing this just as a warning to anyone else out there who may be considering using this company.

• The side (back) door was fitted originally at the end of September, but a fixed window next to it was the wrong size (error on Ecohaus' part - not ours) and was not fitted until about 3 weeks ago
• Almost two weeks ago the door started to stick, I was having difficulty locking it when closed, although the mechanism was fine when the door was open.
• I e mailed Ecohaus a week last Thursday to ask them for some advice.  We have builders from 4 different companies passing through at the moment, they have all had a look at it but couldn't see anything obvious.
• When I finally couldn't lock it at all and left the house open on Wednesday evening (it is full of tools and now all the bathroom goodies) I e mailed Ecohaus again and requested the courtesy of a reply.  I did get an immediate apology saying somehow I had been overlooked and they would ring me the next day and one of their chaps would talk directly tot he builders.
• I e mailed again at 16:16 the following day, not having heard a thing and at 16:30 a fitter called me back - and seem amazed that the builders had gone home.  I don't know how far north he was at the time, but he seemed surprised that by then it was pitch dark in Sherborne and therefore the builders (who are working on the roof and guttering) had finished for the day.  I asked him to call back after 08:00 the following day.
• By 10:00 on Friday, I had still not heard anything (it transpired it was the day off for the chap I had spoken to the previous afternoon) so phoned Ecohaus again and this time got through to Mark Lineham, who is the only person in that company (apart from the salesman who is very good at his job) I have any respect for and who does seem to get things moving.
• Within 30 mins they were on the phone to Alex, who finally just told them to get someone down here to sort it out.
• A very nice pair of fitters duly arrived in the the early afternoon and were here at least two hours sorting out the problem.  When the fixed panel had been fitted (they were able to guess who had fitted it by the 'quality' of the workmanship) too much expanding foam had been used, it had continued to expand, causing the window to push against the door; hence the problem.  Anyhow, it is all sorted now.

Apart from - I am still waiting for the bottles of cleaning fluid that were promised after the Peelgard incident - soon I will order them myself from the London agent.

I am only one step away from 'twittering' about Ecohaus.

Soffits, Fascias and Guttering

For these we went for a company called Alutec, which specialise in aluminium rainwater systems.  These items were not something I thought I could get excited about but I do love them.  They are manufactured in aluminium, which is one of the few materials that can be recycled infinitely (in fact, 75% of the aluminium that has been produced since 1888 is still in use today); it is also extremely durable with a life expectancy of 50 years or more - so it will outlast us.  To add to our green credentials, hydro electric or geo-thermal power accounts for 60% of the processing requirements of the product.

Aluminium is about 65% lighter than steel or cast iron.  It has a very high strength to weight ratio and excellent corrosion resistance - one of the oldest recorded uses is in the making of Eros in Piccadilly Circus, which was cast in 1893.

Aluminium naturally generates a protective oxide coating.  Should the surface be damaged, the aluminium simply oxidises again to protect itself.  The polyester powder coating provides a durable and maintenance free finish - we are definitely thinking ahead to our old age.

All of our soffits, fascias and guttering is in the same RAL colour as the windows (7016) and has a recycled polycarbonate core and is quite a plain 'square' design - pity about the walls still, but they will smarten up eventually.

Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) and Solar Panels

This is quite a big thing for us - we need this to apply for the feed back tariff for any surplus electricity we use.  The deadline for applying for a 12p per unit rate was 1st January, but we believe this has now been extended to 1st February.  However, all this aside, it is one more step in turning Flowerdown into a proper house.

We have been rated 'B' with 90 (the B category ranges from 81-91, so we are at the top end).  The average energy efficiency rating for a dwelling in England and Wales is band D or 60 and causes about 6 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year - we are expected to produce approximately 20% of this at 1.2 tonnes.  To get the A category we have been advised we would have to have solar water heating but we have run out of sunny roof space and the indicative cost is £4,000 - £6,000 with a typical saving over three years of £231 - you do the maths!

Environment Logic Solar Panels
Back in week 28 we wrote about problems fitting the solar panels.  


David came up with the following solution which has taken 3 weeks to implement but all parties are now happy.

Here you can see how the solar limpets are fitted to the roof with one screw high up the panel - there should also be a second screw in line with this, below the foot that sticks out.  However, we have 2 screws (120 mm long each to go through all the tiles and battens) at the bottom of the limpet to ensure the wind doesn't catch the underneath.  These screws also go through a steel plate (we have been rescued yet again by BDM in Basingstoke), each screw hole is then sealed with CT1 and covered with a sheet of lead which is hammered flat against the limpet and the roof tile. This lead slides underneath the tile above the limpet so there is no possibility of any water running down into the roof panels. Then brackets are fitted into the 'feet' of the limpets and the panels are screwed on top of those, clipped into electricity cables which then feed back through into our roof space, ready for distribution around the house.

Kevin and Ben from Environment Logic

Electricity from solar pv panels is 100% renewable and pollution free - now a solution has been found we are very pleased we didn't abandon the idea a couple of weeks ago.

                              

Week 30:  Update

The non-material amendment for the new stone cladding has been granted so thankfully we are all set to go when the stones arrive in the new year.

Century Stone, bless them, refunded every last penny we had paid them for which we are very grateful and doubly sorry that we weren't able to give such honorable people any business.

On Saturday I went to the Homebuilding and Renovation Show at Shepton Mallet - where we first saw Ecohaus Internorm 2 years ago.  This time, Internorm were represented by a London agent - Internorm Windows UK Ltd.  After talking to them on Saturday and double checking my facts today with the London office, it transpires that their windows come fully protected, with a film over the powder coated aluminium.  The Internorm windows are great - our only issue is with the lack of protective film, so if anyone out there knows of anyone who is considering Internorm, please make sure that they go to Internorm Windows UK Ltd and not Ecohaus.

David has now been away for over a week.  Sadly last week Reeves' men did not appear at all but today they have started on the soffits and fascias:

However, in their absence Tony and his gang plaster-boarded as much as they could internally.

In David's absence, the only people who have really objected are the delivery men.  It did take quite a long time to off load the entire selection of bathroom goodies and the chap delivering plaster board was decidedly unimpressed - however I did manage to win him over as I just lent into his truck and picked up a 20 kg bag of adhesive so then he warmed up and we had quite a jolly time unloading the board together in the end.

Topping Out Ceremony

The roof is very nearly finished, so on 12th November, Phil Reeves performed his customary Topping Out Ceremony, which as in the time honoured tradition of launching all things new, involved a bottle of Champagne.

HardieBacker is used on the walls/floor
wherever there will be tiles instead of the vapour
plasterboard used on the rest of the bathroom
walls; this doesn't need plastering

Meanwhile, on the inside, Aarron (MJP Bathrooms) and associated builders, Tony, Justin and Jake (J A Buckingham) have been working all week on the bathrooms; they are now plastered and ready for tiling and fitting the sanitary ware next week.

Very fine plasterwork in a tight window area in our ensuite.

And here is David, with his sailing haircut (thankfully only a '4', not a '2' so it will grow back reasonably quickly), testing out his new sat phone, before he leaves for Cape Verde tomorrow to join our friends Philip and Helen Scourfield on 'Shelena' (an Oyster 545), for the second leg of the ARC+, a 2,000 mile leg from Cape Verde to St Lucia.  I think he is more nervous about the prospect of me being Project Manager for the next few weeks than he is about his trip.

Week 28, 11th November:  Fireworks, Air Test, Solar Panels

Here we are - with the best seat in town, perched on the very top of the roof to watch the fireworks at Sherborne Castle on Saturday evening.  

We had all the necessary refinements for a civilised evening, including a bottle of Prosecco and some olives; the only problem was what to do with it all. The half empty bottle presided very nicely against the MVHR vent but sadly the olives slid very slowly down the roof.

                    

There has been a big build up to today's Air Test.  

It is necessary as part of the SAPs calculation so that 

we can get the solar panels registered and will ultimately be needed for the EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) so we will need to have a final one done in about 6 months time. If the score on this is not up to the required standard, they can pinpoint the areas of weakness so that these can be addressed.  Basically the house was closed up, a sheet was fitted over the side door with a big fan in it which sucked air out of the house and digital readings were taken for both the upstairs and the downstairs.  We were delighted as we achieved a score of 1.62 - anything below 5 is acceptable; the chap basically said that even if we blast a hole in one wall we will still pass next time.
Air tightness is measured in cubic metres per hour, per square metre of building envelope (walls+floor+roof) at a pressure differential of 50 Pa. One atmosphere is about 100,000 Pa so this is a very small pressure difference!! A perfect Passiv Haus could achieve as low as 0.5 air leakage, we hope to improve as walls and ceilings are sealed and plastered.

The upshot of all this is that any unpleasant smells linger for quite a long time - but it will all be OK when the MVHR leaps into action.

Update on the stone cladding:

We have applied to West Dorset District Council for a Non-Material Amendment to replace Century Stone with another product from EuroBrick Systems Ltd (more about this when it actually happens), so yet again we are in the hands of the Planning Department.

However, the problem which has proved to be the most challenging so far to resolve, reared its head most unexpectedly last Thursday.  We had chosen to get some solar panels from Environmental Logic.  Back in September, when the roof tiles were going on, we had a site visit and David asked about fitting brackets before the tiles which we hold the panels in place.  They assured him that they had their own fixing system which was preferable to brackets, so we bowed to their experience, didn't insist and the roof tiles were laid.  They arrived on site last Thursday to fit the panels, wanted to drill holes all over the new tiles which Reeves wouldn't let them do.  If the screw holes allow any water seepage the water would drip down into the SIPs panels until they blow apart; it would take a long time for any damage to be apparent.  To cut a very long story short; the panels need to be fixed in place by some limpets (from Solar Limpets); adhesive which is normally used sticks to anything apart from Tapco Slate.  We sent some tiles off to Solar Limpets for testing (which failed) and we have carried out exhaustive tests on different adhesives ourselves.  In the middle of the night last night, we were almost abandoning solar panels altogether - which should be an almost unthinkable course of action but the prospect of having to strip the roof tiles off and start again in order to fit the brackets was a frighteningly time consuming and expensive only other course of action we could see working.  Anyhow, David put his great engineering mind to the problem and after much discussion with all parties involved has tonight written an enhanced method statement to satisfy and cover everyone's responsibilities.  Basically we are now going to fit the limpets almost as directed (with the screws in a slightly different position) but then there will be lead flashing over and extending 100 mm in all directions beyond each limpet.  We now have a new installation date for the solar panels of 26th November, so there will be photos of David's masterful system then.

Week 27:  2nd November

Alex and Marc - our two mainstay builders trying to mend a temperamental nail gun.
Tremendous workers with hearts of gold - we will always be indebted to them.

A day visit from Mum, Guy (who is due to commence a new job in Qatar on 15th November)
and Megan

The roof above the kitchen/dining area - with windows!

David, with John, Alex and Marc (from Reeves)

Wednesday 4th November - our busiest day so far; there were 14 people on site at one time, with three deliveries in the space of 30 minutes. 
In the middle of all this I received a call from the bank to tell me that someone in London was enjoying a spending spree with my credit card - despite the fact that it was still 'safely' in my possession.

Three chaps came from near Crewe to fit a post in the garage opening
(we are having both a double roller door and a personal door)

Jake, Justin and Tony (brought along 

by MJP Bathrooms) have nailed battens in between the underfloor heating tubes on the first floor, poured pug screed in between the battens and will return on Friday to
lay plywood on the top of all of this - so we will then have a 'finished' floor on this level.

Aaron (a partner in MJP Bathrooms) and Sam continued with work on the heating pipes.

 Paul, our Building Control inspector, came along to join the party, which with Vicki, made 14 in total.  The tea and sugar bill is taking us seriously over budget.










This has to be one of the best insulated houses in the country (Vicki does not intend to be cold in her old age).  On top of the SIPs is the grey waterproof membrane, with treated battens on top of that, the beige layer is another breathable waterproof membrane, with a waterproof cement board (Aquapanel) on top of that.  We've still got two more layers to go, but they won't be until the new year (we have just submitted a 'Non-material amendment' to the planning department as we have had to change the supplier of the stone slips).

Week 26:  26th October

  

6 months on from breaking ground; just under three months since the SIPs started to go up and we are really beginning to look house-like.

 

We now have a proper floor (only at ground floor level); the screed dried perfectly over the weekend and has made the whole building seem much brighter.

 

 

The eagle-eyed amongst you will have noticed that we have a new member of the build team.  Jane arrived on Monday and is staying with us for four days.  She is most certainly earning her keep and so far has finished off the damp proof membrane around the main garage (in the rain), helped to strengthen stud partition walls with studs and noggings.  She is now an expert with a cordless drill and this morning's trip to Screwfix proved to be an expensive one for the Deans.  David Dean will be pleased to learn that the nail gun has not yet won her over.  The fact that she is seen here using a spirit level to ensure her noggin is perfect, demonstrates the quality of her work.



What we wished we had known / asked........

David wanted to call this section "What we will do differently next time" but he received a withering look at that suggestion.  We will update this as we go along.  I once read an article in a magazine where one couple claimed that they wouldn't change a thing...... they are clearly much better at this game than us!

Windows:  Whilst the windows themselves are fabulous, we would look very closely at buying some that arrive with protection on the frames.  However, we believe that Internorm Windows UK Ltd will send the Internorm windows with a protective film on the frames - it is certainly worth looking into them rather than Ecohaus who don't.

Site:  Whilst the location of this house is perfect for the town, many of the delays and complications with the SIPs build occurred because the road is so narrow.

NHBC:  We would go down that road again, but now we are far more aware of their process, we know what their requirements are and would therefore aim to avoid the pitfall of the stone cladding.

Ground Floor Screed

Perhaps not the most fascinating topic to most, but another massive step forward for us.

It is only 09:28 and the floor screeders have been and gone (David Hemmings, Alex and Martin from Street), along with two different lorry loads of mix which have disturbed the early morning peace of Tinneys Lane.

We have used a Gyvlon flowing screed which uses recycled anhydrite binder.  One of the main benefits of this is that it gives improved underfloor heating performance; it also has high compressive / flexible strength, a high recycled content and a low carbon footprint as well as being easy and efficient to install.

Having done the preparation with levels yesterday, the three chaps just turned up this morning, the lorry joined the party, they mixed the screed with water, connected a giant hose pipe and directed the liquid into each room.  It is thicker than water but is still self levelling.  We have shut down the house now until Monday (it is currently Thursday), when we will be able to walk on it and then load on it by this time next week.

Week 25:  19th October - Huge Progress

Much happier today - we think we have a solution for the stone cladding, in fact possibly an even better alternative than the original one, so every cloud has a silver lining.

Huge progress is being made - the roof is almost finished:

John, standing very proudly beside his roof which is being proposed for an award by NHBC.
Ridge tiles still to go, but John is particularly renowned for his lead work.

David had originally intended to do the plumbing himself, but hadn't anticipated how much of his day would be spent answering other queries, so he very reluctantly decided to call in some assistance.  We ordered the bathrooms from Ocean Bathrooms in Bridport; they put us in touch with Matt Powne (MJP Bathrooms), also from Bridport.  David took to Matt straight away, and they have done an amazing job over the last two weeks, sorting out the first fix for all the plumbing and also laying out the miles of pipe for the underfloor heating.  

Matt (on the right) and colleague in the dining area.
There have been up to five plumbers on site at a time.

Ground floor underfloor heating manifold, marked with a clear warning to keep looking at the water pressure
throughout the laying of the screed.

Marc (from Reeves) just fitting a barrier where there is a step going down into the lounge
to stop the screed from the higher level sliding away into the lounge.
(The pipe holes were later filled with expanding foam).
The pale yellow upright barrier is all round the outside of every room to allow
space for the screed to expand.

NHBC

Most 'challenging' situation so far:

We bought the plot with planning permission for a brick house.
As many of the properties in Sherborne are stone, we resubmitted the pp a year ago to change the brick to stone.  In order to maximise the internal space in the house, as full stone is not required for insulation (that is amply covered by the SIPs), we opted for a stone cladding.  This was approved last winter by the planning authorities.

In May, when Reeves the builders started, we applied for NHBC accreditation; this covers us to ensure that the house is built to a good standard and also gives some reassuarance to any future buyers that it is not a DIY bodge.  We paid £3,000 for this privilege.  All the plans, materials we were intending to use etc were sent off to NHBC last May.

The stone cladding (value £10,000) has been paid for in full and is currently sitting at a yard in Oxfordshire, waiting for us to say we are ready for it, which should have been within the next fortnight.

On Thursday, a man from NHBC contacted us to say that this company does not have BBA accreditation and therefore we cannot use it.  (I have no idea what BBA stands for but it is something British).  Apparently, all the information we had sent in had been sitting at the desk of the wrong person, so they have only just discovered that the stone cladding we want, won't do.  The stone is imported from America, has all of the necessary American accreditation, but not the relevant British one.

We can withdraw from NHBC but the builder gets a black mark if a build he has started doesn't 'make it'; also, for the reasons stated above, this is something we would quite like to have, and we don't like the idea of just losing the £3,000 already paid to them.

We contacted another company which imports stone cladding from Italy, but although they have all of the necessary European accreditation (and are the only company in the UK whose stone can be used for 'Green Buildings', again this is not sufficient.

NHBC man sent me through a list of approved cladding - but they are all brick ones, they don't have any stone ones on their list and it "is not my job to help you to find someone".

If we go back to brick we have to go back to planning (and who knows how long that will take), the windows have been set at the correct level for the stone cladding - although we can get round that by changing the depth of the battens that are already on the walls.

In any case, the brick look was not the visual we had in mind when choosing the windows etc.

Mr NHBC man not so very helpfully suggested just putting full stone on the outside, but this would make the house bigger than we have planning permission for, so that is not an option.

Mr NHBC boss returns from holiday on Monday - we will have to see what happens then.

I am exploring another company, but we have no idea where we stand with the company which is sitting on our money.

Floor Insulation

I

Delivery of ground floor insulation; the thinner sheets go down first, 
around any pipes such as the feed from the rainwater harvesting tank to the washing machine.

Thick, black polythene goes on top of the first layer with the thick insulation laid on top of that.
We will be as warm as toast.

On the top floor we are using Actis Triso Sols; this is made up of multi-layered films, only a few microns thick.  These layers, which are separated by wadding, foam, sheep's woll etc, are sewn together to form a thin insulating blanket.  It is three to five times thinner than traditional thick insulation (including air spaces) but performs to the same standard, which is great for us as our ceilings are at a minimal height.

On the top floor we have much thinner, layered insulation (it looks a bit like flaky pastry).
Matt and his team have now started on the underfloor heating.

Underfloor heating manifold in the cupboard on the landing.

Windows update:  The MD of PeelGard came to see us on Wednesday and spent the entire morning cleaning the windows - effort that was very much appreciated.  We are still pursuing the low tack tape route, but Andrew left us another tub of PeelGard which if we apply and peel off again before it rains, does leave us with clean windows.  We still don't know why this happened (the product is 80 years old) but we believe it may have reacted with the cleaning fluid used by Ecohaus Internorm.