1800g Build Thread

Jagg

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Thought I would give myself a motivational boost and start my build thread! This all started with a self build dream many years ago. Couldn’t find any land, then in 2012 the wife found an estate sale she loved. I looked at it and didn’t like it. She went for it and I left her to it, paying no attention. It was only after she acquired it that I paid it any attention. That’s when I realised it’s potential. I saw it as knock down job and she saw it as a doer upper. The rest is history.

Was in planning nearly 2 yrs. originally intended to have a basement. Now that would have been really cool was intending to have the kitchen, dining, gym and cini down there. that bit but nothing else got approval. Then had to redraw, consult and resubmit with eventual approval being granted. But darn thing during all this I discovered a massive 300mm public foul sewer running through the middle of the site serving best part of 3 or 400 houses. I knew that was a game changer and would cause problems. The wife said just get on with it.....so I did.

Fast forward to a 14 month wrangle with the utilities co. Got there in the end but took an age.

All the while that was going on my wife had the old boy taken down for nowt and had most of it salvaged. Canny lady.

Then I spent far too many weekends atop of diggers and dumpers, uprooting massive trees, levelling off, excavating 1.5mm deep of ground, turning diggers over on their side, and in the road! 20 plus wagon loads of spoil, as half as many again of MOT (stone/hardcore). Not stopped since.

Been at it 7 years come 13/2/20 with some help from a couple of really decent lads periodically who I have been able to call on over the last 4 years to help with heavy lifting, unloading artics, and assisting with aspects of the build.

The ground works took me over a year and half. Built an insulated raft foundation with about 9 ton of rebar. Her in doors kindly helped me tie all that together! Never lets me forget it.

The build proper about 2 1/2 years. Topped off August 18 with the roof finished. Since then been heavily insulating the roof, wiring the top floor, boarding out (drywall). Took way longer than I thought it would.

Whilst all the time spending 8 months wrangling with window materials supplier when a fabricator ripped me off and did me for 10k.

Managed to secure my material end Sept 19. Last 3 1/2 months I’ve spent fabricating and fitting my own windows - turned the living room into my engineering works!

Sigh! Many times when I thought I wouldn’t make it (don’t tell her in doors) but grit and determination won the day.
 
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Jagg

Jagg

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From this.....

876000EA-EC7A-493B-8BB7-33664BAC7363.jpeg
 

crusso1993

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Quite the transformation!

Sounds/looks like you favor doing your own work. What is it you do for full-time employment? Also, what agreement and resolution were you able to come to about the sewer on the property?
 
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Jagg

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what a transformation! buuuuuuuut, where are the tank pics or plans?!?! :)
Haha .... Same place as everything else.... in my head. I’m walking talking tape measure and spirit level. I can see if something out by 2mm from 10 paces. Really bugs me. Hence I’m a touch cookie to please. Suppose it’s why I do it myself. It took me over 12 months to get an architect to draw what I actually wanted. Was pain dealing with his interpretation of what I asked him to draw. On reflection I would have been better of buying the CAD software and doing it myself. It just added unnecessarily to the timescales.
 
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Quite the transformation!

Sounds/looks like you favor doing your own work. What is it you do for full-time employment? Also, what agreement and resolution were you able to come to about the sewer on the property?
It saves a buck which I can spend elsewhere. It just comes down to the fact I don’t see there is any sense in paying someone to do something that I’m able to do myself. Besides I get huge satisfaction out of it. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea. There are generally two types. Those who can and those who can’t. Nowt wrong with that. But I think we should use what we have. Never built a house before let alone a passivehause. Did loads of research decided on a method and what I haven’t done before or don’t know how to do I look into it and work it out. I’m a lawyer by profession. If nothing else it’s a darn good way to switch off.

As for the sewer, that was a problem. So I decided to draw it on my plans before submission. They were always going to be consulted. They approved the build and as soon as I got that green light I tore down the old house, thereby relying on their ‘approval’. Didn’t give them much of leg to stand on so when they tried to stop me building I had to get feisty. I can write a decent letter or two..... but in the end it took fair few testy letters and over 8 months to resolve in principle. In the end they agreed provided I replaced the old pre-war sewer with a plastic twin wall pipe which I always intended to do in any event. Took a load more time arguing over the scope of works..... in the end I relented and agreed to do it there way. Enough was enough..... then their site engineer came out and said “why you doing all this work?”, he told me to forget it, just asked me to dig up the old pipe chop it either end, drop in a pump to run the raw sewage out as it was live into a manhole, drop in the new pipe hook it up and send him a couple of pics. So I did. That work was done in a week of torrential rain. The week I planned it, it just didn’t stop raining. I just cracked on.
 

crusso1993

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It saves a buck which I can spend elsewhere. It just comes down to the fact I don’t see there is any sense in paying someone to do something that I’m able to do myself. Besides I get huge satisfaction out of it. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea. There are generally two types. Those who can and those who can’t. Nowt wrong with that. But I think we should use what we have. Never built a house before let alone a passivehause. Did loads of research decided on a method and what I haven’t done before or don’t know how to do I look into it and work it out. I’m a lawyer by profession. If nothing else it’s a darn good way to switch off.

As for the sewer, that was a problem. So I decided to draw it on my plans before submission. They were always going to be consulted. They approved the build and as soon as I got that green light I tore down the old house, thereby relying on their ‘approval’. Didn’t give them much of leg to stand on so when they tried to stop me building I had to get feisty. I can write a decent letter or two..... but in the end it took fair few testy letters and over 8 months to resolve in principle. In the end they agreed provided I replaced the old pre-war sewer with a plastic twin wall pipe which I always intended to do in any event. Took a load more time arguing over the scope of works..... in the end I relented and agreed to do it there way. Enough was enough..... then their site engineer came out and said “why you doing all this work?”, he told me to forget it, just asked me to dig up the old pipe chop it either end, drop in a pump to run the raw sewage out as it was live into a manhole, drop in the new pipe hook it up and send him a couple of pics. So I did. That work was done in a week of torrential rain. The week I planned it, it just didn’t stop raining. I just cracked on.

Love it!
 
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I forgot I had this. Our resident robin had some babies during the build. Was always fluttering around as I toiled.... that and the massive tawny owl that used sit close by on a post and watch me work. Not many can say they gave birth in my garage.
 

vetteguy53081

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.... and I’m so tempted to put a forth tank here instead of a banister. Something tall and slim perhaps?

1F3F05D1-0330-4E24-BCDC-D24E3A2F7A85.jpeg
Nice spot for a cylinder tank !!
 

dbraun15

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Impressive undertaking! Your patience is to be commended! I would have thrown in the towel long ago! Looking forward to continued updates!
 
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Sorry folks had other priorities haven’t been watching / reading/ posting for quite a while. Naughty I know. Doesn’t time fly by! Hope yawl are safe and well in these troubled times. Real ball ache but we’re all in it together and one day with hope and prayer we will see daylight. Me still plodding on with my build but the tank will have to wait a while longer. Just finished decorating my top floor and currently laying/gluing iky lickle pieces of elm parquet on a gargantuan size concrete floor. So spend a lot of time on my knees... some would say I’ve spent my whole life in that position.
 
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Jagg

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Hi folks I thinking tanks again….. but looking at online calculators which really don’t compute anything other than a standard rectangle or square I’m struggling to work out glass thickness. If I use the online calc and work out one column 1000x1200x2500 (H) I get a thickness of 53mm! Yikes. Aside of the fact that sort of thickness isn’t really readily available anyway not to mention the cost and weight of the thing……. my configuration is 2 tall columns with a bridge over the door (1200x1100x500 (H)). I dare say the standard calc method doesn’t quite work for me. Anyone any ideas? Thanks
 

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