Live self-Builds - mod warning in post no. 1

Expanding metal over roof membrane before sand and cement!

3 men, 2 days, 130 slabs! Done!

Well lads I'm of the opinion you ye can do it I can do it

. I hope to be at this stage within 6 months... fingers crossed....

hexosan

3 days into doing my windows. One thing you definitely need is time.

just do it wrote: »

Good on you, I look forward to the results of your airtightness tests

I dread them lol!

893bet wrote: »

Its not to bad. If anyone is thinking about doingn themselves but not sure I'd say give it a go if you have plenty of time on your hands.

Good on you, I look forward to the results of your airtightness tests

Its not to bad. If anyone is thinking about doingn themselves but not sure I'd say give it a go if you have plenty of time on your hands.

Slow !

pictures of taping at https://www.facebook.com/Passive.House.Wexford

hexosan

Tape sticks better to the block before it's scratched

Superdaddy

893bet wrote: »

Slow work!!

I am about to start this now. I took on the air tightness and insulating between rafters and floors myself. I saw some of the work the contractors were doing and I wasn't filled with confidence.

I have been considering scratch coating around the windows first then taping them and then skim coat. Is there a reason it shouldn't be done that way?

Just need to finish stuffing super glass insulation between the rafters, absolute torture in this heat.

Villain

893bet wrote: »

Electritions are flying! Really happy with how neat they are!

Don't skimp on Cat5 or even Cat6, even if you don't intend on using them now, coax should only be for satellite and aerial.

Sligoronan

893bet wrote: »

Electritions are flying! Really happy with how neat they are!

How do you intend to achieve air tightness behind sockets and chases?
U only get one chance at it.

Electritions are flying! Really happy with how neat they are!

THE DON FANUCCI wrote: »

what did you fill your cavity with? and how did you close the cavity at the windows? that tape looks great job! painstaking i'd say. did you fit it? or can you hire somebody to do this?

Cavity to be fully filled. Cavity closed with PIR tightly wedged. Did the tape myself. You can hire someone but I would recommend the DIY route. It's not that tough.

THE DON FANUCCI

893bet wrote: »

Slow work!!

what did you fill your cavity with? and how did you close the cavity at the windows? that tape looks great job! painstaking i'd say. did you fit it? or can you hire somebody to do this?

Villain wrote: »

It is, I remember it well but well worth it, try make sure tape isn't tight on the corners so when window boards are "beaten" into they place they won't puncture the tape.

I have learnt that already. There is a good chance the first window will get redone as I learn!

Villain

893bet wrote: »

Slow work!!

It is, I remember it well but well worth it, try make sure tape isn't tight on the corners so when window boards are "beaten" into they place they won't puncture the tape.

Slow work!!

Cavanjack wrote: »

Wouldn't have known that. Thanks. What is the pink bonding that you parged the back of the chases with? Is it just standard gypsum hard wall?

Yes !

Cavanjack

fclauson wrote: »

yes until it dries out and shrinks - there is a reason these products are more expensive !!

Wouldn't have known that. Thanks. What is the pink bonding that you parged the back of the chases with? Is it just standard gypsum hard wall?

Cavanjack wrote: »

Would silicone or mastic do the same job as the product you used?

yes until it dries out and shrinks - there is a reason these products are more expensive !!

Cavanjack

Old Jim wrote: »

I was out of the country when it was done so don't have the full details but I believe it involved using a blue silicone-like sealant(Fortax 6400 by Gerband) and worked this into all the holes and edges of the metal backing box for all the electrical sockets. That adhesive is typically used for adhering airtight membranes to surfaces.
Obviously the easier method is to parge the chases with this or other suitable airtight 'goo' or the pink bonding mentioned earlier before the electrical first fix is done.

Would silicone or mastic do the same job as the product you used?

Rather than hollowcore I've a solid reinforced concrete first floor. It's wrapped in membrane with mortar above and below it. I was very impressed with the dropping in of the slabs. The build is paused at this stage for a year. We've secured the edges of the membrane and sealed the top of the cavities as the dpcs were getting blown around by the wind. My concern is the integrity of the membrane will be damaged. Without going to extraordinary effort it's impossible to keep it dry. Time will tell.

Old Jim wrote: »

Thanks. It's a 2-storey, fairly standard design. The design gave it the best chance of good airtightness - no chimneys, no recessed lights in the airtight layer. We wrapped the hollowcore on all sides, taped all penetrations, windows and doors, filled any ducts/conduits going into the attic. Lots of things we didn't do including taping the wall to floor junction, separating wires going through airtight layer - all the wires went though in the one place bunched tightly together and taped around.
I wasn't expecting such a good result as we didn't focus massively on detailing.

Very interesting and good to hear. You'll have to stick up a few photos at some stage

Old Jim

just do it wrote: »

Well done on a great airtightness result - but more questions! What type of build? Single or two storey? Other elements of the airtightness strategy?

Building a 2 storey at the moment and finding I'm educating people regarding airtightness, including the supplier of the airtightness membrane!

Thanks. It's a 2-storey, fairly standard design. The design gave it the best chance of good airtightness - no chimneys, no recessed lights in the airtight layer. We wrapped the hollowcore on all sides, taped all penetrations, windows and doors, filled any ducts/conduits going into the attic. Lots of things we didn't do including taping the wall to floor junction, separating wires going through airtight layer - all the wires went though in the one place bunched tightly together and taped around.
I wasn't expecting such a good result as we didn't focus massively on detailing.

Old Jim wrote: »

I was out of the country when it was done so don't have the full details but I believe it involved using a blue silicone-like sealant(Fortax 6400 by Gerband) and worked this into all the holes and edges of the metal backing box for all the electrical sockets. That adhesive is typically used for adhering airtight membranes to surfaces.
Obviously the easier method is to parge the chases with this or other suitable airtight 'goo' or the pink bonding mentioned earlier before the electrical first fix is done.

Well done on a great airtightness result - but more questions! What type of build? Single or two storey? Other elements of the airtightness strategy?

Building a 2 storey at the moment and finding I'm educating people regarding airtightness, including the supplier of the airtightness membrane!

Old Jim

BarneyMc wrote: »

Would you like to share how you sealed behind the sockets?

I was out of the country when it was done so don't have the full details but I believe it involved using a blue silicone-like sealant(Fortax 6400 by Gerband) and worked this into all the holes and edges of the metal backing box for all the electrical sockets. That adhesive is typically used for adhering airtight membranes to surfaces.
Obviously the easier method is to parge the chases with this or other suitable airtight 'goo' or the pink bonding mentioned earlier before the electrical first fix is done.

just do it wrote: »

FC

What's it costing you annually to heat your house? I know you have the figures :D

Heating & Hotwater is of the order of 4000Kwh primary energy (electricity) for 350sqM - Hot water used around 65% of that number

The PV on the roof (I have no solar thermal panels) produces around 4000Kwh and I use the grid as a "battery" - so the system has zero "running" costs.

In reality the PV will pay for itself in around 7 years - (assuming the ESB Networks keeps paying me 9c per excess unit - they have stopped paying this for new connection) In any event we should never suffer #FulePoverty

Reason for PV vs Solar Thermal is that in the summer we export around 1800Kwh and Solar Thermal would be "dumping" that excess while still trying to give meaningful input to the shoulder of the year (March April / Sept-Oct)

Given there is no export payment would I do things differently today - may be - depending if building control would allow me to not explicitly meet the DEAP requirement of 10Kwh/sqM