BIG MAC

We are currently producing plans for the conversion of our village house. The modifications we propose will not change the character of the house to much apart from the inclusion of some dormer windows and timbe garage doors to the front. We do plan some pretty rdical stuff for round the back including a mezzaninein the adjoining hangar, a completely glazed curtain wall to allow the original trusses to be enjoyed rather than clad or hidden away. Conversion of our cave into a large kitchen and our woodshed into a garage with three bedrooms above. What I thought before we start is get proper drawings properly annotated in French pop them accross to the mayor and see what he thinks before we even submit them for planning. Would the French take this as trying to buck the system when all we are trying to do is make sure the plans we put forward have already been discussed / adjusted and agreed in principle before formal application?

Noted you ventilated the wall with one of Mr Screwfixes finest. Please ensure that you duct the pipe through another rigid one or you could have problems later.

Hi I have a similar problem compounded with a ridge bord that stops about 6 inches short of the chimney with no trimmer. I am building a new brick fire place below the chimney as at the moment it looks quite askew but Im  taking the opportunity to square it up and include some dry log storage for the log burner.    

Hi Mark Aristo..n  is simply a cooker that must be installed by a member of the ruling classes not yet beheaded. I suspect you need to do a bit of research maybe stick an image up here, the experts will no doubt be able to help a lot more than I just have!  Bon chance!

We are going with the egg box vertical dpc on our stone walls, breather membrane fibreglass batts slotted into MF studding then foil backed plasterboard. Egg box will extend below slab level and allow moisture to travel up and down as need be. I have been advised to allow walls to remain damp so try to isolate areas within in this fashion I shall repoint the walls first though to try to prevent loose mortar blocking the drainage channels. Lofts and rockwool  surprised me I was going to staple the foiled bubble wrap to back of battens then use the paper faced rockwool equivalent above the placo......maybe I need a re think?

Quoins? I am looking for a supplier of window and door opening quoins for my extension Mayenne 53

There's rough.....then there's dog rough. Shower stall preparation and tiling. Isolate services Remove old mixer valves / shower units remove wall tiling remove shower tray Alter supplies and wastes to suit new installation (Chase out walls if need be) Rough fit valve / shower unit to ensure alignment (Drill a piece of ply and use as a template to hold pipes at correct centres if no spacer provided) Protect pipes in wall with  denso tape or similar Fill pipe / cable chases, Apply pva as an anti suction coat do not pva existing tiles unless you want a shower tray full of holes! Skim walls if need be. Install new shower tray and ensure it is level, connect waste protect tray with tape and hardboard Silicone seal tray to walls of enclosure to provide initial seal Ceramic tile up from tray edge carefully cutting tiles around protuding services Grout tiling and polish (Waterproof adhesive and grout) clean all traces of dust from enclosure and remove tray protection purge pipework install mixer valve /shower ...riser rails accessories and cabinet door if needs be clean area thouroughly and leave for a couple of days for every thing to dry out thoroughly. Apply silicone seal to shower tray tiling abuttment and vertical internal joints (Note many cubicles /cabinets should not be sealed horizontally as they have concealed drainage back into the tray) Stand back and admire. I can assure you that rough walls are not the problem, rough plumber may well be! If you use a toothed trowel you will by virtue of the raised adhesive ridges be able to set tiles level in relation to each other particularly if you use a high build adhesive (BAL used to do a good one) The work that you have there is way below the standard you are entitled to expect from a professional. I would not waste my time listening to someone  trying to defend it, different if they are saying they are going to remedy it immediately and they are terribly sorry.    

Russethouse, being Glaswegian I can just about translate Geordie for you, rememeber some key words and you will be ok.   Tabs Cake Tea Beer

Hi Russethouse General order of play Carcasse pipework lay flooring Install freestanding bath seal all joints where pipework penetrates flooring Wall hung basins with pipework from behind or chased in carcasse pipework to measured centres, if a studa wall there is the opportunity to strip plasterbaoard, noggint the insides of studs with say 50mm by 50mm soft wood securely screwed about 18mm back from lading edge of stud, cut an 18mm panel out of plywood to fit in front of noggins (Drilled to allow pipework through at corect centres) then reboard this way you will have a secure and tidy mounting and concealed pipework. If a masonry wall you can use chemfix achors to good effect. Regards,   TM  

Last time I was in Leroy Merlin they were flogging butchers block very cheap but it was only 35mm if memory serves.

Hi, I believe you can get below ground tanks in France? Bund walls are messy old things is it a cost issue? you could keep an ey out for  slightly larger scrap tank and get the bottom cut out, sit your old tank in it = one bund. Actually if your anywhere near Mayenne you can have my old one free!

aquapanel is the way to go however contrary to popular belief if you PVA then use waterproof adhesive and grout you will be fine

If you want a good cheat?   Metal stud is stronger when screws ar angled to put the metal slightly in tension. Use osb (Oriented Strand Board) on one side before boarding very strong and if you use vapour barrier fine even in basements, oh it cheap as pommes frites also.  

Sunday Driver,   I am doffing my beret to you as we speak, many thanks!   Regards   Trev

I am a little confused here as what seems to being said in some quarters is that to wire in singles pulled through containment is unusual in the UK? A huge amount of commercial installations are wired this way in the UK. I guess the major difference is probably an increase in the size of cable to allow for the lack of ring circuit and a limitation on the number of  outlets possible on each radial. I am toying with using a couple of UK (MK) distribution boards as I have them to hand, I dont know however if they will comply with the Normes they are MCB RCD protected, anyone know?  

Russethouse that works out a very cheap job. I reckon if I tipped up on a Sunday in my plumbing days with a mate (Who needs to be paid also and an electrician) I would have wanted at least the same probably a little more dependent upon the quality of the boiler fitted. When you consider a prope job would likely involve. Isolate services and drain down old heating system, Remove old toilet, adapt incoming service install service valve and new pan connector, Remove old Boiler and flue. Carry out Building electrical and pipework adaptations for new Boiler. Supply and install new boiler make up services and controls. Purge system with clean water twice. Supply and introduce water treatment / corrosion inhibitor Circulate cold Purge gas and test fire boiler. Vent run and balance heating system. Test and certificate gas soundness and electrical safety Supply and fix new toilet bowl seat and cistern,  

Hi French water pressure can be fairly high ours manages to reach 7 Bar at times! That said if you wanted you could simply install pressure reduction valves inline. I dont think to be honest that there would be too much of a problem with your IKEA kit as in all likelyhood it was made for the EU rather than just the UK and it seems inconceivable that they would especially downgrade a tap for the UK market. If in doubt why not e-mail IKEA and ask them to compare part numbers?   Regards,  

Homologation as in relation to France itself or the EU? It is a Yamaha, in fact its this Yamaha http://i8.ebayimg.com/03/i/03/25/1c/45_1_b.JPG I guess I write to the Yamaha Concessionaire? Incidentally I have heard rumour that Yamaha UK (Matsui as was) may be re-locating to Lille? Do the French have an equivalent to the UK VOSA examination for kit cars and the like?

The tongue in cheek worst nightmares for Builders top ten 1) Ever moving goalposts 2)Got the sums wrong (also known as S*1t we got the sums wrong! send a man and a dog and hope they cry off) 3) Architects (Generally) all flying butresses and trying to build the next Millau. 4) Quanity Surveyors (Builders know these guys are in the know...they know how much things cost...how unreasonable is that?) 5) Weather (Weather they show up seems dependent on it, in fairness in France this seems to be less of a problem) 6)Friendly Clients who want to know everything (Builders are not care in the community professionals) 7) Other trades in the way 'nuff said really. 8)A defined and resourced Programme of works (Really should be number one but seeing it there made me come over all funny so I hid it down here hoping you wouldnt see it) 9)Having no excuse 10) Organisation any kind of organisation...      

Spot the deliberate spelling mistook? I have purchased a Quad Bike with the intention of using it as a little workhorse pulling a small trailer for logs and building materials garden stuff etc. Vehicle is second hand but never registered as it is an agricultural type of machine. Is it possible to use the bike legally on French roads and what are the MOT (Equivalent) and registration requirements? It would be handy to be able to nip up to the brico for a couple of bags of cement. Any advice aways appreciated.  

We have a similar situation. French electricity is fr cleverer than the UK equivalent, it tends to find its way despite the wiring rather than because of it! (Well in our house at least) We have made safe a few areas that were frankly ridiculous and our intention it to rewire however I am building so many walls etc. w rent really ready for Monsieur Le Sparks just yet. Fortunately my brother worked as an electrician on Eurodisney so knows how to do a Proper French Mickey Mouse job! Our intention is to carcasse the services work ourselves (I was a plumbist in a previous life) then get French artisans in to terminate test and inspect. This way they get a clear run at the work and we terminate the old services after the new is commissioned and fully legal. We are keen to give the French our business however we want where possible to save money. Gobsmacked at Cooperlolas prices though, that is so cheap its silly maybe get the chaps details for our scheme?    

Our house is in the Mayenne basse Normandie Loire area. We find every excuse to get there and are smitten however the practicalities of getting to the area vs weather seems to send holidaymakers a little further south. We think its a fantastic place and alhough we have lots to do to our place are hoing eventually to live there permanently just trying to figure out the best way to finance it. I am a building contracts manager so hopefully if I can get my French up to scratch I may be able to work in the industry over there. I realise little of what I have said helps your predicament! OK How about Fly Be services into Rennes maybe that will help?

Thanks Shimble, Interesting.....  however I will probably fasten the sole plates through 30mm cellotex and allow the board to protude in order that I can fasten the Placo the 30mm off the deck while avoiding thermal bridge. I am using plastic "egg box" type vertical dpm and a tyvek vapour barrier as well as fibre glass batts so hopefully we will be toastie. I am considering the vent Idea though as I have high skirtings they may look unsightly. Cheers

A decent project manager pref bilingual and a good project team inc architect working to an agreed programme and cost plan will likely save you about 50% of their cost directly through "right first time" and "right on time management" Basically designing the right thing and ensuring that the cost and production programmes are menged in such a way that a schedule of payments and delivereries / phases are clsoely linked ie the bricks arrive when needed not when the substructure team are trying to get footings done, payment gets made bang on the thirty or sixty days whatever terms you can get. Local French guys are likely to be able to negotiate good trade prices I would have thought. It doesn't cost a lot to ask, do your research and good luck.

When I do mine I shall use metal stud, not sure how well dabbing would work with a polystyrene backed board if you wanted a fire rated compartment or to reduce the variation in levels you could double board  and stagger the joints. I have been pondering the problems with potential rising damp and the use of membrane etc, however I am told the French do a ready mix that is waterproof?....can it be true?????? Happy days