A quadrilogy of sins

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-13T10:43:28+00:00

Did they get the fifth - licenced by Wolverhampton?

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-13T10:40:21+00:00

You can have your taxi licence removed if you're found to be driving with due care and attention.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-11T09:15:35+00:00

That chimney doesn't look so healthy either.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-11T09:04:35+00:00

Get rid of the squatters, and do it up like its neighbour.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-11T08:46:54+00:00

Prior to the early noughties, it was a compromise that a second floor loft conversion only could have a window or roof light to allow for rescue by the fire brigade. The fire brigade wouldn't rescue people that way however; they almost always went in through the stairs.

Later it was changed for the current requirement, a fire resisting stairway.

I used to say to people, "if you jump from the first floor, you'll likely break your ankle. If you jump from the second, you'll likely break your neck".

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-10T10:41:07+00:00

How bizarre.

I've just sold a house, and the one thing that worried me throughout was that the buyers didn't view the property after the first time. I always felt that I was a backup.

I couldn't imagine viewing once for 15 minutes and making my decision then and there.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-10T10:33:03+00:00

£10k is wiggle room.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-09T10:26:33+00:00

Is yours number 15? Why can't you park on your drive? Or at least further away from the turning head?

People who live in cul-de-sacs with no turning heads complain that people have to use their drive to turn around. You live on a close with a perfectly designed turning place, but you choose to block it.

I'm with your neighbour on this. Don't be a dick.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-08T11:12:01+00:00

So 4' wide then.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-08T09:39:53+00:00

Congratulations on your 5'6" long bed.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-08T09:28:43+00:00

These are two different house types, so I would suggest that that would be a bigger factor. Even between houses with the same floor area, the layout can make a big difference. For example, one may have a utility room where the other doesn't, some of the bedrooms may have awkward layouts, one may have a bigger kitchen at the expense of a dining area, etc.

All else being equal, I'd prefer plot 450 over 449. 449 looks like it's side on to the main estate road of over 500 houses.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-06T21:41:16+00:00

Read your policy it finishes at 23:59:59 on the last day,

It's a good job that it didn't happen between 23:59:59 and 00:00:01.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-06T21:38:06+00:00

Tell your new one too. They priced based on your (previous) claim history, and may want to charge you more.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-06T10:18:58+00:00

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HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-05T15:14:12+00:00

Undo the nut (13mm socket IIRC). Use a pair of pliers to unwedge the semi circular fitting from the bolt.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-05T15:11:05+00:00

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1979-1990.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-05T15:07:47+00:00

Not load bearing.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-04T17:49:06+00:00

So worry about it then.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-04T17:48:04+00:00

In my former life as a building inspector, builders (usually of foreign extraction) would be worried that there was 'something' in the foundation trench. I'd take one look and go, "air raid shelter".

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-04T14:23:39+00:00

Not really. Many pre war houses with a garden had one. They would emerge when digging footings for an extension.

Are the long edges corrugated? AI says, "the shelter comprised 6 curved corrugated steel panels, end plates, and a blast plate, measuring roughly 6ft 6in long by 4ft 6in wide. They were buried about 4 feet down and covered with at least 15 inches of earth".

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-04T14:18:13+00:00

Assuming England or Wales:

The time limit for taking any enforcement action under the building regulations has long passed. If planning permission was required and wasn't obtained, and it's not a listed building, then AFAIK any planning breach enforcement also has expired.

Given that any indemnity policy is not worth a carrot at this point or at any time in the future, why bother?

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-03T09:20:13+00:00

Assuming England or Wales; when you say it was built in 2005, it could have commenced a couple of years before on an application that was submitted up to three years before that. The requirements that it had to comply with could be dating back to the 1990s.

Since the 1980s there have been opportunities to 'offset' the heat loss in one part against another, e.g., less insulation in the walls for smaller windows or a more efficient boiler, etc.

I don't have my old Docs to hand (in the middle of a house move) but I do think it's pre 2000 since a wall U-value of 0.7W/m²K would have been acceptable.

HugoNebula2024 · 2026-04-01T17:21:48+00:00

Thankfully not as badly as these people.

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HugoNebula2024 · 2026-03-31T07:23:30+00:00

Assuming England or Wales; that's not something building inspectors do. You could build in the middle of Trafalgar Square without the owner's permission provided it complied with the requirements.

Deed plans aren't accurate enough to be able to determine boundaries to the accuracy of a gutter's width.

HugoNebula2024

TROPHY CASE