OT: Advice needed on a bit of work I am having done

[Pedro Popadopolous]

Hi Guys,

Sorry if this comes in twice.....

I know this is DIY group but couldn't find anywhere else with as much knowledge as this..................

Forgive me if I use wrong terminology or spelling. I will try and explain things....

I am having a conservatory fitted....................I live in a bungalow.. So the conservatory bolts up against the existing wall/roof line of the bungalow. There is now a part of the soffet inside the conservatory. It is made of thin wood with like a plastic grild along. The conservatory guys have chisled this biece of wood off opening up the roof itself. They are going to put a piece of plastic across it and the conservatory so as you look up there is no join between the 2. My concern is that above this plastic panel is a vast open space, either side of the conservatory still has the original wooden soffet with grid so wind will be howling through that and along onto the back of this piece of plastic panel. Are there any building regs they must take into account? Insulation rules?

Also guttering.......... As it is a bunglaow there is a box gutter. What they have done is (Imagine the conservatory is in the middle of the back of the bungalow so there is original bungalow walls either side) create a gutter system all around the bungalow with a new soak away, this would also cover some of the roof. On one side of the back of the bungalow they have just capped where they cut the guttering off, there is a 3 or 4 inch gap between where that ends and the box guttering starts. On the other side of the bugalow they haven't even put up a piece of guttering, so rain falls straight onto garden. There must be rules for this

Thanks for any help

:-)

[Pedro Popadopolous]

Can anyone help please :-)

[meow2222]

As long as all sections of guttering lead to a downpipe, it shouldnt matter if theyre no longer continuous. However, roof water falling of onto the garden I wouldnt be happy about, and would ask them to sort that out properly before paying in full.

NT

[sm_jamieson]

Assuming you don't have a loft conversion, the whole loft will be vented to this howling wind. The bit of soffit in the conservatory is now part of the "loft", so you could put loft insulation on top of the new plate. Building regs may require extra vents into the soffit outside the conservatory, so that the overall venting is sufficient, since some venting will have been lost. Depends how much soffit venting is lost inside the conservatory. Simon.

[Rick]

I'd take some photos. Then when they are done, take a close inspection of what is done. It seems that you are unhappy about something, when they have not finished.

Don't pay untill you are happy.

You will be able to find people who can tell you if what they do is OK, and archetectrail engineer for example.

Rick

[Hugo Nebula]

On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 18:01:22 -0000, a particular chimpanzee named "Pedro Popadopolous" randomly hit the keyboard and produced:

Assuming you're in England or Wales (different rules apply in other parts of the UK); conservatories are exempt from the Building Regulations, therefore the 'rules' are not enforceable.

The grille in the soffit is there to ventilate the roof, and quite rightly your builders have sealed it off (although, one imagines, not necessarily for the right reasons). Yes, there will only be a thin piece of plastic between this part of the conservatory and the roof void, but is that any worse than the thin piece (or two pieces) of glass or polycarbonate between the rest of the conservatory and the outside? Conservatories, to remain exempt from the Building Regulations, should only have heating that can be controlled and turned off independently of the main house, and are really only useful in not too cold (or not too hot) weather.

WRT the rainwater guttering, if you're not happy, get 'em to put it right and don't pay them until they do. You didn't pay in full before they started or when they told you they had completed the job did you? Oh dear.