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  • HPH155 : Do you really need an architect to design your house? – with Jeremy Harris

    HPH155 : Do you really need an architect to design your house? – with Jeremy Harris

    Jeremy Harris continues his story, sharing his experience of being a hands-on self-builder.

    Interview with Jeremy Harris

    Although Jeremy had never laid a brick or employed builders before, he did have useful DIY experience and had used CAD software at work. Jeremy explains what gave him the confidence to tackle so much of his project himself, adding, “If you require degrees and whatever then the building industry wouldn’t be populated by the sort of people it is.”

    Five reasons Jeremy didn’t employ an architect

    Jeremy chose a timber frame as he would be building in the autumn and wanted to get the house weather-tight quickly.

    1. A planning application only requires an outline plan, which he was able to design in AutoCAD.
    2. The timber frame contractor detailed the build using Jeremy’s plan, adjusting it slightly to fit their 400mm spacing system, showing all the joists and timbers.
    3. Jeremy prepared the building regulations application himself using those detailed CAD drawings, showing the structure of the house and how it would be built.
    4. The timber frame contractor offered a package of an insulated foundation system and a frame of large prefabricated panels, delivering a weather-tight, insulated house with guaranteed Passivhaus standards of airtightness. The builder was prepared to have 20% of the total payment dependent on the building passing an air test (which it did, achieving 0.43 air changes per hour at 50 Pascals).
    5. Jeremy modelled the house in PHPP, but also built his own simpler heat-loss model in a spreadsheet to compare variations (e.g. changing windows)

    It’s important to get the groundworks right

    Jeremy employed a groundworks contractor to make sure the levels were right and the drainage systems were all put in correctly. This cost about £55,000 and took seven weeks to complete.

    They had to remove about 900 tonnes of soil to get the site level, digging it out of the hillside and building a three metre high retaining wall almost a metre thick at the base to hold the ground back.

    Project management requires knowledge and confidence

    Although initially lacking the confidence to manage the whole project, once Jeremy had gone through the planning process, designed the house without an architect and become familiar with building regulations, he concluded he could project manage the build as well.

    Jeremy gave the groundworks contractor complete control of the site, supplying a set of drawings and a specification. So the contractor project managed the groundworks stage. Once completed, site security transferred to Jeremy.

    The contract with the timber frame company for the house and garage clarified what they were responsible for, avoiding any arguments down the line. The price was about £65,000.

    Day 1 – 3 pm
    Day 3 – 10.30 am

    Purchasing and timing are essential for success

    The timber frame contractor needed the window supplier to install the windows before the building could be air tested, so Jeremy had to coordinate this.

    Jeremy then instructed a roofing company to use an approach commonly found in France, setting 25 solar panels straight onto the south side of the roof, so they were almost flush with the surrounding tiles. Although the tiles look like dark slate, they are made from recycled car tires and bin bags, are recyclable and met the conservation officer’s approval.

    Working alone can slow the project down

    Jeremy worked alone installing the plumbing and heating system, laying flooring, fitting curtains and cupboards and decorating. He admits this slowed the project down and recalls running from one end of the house to the other twenty times an hour to put in ventilation ducting on his own. With two people, it would have taken half an hour rather than three hours.

    He did get some help where he had to, working alongside an electrician as Jeremy wasn’t Part P certified. And a joiner hung the doors because they’re very heavy.

    Hands-on involvement inspires innovative design

    Jeremy wasn’t afraid to do things differently and took advantage of emerging products.

    • There are no foundations in the ground; they laid a passive foundation. 300mm of polystyrene insulation under the floor of the house sits on packed chippings straight on the ground. Reinforced concrete rafts were set into the polystyrene.
    • A little pump circulates water through underfloor pipes so when one area of floor gets sun on it, the water carries the heat to other parts of the house without sun.
    • The solar PV panels generate hot water using a new SunampPV system that stores heat in a tiny box about the size of a combi boiler and gives it off on demand.

    A self-build can be stressful

    Build issues, notably the borehole, led to severe stress. Jeremy says: “You realise that practically every self-builder comes to that stage in the build where it all just gets too much.” Online self-build forums gave him support, as well as ideas and information.

    There will be problems and lessons learned

    Things didn’t always go to plan with the project:

    ChallengeWhy It AroseSolution
    Drilling the borehole (supposedly a 1-week job) delayed the build for almost a year Equipment breakdowns, changes in personnel, and a change of rig that led to some dimensional errors Establishing the borehole was 20m shorter than needed. Recognising they had made some errors, the company compensated Jeremy
    Solar gain caused the building to overheat resulting in wasteful cooling measuresPHPP didn’t factor in the microclimate (sheltered valley); heat loss was overestimated and insufficient shading was planned to offset overheatingFilms added to the glazing on the south side to reflect heat.
    An experienced Passivhaus specialist might have anticipated problems relating to solar gain
    A thermal store for hot water overheated the bedroom to such a degree that it
    cracked an oak door    		The heat losses stipulated on thermal stores and hot water cylinders don’t assume that they’ll contain hot water all dayUnit sold on eBay for use in an old stone cottage
    Air source heat pump surplus to requirementsThe need for heating in the house was overestimatedThe pump is used to preheat incoming cold water, reducing the workload of the solar panels

    Ten tips for self-builders

    Jeremy says, “the most important thing you can do is research, research, and more research”. Here are 10 tips to take away from his story:

    1. Check advice is appropriate for your own project
    2. Do finance checks on contractors
    3. Agree fixed prices with contractors
    4. Contracts provide clarity and security
    5. Staged payments reduce your financial exposure
    6. A borehole means no water rates
    7. Prefabricated panels reduce waste and are therefore better value
    8. Solar panels fitted directly onto roof saved £2,000 worth of slates
    9. Waiting for your VAT reclaim may take longer than anticipated
    10. To avoid capital gains tax, sell your existing house before moving into your new build

    Transcript

    Download a transcript of the interview with Jeremy Harris

    Find out more

    Check out Jeremy’s blog on the project

    Please connect with me

  • HPH154 : The challenges of building a new home in a rural community – with Jeremy Harris

    HPH154 : The challenges of building a new home in a rural community – with Jeremy Harris

    Jeremy Harris, a scientist by background, wanted a low energy house for his retirement. He talks about the initial stages of his self-build project: finding a plot of land and obtaining planning approval.

    Jeremy Harris

    Interview with Jeremy Harris

    Jeremy Harris, a scientist by background, wanted a low energy house for his retirement. He first came up with the idea that he might like to build a house around ten years ago.

    It’s important to fully understand the beginning of the self-build process

    Jeremy found television programmes and magazines rarely touch on finding a plot, designing a house to fit that plot, and the people you have to employ to do all of that work. It can be very expensive, costing thousands of pounds for planning consultants, architects, building control, etc.

    Plots can seem very nice on websites but look nothing like the photographs in reality

    Finding a plot of land was extremely hard. The Harrises drove several thousand miles, visiting disappointing plots. They began by looking at what they wanted to build, but Jeremy concluded this was the wrong way round: first find a plot, then determine what type of house will fit on it.

    Having walked away from one likely prospect, by chance they found their plot of land 16 miles from where they were living. It was too overgrown to see properly and fenced so they couldn’t get into it, but looked like it might be exactly what they wanted: facing south (i.e. good solar access) and in a sheltered valley.

    There's a plot in there somewhere!
    There’s a plot in there somewhere!

    Buying a plot is not the same as buying a house – ensure services will be available

    When buying a plot of land a solicitor can tell you if there’s a public footpath on it but won’t find out if you’ve got water, mains electricity, mains sewage or even if the boundaries are in the right place.

    Services in rural areas are often stretched to the limit. Jeremy had to ask the relevant utility companies if they could supply:

    1. Electricity? Fortunately there was plenty of power on their doorstep.
    2. Water? Companies have a statutory duty to supply water but the issue is cost. They’d have to dig up a lane for 140 metres and although Jeremy shopped around (anybody with a licence can do the digging), the minimum cost was still £24,500.
    3. Mains sewerage? There’s no statutory requirement to supply this and the cheapest the water company could provide it was £14,800.
    4. A new phone connection? Telecoms companies see self-builders as developers. If there isn’t enough capacity, they can charge whatever they want to lay a new multi-cable.

    As services would cost so much, Jeremy renegotiated the price accepted. The land hadn’t sold for eight years so he persuaded the vendor to knock off a substantial amount.

    Many building plots have boundaries in the wrong place where the Land Registry is concerned

    Plots of land don’t have registered boundaries as a rule. There was a boundary error affecting the Harrises’ plot meaning the house approved to go on it wouldn’t fit.

    The process for resolving boundary errors is complex and time consuming. It’s up to the vendor to do it, so you have to persuade them to spend money with Land Registry to get title plans amended. This often affects adjacent houses, as well as your plot, involving lenders as they have a right on the title.

    A stumbling block can sometimes turn out to be an opportunity

    It took them a year to get their boundary error resolved, but this allowed time to plan the project properly.

    Jeremy wrote a brief with eight key design points but the architects he approached didn’t seem to understand the role of design with low energy houses. Looking further afield for a Passivhaus specialist was an option, but thinking the distance might make communication difficult Jeremy decided he’d design their house himself.

    So the year was productively spent:

    • Evolving designs for the house
    • Tracking down the local Openreach engineer who offered help at no cost, as Jeremy planned to dig trenches on the plot and an underground network would solve local problems with overhead cables and trees
    • Discovering a borehole was possible, at half the cost of mains water
    • Planning a sewage treatment plant, costing around £3,500; much cheaper than digging up the lane

    This avoided inflaming an existing situation with the neighbours, as the plot had a chequered planning history, and saved money too!

    The borehole
    The borehole

    Once the principle of development is established by an approval, it’s extremely difficult for planners to remove it

    The Harrises’ plot had planning permission for a little stone bungalow that they didn’t want. As the local authority had approved the principle of putting a house on the plot, their plan was to submit a new application.

    Areas of outstanding natural beauty, conservation areas and proximity to listed buildings put constraints on what you can build. For example, needing to have all the external materials approved, as was the case with Jeremy’s house.

    Good communication paves the way for a smoother planning application process

    In Jeremy’s area, seven objection letters result in the application being referred to a planning committee, where emotions come into play far more than planning law.

    A previous application for the plot resulted in 14 objections at Parish Council level and dozens of letters. To mitigate objections for their application, Jeremy spoke to every neighbour, sent them regular update newsletters and even Christmas cards.

    He also made scale models, enabling all interested parties to understand the design before the planning application went in. His wife could look inside the rooms to see whether they were big enough, and the neighbours could see what the house might look like in the landscape. And the scale model played an important part at the Parish Council planning meeting, where applicants aren’t allowed to talk.

    model-sw-view-small

    “We had several cases where objectors turned to supporters”

    Jeremy eliminated concerns by talking them through with neighbours:

    Genuine concernsWhat Jeremy did
    New house would overload the sewage systemExplained they were putting in a sewage treatment plant instead
    Height of the house might block views or cast shadowsUsed the 3D scale model to show that the house would be set into the hillside (3m down)
    Being overlooked in their back gardenUsed the model to show that the garage blocked the view (neighbour was also happy the garage protected their vegetable patch from the wind)

    Engaging with local people is important but Jeremy adds a caveat: be cautious and put your foot down if neighbours ask for too much; at the end of the day it’s your plot and your house.

    The Harrises got through the planning stage with no letters of objection at all, so the decision was down to a Planning Officer purely based on the law and planning policies for the area, and approval was granted.

    Transcript

    Download a transcript of the interview with Jeremy Harris

    Find out more

    Check out Jeremy’s blog on the project

     

    Please connect with me