Building control - sign off problem
Discussion
any BC officers / regulation specialists out there?
just finished building a small extention onto our kitchen, with an adjoining 'utility room'.
all decorated/finished etc etc ready to sign off
BC officer (or regulation man) comes round and tells us that he will only sign off if there is suitable 'extraction' in the utility room.
This is news to me! however on re-inspection of the architects plans, as clear as can be, there is spec. info. on an 'extractor'.
now heres the prob. i dont want to have to bore a hole into a newly decorated room and chase mains electric to it (and all the hassle that goes with installing one.)
the builder has said that if i leave the door off and call it part of the kitchen this will be fine.........plan scuppered as another BC officer has said that this is not poss.
another angle......the BC officer has said to the builder, if you call it a storeroom, then it 'should' be fine.........im sceptical.......after all, theres plumbing, washing machine tumble dryer etc in there.I bought this up with the builder and he said that if they 'dont' pass it then we will have to install the extractor
Can anybody offer any advice / easy solution ?????
should i be angry at the builder for not picking up on the extractor? will he simply say that it was never priced for in the 1st place? if he does the work, should i be expected to pay for it?
tks in advance, and pardon the banality of the content!
just finished building a small extention onto our kitchen, with an adjoining 'utility room'.
all decorated/finished etc etc ready to sign off
BC officer (or regulation man) comes round and tells us that he will only sign off if there is suitable 'extraction' in the utility room.
This is news to me! however on re-inspection of the architects plans, as clear as can be, there is spec. info. on an 'extractor'.
now heres the prob. i dont want to have to bore a hole into a newly decorated room and chase mains electric to it (and all the hassle that goes with installing one.)
the builder has said that if i leave the door off and call it part of the kitchen this will be fine.........plan scuppered as another BC officer has said that this is not poss.
another angle......the BC officer has said to the builder, if you call it a storeroom, then it 'should' be fine.........im sceptical.......after all, theres plumbing, washing machine tumble dryer etc in there.I bought this up with the builder and he said that if they 'dont' pass it then we will have to install the extractor
Can anybody offer any advice / easy solution ?????
should i be angry at the builder for not picking up on the extractor? will he simply say that it was never priced for in the 1st place? if he does the work, should i be expected to pay for it?
tks in advance, and pardon the banality of the content!
to elaborate the tumble dryer has an extraction pipe drilled through the wall the windows are 'vented' therefore adhering to the controls. It has to have a certain cubic whatever of extraction, therefore mains operated.
the room has a large window in it, compared to the size of the room
Parrot in the architects plans, it stipulates for an 'active' extractor
>> Edited by cinque on Tuesday 19th July 11:46
the room has a large window in it, compared to the size of the room
Parrot in the architects plans, it stipulates for an 'active' extractor
>> Edited by cinque on Tuesday 19th July 11:46
pdV6 said:
should i be angry at the builder for not picking up on the extractor? will he simply say that it was never priced for in the 1st place? if he does the work, should i be expected to pay for it?
Only you can answer that! It depends on what the builder quoted for.
my argument (should it come to that) should be, "well you had the plans, you quoted to build it & get it signed off?" i guess i'll have to check the quote again.
Incorrigible said:
I put an extractor in our bathroom a few weeks ago
It was only £20, get the drill out, it'll be done in a few hours
crossed that bridge with the builder. Its the mess / redecorating / chasing in work thats annoying; having to link a spur up to connect it to mains etc
(i guess im just having a bad day. Dont need hassle. I 'will' look back on this and laugh in a few weeks, its just seems so annoying and important at the time)
methinks lunchtime beers are in order
In respect to the issue with the BCO, the requirement for the extract will be on the case notes and therefore you will need to supply and install a suitable extract. Building regs have been tightened up tremoendously over last 12 months regarding dwellings that it's doubtful removing doors or trying to amend the description of the room from the planning application submission will be a method around this.
You should be able to core drill into the wall at high level and the extractor will have a cowelling around it so making good to the wall should be minimal.
One thought to reduce any chasing would be to feed it off a time delay on the light switch. Any decent sparks can feed a cable from the centre rose to the edge of the room without disturbing finishes.
How did he quote initialy? Was it an all in / all risks price? If so there shouldn't be any cost for this requirement as it was down to the tradesman to pick up this reg requirement and his price should have all risks built into it.
If it was spec and drawings you should have received a broken down cost showing itemised costs for foundations, superstructure, roofing, services, finishes and the like to enable a check that everything had been allowed for. If this is the case then it will be difficult to argue the cost for this late pick up of information.
You should be able to core drill into the wall at high level and the extractor will have a cowelling around it so making good to the wall should be minimal.
One thought to reduce any chasing would be to feed it off a time delay on the light switch. Any decent sparks can feed a cable from the centre rose to the edge of the room without disturbing finishes.
cinque said:
my argument (should it come to that) should be, "well you had the plans, you quoted to build it & get it signed off?" i guess i'll have to check the quote again.
How did he quote initialy? Was it an all in / all risks price? If so there shouldn't be any cost for this requirement as it was down to the tradesman to pick up this reg requirement and his price should have all risks built into it.
If it was spec and drawings you should have received a broken down cost showing itemised costs for foundations, superstructure, roofing, services, finishes and the like to enable a check that everything had been allowed for. If this is the case then it will be difficult to argue the cost for this late pick up of information.
Sleep Envy said:
In respect to the issue with the BCO, the requirement for the extract will be on the case notes and therefore you will need to supply and install a suitable extract. Building regs have been tightened up tremoendously over last 12 months regarding dwellings that it's doubtful removing doors or trying to amend the description of the room from the planning application submission will be a method around this.
You should be able to core drill into the wall at high level and the extractor will have a cowelling around it so making good to the wall should be minimal.
One thought to reduce any chasing would be to feed it off a time delay on the light switch. Any decent sparks can feed a cable from the centre rose to the edge of the room without disturbing finishes.
cinque said:
my argument (should it come to that) should be, "well you had the plans, you quoted to build it & get it signed off?" i guess i'll have to check the quote again.
How did he quote initialy? Was it an all in / all risks price? If so there shouldn't be any cost for this requirement as it was down to the tradesman to pick up this reg requirement and his price should have all risks built into it.
If it was spec and drawings you should have received a broken down cost showing itemised costs for foundations, superstructure, roofing, services, finishes and the like to enable a check that everything had been allowed for. If this is the case then it will be difficult to argue the cost for this late pick up of information.
tks Ric interesting what you say about the reg's tightening
if it was a simple flat ceiling id bung one in, but its all slopes and exposed work with a high pitched roof
the case notes are what im more worried about. I want the extention signed off without any restrictions or notes left on the file..............they'd be nothing worse than selling the house in 10 years time only to find an 'issue' with building surveys / searches etc
cinque said:
I put an extractor in our bathroom a few weeks ago
It was only £20, get the drill out, it'll be done in a few hours
crossed that bridge with the builder. Its the mess / redecorating / chasing in work thats annoying; having to link a spur up to connect it to mains etc
(i guess im just having a bad day. Dont need hassle. I 'will' look back on this and laugh in a few weeks, its just seems so annoying and important at the time)
methinks lunchtime beers are in order
Are you sure its got to be a power one,its worth checking?,ime a brickie by trade and what i would do is take measurements where its going to be sited,then starting on the inside lay out a sheet under work area,use a pencil and draw around part that goes thru wall,if you are careful and start from the centre and nibble out to the drawn line then the inside cover will fit on and over where you have worked ,take away sheet and hoover and your done,now go outside and repeat the same,the secret is take your time,double check and nibble away with a chisel and hammer and there will be no need to redecorate.
cinque said:
tks Ric interesting what you say about the reg's tightening
if it was a simple flat ceiling id bung one in, but its all slopes and exposed work with a high pitched roof
the case notes are what im more worried about. I want the extention signed off without any restrictions or notes left on the file..............they'd be nothing worse than selling the house in 10 years time only to find an 'issue' with building surveys / searches etc
Yep, tell me about it. All sparks now have to be NIC EIC approved so it's costing me dearly with most jobs increasing by 10-15% over the last 18 months.
Trying to think laterally does it need a mechanical extract? Worth speaking to the BCO to see if a vent through the roof with a mushroom on the top could be a practical soultion. It would certainly be cheaper and you could restrict the flow of air through the winter months to limit heat loss.
Obviously having no clue what your house is like this may by a complete no go but can you get power there from the outside? It would stop all the hassle from chasing in your new plaster - the extractor hole wouldn't be a particularly messy job. I wouldn't have any idea if that complies with building regs though.
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