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You need lateral restraint straps.

You just need a small hand held one. They just give you an image of the wall, with different colours showing the warm and cool spots on the wall. They work better when the inside temperature is a lot warmer than the external one.

A 1/3/6 OPC/sand/gravel used to be a standard mix for a lot of residential foundations. 1/2/3 is really strong. 1/2/4 was normal for insitu lintels.

Octopus are taking bookings for next winter 2026/2027 in the new year.

Thermal cameras are the best way. If used on the inside the cold spots will show up. When used outside you are looking for the hot spots.

Remember an S/S liner is a temporary liner which although can last 25 years can be wrecked in only a few years if burning the wrong fuels on a slow, cool burn.

Most tradesmen don't like saying an old flue is OK. If you do a sealed smoke test, the regs allow for a small amount of smoke to escape. The amount is left to the experience of the tradesman. The majority of people are not going to get involved with this in an old flue, especially as it could...

The regs might be different in Ireland, but in England it's not a reg that the flue must have an S/S liner. However all the HETAS fitters I know will always use a liner.

^^^^^^^°°°° This The idea of insulating the inner reveals is more about getting enough insulation to stop condensation forming and mould growth.

There was never a 4 year rule for regs. That was only for planning. It used to be one year for an enforcement notice to be issued to the home owner from date of works completion. However if they applied to the High Court there was no time limit. It's why lenders want an indemnity policy, and why...

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You need one with a rotary stop if you intend using it as a vibrator.

Some are wet cast, some for higher strength are hydraulically pressed.

Fibres are used more to reduce minor cracking in the slabs. Rebar is there to hold the cracked pieces together.

Look.into the way paving slabs are produced and the materials used, as it's similar in that it's thin concrete in a mould. Paving expert website will probably have some info on the subject.

Standard plasticizer is mainly an air entraining agent. When mixed up properly, it keeps thousands of tiny air bubbles in the mix which act as mini ball bearings and make it workable with the minimum amount of water. Without it you need more water which weakens the mix. It's especially important...

20mm down is too big for what you want. You need 10mm down. You could also add a bit more coarse, sharp sand. Mix it up for longer to get a bit more air into the mix and it will be workable without adding too much water.

They sometimes jam the drill as well.

Stone walls in cottages were often around 20 inches thick. It's unusual for an 18inch brick wall to be used on a 2 storey cottage.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ This is the answer. A cavity wall can have unrendered concrete blocks on the outer skin.. Unless they are designed as face blocks they won't look as good, but where you can't see them won't matter. The main issue with builds like this is the debris like leaves that build up in the gap.