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Woody, why did they go in just the same ? How did you know what grade of steel they were etc ?

A garage is not classified as a habitable building so you cant really compare it to that, but as previously mentioned by others on here it can be done but just needs to be proved as adequate taking into account all relevant building and site specific data.

What are her other comments ? as you originally thought the foundation depth was odd also

Not so sure about that. If he didnt go down below the level of root activity and the clay were to swell it could lift the foundations above

If the tree was removed there would still be a potential problem with clay heave, although this could be accomodated by waiting until after the soil had rehydrated if timescales allow

Sounds about right to me. The reason the clay is rock hard is probably because the conifer tree has taken moisture out of the soil which causes the clay to shrink. The new foundations need to be taken below the level where the roots will extract moisture otherwise there is a good chance you...

OK ROUGHCASTER, We dont all read the date of the original post every time, sometimes we just reply to the last one.

Maybe you should give it a go even if after one coat you decide to get someone in, at least you will have learned a bit about it. I would also have a look at the specific plastering section on this website for general skimming tips. Skimming walls isnt actually that difficult to obtain an...

We need to be able to work out what area of floor(s), wall and roof etc it supports

Obviously I dont know what the beam is supporting but the fact that it only has 90mm bearing isnt such a big deal (depending on the quality of the masonry and workmanship when it was laid etc.) Normally you would install a concrete padstone below the end of the beam (eg. precast concrete lintel...

If not, why not

Hollow blocks

If solid blocks are used rather than hollow ones, the wall will work better and therefore is less likely to move, and he avoids the need to fill the voids

I wouldn't use hollow blocks unless you are planning to fill them with concrete. This type of wall relies on weight to resist the thrust from the retained material.

If there is a suitably constructed "load bearing" intermediate partition can't you just split (and lap) the joists over this support ?

I would ask the engineer to give you a size for your new joists because the ones you say are not even close to being big enough for a 6.3m span at 450 centres. To be honest I think you will find you need an intermediate beam as well. (Assuming you are doing the conversion to building regs...

Dont think the "double headers" as you call them will be strong enough (at least not for building reg standard anyway). You will need steel.

8 x 3 joists are actually better than 9 x 2 but I dont think either works for that span and spacing (theoretically). Assuming a grade C16 timber, I think you will be looking at 225 x 63 (which I believe are difficult to obtain at the moment) or 225 x 75. If you wanted to span the joists the...

You could bolt a length of new timber to each side or use the brackets shown on this link (depending on your exact situation) :- http://www.expamet.co.uk/product/builders-metalwork/structural-fixings/splice-plates

Tiles ?