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Thanks, however I'm quite interested in different people's technical opinions regardless of what a BCO may or may not say.

A few questions about laying underground foul drainage pipes underneath a concrete slab of the building. These are the orange coloured plastic push fit types that will carry toilet waste. 1. There is a rule with push fit that says that the male spigot should always be on the upstream side...

That is interesting (quetta bond) though I may need to trim the bricks a bit. If I use standard size bricks as stretchers I think I can avoid continuous perps (no more than 2 courses) by staggering the pattern by half a brick in the same direction on each course

What brickwork or block pattern would be the best for bridging 2 leafs (on purpose) as an alternative to wall ties? For the moment just take for granted there are reasons for doing this and set aside any concerns about damp. The intent is that both walls would be load bearing. My proposal is...

Do you mean use a wall starter or other metalwork at each 135 degree bend, instead of interlocking the blocks (e.g. with doglegs)? Can you explain why this should be stronger?

Wet room so I wanted masonry. I would use 140 mm blocks if the only alternative is stud, but very space constrained so would prefer not to. The grey bits in the view above are partly existing walls, constructed of aerated concrete and hollow clay blocks in alternate rows and this is very weak...

This is the plan view of a diagonally arranged doorway between two block walls. 1 square = 1 cm. The orange rectangles are 100 mm padstone allowance for the lintel and the green is the opening. I am using medium density concrete blocks 44 x 21.5 x 10 cm laid with the 44x10 face down. Do I have...

I want to remove a swan neck fitting from the top of a cast iron soil stack which is about 4"/100 mm diameter. This piece attaches to the vertical stack with a lead-sealed socket joint (see sketch). How can I dismantle this joint? I don't want to damage any of the main vertical pipe, including...

Thanks, slip coupling was the answer I needed. I started another thread regarding my next question about how to dismantle the cast iron/lead socket joint.

The soil pipe from my 1st floor toilet is currently arranged as shown in 'current arrangement' sketch, attached. There is an original cast iron swan neck which is half embedded in the concrete roof of the extension. This means that the roofing felt has been sort of draped over the pipe as it...

Sorry slight correction, I didn't read your first post properly even when I quoted it: The arditex isn't specified as an adhesive, it just gives you a level encapsulated subfloor. So 3mm as specified would be fine for that. You would probably use another product on top of that for sticking down...

Any chance you can post some photos of the floor when it's laid down, particularly at the joins between panels? I would imagine it would be quite difficult to make the painted 'floorboards' look continuous, unless you just accept a panelled effect? Also avoiding the aforementioned lip. Did you...

I believe the 'textbook' answer is Arditex NA (a self levelling compound which would serve as your 'flexible, cement-based adhesive'), since it is advertised as being compatible with bitumen residues and doesn't require a primer. But it will be expensive particularly at 6mm thickness. Someone...

Interesting. What is the thickness of the panels you have uaed? Is the hardwood veneer part of the product, or did you glue it on?

Does anyone have any good ideas for 1st floor flooring that is relatively easy to lift and get access to the voids between the joists? I originally considered just getting new, screwed-down floorboards (existing boards are sound enough but quite rough and knackered visually) that I would then...

Good explanation, cheers.

OK, I think I understand what you're saying. So the riser transfers load to either side, not directly downwards to the floor?

Does it look like the wood is supporting anything? If it is, then I'm not sure why cutting 10 mm would be a good idea because it could still crack under the weight of someone. If it isn't, then does it make any difference whether I cut 10 or 100 mm? Just trying to understand your advice! Thanks...

If possible I want to undercut the bottom-most riser of a staircase (to allow continuous laminate flooring planks to be slid underneath). See attached photo, circled in red. However, I don't know if it's a structural part, or whether there is any other reason I shouldn't cut it. Can someone advise?