It’s been a while since a VAT update so I thought I’d review the current position, especially in view of the pre-Christmas credit-crunch fuelled reduction in the standard rate of VAT from 17.5% to 15%.

My own VAT reclaim will be due soon - by early Summer at the latest, so I thought I’d review the rates in-case anything had changed. I’m pleased to report (from the point of view of change being likely to cause more work and / or hassle) that the VAT reduction does not effect conversions and the 5% rate remains as it was…

Only standard-rated sales are affected. There are no changes to sales that are zero-rated or reduced-rated for VAT. Similarly, there are no changes to the VAT exemptions.

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I wanted to minimise the use of steel in the building and I like the texture and appearance of untreated hard woods - that led to the importation of two eastern European oak beams for use in the barn.

That long journey (let’s not worry about carbon footprints for now) and a few weeks sitting outside on my yard left their marks on the beams. Both were water stained and blackened and in this state were installed into the barn and the first floor was built ‘on’ them.

Based on a combination of hind-sight and time earned experience here is the MyBarnConversion guide to cleaning oak (hardwood) beams.

If at all possible, clean the beams with a pressure washer prior to installation, that will save a lot of effort later.

oak beam before cleaning

oak beam being steam cleaned

cleaned oak beam!

If you’re unable to clean the beam before construction, then get out the elbow grease.

• Wash down and scrape the beam to remove surface dirt and mold.
• Use a steamer cleaner to open up the grain and clean into the beam, this will also have the effect of sterilising the wood. A wall paper steam remover will work fine.
• Steam cleaning will begin to bring engrained dirt to the surface. You will find that badly stained wood will need to be scraped to remove the worst of it.
• Using a combination of scraping and washing down (preferably with warm water and detergent) your beam will slowly become clean.
• Rinse and repeat…
• The wood may take some time to dry out, you’ll not be able to tell the final colour and finish until it’s dry, so don’t panic yourself into unnecessary cycles of the cleaning process.

Sand to remove particularly deep stains, splinters and scruffs.

[UPDATE]
I’ve read in a couple of places that sugar soap works well. Will give it ago as I have some other beams that need cleaning.

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The Code for Sustainable Homes is an essential read for anyone considering a sustainable home building project. In its own words:

The Code for Sustainable Homes has been introduced to drive a step-change
in sustainable home building practice. It is a standard for key elements of
design and construction which affect the sustainability of a new home.

It is under-pined by heavy-weight research having being built upon the Building Research Establishment’s (BRE) EcoHomes System.

How does the code work?

The code seeks to achieve improvements to levels of sustainability in home building through the establishment of minimum standards for energy and water efficiency, the provision of a simple points based rating system for enumerating levels of sustainability and extending the scope of the code into areas such as composting and ‘lifetime’ issues of the home such as accessibility and adaptability.

The rating system allows for the allocation of an overall one to six stars to communicate the sustainability level of a home. The overall score is built up from sub-scores in nine broad design categories, these are:

• Energy/CO2
• Water
• Materials
• Surface water run-off
• Waste
• Pollution
• Health and well-being
• Management
• Ecology

Energy/CO2 & Water have minimum levels that must be achieved at each of the six levels of the code. Materials, Surface water run-off & Waste have a minimum level that must be attained to allow entry into the code at all.

Briefly, assessment of a number of issues defined by the code within each category allows the allocation of a number of points and from these points the overall star rating is derived. For example, in the Energy/CO2 category points are scored through taking measures such as utilising renewable or low carbon energy sources and also through the provision of bicycle storage or a home office.

The code has high hopes for itself, aiming to provide environmental benefits with a positive impact on climate change and a reduction in the environmental impact of building. Additionally, benefit to builders by providing a flexible mark of quality and greater direction in terms of future regulations and to home-owners through lower running costs, improved comfort & satisfaction and generally more pleasant and healthier places to live.

Why should I use them?

Whilst providing a potential future gold standard for sustainable building (only time, implementation and experience will confirm or reject that statement), the code is useful at the design stage for both professionals and non-professionals in providing a design template and useful design patterns. The categories and issues of The Code for Sustainable Homes can be used in the same way as I’ve used design patterns , to help focus on detail and polish the overall design.

You should also note that all new homes, except those where ‘the initial notice, full plans or Building Notice have been received by the relevant Local Authority Building Control body prior to 1st May 2008′ will have to be rated against the code.

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The term BREEAM is one that I’ve come across in various contexts over the course of this project and thought I’d better find out what it means…
BREEAM is a widely used environmental assessment method for buildings. The assessments are carried out by qualified practitioners. For many types of development, assessments are a prerequisite.
Through application of [...]

A piece of good news that is of great interest personally and I’m sure of interest to many people planning conversions and other projects, is that the installation of solar thermal & PV panels, combined-heat & power systems, biomass systems and water & ground source heat pumps will no longer require planning permission, so long [...]