Flood mitigation (i.e. measures that can be taken to keep water out of the building or measures to make it quicker and cheaper to allow the building to be re-occupied after flooding) is not a matter covered by Building Regulations.
Planning approval may include conditions for mitigation measures.
Advice is given in BS 85500 flood resistant and resilient construction guide to improving the flood performance of buildings. A core standard can be downloaded from www.shop.bsigroup.com
Various internet web sites exist which provide radon risk reports. These reports are usually provided as a chargeable service from the providers and the relevant web site for existing properties is:
UK radon appropriate to small domestic and workplace buildings and extensions that have an existing postal address.
You will need to provide a damp proof course in the extension walls at least 150mm above ground level comprising of impervious sheet material, engineering brick or slates in suitable cement mortar or equivalent materials to prevent the passage of moisture.
Further guidance on suitable damp proof course materials can be found in British Standards Institution Published Document PD 6697: 2010 ‘Recommendations for the design of masonry structures to BS EN 1996-1-1 and BS EN 1996-2’ or in British Standards Institution BS 5628 Part 3: 2005 ‘Code of practice for the use of masonry – Materials and components, design and workmanship’. British Standards Institution publications are available from:
British Standards Institution
389 Chiswick High Road
London
W4 4AL
Your Local Authority Planning Office and the Building Control Authority should hold records of recent extensions to dwellings. You should contact them to verify what permissions have been sought. Contact points can be found from the local telephone directory, the internet or from local citizen’s advice bureau or public libraries.
Provision of water supplies does not, on its own, reduce the physiological impact on firefighters of travelling long distances whilst carrying heavy equipment. Water from private hydrants may still need to be pumped before it can be used for firefighting.
Where it is proposed to adopt an alternative approach to meeting requirement B5 (Access and facilities for the fire service). It would be advisable to seek the advice of the fire and rescue service who can advise on the practicalities of fire fighting.
Guidance in both Volumes of the Approved Document Part B states there should be vehicle access for a pump appliance to within 45m of all points within dwellings. This is to take account of the actual distance that the fire fighters need to carry kit and lay hoses from the vehicle to reach a potential fire.
Guidance in Approved Document Part B states that there should be vehicle access for a pump appliance to within 18m of the dry main connection point. This is to take account of the actual distance that the fire fighters need to carry kit and lay hoses from the vehicle to the building and the time it takes to charge the main.
In some situations where the 18m distance cannot easily be met, it may be acceptable to extend the connection point beyond the face of the building to reduce the distance. However, this will not, on its own, reduce the physiological impact on firefighters of travelling long distances whilst carrying heavy equipment.
Where it is proposed to adopt an alternative approach to meeting requirement B5 (Access and facilities for the fire service) it would be advisable to seek the advice of the fire and rescue service who can advise on the practicalities of fire fighting
Guidance in both volumes of the Approved Document Part B states there should be vehicle access for a pump appliance to within 45m of all points within dwellings. This is to take account of the actual distance that the Fire & Rescue Service need to carry kit and lay hoses from the vehicle to a potential point of fire.
Our local Fire and Rescue Service appliances are fitted with hoses which are much longer than 45m.
The 45m criterion is based on the physiological demands on firefighters engaged in search and rescue and on the restrictions that may be imposed by their equipment.
When considering hose length it is important to appreciate that, in practice, hoses have a tendency to “snake” when charged thus limiting their effective length. It is also common practice to trim the ends of hoses where they become damaged. The time and effort it takes to lay out a hose may also be an important factor.
No, this is a printing error. The word “over” should be retained as for the 2000 edition of Approved Document Part B, and so paragraph 9.12 of Volume 2 of Approved Document Part B 2006 should read: “Where the concealed space is over an undivided area which exceeds 40m (this may be in both directions on plan) there is no limit to the size of the cavity if…….”.
Cavity barriers are provided to reduce the risk from unseen fire spread within concealed spaces in accordance with requirement B3(4) of the Building Regulations. The principle of paragraph 9.12 is that it relates to a concealed space over a single undivided room (such as an open-plan office). Because the room below the space is undivided, the occupants will be able to see a fire develop and react to the changing hazard, thus cavity barriers within the space above are less important than with a cellular layout. The conditions in paragraph 9.12 are intended to reduce the risk of a fire starting/spreading in the undivided void and to prevent fire entering the void from outside the room which is not visible to its occupants.