Q. If so, what benifits/detriments have you found. Research has shown me that they are more benificial to standard 'stick' framing (insulation, air infiltration etc. ) I'm planning a couple of room additions (bedroom, dining room/sunroom) and I am curious as to what I should expect. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

A. Hi, I used SIPS to construct a 9m x 3m extension to the rear of our house, it's a fairly simple lean to but because of the slope of the land I built it on a ring frame rather than conventional foundations. Then used Sips panels for the floor as well which gives me excellent thermal insulation and a nice flat surface to build up from. It took approx 14 man days to lay the floor and erect the walls and put the roof on. This was with no previous Sips experience but a fair bit of building knowledge. The whole process was really straight forward and when I have the money I'll do a further 2 story extension using Sips. The only issues I had where 1. Ensure the drawings are absolutely accurate, next time I'll use a structural engineer to draw them, had an architect do them first time and they tend to do concept not detail. Check the drawings make allowance for the thickness of the panels and any finishes you apply. 2. I had all the materials delivered by the sips supplier and the timber they sourced was not cut to the same tolerance as the sips which meant I had to get much of it machined to size. 3. We used a lot more glue than they supplied, make sure your local supplier has some in stock, it's expanding PU wood adhesive, fantastic stuff! get it in the tubes and use a mastic gun to apply. Our extension has been up for over year now and we are delighted, exterior is rendered on a s/s mesh to match the house and internally I dry lined it as I wanted to run the services on the surface of the sips panels. Overall, why would anyone use anything else, on insulation we added kitchen space and a sun lounge I have added no heating to either room and despite having a glass roof panel 3m x 2m in the sun lounge it has never been cold. Go for it, use a good company, shop around for the best price once you have detailed drawings and if you know a good chippy thats probably all you need to get the structure up. Best Nick

Q. I'm thinking about adding a sunroom to my house. I'm looking at about a 20' by 17' room with 2 sliding doors. No heat or air, but I was thinking about getting sliding windows to I could slide them open to let a breeze in. Any ideas on a ball park estimate would be amazing. Thank you!

A. I guess I'm the first to answer, so I'll try my best. Essentially, you need to be careful in looking for a "ballpark" figure here on Yah, as, really, you'll just be taken down the wrong path: You might be given guesses that are way too high, prompting you to abandon something that could have actually been done within your budget, or, alternatively, you might be given guesses that are way too low, prompting you to "gun it" and incur a lot of unexpected debt when you're done. The reason reliance on Yah is not the smart way to go is this: The cost of materials and labor just VARY way too much by location. (John Doe in Nevada would be giving you a highly-inflated local rate in his area compared to the local rate of your location.) So, fortunately, there are plenty of local remodeling contractors (who do additions) seeking to give free estimates with no obligation, and taking advantage of this is the consumer-smart way to go about finding an accurate answer to your question. Unlike us here online, a contractor who gives you a no-obligation, free estimate will have the advantage of seeing your house in person to really understand what--how--the improvements will be done, including the ability to understand physical characterisitcs of your building that may turn out to reduce the cost of such a project than what others would guess for you on here. As I said, Free estimates from local remodeling contractors are the key to your success in this home improvement project of yours. Here's a great link to a handyman site that offers free very resourceful information to assist you in determining the cost of your project, and, ultimately, selecting a local remodeling contractor in an effort to get the best deal for you: REMODELING CONTRACTOR INFO: http://yourhandymanzone.com/Your_Handyman_Zone_Free_Estimates_Additions.htm I'm sure you'll find the information, specifically the tips, useful. . .

Q. If so, what benifits/detriments have you found. Research has shown me that they are more benificial to standard 'stick' framing (insulation, air infiltration etc. ) I'm planning a couple of room additions (bedroom, dining room/sunroom) and I am curious as to what I should expect. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

A. Hi, I used SIPS to construct a 9m x 3m extension to the rear of our house, it's a fairly simple lean to but because of the slope of the land I built it on a ring frame rather than conventional foundations. Then used Sips panels for the floor as well which gives me excellent thermal insulation and a nice flat surface to build up from. It took approx 14 man days to lay the floor and erect the walls and put the roof on. This was with no previous Sips experience but a fair bit of building knowledge. The whole process was really straight forward and when I have the money I'll do a further 2 story extension using Sips. The only issues I had where 1. Ensure the drawings are absolutely accurate, next time I'll use a structural engineer to draw them, had an architect do them first time and they tend to do concept not detail. Check the drawings make allowance for the thickness of the panels and any finishes you apply. 2. I had all the materials delivered by the sips supplier and the timber they sourced was not cut to the same tolerance as the sips which meant I had to get much of it machined to size. 3. We used a lot more glue than they supplied, make sure your local supplier has some in stock, it's expanding PU wood adhesive, fantastic stuff! get it in the tubes and use a mastic gun to apply. Our extension has been up for over year now and we are delighted, exterior is rendered on a s/s mesh to match the house and internally I dry lined it as I wanted to run the services on the surface of the sips panels. Overall, why would anyone use anything else, on insulation we added kitchen space and a sun lounge I have added no heating to either room and despite having a glass roof panel 3m x 2m in the sun lounge it has never been cold. Go for it, use a good company, shop around for the best price once you have detailed drawings and if you know a good chippy thats probably all you need to get the structure up. Best Nick

Q. So When installing ceramic tile, (ours is going to be porceline) is it best to put the heating system ounderneath? Do you really need it. I keep telling my parents to put it and they aren't sure we really need it. I told them how my friend had it in her sunroom and they ended up pulling it all out a few years after to re-do it with the heating system underneath. What do you guys think? Also who would be installing it? Do you get an electrition or does the ceramic floor installer do it? Thanks! I'm sorry I didnt word that correctly...my friend had ceramic in her sunroom without the heating system and they pulled all the ceramics out afew years after to re-do it with the heating system because they said it was too cold all the time..thats what im worried about..is it really cold all the time on the feet..I felt the ceramic tile we have piled ready to be installed and it doesn't feel too cold, what do you think?

A. I would think that in most climates it wouldn't be absolutely necessary to have floor heating if your house has an alternate source of heat. I don't have heat under my tile floors.They do stay cool but shoes or socks remedy that. Another thing to consider is the heating cost. We had marble floors in the home I grew up in and it was heated. The cost of heating the floor is very expensive. Like I said it just depends on the climate. If you live in a very cold climate you may want to go ahead and install it but otherwise it's really not necassary. God bless!!

Q. I'm looking for graphic artists who copyleft their work. Anyone know where I might find a listing?

A. Free Art License [ Copyleft Attitude ] version 1.2 Preamble : With this Free Art License, you are authorised to copy, distribute and freely transform the work of art while respecting the rights of the originator. Far from ignoring the author's rights, this license recognises them and protects them. It reformulates their principle while making it possible for the public to make creative use of the works of art. Whereas current literary and artistic property rights result in restriction of the public's access to works of art, the goal of the Free Art License is to encourage such access. The intention is to make work accessible and to authorise the use of its resources by the greatest number of people: to use it in order to increase its use, to create new conditions for creation in order to multiply the possibilities of creation, while respecting the originators in according them recognition and defending their moral rights. 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Q. I need help for my Diploma! I'm really stuck. Identify a piece of legislation that impacts on the police and Her Majesty's prison service (HM prison service) for legal, professional and political accountability. So i need a piece of legislation for both the police and HM prison service. One each for legal accountability. One each for professional accountability and one each for political accountability. Please help, i really need help :(

A. The Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996 (CPIA) governs the thoroughness of police investigations and also compels them to disclose to the courts information about cases that meet certain criteria, so this piece of legislation would be one legal accountability for the police. The Police Act 1998 created HM Inspector of Constabulary (HMIC), who inspect the police to ensure that they are doing their job properly. So this act would be one professional accountability for the police. The Police Act 1964 created Police Authorities, with subsequent additions made by the Local Government Act and Police and Magistrates Court Act. Police Authorities hold police forces to account on behalf of the public, so this would be one political accountability for the police. Can't help on HM Prison Service, sorry.

Q. I have a SLIGHT problem but first a little background. My husband owns a very sucessful construction and remodeling company.Any work I want done around the house he does it without complaining and puts as much pride in the work he does himself here as he does in the work that people pay his company to do. From building an E85 plant to remodeling kitchens.Here is the problem. We started to remodel our home, every color, fabric and so forth I picked out and yes I asked him did he like it before I made the final choices.Recently after 2 1/2 months of remodeling our upstairs bathroom gutting it to the bones ripping up the floor and even instaling custom made cabinets it is complete. And.......I HATE IT! I hate everything about it, I hate the color, I hate the new heated floor, I hate the windows I hate the cabinets I even hate the shower curtain! How do I tell him? As I type this I am sitting in our computer room it is 1/3 painted something I told him I'd do before he got back on the 3rd of Feb. The upstairs doors are supposed to be getting new hardware, again something simple I said I could do, but I havent! I have no motivation at all and I dont know where I can find my motivation or infact why it was lost I use to be so thrilled that we were redoing our home. I put off everything these last 3 weeks from doing dishs, laundry and I even for the first time EVER have dust above my door frames. How do I tell him I hate the bathroom without him freaking out, and how do I remotivate myself to complete the things Ive been putting off before he returns home?! ha ha buzz or is it bizz anyhow like I said I picked everything out and I was taking care of our speical needs terminally ill daughter and now 8 month old son. I'd go upstairs to ask did he need help but he usually refused it. As for what I hate about it, I hate EVERYTHING I dont like the color of the cabinet or even the design.Before he ordered them he told me to make sure it was what I wanted because it could not be returned. The bathroom isnt the only problem, we have a new bamboo floor in our kitchen that are you ready for this: It just pisses me off looking at it. Soon our living and entry way are scheduled for remodel I had THOUGH I wanted tile or marble heated flooring but I am changing my mind. Maybe all these projects are overwhelming to me thank god Ive not made any choices on our "flip" house yet. I just dont know what Im going to do he did work hard and it was expensive even w his "discounts" and I dont want him angry

A. I think you are suffering from "project fatigue". We've experienced it ourselves and have seen it with clients. Here is what I suggest. Live with the bathroom remodel for a little while. Try to introduce new elements, like color, with towels, throw rugs and accessories in what you think you would like to change the color to. Ask yourself whether it is the design of the new cabinets or the wood tone/color that is bothering you. What would you change about them to like them more? Are there window coverings (i.e. cornices, shutters, draperies, shades, blinds, etc.) that you could use to change the way the windows look? Is there a theme that you are particularly fond of that you can implement to take the ambiance of the bathroom in a different direction? (ie. French country, Tuscan, spa, mid-century modern) In other words, what can you change to change your perception of the room? Admittedly, my hubby (a well respected interior designer and architect) has implemented some of my designs in our own home that I found myself not happy with upon completion. (Yeah, I know what you mean about being just pissed off looking at something you hate. But, you are really just angry with yourself.) We have corrected what I was unhappy with by additions or subtractions that took the project in a different direction. You are not motivated to do anything further until you resolve the anguish you feel about the bathroom. I have always found that telling my hubby straight out that I am not thrilled with the results of a project relieves my anxieties while setting the creative wheels in his brain rolling. (He doesn't get angry, he gets quiet and withdrawn for awhile.) For example, he came up with the brilliant idea of putting wallpaper inside of a molding on a wainscotting he installed on half the walls in our bedroom. I simply hated the look of the wainscotting plain, the wallpaper helped but I added a wooden relief in the middle of the molding boxes and the hole thing came together. Explain to him that you are not motivated to continue the other projects until these issues are resolved. Unless there is schedules involving subs, you are free to stop and start progress on other projects while this is being resolved. Also, admitting mistakes and changing your mind are not crimes, they are opportunities!

Q. My brother is coming to live with me, so i need to make a Room Addition and remodeling of the bathroom; I live in Hialeah, Miami Can somebody help me? My friend told me about http://www.remodelinghomemiami.com but he haven't used them...

A. I used Miami Home Improvements last year, they had really good prices if you do the kitchen and bathroom remodeling. We also made a room addition with a new bathroom and painted the living room. It was really fast too, i recommend it http://www.remodelinghomemiami.com/kitchen_remodeling_miami.html you can see also they do free estimates