Saturday 27 July 2013

Day 150 - skirting boards in upstairs

Plaster false walls added under stairsand extra bulkheads above cabinets. 
Floors leveled and skirting installed. 

Latches being added to doors
And balcony ready for tiles





Friday 12 July 2013

Day 135 - Plaster hung and in the process of being sealed




Our SS reports all items mentioned in the report have been rectified, and that the ones I thought hadn't been done, will be done - it was just a timing issue to do it at the right time. 
While this has all been happening we have had a little R&R in the Australian outback, with plenty of Roos and Emus to keep us all on our toes, and to take us away from the house while the plaster and rectifications were done.

Friday 5 July 2013

Day 129 - Pre-Plaster Report received

Money well spent!
The report was emailed to me late last night, but I didn't see it until today.

CG were keen to see it so I sent them a copy once I had read it.

As others have sais, the NHI report is very clear, detailed and references the specific Australian Standard Building codes.

The inspector found quite a few shortcomings, many but not all, introduced since the last inspection.  Types of things found related largely to changes that plumbers and others had introduced that would have had long term impacts to the house, such as possibly creaking floors due to cut timber supports allowing too much movement between struts, lack of noggins in some of the woodwork, that would have resulted in difficulty getting the plaster up (and to have it stay without issue), and a number of technical matters.

Pretty impressive report, and CG naturally offered to jump right on it, rescheduled the work for next week, so as to address the raised issues.  CG have always told me that they value additional private inspections, they do multiple levels of inspection themselves, but they value "a fresh set of eyes", and seem to truly want to deliver a product of the highest order.  I really cant imagine there are too many builders where the site supervisor is allowed to just make this call, and action it.

I am blown away, of all the normal worries of a small family, I am delighted to report that the house build itself seems to be the least, which is not what I expected when I started this journey.


Wednesday 3 July 2013

Day 126 - House Inspection booked - pre-plaster

I have to admit I um'd and ah'd about the need for an inspection, after the last inspection found nothing but work to complement, but in the end as I had to sign off acceptance of this stage to the bank, I thought I would have an inspection and perhaps use a different mob than the last one.  So I organised NHI, and they impressed me from the word go.

The first thing to impress me was the callback after the booking, the lovely lady who took the booking apparently discussed the job with a director, and they decided that they needed to inform me of two facts, first that they have done some paid work for CG, and second that the inspector that they are sending would have no relationship with that previous, and fairly minor it would seem, work.  While I already knew that NHI had been employed by CG in past, that was the rationale for not using them on my first inspection, it was refreshing and very reassuring that they would go to the trouble of making a second call to volunteer such information to me.

No inspection done yet, but I was happily impressed already.

Day 125 - at Lockup


All missing Hebel now installed, all external facing doors and windows in place, and a fetching pink damp proof layer applied at the bottom of the walls