Lessons Learned - Building a House

[Spot]

Good work Spot, im jealous !

We just got the bill yesterday for our framework. Things have really progressed in the last few weeks since Easter. Our windows and patio doors went in last week, and the scaffolding and bricks are all on site ready to go. We have been told brickwork will start this week. I will post some pics in the next couple of days.

Our 'Customer service rep' got the boot last week too, after lots of complaints from many clients - hopefully the new one we have will be better, so far so good. At least he rings me back !!!

At least you have one, everytime I ring I have to speak to another area and have also been given their contractors numbers to call.

I am pleased it is nearly over, started Jan 2007, so much for the 9 mths.

Once the bricks are up everything goes fast. When my bricks went up I went to the house and took all the excess mortar off the pipes and out of the wall cavities. According to the building code they should do this, but my builder didn't and I didn't want mortar
dropping down the walls everytime I ran the water. There was loads off it and it just comes off the pipes so easy.

I am happy as I know that has been done.

Post photos up as you go, I have about 200 just to remember the different stages and the crap work. lol.

[Felch]

Just thought i would share something which made me laugh this morning.

As i previously mentioned, we have a new 'Customer Rep' with our builder, after the previous one got the boot. He rang me this morning to tell me our brickwork was 50% complete as of today, and our roof was going on today too.

One small prob with this info though - my wife was out at the house yesterday morning and the bricks have not even been started !!! When i mentioned this too him, he was speechless !!! He did apologise and said he is only 'new' and he was still getting to know the job.

Oh well, at least he is calling me with some sort of info, even if it is wrong !!!

[heater31]

Just thought i would share something which made me laugh this morning.

As i previously mentioned, we have a new 'Customer Rep' with our builder, after the previous one got the boot. He rang me this morning to tell me our brickwork was 50% complete as of today, and our roof was going on today too.

One small prob with this info though - my wife was out at the house yesterday morning and the bricks have not even been started !!! When i mentioned this too him, he was speechless !!! He did apologise and said he is only 'new' and he was still getting to know the job.

Oh well, at least he is calling me with some sort of info, even if it is wrong !!!

WTF a Customer Rep the old saying "You pay peanuts, you get monkeys" does this bloke know what a hammer or a brickies trowel look like Felch?


I know of at least one high profile Package builder paid peanuts and got a monkey that rang up a plumber and asked does the underfloor pipework go down before or after the slab is poured?

[Felch]

Just thought i would share something which made me laugh this morning.

As i previously mentioned, we have a new 'Customer Rep' with our builder, after the previous one got the boot. He rang me this morning to tell me our brickwork was 50% complete as of today, and our roof was going on today too.

One small prob with this info though - my wife was out at the house yesterday morning and the bricks have not even been started !!! When i mentioned this too him, he was speechless !!! He did apologise and said he is only 'new' and he was still getting to know the job.

Oh well, at least he is calling me with some sort of info, even if it is wrong !!!

WTF a Customer Rep the old saying "You pay peanuts, you get monkeys" does this bloke know what a hammer or a brickies trowel look like Felch?


I know of at least one high profile Package builder paid peanuts and got a monkey that rang up a plumber and asked does the underfloor pipework go down before or after the slab is poured?

The 'Customer Rep' is purely a office-bound role - he is our contact with our builder. He, supposedly, liases with the tradies, and passes on info to us - not always accurate though !

They may be paying peanuts, but i know i'm not !!!

[Spot]

Hey you are lucky, I have never got a call from my builders, sorry only once to tell me the cabinet was wrong for the sink I had chosen? When my bricks were not in stock PGH rang, the tiles I picked were no longer in the stock the tile place rang. Even this week I have had to call them to tell them what is going on with the house. The power is now on and now it looks like someone has made themselves at home with a jug sitting on the bench ready for coffee. They have now used power and I wonder who pays for that?? Well inspection was due to be this week, it now appears this is not going to happen, but the building inspector is going tomorrow and I guess I will find out the extra problems.

After speaking to him about my problems with the tiles he thinks I may have a problem, only time will tell.

Shame there is not a shame file for builders so they can all pull into line....It appears they do what they want.

[smac]

I think you'll find most of the builders take advantage of your power once it is connected - surely you don't begrudge the bloke plastering the walls a hot cuppa? Imagine if they had to do your walls without their coffee fix!

Communication has never been a strength for builders, that's why they build homes instead of running a communications company - just something we all deal with.

[Spot]

I think you'll find most of the builders take advantage of your power once it is connected - surely you don't begrudge the bloke plastering the walls a hot cuppa? Imagine if they had to do your walls without their coffee fix!

Communication has never been a strength for builders, that's why they build homes instead of running a communications company - just something we all deal with.

No not at all, I took coffee and Tim Tams for the plasters and painters, but that has all been done and it is just the cleaning at at the moment. Jug just in today and new power board shows the power used. House is ready.

I would expect the builders to communicate, but they have about 50 people that work in the office and they also promise a customer rep to you when you sign, how things change.

I know some builders are great, but mine sucks big time..

[smac]

Most of them suck big time. Glad it's almost over for you mate, enjoy it when you move in.

[Spot]

Most of them suck big time. Glad it's almost over for you mate, enjoy it when you move in.

Thanks mate, just wonder what week I will get it now lol..

They might ring me as they will want the final payment, just don't like leaving the house empty as it is at the moment....

[Psyber]

We finally got our kitchen finished, only 20 days behind schedule. Everything went smoothly at the design and cabinet building stage up to the point when we inspected the product at the factory, but they didn't supervise the tradies:

I caught the electrician about to stick a large double power point come junction box on the decorative panel on the island bench instead of the slimline one specified for the border - "That's what we always do." The slimline one required a separate junction box inside the cupboard.

The plumber cut the junction pipe between the twin sinks too short - it barely reached the downpipe socket rather than go into the 30mm deep socket, so the rubber seal wouldn't stay on and we had a flood. Then he didn't turn up the day the boss of the kitchen company had arranged with him to come and fix it. The boss was up here yesterday fixing a few minor things, including the power point which had been distorted and wouldn't let you plug things in easily because of the pressure of excess cable pushed back into the junction box behind the panel, and he had to ring the plumber 4 times to say "where are you". He had promised to be here with the boss at 8am. It was 9.55am before he finally turned up, looking irritated and unwilling.

While waiting for the plumber, I got the boss to check the sealing under the sink, as it looked like the rubber seals were barely in place. He took it out and re-seated it with some additional silicon as well while waiting for the plumber to show.

We are now running a test period before we pay the final payment as agreed with the boss. They tradies get paid by the kitchen company when we are satisfied and pay them. I won't hurry!

[Spot]

Wait as long as it takes. Once I got the house we found the sink leaked and called them to fix last Tuesday, it was only yesterday that they called me back for a time to fix it.......I had already got someone in to fix it last week as I wanted to use the sink. Bit slow as the sink must have of leaked from the word go.

My builder still won't fix the problems that I have had and it appears they never will.

But if they don't at the 3 mth mark I will go as far as I have to to get the many things fixed...

Good luck and take your time...

[brod]

Settlement not til July

Still no land settlememt..need that to keep everything moving in the forward direction

[Felch]

Settlement not til July

Still no land settlememt..need that to keep everything moving in the forward direction

We had some issues with our settlement too. Im guessing yours is in a new sub-division, or new street ???

[brod]

Settlement not til July

Still no land settlememt..need that to keep everything moving in the forward direction

We had some issues with our settlement too. Im guessing yours is in a new sub-division, or new street ???

Yeah new street

[Psyber]

The hitch is probably the time it takes from the council approving the subdivision to them finally getting around to the paper work, and supplying it, so the titles can be registered.
In Victoria you can put a block on the market and supply the required Section 32 statements based on the approved plan, but there cannot be a settlement until the registration is done.

I've got a block on the market now that was increased in size by a transfer from adjacent land I own. It was all approved a month ago but no paper from the council who are also sitting on a $500 refundable deposit of mine.

[heater31]

In SA the lands department are useless it can take up to 18 months for a subdivision of an existing block to be approved. One can only wonder what they do if they have to record a new street

[smac]

I have heard anecdotal reports of the same thing taking 3 weeks in some parts of Queensland, but we wouldn't investigate that and see if we can improve in SA, would we?

[Felch]

Been a while since i updated, but finally got our keys on 14th November. Slab went down in mid-March, so about 36 weeks from start to finish. Signed the contract in Sept 2007 though.

Communication from the builder (or lack of !!!) was a major problem through the whole process. We had a couple of lengthy delays due to availability of building supplies (rainhoods and guttering), and also tradespeople having to re-do some of their incorrect work (tiles!!!).

Happy with the end result though, nothing quite like moving into a brand new house. Our driveway is being done today, airco finished tomorrow.

Pic below was taken 2 days before handover.

[Footy Chick]

Finally, hooray! Nice place Felch, enjoy!

[smac]

Nice! You must be stoked, well done mate.