Join us in our journey as we work on our project and build our first home,the Forsyth 35!
Friday 24 November 2017
Wednesday 22 November 2017
Day 101 of 266
Catch-up day with our SS! We turned up too early and about 5 tradies were already working on our Hebel.
When we stepped out of the house after an hour or so of meeting, the tradies were almost finished with our Hebel!
The meeting with our SS basically covered the updates on Darbecca report, what has been fixed, will be fixed before plaster, will be fixed later and won't be fixed at all. We had a long discussion about the items that he won't fix at all and in the end, we gave in after being reassured that they are non structural and asking for engineering review will cause further delay.
We advised him that we want the skirting put on and painted as we are using Quickstep scotia. Now, there are 2 water taps at the front of our house that is directly in our porch and he said we can ask that to be moved after hand-over, but it will cost $600 to move it to a very limited distance so I don't think it's worth it to move the taps for now. We reminded him about the feature paint in the cinema/lounge that he promised us. We gave him the new HDMI which he installed right after our meeting. He will let us know when our electrician can come in to out the power outlet for the projector.
While waiting for our SS, we noticed that a hole was being dug by Woodlea landscapers in our nature strip to plant our tree and then they suddenly covered the hole and moved on to the block next to us. I had a chat with them and they told me that they can't put a tree on the hole as there are NBN cables in there.
I asked them if they can put our tree farther from the NBN cables and not just leave our front without a tree. After a phone call to his supervisor, they went back to our block and dug up a new hole for us!
Hooray! This definitely made my day and the early trip to Woodlea all worth it. I just love being surrounded by trees, back home I had avocado, jackfruit, sugar apple, rambutan and the flowering champaca tree in our yard!
I'm also super excited that the nature strip in front of the wetlands also got planted with trees today.
Before the Meeting
When we stepped out of the house after an hour or so of meeting, the tradies were almost finished with our Hebel!
After the Meeting
The meeting with our SS basically covered the updates on Darbecca report, what has been fixed, will be fixed before plaster, will be fixed later and won't be fixed at all. We had a long discussion about the items that he won't fix at all and in the end, we gave in after being reassured that they are non structural and asking for engineering review will cause further delay.
We advised him that we want the skirting put on and painted as we are using Quickstep scotia. Now, there are 2 water taps at the front of our house that is directly in our porch and he said we can ask that to be moved after hand-over, but it will cost $600 to move it to a very limited distance so I don't think it's worth it to move the taps for now. We reminded him about the feature paint in the cinema/lounge that he promised us. We gave him the new HDMI which he installed right after our meeting. He will let us know when our electrician can come in to out the power outlet for the projector.
We got our Tree!
While waiting for our SS, we noticed that a hole was being dug by Woodlea landscapers in our nature strip to plant our tree and then they suddenly covered the hole and moved on to the block next to us. I had a chat with them and they told me that they can't put a tree on the hole as there are NBN cables in there.
I asked them if they can put our tree farther from the NBN cables and not just leave our front without a tree. After a phone call to his supervisor, they went back to our block and dug up a new hole for us!
Hooray! This definitely made my day and the early trip to Woodlea all worth it. I just love being surrounded by trees, back home I had avocado, jackfruit, sugar apple, rambutan and the flowering champaca tree in our yard!
Saturday 18 November 2017
Day 97 of 266
Finally, we're all wrapped up!
Our BC sent me an email to update that they will install the rest of the Hebel early next week and the plaster the week after. My SS also sent me an text message that we will have a catch up sometime next week.
Tuesday 14 November 2017
Day 92 of 266
Week 13 now! Scaffolding to the first floor has been installed again so the Hebel to the first floor and the remaining parts of the ground floor should be finished in the next couple of days. That should make our house look more like a real house and make us feel that we are nearer to completion.
Our SS sent me the engineering report that our slab repair has been reviewed and approved.
Our SS sent me the engineering report that our slab repair has been reviewed and approved.
Friday 10 November 2017
The Pains of Building a New House
I have heard so many horror stories of thefts and vandalism happening to houses being built in new estates and I have been praying that I won't be writing about them here, but here I go.
A few weeks ago, our master bedroom window and a living room window got broken so our SS installed CCTV camera. We thought this will stop the problem, but no!
Last Wednesday, we drove by our site and as I was checking the repaired slab, I heard water running somewhere and then I noticed that water was flowing out of the house. When we opened the door the whole ground floor was flooded, a water pipe in the powder room was cut-off and water was left running.
I rang my SS who advised us to turn the tap off from the main pipe which we did. He told me that he couldn't come over as he was busy.
As we were looking around, my husband saw that the HDMI that Big Picture People installed for us was missing.
Despite what he said, my SS arrived after a few minutes and warned me that I was not supposed to be inside as it was very unsafe. We showed him what happened and told him about our HDMI. He then checked the copper wire in the heating/cooling system and found that it had been cut-off, even the one in the first floor.
He saw that I was very upset and reassured me that the water on the floor will ran off and dry out and no damage to the frame at all. He will replace the copper wire soonest and have the other wirings checked. As for our HDMI cable, he said that he couldn't claim that from their insurance as it was not in our contract but he will just give me a free feature wall! Winner!
I rang Big Picture People today and the HDMI replacement cost was $35. My SS was happy for us to give him the wire and he will have it installed just before plaster so it won't be stolen again.
On positive note, our slab has been repaired already and it looked way better than before.
Our front facade has Hebel installed also.
Hopefully, after the slab repair, things will get moving more quickly for us. The Hebel to the first floor still needs to be done. Our window in the family and cinema/lounge room are still missing and the ones in the master bedroom and living room were still broken. The copper wires for the heating/cooling system need to be replaced and all the other wires will need to be checked. I still need to check if the defects found by Darbecca regarding our frame, insulation and plumbing has been fixed already.
We saw that our plaster was delivered yesterday.
A few weeks ago, our master bedroom window and a living room window got broken so our SS installed CCTV camera. We thought this will stop the problem, but no!
Last Wednesday, we drove by our site and as I was checking the repaired slab, I heard water running somewhere and then I noticed that water was flowing out of the house. When we opened the door the whole ground floor was flooded, a water pipe in the powder room was cut-off and water was left running.
I rang my SS who advised us to turn the tap off from the main pipe which we did. He told me that he couldn't come over as he was busy.
As we were looking around, my husband saw that the HDMI that Big Picture People installed for us was missing.
Despite what he said, my SS arrived after a few minutes and warned me that I was not supposed to be inside as it was very unsafe. We showed him what happened and told him about our HDMI. He then checked the copper wire in the heating/cooling system and found that it had been cut-off, even the one in the first floor.
He saw that I was very upset and reassured me that the water on the floor will ran off and dry out and no damage to the frame at all. He will replace the copper wire soonest and have the other wirings checked. As for our HDMI cable, he said that he couldn't claim that from their insurance as it was not in our contract but he will just give me a free feature wall! Winner!
I rang Big Picture People today and the HDMI replacement cost was $35. My SS was happy for us to give him the wire and he will have it installed just before plaster so it won't be stolen again.
On positive note, our slab has been repaired already and it looked way better than before.
Before Repair
After Repair
Before Repair
After Repair
Our front facade has Hebel installed also.
Hopefully, after the slab repair, things will get moving more quickly for us. The Hebel to the first floor still needs to be done. Our window in the family and cinema/lounge room are still missing and the ones in the master bedroom and living room were still broken. The copper wires for the heating/cooling system need to be replaced and all the other wires will need to be checked. I still need to check if the defects found by Darbecca regarding our frame, insulation and plumbing has been fixed already.
Sunday 5 November 2017
Slab Repair
Unfortunately, a small section of our slab, the one in front of our Cinema/Lounge had a bony finish to the edge as noted by Darbecca inspector. He recommended that we request for engineering report to ensure the integrity of the slab.
Our SS sent us the engineering report last week and they would need to fix that portion by cutting that edge and cleaning the reinforcements. They will use MasterEmaco bonding/protective primer, epoxy binder and mortar to repair the slab as recommended in the report.
A qualified building surveyor will need to review the repair undertaken and my SS will send me the report for the repair.
Thank God that we paid for inspector! We didn't even notice this defect when we have been checking our slab. We were too focused on looking at level and evenness of the slab that didn't see this defect.
Our SS sent us the engineering report last week and they would need to fix that portion by cutting that edge and cleaning the reinforcements. They will use MasterEmaco bonding/protective primer, epoxy binder and mortar to repair the slab as recommended in the report.
A qualified building surveyor will need to review the repair undertaken and my SS will send me the report for the repair.
Thank God that we paid for inspector! We didn't even notice this defect when we have been checking our slab. We were too focused on looking at level and evenness of the slab that didn't see this defect.
Friday 3 November 2017
Our Laminate Flooring
So, we are doing our laminate flooring and carpet after hand-over and we have been busy going around suppliers such as Western Distributors, Floor World, Carpet Court and Flooring Xtra. We want to be ready with our choice come Christmas time and Boxing Day so we can put our deposit, just in case they will go on sale.
Here's a run thru on how we finally selected the laminate flooring that we will use for our Forsyth.
Our WOS Colour Selection
(Van Gogh Timber Laminate from Provincial Range of Unique Timber Floors)
Board Size: 2260 X234 X 12mm
Board Size: 2260 X234 X 12mm
This was our choice at WOS colour selection. We just loved how the small board sample worked really well with all our other colours. I really love the pattern and texture on the board. There's a huge increase in the flooring promotion price when we upgraded to this and so we decided to drop it off and just do our own flooring after hand-over. I tried to contact the supplier of UTF, but apparently they only supply direct to builders.
(pics from Hynes Group website)
Our Initial Choice
(Mendocini from XXL Grande Authentico Laminate range by Clever Choice)
Board Size: 2175 X 243 X 12mm
As we were looking around for a laminate similar to Van Gogh, we saw Mendocini. It's a long, wide and thick board that resembles Van Gogh but more simple so I liked it. The sales consultants that we spoke with though seemed to favor Quick Step in terms of reliability and quality so we had second thoughts about this. This is also not waterproofed.
(pics from Clever Choice website)
Inspired by Madison 40 Champagne France Display
Antique Rocky Oak timber by Unique Timber Floors
Board Size: 2130 X 240
We went to see Madison 40 display in Rosenthal Estate again for some inspiration and my husband and I just loved the timber floor in there. We decided to drop the idea of getting a flooring similar to Van Gogh and just go for this classic, clean, simple look.
(pics from Hynes Group website)
Finally Found It!
After deciding that we want our floor to be classic, simple and clean looking similar to Madison 40, we found what we were looking for in Quick Step's Majestic range. We would either go for Desert Oak Light Natural or Woodland Oak Beige. This range is the newest and most luxurious range of Quick Step. The boards are long and wide and waterproofed.
Desert Oak Light Natural Laminate from Majestic Range of Quick Step
Board Size: 2050 X 240 X 9.5mm
Woodland Oak Beige Laminate from Majestic Range of Quick Step
(pics from Quick Step website)
As Quick Step has specific scotia to match their product, we will also request Porter Davis to put all our skirtings in place. This will also simplify the work to be done after hand-over as Floor World will do everything for us. The laminate flooring, scotia, underlay and installation will cost $9,050 for a 100 sqm area.
Day 82 of 266
We're just so excited to see how our house would look with Hebel so we drove by after dinner. The ground floor work is almost finished and the house now looks so much bigger and higher with the Hebel on.
Wednesday 1 November 2017
Day 80 of 266
We had our frame re-inspection and pre-plaster inspection today. Out of the 13 issues noted during our frame inspection, 7 were still outstanding. One of these was the bony edge to our slab which we are still waiting for PD engineering report and the other one is the uneven section section of the slab which our SS said will be attended to prior to hand-over. All the other 5 outstanding issues were related to frame.
Based on the latest inspection report, there are now 22 noted defects which include the 7 outstanding defects from frame re-inspection.
Our Hebel installation also started today. I was assured by the installer that they were instructed to leave the front slab with issue alone.
Based on the latest inspection report, there are now 22 noted defects which include the 7 outstanding defects from frame re-inspection.
Our Hebel installation also started today. I was assured by the installer that they were instructed to leave the front slab with issue alone.
Our Hebel Installation
Our Pre-plaster Inspection
(The blue spray paints were from pre-plaster inspection and the red ones were the slab and frame inspection)
The Ground Floor
The First Floor
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