I figured I would start this forum to track my experience as a first home buyer building my first home with my wife.
As the title of the post indicates, we are building with Arden Homes and will be building the Genoa Verve (with some alterations of course).
Important Dates
Land contract signed - 21/05/2016 - expected titles September 2017 - delayed to March 2018.
Builder Initial Quote/1st Deposit paid to lock in prices/promotions - 15/06/2017
2nd deposit paid - 18/08/2017
Colour Appointment - 27/10/2017
Tender Date/3rd deposit - 24/11/2017
Contract Date/5% deposit - 05/01/2018
Finance approval - 16/01/2018
Compliance given for land - 14/03/2018
Land titled - 27/03/2018
Land settled - 12/04/2018
Soil test report - P-Class
Asset Protection permit paid - 20/04/2018
Building Permit/Council Approval - 07/05/2018
Taps on site - 10/05/2018
Site Start date - 21/05/2018
Power on site - 30/06/2018
Plumbing - 28/05/2018
Slab Pour - 09/06/2018
Frame started - 12/06/2018
Frame completed - 29/06/2018
Lock up - 13/07/2018
Fixing - 31/07/2018
PCI - 05/10/2018
Handover - 26/10/2018
Building Arden Homes Genoa Verve 26 in North East VIC
Page 1 of 6
Why Arden and not someone else?
TL;DR The sales consultant we came across actually treated us like adults and not kids and they would actually build on our block which has quite a large retaining wall on one side. Other mainstream "bulk" builders simply refused to do as we wished.
The long version is this. While my partner and I were looking for homes, we found quite a few we liked, mainly by Henley and Carlisle. We actually invested quite a bit of time talking to these builders. But when we told them where our block was, and the approx 2m high retaining wall next to it (our land is on a hill, but the developer has flattened the blocks and placed retaining walls between each, just picture steps), we were told that the builder would not build within x distance from that wall, regardless of the fact the developer has said builders are allowed to build against this retaining wall as it is not structural.
As our block has only a 12.5m frontage (33m depth), once we allowed for our council's mandated requirement for homes to be at least 1.2m away from the boundary on the non-garage side of the home, we were already pretty tight on build envelope on the width of the homes we could choose from. Our block is already quite small, we want to use as much of the space as possible, and some builders were saying that they required at least 1m away from the retaining wall (even though the developer has no problem with us building against it), these big building companies we telling us to look at 10.5m frontage designs to fit on our 12.5m frontage block!
I just figured these big builders thought that the job was "too hard" because it wasn't as quick and easy as building on a flat block in North or South East Victoria. They could do it, it just wasn't worth their time or effort. We then went to many builders and asked straight up about whether they would build on or near this retaining wall, to our horror, most builders told us the same... "we will require x meters off that retaining wall, try looking at the 10.5m frontage homes".
We purchased the block of land in our area at the time knowing that there was a retaining wall, but we were assured by the developer that we were not going to have any trouble building on the block because of the retaining wall... hindsight is a b*tch.
My partner and I then decided to start looking at custom homes, or 10.5m frontage double story homes as we wanted to make the most out of our block. It was during this time that my partner and I were driving through estates with display homes (low on hope) that was saw a builder that we hadn't seen before - Arden Homes. We decided to stop and have a look at their double story on display (it was too big for our block, but we thought we would have a look at their designs).
The display home was brilliant, and their standard inclusions (& promotion at the time) were great! We spoke to the sales consultant about our budget, what two story homes they had and if they custom built. Unfortunately given our tight budget, custom building was not a possibility, nor really were the double story homes. Then, like most other builders, the sales consultant showed us what was affordable given our price range.
Usually at this point I would get disheartened as the sales consultant would assume that as my partner and I are young, that we have no savings, no good incomes/salaries and cannot afford anything "good". However, this sales consultant showed us a nice single story home, of which they had a display just down the road. On top of that, the home was a 12.5m frontage design and the sales consultant told us that building on the retaining wall is no issue for them. We decided the same day to check out this single story, this was the Arden Bellini Verve 26.
We liked this house and decided to return to our sales consultant and have him draft a quote. It was not till we got home and my partner was looking through the material our sales consultant sent us home with that she noticed the Genoa Verve 26. We like this design a little more and decided to head down to Point Cook to have a look at this home on display (long drive for us!).
Again we return to our sales consultant and had him draft a quote. We later placed a refundable deposit and locked in the price and promotions. So far, working with Arden Homes has been great. Their staff listened to our requests and we have so far ended up with a design we are happy with that will fit on our block (fingers crossed) the way we want it to, so far without any reduction to the base homes width.
TL;DR The sales consultant we came across actually treated us like adults and not kids and they would actually build on our block which has quite a large retaining wall on one side. Other mainstream "bulk" builders simply refused to do as we wished.
The long version is this. While my partner and I were looking for homes, we found quite a few we liked, mainly by Henley and Carlisle. We actually invested quite a bit of time talking to these builders. But when we told them where our block was, and the approx 2m high retaining wall next to it (our land is on a hill, but the developer has flattened the blocks and placed retaining walls between each, just picture steps), we were told that the builder would not build within x distance from that wall, regardless of the fact the developer has said builders are allowed to build against this retaining wall as it is not structural.
As our block has only a 12.5m frontage (33m depth), once we allowed for our council's mandated requirement for homes to be at least 1.2m away from the boundary on the non-garage side of the home, we were already pretty tight on build envelope on the width of the homes we could choose from. Our block is already quite small, we want to use as much of the space as possible, and some builders were saying that they required at least 1m away from the retaining wall (even though the developer has no problem with us building against it), these big building companies we telling us to look at 10.5m frontage designs to fit on our 12.5m frontage block!
I just figured these big builders thought that the job was "too hard" because it wasn't as quick and easy as building on a flat block in North or South East Victoria. They could do it, it just wasn't worth their time or effort. We then went to many builders and asked straight up about whether they would build on or near this retaining wall, to our horror, most builders told us the same... "we will require x meters off that retaining wall, try looking at the 10.5m frontage homes".
We purchased the block of land in our area at the time knowing that there was a retaining wall, but we were assured by the developer that we were not going to have any trouble building on the block because of the retaining wall... hindsight is a b*tch.
My partner and I then decided to start looking at custom homes, or 10.5m frontage double story homes as we wanted to make the most out of our block. It was during this time that my partner and I were driving through estates with display homes (low on hope) that was saw a builder that we hadn't seen before - Arden Homes. We decided to stop and have a look at their double story on display (it was too big for our block, but we thought we would have a look at their designs).
The display home was brilliant, and their standard inclusions (& promotion at the time) were great! We spoke to the sales consultant about our budget, what two story homes they had and if they custom built. Unfortunately given our tight budget, custom building was not a possibility, nor really were the double story homes. Then, like most other builders, the sales consultant showed us what was affordable given our price range.
Usually at this point I would get disheartened as the sales consultant would assume that as my partner and I are young, that we have no savings, no good incomes/salaries and cannot afford anything "good". However, this sales consultant showed us a nice single story home, of which they had a display just down the road. On top of that, the home was a 12.5m frontage design and the sales consultant told us that building on the retaining wall is no issue for them. We decided the same day to check out this single story, this was the Arden Bellini Verve 26.
We liked this house and decided to return to our sales consultant and have him draft a quote. It was not till we got home and my partner was looking through the material our sales consultant sent us home with that she noticed the Genoa Verve 26. We like this design a little more and decided to head down to Point Cook to have a look at this home on display (long drive for us!).
Again we return to our sales consultant and had him draft a quote. We later placed a refundable deposit and locked in the price and promotions. So far, working with Arden Homes has been great. Their staff listened to our requests and we have so far ended up with a design we are happy with that will fit on our block (fingers crossed) the way we want it to, so far without any reduction to the base homes width.
Welcome! I look forward to following your build!
Welcome. Will follow your build.
Floor Plan Genoa Verve 26
This is the Genoa Verve 26 by Arden Homes which we intend to build.
We have made a few notable changes to the standard floor plan, as follows:
That pretty much does it for the internal 'structural' upgrades and changes. Will post the electrical plans another time!
This is the Genoa Verve 26 by Arden Homes which we intend to build.
We have made a few notable changes to the standard floor plan, as follows:
- Rear Flip - This was done as we have a large retaining wall on the garage side of the house. The idea was to have the main living areas (and alfresco) not facing a large and unsightly retaining wall. The lounge and bedrooms are less of an issue.
- Bed 4 Option - Let's face it, a house with a 4th bedroom rather than a study sells better (not that I ever intend to sell!). The room will still be used as a study, but this way I can close the door if need be. Also get the wardrobe for extra storage space, and an extra heating and cooling vent is a bonus.
- Sliding cavity doors to ensuite & lounge - On the standard floor plan these are open, but privacy in the ensuite is nice to have, and being able to close the doors in the lounge will reduce sound travelling down to the living room. Also gives my partner and I the ability to close off the room should it be messy. The doors are just standard, but my partner and I have plans to eventually put some really nice solid wooden doors on for the lounge.
- Sound dampening - A nice little extra that did not cost much surprisingly! This was placed between the lounge & Bed 4, Bed 2 and Bed 4, and the entirety of the bathroom and toilet. The original plan was just to sound dampen between Bed 4 & Bed 2 as we intend to use this as a study and when we have children, I didn't want any sound disturbing young children sleeping!
That pretty much does it for the internal 'structural' upgrades and changes. Will post the electrical plans another time!
Floor Plan Genoa Verve 26
This is the Genoa Verve 26 by Arden Homes which we intend to build.
We have made a few notable changes to the standard floor plan, as follows:
That pretty much does it for the internal 'structural' upgrades and changes. Will post the electrical plans another time!
This is the Genoa Verve 26 by Arden Homes which we intend to build.
We have made a few notable changes to the standard floor plan, as follows:
- Rear Flip - This was done as we have a large retaining wall on the garage side of the house. The idea was to have the main living areas (and alfresco) not facing a large and unsightly retaining wall. The lounge and bedrooms are less of an issue.
- Bed 4 Option - Let's face it, a house with a 4th bedroom rather than a study sells better (not that I ever intend to sell!). The room will still be used as a study, but this way I can close the door if need be. Also get the wardrobe for extra storage space, and an extra heating and cooling vent is a bonus.
- Sliding cavity doors to ensuite & lounge - On the standard floor plan these are open, but privacy in the ensuite is nice to have, and being able to close the doors in the lounge will reduce sound travelling down to the living room. Also gives my partner and I the ability to close off the room should it be messy. The doors are just standard, but my partner and I have plans to eventually put some really nice solid wooden doors on for the lounge.
- Sound dampening - A nice little extra that did not cost much surprisingly! This was placed between the lounge & Bed 4, Bed 2 and Bed 4, and the entirety of the bathroom and toilet. The original plan was just to sound dampen between Bed 4 & Bed 2 as we intend to use this as a study and when we have children, I didn't want any sound disturbing young children sleeping!
That pretty much does it for the internal 'structural' upgrades and changes. Will post the electrical plans another time!
Hi there! Congrats on building a new home. Can I ask are you only allowed to make changes from a list provided by Arden or can you still do any customisation?
Floor Plan Genoa Verve 26
This is the Genoa Verve 26 by Arden Homes which we intend to build.
We have made a few notable changes to the standard floor plan, as follows:
That pretty much does it for the internal 'structural' upgrades and changes. Will post the electrical plans another time!
This is the Genoa Verve 26 by Arden Homes which we intend to build.
We have made a few notable changes to the standard floor plan, as follows:
- Rear Flip - This was done as we have a large retaining wall on the garage side of the house. The idea was to have the main living areas (and alfresco) not facing a large and unsightly retaining wall. The lounge and bedrooms are less of an issue.
- Bed 4 Option - Let's face it, a house with a 4th bedroom rather than a study sells better (not that I ever intend to sell!). The room will still be used as a study, but this way I can close the door if need be. Also get the wardrobe for extra storage space, and an extra heating and cooling vent is a bonus.
- Sliding cavity doors to ensuite & lounge - On the standard floor plan these are open, but privacy in the ensuite is nice to have, and being able to close the doors in the lounge will reduce sound travelling down to the living room. Also gives my partner and I the ability to close off the room should it be messy. The doors are just standard, but my partner and I have plans to eventually put some really nice solid wooden doors on for the lounge.
- Sound dampening - A nice little extra that did not cost much surprisingly! This was placed between the lounge & Bed 4, Bed 2 and Bed 4, and the entirety of the bathroom and toilet. The original plan was just to sound dampen between Bed 4 & Bed 2 as we intend to use this as a study and when we have children, I didn't want any sound disturbing young children sleeping!
That pretty much does it for the internal 'structural' upgrades and changes. Will post the electrical plans another time!
Hi there! Congrats on building a new home. Can I ask are you only allowed to make changes from a list provided by Arden or can you still do any customisation?
Hi Ezza78, Arden did have a list of standard changes and I think we could still do further customisation if we wished, but at an additional cost. I am not sure if this is this the case, I have heard rumors that Arden have started minimizing their 'custom' homes.
Electrical Plans
Being the 'nerd' that I am, the electrical plan was very important to me; especially the data points and the wireless access point.
We made a fair few upgrades to the lighting in the main living/entertaining areas. We have upgraded more of the lighting throughout the core of the house to down-lights from standard battens. Same in the bathroom and ensuite. We figured that the other rooms did not require fancy (and expensive) down-lights so we left them as is.
We have also added lights to the front pillars of the house; these were not included to our surprise. We also added flood lights to the side (Bed 1 side) of the house and the rear. 3x batten light fittings have been placed over our kitchen island to add some nice feature lights.
But enough about lighting, the data points are really what are important to me! In our "NBN Pack", which we later learned was an upgrade, we were given 4x Ethernet points and 1x phone point. We located these in Bed 1, Bed 4 (going to be a study), the lounge and the living room. The reasoning for the lounge and living room is for video game consoles or smart televisions for Netflix/YouTube etc. Bed 2 and Bed 3 should be adequately catered for via WiFi, or if necessary we can have additional data points installed down the track.
However, these inclusions were not enough to do what I wanted to. I did not want to put my router in the Wired Services Cabinet (WSC). I have a pretty powerful and pricey router, but even that would not cater the house from the metal cabinet in the garage! So I added an additional Ethernet port to Bed 4 where I intend to have the router. This was, the data stream can come from the NBN modem, through the wall cable to the router, and then back from the router to a port in the WSC. Here I will place a gigabit switch and connect the remaining ports. In theory this should work.
After having a conversation with an electrical technician, they advised that it was still unlikely that the router would cover the entire house with a strong enough WiFi signal and they suggested a Wireless Access Point (WAP). These WAPs are commercial grade WiFi transmission devices and should cater the entire house without any issues. This will mean the router in Bed 4 will only be used to route internet and network traffic, whereas the WAP will cater for the WiFi transmission over the network.
The one thing that we want to do electrical wise but are not having Arden do is security camera installation. I have an idea of what I want to do and figured I could install these myself and with the assistance of my electrician friend. Our neighborhood is not inherently bad in terms of theft etc, but it's for the increased sense of security. I will pick out a camera kit close to hand over and install once we have moved in.
Being the 'nerd' that I am, the electrical plan was very important to me; especially the data points and the wireless access point.
We made a fair few upgrades to the lighting in the main living/entertaining areas. We have upgraded more of the lighting throughout the core of the house to down-lights from standard battens. Same in the bathroom and ensuite. We figured that the other rooms did not require fancy (and expensive) down-lights so we left them as is.
We have also added lights to the front pillars of the house; these were not included to our surprise. We also added flood lights to the side (Bed 1 side) of the house and the rear. 3x batten light fittings have been placed over our kitchen island to add some nice feature lights.
But enough about lighting, the data points are really what are important to me! In our "NBN Pack", which we later learned was an upgrade, we were given 4x Ethernet points and 1x phone point. We located these in Bed 1, Bed 4 (going to be a study), the lounge and the living room. The reasoning for the lounge and living room is for video game consoles or smart televisions for Netflix/YouTube etc. Bed 2 and Bed 3 should be adequately catered for via WiFi, or if necessary we can have additional data points installed down the track.
However, these inclusions were not enough to do what I wanted to. I did not want to put my router in the Wired Services Cabinet (WSC). I have a pretty powerful and pricey router, but even that would not cater the house from the metal cabinet in the garage! So I added an additional Ethernet port to Bed 4 where I intend to have the router. This was, the data stream can come from the NBN modem, through the wall cable to the router, and then back from the router to a port in the WSC. Here I will place a gigabit switch and connect the remaining ports. In theory this should work.
After having a conversation with an electrical technician, they advised that it was still unlikely that the router would cover the entire house with a strong enough WiFi signal and they suggested a Wireless Access Point (WAP). These WAPs are commercial grade WiFi transmission devices and should cater the entire house without any issues. This will mean the router in Bed 4 will only be used to route internet and network traffic, whereas the WAP will cater for the WiFi transmission over the network.
The one thing that we want to do electrical wise but are not having Arden do is security camera installation. I have an idea of what I want to do and figured I could install these myself and with the assistance of my electrician friend. Our neighborhood is not inherently bad in terms of theft etc, but it's for the increased sense of security. I will pick out a camera kit close to hand over and install once we have moved in.
Block Sitting
Our block of land measures in at 12.5m x 33m (412.5m^2). We have a 3m easement for storm water at the back of the property and a pit in the rear left side of the block (looking on from street).
The 'easements' on the left and right hand sides of the blocks are concrete retaining walls which are not structural and the developer has confirmed we can build up to. Hopefully these walls will not cause us any grief when we actually go to build or request council approval!
After we have a soil test done, we are hoping that the foundation for the retaining walls (garage side) will not require piers or worse; movement in the house off the wall & reduction in the house's width through the middle! Only time will tell I suppose.
We intend to have the driveway done with exposed aggregate after handover. It worked out cheaper not to have Arden do this for us.
Our block of land measures in at 12.5m x 33m (412.5m^2). We have a 3m easement for storm water at the back of the property and a pit in the rear left side of the block (looking on from street).
The 'easements' on the left and right hand sides of the blocks are concrete retaining walls which are not structural and the developer has confirmed we can build up to. Hopefully these walls will not cause us any grief when we actually go to build or request council approval!
After we have a soil test done, we are hoping that the foundation for the retaining walls (garage side) will not require piers or worse; movement in the house off the wall & reduction in the house's width through the middle! Only time will tell I suppose.
We intend to have the driveway done with exposed aggregate after handover. It worked out cheaper not to have Arden do this for us.
Notable Standard Inclusions & Upgrades
The standard inclusions of Arden Homes we found were better than any other builder we looked at. Below is a list of those I thought were particularly good. I will also note here 'upgrades' which were included under a promotion and didn't cost us anything:
Notable paid upgrades (not previously mentioned)
If I have forgotten anything that I think is worth noting, I will update this post.
The standard inclusions of Arden Homes we found were better than any other builder we looked at. Below is a list of those I thought were particularly good. I will also note here 'upgrades' which were included under a promotion and didn't cost us anything:
- Standard - 5.4KW solar grid consisting of 20x 270W panels & a Tesla Powerwall 2 14KWh battery
- Standard - Standard flooring in base price
- Standard - Caesar stone bench tops to kitchen (20mm) --> We upgraded this to 40mm
- Standard - Under roof-line alfresco complete with concrete slab
- Standard - Fly-screens and locks to all openable windows
- Promotion - Colorbond roofing
- Promotion - Fully rendered Hebel in lieu of bricks
- Promotion - Bravis evaporative cooling throughout
Notable paid upgrades (not previously mentioned)
- Increased ceiling height - increased the ceiling from 2590mm (8'6) to 2740mm (9"). We felt this would make the house feel bigger and is something we cannot decide to do later down the track.
- Capped water point behind fridge - even if we do not have a fridge that is plumbed, it is better to have this done when building than having to get it done after the fact. Didn't cost much and is also a selling point which will add value to the home.
- 40mm Caesar stone to kitchen, ensuite & bathroom - slightly thicker looking stone in these areas didn't cost all that much and looks really nice, but I guess this is a matter of opinion. Should increase the value of the home.
- Waterfall Ceasar stone for kitchen island bench - This is something I felt should have been a standard inclusion, but you can't expect everything. The waterfall look on the island is just a nicer finish to the bench in our opinion.
- Additional pot draws in lieu of standard cupboards in kitchen - My partner wanted draws instead of cupboards. I had no opinion on this.
- Upgrades to flooring and underlay - The standard flooring is fine if you are on a strict budget, but we made modest upgrades to the quality of the carpet (to bedrooms/lounge) and upgraded from laminate/tiles to vinyl (core of home). Standard tiles (which were still quite nice) were selected for the wet areas
- Remove 'quad' - Ever seen the edging around the bottom of the skirting boards in display homes with laminate or vinyl flooring? Kinda looks (in my opinion) cheap and unappealing? Well it turns out that it is NOT necessary to have this edging known as quadding. However the price to have it removed is substantial! We would not have removed this if we were not living in the home (i.e. renting it out). But for us the price is justified as we really didn't like the look.
- Grey water connection - This cost us a fair bit, but it is an estate requirement so we need to suffer and pay it (even though the grey water isn't and won't be connected in the foreseeable future!)
- Privacy locks to Bed 1/Toilet - Obvious privacy reasons.
If I have forgotten anything that I think is worth noting, I will update this post.
Facade
We opted for an upgraded facade being the 'airlie' facade.
As we opted for a fully rendered Hebel home, satisfying the estate's 2-material facade became a bit tricky! We assumed that out upgraded timber look garage door would count as the second material; apparently the garage is not included -_-
As the whole house is to be rendered (colour: Grey Pebble Half S14B1H), the left pillar is to be rendered a darker colour (colour: Mt Eden PN2A7). To meet the 2-material requirement, we had to upgrade the front right pillar to be tiled. Coincidentally this tile (#79933 Belga Grey Textured 450x450) is the matte equivalent of the tiles we will be using throughout the wet areas.
As we are building on/close to the boundary/retaining wall on the garage side, S-Flash guttering was a required 'upgrade'.
We would have also placed a 3rd light on the right-hand side of the garage door, but apparently a down-pipe 'has' to go there. Not very appealing, but we will cover it up with some form of plant to the best extent that we can!
We opted for an upgraded facade being the 'airlie' facade.
As we opted for a fully rendered Hebel home, satisfying the estate's 2-material facade became a bit tricky! We assumed that out upgraded timber look garage door would count as the second material; apparently the garage is not included -_-
As the whole house is to be rendered (colour: Grey Pebble Half S14B1H), the left pillar is to be rendered a darker colour (colour: Mt Eden PN2A7). To meet the 2-material requirement, we had to upgrade the front right pillar to be tiled. Coincidentally this tile (#79933 Belga Grey Textured 450x450) is the matte equivalent of the tiles we will be using throughout the wet areas.
As we are building on/close to the boundary/retaining wall on the garage side, S-Flash guttering was a required 'upgrade'.
We would have also placed a 3rd light on the right-hand side of the garage door, but apparently a down-pipe 'has' to go there. Not very appealing, but we will cover it up with some form of plant to the best extent that we can!
Did you have to pay for the different guttering on garage?
Did you have to pay for the different guttering on garage?
Yeah we did, but it was immaterial
Electrical Plans
Being the 'nerd' that I am, the electrical plan was very important to me; especially the data points and the wireless access point.
We made a fair few upgrades to the lighting in the main living/entertaining areas. We have upgraded more of the lighting throughout the core of the house to down-lights from standard battens. Same in the bathroom and ensuite. We figured that the other rooms did not require fancy (and expensive) down-lights so we left them as is.
We have also added lights to the front pillars of the house; these were not included to our surprise. We also added flood lights to the side (Bed 1 side) of the house and the rear. 3x batten light fittings have been placed over our kitchen island to add some nice feature lights.
But enough about lighting, the data points are really what are important to me! In our "NBN Pack", which we later learned was an upgrade, we were given 4x Ethernet points and 1x phone point. We located these in Bed 1, Bed 4 (going to be a study), the lounge and the living room. The reasoning for the lounge and living room is for video game consoles or smart televisions for Netflix/YouTube etc. Bed 2 and Bed 3 should be adequately catered for via WiFi, or if necessary we can have additional data points installed down the track.
However, these inclusions were not enough to do what I wanted to. I did not want to put my router in the Wired Services Cabinet (WSC). I have a pretty powerful and pricey router, but even that would not cater the house from the metal cabinet in the garage! So I added an additional Ethernet port to Bed 4 where I intend to have the router. This was, the data stream can come from the NBN modem, through the wall cable to the router, and then back from the router to a port in the WSC. Here I will place a gigabit switch and connect the remaining ports. In theory this should work.
After having a conversation with an electrical technician, they advised that it was still unlikely that the router would cover the entire house with a strong enough WiFi signal and they suggested a Wireless Access Point (WAP). These WAPs are commercial grade WiFi transmission devices and should cater the entire house without any issues. This will mean the router in Bed 4 will only be used to route internet and network traffic, whereas the WAP will cater for the WiFi transmission over the network.
The one thing that we want to do electrical wise but are not having Arden do is security camera installation. I have an idea of what I want to do and figured I could install these myself and with the assistance of my electrician friend. Our neighborhood is not inherently bad in terms of theft etc, but it's for the increased sense of security. I will pick out a camera kit close to hand over and install once we have moved in.
Being the 'nerd' that I am, the electrical plan was very important to me; especially the data points and the wireless access point.
We made a fair few upgrades to the lighting in the main living/entertaining areas. We have upgraded more of the lighting throughout the core of the house to down-lights from standard battens. Same in the bathroom and ensuite. We figured that the other rooms did not require fancy (and expensive) down-lights so we left them as is.
We have also added lights to the front pillars of the house; these were not included to our surprise. We also added flood lights to the side (Bed 1 side) of the house and the rear. 3x batten light fittings have been placed over our kitchen island to add some nice feature lights.
But enough about lighting, the data points are really what are important to me! In our "NBN Pack", which we later learned was an upgrade, we were given 4x Ethernet points and 1x phone point. We located these in Bed 1, Bed 4 (going to be a study), the lounge and the living room. The reasoning for the lounge and living room is for video game consoles or smart televisions for Netflix/YouTube etc. Bed 2 and Bed 3 should be adequately catered for via WiFi, or if necessary we can have additional data points installed down the track.
However, these inclusions were not enough to do what I wanted to. I did not want to put my router in the Wired Services Cabinet (WSC). I have a pretty powerful and pricey router, but even that would not cater the house from the metal cabinet in the garage! So I added an additional Ethernet port to Bed 4 where I intend to have the router. This was, the data stream can come from the NBN modem, through the wall cable to the router, and then back from the router to a port in the WSC. Here I will place a gigabit switch and connect the remaining ports. In theory this should work.
After having a conversation with an electrical technician, they advised that it was still unlikely that the router would cover the entire house with a strong enough WiFi signal and they suggested a Wireless Access Point (WAP). These WAPs are commercial grade WiFi transmission devices and should cater the entire house without any issues. This will mean the router in Bed 4 will only be used to route internet and network traffic, whereas the WAP will cater for the WiFi transmission over the network.
The one thing that we want to do electrical wise but are not having Arden do is security camera installation. I have an idea of what I want to do and figured I could install these myself and with the assistance of my electrician friend. Our neighborhood is not inherently bad in terms of theft etc, but it's for the increased sense of security. I will pick out a camera kit close to hand over and install once we have moved in.
Hi Kollosche,
I am also very concerned about my electrical plan. I posted my questions about NBN here. Can you please give me some advise?
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=90919&p=1782106#p1782106
You mentioned WAP. How does it work? The NBN box will be installed in the Garage for the new build, but it's not a recommended location according to Telstra guide.
Electrical Plans
Being the 'nerd' that I am, the electrical plan was very important to me; especially the data points and the wireless access point.
We made a fair few upgrades to the lighting in the main living/entertaining areas. We have upgraded more of the lighting throughout the core of the house to down-lights from standard battens. Same in the bathroom and ensuite. We figured that the other rooms did not require fancy (and expensive) down-lights so we left them as is.
We have also added lights to the front pillars of the house; these were not included to our surprise. We also added flood lights to the side (Bed 1 side) of the house and the rear. 3x batten light fittings have been placed over our kitchen island to add some nice feature lights.
But enough about lighting, the data points are really what are important to me! In our "NBN Pack", which we later learned was an upgrade, we were given 4x Ethernet points and 1x phone point. We located these in Bed 1, Bed 4 (going to be a study), the lounge and the living room. The reasoning for the lounge and living room is for video game consoles or smart televisions for Netflix/YouTube etc. Bed 2 and Bed 3 should be adequately catered for via WiFi, or if necessary we can have additional data points installed down the track.
However, these inclusions were not enough to do what I wanted to. I did not want to put my router in the Wired Services Cabinet (WSC). I have a pretty powerful and pricey router, but even that would not cater the house from the metal cabinet in the garage! So I added an additional Ethernet port to Bed 4 where I intend to have the router. This was, the data stream can come from the NBN modem, through the wall cable to the router, and then back from the router to a port in the WSC. Here I will place a gigabit switch and connect the remaining ports. In theory this should work.
After having a conversation with an electrical technician, they advised that it was still unlikely that the router would cover the entire house with a strong enough WiFi signal and they suggested a Wireless Access Point (WAP). These WAPs are commercial grade WiFi transmission devices and should cater the entire house without any issues. This will mean the router in Bed 4 will only be used to route internet and network traffic, whereas the WAP will cater for the WiFi transmission over the network.
The one thing that we want to do electrical wise but are not having Arden do is security camera installation. I have an idea of what I want to do and figured I could install these myself and with the assistance of my electrician friend. Our neighborhood is not inherently bad in terms of theft etc, but it's for the increased sense of security. I will pick out a camera kit close to hand over and install once we have moved in.
Being the 'nerd' that I am, the electrical plan was very important to me; especially the data points and the wireless access point.
We made a fair few upgrades to the lighting in the main living/entertaining areas. We have upgraded more of the lighting throughout the core of the house to down-lights from standard battens. Same in the bathroom and ensuite. We figured that the other rooms did not require fancy (and expensive) down-lights so we left them as is.
We have also added lights to the front pillars of the house; these were not included to our surprise. We also added flood lights to the side (Bed 1 side) of the house and the rear. 3x batten light fittings have been placed over our kitchen island to add some nice feature lights.
But enough about lighting, the data points are really what are important to me! In our "NBN Pack", which we later learned was an upgrade, we were given 4x Ethernet points and 1x phone point. We located these in Bed 1, Bed 4 (going to be a study), the lounge and the living room. The reasoning for the lounge and living room is for video game consoles or smart televisions for Netflix/YouTube etc. Bed 2 and Bed 3 should be adequately catered for via WiFi, or if necessary we can have additional data points installed down the track.
However, these inclusions were not enough to do what I wanted to. I did not want to put my router in the Wired Services Cabinet (WSC). I have a pretty powerful and pricey router, but even that would not cater the house from the metal cabinet in the garage! So I added an additional Ethernet port to Bed 4 where I intend to have the router. This was, the data stream can come from the NBN modem, through the wall cable to the router, and then back from the router to a port in the WSC. Here I will place a gigabit switch and connect the remaining ports. In theory this should work.
After having a conversation with an electrical technician, they advised that it was still unlikely that the router would cover the entire house with a strong enough WiFi signal and they suggested a Wireless Access Point (WAP). These WAPs are commercial grade WiFi transmission devices and should cater the entire house without any issues. This will mean the router in Bed 4 will only be used to route internet and network traffic, whereas the WAP will cater for the WiFi transmission over the network.
The one thing that we want to do electrical wise but are not having Arden do is security camera installation. I have an idea of what I want to do and figured I could install these myself and with the assistance of my electrician friend. Our neighborhood is not inherently bad in terms of theft etc, but it's for the increased sense of security. I will pick out a camera kit close to hand over and install once we have moved in.
Hi Kollosche,
I am also very concerned about my electrical plan. I posted my questions about NBN here. Can you please give me some advise?
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=90919&p=1782106#p1782106
You mentioned WAP. How does it work? The NBN box will be installed in the Garage for the new build, but it's not a recommended location according to Telstra guide.
Hi SakuraSE,
I will have a look and try to reply to you after work!
Looks lovely kollosche ... great choices in inclusions... will follow your build
Hey Manj
How is everything going? Wondering where you are up to in the process.
How is everything going? Wondering where you are up to in the process.
Hi Treedance,
If you are referring to this particular build, this will be my house not Manj's.
I have updated the very top post with my most recent updates.
We have had taps on site now for about a week and are booked in for our site cut/site start this Monday coming up 21 May 2018. Starting to get exciting!
If you are referring to this particular build, this will be my house not Manj's.
I have updated the very top post with my most recent updates.
We have had taps on site now for about a week and are booked in for our site cut/site start this Monday coming up 21 May 2018. Starting to get exciting!
kollosche is there a requirement to have the wired services cabinet in the garage or can it be put anywhere?
I am just planning out my networking and what i should allow for!
I am just planning out my networking and what i should allow for!
@kollosche is there a requirement to have the wired services cabinet in the garage or can it be put anywhere?
I am just planning out my networking and what i should allow for!
I am just planning out my networking and what i should allow for!
Hi phillo I was happy to leave it in the garage, this is mostly because we are in a new estate which will receive a FTTP NBN connection which will terminate in the garage. Also as we are building a single story home there weren't many other places where we could place it.
I have heard of people building double story homes with Arden and having the NBN terminate under the stairs, however most of those people also said that they opted not to have the WSC. Honestly, I thought this was a standard inclusion till I heard from others building with Arden that it was an optional extra. Although this did not bother me as I would have wanted it anyway.
Are you building with Arden?
Related
11/12/2023
3
May I ask why you chose not to use GJ Gardiner? I'm actually meeting with one of the sales guys tomorrow for an appointment. Definitely not signing anything yet…
7/09/2023
6
The warning is on the sticker on the door too. Second the aluminium powdercoat
27/09/2023
0
Hi, can anyone recommend a custom home builder who can build in north east area? Looking to build a custom 4-br energy-efficient home with a max budget of 750k. If they…