Browse Forums Building Standards; Getting It Right! 1 Sep 04, 2012 6:12 am I want to build a small bedroom in my house. It will be a renovation to a little old storage room, and I will use it to sleep. However, on the storage room side of the house I have a neighbour who is a bit psycho. She's kind of a drug addict with mental problems – she can be a real nusiance and is very anti social. The relationship is civil at the moment but only because we tread on egg shells around her, but we know that could change in a heartbeat.The police are no stranger to her house. She goes on drunken rampages, plays her music really loud particularly when drunk/drugged up, has some shady characters visiting, annoys other neighbours etc etc. Anyways, after consulting a handyman, my concern is that the room I build isnt going to be legally habitable – it will definitely be sleepable and clean with door/window etc, but maybe short on head space and lighting etc – so my question is: will i have any troubles with it not being legally habitable if her noise and nuisance becomes a problem while im in the new room whereby it escalates to require the police/council/courts to stop her? Also, shes the sort of person to potentially dob us in if she thought it wasn't habitable just because she's a real creep. Is this even an issue or am i just being paranoid? Its going to cost a fair bit is all so i just wanted to be sure. Re: Storeroom into bedroom- "habitable"!? 2Sep 04, 2012 12:46 pm Until I built a house I had no idea what a habitable room was, and I'm pretty sure that unless someone specifically knows the layout of your house they will have no idea either. Do you plan on permanently using the room as a bedroom or is it a transition type thing (renovating and need to convert a current room to be liveable but only temporary?) Oh and what makes the room non habitable exactly? Re: Storeroom into bedroom- "habitable"!? 3Sep 04, 2012 3:40 pm If you are doing any sort of reno or new work that requires council approval then be prepared to have problems with the neighbour and/or council. A habitable room needs 2400mm ceiling height , opening window ( 10% of floor area of the room sqm ) and a doorway connected to the existing dwelling plus complying with other elements of the BCA. Stewie Re: Storeroom into bedroom- "habitable"!? 4Sep 04, 2012 8:30 pm chrisandkate Until I built a house I had no idea what a habitable room was, and I'm pretty sure that unless someone specifically knows the layout of your house they will have no idea either. Do you plan on permanently using the room as a bedroom or is it a transition type thing (renovating and need to convert a current room to be liveable but only temporary?) Oh and what makes the room non habitable exactly? Its basically just a transition thing. Ill probably be in it for a year or less. After that it will probably return to being a storage room or small study. Its not really Un-inhabtitbale, its just that it may not quite fit council regulations. i.e, it may be 2.1 high instead of 2.4, or it may let in 70% of the light its supposed to. It will have doors and windows and will be perfectly safe, i just wasnt sure how pedantic the council was with these things. I didnt know how low they stooped for revenue/fines. Im guessing perhaps its only really an issue if you go to sell the house adverting it as an additional room, or rent it to people as a room. Is that correct? That makes sense to me, but out of interest, even if the council were notified of it, for instance, if the idiot next door calls up the council and says she thinks her neighbour has made a bedroom out of a storage room and is sleeping in there at nights, what will the council do if anything? Send a letter? A random inspection? Re: Storeroom into bedroom- "habitable"!? 5Sep 06, 2012 10:03 am They usually have to act on any complaint so would come out and have a look. All your neighbour would have to do is say your changed room effects her in a negative way ( noise , shadows , loss of privacy etc ) and the council would be forced to send you a letter demanding cessation of this present unauthorised use at least. Whether you complied with their request is another matter and I don't think they would really care given how minor this is ... Stewie start from at least $20,000 just for fixtures and finishes and then add on for moving plumbing and extra for a concrete floored house last new bathroom we installed in a… 1 17859 I use Tramex moisture meter and it will tell me instantly if the wall is cement sheet or plaster or masonite but most people dont have the equipment. 5 7062 the step up is 30mm and wanting it to be flat . how much does the concrete have to be lowered .we plan on removing bath and lenghten shower and adding seat. the old bath… 0 11829 |