H Class slab

louiseos · Jul 01, 2007 11:12 am

Hey all,

We are in the process of trying to organise our home with M3tricon . .. have just been told that we need to upgrade to a H Class slab instead of what comes as standard . ..

As we are on a tight budget, I have asked to be told of the cost of this upgrade prior to my 501 appointment so that we know what we have to spend (or not) . . .

The lady wasn't sure of the charge and agreed to check it out for us, although needless to say she has yet to call us back!! tut tut tut

Just wondering if anyone else has had to upgrade to this slab and if you can give us an idea of what kinda price it costs to upgrade?

We are building an Aspen 36.

Cheers!

Louise : )

lrhodes1 · Jul 01, 2007 11:43 am

Hi, I'm a Louise too!
And I had the exact same situation, after the soil test I was told I needed H class slab.

They charged me $2500 for it, but its a complicated slab of three separate pieces so it may be a bit less for you.

louiseos · Jul 02, 2007 12:36 am

Hi Louise,

Thanks for posting back!!

I hear that its common for people to have to 'upgrade' to a H class slab . . . makes me wonder if anyone actually uses the M class that comes as standard . . .

Standard and upgrade . . . god these words are all I think of lately . . .

Although my partner and I are practising for studio 501 'Standard will be fine thanks'. heheh The way we are getting loaded up with all of these 'extra' costs, we'll barely be able to afford the house!! hehe

Which home are you building??

lrhodes1 · Jul 02, 2007 11:40 am

I'm building a Jandson Espirit with Courtyard - you can have a look at it on louloubelle.diaryland.com
The variations are the killers for me - raintanks, the slab, insulation....
Ah well I'm sure it will be worth it when I'm celebrating Christmas in my own home!

sneakersss · Jul 02, 2007 2:50 pm

louiseos

Standard and upgrade . . . god these words are all I think of lately . . .

Although my partner and I are practising for studio 501 'Standard will be fine thanks'. heheh The way we are getting loaded up with all of these 'extra' costs, we'll barely be able to afford the house!! hehe

Oh, we have one of them H-class slabs, too. Although I wouldn't call it an upgrade as we were pretty much told that's the kind of slab we would need from the start.

Totally off topic, but...

When we were doing our selections we got the "that's an upgrade" line a few times. Towards the end when I went to pick the handles for the wardrobe doors the lady said, "That's an upgrade." So I replied with, "How did I know you were going to say that?" Then she just laughed.

ausdesign · Jul 02, 2007 3:28 pm

Louise, an M class slab would often be sufficient for many of the encountered soil types.
A 'H' slab will generally ( depending on the type of construction ) require deeper beams, closer spaced internal beams & a stronger mesh type.
I don't think it would be unreasonable to ask for a copy of the soil report & a detailed costing of the extra amount Metricon are looking to charge.

Hennig · Jul 08, 2007 10:01 pm

I agree with Peter.
You should get a copy of your soil test and site report with your contract, but request a copy of your slab design as well.
Even if you don't intend to, tell them that you are going to seek independant advice and see what reaction (if any) you get.
Of the information that I have received and checked previously, your builder is usually not too bad as they use waffle pods in 95% of cases. I believe it is harder for a builder to exaggerate costs when using waffle pods, it is a different case with raft slabs.

First_Timer_Ray · Jul 09, 2007 12:34 pm

Hi Louise,

We are also building with M3tricon, but we are building the Aspen 25 (love the layout hey! :wink:

)
We have a M class slab, but were told by the sales lady that we have the flattest block with non-rocky soil she has seen all year! Apparently those without rock are usually sloping, or those that are flat have rock, and rocks are a major issue out West of Melbourne.
My sister who is building one street away with B'bank had the sales guy tell her than 95% of Werribee is H class so she was lucky to only have M class.

We found out later that you can buy "subject to favourable soil" but luckily for us it wasn't an issue.
The only extra we have had to pay for the slab is some re-inforcing along the rear of the house (1m away from easement) which was just over $1K.

PM me if you want any info - we have final contracts next week (freaking out!!!).

Ray.

melbman · Jul 09, 2007 2:16 pm

First_Timer_Ray

Hi Louise,

We are also building with M3tricon, but we are building the Aspen 25 (love the layout hey! :wink:

)
We have a M class slab, but were told by the sales lady that we have the flattest block with non-rocky soil she has seen all year! Apparently those without rock are usually sloping, or those that are flat have rock, and rocks are a major issue out West of Melbourne.
My sister who is building one street away with B'bank had the sales guy tell her than 95% of Werribee is H class so she was lucky to only have M class.

We found out later that you can buy "subject to favourable soil" but luckily for us it wasn't an issue.
The only extra we have had to pay for the slab is some re-inforcing along the rear of the house (1m away from easement) which was just over $1K.

PM me if you want any info - we have final contracts next week (freaking out!!!).

Ray.

Hi guys,

I am also buiding with metricon in the werribee as well and have also got final contracts next week as well(very nervous about end figure), you should get a copy of your soil report when you go for your pre contract signing, mine came back just over 12K for a H Class slab on P class soil for a jardine.
I hope there isnt any other hidden costs because my budget has been shot to pieces. :cry:

cheers

First_Timer_Ray · Jul 09, 2007 2:31 pm

We got our soil report back a few (4?) weeks after we paid our initial $1K deposit - well before any other appointments. We didn't know the exact cost of the re-enforcing until pre-contract but we always knew it would be a cost.

vpande · Jul 09, 2007 6:53 pm

we are also planning to build with metricon and are close to contract signing.. the quote for siteworks was close to what the consultant in keysborogh mentioned...ours is a modified class m wafflepod slab.... major cost is for siteworks though....we have a 1 metre slope. everythong added up the cost is 18k..
vp

Ozman · Sep 02, 2009 10:05 am

I believe H Class, M Class and other kinds of slabs all relate to Australian Standard AS 2870. Over the last few years, a number of surveys and tests have been conducted on Australian housing footings and foundations to review the standard. This is partially due to the persistant drought conditions affecting soul structure in Australia. There are some really good websites that explain AS 2870 and what slabs are for what soil condition. Fundamentally, it has to do with the thickness, flexibility and elastisty of your house foundation and the soild structure upon which it is built. A properly laid foundation will prevent your house from cracking which may open it up to pests, terminates and expensive repairs.

For the Geomechanically minded :lol:

there are loads of publicly available information. Another good website from WA is

http://wageotechnics.com.au/wageotech/S ... ations.htm

Good luck with your build.