Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Sep 24, 2007 10:57 am I know that there have been a few posts about peoples site costs and the extras being charged. Some i must agree are probably warranted, but i need to ask the users of Homeone to help me with this one.
We had our Tender meeting with H on Friday and we thought we had a very flat block. We were told that most of the land in The Chase estate in Berwick is H class so were bracing ourselves for the damage. We were still confused by what was presented to us so here it is?: 1. Provide class H slab (single storey) in liew of class M as per soil report and as shown on working drawings $**** 2. Additional bulk concrete req'd for deepened edge beam, to achieve recommended founding depth per soil report $*** 3A. Cut & fill a level building platform to a R.L. of 101.0 approx. 3B. Excess soil from cut and fill to be removed from site 3C. Excess soil from footing excavation to be removed from site TOTAL COST OF EARTHWORKS FOR BUILDING PLATFORM $**** 4. Provide approx 17 lineal m's of AG drains to base of cut greater than 300mm deep $*** 5. Provide 1 silt pit connected to AG drain $*** My question is all of this required normally? If the builder accomodates for a 300mm fall over the building area, then shouldn't any excavation be covered by them up to the 300mm??? I have requested a copy of the site investigation report to read it myself and see exactly what was recommended. I have e-mailed the builder with the above questions so we'll see what happens, but would appreciate any responses. Thanks Re: Foundation & Footings (Site) Costs - need help??? 2Sep 27, 2007 2:48 pm Don't know if it works the same way in your state. In Sydney one of the main reasons people paid $600 to more than one builders is to get a second opinion about the site cost.
If the result is roughly the same for a similar size house from different builders, then at least you are more firm about what's been quoted. If one of them quoted H class and others quoted M class, or some other major differences found, you can then use it as a tool for negotiation. Compared to the price of building a house, $600 or $1200 is definitely a good investment to get all these information. Through the negotiation process (using other's tender) you might even save more! I would suggest to get at least one more tender from different builders for comparison. Hope this helps... Re: Foundation & Footings (Site) Costs - need help??? 3Sep 27, 2007 3:08 pm We have advised our rep that we are willing to negotiate on the site costs, so will wait to hear. We have contract appt in less than 3 weeks, so it better be worked out by then.
Even in the tender documentation, we picked up things that were incorrect. What would have happened if we hadn't? Just pay more money i suppose in favour of the builder. So who's to say their H class clab and site excavation costs are correct too? What's to say that all of the unforseen costs have been padded in their favour or are indeed incorrect???? Anyway we have placed the ball in their court.... We'll see what happens.. If representatives from H are reading the forum today, please feel free to check it out for us.....We have been happy up to this point, let's fix it quickly.... Much appreciated... ![]() Re: Foundation & Footings (Site) Costs - need help??? 4Sep 27, 2007 3:14 pm I remember one of the builder inspectors I think was recommened by Matt or someone also provide contract services. They go through the contract/tender with you and might help you to pick up some issues.
May be others can help and provide some information on builder inspectors who can help with contracts. One other thing, why should you be pushed by their schedule/requirements? It's your money and you should be comfortable with all the details. If there's anything not right, you should complaint or even walk away. If you are too nice to them they will definitely take advantage of the situation. Get some professional advice/assistance! Re: Foundation & Footings (Site) Costs - need help??? 5Sep 27, 2007 3:24 pm the costs seem comparable to what we were quoted with Henley QLD, ours were roughly from memory
provide equal cut/fill incl one compaction test - $1400 provide additional compaction test for fill up to 900mm - $160 provide concrete slab to engineers detail for soil class type H - $7400 this is for a single level 320m2 house, with around 850mm cut/fill Plantation Homes - The Meridian - http://ourmeridian.blogspot.com/ site costs 6Sep 27, 2007 8:05 pm We had a fall of about 1m over 35m long block.
We had our site scrape it was surprised by how much they dig out. We have H class slab as well. We are building in Craigieburn in an area with a lot of rock and unstable ground. I think Berwick is like that isnt it. Made up of mostly sand. They dig down a little further and slab is thicker. Foundations with colapse with anything smaller. For the extra little cost, go with what they say. Building Standards; Getting It Right! Make sure you don’t dig below footing base level, so you don’t undermine your foundation. Also the backfilling of trench need to allow for stormwater to drain away… 1 1015 Make sure you have the required soil bearing capacity at the shallow founding depth and the strip footings are designed for the expected loads over (including the wind and… 1 1535 1 17640 |