Things you forget - summary page 32

Well, you get free peep show!

If your stairs change direction, don't forget to check that stairs don't have a split landing. Sometimes by moving the top or bottom step, this can be fixed.

A friend of mine was saying that the bank told her that they only do valuations on the base price of the house. So anything that you ask to have changed (e.g. better insulation caersarstone instead of laminate benches, etc) isn't counted in the bank's valuation. Can anyone tell me if this is true? I had trouble believing it, but I am scared that it could be.

My "extras" are 16% of the build cost. I was worried but had no issue in the end. Just don't overdo it.

Phew! That's ok then. I only intended to add things that would add to the house's value. I reckon that should be alright then.

Really helpful! Thanks!!

Thanks PD for the summary and all that contributed towards this fantastic thread!!!

I've read PD's 'before you sign contract' thread also and with the info gleaned, I have just sent my builder an 'initial' list of 29 questions for which depending on the answer, we'll be putting down our deposit!!! It's so much earlier than we had planned as we won't be demolishing until mid next year............................

Love the idea of having the man whole in the garage! And to put in a lights up there

Thanks guys so many great ideas hope I don't forget them at prestart

Great to see this list is getting longer. A few new things to add;

Garage - think about insulation for door. Additional heat may affect performance of NBN (if installed)
Seal garage floor to reduce dust.

Kitchen -
Positioning - Ensure your island bench is even with rest of benches. Our island is 900mm longer than bench on wall oops.
Adjustable Cupboard shelves - ensure you note in your contract additional holes for adjustable shelf. Our builder stated it was normal inclusion but only included one hole position at PCI

Driveway/ concrete -
coloured concrete (volume builders with driveway included) ensure your contract states colour mix in concrete. We have grey concrete painted with black seal and cracks are coming through grey.
Driveway width - ensure your driveway is wide enough to open your car door and step out on concrete both sides of car. Our volume builder short changed us.
Is additional drainage required?
Conduit under driveway for future watering system and second for lighting.

Other structural
Check position of power meterbox do you feel it's too close to bedrooms?
Check position of hot water, air conditioning slabs. Will you be able move wheelbarrow past this section of your house. Take into account your neighbours position of garage and fence. Very important for 10m wide blocks.

NBN
NBN home hub box you need 3 points for power
NBN home hub box location.
Is it using the best of the space? i.e. Not taking up wardrobe space &
Will the space be cool enough to run modem above 30C without drop outs
Thinking about positioning of your points inside the house

Fence construction
Don't rush to install your fence if your neighbours have yet to start building. Easier to bring in materials to backyard through empty block.

Most builders will not cover you under warranty if you use the attic space to place items, as the roof is not designed to hold anything other then the roof tiles and ceiling weight.

(Just read it in my warranty booklet.)

After living in our home for two years we wondered why the fly screens on the back sliding door were corroded. I called A&L our window supplier to find out that our builder always asks for aluminium mesh as standard when we should have had either fibreglass or even better, stainless steel, as we are within 1 km of the sea. We would obviously have had to pay the extra cost but it's something we didn't even think about.

Can I also add that if you can afford to insulate all of your internal walls then do it - you won't regret it.

Cheers
Annette

Home building is a life investment and you want to get it right the first time. I'm going through it again and I think this thread is great. I've added some that I think haven't been covered.

~ Fish tank location - might be useful to add a drain under tank for easy drainage and placement of water tank so you can refill the fish tank. Believe it or not, you can use the rain tank to fill up your aquariums (as there are no harsh chemicals to kill the fish). External tap installs are generally $170 each.

~ Sound proofing.

Doors - Most builders use Corinthian doors and they're hollow which is bad if you want block out sounds! There's a type called Corinthian "CORITECH" which is polystyrene and MDF core, semi-solid fill doors. These are supposedly much lighter than solid core doors and will block most acoustic sound (good for theatre room). They cost $140 each door wholesale..

Acoustic batt insulation - These are much better than your typical batt insulation. They are much more dense/heavier. Just had a quote done for my double storey house (490m2). to get it laid in the walls it was about $3600 to all external frames, $4900 to all internal walls and $3400 to the ceiling space between floors. It makes a major difference.

Soundcheck plasterboard - Cost about $8/m2 more but will block out the bass you hear in movies etc. Definately get it quoted if you are building a theatre or drums room

Timber frame Windows - All the display homes have it now. It's in style right now. Most project builders (Plantation, Metric0n, Coral, etc) give you aluminum windows. The ones you see in their display homes are NEVER included by default. If you change from aluminum to timber windows, expect to pay $1000 PER window. Just had my quotes back and todo the 6 window frames in the front elevation of my house was about $6500. Expect to pay about $1500 to upgrade a bi-fold/stacker door from aluminium to timber.

Do you want awning Windows or Sliding windows?
My first house had all sliding windows. Everytime it rain, rain would get in. Now I am going *all* awning. People have illusion you get less wind draft/air but this is not really true. Awning windows will give you better security and better protection from the rain and heat (sun hits the tint), whreas with sliding, the solar rays go right through!) Expect to pay $150 - $450 extra per window to change from sliding to awning window.

Door heights
If you upgrade your house to 2.7m ceiling heights You must upgrade your door heights, otherwise your house will look "odd". Standard doors are 2.04m high, upgraded ones are 2.34m high. Expect to pay an extra $100 per door.

Door widths
Standard door widths are 82cm. You can get them upgraded to 92cm. This will really pay off when loading in big tables, furniture, etc. Not only that, it makes the house look better. Try visiting a display homes. Most will not tell you that everything was upgraded. Cost about $100 per door.

Kitchen island benchtop
Keep in mind most companies cannot go over 1.4m width until there are joins.

Kitchen kickboards
Stainless steal linings under the cupboards which make homes look more modern. Expect to pay up to $700 to have these.
Sample: http://www.edgefurn.com.au/sites/defaul ... 0Image.png

Skirtings
Generally display homes have theirs increased. It gives it a better look.

Wind ratings
N2, N3, N4, N5
If you live behind a bush (e.g. no other houses) expect to pay a further $4000 . This is because your house will be classified as a different wind rating and the house will need to be stronger.

Garage Zero Lot
If you're building a house and it will be "zero lotted", e.g. right next to the fence. This will generally cost $750 in extra costs.

Buying Land
Before buying a piece of land, do not sign the contract unless the boundary pegs are located on that piece of land. This is because without boundary pegs, you will need to pay $400-$600 to get them resurveyed once you build. If they aren't there, your builder may proceed without boundary pegs but this could bring up future land disputes if you indeed did build over your neighbours land.

Opaque/translucent glazing
Do you want privacy? You can add these to the insides of the glass (for entrance door/pergola glass handrail) at the time the builder installs it. They should last longer than the ones that you stick on later on

House Tint
Get all your windows pre-tinted at the factory. The tints are "inside" the glass. You can get bronze tinting, grey tinting, etc. Costs usually $600+ upwards todo an entire house.

Brickwork or Painted Paneling over garage
Most project builders do paneling over garage. This is because it is cheaper for them. Some people don't like that look. Expect to pay $1000 to get it bricked.

Termite Barriers
Most homes use termite barriers these days. Do a visual inspection after these are added to your home and ensure no concrete or crap has fallen into them. Theres a few threads were people are now complaining about termites eating their house and apparently the termites crossed into the house on concrete droppings that was poured over the termite barrier!

Would you not recommend solid core at all?



Do you really feel it's necessary in any walls? Wouldn't Soundcheck plaster be cheaper for internal walls? Or do you recommend both?

Which exact type of Acoustic batt rating do you recommend?



Aren't aluminium frames more durable?



I find that sliding windows always end up stiff.

we got aluminum awning windows.
our last house had the sliding windows and we found them hard to open, the rain coming through and they can come out easy.
I picked the awning windows because I wanted the window to be about 1m wide so I can put furniture on the both sides of the window, so I don't need security screens and the rain cant come in.

Fabulous and extremely helpful thread. I found it at the most perfect time. Thanks again to all the contributors for saving us hours of research and $$$

Mel

Probably already mentioned,but anyway, don't forget to retrieve any building materials you can, which might be of use in the future...
We went around the yard picking up anything (bricks/tiles etc) that was in ok condition.

Was absolutely worth the effort :
- enough bricks to build the front corner (incorporating letterbox) of the fence.
- enough roof tiles (and then some) to replace those damaged when Solar was installed.

Crouton, a good place for sound insulation is between a bathroom and a bedroom, a garage and a bedroom or to isolate a home theatre from the rest of the house. It depends on how much you want to spend or how important it is to you to deaden the sound. A good starting point is acoustic batts in the wall and then two sheets of Soundchek plasterboard. If you do a search on the forums there are numerous threads on this. Bottom line is depends on how deep your pockets are.

Good point jj1.
Other things to keep are any internal tiles.
Depending on the size, a few of any sort used on the job should be kept in a safe place to allow for the odd cracked tile that can appear years down the track or from damage if someone drops something hard on the floor and chips a tile.

Stewie

Just wondering if this is correct.
Put it this way....the LIVING AREA (most used space) should be at the south, hence getting the least sun and will be cooler.
Am I right? or I got it mixed up? And bedrooms preferably on the EAST side as it gets less Afternoon sun/heat in Summer.


Could anyone clarify on this?Thanks

It all depends if you prefer the cold or the heat, the morning light or afternoon sun in your living area or bedrooms. There is no real right or wrong position. It is personal choice, others can tell you otherwise.

This is, by far, our favourite thread on the forum. Thanks PD for the updated list as well - TONS of work.

Can someone point me at the Porter Davis "before you build" thread that was mentioned - here or in PM? Thanks!