We like to keep Kev busy!
It's because of you he cant fit anyone else in!!
Browse Forums Building A New House Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 21May 13, 2008 9:48 am mattwalker We also had the above and a few intermediate inspections and one after and a warranty inspection with still probably one more to go! We like to keep Kev busy! It's because of you he cant fit anyone else in!! Built Porter Davis "Dromana" 2007. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 22May 13, 2008 3:43 pm Well everyone, Kevin just inspected my place today and yes he is a Super Star . He said in general the frame is very good but there are a lot of places where it does not meet the new frame code so there is about a days worth of rework to do for the carpenter. There are some areas where the plumbing is too close together so it compromises the frame so they will have to come back too. Our plaster was supposed to start on Thursday so that will have to be put off. He was impressed with the roof trusses as apparently these are often not straight.
He also found that the guys who installed the air conditioning have cut one of the braces in the roof which is unacceptable, he said he has inspected three PD houses this week where this has been done! There are also articulation joins in the brickwork that have not been done properly and have just been cut with a saw as an after thought so brickwork will have to be re done as well. I am sure PD will deal with all these issues correctly. I am so glad I got Kevin in as some of this is the sort of stuff that would be covered over by the handover inspection so we would have never known about it. Yaay for Kevin Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 24May 14, 2008 9:54 am Ok folks - so are you all saying that the BSS inspection is worthless? No one seems to mention that these guys come in an run inspections pre and post plaster, pre handover etc.
The last BSS inspection resulted in lots of further work to be done on the plaster, which has since been carried out. The Site Supervisor is obligated to correct defects found by BSS. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 25May 14, 2008 10:07 am perryr Ok folks - so are you all saying that the BSS inspection is worthless? No one seems to mention that these guys come in an run inspections pre and post plaster, pre handover etc. The last BSS inspection resulted in lots of further work to be done on the plaster, which has since been carried out. The Site Supervisor is obligated to correct defects found by BSS. ummmm - In out opinion pretty much. They were good at putting stickers on a little mark on the paint, but seemed to ignore bigger issues. (well maybe they didnt and PD did....who knows!) Anyway, without Kevins report....we seemed to be fighting a losing battle to get our home anywhere near a decent standard... Built Porter Davis "Dromana" 2007. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 26May 14, 2008 12:32 pm Hi Izzys123,
We too have enlisted the services of Kevin and we're building with PD. I have organised to have the pre-platser and pre-handover inspections carried out. The Pre-platser is set to take place in a week or two - rain delayed an erlier date Lets face it - it's big investment and you want to get it right. Cheers, Tim -------------------------------------------------------- Built 'Cremorne 41' with PD - Handover took place in Nov '08 http://homeforourcherubs.blogspot.com/ Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 27May 14, 2008 12:40 pm perryr Ok folks - so are you all saying that the BSS inspection is worthless? No one seems to mention that these guys come in an run inspections pre and post plaster, pre handover etc. The last BSS inspection resulted in lots of further work to be done on the plaster, which has since been carried out. The Site Supervisor is obligated to correct defects found by BSS. Our Site Supervisor told us that plastering is due to start Thursday but I have not even heard when the BSS inspection will be. I am so glad we got Kevin just for peace of mind. I am not willing to risk that an inspector paid for by the builder will do a good enough job. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 28May 14, 2008 12:44 pm perryr Ok folks - so are you all saying that the BSS inspection is worthless? . I think the main point is - BSS is paid for by PD, hence is working for PD, not for you! Kevin is paid for by you - he is working for you! dancelisah I am not willing to risk that an inspector paid for by the builder will do a good enough job. Exactly!! Built Porter Davis "Dromana" 2007. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 29May 15, 2008 7:34 pm dancelisah Well everyone, Kevin just inspected my place today and yes he is a Super Star . He said in general the frame is very good but there are a lot of places where it does not meet the new frame code so there is about a days worth of rework to do for the carpenter. There are some areas where the plumbing is too close together so it compromises the frame so they will have to come back too. Our plaster was supposed to start on Thursday so that will have to be put off. He was impressed with the roof trusses as apparently these are often not straight. He also found that the guys who installed the air conditioning have cut one of the braces in the roof which is unacceptable, he said he has inspected three PD houses this week where this has been done! There are also articulation joins in the brickwork that have not been done properly and have just been cut with a saw as an after thought so brickwork will have to be re done as well. I am sure PD will deal with all these issues correctly. I am so glad I got Kevin in as some of this is the sort of stuff that would be covered over by the handover inspection so we would have never known about it. Yaay for Kevin Thanx Dancelisah - these are the PD threads I'm after....keep em coming. It's good to hear the Kev stories. How did your Site Super react with Kev, were they accomodating? Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 30May 15, 2008 8:24 pm PD has just completed building our new Cremorne41. Handover next week. I must say, Im very impressed with the quality & workmanship. The BSS inspections are also very thorough, and I have inspected the property daily, taking pics, mesurements, and with a good eye & fully researched, I have not felt the need to hire a 3rd party inspector.
From the onset of building, if you demonstrate to your supervisor you are well researched, visit the site regularly, ask questions and trust your intuition you shouldnt have the need of hiring a 3rd party inspector. The quality of your home, in my opinion is in the hands of your tradies & supervisor. Providing you have a co-operative & experienced supervisor, who knows what tradies to delegate & organise, while ensuring there work is of the highest quality. If you feel that you have had dramas from the start, then by all means hire a 3rd party inspector for peace of mind. I know of numerous friends who have built with PD, and all of them have prasied PD for there quality & workmanship. This was one of the main reasons I chose to build with PD, also the fact I loved the layout of the Cremorne41. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspecto 31May 15, 2008 9:04 pm Izzys123 Izzys123 Hello all, Finally we are about to start building with PD in South East Vic. To all the other Porter Davis customers, did you use Kev the building inspector & if so did he find many faults with PD workmanship? How did PD react to using Big Kev? Thnx in advance. Izzys123 Thnx for the replies everyone. I have read other forums on Big Kev. I am trying to work out whether it's worth while to employ Kevin's services so I am really keen to hear from all the Porter Davis customers who have used him to inspect PD workmanship. Thnx Vanderlay for your reply. Is there any other PD customers who have used Kev, was it worthwhile or does Kev find PD to be pretty good in the scheme of things. Clath, how did you find Kev? Perry, r u using Kev? Pls advise. Thnx Izzys123 We're building with PD and had Kevin help us with our pre-plaster inspection and so glad we did. Had we not used him, we would have just signed it off but he pointed out things that we would never have picked up and explained why they needed fixing. All that said, PD had done a pretty good job - there was only one or two things of significance. We're almost at handover stage and will defintely be having Kevin do the pre-handover inspection too. Slab down mid Jan - now at fix stage. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 32May 15, 2008 10:46 pm awallace I must say, Im very impressed with the quality & workmanship. The BSS inspections are also very thorough, and I have inspected the property daily, taking pics, mesurements, and with a good eye & fully researched, I have not felt the need to hire a 3rd party inspector. From the onset of building, if you demonstrate to your supervisor you are well researched, visit the site regularly, ask questions and trust your intuition you shouldnt have the need of hiring a 3rd party inspector. The quality of your home, in my opinion is in the hands of your tradies & supervisor. Providing you have a co-operative & experienced supervisor, who knows what tradies to delegate & organise, while ensuring there work is of the highest quality. If you feel that you have had dramas from the start, then by all means hire a 3rd party inspector for peace of mind. I tend to agree - however I'd never knock anyone for using an independent inspection service. We will keep it in mind before handover. On the fact that BSS is paid for by PD - they don't do PD any favours, as BSS have a reputation to maintain. PD is not their only customer. I saw one of the reports, and it didn't hold back. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 33May 16, 2008 12:03 am perryr awallace I must say, Im very impressed with the quality & workmanship. The BSS inspections are also very thorough, and I have inspected the property daily, taking pics, mesurements, and with a good eye & fully researched, I have not felt the need to hire a 3rd party inspector. From the onset of building, if you demonstrate to your supervisor you are well researched, visit the site regularly, ask questions and trust your intuition you shouldnt have the need of hiring a 3rd party inspector. The quality of your home, in my opinion is in the hands of your tradies & supervisor. Providing you have a co-operative & experienced supervisor, who knows what tradies to delegate & organise, while ensuring there work is of the highest quality. If you feel that you have had dramas from the start, then by all means hire a 3rd party inspector for peace of mind. I tend to agree - however I'd never knock anyone for using an independent inspection service. We will keep it in mind before handover. On the fact that BSS is paid for by PD - they don't do PD any favours, as BSS have a reputation to maintain. PD is not their only customer. I saw one of the reports, and it didn't hold back. Sorry Perry but I have to disagree... The Quality assurance people hired by bigger builders know which side their bread is buttered on. If they really cared about their quality they would have guys like Kevin doing all their inspections. The guys who Q/A'd my house allowed a cursory glance at best. I kept the list they did for "prosperity" ... it could have doubled as TP though Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 34May 16, 2008 8:46 am Sorry Perry,
I agree with Matt. Porter Davis makes up 80% of BSS' business, now they are not going to jeopardise that by being too critical! I am certain they pick up things, but the conflict of interest is certainly there. I have used Kevin for the inspection of my home at slab, frame and pre-plaster stages. Many items have been discovered that were unnoticed by both the building surveyor's inspections and the quality inspections. Kevin is fantastic and well worth the investment to protect your implied rights to quality! I for one would not leave it to only someone apponited by the builder. Maybe i am mistrusting in nature but my results speak for themselves. Regards, Ratter Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 35May 16, 2008 9:51 am mattwalker If they really cared about their quality they would have guys like Kevin doing all their inspections. By your logic, if the builders hired Kevin to do their inspections, then you wouldn't be able to trust Kevin any longer as he is being hired by the builder. Like I said - I've seen one of the BSS reports done for our house, and it was much more than cursory. Doesn't mean I won't use someone else for a pre-handover inspection though - but it won't be Kevin. I'm obviously alone with my opinion, so I'll pull my head in. Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 36May 16, 2008 9:59 am perryr mattwalker If they really cared about their quality they would have guys like Kevin doing all their inspections. By your logic, if the builders hired Kevin to do their inspections, then you wouldn't be able to trust Kevin any longer as he is being hired by the builder. Like I said - I've seen one of the BSS reports done for our house, and it was much more than cursory. Doesn't mean I won't use someone else for a pre-handover inspection though - but it won't be Kevin. Touche!! The reports commissioned by the builders "appear comprehensive" but generally are just smoke and mirrors. There are plenty of building inspectors around and you are welcome to use whomever you like but I and many others have founf Kevin to be exceptional at getting results from the builders... As said previously, building a house is a big investment and its the sort of thing most people only ever do once. When buying a car you get an RACV inspection and that costs $200 out of a $20000 (1%) why not spend 0.3% of your budget on inspections by a trained indpendant professional to make sure your getting what you have paid forboth in terms of quality and finish? Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspecto 37May 16, 2008 2:48 pm Mikita Izzys123 Izzys123 We're building with PD and had Kevin help us with our pre-plaster inspection and so glad we did. Had we not used him, we would have just signed it off but he pointed out things that we would never have picked up and explained why they needed fixing. All that said, PD had done a pretty good job - there was only one or two things of significance. We're almost at handover stage and will defintely be having Kevin do the pre-handover inspection too. Thnx Mikita & all of the PD clients who have contributed, such healthy debate , it's great.........now back to the thread. Mikita, how did the PD site super respond to you using Kev & did they fix all of his detected faults? Or do they give you the run around? Izzys123 Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 38May 26, 2008 10:30 pm Hi everyone, I'm new to the forum, building a Brookvale 50 with PD, in Melb eastern suburbs, and came on tonight specifically to look for this topic! We are still at pre plaster stage, the roof tiles went on today, and the bricks were also started, and I've seen Kevin's name mntioned on several blogs. We had a lot of problems during the admin phase, and the construction stage didn't start off too well, either, so we've been considering getting someone independent to do an inspection for us, too. We were wondering what exactly it is that Kevin picks up that BSS don't??? DH is pretty on the ball where building is concerned (his dad used to have a building co and he spent several years helping!) but, as someone else said, this is a huge investment, and something you have to live in, and live with for a long time, so you want to make sure it's done 100% perfect! So, if anyone who's used him could give me some specific things he spotted, that would be great. Thanks! Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 39May 27, 2008 2:02 pm Hello everyone - long time reader, first time poster. After a long search, and a few dramas along the way, we've finally signed up to build a Windsor 47 with PD in an eastern suburb of Melbourne.
We've only just started the construction phase, but I can appreciate the value in having an independent inspector. While I like to think I'd pick up any big issues, I guess it's the old story of "you don't know what you don't know". For me that could cover quite a bit! Could someone please PM me Big Kev's details? Re: PD Customers - Did you use Big Kev the Building Inspector? 40May 27, 2008 2:04 pm Jome Hello everyone - long time reader, first time poster. After a long search, and a few dramas along the way, we've finally signed up to build a Windsor 47 with PD in an eastern suburb of Melbourne. Could someone please PM me Big Kev's details? Welcome to the forum Jome. Pm Sent! Hope you become a long time poster too! Built Porter Davis "Dromana" 2007. I would send it to the certifier who is technically your representative and working on your behalf not the builder's 1 2424 Plasterboard Gyprock is very popular as a reveal liner these days. You need to provide a way of supporting it, we use a modified timber reveal or bracket. You will be… 1 4824 I do enjoy the drama:-D In his latest two videos he has started bringing security guards to site, I am waiting for the punch on to begin lol 6 45930 |