Re: Take Two 108Mar 18, 2018 9:43 pm Good to hear that you got a response. Here's hoping that you have a much smoother run to handover on the 28th! Take Two 109Mar 20, 2018 7:41 pm I had to go out to a Body Corporate meeting this evening, and when driving up to my house, I saw a workman still on site. Turns out it was a tiler - poor man - he was rather ambushed just as he was getting ready to leave! He was really good though, and offered to show me the work he had been doing. First time I've been inside the house since the middle of January. So, the good news is that all the tiles have been delivered, and laying them has started! I have tiles on the bathroom and laundry floors, and we have discussed which way to lay the ensuite floor tiles. He showed me the grout samples, so the grout has been chosen too. He said a week or ten days for all the tiling to be finished. One of the factors that might have further delayed completion is now eliminated. Variegated Re: Take Two 110Mar 21, 2018 4:12 pm Nice to have some good news, and to hear that progress has resumed! Take Two 111Mar 23, 2018 6:43 pm Algernon, It is nice to have some good news, and after today's site visit I am allowing myself a tiny little flicker of hope that my house may actually get finished by the end of April. When I arrived early this afternoon, the painters were just finishing up. The senior painter told me they had completed their task- the outside strawbale walls have been painted. He said they would be back to do any touch-ups required, and that he was leaving the left-over paint for me! The tiler I met on Tuesday evening has tiled and grouted both bathrooms and laundry floors, and I’m very pleased with them. Ensuite floor - tiles laid and groutedLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Laundry floor tilesLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Wall tiles, including the bamboo feature tile are mostly up in the bathroom, currently without grout. Shower recess tiled - no grout yetComplete with tile cutterLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Bathroom wall tiles showing textureLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Detail of Bamboo feature tile in bathroomLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Bathroom from the doorwayLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ The floor tiles don't show very well due to dusty footprints, and most of the bathroom has protective plastic coverings. For some reason, now that the floor is in place, the laundry looks enormous. I’m expecting that it will shrink back to more normal proportions when the joinery is installed. The tiler said he would be back tomorrow – Saturday, for which I am very grateful. I also stood in the kitchen today and enjoyed the long bench space I will have – I can’t reach the ends with arms fully outstretched – lovely. Variegated Re: Take Two 112Mar 23, 2018 7:28 pm Looking good! It must be a relief to see progress again. I can sympathise with the difficulty in photographing tiles with dusty footprints. Are you doing your laundry joinery over the tiles? Take Two 114Mar 24, 2018 1:57 pm It is indeed a relief to see some progress, and to see some of the choices made some time ago looking good. I'm very happy with the bamboo tile too Trimum. The joiners wanted the tiling to be completed prior to the laundry joinery being done - they felt it gave a better finish, and I think it is better from a waterproofing point of view too. Variegated Take Two 115Mar 30, 2018 6:56 pm No-one on site again this week, so not able to look inside except through the windows, but I have fly screens! I’ve had them on the roof windows for a while, but they exist on the other windows now as well. Shower tiling in the bathroom seems to be completed – it is grouted on the bits I can see from the rather smudged window. The built-in seat has been tiled, but is yet to receive it’s grout. As the painters told me last week they were finished, and the tiling was the other issue that the builder was saying might change the completion date, I emailed him on Thursday to check that, as these items are either finished or well underway, the estimated completion remains 28 April. Perhaps I’m poking the bear, but I’m really tired of waiting, and I want him to know I'm pushing. I’ve also asked when the tanks will be installed, given that they will provide the only potable water supply to the property, and they need some time (not to mention some rainfall) to be of any use. And I’ve asked the joinery people if they have had any contact from the builder as it seems to me that they can finish their tasks too – they are doing the joinery in the laundry, the vanities in both bathrooms, and the wardrobes in the bedroom, as well as needing to finish the kitchen. They’ll need the opportunity to schedule the work, so I felt a heads-up may be appropriate. Have I said that I’m tired of waiting for this house to be completed? And some outside pictures with all external walls painted. Street Side - taken from just inside the front "gate"Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ North side of house - complete with rubble pileLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Variegated Re: Take Two 116Mar 30, 2018 8:36 pm Looking nice, and good to hear that things are still moving. I think you're fully justified in pushing the builder about completion, given how things have gone so far. I assume that if the tank doesn't get a chance to fill up a bit before you move in you'll get some water trucked in? Take Two 117Apr 29, 2018 9:38 pm So, not a lot of progress in the last month. Emails to the builder remained unacknowledged and unanswered until I resend them with a "deadline" for reply, and the replies were a couple of minutes before the time specified. The one that started Ï am very dissatisfied.." has still not been addressed. I've been told twice now - two weeks apart - that the final tiles have arrived, but not which ones they were, or why they were late. I asked on 18 April if the house would be finished on time, with a request not to be ignored or any more game playing. That one got an almost immediate response - saying he wasn't ignoring me or playing games! Perhaps there are different definitions in the world in which he lives. And, of course, there is a new date for handover - 19 May. This will be 39 working weeks over the 30 week contract period. Don't quite know if I can remain civil in a face to face meeting. Visits to site earlier this month didn't show any further progress - still no base for water tanks, let alone the tanks themselves, no workmen on site, and couldn't really see much from the outside. Kitchen and laundry people let me know they would be on site on Friday, so I got to visit then. Door furniture was finally being installed - information on choices for this was originally given on 22 December, and confirmed in January - so no ignoring going on here! Anyway, tiling in bathrooms looks to be complete, balustrade in attic has finally been installed, and the laundry joinery was happening. It seems that the joiners also had a delay with the long kitchen benchtop - it's measurements were wrong, and the manufacturer then sent a new one - with exactly the same wrong measurements! Sorted out now, and it was being fitted as I watched. And now for the photos - whilst this may look like a lot of changes - it has taken a month to get to this point! Balustrade from the bedroomIs quite high - above waist height on me, so goo protectionLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Wardrobe in Main bedroomLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Ensuite shower with seat - waterproofedLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Ensuite shower with tiles and sunshineThere will be a slatted wooden seat on top. Looks like it will be a sunny way to start the day.Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Grouting completed for bathroom featureShows up the bamboo shapes much moreLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Long benchtopLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Laundry cabinets awaiting installationLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Laundry drawersLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Twenty days.... Variegated Take Two 119Apr 30, 2018 12:51 pm Thank you Trimum - I see that you are still not finished either! Last time i built, the builder went bankrupt. I've come to the conclusion that that is preferable, because at least you know the reason that nothing is happening, and that when the insurance things get themselves sorted out, you can get on with it again. This is just never-ending, and emotionally so debilitating, not to mention expensive - 9 months now paying both rent and mortgage. Variegated Re: Take Two 120Apr 30, 2018 3:09 pm Variegated Thank you Trimum - I see that you are still not finished either! Last time i built, the builder went bankrupt. I've come to the conclusion that that is preferable, because at least you know the reason that nothing is happening, and that when the insurance things get themselves sorted out, you can get on with it again. This is just never-ending, and emotionally so debilitating, not to mention expensive - 9 months now paying both rent and mortgage. Yes financially it’s horrific! We have been paying rent and mortgage for over a year, we have 8 more weeks of this, we have been very generous in giving our builder more than enough time to finish and have received as much of a guarantee as we can from them that we will have keys in 8 weeks time. Hi Mofflepop, I would recommend finding a building designer to prepare plans, they should design to your specified budget. The benefit is you can tender the project out… 9 20402 Hi, We're building a double-storey in Perth and I'm undecided with the kitchen sink situation. I'm set on having the main sink with dishwasher in the scullery - and… 0 20912 2 2978 |