Browse Forums Owner Builder Forum 1 Jul 29, 2015 12:39 pm Hey everyone. I do plan on doing a search on this topic but just wanted to introduce myself a little first. Hubby and I are living in the City of Wanneroo in our own home but we're both itching to have land, no neighbours etc. So we've been looking at Bakers Hill, Childlow, Wundowie etc. Wanting to stay close to Great Eastern Hwy side of things. Currently have our eye on 5 acres of blank land Perth side of Bakers Hill and confirmed with the Estate agent (who has turned out to be really helpful) that there are no building requirements. Apart from where on the block you can build. We need minimal building requirements as we are planning on using a shed as the frame and working to make it livable over time, but starting off with it being class 1a. Hubby has a white card and has experience in everything building, so doing it ourselves is no issue. We know basically from the Shire of Northam (and I am going to contact them directly) that we can live in a caravan/class 10 shed for 12 month periods while we build but just wanted to hear from others who have done this. I guess wanting to know what did you use for your bathroom/toilet etc? Had a fantastic meeting with a local shed/kit home company and learnt a lot about it. Soil still needs testing but we have permission to do it before committing to the sale. Re: Living in a caravan on site - Perth WA 2Jul 29, 2015 10:18 pm Hi, my parents had 4000sqm in York and lived in a steel shed they had erected whilst building. The shed was the size of a double garage. I'm not sure if they got permission knowing my late dad (probably not!). They were in their 60's & owner builders, candles melted in summer and they wore beanies to bed in winter. They had a small r/c unit......honestly don't know how they did it!! Re: Living in a caravan on site - Perth WA 3Jul 30, 2015 1:26 pm I am building in a rural location and have been camping in a shed. I am also in my 60's. In summer the day time temperatures can reach the mid 40's and the overnight temperatures in winter below zero. Yes, I would sleep in thermals and wear a beany during winter. I did not have an air-conditioner as I did not have mains power. The council were fairly relaxed about camping on site whilst building but one must be discrete with no obvious sign of habitation visible from the public road. Two of my neighbours successfully built their homes whilst staying in in sheds or temporary accommodation that was completely hidden from view. The third neighbour parked his caravans and set up clothes lines in front of his shed in full view from the road. The council was forced to act in this instance. (he should have parked his caravans inside his shed). The other item to consider is your neighbours. If you don't have neighbours then this problem goes away but if your temporary accommodation is visible from your neighbours house them you will need to take their opinions into account. In summer a simple camping shower provides boiling hot water. In winter I used a neighbour's bathroom & shower. You do however need a toilet when building, not just for oneself but for tradesmen as well. My septic tank and soakage trench went in early with a toilet glued to the concrete house slab (over the waste pipe) and temporary walls build around the toilet. This avoided the cost of hiring a builders toilet for an extended period of time. With regards to the shed, it should be large as it needs to provide secure dry storage for building materials and a place to shelter during inclement weather. It also doubles as a site office and workshop so some tasks such as making door frames , and painting architraves etc can be carried out inside, out of direct sun or rain. A large rain water tank connected to the shed is a must to provide water for building unless you have mains water available. Some building materials such as roof purlins and fascias are long (i.e. 7.5 metres), so the shed needs to be even longer plus enough space for forklift/tractor access to unload palletised materials. My shed is 12m x12m with a mezzanine floor (which is where I slept). A wood burning heater kept the shed warm in winter. My very first priority was to get an all weather access track put in to my built site with sufficient hardstanding turn around areas for semi-trailers and truck-trailer combos as most deliveries consisted of long wheelbase trucks pulling a trailer with a tractor or fork lift on it. Re: Living in a caravan on site - Perth WA 4Aug 03, 2015 2:25 pm Agree with Beetaloo. Dont do anything to set off your neighbours and keep certain activities out of sight, and you should be right. Many councils have rules about living onsite in temporary setups, but unless someone complains, they usually couldnt care less. I am not sure whether Perth has its own way of doing things in regards to this. Most of Perth has class A (sandy soil), except for some areas near rivers or hills. 2 13063 I would be wary. Is you site demilished but nothing else done? Sounds like liquidity problems to me. Our builder did the same. Got hundreds of thousands of dollars of… 2 15390 3 5580 |