Browse Forums Building A New House 1 May 07, 2010 3:40 pm hi all, finally got through the admin process for my new house build and am getting very close to construction. (CSC advises we're a bit over a week or so away from site start).
After visiting many display homes by various builders & viewing lots of floor plans, we decided that the santorini works well and suits our lifestyle best so we went with it. I'm really excited to finally be building and hoping we're in before Christmas. I'll do my best to keep this thread updated with as much info and pics as possible. Stay tuned Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 2May 07, 2010 4:07 pm Hi XT4V What an exciting time. The Santorini is a lovely house and is fairly similar to the Grandview which we are just about to start building. We are just waiting on our site start date from our CSC. I look forward to following your build Building the Grandview 36 with M$tric0n Plans approved 15/4/2010 Site start date 21/5/2010 Our build thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=32825&p=461266#p461266 Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 3May 07, 2010 4:18 pm G'day and thanks for the reply we were initially looking at the Grandview, but it ended up being a bit out of the budget... Santorini was the next best thing! I love the bed-1 in the grandview... access to outdoor room/backyard... Mmmmmm All the best with your build... Where abouts by the way? I'm building in Berwick/VIC. Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 4May 07, 2010 4:30 pm The Grandview was my wife's favorite .. but we ended up going with the Riva which can fit on a smaller block. Metricon Riva 33 - http://herlihy-riva.blogspot.com Site start 15/03/2010 - Handover 23/12/2010 9 months and 8 days (284 calendar days) from site start to handover Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 5May 07, 2010 5:12 pm The santorini seems to be a popular choice. Good luck with your build, I'm looking forward to following your progress. Blog: http://bluemistkids.blogspot.com "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark, and professionals built the Titanic." Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 6May 07, 2010 6:25 pm I am building in North Brisbane Building the Grandview 36 with M$tric0n Plans approved 15/4/2010 Site start date 21/5/2010 Our build thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=32825&p=461266#p461266 Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 7May 07, 2010 7:02 pm We most likely are going to build the santorini 29 with the Kingston facade. At the end of the month we are going to look at the lumeah which has what we were going to add to our Santorini such as in the large outdoor room already,ensuite layout,walk through pantry. Our sitting room will be changed to a 5th bedroom as we have four kids. The Santorini at point cook was what we were going for as far as overall look. Shall be watching your with interest...remember to update.. Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 8May 07, 2010 7:48 pm thanks for all the replies and interest. emilygirl - we went the kingston facade.. good choice. sounds like you have it nearly all worked out, good luck with it Here is a link to the floor plan: http://www.chopwire.com/rob/berwick%20build/XT4V-santorini-floor-plan.jpg we've done a few small mods, which i'll detail later on and i'll see if I can get my wife to register and chime in with the colours..... since she choose them all Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 9May 08, 2010 5:14 pm Hi XT4V and emilygirl !!! We are also building the santorini 29 kingston facade AND we are almost at the construction stage TOO !! All we need to do is send our financial approval which we are getting on Monday to Metricon. The differences between our houses is that we went for the grand outdoor area, all our bedrooms wardrobes are open hinged doors ( dun like sliding as the doors dun close all the way sometimes and our rumpus / home theatre is exactly like yours with the doors and the wall filled in. We also requested for acoustic insulation in that room. To fulfill our developers requirements we are also rendering the two poles and the garage. With Austral tan bricks and offwhite mortar. What bricks are you having ??? Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 10May 08, 2010 8:37 pm With ours the sitting room will be bedroom 5.Emily's wardrobe wont go all the way across.In the entry way from the garage we will be adding a small computer area.It will be bigger than linen cupboard of course but not as big as a study.Bedroom number 4 we will have a slider door to access outdoor area.I think by the time master 13.5 is 18-20yrs this will be good so he doesn't have to come through the house banging and crashing. We will have plantation shutter's looking in passage but not the family/rumpus room. We will upgrade the ensuite to twin basins. With bricks we want either Labassa/or Hawthorn with flush off white mortar. Floorboards to entry/kitchen area...still tossing up as to whether we go carpet in family area...carpet in rumpus/bedrooms. I could go on and on but I think ive bored you enough... You will both have to post pics of your builds.... Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 11May 09, 2010 9:18 am gacho - awesome, another santorini build... have you got a build thread? i'll have to keep an eye on yours.. I think we're are at the same stages pretty much, so will be interesting to see if they both progress at the same speed. good luck with your home, it sounds very nice. emilygirl - we're also having the plantation shutters looking into the passage/bedroom/laundry area.. we've adjusted the wall to fit one in there.. your place sounds like it will be very nice! cant wait to see this one build too -- I have a bit of time now, so I may as well tell you guys about the changes i've done... colour wise, Mel (wife) will have to post up as I cant remember what she choose anyway, here is a summary of the extras we put in the house (plucked out of the contract):
- brickwork above all windows and doors - kiln dried hardwood lining boards with stain finish to outdoor room ceiling (plan to do the porch later on myself) - modify porch to have brick beams instead of timber (front and sides) - roof tiles were cat 1A bristile classic colour-on/colour-through. these have a flat profile, so roof should look flush - remote control to garage - fly screens & window locks to all windows - obscure glazing to WC, bathroom & ensuite - entry door is a 2040 x 820 Corinthian Madison pmad 131 with clear glazing (glass strip through middle of door) - entry door has a Gainsborough 750mm back to back pull handle with associated locks. - double vanity option in ensuite which also moved shower from standard location to inside the WIR (as seen on plans) - shower extended to 1335mm to accommodate 1200mm wide stainless steel trough and grate - shower has also got a 340mm high * 1335mm wide recess in the back wall for shampoos and stuff - shower has extra tap set added also - tiled shower bases to both ensuite & bathroom - basins were upgraded to caroma liano vitreous china insets - bulkhead added to sitting room to make it look like its own area (Mel will be working from here running her beauty business.. she really wants to get in asap there as we're renting and doesnt look the best for her existing clients) - deleted standard aluminium sliding door to outdoor room, and changed it to a stacked sliding door (3 into 1). - kitchen modified to accommodate 900mm oven (800mm wide laminate base cupboards to both sides of upright cooker) - overhead cupboards added - stone bench tops added to kitchen - cat 2 glass splash back & returns - 900mm wide oven & canopy rangehood - cat 2 handles to kitchen - 800mm wide laminate cabinet in laundry with stainless steel trough - 520mm high x 3010mm wide recess in family room wall - 820mm cavity sliding door was added to close off living area from hallway/Mel work area ... we have 2 pug dogs, so they cant be running in to the salon - tiled kickrails in all wet areas - closed off rumpus room and added hinged doors as it will be a home theatre later on - tiles to all living areas, hallways & garage access (by metricon) - added hot & cold capped points & capped waste to garage. want to have a trough in the garage workbench I build - added cold water point to fridge space - provision for future connection of rainwater tank to all toilets and washing machine (they are running the pipes and capping them off to a point I specified.. later on I add a rain tank & pump and we're good to go) there were quite a few electrical upgrades done.. lots of outdoor circuits added for outdoor lighting, downlights through most of the house.. I have made a lot of provisional wiring jobs through Big-M so I can get my contractor in later on to add all the outdoor lights, fans, etc, to where we need them. after hand over, we'll add hardwood floors to bed 1 & salon, the other remaining bedrooms will get some sort of floating floor as when we do have kids, they'll most likely destroy them floors in no time ! later on down track we'll upgrade them to hardwood similar to what was used out the front. we also need to add evap cooling and have a few other odd jobs completed. wow, just realised that was a very long post.. but I think it covers mostly everything.. -Rob. Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 12May 09, 2010 11:59 am wow fantastic posts !!! I never realize I can change the timber beam at the porch to brick !! how much was that ?? That was one of the things I didn't like about the kingston... but then again compared to the other facades that was the best one for its price !! I will be starting my own thread once we start building so fingers cross to everyone that it goes well. I've decided to get an independent inspector just for the piece of mind. So I've e-mailed the famous kevin and also homeinspect. Does anyone know of a good and honest inspect in Melb????? Kevin has had great reviews but lately a few bad ones... so it is a ???? for me but still have e-mailed him.. Anyway will tell ya more about my MODS later.. Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 13May 09, 2010 2:13 pm Wow sounds like santorini 29 is a popular choice. my husband and i are off to sign our contract this afternoon with the kingston facade, just wondering if any of you changed anything with the island bench in the kitchen as i have 3 kids and it is not a very practical breakfast bar for the kids, a bit to small. I have also changed a few things in the house, i went for the extension of the main room and ensuite too give me more room that cost $1340. and i also added doors to the rumpus and filled in the cut outs on both walls as the 3 kids can get very noisy! Also decided to put the sliding door on the laundry as the linen cupboard in their is right behind the opening of the door and is not accessable (dont know why they designed it like that) any way i have many more things i changed, looking forward to following your post as you are a few months in front of us and will be interesting to watch your house build Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 14May 09, 2010 3:14 pm Hi Nelkak. I am building the Grandview which is similar in many ways to the Santorini. I made my kitchen island longer (to 3m) and also wider (to 1m). I am also having waterfall edges and 40mm Ceasarstone. I can't tell you how much the bench extension cost, as it was lumped in together with other kitchen changes in my contract. Building the Grandview 36 with M$tric0n Plans approved 15/4/2010 Site start date 21/5/2010 Our build thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=32825&p=461266#p461266 Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 15May 09, 2010 4:02 pm gacho wow fantastic posts !!! I never realize I can change the timber beam at the porch to brick !! how much was that ?? That was one of the things I didn't like about the kingston... but then again compared to the other facades that was the best one for its price !! I will be starting my own thread once we start building so fingers cross to everyone that it goes well. I've decided to get an independent inspector just for the piece of mind. So I've e-mailed the famous kevin and also homeinspect. Does anyone know of a good and honest inspect in Melb????? Kevin has had great reviews but lately a few bad ones... so it is a ???? for me but still have e-mailed him.. Anyway will tell ya more about my MODS later.. yeah, I wasnt a fan of the timber out the porch, so I told them straight out I want brick and to price it up for me... was around $1000 from memory. when you get a thread started, post the link in here and i'll subscribe to your build with regards to an inspector, i'll definitely be getting one in, dunno what stages yet.. maybe frame & pci, dunno yet? nelkak Wow sounds like santorini 29 is a popular choice. my husband and i are off to sign our contract this afternoon with the kingston facade, just wondering if any of you changed anything with the island bench in the kitchen as i have 3 kids and it is not a very practical breakfast bar for the kids, a bit to small. I have also changed a few things in the house, i went for the extension of the main room and ensuite too give me more room that cost $1340. and i also added doors to the rumpus and filled in the cut outs on both walls as the 3 kids can get very noisy! Also decided to put the sliding door on the laundry as the linen cupboard in their is right behind the opening of the door and is not accessable (dont know why they designed it like that) any way i have many more things i changed, looking forward to following your post as you are a few months in front of us and will be interesting to watch your house build good luck with your build... seems as though the kingston facade is the popular choice.. makes the house feel very "grand" hehehe we havent touched the island bench, its standard with ceasar stone. good idea with the laundry cupboard, didnt think of that and yeah I agree its a PITA to have to close the laundry door to access the linen.. ahh well, somethings always missed.. Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 16May 10, 2010 9:34 pm building permits arrived in the mail today.. so its full steam ahead now, but a small dramas come up that I have to sort out. went down today and noticed some pr-ck has dropped a big wad of concrete on my block.. its gotta be cleared for M to start, so I called a bobcat guy who is going to have a crack at lifting it.. its 5 foot wide, by 3 foot long by about 2 foot deep (at the deepest point) I suspect its a washout from one of the neighbours when doing there slab... once the site clean guy come, he's gone and dumped it on my block of land as its fully open with no fences.. sh1t happens I guess. Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 17May 11, 2010 10:02 am hey XT4V grats on the progress so far. we are building the Santorini 26 altered to a 28 1/2 lol which is basically the Santorini 29 but the width is slightly less. This was due to the developers initialing requiring us to have 600mm eaves all the way around the house which was then reduced to 600mm at the front, by that stage we'd already signed contracts with M so we couldnt change it to the Santorini 29, which I wouldve preferred for more bedroom space. *sigh* anyhoo...long story short Santorini 26 altered with Coastal facade building in Keysborough We should have a slab by friday...apparently. Building: M3tr1c0n - Santorini 26 [30.04.10] Builders on Site [29.11.10] Handover [11.12.10] Moved in [CURRENTLY] Moved in and adding all those extras we couldnt pay our builder to do http://mnsantorini.blogspot.com Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 18May 11, 2010 3:56 pm Hey XT4V!!! Your exactly in the same position as me !!! I too have received our building permits today. We also received a call from our site supervisor and new customer co-coordinator. We need to get rid of some soil dumped on our piece of land (THANK YOU WHO EVER DID THAT !!!) and we should be commencing in 2 weeks time. Does anyone who someone who will get rid of the soil at a good price ? Also a quick question.. to all... We went to the bank 2 days ago and were talking about independent inspectors. We were told that the bank will have their own inspectors whom will need to give approval before Big M receives their money. Do you rekon that is good enough or should I still get an independent inspector ? ANyways.... good luck to everyone else building !!! Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 19May 11, 2010 4:18 pm Update "Bobcat Gary" visited the site and had a look at the concrete pile of crap... too big for his cat, although he said if I could break it down into smaller pieces, he can pick it up (or get a 5 tonne excavator in) this is becoming a real PITA, but its gotta be sorted.. so now off to source a sledgie to see if I can break the bastard up. ----- hey faerie - pitty about your situation with the land making you play with the 26, but nonetheless its not too much of a difference i'd imagine? where abouts in keysborough are you building? my sister owns a place in "hidden grove" or whatever its called... back of the keys estate? nice area... g'day gacho - should be interesting to see how your build progresses... cant wait to see the thread of your build with regards to the soil, how big is the pile? Bobcat guys generally charge $80 p/h (minimum 2-3 hours from memory?) + tip fees.. may be cheaper to hire a skip and fill it up by yourself also, the bank inspectors are nothing but valuators... they go in to ensure the work is what is stated on the contract and the banks $ interest is covered... definitely worth going for a private inspector if you can afford it Re: Santorini 29 [Big M] 20May 12, 2010 9:00 am Hey XT4V yeah its pretty much the same, but my 3rd bedroom is really small 3 x 3 We are building in the new Somerfield Estate which is off Perry Rd. Just wondering how much does an independent inspector cost? My partner and I havent even considered getting one as we have some friends/family that are builders and are hoping we can get them to inspect when the time comes. I mean M give a 25 year structural warranty they wouldnt cut corners to void a warranty? Building: M3tr1c0n - Santorini 26 [30.04.10] Builders on Site [29.11.10] Handover [11.12.10] Moved in [CURRENTLY] Moved in and adding all those extras we couldnt pay our builder to do http://mnsantorini.blogspot.com If so what were the "special circumstances" under which it was granted? "Note: If the development consent is for 'dual occupancy' an owner-builder permit can only be… 0 14070 |