Construction Blog (in reverse chronological order)
Jan 2015
A pair of hairline cracks have appeared on the Foyer wall that is along the driveway.
Rather strange, considering that this wall is not load bearing and was not modified
during the construction. The crack starts at the ceiling, going through the
architrave (first photo), continues down the wall (second and third photos)
finishing at about waist height (fourth photo). There is actually a second crack
that is shorter, near the top, as seen in the first photo. The cracks are mid-way
along the wall, right behind the iMac screen shown the last photo below.
Week 26 [25-29 Nov]
The house is ours! Below are photos of the house as we got it on Friday 29 Nov.
Enter at the foyer:
Turn left from foyer into dining room:
From dining room step into the kitchen:
From the kitchen step across the hall into the guest bedroom (office):
And now step from the guest bedroom into the hallway:
On the right of the hallway lie the old bathroom and laundry:
Further down the hallway is the main living area:
We now start going up the stiars:
And arrive at the upstairs retreat:
Walking along the hallway upstairs leads to the bathroom on the left:
Kiran's bedroom further on the left:
Nayan's bedroom is on the right:
And the main bedroom is at the end:
Week 25 [18-22 Nov]
Pretty much done - the staircase has been painted and polished this
week (see photos below), the staircase lights and downlight dimmers
have been installed, the windows have been cleaned. Next week the
kitchen shelves and pantry light are going to be fixed on Monday,
Nathan is going to be back to do minor things (door stoppers, fix
gate, etc.) on Monday, the house is going to get a final clean, and we
are ready for the council inspector to come on Tuesday. The fencing is
coming down on Monday, and Phil the flooring guy is going to finalise
things such as installing barrier between wooden floorboards and kitchen
tiles. Hand-over is on Friday 30 Nov.
Week 24 [11-15 Nov]
Floors are being polished this week, and the house is looking a lot more posh.
Alan has installed the mirror and shower screens in the bathroom (first two
pictures below). He has also spent all Saturday and Monday installing the
built-in closets - the main bedroom closets are white, Nayan's are green,
and Kiran's are light blue - see next three photos below. He has also
put in shelving in the linen closet outside the bathroom (last photo).
Thinngs are going well on-track. Next week Sam the painter is going to paint
and stain the stiarcase, and the kitchen guys are going to finish up.
The week after will be touch up (Lane Cove council will inspect on Tue 26 Nov),
and then Matthew will hand us the house on Friday 29 Nov - looking forward to it!
Week 23 [04-08 Nov]
Painting pretty much finished this week (with some touch-up to be done
later). First two photos below show front view of house with doors
painted. Paul has also installed many of the ligths, next two photos
show the external lights in sideyard and laundry side. The internal
painting looks good - the laundry is all pink, the living room feature
wall is cool, the celery green in the dining room is also nice, and the
storage area seems very usable. The kitchen sink has been installed,
as has the benchtop, the cabinets/pantry, and on Saturday morning Ben
also installed all teh wall and feature tiles. Looks good! The last
picture shows the bathroom vanity, and Alan is also on-site Saturday
installing the closets, in readiness for floor sanding to begin next week.
Week 22 [28Oct - 01Nov]
Lots of painting happening this week. The outside of the house is
painted (first photo), and in fact downpipes have also been installed
(not shown in photo). The upper level has been fully painted, see
pictures of the three bedrooms in next three photos, and the retreat
in the next photo. The retreat looks nice with the feature walls.
The kitchen benchtop has been installed (next photo).
The old fuse box has been bricked up
(last two photos below), need to ask Matthew if they are going to
render on top. Paul the electrician has been doing fit-outs of lights
and fans in upper floor. Also met with curtian/shutters people
on-site, and have decided to go for plantation shutters to all bedroom
windows, and curtains for living room and dining/foyer. Expensive!
Week 21 [21-25 Oct]
Laundry shelving and benchtop are in place - first photo shows the
benchtop and the second the shoe-closet - looks good!
The kitchen cabinetry is also getting into place (next three
photos below), benchtop is to come in two weeks. The gap between
benchtop and window is going to be small, so Matthew says he will put
a thicker architrave at the bottom to cover the gap. The electric
cable hole has also been dug, the wires and in, and they are starting
to fill it up again (second last photo below). There is a green cable
box next to the footpath (last photo) which is a bit of an eyesore,
but I guess its better than having aerial cables.
Week 20 [14-18 Oct]
Staircase is in place! Went Monday morning and found stairs have been
installed, see first five photos below. The trades/risers are in
place, as are the posts and bannisters. The polishing/staining will be
done once the floor has been polished, so it can be matched. Came back
later in the week and found that the closet under the stairs has been
walled in (sixth photo below) and the underside of the upper staircase
has been gyprocked (next photo).
Kitchen cabinets are also going into place. The first photo shows the
carcasss of the attic and fridge, the next one shows the oven/cooktop
carcass, the next shows the sink and microwave area, while the last
photo shows that the gap between the sink and the window is quite
small (will the benchtop fit in that?).
Week 19 [7-11 Oct]
Nathan continues to put the door/window frames and skirtings, see
first three pictures below for the bedrooms (main, nayan, kiran) and
the fourth for the retreat upstairs. The cornices are also in place,
see next three pictures. The staircase is going to go in next week -
see space in the last picture
Week 18 [30Sep - 04Oct]
The floors have been laid, the external painting is done (see first two
pictures below). The cornices are being put in the living and
hallways. Met with Paul on-site to discuss lights. Pictures below show
the light points in the front of the house, the two sides and the
rear. Paul is going to start cutting holes for downlights etc.
Week 17 [23-27 Sep]
Lots of progress this week! The flooring guys have finished laying the
boards downstairs. Figures below show flooring in foyer, dining, hall
(with steps built), and guest bedroom.
The flooring upstairs will be done by end of week. Figures below show
flooring in retreat, main bedroom, Nayan's bedroom, and Kiran's
bedroom.
Tiler Ben has been on-site all week. The bathroom has been tiled (first
figure below), and the kitchen, which he has levelled with screed
cement (second picture below), has been tiled with travertine (third
and fourth pictures below). Laundry floor (fifth picture below) has
not been tiled yet.
The external painting of the upper level is complete: first picture
below shows the view from street, and the second shows the side view.
We are thinking what to do about the front porch (next two pictures below),
possibly the posts should all be white and the floor painted brown?
Next week, the external painting will continue to the lower level, and
the scaffolding will come off. Nathan is going to start putting in the
architraves and skirtings, and then doors will be fitted.
Week 16 [16-20 Sep]
Flooring has commenced this week. Visited site Monday and they have started
working out floor levels and putting battens to flatten the floor, as shown
in the first photo (foyer) and second photo (guest bedroom) below. By
Thursday, the battens were all done and the floorboards were being laid in
the living area (photos 3 and 4 below).
The rendering and gyprocking is all done. The bathroom floor and walls
are ready for tiling (first photo below), the bedroom are all ready
for painting and putting the closets (next three photos show the main
bedroom, Nayan's bedroom, and Kiran's bedroom). The next photo shows
the retreat, and the last hoto shows the house from outside.
Week 15 [9-13 Sep]
Windows have all been installed and the external brickwork is pretty
much done, as shown in first photo below. The next photo shows the
living room sliding doors from inside, and the third photo shows the
living room walls that have been rendered (the floorboards have also
been delivered, currently stored in the living area).
The kitchen window has been installed, the walls are rendered, and the
wall frame on the side has been put up. The Kitchen measurements have
been taken by Glenn and given to Acron kitchens to produce the cabinets.
The next photo shows the opening for the staircase to be built. There
is an issue with pipe hammer in the bathroom, and Matthew is replacing
the mixers with higher quality ones (Grohe "Eurodisc Cosmopolitan")
which Harvey Norman is upgrading at no extra cost.
The windows in all bedrooms are done: Nayan's bedroom, the main
bedroom, and Kiran's bedroom are shown below. The sound bats on the
internal walls seem pretty good, and cut out a lot of the sound.
The bathtub has been installed, and the bathroom wall electrics and
vanity outlets have been installed.
Week 14 [2-6 Sep]
Windows have finally arrived! Windows have been installed to Kiran's
bedroom, Nayan's bedroom, and the main bedroom as shown in the first
three photos below. They open only 10cm (for safety), but the block
can be unscrewed if needed (at some later date). Next two photos show
the windows in the retreat upstairs.
Windows have also been installed to kitchen (has only one sliding door
not two as Matthew had originally told us), and living room downstairs.
The sliding doors are being installed, as shown in photo below. The
brickwork is being done on the bathroom side. We are also thinking of
putting better cornices in the living room, as it has very high ceiling.
Week 13 [26-30 Aug]
I have been overseas this week, so have not been to site. Did however
go on the Monday after to meet the electrician Paul to confirm
position of plug points in kitchen. The footings issue seems to have
been solved. They have poured concrete and rebuilt the brick wall
between kitchen and dining - seems solid now! The kitchen floor is
still uneven; Matthew says it will be levelled soon.
The windows are not here yet, so Matthew has started the rendering
work. The living room wall was being rendered, and the dining has
already been done.
Week 12 [19-23 Aug]
General work is progressing - walls for upper floor have been bricked
to window height (windows expected Wednesday next week), plumbing in
bathrooom above is near-done, and gaslines in kitchen are laid.
Work on fixing the footings under the wall between kitchen and dining
is underway. Two pictures below show that the ground has been dug
to reach rock, and cement bedding has been poured. They will now
construct a U-shaped arch on which the brickwork will sit to support it.
The kitchen wall renders have been removed, and there is (yet another)
crack in the wall adjoining the living room. This again seems to be
because the lintel above old doorway has bent, causing the brickwork
to crack (first two pictures below). No serious structural issue here
as there is no great load on this wall, but Matthew will probably
still key in some of the bricks, and put non-compressive grout to hold
the lintel up without bending. The ppipeworks for gas have also been
laid, as shown in the fourth picture, and the gas-pipe also has been
brought through the wall to the living area (next picture) so we can
put a gas heater if we want.
THe plan is that by next week the footings issues will be fixed, and
the week after the windows and brickwor upstairs will be done. By end
of September the reander downstairs and gyprocking upstairs should be
done. October will be taken up with staircase, flooring, and kitchen.
If all goes to plan, that leaves finish-up (painting etc.) for November.
Week 11 [12-16 Aug]
Problem with footing amplifies this week. As mentioned last week, the
wall between the foyer and the hall has a crack that seems to be a
footing issue. Nathan opened up a hole in the floor to investigate,
and sure enough, the old door opening does not have bricks going all
the way to the footing - they go only to the floor (first photo). This
puts weight on the little nib, causing the crack in the wall. The
second photo shows view of footings from below floor level. Matthew
brought the engineer along to inspect it, and he is also uncomfortable
with this, and intends to rebuild this part of the wall to make it go
all the way to the footing (he also has to dig to find rock on which
he can lay the footing). He also intends to reinforce the wall by
putting a frame (towards the kitchen side) and gyprock it; the frame
stops the wall from falling towards the kitchen (the other side is
supported by the perpendicular wall that is between the foyer and the
dining). This will cost an extra $5k (gulp!). The side effect of this
is that the kitchen will become narrower (by about 15cm), which means
the window will not be central anymore (hopefully that's not
noticeable). The wall between the hall and the kitchen is also thin,
single brick laid on its side. Engineer is again uncomfortable with
this, especially if the wall has to be chased for electrics. Matthew
therefore intends to put frame on it, towards hall, and gyprock it so
that electrics can be put without breaking brick.
Meanwhile, bricklayers have started putting bricks to side and back
walls, up to level of windows. Brickwork seems to be fairly clean and
nice, and the back of the house seems to be towering high (that's good!).
Week 10 [05-09 Aug]
Little progress this week, as we are waiting for windows and workers
were on-site only a day or two. Progress items are: (a) The bricks
have been delivered, and next week they will start bricking up to
window height. (b) The floor coverings have been stripped in
preparation for laying floorboards, (c) the suspended ceiling support
for the living area has been put, and (d) the elctrician has been
putting in some points downstairs. Met with Matthew on-site Thursday
morning, and discussed a few issues.
First, the flooring in the kitchen area has different materials,
making it uneven. The first photo shows both concrete and floorboards
abutting, and the second photo shows the unevenness in the concrete.
This has to be levelled by some grinding, before paying a sheet of
magnemite (about 3-4mm thick) and then putting tiles on top. This will
add somewhat to cost, which Matthew is going to work on with the tiler
to give us an estimate of the work involved.
Second issue is more serious, and is regarding the wall near the
door between the foyer and the hall. The first photo below shows that
there must have originally been a doorway there which has been
blocked. They did a patchy job: they did not not key in the bricks,
and the gap under the old lintel has been filled with soft grout that
is crumbling (see second and third photos below). The load of the wall
above has caused a crack to run down the wall (see next photo, which
shows vertical crack above the two dodgy bricks in the nib between old
and new doorway). Matthew is going to call in his engineer to see if
the load is going all the way down to the footing or only till the
floor. Accordingly he will decide if remedial action is required
(which may require this part of the wall to be rebuilt), since the
beam above bearing the load from the upper floor is putting weight on
this wall).
There is a similar issue in the bricks in the hall where the old part
of the house meets the new. The two photos below show that where the
old part (right) meets the new (left), the bricks have not been keyed
in, and and been crammed in vertically. This is not as much a
structural issue, but aesthetic, as the render is going to crack there
when the different parts of the wall move differently.
There is also dodgy brickwork in the living room wall. This wall was
the back wall of the original house. The first photo below shows the
right part, which shows an original doorway, and the second photo
shows the left part, which was probably a window. The (broken) wall on
the left is not proper either (third photo below). Matthew reckons
this is more aesthetic than structural (i.e. cracking can appear), and
he will work out how to address this. Very different from the new
bricks that have been put (last photo below)!
Lastly, we need to think about whether we want to do anything to the
fireplace in the dining (see photo below) - at the very least throw
away the electric heater in there!
Week 9 [29 Jul-02 Aug]
Work has been generally slow this week, as they are waiting for
windows to arrive before brickwork etc can proceed. Matthew could not
come Friday, so met with electrician Paul on-site on Friday. Progress
this week includes (ordered by picture below): (1) the frame for
internal wall in living room has been put up, (2) the living room wall
and other areas in general have been stripped of render to prepare for
re-rendering, (3) tiles have been removed from the floor in the area
outside the kitchen, (4) tiles have been removed from the floor in the
stairs area, (5) roof tiles are in place, (6) sarking insulation is
seen under the roof tiles, (7) the facia and gutters are in place and
can be seen from the side of the house, and (8) The front view of the
house showing overall progress so far.
Talked to the electrician about electrics upstairs. Putting a
fan+light plus 2 power-points in each bedroom, 4 downlights in the
retreat, and a two-way light in the hall. Need to decide about mirror
light for bathroom - strip light above mirror or a focused downlight?
Also working with Acron kitchens on kitchen design, almost
converged. Need to go this Saturday to select splashback tiles and
wall feature tiles, and all appliances.
Week 8 [22-26 Jul]
Went jogging on Monday evening and saw from street that some of the
framing was already up (first picture below) - progress is good! Met
with Matthew on-site Friday morning as usual and walked on the
upstairs platform. The framing for all rooms is in place, so getting
an idea of space. Second picture shows the stairs area; already
showing that our first floor is fairly high and above the level for
adjoining houses, so good views! The next two picture show the retreat
area; as can be seen the height is pretty good for nice views. The
next picture shows the bathroom: decent size! The next three pictures
show the bedrooms: the main, nayan's and kiran's. They all seem to
have nice big windows, so should have plenty of light. The last two
pictures show the view from the lower floor, from the yard and from
the rear.
Things discussed: the guttering and facia is being put up now, should
be done by early next week. The roof tiles should arrive next week and
should be up by wednesday. The flooring guy (we decided on Mint) is
going to start ripping up the cork in the foyer/dining next Thursday,
and the electrician will start wiring up the upper floor. The windows
have been ordered and will take 2-3 weeks. Matthew mentioned that
(all?) upper windows will need safety locking so they open no more
than 10cm (bummer!) to prevent kids from falling off. Also got a
revised kitchen design from Paul/Denise; still doesn't look very right
so we have to work on it this weekend.
Week 7 [15-19 Jul]
Again met with Matthew on-site Friday morning. Has been a beautiful
sunny week, work has been progressing well. Major developments are:
(a) the cavity has been created for moving the electric meter box to
the side of the house above the gas meter. (b) The kitchen window
opening has been finished, with brickwork going above the lintel
(Matthew said the brickwork had been loose, so he has broken down and
rebuilt that part of the kitchen external wall). (c) The floor
sheeting is in place, and I was able to walk on the floor platform
upstairs. (d) Brickwork is progressing well for taking the frame next week.
Some of the issues we discussed are: (a) Flooring: still deciding
between the quote from Mint flooring and Sydney flooring. Mint is
higher by about $2K, but takes care of cork removal, step treads and
risers, and leveling. Sydney flooring wants builder to level the
conrete spikes, and does not want to do cork removal. Talked to Phil
of Mint and he reduced quote to $30K to match Sydney, so will likely
go with them. (b) Laundry ceiling is 2.4m not 2.7m, so had to talk to
Acorn cabinetry to adjust height of laundry cabinet accordingly. (c)
Discussed kitchen with Matthew (benchtop widths are 3.87m, 3.55m, and
2.42m), who though flooring may look too busy if travertine stone is
laid in brick pattern, wanted to be more conservative by going with
30x30 square tiles. (d) Might be still a bit early to talk to Alan
about built-in closets, might want to wait till Aug. (e) Electrics
excess for lower floor comes to about $2K. Essentially all wiring has
now been replaced, except the light wiring in foyer, dining, and guest
bedroom.
Week 6 [08-12 Jul]
Visited site several days this week. Met with Phil of Mint flooring on
Tuesday; he said the concrete part would be easier as they would
batten it up to match levels; we will have a ramp into bathoom as the
floor in living will rise by 40-50mm. The battens need to go before
the staircase. He also said he would use solid planks for the steps in
hall. The cork above the wooden boards in foyer/dining/hall needs to be
removed, and he will then use membrane, battens and plywood. His quote
came back Thursday at about $32K. Also met with Jonathan of Sydney
Flooring on-site Wednesday. He talked about grinding the concrete to
level it, but Nathan said that would be expensive, so he will also use
battens. He says no membrane on the wooden floor, only on concrete.
Also says that since the living is big, he will have to use expansion
joints (cork) if the boards are laid across the room, so it might
actually be better to lay the boards along the house rather than
across. Awaiting his quote next week. Also met with Paul the
electrician on-site Wednesday, and need to make lots of decisions on
power points and lights. Visited kitchen showroom of Paul+Diane on
Wednesday afternoon and talked about design. Need to research appliances.
Several issues to make decisions on:
- Electricals: Foyer: keep chandelier, no fan for now,
move light switch to left side of entrance door since new door will
be hinged on the right? 2 power points on the carport wall for
piano and computer. Dining: Fan+light in centre of room;
switch/controller near window. Power point near fireplace? Guest
bedroom: fan+light in centre; switch/controller near door; need
power points on either side of window. Hallway: one light
above stairs with switch inside kitchen, and one below stairs with
switch outside laundry door. Kitchen: one option is to keep
existing light placements and keep existing celing. Another option
is to have one central light and one more light over sink with
separate switches; this is ok if new ceiling. Power points TBD
depending on kitchen payout. Where is the phone outlet?
Living: 8 downlights and one fan in middle. All switches
on outside laundry wall?
- Flooring: Need to decide on flooring direction and choose
between Mint flooring and Sydney Flooring. Also need to decide on
kitchen tiles so the flooring can match in height.
Visited site on Friday and met with Matthew and Paul the electrician
again. Decided to move electrical switchboard to left side of house on
top of gas meter (should be compliant). The roof structure is
progressing well, with beams in place and joists being installed.
Matthew says the inspection from council is scheduled for coming
Monday, and from Tuesday they will start laying the floor platform.
The laundry plumbing is also being roughed in.
Week 5 [01-05 Jul]
Nice and sunny this week! Met with Matthew on-site on Friday. They had
already put the steel beam over living, and were in the process of
hoisting the other beam on top of the kitchen wall. However it was
turning out to be unsafe using raisers, so they had to then carry it
up the scaffolding ramp. The roof tiles had also been stripped to make
space for the beam on kitchen. Got prod from Matthew on flooring and
kitchen, so plan to chase these up next week.
Week 4 [24-28 Jun]
Matthew back from Fiji this week, met with him on-site Friday morning,
and spent nearly an hour there. Had been pouring rain all week, so
external work was severely curtailed. Progress included: (a) Internal
openings between dining and kitchen, and dining and foyer had been
bricked and appropriate openings created. (b) scaffolding was up so
was able to climb on top and get a top-view – quite high! (c) Laundry
back-wall had been built in brick, (d) guest bedroom window lintel was
insufficient in length, so they have replaced the lintel, which
required the wall above to be rebuilt.
Discussed a few things with Matthew: (a) Wood floor covering: Matthew
still thought solid timber can warp due to moisture even if we put
membrane under. (b) Skirting boards on lower floor to be kept
consistent with existing, but upstairs will have more rounded pencil
end. (c) Layout of laundry has tub to right, washing machine and dryer
next to it, and a broom closet at the far left. Shelving can go on top
above the tiles. (d) Discovered that the plumbing drainage in the back
part of the house is earthenware, and was blocking up due to tree
roots. Plumber has cleared it for now, but need to think about putting
either a PVC lining internally or doing a clean every year.
Week 3 [17-21 Jun]
Matthew still in Fiji this week, met with Glen on-site Friday
morning. Had been raining quite a lot over the week, so external work
was limited. Main progress was: (a) external walls to living area had
been built so sliding doors and extra window can go in, (b) the
internal walls (dining-kitchen and dining-foyer) had been cut to
prepare for changing the internal openings, (c) the internal wood wall
between laundry and staircase had been removed (had lots of termite
damage).
Week 2 [10-14 Jun]
Matthew was off to Fiji on vacation, so met with Glen on-site on
Friday morning. They had brought down the internal wall to create the
living room space, brought down the entire external wall to yard for
the sliding doors, and knocked down the top part of the back wall to
put in new window. The bricked courtyard had also been knocked
down. Glen explained that the concrete had been poured after the walls
were put up (hence there was no concrete in the centre of the living
room where the separator wall had been) and the concrete was poured on
top of a sand bed. This also meant that the separator wall between
living and toilet could not be made in brick as that would require
cutting the concrete to put the brick on the rock footings (too
expensive). The toilet (to become stairs) had been stripped, and the
wall between the stairs and laundry, which was part-wood, had termite
damage, so Glen said they would reconstruct it in brick. All-in-all
looks like pretty good progress!
Week 1 [5-7 Jun]
Work commenced on Wednesday 5 Jun. Visited site on Friday morning and
progress seemed good. They had stripped the roof in the back part of
the house, removed the floor covering there, and stripped part of the
wall to widen the corridor. There was scaffolding stuff and other
material around the house.
