Rain, Rain Go Away

With all the rain last week not as much work as were expecting got done. The eaves have been completed and some cladding is up.

The sun was out today for the first time in a while, but we were disappointed when we drove past and did not see anything happening on the house! With more rain predicted this week, our expectations a low for any real progress.

We have a Roof

The roof to the main part of the dwelling was finished this week. Obviously we are bias, but the brick and roof colours work well together, although we must wait until the upper level cladding is installed and painted before we  know have successful we have been. I will post pictures when the externals are complete.

The garage and alfresco roof still need to done, but the scaffolding needs to come down before that can happen. This requires the eaves, cladding and upper level painting to happen first. Hopefully, by the end of this week all the scaffolding will be gone.

Works seems to be progress with little delay between trades at the moment, which is pleasing after a long pause without a lot happening.

Lets hope it continues!

Decisive Action

We got a really good response from the builder about our concerns about delays with getting the roof on. The owner got involved and sacked the original roof sub contractor and appointed a new one.

Due to lead time on delivering materials, this will not result in an immediate start on site, but it was decisive response, which is pleasing. Hopefully, gutters and flashing will start late this week. They are also upgrading the roof lining from sarking to an Anticon blanket at no extra cost. This was a pleasant surprise.

Roof Frame Complete

The roof frames were finished off this week. Unfortunately the roof sheeting that we were expecting did not happen. We were told as soon as the roof sheeting was finished on the house being built nearby he would be straight to our place. From what we could see, they finished the other house on Tuesday. Friday was a write off due to rain, but the balance of the week was ok weather wise, although there were a few showers around. So we are unsure why the roof did not go on.

The supervisor did not call to give us an update this week. Our builder has a ‘we will call you, do not call us policy’ which means we do not have the supervisor’s phone number. We must wait in anticipation for his call every Friday. It is a ridiculous arrangement, particularly when you missed the call. Anyway, I made contact with their office late Friday afternoon to have a whinge and try and find out what was going on. Whinge I did, but we must wait until Monday for a call back from the supervisor to get an update on progress. I will not hold my breath – the last two times I have left a message for the supervisor he did not bother to call back.

Progress!!

Despite the rain on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday some progress was made on the house last week. The frame for the racked ceiling to bed 1 has started and appears to be almost complete. The balcony roof to bed 1 is also in progress. The wall and roof frames are meant to be T2 treated (timber with the green tinge) and generally are, except for this most recent work. Must question this!

Showers are forecast for everyday next week. Fingers crossed some work still is able to be done.

Site Meeting

I met with the Supervisor onsite this morning. The flooring has clearly been exposed to the weather for too long - all the joints have swollen and separated. Furthermore, the base of the upper floor frames has turned black due to continuing moisture exposure. Despite this, the builder believes the flooring and wall frames are structurally sound and will be providing a written statement from the supplier confirming this. They will also be sanding the floor to remove the bumps created at the joints from the swelling.

Provided the statement says what it should, then this is not a bad outcome. The alternative would be to rebuild the upper level and this would be time consuming and may not provide any different long term result. However, we are very annoyed our new house is water damaged and certainly not what we were expecting to pay for.

Another issue that needs further investigation is what appears to be mould growing on the wall frames. Mould in timber can be very difficult to get rid of and if not treated before the wall lining and insulation are installed we could be stuck with it forever. We will keep monitoring this one.

For some good news……

The elusive framer is starting back on Monday to complete the roof frames and he will be followed by the roofing sheeting contractor later that week or early the next. The supervisor has indicated that handover is roughly 8 – 10 weeks after the roof goes on. So fingers crossed we will be moving in sometime in April.

End of Christmas Shutdown

Today was the end of Christmas Shutdown period. Unfortunately, this did not mean a resumption of work on our house. The completion of roof framing (that was “definitely” going to be done before the break) did not happen nor did the roof sheeting. To rub salt into the wound, the cleaners were preparing the house across the road for handover (yes, the one that start the same time as ours).

We have meeting with the supervisor on Wednesday morning to discuss the floor. That should be interesting……..