24th August update

The floor is finished upstairs.
Except for the A/C unit, varnish on the balustrades and some cleaning, this part is complete.


Downstairs, there is some more work to be done in the kitchen
(splashback panels missing). Then it's time to clean the concrete
and seal it.




Free artwork on the blue wall, thanks to the sun!
And talking about artwork, our resident Artist has created
a masterpiece in the entrance! One more coat of sealer and Voila!

Getting there, slowly...

27/07/08
The plasterers are finally gone... Now the painters can get started.
We should get the keys around the 5th Sept....




08/08/08...
The painters are making good progress. They were let down by the
selected Dulux paint, which didn't cover as it should have: 4 coats and counting!


One of the only 2 feature walls in the house (for the moment!).


And we finally have the ballustrades: rails too short, too far a part...
Anyway, it looks good now.
Well actually, some rails are still missing...

It has been a while….

Yes, things are progressing but we are at least 2 weeks late, thanks to the plasterers.To their credit, the job looks good: there was a lot of work around the windows, due to the square-set finish we asked for.

The render is finished, and they have done a top job.
The stairs are in place, and today, the garage door was installed.
Doors, handles, skirting and architraves around the doors are being fitted out.
The water tank is in place, waiting for some rain…

Insulation In, Plaster starts...

The battens were installed Monday, and that same evening
I started to install the insulation in the ceilings.
Five hours were not enough, I took Tuesday off and spent the whole day
going up and down the step ladder... Anyway, all done now.

Straight jackets, please....!

The plasterers finally turned up this morning 26/06.
We are now over 2 weeks late because of them.
There is a bit more work for them, as we are going for a "set square"
finish: no cornices, just skirting and architraves around the doors..



Coucou aux visiteurs Francais! Bises a tous!

Insulation in (well, almost...)

We have been busy the last 2 week ends putting the insulation in.
It is almost finished, except for downstairs, where the roof is not quite
completed. As soon as the battens for the plaster go in, we will have
to install the ceiling insulation. Most likely during this week, after work.






The picture below was taken Saturday 14/06/08 in the morning, just before
a trip to the tip (we clean the site every week).
The guys working on site are very good: they pile up the rubbish in one corner
and we take it to the local tip.
Ridge capping and flashing for upstairs + the missing sheets above the
entrance should be installed early this week.

Hebel... the begining!

The final coat for the render is on!
We were a bit nervous regarding the colour, but we really like it.
With the Woodland grey Colorbond,it looks quite sharp.

The guys did an excellent job: they made sure they protected the concrete floor,
as well as the windows, and the workmanship is first rate.

We have been extremely lucky with the weather!

Some of the plumbing work in the laundry.
No more copper pipes...!

Windows in place...

The windows have been installed (all except 2),
as well as the cladding upstairs. 3 coats of render are next!


The remaining roof is coming this week, weather permitting.


Upstairs: the sudy.

The Colorbond roof upstairs is almost complete.
The windows are next, then the polyester cladding.



This is some serious scaffolds....

We will be installing the insulation ourselves, but this time,
we are using polyester bats... Not like in our previous house!

Almost there...

Good progress this week.
We are almost done with the timber for the roof.
The aim is to install the Colorbond on the top floor, the windows, the cladding
and render. Then the ground floor gets the same treatment!



The trusses in the garage...

I almost forgot: the meter box got fixed today!
A new door, a bit of panel beating on the side panel and "voila"!
Like new...
Cheers guys!

Back to work!

The trusses were delivered Monday late afternoon.

The truck got bogged down in the driveway, had to be pulled out using another truck and in the process, the new meter box was slightly dented…

The next day, work began again, and within 3 days, trusses and battens were in place, well almost. On Friday, the weather put a stop to everything: heavy rain, hailstorm, the lot.

In typical Melbourne weather, we had blue sky soon after…

Once the battens are in place, the “roof man” (!) should turn up and take some measurement. We should see some Colorbond very soon on top of the first floor.

We are very pleased with the quality of the work so far.
Attention to detail is omnipresent, and it's a very reassuring thing!

Waiting, waiting, waiting......

Nothing has happened for the last 10 days.
The roof trusses were delivered on the 18th, but they have been made with wrong timber…aaaaagghhhh!
We are finally getting the new ones tomorrow.
This is the layout of the house.

Part 4

11/04/08 The first delivery of the pre-fab. timber frame is here. The timber is Laserframe H2 (MGP10), from Carter Holt Harvey (www.chhwoodproducts.com.au).

14/04/08 Erection in progress... Sorry, but that's the word for it! Ground floor.

And now the first floor:

Part 3

Catching up with the blog!....

14/03/08 Crushed rock, form work, termite spray, plastic membrane almost completed.

18/03/08 Waffle pods, steel mesh & reo are in place, ready for the pour.

19/03/08 The Big Day! All the guys are here, ready for action. Perfect Melbourne weather!