Aerial View

How great is this! an aerial view of our block taken on the 20th of Oct!!! Our place looks very symmetrical.

Not much to update. I had the 'Girls night in' a couple of weeks ago which went well it was a small gathering of four girls. It was more an afternoon thing so we were able to sit outside in the alfresco area and enjoy the outdoors, sipping apple martinis and eating yummy cheese. We gathered around the kitchen which made me realise I really need those bar stools soon. It was very low key event, I made Karen Martini's Syrian Chicken and Osso Bucco with cous cous; we also had Coconut panna cotta for dessert. I'm really happy with my kitchen, I thought it might have been too small but I think it's the perfect size. It has loads of bench space which I love and I love my stove & oven - love love love it.

I have a huge to do list and an even bigger wish list of things I'd like for the house...

Landscaping Front & Side Area

I think overall the landscaping went well; I think it looks great. There were issues with timing but I found Gary & Paul to be very professional and knew what they were doing. We just have the gates to finish, I'm hoping weather permitting this will get done this week. My poor dog has been staying with grandma all this time as we still don't have gates. We have been watering the grass with the rain water tank which I'm glad is full again after this wkend and DH has been out in the rain putting some fertiliser stuff (as per our landscapers instructions) on the grass - apparently this is the best time to put the fertiliser in???
front LHS, in time hoping to have garden on this side and more grass!
this is the low front fence, I think it looks awesome. Made a slight boo boo with not getting a front opening letterbox, it was a bit difficult to brick the side. It looks a bit incomplete due to this but you can't see from the front.
this the front fence going around the front corner to the side fence
these are the front stepping stones, we went with Aspenstone Vanilla with Rumba Pavescape border
these are the stepping stones around the RHS

Landscaping back area

stepping stones meeting with the alfresco pavers
so happy with these pavers - Travertine pavers in Chalk - they match the bricks so well
alfresco area, this is my favourite spot. The guys did an awesome job with the paving.
side - laundry area with same pavers as the driveway - Pavescape in Birch. Love Gary's work, he even did some plumbing when there was a burst water pipe. Glad someone was around when this happened. I think EB's plumber came around after the event to check that all was ok??? still not sure what happened???

and this is the back corner. Lots of planting to be done here!!! The retaining walls were done with treated timber. We had to cut costs here as we had to do the whole back are and sides, I think they look fine. Gary did a great job with these.

Work has kept me so busy I've neglected my blog; We've finally unpacked most of our stuff and have been able to get the car in the garage. The landscaping started three weeks ago and we're hoping it'll be completed next week so we can have a house warming party. Were only getting the bare minimum done with the landscaping - the front fence, retaining walls around the back, paving the alfresco & laundry / garage area and putting in turf. No plants. This will just have to be a WIP.

We haven't had too many issues with the house, just the front door lock breaking and the pump in the water tank stuffing up - this is still an issue, hoping someone will fix it next week. Had not noticed but this had been turned off the whole time and when we turned it on it was stuffed.

We still have no blinds, have not organised anything yet I'm still undecided as to what to have. I think this will have to wait post xmas as funds have depleted somewhat due to the landscaping and bits and pieces we've bought for the house.

I'll post some pics next week of the landscaping, cannot wait to be able to open the bifold doors and sit outside and soak up the sun.

Finally here are some pics of our house...we have had such a busy last couple of weeks moving, cleaning, packing & unpacking and to top it of I got a new job last week!!! so life's been very busy.


Entrance & stairs - I think getting EB to redo the stairs has paid off, very happy with this result.


As mentioned in my previous postings I was very happy with the carpet colour, matched the tiling perfectly.
French doors to the study downstairs
front room - still not sure what type of window coverings to have here??? should I get shutters? or curtains?
back area with bi-fold doors to alfresco area - cannot wait to get this outside sorted out
this is now the rumpus room - full of play stuff - I think this is the best room in the house in terms of the light & getting the morning sun
my kitchen - very happy now that almost everything is unpacked
love the mosaic tiles in the kitchen - not sure if I should put a glass over the top...

this is the end result of the double tiling, could not wait another month or two to sort this out so we are just living with it, the independent inspector we had thought it was acceptable.
my new white lounges in the front room, now with lovely cushions; would love to get some built-in bookcase in this room and some tables would be good too.
these are the new taps we replaced as the other ones were hard to get your hands underneath to wash your hands - thanks EB....EB did pay for half these taps but when the plumbers installed these taps when we moved in they also took the old ones. Let me say that again EB installed taps which were not usable we paid for 6 new taps (almost one thousand dollars )and EB paid half. The new taps which we paid for were installed and the plumbers took the original ones....So now these taps are installed, the tiling needs to be redone as there are large holes - I'm not really sure how this has happened as the whole point to getting these taps were that they were the same shape. They use the same back....so who knows if these will ever get fixed now??? I told my SS straight away but I think he is now MIA
my kitchen at night - with the rangehood & oven installed. I had drama after drama with these appliances, I had to get Smeg out as one of the cooktop didn't work, one of the oven buttons was faulty and whoever installed my rangehood forgot to take this flap out so it was very noisy. All is fine now. Gabrielle kitchen came out to sort some stuff out and I'm hoping they are coming out again, they kindly installed my trim kit for the microwave which looks great. Have ordered some stuff for the drawers. Since the rangehood was just installed - the cornice has to be fixed. Again I told my SS this in the first week we moved and have not heard from him...hhmmm
loving my kitchen
daughters room with new bed & quilt
our bed with new curtains, have ordered bed side lamps but has taken forever to get...another drama.

Managed to get computer access this afternoon but no time for blogging....will be out of action till Wed when hopefully will get internet access - can't wait to post some pics then.

WE HAVE KEYS

Hooray!!!! We finally have our house, it was very exciting driving my car up the driveway for the first time and opening the garage door. Finally being able to get in my house.

I didn't get a chance to take photos this afternoon but will definitely take photos before we start the move this wkend. I will be doing lots of cleaning first, cleaning and more cleaning. Then we'll be packing, packing and more packing.

We moved out of our flat in 2006 so I'm looking forward to unpacking stuff we put in storage since that time. We bought the block in Dec 07 so it has taken us one and half years to get to this point. 4mths stuffing around not knowing what to do who to go with, then signed up with EB it took 5mths from tender to contract stage and 10mths construction stage.

Thank God that's over - EB must have been celebrating this afternoon just like we were tonight.

There was one main rectification last week and that was to redo the flashing in the front, which was rectified earlier in the week...so we were hoping to settle last week but there was a stuff up with the bank.

The bank valuer stuffed us around, we had lodged weeks ago to get the final valuation done so we can get the final settlement cheque - their excuse was that we or the builder hadn't returned their calls. Well it's hard to return a phone call when you didn't get it in the first place.

Then there was more drama to be had when the valuer eventually came to see the house but my SS was running late and the valuer couldn't wait for him; so he left and he didn't see the house. So then we had to speak again to the bank to organise the valuer again....nothing has been smooth sailing for us with this build so should have expected something to go wrong with this also.

The valuer came on friday so maybe Tues or Wed we can bloody settle this whole thing.... I can't imagine anything else could go wrong from here?? surely???

To do list:
packing again, lots of packing
on settlement - EB will change the locks, install appliances, taps & mirrors, fix some electrical stuff
work out window coverings
lots of cleaning & sealing of grout
more packing
hopefully get the place leveled so we can put a fence up on the corner side

Pre-settlement Inspection

The painters finally came on Wed and Tyrrell's also. Our independent inspector came on Friday to check the issues which were found in the PCI and unfortunately he didn't think the rectification for the flashing was satisfactory so we are hoping EB will get this fixed early this week.

Not sure if this is going to happen now as Tyrrell's signed-off on it already....I told my SS that I wasn't comfortable in signing the PCI when this was still an issue so hoping he does the right thing and get it fixed.

There were other things outstanding from the PCI which didn't get rectified, the striker plate on the doors - so the doors don't close properly in the wc & spare bedroom; the pantry door painting didn't get fixed up; we still have the curved t-bar in the garage; no cover for the manhole; my laundry security door still not changed (EB installed the wrong colour) and there are things which apparently will happen at settlement such as the locks changed, the hot water system installed, mirrors installed - my SS is worried that this will get stolen if we get this done before settlement - but my aircon is in - I hope no-one steals this...

We also found out last week that we don't have gas mains on our street, we only found out last week!!! this is like we'll put taps in but won't check if you have water mains...not sure if we were meant to check this???? but surely if they are providing us with the gas hot water they would check first if this was ok???? I was surprised that our street didn't have gas so now we have to get bottles put on the corner side of our house - which won't look to flash.

I called Gabrielle kitchen last week to see if they can fix some of the scratches I found when we did our PCI, my SS kept saying that the cleaners will clean it but I could tell it wasn't dirty the paint was scratched and also they drilled holes in the back of the cupboard under the sink and to cover it they just put a laminate sticker over the top so I wanted them to put a false back to cover this....hoping they can come next week. I also want to ask them about my cutlery tray as I think someone swapped mine for their old ones...why should I get skanky old ones...

No painters today.

I just can't believe the CM was so concerned about us doing the practical completion inspection and getting it done straight away so that we can get a list together of all the defects yet now the practical inspection has been done - things are not getting fixed.

Me things he was rushing to get the practical completion done so that they minimize the liquidated damages that's in the contract

So now we are still no where in site of moving in and our defects period is ticking away - how is this possible??? unbelievable...this just does not seem right.

Tyrrells reinspection booked for tomorrow so lots of jobs today, EB have had two weeks but apparently everything on the Tyrrells report is getting done today...hhmmmm...still no one on-site so will only be half a day really.

To do this afternoon:
roof - bedding of ridge capping & flashing to complete, cleaning the gutter
painting - lots of touch ups & repainting the stairs
tilers to do lots of sealing & will be cleaning the drains - I thought the plumbers did this????
the doors don't close properly so not sure who's doing this????
the bifold doors are rusted apparently the cleaners clean this so not sure this is happening....
windows scratched still to be replaced

If they can do this in one day why didn't they do it two weeks ago????

The one thing that got done was the mosaic tiles - very surprised to see this done and also very surprised how they rectified the issue...The problem was that the tiling was not straight and protruding out plus the tilers couldn't get behind the vanity basin so the tiles were falling off.

EB's solution & Di Lorenzo - this was coming from the General Manager of Di Lorenzo - they tiled over the existing tiles. So you can imagine how thick this is looking...this was an issue in May so they have had at least one month to sort this out and this is how they fixed it.

Di Lorenzo are saying that the tiling should have been done first before the basin went in and that the basin has not been placed correctly it's too far away from the wall. They tiled over the tiles as this is the best option without moving anything....

EB just want the easy fix obviously so have decided to do this without asking us if we agree with it. We did not consent to tiling over tiles we wanted it done properly so if it meant moving the basin then this is what EB should do not this half arsed job....why do we have to constantly fight to get something done properly???? Has anyone heard of doing this to a NEW house - tiling over tiles????

Here are the tiles below which needed to be rectified...so they tiled over this....

Why did I bother paying so much money for these *%$#@ing expensive tiles when this is how they are tiling it????

I feel like we have been taken for a very expensive ride long enough and I just want it to end

No activity at the house today. We went to the Boral factory outlet today and saved some pennies buying seconds for our pavers; They had a great selection of pavers at very good prices so very pleased about that. We selected the Aspenstone in Vanilla for the side stepping stones, Travertine in Chalk for the alfresco area and Pavesacape in Birch & Rumba for the laundry area.

3mths today since we reached lock up stage....and we're still waiting. No activity at the house today, just really sad to see the empty house. This is such torture.

There's been no activity at the house since our inspection except for the water tank being replaced; so settlement this week is looking rather bleak....it's just frustrating to see the house everyday and nothing is getting done. One weeks rent that could be going towards the landscaping or window coverings or furniture funds...

We got our interim occupation certificate yesterday afternoon so hopefully things will be straightforward with the bank side of things....would love to settle next week, how amazing would that be....not sure when the next Tyrrells inspection will be hopefully early in the week; not much activity has happened post the inspection just the water tank was removed last Thurs...I do hope the painters come this weekend...apparently the GM of DL is looking at my mosaic tiles also.

Independent Inspections

We received the Tyrrell's Inspection yesterday and my SS even went through the list. How about that for service. My CSR said that this wasn't the norm but I think EB should actually do this as part of their standard process...makes sense it's already part of their quality assurance program so why not involve the client to provide them with assurance that even though the build may have its defects that EB is looking into it and hopefully rectify the issues.

I have my fingers, toes and everything else crossed that this won't turn out like the last inspection and that EB will address issues coming from these reports. So far so good.

The only major thing coming out of the report was with the roofing it needs to be finished off (ridge capping loose & flashing needs to be rectified) apart from that minor things which still needs to be addressed such as painting issues, gutters needs to be cleaned, sealing in the bathrooms, drains cleaned - nothing that can't be fixed.

A big thing which for me has to get done - the bloody mosaic tiles, I wish I never got these now seems like a PITA to do. The powder room still to be redone.

So hopefully all small issues will get resolved, my SS is hoping to get all the stuff done by Friday!!! so will wait and see, I wonder if Tyrrells come back for another inspection???

Anyway very pleased with yesterdays outcome, I feel a bit relieved that our inspector was very very thorough and was generally ok with the standard of build. I wished we got Ben for the pre-plaster inspection...Ben had done a couple of inspections for us, we were looking at buying a property before we decided on building, we just missed out at auction at a property in Ryde but I remembered his report was so thorough. I actually never met him until yesterday. I recommend Inspect It for your next property inspection.

New carpet

For a brief moment I was excited to see my new carpet (the colour is perfect) until I saw that the bed side switches had not been moved; which means the electrician will be going up and down the stairs with his muddy boots on my NEW carpet. Then the plasterer then the painter then it won't be looking so new anymore. I specifically asked that this be done first before the carpet was put in.

I spoke to the CM because he said to call him for any issues and the response I got was 'what do you want me to do Hermyleen rip up the carpet?' This was the response I got. This seems to be typical of his responses now - ok we'll rip up the tiles/wall and move the taps up. I would like to go to his house and trample all over his carpet with my muddy shoes and see how he feels about that. That's what I'd like to happen.

Care factor here is nil obviously.

I'm upset about this because I would like my new carpet to stay new - I paid a lot of money for this upgrade close to $6k just for this carpet. If I was living in this house already (just hypothetically) I wouldn't let dirty muddy boots anywhere near my new carpet.

So Tyrell's inspection is booked in for tomorrow and our own independent inspection in for Tuesday so maybe we'll do our PCI then. I guess it depends on when we get the Tyrell's report as we'd like to see this first.

I just don't understand why Tyrrell's are coming tomorrow when the tilers were suppose to come back and fix the tiling; plumbing not done in the kitchen - NO PLUMBING for the kitchen sink; the windows still missing stormmoulds; missing door fittings in the bedroom and laundry; fascia not fixed; brick piers need repainting; broken windows; house not cleaned....

I remember the CM telling us that EB were changing their procedures and that the inspection by Tyrrells will be done once the house is complete and up to 'display home' standard. This is not the case at all.

This experience seems more painful that my cancer seriously, just excruciating. I just want this to be over.

Not much news to post quite depressing really. EB were moving the taps and so we were waiting all week for the estimator to calculate the cost even though it was a no cost building variation. This week EB changed their mind and have decided to compensate us and pay 50% of the spout we were looking to install to fix this issue. We initially asked for EB to compensate us for the taps so we were quite surprised when EB volunteered to move the taps up instead anyhoo that was one week wasted.

So this last week the flyscreens were installed last Tues. Not that eventful really.

A rep from DL came to inspect the tiling on Wed as the mosaic tiles in the kitchen and powder room needs to be redone, they've agreed so this was suppose to get done last week also, didn't happen so hopefully this will get done next week.

Apparently the bricks are getting cleaned on Mon, I was told that this was happening last week so will wait and see. The same goes for the electrician who are coming next week to move the bed side switches.

There's just lots of little things outstanding and it seems like nothing is happening....

Fencing

I went for a walk today and found this fence. This is exactly the fence I want and this is the same as our bricks too only in Chatswood instead of Balmoral, love the sandstock capping.

Movin on up

OMG EB are moving the taps!!!! This is such a huge job and being so close to finishing the house - I never imagined EB would do this. Gotta be happy with that.

Now those tradies better not chip my caesarstone, the last plasterer was a bit careless.

So a slight setback with timing due to the taps but I'm prepared to wait for this to get fixed up.

Last Sunday and today the painters were back finishing the outside and doing touch ups inside. I've been waiting for a nice day to take a photo of the outside as the balcony posts are done and so is the pergola. I think they even painted the lintels will check out the house tomorrow.

Taps Solution

Like I said before the picture above which is displayed in the Home Option Gallery was what we thought we'd be getting but instead our taps were installed too low. I don't think they should display this photo in the Home Option if the end product does not look like this. Not happy about this at all as we had to buy new spouts so that we can use the basins. We opted for the Fluid Plus bath spout as these were shorter and went up slightly and they matched the existing taps. Hope this works. We didn't really need more unbudgetted expenditure.

At no time during the build were we asked to specify how high we wanted the taps. I thought I would have sounded too pedantic if I specified the height of the taps when we were choosing all our fixtures but in hindsight I guess this would not have resulted in what we have now. I did inquire about this at the start of the build when the plumbing went in and was told by my SS not to worry as they knew what they were doing, it will all be sorted out...gullible me believed him. I should have put this in writing then....

I should have gone with a mixer which was my first option but instead I went with the 'standard' taps. My bad, I should have gone with my instinct. I think the taps were the only thing I didn't change. lol.

Speaking of the Home Option Gallery - they have a frameless shower screen there too and there's no hob to be seen in site - my SS should visit this Gallery so he can see what a 'frameless' screen looks like.

How do I get over this? I'm just totally gutted about these mistakes. I guess I had high expectations and EB just hasn't delivered.

Cleaners

My house is looking very shiny from the outside, the cleaners did an amazing job with the windows. I should have asked them how they cleaned it. What a transformation. So tomorrow the painters are coming back to do the touch ups, and paint the outside - the pergola, cladding, downpipes (I hope).

I've decided to get curtains for the sliding door in the main bedroom, I thought it would be better insulation than the roller blinds I had planned plus I really love sheer curtains; so I can have a block out and sheer also. Now what colour??? I'll be meeting the curtain people on site tomorrow whilst the painters are there.

There's no end to what people will pinch, I thought the plumbers were done and dusted but what do I find today when I looked at the kitchen sink - two black holes...I think someone has taken this - the dual multi-link space saver waste fitting in satin finish. We ordered a riva double undermount sink. I saw the plumber fitting this. The taps are in lets just hope no one turns them on.


I wasn't going to say anything about this but this must be the same person that has taken the dish drainer that goes with this sink. We got the box but just not the drainer....this happened ages ago when the benchtop came. I know that this drainer was ordered because the person from HOGallery told us so....and I saw it myself with my own eyes - anyway no problem I didn't want to cause a fuss about a dish drainer and I just ordered one from Cooks plumbing - but someone taking the waste fitting - I just bloody hope EB replace it with the same one.

I couldn't see any plumbing for the dishwasher also - will talk to my SS tomorrow. They've got the box for the dishwasher but no holes to put the plumbing or the plug to go through as these are under the sink. Not really happy with the state of the kitchen either - the doors don't close properly in the sink after the detergent caddy has been fitted in and there are a LOT of scratches and bumps already - does not look like a new kitchen.

The painters must have a day job and just come around to our place after hours - someone came late yesterday afternoon - 5ish so not really the best time to paint - not much light and not really the best drying time possible. Today they came a little bit earlier 4ish and apparently coming back tomorrow to finish. I hate this piecemeal work because that's what the end result looks like piecemeal.

To top it off I think whoever has done the replastering has chipped the caesarstone in the bathroom - not happy Jan not sure how they fix this...they probably have to replace the whole thing??

I think the tiler will have to come back also as I noticed the mosaic tiles were coming off in the powder room - not sure what happened to the tiler here as I thought they'd done a good job in the bathrooms and ground floor despite all the tile sagas we've had; have not fully checked the tiling at all.

We seem so close to the end but there are still so much stuff outstanding.

Did a bit retail therapy on Friday and went to Signature Prints, I was surprised to see that they had cushions, prints on canvas and pendant lights all on SALE so I bought these cushions to go with the chocolate lounge. They look pretty funky, I've not worked out exactly what look I'm trying to go for but I thought these looked cheerful and fun.

Tuesday the temporary fence went down to my surprise, I was just told last Friday that this wasn't happening for another 2-3 weeks. No worries, I'm hoping EB would let us get started on our fencing, especially now we don't have one.

Lots of activity at the house yesterday the door fittings and bathroom accessories were installed, it was good I saw them before they put in the bathroom accessories so I was able to tell them where I wanted everything placed.

I would have preferred the door fittings go on last, after the paintings done. The touch ups will be getting done next week after the floors get sanded and the house gets cleaned. The painting looks very sloppy and have told EB that we weren't happy with it, so will wait and see what EB will do on this front.

The painters better cover up the floor tiles and benchtops before they start painting - will not be happy if they mess this up.

The bricks were also fixed on Wed finally; this was the first time I've seen a brick layer work in the rain.

No activity at the house on Thurs & Fri.

So exhausted from the weekend, we did the Relay for Life and raised almost $4k - I think this was a fantastic result considering we only had 4 weeks to raise money. I will be better organised next year.

The plumbers were in today installing the taps, toilets and bathtub.

Pendant Lighting

There's nothing like a bit of retail therapy to cheer you up, so I thought I'd start looking into getting some pendant lights; I need two - one for the study and another for the dining room.
I also love the chandelier look but I don't think my small house is grand enough for it, even with the upgrade in ceilings I don't think it's high enough also. So I'm leaning towards these pendant lights.



This is from Satelight Designs - I went to this restaurant Etch in Sydney and fell in love with these pendant lights, my eyes just kept getting drawn to these lights. I also loved there wallpaper.

This is from Satelight designs too - I love this print. Natuzzi have these same materials too.
This is from Signature Prints - Japanese Floral
Again from Signature Prints - Peacock Feathers
This is Maurice Kain - Allurim in Platinum

What's Left to do?

No activity at the house again...things have certainly slowed down you would think that the house was finished but there are still heaps of outstanding items. This afternoon I received the final invoice to be paid at settlement....we don't even know when we are having our practical completion inspection, we haven't been given any idea of when things will be finished, we have asked repeatedly about the outstanding items on our previous inspection report and when those will be addressed - still no concrete answer just that they will be addressed prior to completion...we are having a meeting with our SS on friday, this is just a general walk through and to go through these outstanding issues again - we already had this conversation with the CM

Here is a list of our outstanding items from previous inspection report:

1. Front top level window sill needs to be replaced as it has been poorly laid - nothing has been done about this
   
2. Rear right side brick window sill is broken and needs repairs - or this
   
3. Weep holes need cleaning out in areas - the last cleaning of bricks were poorly done, still an issue
   
4. Brickwork needs acid washing in areas - in the alfresco area there is discolouration as it was washed straight after it was laid
   
5. Lower level roof lead flashings need dressing down correctly - front and back of house - still to be addressed
   
6. Some of the windows will need aluminium angles to cover the cavity gapping now visible. - I think most of this has been addressed
   
7. Right side small fascia return is not level. To be replaced as per its intended operation - still not fixed
8. Site needs appropriate surface inlet drainage points to be completed off correctly in areas - not sure if anything is happening with this
   
9. Some Aluminium windows and sliding/Bi-fold doors tested “inadequate” (cannot even close the back window) - not sure if this has been fixed but the windows have not been cleaned also
   
10. Floor sheeting joints will need to be sanded smooth, prior to completion and some of the loose floor sheets must be screwed to prevent future movement after carpets or agreed floor coverings have been fitted. - as far as I'm aware still to be done
    
11. The front concrete kerb is damaged as shown and will need repairs. The cause of kerb damage is to be confirmed as to who did this damage. This occurred when the bricks were delivered. - still to be rectified
    
12. Rear steel door jamb needs to be sealed as there is rusting visible in areas - apparently this got fixed when the painting was done - still to check

There were 17 items on this list and 12 are still to be rectified and we are suppose to be doing the practical completion inspection...

Other outstanding items:

1. sanding of floor before carpet laid
2. bathroom fittings and accessories
   
3. bathtub & toilets installed
   
4. drains to be cleared, the tilers poured crap down the drain
5. painting - internal - the woodwork looks unfinished, baulstrade not finished also
6. painting - external - the cladding, lower eaves & portico, touch ups to moroko,
   
7. carpet
8. ac - apparently this doesn't get done till after settlement
9. rangehood - same as above
   
10. door handles
11. not sure if the electricals were done based on the amendements or plan - still to check
12. driveway
13. windows cleaned - will also need to check the bifold doors - these looked scratched also
14. hot water service

The one thing I've not done is check the measurements of the house or check whether the floor is level as I thought the inspector checked this....would I need to check each room? or does the builder provide a survey certificate that the height of the house and so forth has been checked???

Batch Variation

I have very little enthusiasm left for this house and it's dissipating very quickly, especially with my latest findings... I won't go into the whole saga of how I discovered it BUT I must say this has been the most disappointing thing that has happened to date. My favourite thing I picked for the house were the semi-polished porcelain tiles for the whole house. The one thing which I based the rest of the house on - this one tile. I picked the colour of the bifold doors, the house paint, the benchtops and the carpet.

So I find out that the tiles which have been laid in my house, bear only a slight resemblance to the sample tile which I had and the sample tile which they have displayed in the showroom. Apparently the tile in the showroom is from a 2005 batch and it seems like the only thing in common between these two tiles is the name -Rex concreate in Mud. I understand that there will be variations between each batch but there are huge differences. I wanted a semi-polished look and what I got is a very highly polished look so much so that light reflects from it. I didn't want the tile to be slippery but being so polished it doesn't have the same feel. What I also liked about this tile were the flecks of grey in the tile but sadly the tiles I have do not have this variegation. This was the whole point of getting this type of tile - to get this variegation, it adds depth to the tile.

What's really annoying is that the tiles in the powder room and laundry are not from the same batch as the rest of the house. They are supposed to be the same tiles only different sizes. The tiles in the powder room and laundry are closer to the sample tiles, so maybe they had leftovers from this 2005 batch??? who knows???

But when you have paid good money for these tiles - there are certain expectations which you expect to be met....these tiles were not cheap and we sacrified having our bathrooms tiled to the ceiling to get these tiles...so I'm just over it really.

There is no point asking DL to rip out the tiles and get a new batch closer to the sample tiles as they have no control over what they get...maybe because this is a project home it's been done a bit differently but you would expect DL to check if the batch of tiles are remotely similar to the sample tile as this is what you would be expecting them to look like and if they are very different then speak to the client; instead of hiding behind the excuse of batch variation....

We have voiced our disappointment with DL and are waiting on their reply.

What next?

PS. No activity at the house today

All hands on deck

Last week seemed very quiet compared to today, the electrician and tilers are back today finishing of the splashback in the bathrooms and replacing the downlights with brushed aluminium instead of white.

I think the driveway is getting finished this week also...the concrete was poured last Thursday so it's ready for the pavers to go on.

I'm hoping to see the house this week and see the tiles finished, would also like to be there after they sand the floors and before they lay the carpet so we can check for squeaky floor boards.

Driveway

I thought I'd go for a walk this morning and check out my new neighbourhood. I thought these trees looked spectcular, just love deciduous trees.

Last week I saw the downlights getting done - not sure if they've completed all the electricals. The colour of the downlights put in were incorrect but I knew this was going to be a problem as they didn't change the colour on the plan but just added this to the front of the schedule as a changed item; I guess the electrician didn't get this front copy??? I did ask about this at the time I got the plan amended. I think there is some issue between the home option gallery - head office - and construction in terms of co-ordinating information. I've found this a problem through out the whole process. They need to fine tune this process some more.

The tilers must have finished the ground floor on Wed, I don't think they've done the splashback as I saw Casa Marble at the site today, so they must have been adjusting the benchtops - maybe the tiles didn't fit behind the basin??? no idea what's happening these days - just a flurry of activities.

The termite barrier was installed yesterday - not sure if this is completed but apparently the driveway was suppose to get started today, maybe tomorrow???

According to my fellow blogger 'The Southies" they are hoping to finish by the end of May, so using that deduction we should be in the house in two weeks!!!! Will have to keep guessing as my SS won't give me a timeframe. He did say 'a couple of weeks' today...

Slight hiccup today, the mirrors were installed before the splashback and were placed well below were the tiles were going - so the tiler would have had to cut the tiles around the mirror - would not have been a pretty site; plus we're paying extra for the tiles to be 1.2m - did not really want this cut around...did not make sense anyhooo this is getting sorted thanks to the CM who was very accommodating to sorting this out; The mirrors will need to be moved up above the tiling.

The bed light switches have been sorted too, measured them today as we had no idea where they were being placed - all is ok, not exactly the right spots but at least the switches won't be behind the bed.

There was also a slight hiccup regarding the painting of the woodwork last week, as we wanted the woodwork around the windows a different colour to the internal wall which we specified in our final variation as Crisp White, but for some reason my SS didn't have this variation in his system. I'm very happy that my CSR sorted this out straight away and rectified the issue.

The internal painting still to be completed, the gloss have not been applied; would probably need touch ups also after the powerpoints and switches have been put in.

The tilers were in Mon and should finish tomorrow, can't wait to see my floor tiles and splashback.

EDIT: I thought the electricals had to be done first as they've marked on the floor where things were?? now they're getting covered up because of the tiling? how does that work? I noticed too that the aircon vents have been installed.

Moving

I'm so tired today, huge weekend moving boxes but this is only the preliminary move with the removalist coming next Sat to move the big items. So more packing this week. Our new rental is sooo close to the new house, it had our names written all over it. The New House site has the 'old house' still on it. Our new house is further to the front and side boundaries so we have more backyard and the new house has a smaller foot print.

The fittings are getting done this week as well as the electricals;

I'm hoping we are not going to have another drama regarding some bed side light switches, lets see how EB deals with this as we have voiced our concern to the CM regarding this matter.