The Final Countdown

So I had my PCI last thursday week before last, and whilst we did have some things that needed attention, they were small things. The things we picked up were mainly touch up paint here and there, a bit of mortar filling above the sliding door and around a couple of windows, the kickboard below he oven wasn't flush and the shower screen in the Ensuite leaked in the bottom corners. The laundry blind was still to be replaced because they couldn't remove what looked like paint overspray on it but would give me handover regardless of when that was to arrive (2 weeks at the time). Also the A/C controller still had to be done but that happened the next day as expected. The new blind and the waterproofing in the Ensuite are scheduled to be done tomorrow (Monday) and I've had an appointment booked for Handover when I get back from the current work stint this Thursday! Exciting times! Then it'll be a case of moving in and getting the secruity installed.

I've also organised to have the phone and internet connected in a couple of weeks when I'll be at work, so Dad has agreed to be there to let them in for me. The only other thing thats still a work in progress is the landscaping. I've got a revised plan now which takes into account me doing part of the work myself and them doing the heavy lifting. I'm going to be sourcing the different stones myself (cos lets face it, how hard is it to spread blue metal or river stones around) which should save me a few hundred dollars.

What do you think?

The 5 little squares in the front area are going to be limestone blocks left over from when the parents did their retaining wall. They're 1m x 0.3m x 0.3m in size and I plan to be standing them up on their ends and buried at different heights for an abstract effect. Also changed one of the plant selections from the first design (and unfortunately can't change the street tree - a peppermint tree - because of council requirements) and should be as follows;

ST - AGONIS flexuosa (Peppermint Tree) - I don't like this one and it might not live for long due to a potential unforseen accident!

S - STRELITZIA reginae (Bird of Paradise)
 

C -CORDYLINE chocolate mint

X - FESTUCA glauca (Blue Mountain Grass)

L - LOMANDRA lime wave

M - MAGNOLIA kay parris

D - DRACENA draco

The large centre area where the Draco amd limestone blocks are going will be Black polished river stones, with Quart running down the long section with the pavers in it. To the left of the driveway will just be blue metal for practical, low maintenance use, with the triangle being synthetic grass as it is for appearances only. The portions along the right side of the driveway, around the front bedroom and on the verge will be mulched garden beds.

The section out the bak where the pavers are displayed is likey to just be grass now, as the pavers set in the grass is quite expensive and potentially high maintenance.

Also, here's a pic of the front of the house with the garage door on from a couple of weeks ago.

Tomorrow's the Day!!!

Some good news folks! My final payment has been approved and my PCI is set for tomorrow afternoon at 3pm!!!

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!

So if everything goes according to plan, I will be back in bunno town by 2.30 (hopefully we don't get held up at the airport!) and it will be straight to the house to meet the builders and the folks and then if I don't find any problems, the exchange happens!!!

I should be able to start moving my stuff in straight away!!! It helps living only a km away already with the est of my furniture either getting delivered or is stored at my uncles place just a couple of km's further down the road. So overall it should be a pretty straight forward move!

Nearly Finished

So I'm at work atm eagerly awaiting the end of my swing. By the time I get home on Thursday arvo, I'm expecting that the house will hopefully be finished! If it isn't, then it definitely won't have much left to do. As of last Monday morning, the painting was finally finished and the remaining jobs were;


- Floor Coverings
- Blinds
- Fly Screens
- Air Conditioning
- Security
- Smoke Alarms
- Paving
- Garage Door


The painter took 6 weeks (by himself - 7 days a week) to paint my entire house inside and out. I had to change the external contrast render colour because the original selection was an internal paint only, meaning that it would've faded from purple to pink! I was talked into something a little less bold, which when I first saw the finished job, I hated!!! However, after a few days of staring at it, and other houses (that had what I wanted) and listening to people saying how good it looked, I've decided to not paint over it later and to keep it. There are a few houses with bold colours around, but none with the end result I've got. I'll make it work for me.

My HBC liason said at our brief Monday meeting that the A/C would most probably be the last thing to get done. After the meeting I went straight round to the house for a look, and lo-behold, the guys were there putting in the A/C ducting, etc! When I dropped back later that arvo, they hadn't finished (needed an electrician) but the fly screens had been done too, along with batons on the floor for the carpet and all the blinds in every room!
Tuesday morning saw the flooring dude back again, and by that arvo he'd finished all the carpets and was progressing well with the vinyl.

The builder was estimating to have their inspections done early this week sometime, and hoepfully that means I can have mine before heading back to work Tuesday next week. The only hold up might be the garage door company which had been giving them some grief apparently, but they would let me know if there was a problem and I haven't heard from them yet! Hope it stays that way too.


Overall, I'm surper impressed with the workmanship so far of all the tradies, and can't wait for the finished product!

Here's a list of what I've ended up with throughout the house.

The paint on the internal walls is Solver White Cliffs (0870). It's a darker shade of white/cream but I like it. Suits the rest of my house well I reckon, and stands out against the stark WA White ceiling paint. Interior Finishings;
Carpet - Coventry Spartan (8218) to Bedrooms & robes
Vinyl - Authentic 150 biscay 11/Alu Brown to Entry, Theatre, Kitchen, Family, Dining & Rear Passage
Roller Blinds - Malt to Theatre, Dining, Family & Laundry
- Plaza Express to Bedrooms
Glass Splashback - Exquisite Elura Metallic
Kitchen Bench - Wilsonart Satin Silver (4829-07)
Cupboards - Polar Whilte: Silk Finish 200
Wall Tiles - Impress Wavy White
Floor Tiles - Enviro Flint
Border Tiles - Black Peral Mix (8219 DHT)
Bathroom Benchs - Wilsonart Feldspar Shimmer (XM054-07)
Laundry Tiles above Trough - Phuket White

The Exterior colours are;
Main Render - Solver Vitesse (0869)
Contrast Render - Solver Orkney (0873)
Roof - Solver C/B Jasper
Garage Door - Pattern: Madison, Colour: Dune

Update Time

So I think it's time for a bit of an update on where things are at.


I had a phone call a couple of weeks ago from HBC saying that they would have to change my Air Conditioner model because the one previously chosen was a run-out model and was complete out of stock. No biggy. They offered me a LG unit. Still reverse cycle, still ducted with zoning capabilities. It's actually a bit of an upgrade (according to them anyways - I'll take their word on it...at least I've heard of LG before and it's a reputable brand). One difference though is that the LG is only a Single Phase unit unlike the Haier which was 3 phase. Now for those who remember, back at Pre-Start I'd enquired about getting 3 phase power but decided it was an unessecary extra so decided not to, only to be told later I needed it for the A/C so got it for free. Well now I don't need it anymore, but have it and it still cost me nothing with a better A/C thrown in. Can't complain with that!

Also, apparently the painter and plumber should've been finishing up as of last week, so floors and blinds should be going in soon and paving outside being about the only other major component left to do (that I can think of anyway!). All up, the builder will have their inspection set for the end of October with my Inspection being around mid-November and handover only a couple of days after that. Not Long to go now!


Oh, and before I forget, a quick pic of the rangehood I've got on layby atm to be installed at my leisure after Handover. It's an Excelsior (e.g. no-name brand :P ) but is very similar in specs to brands like Westinghouse for a better price, and in my opinion, superior looks. A little bit of pezzaz in the kitchen to make the place a little more stylish! And the brand isn't actually visible on the appliance anywhere so will still blend in with all the Westinghouse stove & oven.

Tiling Finished

More pics folks. The Tiling has been finished in the bathrooms and laundry areas. Looks pretty good too. The painter is there currently and will be working along side the electrician and plumber and should be finished in about a week. Also, the air conditioner has changed form the Haier unit to a LG Inverter unit because the Haier unit was a runout model and was out of stock. Bit of an upgrade but no extra cost to me which is always good to hear!

And a couple of pics of the kitchen benches installed plus a couple of other things too.

Locked and Loaded!!!

So I know it's been a little while, but thats not because nothing has been happening, but more because I've been too slack to update things lately. So here's an update! Yesterday I got confirmation that Lock Up has been achieved, and prior to that all the windows have been installed, with walls plastered and ceilings and cornices put in too. Starting to look a lot more like a house now! As my liason lady at HBC said, "It's flying along". So here's some more pics to prove it to ya's. 

Windows to the Living and Dining area's

Looking out across the Dining Room (notice my huge sliding door to the Alfresco!)

The Home Theatre Room window

Main Bedroom (love these windows)

Bed 2

Hallway

Laundry

Back up the Hallway (from Bed 3)

Bed 3

Bed 4

Kitchen Ceiling

Alfresco

Rear of house

"Dead" side

According to Jenna at HBC, my cupboards should be going in today and the plumber is booked for next Tuesday, so that sounds like my next chance to get in and take a look around. 

Laterz!

Hat Trick!

It's done! The roof is finished and the internals are now underway with the plumbing and inital electrical works pretty much done by the looks of it. I'll let the photo's do the talking.

Also, I sorted out with the telecom fella's to upgrade the setup going into the house so that it was more like what I wanted to do after the house was finished. Apparently it's cheaper to do it whilst it's being built (I thought climbing in ceilings was fun though?!). So intead of the original 2 data points at the TV's and a phone point, now there will be 1 data point to each bedroom, 1 to the TV's in the Living and Home Theatre rooms each and one in the Dining where the phone point was originally, plus a wireless router in the Garage. And to top it all off, it was all done in conduit, so double points shouldn't be too hard to upgrade to later if I so desire!