The work continues......

Wednesday 25th July 2012

Well the handover of the Burpengary job went well.  The owners are please and I have been back there this week to check a couple of things for them.  They have moved their personal items in and now it looks GREAT!  I love it when everything comes together for our clients and it is just the way they wanted it!

Ron has been busy back at the Kallangur job.  The block work is now up, along with the roof trusses and as we speak the roof is going on.  The plumber will be back on site tomorrow to do the rough-in.  We worked there all day Saturday.  Ron doing the building work and I cleaned up the site as well as handing him items.

This is going to be one fancy shed!

We are waiting for the bricklayers to go to the job at Elimbah, but in the meantime the plasterer is going back to do his sanding and the waterproofer will be on site early next week to water proof the bathroom.  I have to take the lovely client to choose her tiles next week, and the kitchen should only be another week or so away!  This building is starting to look more like a home now.

The rain has finally eased, allowing Ron back on site for the Wamuran job.  The bricklayers have finished the brickwork on the garage and Ron has put the beams up.  He is back there today working on the Granny Flat and I think he hopes to have it ready for trusses on Friday.  This means I will be back on site helping him.  Hopefully the rain will stay away and we can get a good run on this job now!

Getting ready to mark the wall frames out!

Andrea

What We've Been Up To!

Wednesday 18th July 2012

Wow!  The weather has certainly been wet.  It has been holding us up in most directions.  Some of our jobs have been able to be continued however due to the perseverance of Ron.  The job at Elimbah now has the frame up, windows in, roof on and the rough-in done for the electrical, plumbing and gas.  Ron got the frame stood in amongst showers of rain one Saturday and then it was down to him and his trusty off-sider (Me) to stand the roof trusses.  This was a race against the coming rain as we wanted to get the roof on so work could continue.  A HUGE effort was put in by everyone to get this done and as a consequence the job has continued.  The plasterers are on site today doing the plasterboard.  The kitchen has also been measured and on the go.

Roof Trusses being lifted from the truck

Roof trusses being placed (very carefully) on the top of the wall frame

The roof from Ron's perspective

Roof tiles being put on

Windows in, insulation paper on.  Starting to look like a house now.

Our favourite plasterer hard at work

The Beach House at Burpengary is nearly ready for hand over.  The client has done a great job choosing her colours and I think everything goes well together. As a matter of fact I think I might move in myself!  We had the insulation in the ceiling installed today along with the shower screens. mirror and sliding robe doors.  Ron and I spent last Friday on site with Ron gaping around the tiles and I started the cleaning.  Most of the cleaning has now been completed with just the bathroom to go.  Security grilles are getting installed tomorrow and the final inspection is happening tomorrow also.  Hand over will be Friday morning and then we hopefully will have some very happy clients!

The view from the front door.

Semi-frameless shower screen - looking good!

Vanity and mirror.

Kitchen.  The client had the good idea of getting larger tiles for the splashback - less grout to clean!

Outside all finished!

One job that the rain has definitely held up is at Wamuran.  Every time Ron steps on site it pours!  We did get the Granny Flat marked out on Monday and the bricklayers are currently on site laying the bricks for the garage.  The windows are also in place for the garage, so this is really starting to take shape now.  Hopefully the sun will come out soon and then it will be full steam ahead again.

The bricklayers work in all sorts of weather.  Notice the rain in the background!

This slab is way too wet to work on.

The blocks have been laid for the shed at Kallangur and the electrician has been on site to do his rough in on this job.  Ron is going there tomorrow to core fill the blocks and put the roof trusses up.  Hopefully things will be continuing smoothly with this job as it shouldn't take us too long to complete. I should have some photos of this job tomorrow!

If we could only get the rain to stop then everything would fall into place!

Welcome

Thursday 28th June 2012

Welcome everyone to our blog.  We hope to be able to share with you, our and our client's journey throughout the building process.  We will upload photos of the projects as they go on and hopefully receive some feedback.

So here we go!

Burpengary

We started this job on the 25th of April and while it was all systems go at first the heavens decided to open on us once the brick base was done.  This meant that the clients had another swimming pool for awhile!  Once this had dried out we were on site constantly trying to catch up.  We had lots of meetings on site with the clients ensuring they were happy with the build.

Ron and the client discussing window positions.



I wasn't long before we had a lovely Cypress frame up.  This timber is naturally termite resistant and easy to work with if you know how.

The "bones" of the building is the most important part.

Then it was time to put the roof trusses up.  I was on site this day to assist, but I'm not sure how much of a help I was.  This is not a job I enjoy and it always amazes me that Ron is so skilled at it.

We have come along way since then with the bricks, windows, roof, gyprock, kitchen and tiles all installed. 

Roof on!

Bricked up.

Gyprock up and fit out in progress.

Currently the painter is on site so I will post some more pictures when I have them.

Lawnton

Awhile ago (less than 12 months) we started work on some major renovation work at a property.  One of the major projects undertaken on this property was a deck.  It needed major work and Ron rose to the challenge.

Before

This meant removing the old deck, stairs etc and replacing it all with new materials.  The after photos show how great this job turned out!

After



All new bearers, joists and decking.

New handrails and stainless steel balustrades.

Another project at this property was to build a front fence tying in will the other work undertaken, so brick pillars were constructed and timber panels placed inbetween the pillars.  This only enhanced the overall look of the property.

Wamuran

We have done some work for the same client over the past few years.  One of the jobs was a two story library we built as well as an extension to the existing house.  We have since been back to add another deck area to the library.

We are now starting another couple of projects for this client, one including a garage and the other is a Dependent Persons Accommodation.

Stepping the footings to ensure a nice neat job.

Doing a sandup for the preparation of the concrete slab on the DPA.

It was all systems go to get both of these slabs poured but unfortunately the heavens have opened again and we are at a standstill until the rain disappears.

Elimbah

We have the most wonderful clients and the couple for this project are no exception.  They too are getting a Dependent Persons Accommodation built on their property.  It was slow at first as it rained (again) not long after they had their site cut done and we were unable to get machines on site.  Since then the footings have been done, base bricks laid and slab poured.  Timber is due on site on Monday but again the rain is holding us up.

This photo shows the drott doing the site cut.  Ron was onsite to advise the owner if needed.

The next stage is to mark out the building.  This is done with lime and the machine will dig on these which will then become the footings.  Note the water lying on the ground!  Fustrating!

The concrete for the footings was pumped in using a boom pump.  This enables the concrete to be placed exactly where needed.  Before the footings are poured, the plumber is onsite to lay his pipes for all the drainage.

This photo shows the drainage pipes in place with the brick base up ready to pour the concrete for the slab.

Having Ron on site a majority of the time ensures that all the tradies are on track with the work and also keeps the workmanship at a high standard.

An older job.

We had been approached by a couple to replace a deck in time for their daughters wedding.  The old deck seemed closed in and awkward to use.  Ron removed the old deck and in it's place a lovely new deck was built - in time!

The clients wanted to use wider than normal decking boards on this deck and they came up lovely.  The wedding went off without a hitch and everyone is happy!

Kallangur

This next job was one close to home.  It is for my sister and brother-in-law.  We went to a seminar held by the Building Services Authority awhile back and one of the subjects they spoke about was NOT to build for your family or friends.  We have built for friends before (and they still talk to us) and done some major renovation work for my parents so working for family shouldn't be a problem.  We believe you should just keep the communication open and we provide the same service to all our clients whether they are family or not.

This is going to be a shed made from concrete blocks and while the building itself isn't hard it is the access that throws up a few challenges.  We had to get the concrete slab down ASAP so it would free up the site for the pool builder, so with this done we should be back on track next week.

Drainage going in.

Slab all poured but still to go hard.

We hope you all enjoyed looking at our progress so far and I will endeavour to keep this blog up-to-date with each job as they progress.

Take care