We're Plastered Part 2.

No one on site today, so I was able to go back and have a look around up stairs after my very quick run around this morning.

TV area:



The curved wall for the stairs:



Back of the curved wall in bedroom 3:



Bedroom 2:



MB. Ensuite on the left, WIR around the corner to the right:



Ensuite and toilet to the left (separate room):



Ensuite:



Master Bedroom. Ensute to left, WIR to the right:



Master Bedroom through to the main bathroom at the end. Ensuite to the right:



I can't believe they did all of this in one day! Amazing! I'm not sure what will be on the agenda next, nor when the plasterers are back to finish and install the cornice. Who knows, tommorrow I may have garage roof tiles!

We are very impressed with the consistant work so far. We'll be in before we know it!! Maybe I should begin to think about packing...

We're Plastered!!!

Hehe...couldn't resist! I've waited a long time to be able to say that!!

It was another very productive day yesterday. When I drove past in the morning, there was a van in the driveway, but I couldn't see much action happening inside the house. It wasn't until I went past at around 3pm, that it was all systems go!

I was very surprised to see the guttering and the fascias had been installed on the garage, and also the scaff was in place ready for the tilers.



I didn't dare go near the house, as someone was throwing out the offcuts of plaster out the MB window and onto the ground below! From what I could see, they had done the top storey, and were still working on the bottom. I took a few pics, then left and decided to go back later. I did, at around 5pm, and they were still there!!! No such luck for a 'stalk walk'. Never mind!





Today, on my morning visit, there were no vans in the driveway, so I quickly had a look through the windows in the dining and family rooms. There were plastered walls!! I went round the back and was surprised to see the stacker door ajar (so much for lock-up AGAIN!). I had a very quick look around the ground floor for fear of being sprung! I didn't venture upstairs, but will try and get a chance later this afternoon. I did manage to snap away at all that I could in my 2 minutes!

Family room from stacker door towards the curved stair wall:



Meals (under the window which we added) and the kitchen:



family room with ceiling not quite completed yet:



Dining room with ladder (stairs eventually...) and the door to the wine cellar:



Lounge room:



Entrance and the double front doors:



From the entrance looking back towards the family room:



Clean bricks!! Although they are still a little damp (no sun!):



Beautiful!!



The alfresco ceiling has been installed too:

Lower bricks cleaned and more batts.

Still no sign of the plasterers, but more batts were installed on Saturday, and the lower section of the bricks were given a clean today. The house was left unlocked again on Sunday, so that enabled us to have a good look around at the batts. They still hadn't quite finished, but it all looked pretty good!

Upgraded R2 batts for the walls. We could have upgraded to a maximum of R2.3, but that would have cost us over $1000! R2 will be fine, considering our old house had nothing...not even foil wrap!



We went for the maximum of R4.1 in the ceilings:



The meter box all wrapped up in the study ready for plaster:



We included R2 soundscreen batts to many internal walls to help deaden the noise between rooms. I really wanted to make sure we had it in between the bedrooms and the stair well, as well as the bedrooms and the bathrooms. Nothing worse than having a sleep in and being woken by someone having a shower in the next room!







Ceiling batts in the only single storey part of the house. The meals area and a small part of the family room. There is no access to the roof space here:



On my drive-by this morning, the plumber's van was there, and so was a ladder leading to the roof. Not sure what was going on, but could possibly have been to do with the evap cooling.

Later this afternoon, I returned and was interested to know why the garage roof trusses were dripping in water. It took me a few seconds to realise the lower part of the bricks had just been cleaned! There was water everywhere..IE MUD...so I didn't venture far at all. They look fabulous..just a little wet!!







No news, either, on the crooked truss or the possum problem!

Garage Roof and Wall Batts Part 2.

I arrived back at the house just after 3pm to find the gates open and no one on site. I grabbed the camera and took a few pics of the newly installed garage roof trusses. The chippies had to knock out a line of bricks in order to install the trusses, and the 11 'whole' bricks I could find (many were smashed) are now safely in the back of the car! Shhhh!



Not quite sure what to make of the crooked one, but will shoot off an email to my CSA Sunday night with this pic attached:



Impressed to see the trusses were made from MGP12 (Machine Grade Pine 12). The remainder of the house is a mix of F5 and MGP10. I haven't been close enough to the house roof trusses to see if they were MGP12...they could well be!



The guttering for the garage was also delivered today:



I walked around the side, peering into the dirty windows and discovered the walls covered in batts! I was greeted with this huge pile sitting in the alfresco:



I shouldn't have bothered to take photos through the dirty windows as the stacker door had been left ajar. So much for lock-up! Couldn't resist and had to go in for a look! The batts in the family room:



Batts in the lounge room:



And soundscreen batts around the stairs:



It has made all the difference, and it feels so cosy and not 'echoey' as it had previously. All the internal sound screen batts appear to be in the correct place around the ground floor. I was running out of time to go and look upstairs, but should get a chance sometime over the weekend. The job is not completed, though.

When my Husband checked on the way home from work, the garage internal door AND the front door where left unlocked!

Not looking as boxy anymore:

Garage Roof and Wall Batts.

Yesterday, the plasterers still had not commenced, but I was excited to see the garage roof trusses had arrived!







Doesn't she look beautiful! :-)



This morning when I drove past (without my camera...) at 10am, the trusses were up AND there was a truck in the driveway full of insulation batts!! I can't wait to have a snoop through the windows a little later this afternoon!

Photos to follow...

Locked Out!!

As of yesterday, we are officially locked out. The windows are all shut and locked, and the temp doors have temp locks on them...which are locked. I'll be peering through the downstairs windows taking pics for a while!







Last I heard, the plastering was due to begin today, but we are still missing the wall batts and sound screen batts to go in before the plaster. At least something happened though! The site was cleaned again with a bobcat moving leftover brickies sand about the place (unfortunately adding to my already very sandy soils...), and on peering through the windows, the whole interior has been swept clean. I would love to have a walk around, but unable too.

Several times in previous posts, I have mentioned "The House Down The Road". It was demolished the same time as ours, and 2 units built in it's place. One unit is now sold and the other I had the chance to walk through a few weekends ago.



I discovered that it has a Laminex Alabaster 2 pac kitchen...the same colour as mine. It was wonderful to see it 'in the flesh' on a large scale, having chosen it from the tiny chips! It certainly doesn't look pink at all, but is just a nice warm very slightly off white colour, and not as 'cool' as the polar white. I think it will blend in with all my colour choices.



This unit is a classic example of why we went down the path of demolishing and rebuilding.

"Featuring 3 good sized bedrooms master with ensuite and huge walk in robe, large family and kitchen meals area and separate lounge. The courtyard is north facing and low maintenance. The property was built using the best quality materials such as: Daniel Robertson bricks and terracotta tiles, granite bench tops and 9 foot ceilings. Featuring reverse cycle air-conditioning, alarm system and ducted vacuuming. Located on a corner block on it's own separate title."

Not to mention a custom build by a renowned local builder, and, of course, the glossy 2 pac kitchen. It could be yours for a measly $800,000!! Another one of two double storey townhouse on a corner block (with separate title) sold a few weeks ago for $1.2M.

Mad, I tell you!!

Lock up invoice received and scaffold dismantled.

I drove past after the school run this morning and was pleasantly surprised to see half of the scaffold had already been dismantled! Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera, but I made a return journey a little later and bumped into my SS on site. We had a good chat about things, and discussed the issue of the 'possible possum' in the roof. He will get the heating guys to come out and check the ducts for any 'intruders'! It's actually not an uncommon thing to happen, but I'd prefer not to have a live possum plastered in my new home! While I was there, I was able to take a few pics of the cleaned top section of bricks, and the facade for the first time without scaff.








The lock up invoice had been delivered by the time I left for school pick up, and yes, it's HUGE!! More interest to pay now, unfortunately.

I returned to the house to see all of the scaff gone, but still sitting in piles across the front. She's looking lovely now! Despite the lock up invoice, the front doors were still wide open! The locks should go on within the next days I'd imagine, ready for the plaster.







Can't wait for the plaster to begin, but due to being 'locked out' many of my photos will be through windows...

Top storey bricks cleaned.

Just a short post tonight with a few pics taken this morning of our freshly cleaned bricks! It's difficult to see properly with all the scaffolding, and impossible to get around either side of the house, but you get the 'idea'! They were still a little damp, but once dried out, they'll look even better!!!