Halfway

Even in the last week I'd say we've been everywhere on the customer-satisfaction spectrum from "disgruntled" to "surprised and pleased". People had warned us that building was an exhausting journey, well I think we understand that a bit better now :).

Although progress on the house itself seems to be moving along very well, we had been quite frustrated at the lack of a resolution on the deck. This was the week of a thousand (not quite, but close) phone calls and emails trying to sort the deck out once and for all, and staff changes at head office meant a lot of repeating myself. 

Someone advised us to keep a record of every email/phone call/conversation, who from/who to/ what about/when/method, and its been our best asset during these hiccups. So if you're trawling this site looking for hints as I've done with a thousand other building blogs, take that one and tattoo it on your forehead!

In the end, I think we came to a very fair middle ground, and just in time too - we've been told the deck will start shortly.

So, since my last update, there has been work on the house every single day. 

We have a completed roof...

Insulation is in place, as is electrical (as you can see from wires hanging down) and ducting (above the blue stars spray painted onto the cement)

Gyprock has been delivered, installation due to start tomorrow 

 The alfresco slab has been laid ! After an incident with a clumsy bobcat driver, the base had to be re-bricked but this was all sorted quite quickly. In the end, the slab was laid 1 day late. 

This is a view down the hallway, on the right hand side (unfortunately not easy to photograph) was a "box"in the frame for the intake for the airconditioning/heating. It was a recommended upgrade to have the intake in the wall of the hallway, which we'd agreed to, however when the ducting man came to do his job - the size of the "box" was insufficient for the rather robust a/c/heating unit for the house. Erm...so...intake will now be in ceiling of living areas, and I get that broom closet I forgot to ask for...

Rockwool insulation between media/bedrooms - ie sound absorbing -  because my husband likes his surround sound loud, and my child(ren) like to sleep.

Speaking of children, Max approves (of the temporary gravel where the driveway will go - when we tell him we're going to visit he usually says "no block, no no no").

Western aspect, roof.

Back of house

Alfresco finally done, note the mis-matched bricks on the right hand side as a result of the clumsy bob-cat driver! The deck will hide them.

The deck is the next outdoor task, and will extend from the alfresco in an "L" shape around to the laundry, visible at the right hand side.

And, at least in terms of progress payments, we're now halfway ! Judging from our neighbours' experience (same builder, started a few months earlier), this seems to be where things slow down (or in their case, start and stop like an L-plater in a manual car for the first time). I really must remember to keep visiting site to wave my enormous pregnant belly at all of the tradesmen...