House construction stages

When you build a house, extend or renovate your home you sign a building contract (approved by the Housing Industry Association) with the builder. Once the builder has given you a domestic building insurance policy and certificate of currency for your property you pay the deposit to the builder. Once house construction begins progress payments are made for the completed stages of building works. Let’s discuss the how the building process for house construction goes.

Construction stages

Base

First is to set up the site for work with temporary fencing of 1.8m high, power supply, portable toilet and silt barriers where silt can be washed off site.

Next is to clear the land of topsoil, vegetation and rubbish and do a site layout for excavation works. A building set out is prepared to assist in the installation of ducts and pipes under the slab. The slab has a number of components such as sand/gravel/steel mesh/waterproof membranes/termite vapour barrier.

Frame

The frame is the key structural element. It transfers the load of the roof structure and roof cover to the base structure. It also provides support for holding the windows and doors in place, opposes the wind trying to push over the building and provides support for the brick walls.

It also offers a fixing point for plasterboards of the internal wall and ceiling as well as cables and pipes, keeps insulation in place and supports cupboards, shelves, and building wrap.

Lock Up

Even though the house begins to look finished, the building process is really only half finished once Lock up is completed.

The following items are installed at lock up:

• External walls – brickwork or blocks
• Doors – may be a temporary door to avoid damage to your expensive intricate door(s)
• Windows and skylights with protective covers
• Building wrap – used to protect the building
• Roof and gutters
• Fascia boards, soffit boards and eaves

Fixing

At the completion of the fixing stage, the interior of your house will look like close to what you are expecting.

The following items are installed at fixing:

• Plasterboard
• Insulation
• Air conditioning / Ducted Heating
• Waterproofing Wet Areas
• Carpentry – first fix
• Main Plumbing Fixtures
• Tiling
• Portico and Carports

Completion

Getting close to the finish but still the following works to do:

• Complete the Plumbing
• Painting – Internal and External
• Complete the electrical
• Pathways and Driveways
• Fencing
• Carpentry – final fix
• Internal floor – finishes
• Clean Up
• Pre-Completion Inspection
• Install Appliances
• Keys handed over

Hiring local building designers will help make the stages of house construction a smoother process, as the design drawings will help discover any issues before soil is turned.