Update on updates or lack thereof

So we're supposed to hear from our site manager every Friday afternoon to with an update on how the week has progressed.. Friday has come and gone and we have yet to hear from him.. Disappointing considering it is only the 2nd week since construction :( Disappointment seems to be the only constant when it comes to Metricon..

Since it rained pretty much all of last week, not much has been completed on site besides the laying of the blade piles - the laying of what I hear you ask? Piles are like screws that go into our dirt all over the block to support and strengthen our slab - Sort of looks like there are land mines everywhere!

This is a blade pile

Besides that, nothing else has happened - Melbourne's weather is predicted to be cloudy for the rest of the week with no rain - fingers crossed so the slab can progress!

mali

Quick update & our colour selections..

So this week started with a dream last night that our neighbours garage was built 30cm into our block - Definitely know this wasnt the case as we were at our block over the weekend - Phew but anyone else dreaming of their blocks and future neighbours? Maybe I am starting to lose my mind lol

Our electricity box has been put in and it looks like they have dug trenches and holes throughout the whole block! So much for a nice, clean cut site! Question though, do they usually cut the site larger than the actual size of the slab?

Looking forward to the slab being poured this week, fingers crossed we have some progress and the rain stays away..

Weather forecast as of today - Sunny
Tuesday - Partly cloudy
Wednesday - Rain developing
Thursday - Showers
Friday - Showers
Looks promising! :(

So as promised, here is a list of our colour selections:

External:

Austral Urban One Bricks - Chocolate (We had originally chosen the Selkirk Blue Rain brick, but it then became discontinued, a blessing in disguise i think as the colour was not consistent from all the displays we saw)
Contrast Brick - Bluestone Splitface blocks
Render - Raku (Dark Grey)
James Hardie Cladding - Clear Concrete
Roof tiles - Boral Slimline - Ebony
Guttering/Fascia/Downpipes - Dune
Windows - Satin Black Aluminium (We originally wanted the beautiful timber window frames but after a lot of consideration, we opted for the aluminium frames as we both decided we couldn't be bothered maintaining them every year to keep them looking beautiful ;))
Garage Door - Tuscan style overhead in Monument
Front Door - Cabots Charcoal

Our bricks with the cladding and render colours above and garage and downpipes below



Internal:

Ceiling and Wall paint colour - Lexicon, we have decided to have the one colour for both our ceilings and walls on recommendation by our colour consultant - apparently makes the room look bigger! We shall see..
Benchtops - Caesar stone Snow (for our kitchen, laundry, bathroom, ensuite and powder room)
Kitchen Cupboards - Colourtech White and Colourtech Black for the overhead cupboards above our cooktop
Rest of the cupboards for everywhere else - Burnished Wood Laminex
Kickers - Decometal to all except for the wet areas which are being tiled
Floorboards - Wenge - we are in love with these floorboards and cannot wait to see it laid throughout the house!
Carpet - Californian Twist, Long beach 80% wool, 20% synthetic, Catergory 4 for a decent carpet (Anyone else find that M's carpet options were pretty ordinary??!)

So there you have it, our colour selections, which took an extrodinary amount of time to get correct as our consultant had not noted down half the items we had selected, upgraded or deleted!!

And lastly, here is a photo of the gorgeous sunsets we will be privvy to from our backyard - just stunning!!

Happy Monday all and enjoy your week :)

mali

Update on pouring the slab...

After talking to the SS today, it looks like we will have the slab completed by the end of next week!
Then we'll be weeks away from the frame going up - here's hoping the weather stays fine so this can progress quickly!

Have a great weekend all.
- Aaron

Rain rain go away

We received a call from the site manager! Woo Hoo!! Miracles do happen! He sounds like he knows his stuff and we hope that he is our saving grace to what has already been an experience to say the least.. The portaloo has been delivered and the site was cut yesterday even though it rained.. the estate is a mud haven!

Hoping that the rain stays away during the day for the next couple of weeks to allow them to set up the foundation, lay the slab, put up the frame and roof - surely we are not asking for too much right?

Well, just a short and sweet post today.. nothing else to report, have a good day and enjoy Melbourne's miserable cold weather!

mali

And so it begins...

So we have decided to start a blog on the construction phase of our home. More so to keep a record of when things are done or not done but also as a way of helping readers who like myself, turned to blogs for ideas on building your own home, colour ideas, types of homes being built and all the issues they have been faced with along the way. Aaron and I are building the Metricon Laguna 35, Modern facade in the South East suburbs of Melbourne.

So where do we start?

We have been through all the admin process of the build and have been told that our forecast site start will be Monday 14th May 2012 - TODAY!! We have yet to hear from our CSC or Site Manager to confirm this.. great start Metricon... Hope this is not a sign of things to come!

Just a bit of background on the admin process with Metricon. Out of 10, today they get a 2. From Sales to Final contract signing, the entire process is dis-jointed and below medi-ocre when you are probably making one of the largest purchases of your lives. For one of the largest main builders, you would have thought they would have gotten their admin process down pat and that the whole process would be seamless and fault free - dreams are free. In saying so, we have gotten there, through a lot of emails back and forth, phonecalls, tears, moments of wanting to throw in the towel and cut our losses, we have perservered and are now underway to start the construction of our dream home. (Pre-Construction process to follow in more detail soon)

I hope to have more of an update in the next few days and hope to hear from either our CSC or Site manager to confirm that indeed our house commences today! Fingers crossed!

mali