Getting it Right

Well PCI stands for Practical Completion Inspection. . . . but what does that mean? Practical completion is when the building work is all but completed, and the house meets the requirements for an Occupation Certificate. There may be minor works required…
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I have previously talked about Regulation Failing the Public . . . but how bad is it? Some Statistics on Plumbing Failures Well I have just been reading last years report from the Victorian Building Authority. In that year they completed…
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How it used to be I am showing my age now but I remember when  there used to be a reasonable level of supervision. . . . this was how things were when I built my first house 25 years ago. There…
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‘Rough In’ is the installation of the electrical cables, and conduits before the insulation and plasterboard are fixed. It includes installing the mounting plates and boxes which will be used to fix the power outlets and light switches. This is also a good…
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It is quite common for people getting a new house built to get an Independent Building Inspector. I don’t think that means that you should just leave is all to someone else. For instance if you see some dodgy looking…
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I have sold almost 2,000 copies of my PCI Guide and as a result get a fair bit of feedback. One thing that I have noticed is that a number or people only buy the Guide a day or two before…
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Over the last couple of months there have been a couple of separate News Items, which are really connected. Excavation Collapse Puts House On Edge! The photo shows a house hanging over the edge of an excavation in a Melbourne suburb….
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These days all the builders provide, at our cost, a 1.8m high ‘Security Fence’ around the site. When you ask them “Why is it there? “. . .  They say “Its for Occupational Health and Safety and/or to prevent theft. ” If…
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