Stacker door issue

Last week, the day before our stacker doors were instaled I received a message from a friend who has recently built with Eden Brae.
"Check how the bottom of the alfresco doors are sited...ours are not flush with the tiled family areas so you have to step over them onto the outside alfresco. We were never told about this and there's absolutely nothing they can do once fitted. Might be worth a chat with someone... We are now putting aside money to redo the doors (panoramic instead of existing stacker) with flushed finish"

I quickly sent off an email to Troy that night knowing that the doors would be installed the next day. Unfortunately the reply came back that night unfavourably.
"That would be correct. There is a track running across the base of the door. This track is the guide for the door panels and it will sit above the finished floor levels. At this stage it is too late to change this. The way they are designed means that there needs to be a substancial track to support the doors. The product is not specific to Eden Brae and you would find that a number of builders using the bifold doors in their homes will have the same thing. Thanks."

A little disappointed as I am already unhappy about having a 'step down' to the tiles. Now we have a step-over and then a step-down! Maybe we will need to put money aside too just like my friend.

Kitchen post - Quiet rainy day

No work is being done today even though it hasn't rained at all since about 7:30am and in fact we have had glorious sunshine since late this morning. Boy, the rain was heavy last night though - it kept me awake between asthma attack and toothache for different children.

I have had a few people ask me about the prices for different upgrades int he kitchen. I am happy to share them on here though note, it will be different for every kitchen depending on measurements. Kitchen Culture (supplier for Eden Brae Homes) was by far, our worst experience so far in the building journey. As I have mentioned before, their customer service is lacking. I feel this is mainly due to not having any competition - we have to use KC. Some clients like to complete their own upgrades after settlement to save the builders markup. We are aiming to do as much as we can up front for convenience, tidiness and the guarantee.

These are the upgrades we got through them :-

In the kitchen :-
* Reconfigure the kitchen to be L-shaped (needed as we relocated the kitchen) - $2000
* Provide fridge run including appliance roller cupboard & 2 others above & below - $1850
* Provide additional tall cupboard to the side of fridge for brooms - $850
* Pull out, soft close bin drawer with 2x20L bins - $700
* Relocate cutlery drawers - $330
* Additional pot drawers with 30kg runners - $720
* Overhead cabinets - $1300
* Bulkheads to overhead cabinets - $650
* Provision for overhead cupboard lights - $176
* Soft close drawers - $1150
* Soft close door buffers - $220
* Provide 2 row wine rack above fridge space - $620
* 2 Hettich cutlery trays - $147
* Caesarstone upgrade - $2000
* Two tone kitchen - $500
* Silk finish to white laminex - $1230
* Undermount sink including polishing fee - $1000

In the bathrooms :-
* Stone benchtops - $2200 (powder, main & ensuite)
* Drawers to main vanity - $350
* Silk finish - $320

In the laundry :-
* Laminex benchtop to run the length of the laundry - $2150
* Laminex shelf underneath this - $277

Upgrades to taps, toilets, baths etc were on top of this at Cooks Plumbing appointment ($2000)

Brickwork progress

I went to take photos of the brickwork only to discover that the suitcase I had lugged from the front of the block (with the brickies permission) to the kerbside for collection...has been thrown back over the fence :-( I am glad I didn't take the time to drag the colorbond fencing too. Little do they know that I can play this game!! I am up for the challenge.

I was stopped tonight by 2 ladies walking past. One built 10 years ago with Eden Brae and was delighted with the outcome. They were one of the very first EBH homes in Hornsby Council. She is going to walk past every day now she has seen our build happening.

3 days of bricking

Side view with alfresco pillars

Offending suitcase

A view from the rear

As I stopped by at lunchtime today my lovely neighbour offered us a sneak peak from his backyard. I clambered onto some rocks and managed to unsteadily take these photos.
I was also told that the brickies were working on Saturday whilst we were away in Melbourne - happy days!
I will post more photos this afternoon from the front.
I found a fair bit of rubbsih that has obviously been dumped over the fence eg. a large old suitcase full of rubbish, some colorbond fencing etc. You would think that with council cleanup about to happen in the next week or so, they could wait to dump it then!

Brickwork started

I am leaving in 10minutes to catch a flight to Melbourne. Brad is down there already working today and will join him for drinks after work via Chapel Street. For those who know me, this is the highlight of my social calendar each year. Brad, as the client of another company, is well looked after. It will be nice to have a fun weekend together with some other fabulous people after the stresses of the last few months, in particular Brad's Dad passing away.

So there won't be any photos this afternoon but I can report that the brickwork has started and the site is being cleaned up somewhat. Looking forward to seeing what has been done today when I get home on Sunday. If anyone wants to send me a photo this afternoon, you are MORE THAN welcome!!

Break open the champagne!

Eden Brae has been paid for the slab finally!It took the intervention of the State Manager of Mortgage Choice and a Relationship Manager (I think) from CBA to get this sorted. A huge weight off our shoulders. And on more good news we don't need to deal with the mortgage angel now as after the first payment, we can elect to email the bank direct with our invoices. A more streamlined process, I think.

No photos of the house today as there was more plumbing work done today. I kinda wish they would plumb the portaloo (!) - the stench from the street is revolting.

I received a call from a local real estate agent to tell me that a knockdown house 2 doors away sold (over 1400m2) and a large house to accommodate 5 boys is being built rather than a subdivision as everyone imagined. Very happy about that - the house not so much the 5 boys LOL

Bank update

As of this afternoon, the 'case of the missing slab money' has gone back to the credit area of CBA for reassessment due to the contract value decreasing by $12K. It has been escalated to the Management of the department and the State Manager of Mortgage Choice is now involved. No-one can tell me how long it needs to sit in Credit for before the file makes it way back to the Progress Claims area.

As the framework is finished, we now owe Eden Brae over $200K. At this stage, the only one from Eden Brae aware of the shortfall is the Accounts Manager who indicated it is her little secret at the moment, unless of course, someone from EBH is reading this public blog!