Getting plastered

The house is nearly finished being plastered!  It is amazing how much of a difference it makes to the whole feel of the place!

The garage

Looking through the garage to the back.

master bedroom

Lounge room

Family room, half done 

play room

kitchen

lounge room from the other side

Mmmmm.... peaches

I went for a wonder up to the back of our very over grown block yesterday... and look what I found - teeny tiny peaches growing on one of our fruit trees! There were also some plums on another tree.

It breaks my heat to have to break them off - but I know it will help the tree grow stronger roots if I do. So even though I can't bear to do it, I will snap them off next time I go for a walk up the back.... maybe....

Solar electricity

Yesterday we had solar electricity panels installed on our roof.

We designed our house from the beginning to have all the living areas on the north side, we both hate the dark  how dark our rental house is and really wanted to take advantage of all that free sunshine power!

We had quite a bit of trouble arranging with the builder to allow us to install the panels before handover. They eventually changed their minds when we said we would take responsibility for any damage caused by the solar company.

So now we have 8 panels on our roof awaiting the electricity company to turn them on. Hopefully it will happen in the next week - because after the 30th Sept, the buy back tariff will change from 60cents per kilowatt to 25cents a kilowatt. Even if it isn't all connected by the 30th, we will still save a packet on our electricity bills.

The inverter is so much less obtrusive as the one we had on our last house ~ it was fire engine red, and right by the front door!

It is tucked around the corner of the house, next to the meter box.

We have purchased a larger inverter, so that when we can afford it we can add another 8 panels to our system, and save even more money!

Insulation, electrical and heating ducts

Last week was a busy week for work to be done.

Hubbies dad finished the lock-up. Yay ~ shower base is in!

All the electrical, TV and data cabling is done!

The heating ducting is connected and up in the roof!

The insulation has been put in all the outside walls, and the bats are up in the the ceiling ready to lay after the plaster is done!

The bath and shower base are in, in the bathroom.

All ready for the plaster to start! 

Starting the lock up.

We are so luck y that Lawrie's Dad and brother are doing the lock-up on our house. 

They have identified and fixed so many little things in order to make our house even more perfect! They have straightened walls, and  trusses, fitted in extra studs, so our cupboards can have extra shelves put in, built the housings for the 7 (!!) sliding doors we will have. And countless other things I have no idea about.

 Plus, they weren't even supplied a plan of the house from the supervisor, until the second day - and then it wasn't a complete plan so they couldn't finish it, and will have to go back next week. 

We are so confident that out house will be built properly with them both on the job!  

A shot of the house with the bricks finished. It still has to be rendered up the top of the front wall. Can't wait to see this - I love the half brick, half render look!

Master bedroom..... turned into temporary lunch room.

Sliding door housing for our walk in robe.

The tv alcove for the family room.

Shower base in the bathroom.

Sliding door for one of the kids bedrooms walk in robes.

My laundry.... I know I am going to love this room. Is it possible to be looking forward to doing laundry?

I know I can't wait for this room!!! Really excited about the 2.5 meter long bench I can fold my washing on instead of on the coffee table. 

And the walk in linen to put all the towels, sheets etc in... instead of in the kitchen pantry, because there is no linen cupboard at our rental house!

One of our wonderful lock up builders (Lawrie's brother)

So looking forward to calling this home!

Bricks....bricks... and more bricks!!

It has taken 4 LONG weeks for our house to have the bricks finished. And in that time no work has been done inside  the house. So it has seemed like they have been doing the bricks forever! 

Austral Lawson bricks

The bricklayers started at the front of the garage on the left hand side of our house, and worked around in a clockwise direction.

The dining room bay window, half done.

This is the lounge room sliding door.

So many wasted, broken bricks!! When the bricks were finished the pile is about 3 times this size! 

mud, mud everywhere!!

The bricklayers had to carry all these bricks all the way around the house by hand (through the thick mud), because it was way to wet for a forklift. They tried a few times to do it with a machine and kept getting bogged! I think it took them 3 or 4 days just to cart the bricks into position.

Front of the house, wrapped and waiting for bricks.

More mud!

Garage all completed.

Dining area done!

Lounge room done!

Front of the house, almost finished.

Front bedroom window.

The bricklayers didn't use any scaffolding to do the bricks up high - they simply stacked up the wooden pallets to the right height, lay a plank of wood between 2 piles, and worked from that. Very unsafe!!

10,000 bricks were needed to build our house. We are so pleased that is it finally done, and things can start happening inside!