Help me with PPOR Reno!

Wow those sinks are cheap! Thanks

The one in the link was included in our $24k quote from the kitchen company. If I can get someone to do a replica of what they're proposing for around $20k I'm happy. Will check out those other companies too, thanks!

With slabs, do we need to do research on the brands or just choose the colour we like? Stone is stone, right??

 

Caesarstone is popular but a complete rip off - research will show you that a lot of people use it and think it's a superior brand but when you talk to a stonemason they generally confirm that it's not really superior to many middle range brands. However there will be some brands you've never heard of that are super super cheap chinese imports that most stone masons will advise you not to use and it's likely you will never have heard of the brand.

If you are going to do a water fall end on the island bench ensure if they can run the vein down the side of the bench like in the linked photo you put up.

Also ask if they have an offcut to do the laundry bench top with if it can't all fit from the one slab.

 

I rarely go Ceasorstone.

Quantum quartz, smart stone or Billy Wong are my usual choices. As long as it looks the business.

 

I’m not a fan of Westinghouse at all. My WM needed an expensive repair just out of warranty so they gave me a reduced price Electrolux that lasted a lot longer. Hated my Westinghouse oven. Hated my Dishlex from day one. Love my 7 yr old Bosch dishwasher.

 

OK last question (for now). We went to look at appliances today and chose everything except for sink (need to go to Renolink during the week) and rangehood. The kitchen company told us it's easiest if we get a front recirculating slide out rangehood. However, Bosch don't do these, and the other brands we saw didn't look that great. I also didn't love the idea of a rangehood blowing 'dirty' air into the kitchen or onto our heads while cooking.

The kitchen guy said we could potentially put a vent in the cupboards to push the air to behind the fridge. The guy at Harvey Norman suggested it's not a good idea to push dirty air to behind the fridge as there would be a build up of oil etc over time, however I'd rather push the air that way than towards us. We probably only turn our rangehood on in our current place once every fortnight (if that) as most things are cooked on lower heat.

Thoughts on just venting it to behind the fridge? I'm guessing it would be a bit more expensive and we'll lose some cupboard space but would look a lot better and gives us a greater choice of what rangehood to use...

 

Surely the current rangehood in the apartment vents to the outside so that ventwork would be reused??? I'm pretty sure that is a requirement in apartments

 

Alot actually don't.

 

Nope, it's a front reciculating slide out as well..

 

wow. OK. well I think I'd be fine about a pull out front recirculating. Appliances Online I think venting behind the fridge would give a poorer outcome as all the muck would get into the fridge motor etc

The only other thing I can think of is does your laundry have an exhaust fan? You might be able to connect to that via the bulkhead above the kitchen somehow.

 

Hmm might just have to go front recirculating.

That's a good suggestion - however there is a structural column between the fridge and the laundry so I won't be able to push a vent through that. (although the previous owner drilled through it for a fridge hose but that's only small)

The guy at Harvey Norman tried to sell me this rangehood today and said it was the best one for me (front recirculating, LED lights, cheap, 5 yr warranty etc) - I had never heard of the brand so assumed he was trying to sell me a dud. The reviews online are pretty bad:
Appliances Online

These 2 have good reviews:
Appliances Online
Appliances Online

I think I'll go with the Omega. I'll just switch out the bulbs with LEDs and get a charcoal filter for it.

 

The one I selected is a quieter model and has more suck but the Omega will probably do the job just as well. The charcoal filter sounds like a good idea. Hopefully all have filters that can go through the dishwasher as that is a handy feature for getting rid of all the gunk

 

I've used that omega one before. Not bad.

 

You guys have been incredibly helpful. I'm going to seek approval tomorrow from strata, and assuming this can happen quickly then I'll be engaging a kitchen company to start mid Feb (will get 1-2 more quotes this week). Fingers crossed I can get the strata approval quickly. Keen to share pics once it's done!

 

Just out of curiosity. This is a 2 bed? Do you have a floorplan?

 

Strata approval can take upto two months , especially if you're doing any waterproofing, removing any structures etc. They are also hardcore on flooring changes. Just be prepared.

Also there are fees involved. If you're doing waterproofing, you'll need a bylaw written up by a conveyancer and approved.

 

Yep 2/2/2 (tandem). Plan below. Pretty happy with it. Large balcony facing North-East. Main bedroom is away from laundry and living room. 2nd bedroom is big enough for spare bed and my home office. Just wish it was up a bit higher so I had better views

 

The flooring doesn't need approval in these strata by-laws, you just need to give 30 days notice (already given last week) so I'm good to go for the floors on the 6th Feb but will hold back until I do the kitchen.

The strata by-laws are weird re kitchens - see below excerpt. 'Installing a kitchen' doesn't need approval. However 'minor renovations' do. (renovating a kitchen is counted as minor renovation in the SSMA 2015). I don't know how 'installing a kitchen' differs from renovating a kitchen, as you can't really install a kitchen without first ripping out the old one?

I asked the strata manager last week how he wanted to treat with the front door (fire door) that needs to be trimmed when I do the floors. He sent an email to the Owners Corp on Thursday to get their thoughts, and he gave them until Sat night to respond - I found out tomorrow what they said, but he was hoping they would just allow me to get it trimmed by my own contractors and then show that it meets the BCA and fire act etc. So they seem pretty repsonsive and reasonable (I thought they may want to have their own contractor do the work then charge me for it - plus their time to organise it etc).

The SSMA 2015 says the approval needs to be given at a general meeting, so hopefully they don't have to wait until the next meeting and he can just get approval from the OC via an email... At the end of the day, they can't unreasonably withhold approval. I'm not making any structural changes and there are strict guidelines on what hours the works can be done by, they need to be certified tradespeople etc etc so I don't know upon what grounds they would disallow it. Regardless, I'll wait until approval before I engage someone.


See below:

 

if you can get away with that for this reno good on you. I'd love to see what stra says.

 

@Jmillar I'm guessing the floor plan isn't terribly to scale but I wonder if there an opportunity to build a shallow depth cupboard in the laundry behind the door. Would make a handy spot for extra pantry or brooms/mops.

Interesting that the bath is in the ensuite not the main bathroom.

 

Looks like common sense has prevailed! I pointed out that the by-laws are conflicting (installing a kitchen doesn't need to be approved, renovating a kitchen needs to be approved) so the strata manager seems to think I should just go ahead and do it. He also suggested the Committee has previously waived the 30 day notice period which would be another bonus!

I did point out to them that if I did the kitchen and floors together it would minimise disruption to the neighbours, whereas if they don't let me do it now I'm going to have to cause more disruptions later in the year to do the kitchen.

Looks like I'm all good for February. The guys that quoted $25k for the kitchen said they could do it for $19k if I did the demolition and electrical. My brother is a sparky so that's easy, and I could get my handyman mate to help me with the demo (probably pay him $500 for a day and then just need to pay tip fees as I have a trailer).

I'm getting 2 more kitchen quotes tomorrow so I'll see how they compare. Very excited!