House design for construction cost effective

Discussion in 'Development' started by melbourne171, 16th Nov, 2016.

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  1. melbourne171

    melbourne171 Well-Known Member

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    Can other people keep adding house design items for construction cost effective?

    - Traditional cornices. Square set or shadow line corners are lovely but they're more expensive than traditional cornices.

    - Reduce ceiling heights. 2550mm for the ground and 2400mm for the top.

    - Use standard size of doors and windows

    - Tiling to living areas is very practical instead of real wood. You can get porcelain plank wood look tiles which are quite economical.

    - Use prefabricated trusses in roof construction

    - Only design large spans where you need to. This will reduce the requirement for engineers details - another extra cost.

    - Single skin timber stud framing is the most cost effective wall construction type to install and alter in the future if required.

    - Sub-floor construction - The most economical is concrete pad footings with brick piers, supporting a timber floor frame. Concrete is expensive, and is not as cost effective as timber framed construction.

    - Avoid wall mounted lights (wall washers) that illuminate down the wall - this will require the plaster finish to be of a top level of finish - very costly

    - Check all forms of firewalls between the buildings. Some systems are cheaper than others and just as good.

    - Different claddings cost different amount for similar look. For example James Hardie Axon is about the same price as JH Easylap but looks way nicer in my opinion. JH Matrix is very very expensive and best avoided or only small 'wow' amounts used

    - Reduce your wow to small items with big impact - a feature colour at the entrance, a splashback in the kitchen

    - The other big saving to be made in this area is by minimising bathrooms and wet areas – they have a high cost per square metre due to the extra trades, finishes and fittings that they require. Think about how you might be able to consolidate two wet areas into one to save on both the area involved, the high cost to finish the space, and in the longer term, the extra time spent on cleaning!

    - Lightweight construction uses the same structural timber stud frame as used in brick veneer construction, however doesn’t require the non-structural brick skin (that’s right, it is the timber frame that holds the roof up anyway). The brick skin can be replaced with any number of lightweight cladding materials that might be timber, compressed fibre cement, polystyrene foam sheets, or even Colorbond steel.

    - While brick veneer is taken to be our most cost effective type of construction, there are many situations where lightweight cladding will prove a more cost effective and attractive option.

    - For example, upper floor additions can be designed with more flexibility and built at less cost simply because it is easier to structurally support a lightweight wall than it is to support much heavier brick walls.
     
  2. Tufan Chakir

    Tufan Chakir Well-Known Member

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    What about getting the design right to start with - design cost out, not in
    Use space more efficiently
    Avoid "funky" or fashionable soluitons
    Use competent designers who understand the who process, and understand that good design has little to do with the drawing, or 'lines on paper"
    Pay good fees for good holistic design
     
  3. neK

    neK Well-Known Member

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    Not a fan of the reduced ceiling height.
    Higher ceilings are always better, obviously at some point they become a moot point, but at 2.55m.... it can go higher.
     
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  4. Beelzebub

    Beelzebub Well-Known Member

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    This is interesting. Why do all the volume builders use a slab construction?
     
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  5. melbourne171

    melbourne171 Well-Known Member

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    Do not know. I asked project builders and most of them build slab on ground whereas a drafter suspend floor is cheaper.
     
  6. Marg4000

    Marg4000 Well-Known Member

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    Make up your mind before beginning the build.
    Changing things once construction is under way is expensive.
    Marg
     
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  7. Brisbane_reader

    Brisbane_reader Well-Known Member

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    We used a Formica high gloss laminate for our flooring, super scratch resistant and it still looks just like real timber. I think it was around $30m2 ex trades.
     
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  8. melbourne171

    melbourne171 Well-Known Member

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    Thanks Brisbane_reader
    I will consider Formica high gloss laminate for my floow as well.
     
  9. theperthurbanist

    theperthurbanist Well-Known Member

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    Simple building footprint = fewer external corners = significant cost savings on roofing and brickwork. Whether is looks good or produces an efficient layout however is a different story.
     
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  10. Westminster

    Westminster Tigress at Tiger Developments Business Member

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    Yup squares and rectangles are cheaper to build :) but as you say you need to have some articulation or variation to make it look ok. The variation/articulation can be as simple as a porch/verandah at the front and alfresco at the rear which are different sizes to the main house to offer visual relief.

    Other things for the list
    - group plumbing rooms together. Keep bathrooms, laundries and kitchens paired or all together and less than 20m from HWS to reduce costs.
     
  11. wombat777

    wombat777 Well-Known Member

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    My kitchen hot-water tap is perhaps a 30m run when the shortest distance to the HWS is 12m. The plumber and builder got it badly wrong. Unfortunately the issue was not detected until I moved in. Now just have to put up with it :-( . A stage inspection might have picked it up but I only had them starting at frame, then lock-up, etc.
     
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  12. melbourne171

    melbourne171 Well-Known Member

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    So, can I sum up ?

    Smart design of plumping pipes and house plans to minimise the plumping costs.
     
  13. melbourne171

    melbourne171 Well-Known Member

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    Also
    smart design of sewage and house plans to minimise the plumping costs.
    smart design of electricity and house plans to minimise the electricity installation costs.

    Please keep adding what can help building cost saving....
     
    Last edited: 23rd Nov, 2016
  14. Sackie

    Sackie Well-Known Member

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    Smart engineering that works with the land and house design can save you a massive amount. Been spending some time on my Brissy devs to tweak engineering to add further cost savings.
     
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  15. wombat777

    wombat777 Well-Known Member

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    I found that it was a fallacy that colorbond roofing costs more than roof tiles. Many builders seem to charge an uplift for colorbond though. My PPOR build had no difference in pricing.

    Arguably colorbond would seem to be quicker to install and therefore less labour.
     
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  16. Westminster

    Westminster Tigress at Tiger Developments Business Member

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    Colorbond is also more lightweight and has longer spans than tiles so needs less roofing structure.
     
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  17. Aaron Sice

    Aaron Sice Well-Known Member

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    Colorbond gutters and downpipes.

    Reduces the time for scaff on-site for the painter - also not needed up there for long. Can just spray the eaves lining and be done.

    Depending on your state - foundations and floor.

    Clay soil - conc pad footings with timber stumps.

    Sandy Clay soil - waffle slabs are coming down in price. If you have a flat, clay site it may be worth considering.

    Clayey Sand soil - conc footings with F62 trench mesh, engaged to a slab with F62 mesh.

    Sand soil - conc footings, no mesh and slab with F52 mesh.

    Insulation

    Batts. End of discussion.
     
  18. wombat777

    wombat777 Well-Known Member

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    Thanks - refreshed my memory. My PPOR also has colorbond fascia.
     
  19. MM65

    MM65 Member

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    --------
    Very informative @melbourne171, however my architect has designed lightweight for BOTH the lower and upper floors (with polystyrene foam) and I am advised by builders that this is not a good idea for the lower floor, as the 1. The cost of render and labour reduces any brick cost-savings to almost nil; 2. You can put a fist through the foam (despite a fibre-glass skin and render); 3. Any dents etc. are difficult to patch up as the whole wall then needs replacement and render; 4. It requires regular maintainence and wash down & has the potential to look bad after only a few years; and 5. The insurance costs are higher for non-brick veneer

    I am not experienced in this area, but would love to hear any comments pertaining to the above.
     
  20. Phase2

    Phase2 Well-Known Member

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    Are you planning on using SIPs? Most builders are just unfamiliar with them and would rather deal with what they know, especially as they have to warrant the build. SIPs can be quite limiting in terms of running new GPOs and TV points etc as the chases are put in during manufacture. There are ways around this (battens and gyprock) but it will add to your costs.

    The claims about putting your fist through the panels are BS, you're more likely to break your knuckles if you try it. Fibreglass is very strong, patching the wall shouldn't be any more difficult than any other wall. Dulux has an acrylic render that a lot of trades use now. Regular mtce and washing is rubbish...

    Ring some insurance companies and ask them about insuring that type of place??
    Ask your architect about some other places designed like this, so you can go and see them for yourself. Get some advice on builders from the SIP manufacturer.