New House build - Help needed

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#2410272 30-Jan-2020 15:35

neb:
33coupe:

Family room - I was thinking about cavity slider, think he quoted $1500 though, so a bit put off. I havent thought of tv / speakers positioning yet unfortunately. Will check the windows though as could save some cost there.

Do read up on the pros and cons of cavity sliders before you settle for them. The two big ones are that you can't put them in a load-bearing wall, and that they're a maintenance nightmare, if you get stuff trapped in the cavity (which sliders tend to do) or there's a failure of some part then there's no easy way to get at it to fix it. So sliders are best for locations where they're semi-permanently open or closed, not where they'll get a lot of use.

Some really good responses here already @33Coupe. Having been through this process just over 2 years ago for a high-end bespoke build, I'm very happy to help, so feel free to DM me with specific questions.

@neb - that's not entirely correct; you can double-frame the wall, which gives you all the benefits/no drawbacks (other than the cost of a little extra framing. We did this because our lounge cavity slider is also the same wall our TV is mounted on, and I wanted cabling hidden in the framing. And technically, very few (if any) internal walls in a modern truss roof design are actually load bearing.

And in terms of maintenance, all the hardware is on the door, which can be removed, so barring a botched install, you'd never need to get into the cavity. Biggest issue with large wooden cavity sliders is that they can warp (yes, even metal-re-enforced ones).

bfginger

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#2410450 30-Jan-2020 22:25

neb:
bfginger:

Change the door on the walk in wardrobe to a cavity slider. I'd make the door to the "studay" a cavity slider too as that room is too small. I think the two children's bedrooms are smaller than ideal.

I wouldn't go overboard on cavity sliders, they're a real pain and should only be used either when you really need the space or when you're going to have them semi-permanently open or closed. For the ensuite it's a fine, I assume it'll mostly be left open, but for other rooms I'd avoid them. There's a reason you barely ever see them in houses.

The walk in wardrobe on the plan has one third of its area being taken up by the swing space so I think it's a good candidate. Bifolds are a good option for wardrobes as they halve the swingout area.

Don't let them put low flow taps in if you can help it. It takes forever for the hot water to arrive.

It should be possible to get a custom sized hot water cylinder made. 250L cylinders are usually 9 or 10cm wider in diameter than standard 180L units so if you got one the same diameter as a 180L but with more height it should retain more space for the linen.

There are a couple of New Zealand companies producing heat exchanger units for showers. Fitting one of those reduces your shower's hot water use by 30% so they should more than pay for themselves.

Make sure the rangehood is externally vented. Most are vented into the ceiling which is a fire risk.

Ducted heating would be $15k so thats a no go. I'll check out the other heatpump though. Was also wondering if could have one above garage door entry hallway to get heat to bedrooms?

You could but it might not always work as well as you'd hope as the point of doorways was to discourage heat shifting between rooms. For a hallway it may be easier to get a cassette format heat pump as they must integrate a condensate pump while high wall units away from an exterior wall require third party units which are notorious for noise or reliability problems. I'd wait until after the house was built to see if it was needed. If you put a cassette there a Panasonic R32 unit is probably the best. One advantage of a cassette is it can blow directly down the hallway instead of at the opposite wall like a high wall would.

@bfginger I cant find the Daikin model you mentioned. Do you have any links please?

The Mitsubishi in Smiths City is $2850. Would it be $1750 to install?

The Daikin is here.

https://www.daikin.co.nz/our-product-range/split-system-heat-pumps/new-cora#tech-specs

You can safely completely ignore what retailers are charging for heat pumps. Like a retailer, installers buy a heat pump at the wholesale price, and then they charge you for the installation. The difference is the installer charges you wholesale price while the retailer puts a retail margin on it. I'd assume roughly $3000 for unit and standard back to back installation. You'll pay an additional fee if you want a wifi module installed into the Daikin.

Ask for the lounge heat pump to be on its own electrical circuit. That may cost a bit more but you don't want a unit of that 7kW size sharing a circuit which is what electricians do as it's cheaper.

You may want to ask for grey tint glass in the family room and garage area for privacy from the road. There is a non tint mirror glass product I can look up if you'd prefer that (from memory it doesn't reduce light intake as much but some councils might forbid it).

If you are going for non minimum spec joinery and glass you should ask to see the joinery quote before accepting it. The companies are used to dealing with minimum spec everything and are extremely error prone when people ask for specifics beyond measurements. They frequently quote differently to what you ask for (eg no thermally broken extrusions in stock so no quote for it) and it's on you if the recipient doesn't notice or know to notice.

33coupe

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#2410686 31-Jan-2020 12:16

Thanks for those, ive gone back to the builder with more questions.

It took quite some time but have managed a slightly different kitchen to my original plan, although this is in keeping with the original floor plan footprint.

Over the weekend I will do another design with my original idea of kitchen facing family room.

Just for reference

Dining table 2440 x 1800

Island 1400 x 1000 (1000 between island and worktops)

kitchen 2000 x 65d

kitchen 3120 x 65

This is a very rough draft as doesnt include fridge etc (and more overhead cupboards etc), but just a basic idea.

duckDecoy

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#2410715 31-Jan-2020 13:22

bfginger:

You could add a security door to the bedroom door for cooling purposes. Standard full height awning windows are hopeless at cooling ventilation.

We did this a couple of years ago and it was a great choice. Not only is it cooler for us to sleep at night, we installed another screen at the opposite end of the house and during the day we can leave them open and fully ventilate the house. The screens are security quality so cannot be easily forced and the mesh is small enough to keep bugs out.

From memory each security screen door was around $1000. The style we got was fully mesh rather than the thick diamond shaped style and so it doesn't look ugly at all.

duckDecoy

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#2410722 31-Jan-2020 13:29

billgates: 3. Electrical looks very very light. No external power points? 1 at back and 1 near the front of house minimum.

+1 on external power points, after years of frustration I finally had to stick my hand in my pocket and shell out to have a sparky come out and install one for us. Wish I had done it during the build.

Similarly, an external tap BOTH front and back is a good idea.

33coupe

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#2411916 3-Feb-2020 14:46

Hi all,

Thanks again for your input, really appreciated. Ive researched the kitchen sink tap, apparently its 8l per minute flow, have no idea if thats good or not lol, As for shower heat converter, does that decrease pressure? Good call with the window tints, will ask about that.

So it look like we're finally settled on a design as per the attached. Will lose a bit of living area, but should be enough for a sofa & a chair.

The only issue I have now is that by turning the bed around the rep said to only have one sliding door from walk in wardrobe to ensuite (no access to ensuite direct from bedroom) due to space (and cost is $450 per cavity slider). Which I can understand as there would only be 18.5cm between bed and door frame. However, I think its going to become a chore keep walking through walk in to get to toilet. Anyone have thoughts on that?

Other changes will be

reduce walk in from 1600 to 1500 to make ensuite bigger

separate the toilet from main bathroom

250 hot water cylinder

2 x heated towel rails $315 each installed (sounded alot to me :(

2.4 to 2.7m stud height in kitchen, dining, family.

The cost is going up, and havent even looked at kitchen cabinets, appliances, bathrooms etc. bit worried about budget!

nofam

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#2411919 3-Feb-2020 14:54

33coupe:

Hi all,

Thanks again for your input, really appreciated. Ive researched the kitchen sink tap, apparently its 8l per minute flow, have no idea if thats good or not lol, As for shower heat converter, does that decrease pressure? Good call with the window tints, will ask about that.

So it look like we're finally settled on a design as per the attached. Will lose a bit of living area, but should be enough for a sofa & a chair.

The only issue I have now is that by turning the bed around the rep said to only have one sliding door from walk in wardrobe to ensuite (no access to ensuite direct from bedroom) due to space (and cost is $450 per cavity slider). Which I can understand as there would only be 18.5cm between bed and door frame. However, I think its going to become a chore keep walking through walk in to get to toilet. Anyone have thoughts on that?

Other changes will be

reduce walk in from 1600 to 1500 to make ensuite bigger

separate the toilet from main bathroom

250 hot water cylinder

2 x heated towel rails $315 each installed (sounded alot to me :(

2.4 to 2.7m stud height in kitchen, dining, family.

The cost is going up, and havent even looked at kitchen cabinets, appliances, bathrooms etc. bit worried about budget!

I haven't followed this whole thread, but in terms of overall building cost, if you work on $2500 per m2, you won't be far off. Kitchens and bathrooms are expensive though, and they're areas you don't want to scrimp on as they're work spaces: things like soft-close drawers and stone benchtops might seem like luxuries, but they really do make a difference in the long run. Same as well-designed vanities and toilets - they get a lot of use, and you want them to be easy to keep clean.

Sharesies

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

neb

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#2411934 3-Feb-2020 15:22

nofam:
Same as well-designed vanities and toilets - they get a lot of use, and you want them to be easy to keep clean.

Amen to that. For example get a back-to-wall toilet with just a single flat smooth surface to clean, not the Brazil (the movie) style exposed plumbing and tubing. Soft-close toilet seats so you don't get woken up by a loud bang in the middle of the night. HMR (high-moisture-resistant) or better vanities because a cheap vanity will eventually swell and split. Wet-area paint for the bathroom, not generic house paint. etc.

In case anyone's wondering, the Casa de Cowboy sends its regards.

nofam

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#2411938 3-Feb-2020 15:24

neb:
nofam:

Same as well-designed vanities and toilets - they get a lot of use, and you want them to be easy to keep clean.

Amen to that. For example get a back-to-wall toilet with just a single flat smooth surface to clean, not the Brazil (the movie) style exposed plumbing and tubing. Soft-close toilet seats so you don't get woken up by a loud bang in the middle of the night. HMR (high-moisture-resistant) or better vanities because a cheap vanity will eventually swell and split. Wet-area paint for the bathroom, not generic house paint. etc. In case anyone's wondering, the Casa de Cowboy sends its regards.

Ha, well said - there's that very apt quote that goes "The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten".

sen8or

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#2411942 3-Feb-2020 15:30

+1 for soft close toilet seats. Never thought about them till we had them in our last house, they are fantastic.

bfginger

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#2412013 3-Feb-2020 19:11

A relative has the toilet separated from the bathroom like that and it's spatially annoying. I'd keep the toilet in the bathroom and maybe maintain a second toilet independent as on the revised plan otherwise children will want to rush into the ensuite at all hours when the toilet is occupied. Is bedroom 3 really now 6m2?

Don't forget to ask for an extractor fan over each shower. If you want one with a light in it make sure it's got an LED light as the electricity from 50W halogens mounts up. There are some models that can be placed on a dimmer switch to adjust the operating power.

If you have a door in your bedroom it'll need safety glass. Usually they go for both panes toughened but you could ask for one pane to be laminated which would make it quieter in there. I'd ask for laminate for all bedroom windows too for that reason.

mattwnz

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#2412017 3-Feb-2020 19:30

nofam:

I haven't followed this whole thread, but in terms of overall building cost, if you work on $2500 per m2, you won't be far off. Kitchens and bathrooms are expensive though, and they're areas you don't want to scrimp on as they're work spaces: things like soft-close drawers and stone benchtops might seem like luxuries, but they really do make a difference in the long run. Same as well-designed vanities and toilets - they get a lot of use, and you want them to be easy to keep clean.

I would say that is a bit on the light side these days. Closer to $3000. Then there are thing lie landscaping costs There is little cost difference between softclose and roller drawers, compared to the benefits softclose drawers offer. I cringe when I see new kitchens or even wardrobes installed with roller hinges.

billgates

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#2412018 3-Feb-2020 19:30

I would also recommend to install a seperate hose tap and single power point next to each toilet for future bidet seats.

Do whatever you want to do man.

nofam

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#2412025 3-Feb-2020 20:00

mattwnz:

nofam:

I haven't followed this whole thread, but in terms of overall building cost, if you work on $2500 per m2, you won't be far off. Kitchens and bathrooms are expensive though, and they're areas you don't want to scrimp on as they're work spaces: things like soft-close drawers and stone benchtops might seem like luxuries, but they really do make a difference in the long run. Same as well-designed vanities and toilets - they get a lot of use, and you want them to be easy to keep clean.

I would say that is a bit on the light side these days. Closer to $3000. Then there are thing lie landscaping costs There is little cost difference between softclose and roller drawers, compared to the benefits softclose drawers offer. I cringe when I see new kitchens or even wardrobes installed with roller hinges.

Yeah, like I said I've only skimmed the thread, so don't know where the OP is building, or how level the section is etc. But you're quite right; things like soft-close are a drop in the ocean against total cost. The biggest cost is still labour and anything out of the ordinary that needs to be designed bespoke or has structural implications that require an engineer. Even thermally-broken joinery has come down in price from what it was.

Ironically, bathrooms are an area where people blow huge amounts of money - you have to wonder whether a $4000 bath holds water any better than a $400 one.

neb

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#2412029 3-Feb-2020 20:03

nofam:
Ironically, bathrooms are an area where people blow huge amounts of money - you have to wonder whether a $4000 bath holds water any better than a $400 one.

I'm even happier with my $0 bath. Agree with the rest though. Beds and mattresses are the same, but bathrooms and kitchens seem to be a carte blanche to waste money.

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