Sorry to take over your post but I just wanted to ask about the 1987 part of Marc's answer. Why is it best to buy a house built after 1987? Is a ten year issue? So if I bought a property in 2009 I would be best of buying one that was built after 1999? Thanks

Have you thought about alternatives to tiling such as the new style lino.

amtico.com.au is one website to try

Only stupid people don’t ask questions

I am no expert but seeing as though no one else has replied I’ll have a stab. If you can make it into 3 bedrooms go for it. Look up your local council website. Ours has heaps of information. In my area you need to get council approval if the work that you propose to do involves the load bearing walls or if you are changing the size of doors or…[Read more]

We went to look at displays during the week to get ideas on colours and noticed that a lot of the houses had hobs in the kitchen. Must be making a comeback.

Only stupid people don’t ask questions

After venturing out with hubby looking at the exact same thing we both liked the frameless shower screen but we are going to get it wih the acrylic walls and floor. To save space we have choosen a corner shower. This means it is all in one unit and no tiling is needed. Our house has a lot of movement due to coal trains on the nearby rail line. Not…[Read more]

Is a “hob” like a mini wall above the end of the kitchen bench? If so that is a great idea as we won’t be using the bench as a breakfast bar. My husband is 184cm and hates the idea.

Only stupid people don’t ask questions

Thank you all for your input. I can understand that moving out will be beneficial to both the builder and ourselves as far as not having to try and fit in with each other thus getting the work done faster. Does anyone know if it will be beneifical financially for us to move out? Does time equal money in the building game? We have no family here so…[Read more]

We live very close to a train line. It is about 15m from our side fence. No problems at all. The coal trains that come thru during the night can be noisy but you get used to it.
We choose this house because it was close to a lot of amenties. We are within a 10 minute walk of TAFE, a high school. a primary school, local shopping strip, train…[Read more]

Thanks a lot for your input. We were certain that we were on the right track but just wanted to make sure. I have been to the decina website and found the bella 450 shower/bath. But couldn’t find one that was 600mm.
As far as plans going to council we have to do this anyway as we are renovating the whole house and getting an…[Read more]

I’d like to know as well. We have been living in our “before” house for 5 years and know generally what we want except for a few small items. We are considering consulting a building designer to draw up the plans.

Only stupid people don’t ask questions

Great ideas Wylie. I especially liked the idea of making the laundry a second bathroom. Putting the washing machine under the bench is brillant. Does your cabinet have doors? This idea would even give us more storage as well compared to the washing machine sitting next to laundry tub one. Thanks to you we can have both the shower and the storage.

thanks jhopper for the info about Rawlinsons. I now have the website in favourites.

Thanks DD. I thought this would be the case. As much as we hate the mission brown colour it would be easier just to live with it than to try and paint the colourbond fence green to match the back.

thanks for the replies. The wooden lattice idea sounds great. WIll also ask about colourbond extensions as well. One of neighbours who is in the process of selling his house has put those 6 foot brushwood screens things around this yard using metal fence posts that farmers use (star posts?) to hold it in place. Doesn’t look too bad except for…[Read more]

My advice is to live off one wage and to save the other. This is how my husband and I did it. Firstly we did it to pay for our wedding/honeymoon. Then we did it to pay cash for our first car. Then we did it to save for a deposit on a house. We bought a house using only one income. True we could have bought a bigger place in a nicer area but having…[Read more]

The mystery has been solved. They are what used to be called lamipanel by the laminex group. Now they are called wet area panelling. Must have cost the previous owners a fortune to do a four bedroom, 2 bathroom, double story house! It is primarily used as a decorative item.

No it is not cladding. It is on the inside and it definately not tileboard. I know that because we have it and my sister has seen that and says it is not the same. The walls are smooth and from what she says it is the same as the stuff you put on kitchen benchs. I have never heard of doing it before and was just curious if anyone else had heard of it.

We have cladding on our PPOR. Our first instinct was to rip it off but after living in it for a while we are happy to let it stay. Cladding is a great insulator. We rarely have the heater or fans on as we just don’t need it. Saves us a stack of money. Also the low maintenance is a huge benefit. Cladding products these days are a lot more visually…[Read more]