Private Building Inspections Construction Stages

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Your builder is required by law to have you employ a Building Surveyor, who issues the Building Permit in order to complete “Mandatory“ Inspections at various stages of a build. Often a builder employs their own building surveyor to review the stages of your build but be aware that the building surveyor actually works for you by law, not the builder. 

Your surveyors job is an extremely important one, they make sure your builder complies with all the relevant codes and standards at every stage of the build. To have an undetected or overlooked fault at an early stage of a build can cost you thousands of dollars in repairs down the track.

The small amount invested in employing D.C Building Inspectors to conduct a follow up inspection will give you the peace of mind to know your project is being built correctly.  

We provide you with an independent assessment and an unbiased professional check. We are more than happy to discuss any other items you may have concerns about and answer questions you may have that haven’t been satisfactory answered by your builder or surveyor.

The pre-pour inspection or steel inspection is conducted once all steel works have been completed and before the slab pour. The inspection is generally conducted the afternoon before the slab is scheduled for pouring. In some circumstances the inspection may be required the morning the slab is being poured, however, this is rare. It is extremely important as your steel works are the very first piece of the foundation on which your home is built.

During the pre-pour inspection or steel inspection we determine whether everything has been formed up as detailed on the site and engineering plans.

The specific components inspected as part of the pre-pour inspection include:

• vapour barrier
• storm water
• steel
• concrete cover
• pipe penetrations
• termite protection
• secondary earth
• excess sagging (raft slab)
• measurements of throat angles (raft slab)
• mesh touching pods (waffle pod)
• termite collar (waffle pod)
• additional assessments as per the engineering plans

We will visibly check retaining walls as per the plans as part of the Pre-Pour inspection if the retaining walls have been completed at this time.

Please note: If you would like the quality of the base inspected, a separate base inspection will need to be conducted prior to the pre-pour or steel inspection. This is because the base will no longer be visible or accessible at the time of the pre-pour inspection.

SLAB & FRAME INSPECTION 

The slab and frame inspection are a very thorough and detailed inspection covering all slab and frame items.

We will examine your home and check for: 

• Cracks 
• Vibration 
• Signs of concrete cancer
• Over pour
• Level finishes

D.C Building Inspectors examine the frame to ensure that it is structurally sound. This is vitally important. Together with the slab, your frame is like the skeleton that the rest of the house is built on. If it is flawed, the house is likely to have serious defects.

We will inspect:

• Junctions
• Load paths
• Noggins
• Bulkheads (if installed)
• Nails and other connections
• Bracing components
• Wall straightening (plumb)
• Brackets and other connections
• Appropriate use of correct materials and signs of weathering

The frame is generally inspected upon its completion. That is once the roof trusses are installed and all frame items have been braced off.

No sisilation wrapping is to be on the dwelling at the time of this inspection as this can hinder our team’s view when checking the bracing on the outside of the frame.

The inspection is best carried out prior to any roof installation so that all defects can be rectified prior to any weight load being installed on the roof.

Please note: If roofers are scheduled to be on site at the time we are to conduct our inspection, we will not enter the site due to WHS restrictions.

The terminology 'lock up' is an industry standard expression to describe a stage claim and does not necessarily mean the home is securely 'locked up'. 

Before a pre-plaster inspection, the following should be completed:

• all wall straightening is completed
• all outstanding frame inspection defects are completed
• plumbing rough ins done
• electrical rough ins done
• ducted heating rough-ins done

Ideally the brickwork should be completed or at least a large amount so we can check the brick veneer wall cavity compliance. If the brickwork is not completed at this time and your builder is conducting a “reverse build” of your dwelling, the brickwork will be checked at both the fixing and final stages of inspection.

It is best for our clients to confirm the dates for both insulation and plaster installation so that we can assist with the scheduling of this inspection.

• Prior to any paintwork commencing or flooring having been installed
• Preferably post cabinet installation, however we can proceed without them
• Plaster work must be fully completed (stopped up) including pre paint fixes 
• All architraves, skirting and doors should be installed and in place 

This inspection covers all aspects of the plaster work as well as the skirting, architraves and cornices. We will check all doors and windows as well as fittings and fixtures including all cabinetry. We will also further inspect the brickwork following on from the pre-plaster inspection. All defects outstanding from your pre-plaster/lockup inspection will also be checked and addressed within this report.

If the waterproofing has been completed and is able to be inspected at this time, we are able to combine this with your pre-paint/fixing inspection for a reduced cost.

Water is the biggest threat to any home.

Water causes rotting and allows the propagation of:

• Mould
• Mildew
• Infestation of destructive creatures

Termites love wet areas.

Waterproofing is required to be applied to wet areas in accordance with the National Construction Code and AS 3740.

It is to be applied in a manner that fully prevents the ability of water to penetrate any membranes, thus ensuring the house frame and concealed areas are protected from the possibility of an unhealthy environment. 

When organizing a waterproofing inspection, please ensure that the membrane has had a minimum of 24 hours to dry.

The final inspection is conducted once the house is fully complete as per the contract. We generally allow 2 hours for this inspection; however, this may vary depend on the size of the home and the number of defects noted.

For larger homes 40sq + we would allow additional time. If you are unsure, please ask the house inspector conducting the inspection if they require more or less time on a particular job.

This inspection should be scheduled once the client has received the notice of completion and the final claim invoice from the Builder. It is preferable to conduct this inspection at the same time as the new home presentation/walk through presentation with the builder. We ask our client to confirm with their builder that the certificate of occupancy has been obtained prior to this final inspection.

If they have a HIA contract, we would refer the client to sections 36 & 37 for the final stage of the house and providing their builder with a list of known defects.

 We ask the clients to please ensure that the house is 100% complete as per their building contract prior to scheduling the final inspection. This to ensure we can provide you with the best service possible. 

These inspections are conducted once a client has moved into the property. Generally, we can conduct these inspections up to 10 years after the initial occupancy permit was issued to the client.

The difference in terminology is as follows:

A post-handover inspection is conducted within the maintenance period. Commonly this is 90 days, however many builders are extending this to 12 months. We encourage you to check the timeline specified in your contract. It is your responsibility to provide a list of defects before the end date. This is called the maintenance period or can be referred to as a defects liability period. It is preferable to conduct a final inspection, rather than a post-handover inspection, as the client has more rights to “like new” defects at the final inspection. However, a post-handover inspection is likely to occur if a client has concerns and they weren’t aware of their rights to an independent inspection OR if the client has a HIA contract and they had completed their walk through and did not contact us to arrange an inspection within 7 days of this walk through (refer to legislation – Section 36 & 37 of HIA contract).

A post-maintenance inspection is conducted anytime from 3 months after handover, up until 10 years after the occupancy permit has been issued. The most common issues that clients will express is cracking of walls/bricks, issues with water pooling and occasionally will express concerns regarding “slab heave”.

These inspections are conducted in the same manner as if they were a final inspection, however, an off the plan purchase is where a new house is purchased through a third party. The person buying the property does not hold the contract directly with the builder, and it is usually a sale of real estate contract (with a vendor, purchaser, section 32 etc.).

With off the plan inspections, we are limited to the advice we can give to clients in relation to scheduling their inspection. They will generally have limited rights under this contract, and some may contain special conditions that we cannot advise on. All queries in relation to this contract need to be directed to the client’s legal representative. 

It is common for clients to only be able to conduct one off the plan inspection throughout their build. Clients will commonly choose the final inspection; however, we have had instances where the builder has allowed more than one inspection and at varying stages. This is at the builder’s discretion.

Off the plan properties are generally smaller apartments or townhouses, however occasionally we will see an off the plan purchase where the property is built by a volume builder.