do you need excellent construction knowledge for a self build?

Metric Tensor

Miguel Faint Pest wrote: »

Take any of the regular posters here on Construction Forum yourself, Calahonda, KCEire, BryanF, sydthebeat. I bet they could project manage and deliver near to those savings.

That's nice of you to say and I "might" be able to accomplish it for my own build by leveraging the right contacts, etc. However, I've many years of experience behind me and I'm a construction professional. It wouldn't be right to compare me with the "average" Joe Soap - I wouldn't be able to do his job and no matter how much study he does he won't be able to match my 15+ years of training, experience and contacts!

Joe or Joan Soap could of course pay someone like me to "project manage" their build to achieve the same savings but my hourly/daily rate would be commensurate with my experience and would likely scare off the penny pinchers even if it would result in long term savings. At any rate to employ me to manage the project based on my building experience, contacts, etc. is a large part of what you pay a good contractor to do!


Edited to add: I don't personally offer a project management service - so the above is a bit of a moot point. Might do it for close family - would deliberately avoid for extended family or friends!

Calahonda52

Thanks Millar_63 for your contribution
Comments:
I don't ever get into the duration/timing of trades discussion/changes on the hoof by the client:
neither do I charge a % fee because that mitigates against the client.
I don't sign for deliveries to site or for compliance with standards of materials such as hard core.
I charge for the time I spend on site and my focus is making sure it gets done properly.

B-D-P--

Putting kitchen in this week of a self build.
Had engineer onsite a handfull of times only to sign off to get money.
house is built off my own back, but is built well!

It takes a lot of time if you have a full time job.
Its impossible if your job is not flexible to you.

You need immense self persistence, and don't expect much sleep for 2 years, But I did save well over 40-50k on the quotes I was getting from contractors.

Having said that, If you arent good with your hands, and dont have friends in the trade to help physically and with predetermining problems.
You'll drown.


Finally, If your self building, Build simple and dont design a house with crazy corners and angles.
All of my decisions come down to, What will not cause trouble and is the most robust answer to this.

Its possible, but only some can do it well.

Also be on the lookout for all the cowboys who are back in the trade, theres as many of them out there than good trades at the moment.

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B-D-P-- wrote: »

Finally, If your self building, Build simple and dont design a house with crazy corners and angles.
All of my decisions come down to, What will not cause trouble and is the most robust answer to this.

This is a brilliant point and one I cant stress enough to everyone who asks me for advice. How easy is the construction detail, how easy will it be to build, make airtight etc. Sizing of rooms, can the Kitchen accomodate standard unit sizes, is that dormer window really necessary (Pet hate). The knock on effect of dormer windows on construction detailing is enormous, from the airtight detail down to the extra downpipes/draingage. Keep it simple simple simple. It will make your life easier. Best designs are usually the most simple but thoughtfull.

Tefral

I'm self building at the moment. I have excellent construction knowledge being a quantity surveyor and I still second guess myself. It's bloody hard coming home from work going straight to site. I've often left the house at 1am trying to do work. You will dispare sometimes.

If I could give you one massive piece of advice. Get the house designed in such a way that the plan of the rooms and elevations are all divisible by 1200mm x 2400mm every piece of sheet material comes in this size. You will save time but also money on wastage.

Metric Tensor

Tefral wrote: »

If I could give you one massive piece of advice. Get the house designed in such a way that the plan of the rooms and elevations are all divisible by 1200mm x 2400mm every piece of sheet material comes in this size. You will save time but also money on wastage.

Love it Tefral - once you included that paragraph I don't think there was any need to tell people that you're a quantity surveyor! :-D

teddi456

Absolutely, having a solid understanding of construction is crucial for a self-build project. While you may not need to be an expert in every aspect, having a good grasp of fundamental concepts like structural integrity, building codes, material selection, and construction techniques will be immensely beneficial.