Extension - arch/plans etc

karltimber

This question is similar to "Engineer predicament" --

I am about to start a direct labour extension on the house.
We are getting a friend to draw up the plans for planning permission and I plan on doing a lot of the work myself.
We do not need to approach a bank - so what problems can ye forsee?

Do I need to get an eng/arch to sign the building off when finished - for when the house may be sold (no time soon) or can this be left until 1or 2 years down the line.

thx

Victor

You should get someone involved now. Also consider Homebond etc.

If you are selling any time in the next 10 years, people are going to be looking for certification. After 10 years, they will be more interested in the then condition of the building - if something is going to go majorly wrong in a building, it is likely to happen in the first 10 years. Thats the advantage of older buildings.

MorningStar

You really should get somebody to certify the plans are to regulation and that construction meets standards. It is possible to get a cert after building but you are best to get somebody to check as is being built. This is good for you and the cert. You will be surprised at the questions that pop-up when you build something. It won't cost that much and in the end it could save you money.

karltimber

who do I get to look in on the building as it is being errected - structural engineer ??

What cost is involved in this.

thx

Victor

karltimber wrote:

who do I get to look in on the building as it is being errected - structural engineer ??

What cost is involved in this.

One to several thousand euros, depending. Compare that to knocking €25,000-€50,000 off the price if you don't have certification and knocking it if you have a real problem.

karltimber

what do builders do -

Not large building company but a local man with a few lads.

Do they supply a cert to a finished job ?
Do they pay an eng to come on site and inspect work ?

just wondering

thx

MorningStar

karltimber wrote:

what do builders do -

Not large building company but a local man with a few lads.

Do they supply a cert to a finished job ?
Do they pay an eng to come on site and inspect work ?

just wondering

thx

Some builders will provide a cert but they can be worth nothing as they might not really get it inspected and/or provide a fake cert. You need an engineer of your own to be sure. You should be able to get one for €500 which will include 3-4 visits a determined stages of building. Most local builders will not do anything and will also tell you it doesn't need one. Wo really wants anybody looking over their shoulder?

The cert is nearly worth as much to you as the cost of the extension and maybe more.

rooferPete

Hi Karl,

The big difference today in selling a house with an extension that has no cert can be a reduced price because if the buyers surveyor is worth the fee they will point out that the extension may need to be re-built.

Applying for retention is an option but it takes time and the Architect still can't certify the work, he can offer an opinion but that is as far as most will go.

A few of the more professional small builders can arrange to have all the work certified as the work progresses, many depend on Architects to send them business by way of being on the tender list so it's a nice chance for the builder to refer some business back to the Architect.

There is a firm in the Navan area who will do exactly what you require, I don't know how much they will charge but it will be worth a lot more in the future.

The new regulations about to come in regarding energy audits will I believe make issues like Planning Permission almost pale into insignifance in the future because the PP (or exemption) is easy to check but the standard of construction is not.

.

karltimber

do you know the name of the company in navan

PM the name if you have it - Thx again

ray1

BTW
If u need to draw down money from a bank during building u will need an architect to sign off the work.
Ray

Neverends

We hired both a structural engineer and a RIAI architect privately to monitor the progress of our extension and we've still had to stay very involved ourselves to make sure they are both present to witness crucial points in the build. I don't think you can trust a builder to delay work if necessary to make sure its been approved by either. They'll just plough ahead as they're ready and if foundations or steel are no longer visible most engineers will not put their name to certify them.

rooferPete

Hi Neverends,

Very good points raised, with the cost of labour to the contractor being so high today every minute is about getting the highest production out of the crew.

That is why communication and more important trust is built up between the "Team" many people believe that as customers using the services of "The Professionals" you have described exempts them from being part of the "Team".

There are some Architects, Engineers and Builders who make for very good teams and remove the vast majority of the stress and responsibility from the customer by good communication.

The average consumer places a lot of faith in the Trades and Professionals they employ which in theory is how the system should work.

I believe it is vital that the Customer without whom there would be no employer instructs their Architect to the best of their ability, but more important they should listen carefully and ask as many questions as they feel they must to feel comfortable that All of the parties involved understand what they want achieved in their home improvements.

I believe the best way to avoid dispute or misunderstanding is to meet with the Architect on a regular basis because Architects can issue instructions to the contractor that are not exactly what the customer wants.

Communication with or without the services of a Professional is I believe the best way to achieve the best value for the consumers money, no work is cheap to get done but even more expensive when the same work has to be done twice.

.

Victor

Neverends wrote:

We hired both a structural engineer and a RIAI architect privately to monitor the progress of our extension and we've still had to stay very involved ourselves to make sure they are both present to witness crucial points in the build. I don't think you can trust a builder to delay work if necessary to make sure its been approved by either. They'll just plough ahead as they're ready and if foundations or steel are no longer visible most engineers will not put their name to certify them.

Damned interfering clients. :rolleyes: Let people get on with their jobs.

Neverends

Totally agree Pete, we've found its essential to meet regularly with both architect and builder to make sure our wishes are being communicated correctly. Its noones fault if they're not sure what we want if we only mentioned it in a meeting 6 months ago and it was not restated in writing in revised plans when the work is actually about to be done.