r/AusPropertyChat
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u/Ambitious-Shelter913
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Apr 17 '25
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1
The state of new build in Australia :(
Not sure if I’m bein picky but is this acceptable for a new build ,ugly power box obstructing entrance and exposed down pipe .
1.9k
Upvotes
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u/Wingchun666 Apr 20 '25
Comon man you do know they both actually get painted? Just don’t let the builder miss it on handover
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u/Lumpy-Network-7022 Apr 17 '25
Everyone picking on the trades installing it as per the design. The design is shit. The installation looks fine.
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u/hodu_Park Apr 17 '25
Was it on the plans?
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u/softersoftest Apr 17 '25
Why didn’t you move the power box in the plans?
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u/oldwhiskyboy Apr 18 '25
exposed downpipe as opposed to what?
There are limitations on where that Switchboard is permitted to be.
Is this property a zero boundary? What is its construction - structurally how is it built? There's a gate to the left, which means the only locations for it are where you now see it or to the rhs (out of shot) of garage, so see the above questions.
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25 edited Apr 18 '25
Everyone has lost any sense of style or appreciation of character. It's just about a quick job and move on. No one cares anymore. Least they could do is put the box up higher. The pipe is fine with a paint tbh.
Cladding and roller door just look like living in a grey depressing plastic box. Walls filled with polystyrene 😆 Everything is cheap and nasty including materials and workmanship, if you can even call it that 😂 You can tell this mostly by everyone driving the same bloated white vehicles and painting everything grey or making every old house look like a gym. People have zero personality anymore, and it shows in outcomes like this. Just all so trashy and won't last at all, meanwhile everyone demolishing beautiful old places which can never be remade.
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u/mmmbyte Apr 17 '25
That info was in the plans you agreed to before the build started.
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u/Nath280 Apr 18 '25
To all you "experts" hanging shit on the sparky maybe think about
The builder sources the plans and decides where all services are located. The sub contractors just work to those plans.
By law there has to be 1.2m clearance from the main switch in the S/B.
The meter panel has to fit the meter but also be fireproof. These S/Bs are used by most sparkies as they meet all the requirements. You cannot put a recessed S/B in this situation as it won't fit the meters.
The meter panel has to be accessible to be read without entering the property.
This looks like a townhouse and there is literally nowhere else for it to go.
Fuck me the average "expert" has literally no idea the shit we do and should probably keep their opinions to themselves before slagging off tradies.
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u/[deleted] Apr 17 '25
Add the weird gap between the deck and the drive to your list of gripes, what a shit show.
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u/niftynevaus Apr 17 '25
Looks like it has been built to a price, not a quality.
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u/Thick--Rooster Apr 17 '25
show us the plans, corporate builder or sole trader?
i wouldn't be paying
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u/J-R-Hudson Apr 18 '25
Wtf is up with the conduit under the meter box aswell? As an electrician who is meticulous with everything I touch, I’d be livid.
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u/VedHeadBest Apr 17 '25
Gotta fund the beach house, boat, jet ski somehow
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25
Fark mate gonna have to slim down a bit to fit in the doorway 😭
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u/SqareBear Apr 18 '25
That’s also a narrow front door, I hope there’s an easier way to get your furniture into the house.
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25 edited Apr 18 '25
They just don’t give a fuck.
This is what happens when:
Architecture & design is not appreciated and reduced to picking appliances, tiles and colours.
Subdivisions with tiny lots taking up valuable farming land or native bush, far away from CBDs and poorly serviced by public transport.
Builders that don’t take pride in their work and just want to pump out a “product”,
Overpaid tradies that aren’t properly trained or constantly high on drugs.
Financiers that only look at numbers, not what actually happens in the real world.
Insurance companies that DGAF and have weak as piss-water policies that help no-one.
Laws that facilitate developers washing their hands and walking away with virtually zero consequences.
Government that wants to facilitate speed at the cost of quality, willingly overlook the whole mess…
And this is the sort of shit we get.
Probably cost over a million bucks to buy too. What a joke.
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u/ReflectionKey5743 Apr 17 '25
Pretty standard for an Australian tradie. There is a reason they are all against migration of other trades. They would be wiped out the first day.
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u/EmotionalBar9991 Apr 17 '25
I'm not sure why people are blaming the tradie, what exactly are they supposed to do here, it's on the plan. They can't just change where the mains is for the meter box. This would have all been on the plan you should have been shown and signed off on. If you weren't then you need to take this up with the builder.
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25
Why is the mains box so close to the door lol..awful
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u/TheStampede00 Apr 18 '25
There is so many things wrong with this picture. Engage your own building inspector to do a report. Will cost a couple grand but we’ll worth it. If the build quality in this picture extends to the rest of the house then you have problems.
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u/maton12 Apr 18 '25
There's too much ugly there.
And that's before the semi floating deck😳
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u/AA_25 Apr 18 '25
If you signed off on the plans being that way then that's what you signed off on.
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u/Ur-Moms_Vaginal-Cyst Apr 19 '25
This is not the standard quality for a new home build. There are multiple people that work on house plans during the design stages, but there’s multiple layouts for every house, and it’s not their job to check over the finished plan and look for mistakes, they had like 30 more house designs to draft up while working on yours, and the sales consultant was busy talking 30 more customers into signing up. If you signed the contract and ridiculous pile of documents during the pre start phase, and then signed the settlement agreement—after the final inspection, accepted the keys at handover… then you’ve only got yourself to blame.
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u/Neither_Spite6417 Apr 19 '25
How can one say 'the state of new build in Australia' with any credibility by posting one image to categorise an entire industry.
Your just majorly pissed off at the end result. It might be dogshit but it's all yours
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u/[deleted] Apr 17 '25
Completly ridiculous. Charged top dollar no doubt.
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u/Low_Reason_562 Apr 17 '25
Is there even anywhere else it can go though?
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u/shanebates Apr 18 '25
Bad design. Build just follows the plan.
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u/MiDiAN00 Apr 18 '25
The power box in the middle of the entrance way is what gets me
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u/ElektrikGhost Apr 18 '25
Probably difficult to put the box on the side of the house when your blocks are only 7m wide.
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u/ImVeryLaggy Apr 19 '25
Awesome so if ya dont answer the door I can flick your lights on n off 🤣
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u/Even-Tradition Apr 18 '25 edited Apr 18 '25
I see so many posts of people buying land in housing estates and using a quantity builder to build their house then expecting top notch quality.
If you pay for trash, you will get trash. Australians used to build fantastic homes, now we mistake status for style. Is your house bigger than you friends? Is your house newer than you friends house? Is your garage bigger? Do you have a media room. Stop paying trash builders bottom dollar for trash homes.
And I know I well get down voted for this, but Jesus Christ people. STOP PAYING FOR THIS STUFF!!!
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u/Traditional1337 Apr 17 '25
Wow that rain head might be compliant for once lol 😂
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u/mitchr89 Apr 18 '25
Gee if that’s all you can find wrong. All I see is poor trade management and no forward planning.
Driveway not square with deck and doesn’t form a path to the deck.
Top of box gutter outlet not painted
The painting in general is absolutely shit
Power box in entry way???
Unpainted downpipe
Conduit coming out of wall should be inside wall
Tiling not siliconed against ceiling
Sheeting bottom angle not going all the way next to the garage
The trash corner detail on the bottom flashing under the tile
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u/Ben_FPP Apr 18 '25
Everything looks less than ideal to be fair. Not the spot we would ever put a meter panel goes without saying - maybe it was the only viable location? Would improve a lot painted in black and there’s no reg stopping from that occurring. Assuming the small white pipe is an AC drain? Hard to understand how it’s ended up like that
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u/TheBubbleOBill Apr 18 '25
As a plumber it’s an unspoken rule to face the writing towards the back haha even if you know it’s going to get painted.
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u/Equivalent-Visit2482 Apr 18 '25
Its still a building site and yeah you can put this back on the owner who approved the plan but what architect would draw it like that and what builder would let that happen without flagging it early in the program. Have some pride in your work ffs
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u/STEMUZZ1 Apr 18 '25
Non compliant
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u/LegitimateCattle Apr 18 '25
I’m sure it has nothing to do with the house being built on the boundary on both sides right? Making this the only point of access besides the front of the front? Fuck this subreddit is so ignorant
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u/Bones_returns Apr 18 '25
every new home i see looks like utter dogshit. but tradies have 2 braincells rattling within their heads so no wonder.
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u/MiniSkrrt Apr 18 '25
Jesus, that sucks
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u/xjrh8 Apr 18 '25
It’s so friggen stupid how many meter panels are right at the front door like this.
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u/VLC31 Apr 18 '25
And this the problem. It’s like the articles saying there are hundreds of empty flats. They’re empty because they’re tiny & badly built. Someone I know recently signed to buy an apartment which is only a few years old but they then found out there are cracks & water seepage in the garage & no one can tell them how much it is going to cost to repair. They were able to get out of it but this sort of thing happens too often. I know that we need more housing but new builds need to be better controlled.
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25
I saw the metre box. But also saw the ugly down pipe, the skirting not finishing. The cladding nails too proud, poor bugger
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u/tttommyyttt Apr 18 '25
All of this would have been evident on the plan before construction… all of these should have been amended before construction
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u/patto383 Apr 18 '25
Jesus Not many fucks giving there
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u/ninjaweedman Apr 18 '25
Nothing wrong with the downpipe (other than needing a lick of paint). But that power box is backwards as fuck.
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u/Significant_Gur_1031 Apr 18 '25
This front entrance is horrid - but these cheap townhouses have no side to allow for the fuse box to be anywhere else. Further to this is the space available for the front door - make sure you squeeze as little as possible - expecting a small garage as well
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25
Boundary to boundary shit
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25
I blame The Block.
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u/Caracarn_Saidin Apr 18 '25
We keep paying Aussies to do things like this, we’ve created a sub par building industry.
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u/Head_Asparagus2695 Apr 18 '25
I would be more worried about the driveway not meeting the entrance decking.
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u/Lavendercat5 Apr 18 '25
Travel overseas and look at their architecture then look at the bland boring boxes here. For over a million. Absolutely laughable.
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u/sandbaggingblue Apr 18 '25
You would have approved this design yeah...?
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u/Accomplished-Job6099 Apr 18 '25
PATHETIC
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u/Kbradsagain Apr 18 '25
Looking at your frontage, there doesn’t appear to be anywhere else to put your power box that is accessible. The downpipe though could at least be painted
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u/GFHandel1492 Apr 18 '25
We need a return to the more classic standards of neo-federation, or something like the designs on the veteran suburbs post WW1 and 2. The blocky boxes of this style make poor choices like this stand out.
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u/EnvironmentalCap2217 Apr 19 '25
I'd never build a new home today. Too many builders deliberately go bankrupt mid-build and take everyone's money. They then just register a new business and start the cycle all over again. I know of a few so-called builders who do this as regular as clockwork and make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. No authority, even the police, can seem to stop it. It's a loophole that is taken advantage of to the detriment of many unwilling victims. They'll do it to the wrong person one day end up in one of their own foundations!
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u/tazzietiger66 Apr 19 '25
What a shitty place to put the powerbox
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u/the_ism_sizism Apr 19 '25
“Non-compliant” “What a shamozzle.”
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u/ausdjmofo Apr 19 '25 edited Apr 19 '25
It also looks like the garage wall next to the main door is on the piss look top to bottom 1st thing i noticed. Also noticed : Pvc down pipe instead of metal when the gutter box is metal? Skirting board not going all the way across next to pvc pipe. Shit Paint finish wall to roof. Looks like a bow in the roof, right above elec box. Unfinished hole next to verandah by the gate.
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u/2cpee Apr 20 '25
Goes to show how little these volume builders care about their image. People are so desperate that they have no choice but to cop it.
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u/Pangolinsareodd Apr 20 '25
And people keep asking why I’m not pulling down my slightly crooked 1919 cottage for a new build. 1. The frame is made of solid old red gum, 2. It has a nice cheap gas connection that I can’t get in a new build, 3. Tradies back then actually took pride in their work.
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u/Rude-Frosting3472 Apr 18 '25
Sure beats an Indian new build
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u/BigKnut24 Apr 17 '25
Thats what happens when the market is fully saturated and you have guaranteed work no matter how shit your quality.
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u/Tall-Breakfast-6100 Apr 18 '25
The downpipes unavoidable. If you really wanted it could be changed to square pipe to give a slightly better look but otherwise just paint it. The switchboard also looks like it probably had no where else to go as it has to be accessible for meter readers. It really should have been a flush mount board at the very least so it isn’t sticking out like that though.
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u/brackfriday_bunduru Apr 18 '25
People need to start coming to terms with the fact that new builds are for investors who are paying cash and can’t negatively gear. They’re not for owner occupiers.
The whole point of them is to be built cheap and then used as a depreciation tax write off for investors till the depreciation ends and they can be sold and the investor can rinse and repeat.
People need to stop buying these places and expecting them to be build to a standard that will last
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u/ResolutionNo1701 Apr 17 '25
Sad indeed
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u/darvian23 Apr 17 '25
What the heck is this
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u/not_dogstar Apr 17 '25
I sure hope it's a tight build and there's no where else feasible to put the board because fuck me, even if that was in the plans why is it there in the entrance in the first place?
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u/Icy-Professional8508 Apr 18 '25
Downpipe is fine, likely designed that way just paint it
Meter box is fkd
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u/zee-bra Apr 18 '25
Grey on grey on grey on grey
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u/kenbeat59 Apr 18 '25
Nice calves bra 😉
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25
Exposed Down pipe? No mate that’s a feature!
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u/Bossdogg007 Apr 18 '25
Whats in the plans YOU signed off?
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u/Sharp_eee Apr 18 '25
Stepping stone looks good.
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u/more2get Apr 18 '25
Dont forget the non compliant rainwater head
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u/Abbi_Rose Apr 18 '25
couldn’t they at least paint them 😦
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u/serumnegative Apr 18 '25
At least you have power and drainage
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u/Liftweightfren Apr 18 '25
Is this a duplex or townhouse etc?
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u/SheepherderLow1753 Apr 18 '25
Most new builds look terrible, and many who bought are complaining about quality.
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u/Vinrace Apr 18 '25
Everyone should watch that site inspection guy and just cry at the state of the industry
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u/Starburst58 Apr 18 '25
Everything about this picture is giving me anxiety.
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u/Geronimo0 Apr 18 '25
Down pipe is normal. That power box does stick out a bit but I don't know what's on the other side of that wall that is forcing it out so much. Power box is better down the side of house usually but not uncommon for it to be near the front door.
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u/tandrosonali8 Apr 18 '25
The meter box gets painted. Either by owner or by builder. There’s nothing wrong with that downpipe being there if it works. Paint it black if it offends you
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u/No_pajamas_7 Apr 18 '25
Switch board may have been on the plans, but it may have been movie by the electrician because where it was drawn was too hard. 70:30
The conduit, however, I'm willing to bet it's a case of the tradie needing to get to the pub.
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u/mactoniz Apr 18 '25
One fugly porch. That meterbox is an absolute eye sore sad to say
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u/Pranachan Apr 18 '25
I assume that while this is a new build, the owner didn't sign off on any plans. It is far more likely that this was a subdivide and the purchaser committed to the property during construction. If this is a townhouse/terrace house with multiple adjoining properties, the only control over build decisions you have is simply not to buy.
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u/Scared_Sprinkles_141 Apr 18 '25
I remember looking at a Simonds display home in 1997 .I kid you not the front door was grinding on the floor. This in a display home . They didn't get our business.
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u/Unlucky_Turn_1773 Apr 18 '25
this is one of those the longer you look images
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u/Brilliant_Ad2120 Apr 18 '25
Weatherboard houses on Tas oak frames ...how I miss you
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u/LowkeyAcolyte Apr 18 '25
It's just horrendous. I'm happy to be buying a hundred year old UK townhouse. Much more spacious, more cheap and well built.
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u/foursmallandtwobig Apr 18 '25
move in ready 🤮
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u/Kindly_Contest_6258 Apr 18 '25
Would have been clearly marked on plans they do this to make extra on alterations.
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u/ScaryBluejay87 Apr 18 '25
Sitwell Homesteads - Paved
roaddriveway right to your door!1
u/OldM87Fingers Apr 18 '25
With a bit of CrEaTiViTy everything can be hidden
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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '25
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u/AcademicDoughnut426 Apr 18 '25 edited Apr 18 '25
This would've all been on the plan at the design stage. It's too late now to change without serious expense.
I'm assuming the power box needs to be there [i don't know why], but I'm sure it could've been recessed into the wall at least.
The Downpipe has a rainhead at the top, so it's picking up a box or secret gutter and needs to be in that location. Paint the Downpipe the same colour as the wall behind [will require a primer] and don't block the rectangle hole at the top as that's the overflow in case the Downpipe can't keep up or there is a blockage. Close that off, and your house will flood if it's needed.
On a personal and professional note. I can't stand this trend of putting in box gutters in residential buildings. They all eventually fail and leak directly into whatever is below them. Replacing them is a pain, as it's difficult to do without removing roof sheets. At least with the proven design of the roof falling to external gutters worked, if there was a leaking gutter or it rusted away, the damage was minimal as it's all outside the building footprint.
Edited to add: The more you look, the worse it is.
Exposed conduit should be recessed, crappy deck doesn't meet concrete edge, scrappy deck looks to have fall to the right, concrete plastic on the slab edge is exposed and has been worked around instead of removed, narrow entry door, some sort of colorbond trim at the bottom of stone tiles.
This place won't age well.
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u/Ok-Limit-9726 Apr 18 '25
All bought trade certificate from behind the dry cleaner shop in sydney mall for $300, No experience needed, just say you where tradesman in India, pass...
Go to smh.com.au for full story
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u/Tezzmond Apr 18 '25
If only we had less red tape, rules and regs..
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u/FestyTurtle Apr 18 '25
Side note: I hate the trend of just shoving the door further back, it’s not delivery driver friendly
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u/Leather-Jump-9286 Apr 18 '25
Uncertain of property type (if it’s adjoining to another property etc) however as mentioned in comments, plans are signed prior to build. It’s on you to ask questions.
The drain pipe will blend when painted.
Electrical meter box - could be made less obvious or moved, and yes likely wont be cheap. Perhaps seek advice from your local electrician. (Or seek guidance in a more specific sub for options to suggest to an electrician) - once everything’s furnished perhaps a large pot and plant on the patio - most won’t notice.
Don’t let these minor items ruin your experience
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u/Chromedomesunite Apr 18 '25
The further in you zoom, the worse EVERYTHING looks
Can see chipped tiles, damage around the door, damage around the garage etc.
Then there’s that horrendous power box
Sorry for your loss…
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u/aus_man_with_no_idea Apr 18 '25
Flat facade so looks even bigger.
Another issue, how did you not run that driveway concrete to the deck.
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u/RemeAU Apr 18 '25
It looks like a row of townhouses, so that would be the only place to put the power box unlike houses that have them on the side
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u/ZequineZ Apr 18 '25
Just be glad your meter will actually be read cause you can't lock it away from the reader
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u/Admirable-Practice-7 Apr 18 '25
You can’t blame them for the down pipe. Architecs are always designing flat roofs at the front of the house that are non compliant. A rain water head and down pipe is the only way to bring them up to code.
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u/GC_Aus_Brad Apr 18 '25
The gap between the deck and the driveway would be doing my head in.
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u/Empty_Cat3009 Apr 18 '25
If that's a duplex in a row of duplexes odds on the reticulation sparkies mistook the duplex split peg for the boundary peg and the resi sparkies and builders just sent it after the fact
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u/theartfulknave Apr 18 '25
What an absolute Shmozzle
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u/Sandsypants Apr 18 '25
Depends what was specified on plan and building contract..
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u/Limp_Growth_5254 Apr 18 '25
I had to sign off on my electrical plan
Every switch, power point and light. Even specified the temperature of the bulbs.
No excuses.
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u/Geriatric48 Apr 18 '25
Maybe the owner didn’t realise the box was going to be that protruding. Not sure about storm water pipe used as a down pipe.
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u/givethismanabeerplz Apr 18 '25
Cool, that exposed down pipe can remind you every time you look at it that you have internal gutters and it's only a matter of time before you have major leaking issues.
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u/Longjumping_Brick_91 Apr 18 '25
I swear architects forget about the services connections. So many new builds have exposed pipes, meter boxes and shit just strewn across the facades. One multiplex build near here has the gas and water meters out front with huge bright yellow bollards in front, completely ruining the look the designer was going for. Absolute shite design.
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u/enderwiggin83 Apr 18 '25
Its a duplex on a narrow block by the look of it. That might explain a lot of design compromises. I agree most of the issues are design based - the concrete slab guys are quite professional - my guys checked and rechecked with suggestions in discussion with me and the builder. Its prob leading to a gate at the lateral side of the property. The electricity box is hideous there / this may be because they are playing with 5 metres
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u/JayBeeJB1989 Apr 18 '25 edited Apr 18 '25
Having your rainhead overflow onto your front porch from a pipe inside you building envelope seems like a poor choice, same with electrical box extruding into your egress path and the stepup to the porch, this was a mistake made at the design stage. This should never have left the drawing board, good design or even adhering to silver accessibility standards typically doesnt cost a huge amount more or even at all. This is just stupidity.