Miraz Jordan

Luckily before we firmed up dates with the moving company we checked with the builder for our new house. Seems our moving in date is some 2 weeks later than we expected. 🏡

Oh, well, our tidying and sorting and disposing of no longer useful items continues.

In the southeast corner of our new property is an attenuation tank 🏡 :

Stormwater attenuation is the storage of excess stormwater during the peak of a storm, followed by controlled release of the stored water.

The rate of release is designed to be lower than the rate of runoff from a site prior to development, effectively mimicking the natural flows from the site.

Our new house build is inspected at certain progress points. Yesterday was drainage. The report we received contains this: Your next inspection will be: Final. Woohoo! 🏡

The builder sent us 19 photos yesterday.

Heavy edits on this photo from the builder of our new home. I lightened shadows, straightened the image, and casually 'magic-removed' two workers from the left side, so the post looks a bit odd. 🏡

This is the main bedroom with gib stopping complete. This will roughly be the view from the bed.

Another build update for our new house. 🏡

I think the photo from the builder shows Gib stopping and plastering progress.

With the door at the end slid back and 'doubled up' it really shows the effect of having tinted windows.

We get to see a bit of greenery around the place too, with trees nearby.

The builder on our new house tells us: 🏡

This week all the Gib fixing has been completed and now the guys have started Plastering. [After the plaster dries, the workers] will start the Finishing Lines and Hanging Interior Doors.

Apparently, Finishing Lines are the Architraves around the door frames and the Skirting around the floor.

The builder's photo shows a bathroom.

OMG: we're going to have a house! That we'll live in! It's getting real.

Looks like the builders have put up all the gib on our new build. 🏡 Photo by the builder, as usual.

Next up, plastering:

The Plastering will take approx 1.5 weeks, now the temperature has cooled down the Plaster takes a bit longer to dry between coats, if you add another coat too early it can cause shrinkage.

Putting up gib board continues at our new build. 🏡

The builder was standing at the front door to take this photo through to the back of the house.

Today the builder sent us more progress photos of gib board being put up in our new house. I've digitally removed a worker from the photo below. 🏡

The builders have started putting up Gib board in our new house. 🏡

Photo by the builder. There was a better photo but it shows three workers too clearly and it doesn't feel OK to me to put that online.

An exciting time today as we saw our new house for the first time "in the flesh". 🏡

We didn't know it had already been insulated and today it passed the inspection that allows gib board to go up next week.

We flew over our new house as we came in to land at Whangārei. It's in the green area in the bottom right quadrant of the photo. 🏡

Threading through the top half is the Ruakākā River flowing from right to left. The riverbank walk is only a couple of minutes on foot from our place.

This morning the bricks were half way up the wall on our new build. By the end of the afternoon the photo from our builder's rep shows a lot has been done. 🏡

This photo from the south.

Our building company rep sent a photo of bricklayers hard at work this morning on our new place. 🏡

This is a view from the east.

I guess once the brickwork is complete the house will be 'weathertight', triggering another progress payment.

This week painters have been working on the wooden parts of the cladding on our new house. 🏡

This photo from the builder shows the north side of the house: BGC Duragroove in the (dark) Karaka and BGC Innova NuLine Plus Horizontal in 1/8 Tana (pale).

This week the photos from the builder show they've been working on the cladding of our new house; next week brickwork. 🏡

I believe tomorrow the pre-wire of our new house will take place. Meanwhile, here's our front door from the inside. Photo by the builder. 🏡

In the last few days our new house gained windows and doors. I've processed the photo from the builder to bring out the red of the new front door. 🏡

Our new house is coming along. The builder sent photos on a couple of days. 🏡

I had Apple Photos magically remove a worker. Look closely and you'll see where, but it's not a bad job.

Our new house is being wrapped. 🏡

This photo by the builder shows the south (cold) side of the house — garage window and door, bedrooms and bathrooms.

Well, well, well. I spotted the photo below with its caption about a new tsunami siren at Ruakākā. When I checked the map it turns out it will be … right next door to our new house. 😆

At least I guess we'll be the first to know about a tsunami, and won't fail to hear the warning.

Every Friday our builder gives us a report on the new house. Now the roof is on, the next payment milestone is watertight, except for the garage. Our builder, Steve, says:

First the guys will wrap, then do soffits, install window joinery, fit cavity battens and have a cavity inspection with Council, install cladding, scribers and flashings. Once this part is complete then the Brickwork will start, half high brick inspection with Council and once passed then the brickwork can be completed.

I don't know exactly what some of that means, but it's good to know. 🏡

Invoice time: Trusses & Roof Stood milestone on our new build achieved. 🏡

This builder's photo shows the north side of the house, where the kitchen and living room areas will be.

Our new house now has a roof, as the photos from the builder show. 🏡

Our new house passed another inspection today. 🏡

I'm not quite sure what these builders photos show, but they were working on roof trusses. One seems to show some lengths of the long run Colorsteel that will cover the building.

Next steps are roofing cladding and building wrap.