ᐅ Traveling During the Construction Phase?

blubbernase schrieb:

I'm wondering how we're supposed to handle this then.

If it’s not possible, then it’s not possible, and you just consider the next best option. It’s not about THE solution, but rather the question of being on site or away. For the reasons mentioned, I recommend being on site. However, there are also... Examples aren’t very helpful. There are also people who simply can’t build...

I recently watched a documentary on prefabricated houses on TV. Of course, the homeowners wanted to be there when the walls were lifted in by a large crane. The site manager or a homeowners’ babysitter explained everything. However, his expression clearly showed that he would have preferred if the homeowners had been on vacation. 😀

Bertram100 schrieb:

From his expression, it was clear that he would have preferred if the homeowners had been on vacation.

Of course, on one hand, the homeowners can be annoying because they treat it like an event. On the other hand, the gentleman would probably prefer not to have to oversee the major shoddy work that sometimes takes place. The quality will at least not get worse with close construction supervision by the client.

😀 so...
1. We lived about 15km (9 miles) away from the construction site and while we weren’t there every day, we were there almost daily, and whenever important work was scheduled, sometimes even three times a day. Once the bathroom was connected, I also spent entire days there 😎
2. I didn’t pay much attention to the bricklayers since they all came from the local area and had their own construction trailer with full provisions (including a fridge?). They only received a small thank-you gift afterward. As soon as trades beyond the shell construction arrived, there were always cases of water provided. It was summer 2018 and really hot.
3. In theory, we could have lived 600 km (375 miles) away, but we decided to rent in the new area first and take our time finding a plot and the exact preferred location. In hindsight, this was the most sensible choice and I wouldn’t do it any other way if it ever comes up again. Hopefully not.

House raising dates for prefabricated homes are always celebrated events, including for the companies. They advertise the dates – people drive by, come to watch, and are encouraged to build their next house with the company. The homeowner takes time off work!

Smialbuddler schrieb:

I strongly recommend taking photos very regularly. Not to create an album, but just imagine how grateful we already have been twice, thanks to photos (even with a measuring tape/ruler shown in some shots) to know exactly where each cable was. It gives a much better sense than a cable locator device. It’s also much more useful later in case of any damage.

Taking photos is not the problem, but you first have to recognize or know what exactly to photograph and whether something might have gone somewhat wrong. However, I still won’t be able to keep a very detailed record. After all, we are absent for almost 10 hours a day due to work.

We know quite a few homeowners who built with this general contractor, and a couple whose houses will soon be completed. None of them had any problems during construction. And although all these homeowners believed that hiring a building inspector for this contractor would be a waste of money, we hired one ourselves.

Personally, I probably wouldn’t even notice if something went wrong. That’s why I hired the inspector, who I am also paying properly for this.