ᐅ Start of construction still planned for this year (November)?
Created on: 21 Oct 2019 10:49
C
Crossy
Hello everyone,
I would like to hear your thoughts on the following issue.
Our building permit took forever to get approved (almost 4 months *ugh*), but it has finally come through as of last week.
Originally, we planned to start construction in September and have the shell of the house weather-tight by Christmas.
Now, we have an appointment with our general contractor this Thursday. From what I’ve heard, he wants to start work before the end of this year. We will probably discuss detailed planning on Thursday.
However, I wonder if this still makes sense.
The basic facts are as follows:
We are building a hillside house with 240 sqm (50 sqm (540 sq ft) basement acting as a cellar built into the slope), two full floors (each 120 sqm (1,290 sq ft)) with a flat roof.
The double garage with storage room will probably be added in spring (constructed under separate contract).
Of course, we’re eager to get started, but there is a significant risk that the house won’t be weather-tight before winter sets in. What could happen in that case? Or is the situation not so critical?
What kind of damage might occur (and how likely is it) if, for example, only the basement is fully built and the floor slab between basement and upper floors is laid, but work on the upper floor masonry has to stop because winter arrives?
Or is damage unlikely and we might just face more effort drying the house (using construction dryers, etc.)?
It’s also worth considering that if construction starts, we will definitely have to pay partial standby interest on the loan starting next year. I’m also not sure if our fixed contract price still applies if we begin next year. Additionally, we’re expecting our third child and our current home is already quite small. We will have to live here as a family of five for some time anyway, but the shorter the better.
Does anyone have experience with this? Has anyone started in November?
By the way, we’re building in Rhineland-Palatinate (RLP), at 320 m (1,050 ft) above sea level. Winters vary a lot here. We have had years with no snow at all but also up to three weeks of continuous snow cover. Generally, winters tend to start later nowadays.
I would like to hear your thoughts on the following issue.
Our building permit took forever to get approved (almost 4 months *ugh*), but it has finally come through as of last week.
Originally, we planned to start construction in September and have the shell of the house weather-tight by Christmas.
Now, we have an appointment with our general contractor this Thursday. From what I’ve heard, he wants to start work before the end of this year. We will probably discuss detailed planning on Thursday.
However, I wonder if this still makes sense.
The basic facts are as follows:
We are building a hillside house with 240 sqm (50 sqm (540 sq ft) basement acting as a cellar built into the slope), two full floors (each 120 sqm (1,290 sq ft)) with a flat roof.
The double garage with storage room will probably be added in spring (constructed under separate contract).
Of course, we’re eager to get started, but there is a significant risk that the house won’t be weather-tight before winter sets in. What could happen in that case? Or is the situation not so critical?
What kind of damage might occur (and how likely is it) if, for example, only the basement is fully built and the floor slab between basement and upper floors is laid, but work on the upper floor masonry has to stop because winter arrives?
Or is damage unlikely and we might just face more effort drying the house (using construction dryers, etc.)?
It’s also worth considering that if construction starts, we will definitely have to pay partial standby interest on the loan starting next year. I’m also not sure if our fixed contract price still applies if we begin next year. Additionally, we’re expecting our third child and our current home is already quite small. We will have to live here as a family of five for some time anyway, but the shorter the better.
Does anyone have experience with this? Has anyone started in November?
By the way, we’re building in Rhineland-Palatinate (RLP), at 320 m (1,050 ft) above sea level. Winters vary a lot here. We have had years with no snow at all but also up to three weeks of continuous snow cover. Generally, winters tend to start later nowadays.
Climbee schrieb:
In our case, it’s common to have the shell construction with the roof but without windows. That was the same for us. The roof was installed before Christmas. The windows came at the end of January. Everything was wet down to the basement before Christmas. After Christmas, it was dry even without the windows!
Crossy schrieb:
Installing windows shouldn’t be an issue even below 5°C (41°F), unlike, for example, masonry work.Yes and no. For instance, in winter, the compression tape takes 3-4 days to fully expand because of the cold. In summer, it only takes 1-2 hours. However, this is not really a problem.Similar topics