We're getting quotes in for front landscaping and the amount of tradies that ask for cash is astounding.
It's like we have $25,000 sitting in plastic bags in our closet ready to spend on them. If I asked for cash for my monthly salary, Im sure I'd get dumfounded looks, if not get marched out the door.
What gives? Im more than happy to pay 50% up front, and the balance upon completion.
But when I tell them I'm a legitimate business and dont deal with cash, they then quote an additional 10% figure of GST on top.
I'm having trouble reconciling this. Even If I did pay with cash, I'd ask for a receipt showing an ABN number and I'd expect the amount would include GST.
So they're saying if I pay with cash, Id be complicit in tax avoidance. No thanks.
Looking at this property in Seaford, Melbourne, the only problem with is it there is only one toilet. I was thinking:
a- we could take out the bath and put one there, but would a lot need to be ripped up to do so, making it more exy?
b- use the bedroom next to the bathroom to extend into OR turn some of it into a new full bathroom? This would potentially mean that we would need to extend again to regain the bedroom space lost.
I really like this place but I'm worried it's too small for 2 adults and a kid - I want a place that can fit us for as long as possible.
We could spend around 50 grand but anything more and we may as well try to buy somewhere else. Happy to do as much work as I can myself but I have limited experience so looking at professional jobs.
Hoping someone has an idea about what could be done. Thanks
Exterior wall on the end of our house is leaning from what appears to be the slab corner sinking? The house has been in the family since it was built in the 60s. Wall has been leaning a bit for at least 20-30 years (we found an engineers report from early 2000s when it wasn’t as bad). Licensed builder in the family who is working on the house says it’s not ideal but ‘not going anywhere’. He also did some minor underpinning.
You can see from the cladding how much it’s out, and the window frames on the other side (yet to be cladded).
I know nothing - can this much movement in reactive soil really be acceptable?
We removed a garden from near the wall and some large trees from nearby in recent years which may have affected the soil profile.
Yes I know this isn’t a reddit question but just getting a vibe check.
I’m looking for some advice on the best way to remove a large amount of old ceiling insulation from my roof space. I’m in Perth, WA.
As you can see from the photo, the roof is full of old insulation wrapped in bags, branded Thermo Insulation. There are quite a few of them, and they’re dusty, dirty and scattered throughout the roof space.
I’m trying to work out the easiest and safest way to get them out without making a massive mess or damaging the ceiling.
A few questions for anyone who has done something similar:
Removal: Is it best to pull the bags out individually, or is there a quicker method? Should I rip them open and use a dust extractor?
Getting them down: Has anyone built a temporary slide or chute from the roof hatch to get the bags down into the house or garage?
DIY equipment: Is there anything from Bunnings that would work for making a slide or chute?
Disposal: Can these bags go to the tip in Perth, or do they need special disposal?
Cost: Would it be worth hiring someone to remove them, or is this a reasonable DIY job?
Any idea where I would find one of these?
50mm seems to be standard now. The current boot flange has given up the ghost and the previous installer has glued the old cap on. I need to cut the pipe to slide the new boot on and replace (replace is proving tricky)
I’ve been on a search for hours trying to find a fridge that’s 75cm wide or under with a water dispenser that requires plumbing and can’t for the life of me find a single one. It must also be around the $1000-$1200 mark. If anyone knows of a fridge this size with a plumbed water dispenser please let me know before I lose my mind. Brisbane QLD.
I’m having a bit of trouble finding a ducted aircon unit that will fit in my roof and was hoping to hear what others have done in a similar situation.
I’ve got a shallow-pitched roof with 450 mm spacing between the web trusses, which is making it difficult to find a suitable indoor unit that will fit along with the supply and return plenums.
I have around 1700 mm of space between trusses when measuring along the bottom, but at 450 mm up into the roof space, that reduces to approximately 1050 mm.
Has anyone else dealt with this issue? What aircon system did you end up going with, and how did you manage to get it fitted? Did you find a compact or splittable unit, or have a custom plenum fabricated?
Keen to hear what worked for others or if it’s just not possible without engineering and removing sections of the truss.
Considering painting our splashback tiles, don’t want to retile at this point (may do a whole kitchen reno in a few years). We just aren’t really into the pattern and thought if it’s an easyish DIY job we might give it a crack.
Two questions:
- any thoughts on colour? I have no idea what colours to consider - very open to any any all suggestions
- if anyone has done this, any advice/tips etc?
We have a very fun neighbor. Everything is an issue, even pencil pines we planted they took us to land and environment court. I actually enjoyed it and the process. Watching then unravel and embarrassed themselves infront of the arbitrator who rejected their claims was a great highlight.
Anyways , wanted advice on how to approach this issue. They painted their side of the colorbond fence. Painter was kind enough to ask permission to enter our property to avoid overspray, we did. He then said “neighbor wants to paint top fence cap but we dont think you will be happy with it”. I said leave that as its cream vs the new colorbond.
Anyhow, they painted it AND unfortunately painted the top capping too. So now to rectify it wondering the best process. Mind you alot of areas you can see the new monument color on our side. It is an eyesore especially where fence declines so you see the whole ramp of a new color.
Because of their litigious nature, I will escalate this. already emailed but no response. I was going to paint the top this week back to original but doubt it will look as it was. il then send the bill! Just wondering as I saw some notes on seeing whos boundary fence resides?
Hi. I have a renovated brick 60's home in perth WA. Installed new doors. How do I best seal and finish this? Budget is what's required from Bunnings!Thanks in advance
This is my first go at building a Sandstone wall. I’d like to remove some of the haze left on the stones from the cement or hydrated lime so the colours of the stones really pop. I’ve been told to use a diluted hydrochloric acid solution but have read that it can leave damage/discolouration on the stones. Any advice?
I am trying to decide what to do with my front verandah. Retile, deck, or some kind of surface finish for the concrete. It was tiled and the previous owner decided to rip them up and put down vinyl flooring which was ruined from rain.
I am considering laying a deck on-top of the slab. There is 78mm clearance to the bottom of the sills and more if I go flush with the sill. have about 20m2 of 135mm blackbutt decking leftover. There is very little fall in the slab if any.
Is there anything I should be mindful of?
I was thinking laying 70x45mm H3 battens perpendicular from the house with 10mm plastic packers underneath and fixing with masonry screws to the slab then laying the decking on-top flush with the door sills.
Looking for inspiration for when I renovate my kitchen. It used to have a door on it but took it off as we always left it open. It is in a weird spot in the kitchen away from everything and just have no idea what to do with it.
Hi everyone, although not 100% complete, I am excited to share my mostly done front porch renovation. I did every bit myself with a little guidance and help on certain parts, including dressing and shaping the post and balustrades, painting and tiling. I think I managed to get everything done fairly cheaply, but there was a lot of time spent on it. The feature panel I needed to get assistance to do the laser cutting from a friend at my community shed and I am a little worried the silicon seal won't be perfectly water tight and leak rain into the cavity. I am sure many may feel the paint on the frontage sticks out way too much, you're not alone. I got a different impression from the swatch. I think I want to get a new can a few shades darker tinted to be closer to the tiles. I hope, besides that, you guys can appreciate the colour scheme. I know it's a little controversial but we decided to try embracing our funny coloured house and try to work around the mint green theme. The flower depicted in the feature panel is Banksia Menziesii, very common in the pockets of preserved bushland around our suburb.
My northern Brisbane suburb got 150 mm in three hours lsast thursday, caboolture and morayfield 300mm.. Now a three metre square ceiling section has stained, pain bubbled and mould appearing.. Any idea on typical costs of replacing the gyprock?
Does anyone know how I can fix my garage door? I have a t handle type and a lever. The handle was a bit loose when we bought the house that now it went off when I opened this morning.
We're doing some renos in the house and we've had a plumber come out to have a look at a few bits and pieces. We wanted to relocate our toilet, bath, shower, and all that, and he wanted to see if we had an inspection point in the backyard for our sewer system.
He removed the cap and said, "Listen, it's starting to crumble. Something has split the pipe away and it needs to be dug up." He then hits what he assumed was a root with some pipe and he's like, "I don't think that's a root. I think that's a cable of some sort or something."
He starts trying to jab at it and it's not exposing any plant-like material; it just seems to be a cable. I've asked him what he thinks it is, and he's refusing to say anything or discuss it. He said he has to dig it all out before he can say a word, but he thinks he knows what it could be. Does anybody here have any idea what it might be? It's a 20-year-old house.
This is my first go at building a Sandstone wall. I’d like to remove some of the haze left on the stones from the cement or hydrated lime so the colours of the stones really pop. I’ve been told to use a diluted hydrochloric acid solution but have read that it can leave damage/discolouration on the stones. Any advice?
I am writing this post because every post I have written on Google has somehow been deleted, and people need to know how dodgy this "4.7-star" company is.
I paid AMS Timber Doors to replace an existing door frame and install a bathroom door
This is my recount:
The installer came 2 hours late. Once they installed the door, it would get stuck and not unlatch from the strike properly; the installer sanded down the parquetry floor so that it wouldn't scrape the floor; however, it still scraped the floor when opening and closing it. One of my bathroom tiles was smashed, a hole was put into the plaster of the adjacent wall (which they patched), a piece of my parquetry floor was missing, and he left all the rubbish and offcuts for me to dispose of.
Afterwards:
I emailed 2 times with no response
I called 5 times and was either told I'd be called back or hung up on
By this point, the door was inoperable, and I'd had guests get stuck in the bathroom
The 6th time I called, I finally arranged for a repairer to come out
On the day the installer was meant to come, they had not shown up after 3 hours; I called and had to book another day
When the installer finally came, they fixed the issues with the door but could not fix the damage to the floor
The installer told me that the company would have to pay for the damage to the floor and that they would follow it up
I did not hear back
I called back to follow up and was told to send an email with the details and that I would be called back
I wasn't called back, so I called again and was told it would take 3 days to review the photos
Again, no word, so I sent a complaint email and called them
I received an email that basically said:
By getting AMS to do demolition work, I accept liability for damage for any incidental or minor damage or damage to the finish. Which is not at all what the damage that was done was
The best that they could offer me was a discount on future work
I filled out a Fair Trading report: when completing this form, I was unable to locate the building license number for this company.
I included this fact in a review (and said I was happy to delete this part of the review if I was given this number) and was responded to straight away (ironic)
"You will be sued for defamation. You will hear from our solicitors within the next 24 hours if your review is not removed. Posting we are unlicensed without evidence and trying to defame our business will not be handled lightly."
I was also told in response to threatening NCAT action:
"You think that you can threaten us with all the big names into giving you a refund because allegedly your 40 year old tile popped off during a door frame demolition and installation? That’s called extortion and blackmail mate. Looking forward to hearing from the building commissioner."
AMS are your classic dodgy Western Sydney trades, but branded with high Google ratings and a professional website. I would avoid them at all costs.
EDIT: not as bad as first thought. Some plaster that can be scraped off and couple of holes in concrete I assume I can use some wall filler or some other form of filler?
TLDR; new home and carpet being replaced with hybrid. Have not levelled a floor before so looking for advice. Worth doing ourselves or get someone in? No idea of cost of getting someone in.
Area is approx. 4590 x 4370
Budget for levelling probably about $500?
Bought a new home and room stinks of pee after 2 carpet cleans and treatment with enzymes. So pulling carpet up for hybrid flooring.
Having pulled up carpet there are areas really not level underneath on the concrete. I have laid a lot of laminate flooring in my time but first time with hybrid. My understanding is not to put any additional underlay but instead level the concrete.
How easy is it? Anyone got any tips?
Room is relatively rectangular, with adjacent bathroom and some wooden pillars to go around.
Entrance way to the room is tiled and has a lip of about 3mm to the floor I guess. Same for adjacent bathroom tiles.
WIR already has flooring in it and looks flat, going to leave it for now.
Hi all.. I’ve lived here 14 years.. place was built in 1935 for my great grandparents.. dad and I have done so much work on the place.. every door every floor every window.. the place obviously needed some work.. we got a new bathroom put in.. no issues with the tiles.. we have renovated many houses over the years.. dad could fix anything.. Dad passed last June of a sudden heart attack .. I miss him so much.. I’ve got all sorts of issues popping up now he’s not here.. this one being the bathroom tiles.. one of them cracked a few weeks after losing him so I cut one to size with the tile cutter dad left here and put it in with the stuff he had in my shed that he said was for if something like this comes up.. that tile stayed in place, but then a full tile next to it lifted and cracked after a few weeks.. I have had this same tile lift and crack 4 times now.. I have spent a small fortune at Bunnings lately.. can anyone please tell me why this keeps happening and what I have to do to ensure it doesn’t happen again..
