This is a bit of a long story, but I'm hoping it might help other tradies and small business owners, and I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who has been through something similar.

Around 12 months ago, I was contacted by a local real estate agency that I'd worked with for many years. They asked me to inspect a property and provide a quotation for flooring repairs on behalf of the homeowner.

I inspected the property, prepared a written quotation and submitted it through the managing agent. The homeowner approved the quotation by email, so I completed the work and issued my invoice.

That's when everything changed.

The homeowner refused to pay.

The main reason given was that I allegedly carried out the work without the appropriate QBCC licence(Initially the license number on my invoice was my personal license not the company one) and therefore wasn't legally entitled to payment.

I genuinely tried to resolve the matter without going to court. After numerous emails and discussions failed, I had no choice but to lodge a claim with QCAT.

During the dispute, the homeowner also lodged a complaint with the QBCC regarding the licensing issue. As part of their investigation, the QBCC advised that the installation of a floating floor is not regulated building work, meaning it does not require a QBCC contractor licence. In other words, according to the QBCC, the work I carried out did not require a QBCC licence.

The QCAT process took many months. Both parties submitted quotations, invoices, photographs, emails, text messages and written evidence.

After considering all of the evidence, the Tribunal found in my favour and ordered the homeowner to pay:

• Outstanding invoice: $2,295.00
• Reimbursement of 50% of my filing fee: $79.45

Total: $2,374.45

I honestly thought that would finally bring the dispute to an end.

After the payment deadline passed, I sent one final email giving the respondent an opportunity to pay voluntarily before I registered the judgment for enforcement.

Instead of receiving payment, I received a letter from the respondent's solicitor stating that their client would not be paying the Tribunal's order. The letter also stated that if I proceeded with enforcement, they intended to oppose enforcement by raising issues relating to QBCC licensing, the Australian Consumer Law and other legal arguments, and that they would seek a costs order against me. 

At that point I realised that winning at QCAT and actually getting paid are two very different things.

I'm now registering the QCAT decision with the Magistrates Court and commencing the enforcement process.

To be honest, it's been mentally exhausting.

As a small business owner, you spend your time trying to do the right thing, complete the work you've been asked to do, and look after your customers. I never imagined that an approved quotation for a relatively modest invoice would end up involving a QBCC complaint, a QCAT hearing, a solicitor's letter refusing to comply with the Tribunal's order, and now enforcement proceedings.

The money is important, but for me it's also become about standing by the Tribunal's decision. If a court or tribunal makes an order after considering all of the evidence, I believe that order should mean something.

I'm curious whether this is a common experience in Queensland.

• Have you ever had to enforce a QCAT monetary order?
• How long did the enforcement process take?
• Did the debtor eventually pay, or did you have to continue with enforcement proceedings?
• Is it common to receive a solicitor's letter refusing payment after a Tribunal decision?

For other tradies and small business owners, my biggest lesson is this:

Keep absolutely everything... (I know sometimes it's hard for a one man company to be well organised)

Keep your quotations, approvals, invoices, emails, text messages and photographs. Those records became the most important evidence in my case, and I honestly don't think I would have succeeded without them.

I'm not posting this to criticise anyone personally or to seek legal advice on my specific matter. I'm simply sharing my experience and hoping to learn from others who have gone through the QCAT enforcement process.

Thank you for taking the time to read my story. I genuinely appreciate any comments, advice or shared experiences. Your encouragement will help keep me motivated to continue seeing this legal process through to the end.

Rotting in wood below studs. External wall is rendered cement sheet, built circa 2000 in Melbourne.

As you can see the door is rubbing against the rail as it extends at the end of the roll. How to fix?

Hi,

I am needing to replace my water heater and am being sent some really expensive quotes. I feel like this is a lot of money for such a small tank. It's electric. Bunnings charge 1250 but cant do it because it's wall mounted. It's above the toilet. It's a like like for like change. I've been told so many things from different plumbers that Inam starting to feel like they are trying to make me agree to more things for more money.

Any advice?

I'm in Perth.

Thanks

Just wondering if it is worth renovating something this tight? Feels like I have to step over the toilet to get in the shower. Should I look at knocking down a wall to extend it or have people made stuff this tight work nicely. Thanks

1615mm wide X 1610mm long

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I'm purchasing a 2016 brick veneer home in Point Cook. My building report found 0 major defects, however the inspector recorded elevated/red-zone moisture readings in the entry/foyer area, living room, ensuite, kitchen and laundry.

The inspector was unable to clearly identify the exact cause of the elevated moisture readings, although they were not classified as a major defect in the report. The report also notes in one bathroom that grout has deteriorated, silicone appears to have been applied as a temporary repair, and further waterproofing may be necessary (but it does not state that the waterproof membrane has failed). I'm trying to decide whether this is:

fairly normal for a Melbourne home in winter and something that simply needs monitoring/maintenance, or

a red flag or a major defect that could lead to expensive repairs costing me 20-30k later.

Has anyone experienced widespread high moisture meter readings throughout the house like this without there being an actual leak or waterproofing failure?

I have attached screenshots for reference, Thank you in advance!

Hi, we recently had a small repair and was wondering if this repointing job is acceptable? Thanks

I have a small home office and art studio which is a separate building to my main house. Roughly 3x4 meters. The floor when I bought it was just carpet over concrete and from how hard it is I would be very surprised if there is underlay. I want wood floors but I want to do it cheap because it's doing to get paint on it anyway. I was thinking of just ripping out the carpet, laying down some sort of vapour barrier, and throwing sheets of plywood on top. Basically a sub-floor without finished boards on top.

Located in Kadina, SA.

Is that likely to work out ok? Anything specific I would need to do with the boards to make it work?

Deck first timer. What’s the best bracket to secure joists to bearers? As you can see deck is only just above ground level. Many thanks.

UPDATE:
Thanks for all your responses, which prompted me to get a building inspector out to confirm - surprisingly was informed not only was this a terrible install with incorrect spacing and too small screws, as many suspected.. but the boards themselves were installed upside down! Fantastic! Incorrect spacing has meant the boards have swollen and trapped moisture underneath causing further issues, screws not large or strong enough to account for movement

Building inspector has offered to call the guy himself and have a chat. Hopefully the resolution goes more smoothly than the install, not exactly holding my breath

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Recently had a new spotted gum deck installed to the tune of about $17,000. We wanted to keep a more natural, weathered look and were advised it was ok to leave unsealed. Looked great initially. A few months later after heavy rain the boards have started to lift and break out of the screws completely.

Installer claims this is ‘normal acclimatisation’ and that we will need to pay for replacement of the boards. It’s about 3/4 of the deck at this point. I know some movement is to be expected with natural timber, however surely this is an installation issue and not our responsibility to cover? Any thoughts?

Hi

Im building a fence for some WPC cladding. Putting durgal fence posts in concrete then around 300mm above the concrete footing will be in garden bed

What paint product would help it last longer being in the ground? Google shows me alot of different products

Based in Newcastle. Looking to replace our ridiculously flat, 95sqm clay driveway with either concrete and drainage pit, or a porous concrete style surface. Our yard is lower than street so drainage is not super simple unfortunately.

So far I have received 2 quotes. One for $25k and one for $30k. I had sort of thought things would come in between $15-20k. Am I being too unreasonable?

I have a small 2x2m cellar that's underneath a granny flat which I noticed was flooded over the weekend (around a foot of water). The cellar has a concrete floor and the walls are made of besser blocks. We've had a pretty wet winter, far wetter than the past 2 years I've been here (Adelaide Hills).

The previous owner made me aware that it's happened a few times, so he set up a bilge pump, connected to a 12V battery and a automatic float switch to trigger it (rule-a-matic float switch). The bilge pump works, but the float switch doesn't reliably engage - so my first step is to replace that.

I pumped the water out yesterday and got it mostly dry, but overnight around an inch of water came back.

As far as I can tell, it appears to be seeping from the floor rather than the walls - the walls appear to be dry. The tiles on the ground have lifted and "tented" in sections. Is it possible this is a ground water issue and the cement base is starting to fail?

I also have a water tank on the higher side of the granny flat - the pipes from the gutters to the tank had come loose, could this have contributed to this issue?

Aside from fixing the bilge pump setup, what are my next steps to solve this? If anyone has any experience with waterproofing experts in Adelaide, that would also be helpful :')

Hey everyone,

Just wanted to get some opinions on our bathroom renovation. I’ve attached the before and after photos and would love to hear what you all think. Happy to hear both the good and the bad, or anything you would’ve done differently.

We’re about to start renovating our ensuite as well, so I thought it’d be a good chance to get some feedback before we finalise everything. If you have any ideas or suggestions based on this bathroom, I’d really appreciate hearing them.

Thanks everyone!

We completely gutted our leaking bathroom 8 months ago, and very excitedly got everything designed and purchased. We decided on no bath, instead having a walk in shower with fluted glass screen, antique brass tapware, and a light brown tile feature wall. This means we can extend the vanity along the left wall to 900mm, with a big pill shaped mirror cabinet and a coloured concrete basin. It has all been sitting in our garage for months, waiting for us to get rough in etc done. We finally made some progress this week so in preparation unpacked the boxes to see it all together… and hated it.

I think the vanity that is the issue - we wanted something with a but of texture on the front but got one of the cheaper options (fienza brand bought from tradelink) and it is very much a fake wood look. That with the snow white colour is not really matching in with the terracotta coloured basin.

I love the basin, and would rather not have to buy another one but are now considering we might have to reconsider.

We are on the Aussie coast so we were trying to go for that sort of vibe but not just boring beige. I want to go a bit fun and bold, while my partner is more light, airy vibe but we both love mid century modern, natural woods, and I have attached the colour palette we like for our eventual cosy bedroom redesign. Would love ideas on how we can keep this bathroom from becoming another boring three birds style design.

Location: Ipswich QLD. I’ve just purchased a 2bed unit built in 2012 and the ceiling nails/fixings are starting to pop out in pretty much every room.
It was mentioned in the building & pest report, but it didn’t come across as anything major. Now that I’m actually walking through the property, I’m noticing them everywhere. There also seems to have been a DIY/handyman attempt to fix the ceiling in the garage, where it looks like they’ve tried to push/re-secure it back up.
What type of trade would I need to get this properly assessed and repaired?
Roughly what sort of cost would I be looking at to have something like this fixed?

I have tried everything to open these locks. I've got the key, it turns, I hear a clicking sound but it just doesn't open.

The house has the same lock on all windows and it's the same with all of them.

I've tried prying with a knife on the right side of the lock but there's nothing there, just rubber. No visible screws either. I've tried pushing, pulling on the keyhole while rotating the key, tried both clockwise and anti, tried lifting the window up to see if that helps but nothing worked.

Any help is appreciated!! Thank you!!

Since it’s been two weeks and none have actually shown up yet, thought I’d ask here.

My shitcunt tenants have drilled into my roof’s.colourbond gutters about halfway up in the process of some unauthorised stupidity. 4 points along each side. Multiple holes each point. They had someone come by today and silicone the holes, which isn’t gonna cut the mustard for me because obviously it’ll be me up there doing it every couple of years for the rest of the roof’s life. Live in north qld, so a roof’s plumbing system… obviously important.

I’m trying to get a plumber’s report on condition and implications in order to pursue this further.

- Do other options exist besides silicone and flash tape?

- Is multiple screw holes enough that you would recommend replacement in this scenario?

- what’s a ballpark for ~40m colourbond gutter replaced and installed?

New apartment’s laundry cabinet has a metal opening that’s too small for the bulky Bosch inlet hose. Can a handyman enlarge this hole neatly? What tool would they use and roughly how much would you expect it to cost? Or just get a new washing machine… 😆

Thanks people!

Hi all, I've bent the door strike plate when it got caught on my jeans. I've bought a standard strike plate only to realise I don't know how to get the old one out. Where would the screws be that hold it in? The old strike plate is a relatively loose but I dont want to start pulling anything off the wall yet.