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New Build home demo

8 replies

onethingonly · 20/09/2021 06:46

Morning all,

We are going to the new house today for the demonstration. In addition to being shown the appliances/features etc is there anything else we should be doing whilst there? I.E. looking for major snags or measuring (if we're allowed).

OP posts:
Otherpeoplesteens · 20/09/2021 10:02

I can't see a problem with measuring and definitely point out major snags, but you'll find it better to go through room by room, wall by wall, surface by surface with a fine tooth comb when the site manager isn't around for proper snagging.

I found the home demo (our most recent was Bloor Homes) useful because it was the only time we had the builder's undivided attention without the salespeople present, and he was probably just a little more honest and helpful as a result.

Get the location of all the stopcocks, shut offs etc. Fusebox. Meters. What is under each manhole cover? Where do the drains run externally?Any limits to the plumbing (we're on a pumping station below the mains sewer, so had the Three P's Only rule drummed into us.)

Make sure there is a destruction manual and warranty documentation for every appliance, and whether you need to register them yourself for warranty purposes. Keys for every lock (including windows, garage, etc). Allen keys for toilet seats.

Which internal walls are partition walls only, and which are solid/insulated? Which external walls are not insulated (integral garages often aren't)?

Which wires and pipes come from the ceiling down, and which come from the floor up? Is everything buried in a wall aligned vertically? Where is the TV aerial cable in the loft?

Find out what make and model the bricks, tiles, grouting, flags, and paint are, in case you need to match them in future.

Ask them to show you how to re-pressurise the boiler.

And, depending on what you think of them as well as the quality, are any of the tradesmen (electricians, plumbers etc) still on site interested in - and permitted to - moonlighting for you, for adding extra sockets or taps, changing light fittings, etc once you've moved in. Often cheaper than getting your own in, and of course they know their way around.

Otherpeoplesteens · 20/09/2021 10:06

Also, find out about the foundations and whether any non-standard construction methods have been used. In particular, whether or not it is piled.

marthamydear · 20/09/2021 21:46

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StatisticallyChallenged · 20/09/2021 22:38

Specifically re stopcocks - if you have an external tap, where is the internal stopcock for it

We didn't get a demo - bloody covid meant it wasn't permitted - and so didn't actually know we even had an internal stopcock for the external tap. Which froze and burst under the sink in the middle of the night in winter (miraculously I woke up so damage wasn't bad, could have been horrendous if I'd slept through!)

TeaSoakedDisasterMagnet · 20/09/2021 22:41

Get them to show you the heating system twice. We found ours so confusing that we swapped it for the hive system within a month, it was impossible to understand.

Make sure you know where the stopcock are, how to turn fans and extractors on and off, how to take meter readings (where’s the water meter for example) make sure they give you the numbers for emergencies. Look out for major snags now and raise them immediately.

thebiggestloserinthenorth · 20/09/2021 22:46

Following...

Ladyrattles · 21/09/2021 00:40

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Ladyrattles · 22/09/2021 00:48

How did it go?

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