Help- Tender costs too high

[Mr Punter]

If you post up the plans we can see if there are any easy wins by tweaking.

 

Regarding access, you will need to get concrete and muckaway lorries in or costs will rise.  Most timber frame can be unloaded and erected with a telehandler.

 

Can you have concrete roof tiles?  Cheap to buy and lay, very durable and look pretty good.

[ultramods]

Where about in NE are you building? 

 

As others have said posting your plans would really help people assist you. 

 

We are building in newmachar a 325 sqm two storey house for around 350k (excluding land cost) to a high spec. 

 

You and your husband are welcome to visit our build if you like to see the spec etc. 

 

I am project managing the built and have done a small amount of the work. 

 

We have 1 company doing Joinery, roofing and rendering. 2nd company doing all groundworks, foundations, block work etc. 3rd company doing electrics. 4th company doing electrics. 5th company doing plastering and decorating. And two companies doing stair and baulastrade. 

 

I have found that the build in general has needed little supervision from me. However that's because the plans were detailed including the size and type and position of all sanitryware, showers, kitchen units, worktops, sinks etc. 

[nod]

3 hours ago, Mrs S said:

We’ll be living on the site, so I’ll be able to keep a good eye on the builders. I will do what PM I can, along with the occasional assistance from our architect. I’m no stranger to getting my hands dirty or a paint brush ?

More than anything you can save time and money by knowing exactly what you want 

Costs can rack up with indecision 

You can do a lot of your prep work online Or on this forum 

You will gain respect from your builders if you are clear about what you want 

Good luck

It will be well worth the effort 

[ProDave]

3 hours ago, Mrs S said:

Thanks, we had thought going down the TF route as it’s quicker, but our plot isn’t accessible to cranes or bigger lorries unfortunately.

What CAN get onto you r site?

 

Our TF was built by some local builders who bought it to site in several loads on a tri axle trailer behind a transit van and lifted all the panels into place with their wheeled 13t digger with a boom extension acting as a crane.

[Jeremy Harris]

FWIW, I would have said our plot was pretty inaccessible.  The lane is a single track, with a narrow bridge over a stream right by the entrance to the plot.  The plot has a steep slope, too.  However, our timber frame came all the way from Ireland and the truck "just" managed to back up through the 9ft 6" wide space in the lane:

 

 

 

 

As well as that big truck getting to the site, we also had around fifty muckaway trucks, plus a dozen or so readymix concrete trucks, and a 100ft jib crane.  Space was damned tight, but we learned early on that some drivers (notably not concrete truck drivers) seem able to do the near-impossible when it comes to manoeuvring in tight spaces.

[Bitpipe]

4 hours ago, Mrs S said:

We’ll be living on the site, so I’ll be able to keep a good eye on the builders. I will do what PM I can, along with the occasional assistance from our architect. I’m no stranger to getting my hands dirty or a paint brush ?

 

We lived on site also and it makes things much easier from a PM point of view.

 

Would be wary of using the architect as a PM, depends on how practical they are  - also, what is their fee for this service?

 

[Mrs S]

6 hours ago, ultramods said:

Where about in NE are you building? 

 

As others have said posting your plans would really help people assist you. 

 

We are building in newmachar a 325 sqm two storey house for around 350k (excluding land cost) to a high spec. 

 

You and your husband are welcome to visit our build if you like to see the spec etc. 

 

I am project managing the built and have done a small amount of the work. 

 

We have 1 company doing Joinery, roofing and rendering. 2nd company doing all groundworks, foundations, block work etc. 3rd company doing electrics. 4th company doing electrics. 5th company doing plastering and decorating. And two companies doing stair and baulastrade. 

 

I have found that the build in general has needed little supervision from me. However that's because the plans were detailed including the size and type and position of all sanitryware, showers, kitchen units, worktops, sinks etc. 

We are building just south of Stonehaven.  You aren’t building at Brownhills by any chance? My husband is in Aberdeen from tomorrow for a few days on business, I will pass on your message as I’m sure he would love to talk to you.

Thank you ?

[Mrs S]

3 hours ago, JSHarris said:

FWIW, I would have said our plot was pretty inaccessible.  The lane is a single track, with a narrow bridge over a stream right by the entrance to the plot.  The plot has a steep slope, too.  However, our timber frame came all the way from Ireland and the truck "just" managed to back up through the 9ft 6" wide space in the lane:

 

 

 

 

As well as that big truck getting to the site, we also had around fifty muckaway trucks, plus a dozen or so readymix concrete trucks, and a 100ft jib crane.  Space was damned tight, but we learned early on that some drivers (notably not concrete truck drivers) seem able to do the near-impossible when it comes to manoeuvring in tight spaces.

Wow, I will pass this onto my hubby, thanks for this. We have a tight corner, and our architect and the builders have said TF and sips are out- but maybe there is a way. I think it’s also because we use our nearest neighbours road to access our plot and I believe they aren’t the most accommodating.

[selfbuildaberdeen]

6 hours ago, ultramods said:

Where about in NE are you building? 

 

As others have said posting your plans would really help people assist you. 

 

We are building in newmachar a 325 sqm two storey house for around 350k (excluding land cost) to a high spec. 

 

You and your husband are welcome to visit our build if you like to see the spec etc. 

 

I am project managing the built and have done a small amount of the work. 

 

We have 1 company doing Joinery, roofing and rendering. 2nd company doing all groundworks, foundations, block work etc. 3rd company doing electrics. 4th company doing electrics. 5th company doing plastering and decorating. And two companies doing stair and baulastrade. 

 

I have found that the build in general has needed little supervision from me. However that's because the plans were detailed including the size and type and position of all sanitryware, showers, kitchen units, worktops, sinks etc. 

Hello!

We are building not far from yourself and will be going to tender soon. Are there any contractors you have used you would recommend? Or even some you have used and would avoid again!

Thanks

[ultramods]

1 hour ago, selfbuildaberdeen said:

Hello!

We are building not far from yourself and will be going to tender soon. Are there any contractors you have used you would recommend? Or even some you have used and would avoid again!

Thanks

I will PM you

 

[ultramods]

2 hours ago, Mrs S said:

We are building just south of Stonehaven.  You aren’t building at Brownhills by any chance? My husband is in Aberdeen from tomorrow for a few days on business, I will pass on your message as I’m sure he would love to talk to you.

Thank you ?

Not Brownhills, however we did look at those plots. We are building In Kingseat.

[the_r_sole]

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Edited September 26, 2019 by the_r_sole

[Mrs S]

18 hours ago, ProDave said:

What CAN get onto you r site?

 

Our TF was built by some local builders who bought it to site in several loads on a tri axle trailer behind a transit van and lifted all the panels into place with their wheeled 13t digger with a boom extension acting as a crane.

Thanks, my hubby has been back to the site and thinks the access isn’t as bad as we first thought, but obviously not suitable for HGV. Think the builders are just being over cautious as the access road belongs to our neighbour.

[lizzie]

We have a really narrow access down a single track with a tight bend at the end and on that bend a tpo tree. We got our TF in no problem plus the numerous lorries, we did always request the smaller vehicles for deliveries though and if they sent a giant one it would have to go away unless they had one of those on board forklifts to get stuff down to us. All things are possible with thought and care. Good luck.

[Vijay]

but isn't the problem getting the vehicles out - backwards

[Jeremy Harris]

2 minutes ago, Vijay said:

but isn't the problem getting the vehicles out - backwards

 

 

Our deliveries almost always involved the trucks backing in to the site and then driving out forwards.

[lizzie]

as @JSHarris says for us too.

[Thedreamer]

Usually always a solution for getting materials on site.

 

Our building merchant had a wee forklift on the back and most of the materials came back and to on that.

 

The only two moments I worried about were on day one the 60 tonne concrete wagon and whether we had clearance for our attic trusses to fit within the trees. Both were fine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[newhome]

1 hour ago, Mrs S said:

Think the builders are just being over cautious as the access road belongs to our neighbour.

 

So are your neighbours going to prefer multiple vehicles delivering stuff going up and down the road vs one large load delivering a timber frame in one go? If it was my road I think I would prefer the latter as long as there was no damage. 

[lizzie]

Our access road also belongs to neighbour

[Conor]

We're in exactly the same boat re budget. Have a read of my thread in ICF page. We're going to make savings by simplifying the design a bit and me doing the PM work and using subcontractors rather than a main contractor. That suits us well as that's actually my day job, and I'm pretty handy and actually looking forward to a sabbatical! Also helps that my partner earns more than me lol

[Mrs S]

Thanks everyone for all your replies, they give us a bit of hope. I have now attached my plans in my initial post. We have already decided to change the roofing material which will save on a big chunk, and unfortunately we’ve also decided to remove the solar thermal panels, as well as render most of the house with only a bit of stone. Hopefully the planners will be ok with that.

[Jeremy Harris]

TBH, the solar thermal would have been a very expensive way to heat water, far, far better to go for PV, as at least you can use all the energy generated even when your hot water has been heated up.  PV is far better value than solar thermal, in terms of the amount of usable energy you get for your investment, and it's easy enough to add PV later.

[ProDave]

I have had a look at your plans.  My overriding first impression is a complicated house to build. That is not what you want when you are trying to build it cheap.

 

Does the plot size and shape dictate the shape? or do you have scope to simplify it?

[the_r_sole]

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Edited September 26, 2019 by the_r_sole