A maintenance form is sent out by email. We received ours in
late May. We filled out the form noting our various maintenance concerns and
returned it to CG. Our SS and the CG maintenance man then attended to do a
walk-through, inspect and comment on each item on the list. Then the
maintenance man attended to rectify these items (those he was unable to rectify
himself, he arranged for the appropriate trades to return to rectify). Finally,
CG sent out a letter attempting to confirm the completion of your 3 month
maintenance period. The whole process took roughly 11 weeks in our case. The
only issue is that we still have items outstanding so here’s a warning. Do not
accept the confirmation letter until you are satisfied all items you noted have
been rectified.
Here are some issues to be aware of and items to note and
remember.
Check all lights and electrical items. Turn them all on,
keep them all on at the same time, test everything. We had a few lights that
died during our 3 month period. We knew it wasn’t globes, as it turns out, if
they’re not installed correctly, it’s the contacts between fitting and globe.
Check that all external screws are galvanised. The screws
for our external lights had all rusted over the 3 months because the wrong
screws had been used.
For those using the same corner windows as us; Get them
double glazed! The builder should warn you that if these corner windows are not
double glazed you will have to contend with bad condensation, most noticeable
when the heater is on inside and it’s cold outside. This means that water form
on the glass on the inside and then ends up dripping down the window to rest on
the inside window sill. We hope this does not cause paint peel, mould or other
issues. We’ll keep an eye on it, but CG basically said they can’t do anything
about it. If anyone knows differently, please let us know.
For those building with colour bond; make sure they use enough
screws to hold down the flashing. During the recent windy nights, there’s been
loud crashing on our roof, only audible from the inside (not from outside).
This is one issue still outstanding but it’s under management and will be
rectified.
Plumbing. The worst of our maintenance issues. Here’s the problem.
Much of the plumbing work is underground and therefore unable to be seen by owners,
private building inspectors and building surveyors. It’s obvious much of the plumbing system is only put to task once the house is occupied and also through various
weather conditions (especially heavy wind and rain). As we have been advised, anyone can tick a box [on a certificate] but
this does not mean the work performed complies, or has even been completed!
The first issue we discovered was a sewerage problem. Our
landscapers noticed that sewerage was not draining from the sewerage trap (rear
of house) correctly. Turns out the plumbers did not give the sewerage pipes
sufficient fall. Plumbers had to return, dig through the mud, back to the pipes
(not a small job) and rectify. We’re lucky it was identified when it was. We
note this issue for the record.
The second issue we discovered was a storm water problem.
There had always been flooding at the front of our property. We thought it was
due to the natural lay of the land and groundwater. We were wrong. Turns out,
we strongly believe, the plumbers forgot to connect the main storm water pipe
responsible for discharging storm water into the street from our property [note: CG oppose this view]. As
you can imagine, water from the roof after rain entering gutters and down pipes
plus any water being collected at ground level through the aggie pipe system
all being funneled into this pipe and it discharging all this water into the
ground at the front of our property; big issue.
Unfortunately, this storm water issue remains outstanding.
Since the disconnected storm water pipe was underground, we actually had no
idea about it. We built a driveway straight over the top of it. The flooding
became more pronounced after the driveway and crossover had been built, so we
notified CG. We actually thought there was a cracked pipe somewhere. When the
plumbers returned, they dug under the driveway and found the disconnected pipe.
We saw the pipe, a pipe that just ended. The disappointing thing about this issue is that the
plumbers will not admit they did not connect the storm water to its legal
point of discharge.
Given our contract is with CG, not the plumbers, we have
been communicating with CG in an attempt to resolve this issue. We can only
hope CG realise that at some point, while not directly their fault, issues like this are squarely their responsibility. We’re disappointed they have not shown more care for their product. To build a house for someone and not connect their storm water is not good practice.
We have been advised to document this particular storm water
issue. Set aside the fact we hope CG will take the higher ground
and be responsible for connecting our storm water to the legal point of discharge,
we want an assurance that between handover and now, all the storm water that
has been discharged into the earth at the front of our property, has not caused
any underlying problems and has not affected the long term integrity of the
house, slab or foundations in any way. If any future problems arise, we will
rely on this document as a record of events that have occurred.
Finally, a note about testimonials. We were recently
made aware of the fact that CG have testimonials on their website. One of these
testimonials is a direct extract from this blog. For the record, we did not
authorise this nor approve this. We were not asked by CG if they could use an
extract from our blog. It’s very misleading and we’ll discuss this directly
with CG. The point. Take testimonials with a grain of salt.
The only truly
balanced view you will get is through consumer forums. The more we (clients and consumers) discuss and
talk about companies like CG, the more we share our experiences (good and bad),
the better informed we all become. When building a home, it is certainly much
better to be informed than to rely on the builder to always tell the truth and
to always act in your best interest.
