Lock Up Stage Inspections – New Home Inspections
Lock up stage Inspections are very important. Before you hand over one of the largest stage payments to your builder, it is important to arrange for an independent building inspector to check that the lock up stage has been fully and properly completed.
The lock up stage inspections should be carried out when a home’s external wall cladding and roof covering is fixed, the flooring is laid and the external doors and windows are fixed to the frame (even if those doors and windows are only temporary).
The items that need to be thoroughly checked during the lock up stage inspection include (but are not limited to) the following:
- The external wall cladding (e.g. bricks, rendered board and foam and timber weatherboards etc.) has been properly constructed and fixed to the frame.
- The roof covering to ensure that the different types of roof materials (e.g. concrete and terracotta roof tiles, Colorbond steel sheets and slate etc.) have been correctly installed and fixed to the roof battens and have not been damaged.
- The pointing of all ridge and hip roof tiles is consistent in terms of colour and texture across the entire roof and there are no cracks in the pointing.
- The fascia boards, bargeboards and gutters are correctly aligned and fixed in position.
- There is adequate fall applied to the gutters around the house and the garage.
- There is no damage to specially coated surfaces (e.g. Colorbond roofs, gutters, fascia boards and downpipes). If Colorbond building materials are scratched, dented or perforated, the relevant manufacturer’s warranty is usually deemed void.
- All brickwork to ensure that it is level, plumb, straight and square and that all articulation joints, flashings and weepholes have been correctly placed and installed. The mortar is also checked for strength.
- All brickwork is properly placed on the concrete slab and that it does not overhang the slab by more than the accepted tolerance.
- There are no cracked, chipped or broken bricks.
- There are no cracks in, chips out of or scratches in rendered surfaces or wall cladding.
- There is adequate clearance between window frames and abutting brick sills.
- Locks are fitted to all external facing doors.
- All particle board flooring is properly fixed to the frame and does not move or squeak.
Finalinspect can complete a thorough independent inspection of your new home at the lock up stage and then prepare a detailed report for you that is ready to hand directly to your builder.
We ensure that the lock up stage has been fully and properly completed and that all building works at the lock up stage have been completed compliant with the Building Code of Australia (BCA) and all relevant Australian Standards.
To arrange independent lock up stage inspections, please call us now on 0408 132 152
Dec13