Owner-supplied materials and fittings: who carries the risk
A client who buys the tapware or the doors has not taken the builder out of the job. This guide shows where the risk really lands and what to record before the item goes in.
11 min read
Blog
Regulation and Compliance
The rules builders work under, and how they are changing: the National Construction Code, licensing, certification, standards and enforcement, with NSW first.
Owner-supplied materials and fittings: who carries the risk
A client who buys the tapware or the doors has not taken the builder out of the job. This guide shows where the risk really lands and what to record before the item goes in.
11 min read
NSW contractor licence classes: which licence covers which work
A licence covers the work its class describes, not the work the business happens to do. This is how the classes line up with a typical residential job and where they overlap.
11 min read
Using a designer’s plans: copyright and permission to build
Building from drawings you did not produce is routine, but the right to copy, adapt and reuse them is not automatic. Check it before the first trench is dug.
12 min read
Structural engineer certificates: what builders should get in writing
An engineer’s certificate is only useful if it describes the work that is actually in the ground and on the frame, and the builder is the one who has to make that match.
11 min read
Retaining walls on residential sites: approvals and engineering
A retaining wall holds back more than soil. Here is when it needs approval or an engineer, and why drainage and surcharge cause most of the failures.
11 min read
Heritage and conservation areas: what changes for residential builders
A heritage or conservation area listing changes the scope of a residential job before a single tool is picked up. Here is how the controls reach materials, approvals and programme, and how to price and sequence the work so the client is not caught out.
11 min read
Protecting trees on a building site and when removal needs approval
A retained tree is often a condition of the approval, and it dies quietly if its root zone is cut or compacted. This article sets out how to protect it during footings and excavation, and when removal needs approval.
11 min read
Sediment and erosion controls on residential sites in NSW
Soil leaving a building site after rain is a pollution problem, a neighbour problem and a stop-work problem. Set the controls before the soil moves and check them after every heavy storm.
11 min read
Lead paint in older homes: safe work practices for renovation builders
Lead paint can turn a routine renovation into a health risk for the crew and the occupants. This guide covers testing, dust control, keeping lead separate from other hazards and disposing of the waste.
11 min read
Fire separation between attached homes: what builders must get right
Between attached homes, the separating wall, its penetrations and its junctions decide whether a fire stays in one dwelling. These are the details most often missed on site.
12 min read
Smoke alarms in renovations and alterations: what NSW builders must do
A kitchen or bathroom job can bring the smoke alarms for the whole home into scope. This article sets out which areas the upgrade reaches, how the alarms must be powered and connected, and what belongs in the handover file.
11 min read
Council stop work orders on residential sites: what to do first
A stop work order is a regulator’s notice, not a commercial dispute. The first steps are to stop the work, read the notice closely, establish the facts and respond in writing.
11 min read