News Posts.

The Victorian government is looking at scrapping it’s 6 Star energy rating system. The Age  is reporting that the  removal of the 6-star standard in Victoria is part of a bid to cut government red tape by 25 per cent by … Continue reading →

The Victorian government has decided to get its own watchdog, as the federal government moves to abolish the current one. Remember that famous scene in Crocodile Dundee “That’s not  a watchdog, THIS is a watchdog” We reported previously  that the … Continue reading →

  We are returning to the days of coercion and intimidation on Australian building sites. This is because the Australian Building and Construction Commission ABCC is being dismantled.  The unions will  have free reign to go back to the days … Continue reading →

Imagine finding this well right where you were hoping to build. I saw this during the week from Rated Hammer. They had to put their home improvement project on hold when it turned into an archaeological dig, after builders stumbled … Continue reading →

There is a very blunt message on the home page of successful and long term Sydney builder, Kell and Rigby Kell & Rigby has suspended trading on all our sites while we review our financial situation. …….We are working hard … Continue reading →

About eighteeen months ago the reconstruction and recovery authority held a session for builders in Melbourne. The message was clear, we desperately need more builders to rebuild in fire damaged communities. Of the 2000 odd homes that had been destroyed fewer … Continue reading →

The ACCC has cracked down hard on three Queensland builders with fines totalling $1.3 million dollars; The penalties imposed here should be a wake-up call for the construction industry that coverpricing is not a legitimate business strategy. The three companies … Continue reading →

Did you have your own cubby house when you were a kid? It may have been a few planks nailed to the inside of a tree trunk that gave you splinters every time you made one false move. Or in … Continue reading →

So just what are we reading at buildinginyourblood? Bob Borson’s  funny and educational site, what a combination! I seldom see a post here that I dont want to do my own version of. I may even have an architect crush. Sheeesh … Continue reading →

Worksafe our state government safety office has just tweeted this gem House restumping collapse leads to $40,000 fine for small business:  A Geelong restumping company was convicted and fined $40,000 today over an incident that seriously injured its owner who … Continue reading →

As the festive season approaches you may be wondering what to buy the builder in your life. These last weeks they  will have been furiously working on someone elses deadlines and sadly they may have given you no gifts hints … Continue reading →

  The Victorian Government has released its permanent bushfire regulations nearly three years after the black Saturday bushfres that ravaged significant parts of Victoria and took 173 lives. The regulations which replace earlier ones from 2010 call for a minimum … Continue reading →

After 24 years of stop start construction The Ryugyong Hotel in the North Korean capital of Pyongyang is finally ready to open. (it) has become …known as the ‘Hotel of Doom’ after multiple failed attempts to complete the construction   For more … Continue reading →

Recently in our post Send Lawyers guns and Money, we called out Guardian Building Products USA  for being heavy handed and unprofessional. We claimed they had no interest in furthering best practice,after they threatened legal action against a blog, not … Continue reading →

I love this new piece of the Melbourne sport prescinct AAMI Park. It looks good. it works for the punters and it will become a home of memories for  sports mad Melbournians. A first class project by Grocon. Arguably Melbournes … Continue reading →

A few months ago I wrote a blog on some of my family members and what it meant for each of them to be 13-years-old. For my daughter is complex; to text, tweet, FB, email, Skype or simply call? There … Continue reading →

  About six years ago we had to move out of our government-owned rental property when the authorities deemed it necessary to remove the asbestos and give it a bit of a renovation.We were lucky to have somewhere nice to … Continue reading →

Further to sly on building’s piece on deadly formwork  China’s intensive construction efforts throughout the country have been blackened with the latest reports of multiple fatalities in construction site accidents across the nation. A good report from Design Build Source but … Continue reading →

The CFMEU is  riding the Western Australian mining boom into the ground. attempting to raise labourers wages; This would mean an increased annual salary from $130,000 to $137,000 and a decrease in working hours from 56 or 60 hours to … Continue reading →

This may look like a cubby house but it is part of an MIT project A home costing only $6000 (about $A 4500. HaHa)  A very serious endeavour that can withstand a 0.8 earthquake.    

VCAT, the tribunal that deals with planning matters in this state, is introducing a scheme where  big money cases will be dealt with on seperate lists. Attorney-General  Clark is pleased with the scheme big developers would be able to pay to … Continue reading →

The forensic investigation into The World Trade Center’s multiple collapses has made some interesting findings even a combination of high-speed collisions by two airliners and fires across multiple floors would not have destroyed the Twin Towers The investigation by U.S. … Continue reading →

The instance of lying on credit applications is rising. Now that’s what I call good old fashioned fun!

So you think you know what formwork is? It is a noun meaning “the temporary structure into which concrete is poured which defines its shape once is has cured.” Sounds simple enough and we can see it everyday in the … Continue reading →

The CSIRO wants to study 500 Australian homes, in brief you will; Learn to reduce your energy bills get a report on your home’s heating and cooling energy performance get a set of infrared photographs that show if you are … Continue reading →

If like me you think LED lights are expensive and belong in caravans and torches, think again World’s First 60 Watt Equivalent LED Bulb for Under $15

One of the great pains in most businesses is dealing with three layers of government and “At present, a business operating in every state and territory faces a cost of more than $1000 to register a business name for three … Continue reading →

Once I carried a watch, and a mobile phone. My music came on CDs at $35 a piece. In the car I had a torch and a digital camera. Stocks were checked in the newspaper and my news came through … Continue reading →

There isn’t a guy called Bunnings, but there is a Jack Bowen. This old-time timber man has his head around the carbon sequestration business, which I touched on before; There are no published estimates of carbon stored in the 15 million … Continue reading →

I am currently rebuilding this girls house after it was extensively fire damaged. I was very touched. Pretty sure that chimney is actually  a bit straighter than that, otherwise it is as built.  

Thomas Crapper, the man who popularised the  flush toilet and lent his name to the slang term for toilet, would be turning in his grave at the state of US toilets and their notorious Poo lap of honour. One of … Continue reading →

The Herald Sun is running a story that CONSUMER Affairs Victoria is investigating the real estate agents handling the sale of the houses on Channel 9′s DIY renovation hit The Block for underquoting. Whilst the story will undoubtably be about … Continue reading →

The Southern star observation wheel is progressing well in its rebuild. You may recall that only weeks after it was complete, cracks began appearing. Initially blamed on a heatwave, engineers later found that the cracks were a problem with the original design. … Continue reading →

Investors lose a trillion dollars in one day House prices dive in massive market fall Housing starts to plunge 15% in 2011 You would be forgiven for taking  a cautious view of the period ahead. These sorts of headlines are … Continue reading →

This beautiful fireplace is suspended from the ceiling. The fireplace rotates through 360 degrees so you can direct the heat to whichever part of the room you are  in. From the french company Focus. This is the gyro model. The … Continue reading →

The new six star energy requirements are out.  A six star home should use about 75% of the energy of the same design with a 5 star rating. Under the new rules, homes  should be naturally more comfortable for longer periods in … Continue reading →

Carbon has become the worlds whipping boy. With all the recent coverage of carbon taxes and carbon credits you could be forgiven for thinking carbon  is a dangerous pollutant. We are wrong to associate carbon with smoking factory chimneys  or … Continue reading →