Minor issues with new build home

[cmcc147]

I'm new to the forum.  I'm from Northern Ireland and I have had a few issues with my new home and was hoping someone could shed some light on whether they should be covered under the builder's warranty. (We have been in the house less than 1 year)

On the whole I have been very happy with the standard of the home and most issues reported have been rectified quickly and efficiently by the builder.  See below for the exception as well as a couple of issues I'm unsure of.

*Our wood burning stove had filled with water on a couple of occasions when the rain was extremely heavy. We asked the builder to replace the cowl for one which wouldn't let water in and he said its not something he would cover. It hasn't done this since this and we have had similar amounts of rainfall.

*Our main bedroom suffers from terribly creaky flooring, which translates in to crackling and noise in the living room below.  The builder pulled the carpets and secured the flooring underneath with screws I presume which helped slightly but it is still very noisy.  Is this something he has to resolve?

*Poor joinery.  The solid oak doors fitted throughout the house suffer from issues catching frames and closing correctly. 4 Doors in total & a 'cubbyhole' are affected by either making a creaking noise catching the doorframe and also the catches don't work. (The door when fully closed can be pulled open without having to push the handle down.)

*Poor joinery #2.  The woodwork in the house in terms of skirtings/door frames is in general not what I expected.  I suspect these were quite damp when installed because the gaps in the frames are very large in some cases.  I have attached a photograph for reference.  Is this something we can reasonably expect the builder to get his decorator to resolve or is this something we should sort ourselves and will be put down to general shrinkage?

Thanks in advance for any input on the above

Chris

[New Home Expert]

First of all, you have serious shrinkage issues. All these cracks should be dealt with by the housebuilder.

Regarding the stove cowel, yes again, rain should not be able to come into the home. It might not have reoccurred purely because the wind has not been in the same direction or the builder may have done something.

As for the doors, it would appear these need re hanging and adjusting - again covered under the warranty.

The cracking sounds of the floor are more serious to fix. The lounge ceiling will need to come down.
Read this post on similar issues and this joint statement.

[cmcc147]

Thank you for your reply New Home Expert.  You were right on the money as I made a call to NHBC just as an anonymous enquiry to see their stance on things and they viewed things the same as yourself.

They suggested anything over 3mm would be considered excessive shrinkage.  I will have a look tonight and measure the gaps before getting in touch with the builder.  The problem is that I have tidied some bits myself with caulk.  Is it best to remove my amateur efforts and ask the builder to rectify the whole lot?

With regards to the flooring in the main bedroom.  I'm guessing this would be a case of carpets up and room emptied from the bedroom despite coming in from below?  Does this generally extend across the whole 2nd floor or can it just be confined to the one room and all other rooms have no problems?

Up until this point any issues with the builder have been resolved with a phone call or text but I feel from here on I may need to get an email contact address even though things have always been amicable. 

[Repton buyer]

New Home Expert will say his three most important pieces of advice are as follows:

Other than "Never buy a new home".... if you decide there is one in a place you like that is a design you like and you are willing to put up with the problems that are going to come your way....

1) Never use the builders' recommended solicitor
2) Get the new home surveyed independently before completion.
3) Get everything in writing.

[New Home Expert]

New Home Expert will say his three most important pieces of advice are as follows:

Other than "Never buy a new home".... if you decide there is one in a place you like that is a design you like and you are willing to put up with the problems that are going to come your way....

1) Never use the builders' recommended solicitor
2) Get the new home surveyed independently before completion.
3) Get everything in writing.

Plenty of other good advice here too!

[New Home Expert]

cmcc147

The basic rule regarding cracks is if you can push in a 50p coin (builders like the thicker £1 coin) then they will fill it.  Please don't take out your filling. It's done now and probably done better than the builder will do!

Re cracking sounds it will be the lounge ceiling that comes down or down around the edges.
You haven't read the information in the link I posted have you?

Who is the housebuilder?

[cmcc147]

Thanks again. I have spoken to the builder (small independant outfit here in N.I) and he is sending the joiner out to sort the doors for us.

I asked about what more be can do about the creaking floors and he said there isn't much more he can do after screwing the floors down.  Is the creaking noise which seems to be a common fault with new homes simply an annoying noise or can it translate in to something which may be unsafe/dangerous?

[Maxell]

Hi,  excessive shrinkage is over 2mm on ceilings and walls & 4mm on stairs , so your builder should address this .

Creaking floors can be a number of issues ,most common is the metal stud walls ,sometimes this can be fixed in 10mins with a small wedge other times it can be more involved . It really depends on a number of factors , the type of noise , the construction and the experience of the contractor carry out the remedial works .

Regards Maxell

[New Home Expert]

Creaking squeaky floors is mostly annoying not structurally serious.
However, if the incorrect joists have been fitted or the centres are too wide, or joists have been notched or drilled incorrectly then it would be serious.

As long at when you stand in the middle of the room and bend you knees (bounce) and the flor does not noticeably deflect it will be just to annoyance. 
Get good quality underlay and  decent carpets.  Perhaps your builder should pay for the underlay!

[cmcc147]

Thanks again for your input on this matter.  We have had the builder out out at the house today to take another look at the creaky flooring as well as sorting out the doors so hopefully that will be those issues sorted. 

We did however have another issue arise which I'm hoping some of you have experience of or have seen before.  If you look at the attached picture, the landing floor almost appears to have dropped slightly.  Our builder has inspected it and said it is due to shrinkage of the floor but there is no structural issues and he would get the joiner to tidy it up. Does this sound correct? 
This was something that I though was originally more serious particularly due to the cracked plaster directly beneath it.

Chris

[New Home Expert]

Looks like shrinkage to me.

[cmcc147]

Thanks New Home Expert, that has put my mind at ease in regards to that.

I will get it filled and the builder said he will get the 'popped' plaster repaired for me since it is not just a simple hairline crack.

[cmcc147]

I hope it's ok to attach videos. The video shows the sound made when walking and putting a bit of pressure on my bedroom floor.  Is the creaking in the video an acceptable level that I should learn to live with?  Apart from a couple of stairs there aren't any creaking noises on the rest of the 2nd level currently.

Chris

[New Home Expert]

The video has been deleted as it really doesn't serve a purpose.
It is up to you if you can live with the creaky noises.
There are other posts on this forum for this quite common problem.
The solution means taking down your ground floor ceilings!

[cmcc147]

The video has been deleted as it really doesn't serve a purpose.
It is up to you if you can live with the creaky noises.
There are other posts on this forum for this quite common problem.
The solution means taking down your ground floor ceilings!

Apologies, I guess I was more so seeking reassurance that it was just a noise issue and nothing more.  It's clearly in my head but when walking on the floor as it creaks it almost seems like there is movement, but if I walk about the room with my ears covered and blocking out the noise this is not the case and all feels stable. 

I am currently making a point of compiling a small list of issues that I would like the builder to take a look at it, particularly now we are in the final 10 months of our  builders warranty.  Are you happy enough for me to seek advice on this in this thread from yourself and others as I have done previously?