By Penny Swift Author Electricity is a charged subject that often shocks those who don’t realize how important compliance is. Home Security Just look at all the illegal electrical connections looming over informal settlements. Notice people on social media asking who can do electrical jobs cheaply. Do they even realize that only qualified, registered electricians…
By JANEK SZYMANOWSKI Air Gives False Readings Main picture above: Burst water pipe in Gauteng. Picture courtesy Pretoria East Record Every time a water pipe bursts, there’s a good chance that the municipality will rake in thousands of rands from false water meter readings. This is because air passing through consumers’ water meters and water…
Picture above from MorgueFile By Alvimann What is a Contractors All Risk Insurance policy? Contractors All Risk Insurance is a policy that insures the principal/employer and covers the contract works undertaken by the contractor and subcontractors. CivilSure offers 2 types of Contractors All Risk Insurance policies: 1. Contractors All Risk Once Off This Contractors Insurance…
The NHBRC CAN Send You to Jail. If you are in the home building industry then this is a must read. Here are some important things you and housing consumers should take into consideration regarding the NHBRC and how it will affect your home building process. The National Home Builders Registration Council is a government…
New Electric Fence Legislation Sends Shock Waves throughout South Africa Penny Swift When the regulations regarding an electric fence were changed in 2011, nobody paid much attention. But now that the authorities are enforcing the regulations, people are totally shocked and all fired up. Yesterday a homeowner living in a “wealthy” Pretoria suburb was interviewed…
By PENNY SWIFT Building Not According to Approved Plans The City of Cape Town recently ordered builders to halt the construction of a Gordon’s Bay house because the project did not comply with the National Building Regulations (NBR) and is a non-compliant site. In fact, work has been stopped several times, and only after repeated…
Councils Must be Ruthless with Restricting Occupation of Unsafe Buildings I think it must be terrifying to be woken at 04:00 in the morning by a thunderclap that makes the whole building shudder. Then, in a confused state, you realise your bed’s still shaking and, no, it wasn’t thunder, it was the building falling down….
How Construction Laws, National Building Regulations and South African National Standards Affect Homeowners Prior to 1985, various provinces and municipalities in South Africa had their own construction laws and regulations which, although similar, were not the same. Over a period of years, a committee of experts, including architects, builders, developers, and the Bureau of Standards (SABS) professionals researched and compiled…
If you are selling your house, and don’t have approved plans, you could find yourself in a lot of trouble.
What Are You Required to Do with the NHBRC as an Owner Builder? All new homes, by law, have to be registered with the NHBRC, some RDP houses are exempt from this. As an owner builder you may apply for an exemption from the Housing Consumer Protection Measures Act with the NHBRC. There are certain…
Picture Above: The open-plan approach to kitchen design allows optimum use of available space and also creates an illusion of roominess. This arrangement is a sensible combination of the sociable and the practical, with the eating counter also serving as a work surface. How To Do A Good Kitchen Layout – The Basics A good…
How To Design Your Own Kitchen Using Templates For Design Fitting the various individual components of the kitchen into your outline is an exact, and exacting, process in which guesswork shouldn’t feature. Prepare card or plastic cut-outs, or templates, of every major item. These should be carefully drawn to scale for the design. Among your…
How to Design a Small Bathroom Every centimetre counts in a small bathroom, whether it s a guest cloakroom, a shower room or a tiny cubby-hole in an apartment. Small design errors which may go unnoticed in a large bathroom can easily become a major source of frustration in a confined area. • Investigate the…
How to Solve Kitchen Traffic Flow Problems The patterns of kitchen traffic should be taken into account when planning the new layout. Ideally, the kitchen traffic flow should not interfere with the work triangle. If this is unavoidable, however, try and ensure that the triangle intersects the path to the fridge. Here we have listed…
The Open-plan Kitchen Option There was a time, not too long ago, when South African home owners were not overly concerned about the dimensions of their rooms. Nowadays, with construction costs – indeed all costs – spiralling, the emphasis is on the compact, and on an internal arrangement that makes optimum use of every available…
Caption for pic above: There are no absolutes in bathroom design: your aim is to produce an environment that is comfortable, convenient and easy to maintain, and that works for the people who will use it. Easy Bathroom Planning – What You Need to Know 1. You and Your Plumber The location and layout of…
What Is the SABS? What Does the SABS Do? The South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) was established in terms of the Standards Act, 1945 (Act No. 24 of 1945) and now operates under the latest edition of the Standards Act, 2008 (Act No. 29 of 2008). This national body promotes and maintains the standards…
NHBRC Review of the Technical Requirements A major revision of the Technical Requirements and Home Building Manual will affect the home builders and may affect the rights of housing consumers and those engaged in the housing supply chain. Housing consumers and key players in the housing industry will therefore also be afforded the opportunity to…
NHBRC Review of the Warranty Scheme The NHBRC recently embarked upon a review process of the NHBRC Warranty Scheme which will result in three new documents being published, namely a set of Technical Requirements for issue as regulations by the Minister in terms of the Act; a Home Building Manual containing the technical requirements prescribed…
Here is a Classic Film Clip on How to Build a House This how to build a house film clip that was made back in 1946 is a must-watch for anyone contemplating doing any sort of building. Even though it was made so many years ago the process has more or less remained the same….
Tips for Bathroom Storage Systems Bathroom storage and work surfaces are two aspects of bathroom planning that are often neglected. Consider your needs at the outset, and you will be rewarded with a bathroom that not only looks neat and streamlined but which also functions more efficiently. A miniature medicine cabinet or narrow glass shelf is frequently…
The picture above: Sleek, sophisticated, and as compact as a ship’s cabin, this good-looking grey marble bathroom has generous sliding windows that provide a magnificent Atlantic view. How to Design Your New Bathroom Designing a successful new bathroom involves far more than simply plumbing in the basic fixtures. The position of the room and its internal…
Main picture above: This deceptively uncluttered kitchen includes a host of special features, including pull-out vertical tiers for groceries, a built-in microwave oven, and a stacked washing machine and tumble dryer, which are concealed behind closed doors. Plan Your Kitchen in Stages The Four Stages of Planning Your Kitchen Minimum Modules and Enticing Extras These…
All About Insulation and Ventilation for Clean, Fresh Air We all need fresh air to live, but how can we ensure that there is always fresh, clean air in the buildings that we live and work in? The answer lies in well-designed ventilation systems that are developed by professionals to keep our buildings healthy and…
Renovate Your Kitchen – Old to New The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in any house. But when you buy a house, you don’t always get the kitchen that meets your needs – never mind your dreams. It is at this point that you may decide it’s a good idea to renovate…
