Owner Building – Page 2 – SANS10400.org.za are the Building regulations in South Africa

Alternate Building Technologies

The Assessment of Alternate Building Technologies This article from the latest issue of AKHANI, the quarterly magazine of the NHBRC, addresses the use of alternate building materials and the legal process as well as the pending changes to their manuals. It is well worth a read. Assessment of ABT (Alternate Building Technologies) Any house…

Environmental A to Z

An A to Z list of Environmental phrases and words Thanks to the City of Cape Town for providing the basis for this list to which we have added more entries. We will expand the list as and when we find more interesting and useful words and phrases. There is a link to the City…

Owner Building | Regulations | SANS 10400

Is Drywall Destroying the Environment?

Building drywall system is not environmentally friendly The American timber and drywall construction method is brought under the spotlight in a Wikipedia entry “Drywall”. You just have to look at the sulfur dioxide emission figures never mind the mercury released during manufacture. It appears that this method is NOT good for our environment and Americans…

Temporary Buildings

Temporary Buildings Must be Authorizedby the Local Authority What the term “temporary building” means

National Building Regulations Glossary – Complete

A to Z Glossary of Definitions and Terms Used in the National Building Regulations Code of Practice Every industry has terms and definitions that are specific to that industry, and the building industry is no exception. This glossary of National Building Regulations definitions forms part of the National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act (Act…

Home Design Ideas | House building | Owner Building

Good Ideas for home design

Innovative home design, building and decorating ideas. This is where we will post a selection of good innovative building and home design ideas for you as well as decorating ideas for your house as we find them and pass them on. Western Home Awards explore and give out awards after every couple of years to the best…

Minor Building Works

What is “Minor Building Work”? Whatever you construct on your property needs plans, unless it is defined as “minor building work”. Even so, the Act states very well in Part A: General Principles and Requirements (this was previously Part A: Administration), that any structural building work that is defined as “minor building work” requires approval…

Competent Person | Owner Building

A Competent Person

Understanding the Concept of Competent Persons & Competency When South Africa’s National Building Regulations were updated in 2008, several new definitions were added to the legislation, and some were rewritten. One of the most important changes was to the term competent person, because a “competent person” is now required to draw up plans and submit them…

Materials | Owner Building

New Building Materials

New and Innovative Building Materials OMNI BLOCK Even though this innovative building material product was designed and patented by Denny Miller in 2003 it is still an innovative and up-to-date building product. Omni Block is an insulated “stand-alone” structural wall system. It does not require furring strips, additional insulation, or sheetrock to complete the wall,…

Construction Elements | Glazing | Owner Building

Glass and Glazing as a Construction Element, 7 points

01 – Glazing for Safety and Security Glazing is a vital construction element in our homes and other buildings. It is important to know how to use the right type of glass, in the right place, to make sure that our buildings are secure and to ensure that people don’t get injured in accidents involving…

Electrics | Owner Building | Regulations

Electrics & Lighting

ELECTRICS & LIGHTING – WHAT’S INVOLVED Electrics & Lighting & Electronics are Related Fields. While both these related fields are specialised and take considerable training to be tackled in their entirety, there are projects involving both electrics and electronics that anyone with a reasonable aptitude and understanding can tackle. These range from wiring a plug…

Concrete & Masonry | Floors | Foundations | Owner Building

Floors and Flooring

Understanding what’s Underfoot The type of floors specified in building plans will determine the materials required as well as which sub-contractors or specialists are going to be involved in the building project. There are many flooring coverings and floor finishes for our homes and buildings, but in construction, there are only two basic types of floor…

Site Clearing

Clearing The Site – Getting Ready To Build Preparation is a vital part of any job in the construction industry because if site preparation is not correctly done it can jeopardise the building project. Site clearing operations must also be safe so that there is no chance of anybody being injured. Before you can start…

Sustainable Homes

By PENNY SWIFT Are you Ready to go Green? South Africa, as a country, has been incredibly slow to take up the challenge of sustainable living. Yet we really do need to embrace this challenge and build using sustainable materials and sustainable methods, so that we have sustainable homes. We also need to live a…

Home Design Ideas | Landscaping | National Building Regulations (SA) | Owner Building

Outdoor Spaces

Developing Outdoor Spaces for an Outdoor Lifestyle Whatever the size of your property, there will always be outdoor spaces – big or small – that need to be developed. This may be in the form of a verandah, patio or porch, or it might be a garden that needs to be landscaped and planted. In…

House building | National Building Regulations (SA) | Owner Building | Project manager

Why Owner Build

Some Good Reasons to Owner Build The Pros and Cons of Owner Building: A personal review Perhaps you see the owner build exercise as a challenge. Or maybe it is an opportunity for you to prove you can do it better than we did. Maybe you’d decide to owner build just because you can! After all…

SANS 10400

SANS 10400 Governs the Design, planning and supervision of all construction work Each section of SANS 10400, the Code of Practice for The application of the National Building Regulations (NBR) is presented with the relevant extract from the building regulations (which is the law), and is then followed by a general commentary explaining how the…

Why You Should Hire a Professional Pool Builder

Caption for pool above: Empty and cracked, the rock pool went from being a dream to a disaster. Conned by a Fly-by-Night Pool Builder Why you should use a pool contractor who belongs to the NSPI South Africa’s building industry is rife with problems, so whether you are building a house or a swimming pool,…

Be Your Own Project Manager

Take Charge of Your Home Building Venture as Project Manager Anybody who is serious about owner building will want to have a degree of control to ensure that the project stays on track. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to be hands-on. Taking on the role of project manager simply means that you are…

Boundary Lines & Walls | Minor Building Work | Owner Building | retaining walls | Walls and fences

Boundary, Building Lines, Walls & Fences

How far from the boundary wall must I build? We get a number of questions asking “What are my building lines” and “How close to the boundary am I (or my neighbour) allowed to build?” The site plan above is a sample and is only a guide to the approximate building lines and distances that…

Pros and Cons of Owner Building

A Review Based on Personal Experience Having just finished totally updating the ever-popular title, The Complete Book of Owner Building in South Africa I am left wondering whether owner building is a good idea or not. We’ve completed the exercise three times, and not once made any money, or in fact, even got our money…

House building | National Building Regulations (SA) | NHBRC | Owner Building

The NHBRC – 5 elements

1. The NHBRC gives protection against shoddy workmanship The NHBRC was established in terms of the Housing Consumers Protection Measures Act, 1998 to regulate the building industry and protect home buyers against shoddy workmanship. Motivation at the time was largely charged by fly-by-night-builders who were conning people all over the country. There was undoubtedly a…