Floor plan planning shortly before submitting the building application

They also got into a dispute regarding building insulation. It was about whether the perimeter insulation is in front of or behind some foil. Please don’t ask me.... The expert report is pending. In any case, the site manager said it doesn’t really matter, and the expert said the DIN standard specifies how it should be and that it has its validity.

In the basement, there is dampness in several places. This will initially only be monitored to see if it is residual moisture or something else. I had already posted a crack in the concrete ceiling in the basement here sometime ago (or in the house pictures thread). The site manager said it’s not that serious. The expert found it serious and demands remediation.

There was something with the ventilation in the attic. He said that the air does not escape there and a mold cavity will form if nothing is done.

The roof soffits are partly apparently not okay in terms of wood quality and installation (gaps between the individual elements).

He criticized that at the windows, not every 7 cm an L-angle or something similar is provided. There was a dispute with the window manufacturer, who was also on site. Written documents about the windows / roller shutter boxes were requested from the window manufacturer.

The ceiling in the garage bulges downward.

I am curious about the report and especially what the general contractor will say and do about it. The general contractor’s expert will inspect the site on Wednesday.

I wish you good nerves.

Your expert will be right on most points. That is why the counter expert. The site manager has to reject everything, I wouldn't give that much weight.

The ceiling in the garage was probably shuttered and poured incorrectly. When pouring, the ceiling must be convex upwards so that it does not sag later.

Is your general contractor a well-known company or regional?

Well, the expert seems to want to shake up all trades. Just be careful that nothing gets worse while trying to improve it - experienced this live with an expert who quoted a lot of DIN and was not very pragmatic with some things among acquaintances.

Well, the expert seems to be shaking up all trades. Just be careful that nothing gets "worsened instead of improved" everywhere – experienced this live with an expert who quoted a lot of DIN standards and was not very pragmatic in some matters.

How am I supposed to "be careful" there? It has always been recommended everywhere to involve an independent expert especially with the general contractor (GU) construction, who is not connected to the GU. If he now tells me the insulation is not correct and can prove that a foil should have been inside and not outside, for example, then I have no choice but to accept that. What else would I need the man for? He says that if a digger hits it once, the insulation is broken. And that DIN standards have their justification and cannot simply be deviated from.

Regarding the escape route, I found the following in the building application.



Interesting that for the fixed window element in the dressing room, the 2.01 m is explicitly declared as finished floor level, whereas this is not the case for the three doors. If there are differences here, it will probably not look the same visually in the end, or am I mistaken? That was how the whole thing was visualized after all.

Hey, I would also tend to trust the expert and the DIN standards. It’s unfortunate that there is so much. Maybe the expert should come more frequently? We have a total of 7 appointments (I think) and the meetings are each with the site manager, the expert, and sometimes also with the tradespeople. There were quite a few things, but these were always politely noted by our site management. Afterwards, she takes care of the repairs. For us, there were: missing loops on the outdoor water taps, broken roof tiles, missing shimming of the window sills, incorrect parapet height in the bedroom, sealing at a low terrace door not done according to DIN. This was noted and repaired without any complaints. I think it’s "normal" that some things don’t go perfectly. I would talk to the expert and then politely urge the general contractor to fix what needs to be fixed. Our parapet height, for example, is still incorrect. But since the window including the roller shutter was already there, the expert said it doesn’t make sense to fuss over those few centimeters now. That was okay for us.

Maybe the inspector should come more frequently?

He will be back in two weeks, before the plaster and screed are applied. I also told him that I am willing to hire him more frequently if that makes sense. He said the first inspection was so good that he is now surprised himself.