Electrical and Lighting Appointment

The electrical and lighting appointment is at the Clipsal Powerhouse at Macquarie Park. Basically, this is when you decide where the power outlets and the lights (and light switches) go. You'll also need to decide what type and how many you want to install.

Prior to the meeting, Clipsal posted me a list of the standard inclusions provided by my builder, a list of upgrade options and their prices, the 92-page Essential Checklist magazine showcasing their product range, and an empty floor plan for me to fill in. I have no idea how many powerpoints I need in a room, batten holders or downlights, how many lights in the kitchen, where to install the phone/data/TV points, etc. Spent a few days reading up on the forums to see what others are doing.

Anyway, these are my standard inclusions:

• 15 batten holders
• 15 light switches
• 2 light circuits
• 2 power circuits
• 7 single-socket power points
• 14 two-socket power points
• 1 outdoor single-socket power point
• 5 TV points
• 1 pay TV point
• 5 phone sockets
• 3 data sockets
• 2 heat/fan/light lamps
• 2 smoke detectors
• 1 Hills alarm system
• 1 meter box
• power points for the cooktop, rangehood, dishwasher, microwave oven, fridge, alarm system, garage door, hot water unit, washing machine, and NBN hub

On top of these, I added the following variations:

• 2 batten holders
• 4 11w LED downlights for the living room
• 5 15w LED downlights for the kitchen
• 9 two-socket power points

For an additional $1,521.


Based on Clipsal's recommendation and from what I've read from the forums, I've added extra power points on every room. The more the merrier. External light points for the patio and alfresco area, batten holders (under eaves) outside the garage and the living room - to be converted into floodlights. Batten holders along the length of the hallway with a special note to the builder that these are for future downlights. As such, the builder should not fix them to the timber trusses. Three-way switches so the hallway lights can be controlled via the front door, the garage door, or the kitchen area. For the main bedroom and kitchen area, TV point and power point located 1.6m above the ground for wall-mounted TVs. The only downside if that if you don't install the TVs immediately, those TV/power points become an eyesore. My brother's suggestion is to hang some paintings over them. Power point and phone point in kitchen and living areas for cordless phones. Power point, data, and TV point for the Internet-enabled TV in the living room. Bench-height power point on the kitchen island bench. Good thing I didn't go for waterfall edge, or this won't work. I originally wanted a 15A power point in the garage, but Clipsal is charging me $300+ for it. No thanks.

Colour and Kitchen Selection

The appointment for colour and kitchen selection is at the Fowler Colour Studio in Wetherill Park. My brother already had his at Clarendon last week. Took him the whole day to go through all of the selection. (Lunch provided.) He was saying that there were so many options and upgrades. For every item, they have to go through the pros and cons and the costs.

In my case, we finished everything in half a day - bricks, roofing, gutter, fascia, downpipe, windows, garage, water tank, driveway, doors, door handles, carpet, kitchen layout, kitchen appliances, bath/shower/toilet/laundry selections, etc. The reason we finished relatively quick is because I have already decided on most of the colours prior to the appointment, based on my brother's suggestion. Also, Fowler doesn't offer as many options and upgrades as Clarendon. I mean, they do, but for some reason they don't proactively offer them to their customers. If you don't ask for it, you don't get it. You simply get the standard inclusions.

Personally, I don't care about the fancy bricks, the premium roof tiles, or the designer bath and vanity. I'm more interested in having a cold water point for the fridge, external gas point to the alfresco area, option for skylights and whirly birds, and converting the wardrobe hinged doors to sliding. These turned out to be more expensive than I expected, so the only option I selected is the sliding wardrobe doors for an extra $550.

For reference, here are my selections:

Austral Bricks - Everyday Life Range - Engage
Off-white mortar
Flush mortar joints

Bristile Concrete Roof Tile - Designer Range - Magnum

Colorbond Gutters - Contemporary Range - Monument

Colorbond Fascia and Downpipes and Garage Door - Contemporary Range - Surfmist

Trend Window Frames - Standard Colour Range - Anodic Off White

Cladding/Pergola/Timber Post - Taubmans Manhattan

Moroka Finish - Taubmans Coffee Cake

Driveway - DT Bluestone with Flagstone stencil

Front Door - Corinthian Urban Primed PURB 2

Wardrobe and Internal Doors - Corinthian Flush Door

Front Doorset - Gainsbourough Tri-Lock Entry Set

Internal Doorset - Liana 105LIASC

Garage Door - Gliderol Panel Glide - Tuscan Glide with centre lift T-handle lock

Crisp White ceilings and cornice and White Pearl for everything else (internal walls, door frames, balusters and handrails, skirting and architrave).

 

As for the kitchen selection, the layout and the choice of appliances and sink/basin type is pretty much standard:

• Venini GEH9011 stainless steel 900mm wall canopy range hood
• Venini VO95S stainless steel 900mm multi-function fan-forced oven - 5 functions
• Venini VGH90 stainless steel 900mm gas cooktop with wok, enamel trivets
• Venini VDW60S stainless steel 600mm electronic dishwasher - 7 programs, 12 place settings
• Venini GEM252TK stainless stell 25 litre microwave with grill and trim kit
• Everhard Wattle semi-recessed basin for the bathroom
• Everhard Desert Rose above counter basin for the ensuite

For the kitchen and bathroom benchtops, it's Caesarstone Ice Snow, while the cupboard doors are Formica Cinnamon Ash.