Inspection Chamber (IC) relocation

[renomon 0]

Is it compulsory now for each terrace to have their standalone own IC? According to our contractor, for reconstruction, it is compulsory. Anyone did, can advise the cost? Coz we were given a rather high quote due to the various test to pass ie low pressure water test, water tightness test etc. Looking for 2nd opinion on contractor who can do this and cost. Asked if can extend from neighbour's house, which is current situation, but not allowed on a reconstruction project. Any ideas to avoid, pls share too.

[snoozee 98]

1 hour ago, renomon said:

Is it compulsory now for each terrace to have their standalone own IC? According to our contractor, for reconstruction, it is compulsory. Anyone did, can advise the cost? Coz we were given a rather high quote due to the various test to pass ie low pressure water test, water tightness test etc. Looking for 2nd opinion on contractor who can do this and cost. Asked if can extend from neighbour's house, which is current situation, but not allowed on a reconstruction project. Any ideas to avoid, pls share too.

from PUB's code of practice,

"All new developments shall be served by an internal sanitary plumbing and drainage system. This internal sanitary plumbing and drainage system shall be connected to public sewers by an internal drain-line maintained by the owner or occupier of the development "

since your neighbour's IC is not public, you can't connect to theirs.

how "high" is the quote given by your contractor?

all new sewerage works must be designed and tested properly as mandated by PUB. you won't want the case where the sewerage backflows and floods your IC and then leaks into your house right? if you are going to save money and use your neighbour's sewer line, if the flooding occurs from your neighbor and goes into your house from the shared IC, are you going to sue your neighbor for damages?

I guess the only way for you to avoid doing this is to not do a reconstruction of your house.

I would say count yourself lucky that you bought this house instead of your neighbour's house. Cos if you had bought your neighbour's house, you will still have to maintain the sewer connection for this particular house until the house is redeveloped.

[renomon 0]

 

8 hours ago, snoozee said:

I guess the only way for you to avoid doing this is to not do a reconstruction of your house.

 

many thanks Snoozee for your prompt reply, which gave better insights. Yea, your reply is like that of PUB. Any idea what sort of market rate to do up such IC? Unfortunately, its not part of my reconstruction costs and a separate fee just IC alone would be $35K. ? 

Edited March 5, 2019 by renomon

[snoozee 98]

26 minutes ago, renomon said:

 

many thanks Snoozee for your prompt reply, which gave better insights. Yea, your reply is like that of PUB. Any idea what sort of market rate to do up such IC? Unfortunately, its not part of my reconstruction costs and would be a separate fee just IC alone would be $35K. ? 

for construction projects, there will always be items which weren't budgeted for popping up especially if you are dealing with old houses. personally, I was hit with a 20k plus cost for asbestos removal for my own project as this wasn't discovered until we started planning for the demolition. so we just have to find elsewhere to cut cost to stay within the budget.

for your project, was there already a plumbing/sanitary item as part of your reconstruction quotation? if there isn't, then you need to check if the 35k consists of all other items like

1. laying new sanitary pipes for your house to connect to this IC
2. connection of this new IC to the public sewer
3. CCTV recording and submission for pre/post sewer works
4. if the public sewer is within your land lot, is there any RC trench work done to protect this sewer line

item 3 isn't expensive, maybe about 2k plus. but the rest of the items requires plenty of excavation works which is costly as it means digging up the ground, laying the pipes and then covering up the ground again. item 4 especially is expensive.

yes, the 35k may seem expensive just for an IC. but if all the other relevant work is put into context, the cost may seem fair. cos besides the actual construction work of building the IC, someone needs to design the new sanitary layout for your house and submit to PUB for approval. then the licensed plumber will need to certify that the works done are according to regulations and put his name in the certification. these professionals will not be doing the work for you for free.

[renomon 0]

Once again, thank you. Appreciate your diverse insight. Will check with contractor on those various points. I believe the public sewer is not within my land lot but nearby at the back of the house. If RC trench work is not required, you gather how much item 4 would be?   

[snoozee 98]

if the public sewer is not within your land (LUCKY YOU), then there's no need for any RC trench so item 4 is out and the 35k would most likely be for the first 3 items and the profession fees.

 

[yoongf 11]

Why cant reuse existing sewer connection?

 

if its a terr hse, there shd be an existing line running across the entire backyard of the whole row of terr house. 

[snoozee 98]

53 minutes ago, yoongf said:

Why cant reuse existing sewer connection?

 

if its a terr hse, there shd be an existing line running across the entire backyard of the whole row of terr house. 

if I'm not wrong, the IC in his house is connected to his neighbour's house's IC which is then connected to the sewer. so PUB wants him to build his own sewer connection from a new IC just for his house.

also not all old houses have the public sewer running through their back yard. for my house, I have the public sewer running through my back yard. but the row of neighbors behind me does not has any public sewer and their IC is connected to the public sewer running through the row of houses on the same side as me.

[yoongf 11]

Opps, just read the FAQ on used water. Last time can, now cannot. Furthermore, its reconstruction. 

 

Singlelandedpremisesrefertolandedpremisesorproposednewlandeddevelopments, which includes detached, semi-detached or terraced house/shop/factory on single or subdivided lots. If there are multiple lots within a site, each lot shall have individual and separate sanitary drain-line connection directly to the public sewer or public manhole within the road reserve. As above, new sewers that serve more than one lot (e.g. terrace houses) shall be constructed within the road reserve.

[Olivoil 0]

Thanks for sharing with us this information. Now I will be more attentive. Moreover, I bought a house a year ago but before buying, I took Building Inspections Perth to control the houses which I preferred because they think rationally not sentimentally like me. Their team controlled all 3 houses, and only one passed over their inspection which means that I didn't need to invest a lot in the house. If you don't know anything about houses and you want to buy one, call them and their team will help you.