Relocate, Renovate & Relax!

Sometimes it can be a difficult proposition to consider paying hard earned cash for machinery to come along and demolish a house which is in perfectly good condition, only to go ahead and develop the land into more perfectly good houses. Although in this case it's not all bad.

As you can see from the photo above, I've managed to salvage some of what is left of the existing residence. In many cases you'll find it isn’t unusual to find additional dwellings detached from the main house which are purposely placed to accommodate other family members or tenants, etc. I've decided instead of spending money to have it knocked down, I will spend money in transporting it and revamping it into a holiday home. In this case, "We're going to Bonnie Doon" - for those of you who recall the famous flick, 'The Castle'.

Yes! That's right, we're relocating this portable home to a Caravan Park right on the lake which is now 100% full again. For those of you who aren't aware, Bonnie Doon (The Lake) was less than 5% full and now that the drought is over, we saw them open the flood gates at Lake Eildon only three weeks ago because there was too much water!
So I see that as a fantastic opportunity... people always want to reside near the water. It promotes sales, increases value, and enhances the scenery! There's no doubt about it.

I'm hoping to have this project completed before Christmas but there are a few contingencies I must comply with first. Of course, transporting something this big requires permits and oversize crews to assist with delivery. Because this is the first time I am relocating anything, I have contracted a professional to help me along the way. His name is Tony from Home Smart House Removers in Victoria.

As you can see, the unit is sitting on stumps. For us to be able to transport it we need to get it onto the back of the truck. The unit is seven metres in length, six metres wide, and four metres high. Unfortunately, to transport the dwelling it must be less than five metres wide which forces me to separate the deck at the front. This is okay because I plan to construct a brand new one. We also need to detach the dwelling from the stumps. This is done by jacking the unit up and knocking out the stumps. Then the truck floating the unit can reverse underneath it for easy removal.

Before this occurs I have decided to manufacture a steel sub floor underneath the joists and bearers. This will become essential for the delivery into the Caravan Park and future relocation. The steel sub floor will basically act as a stand-alone foundation for the unit accompanied by adjustable stumps on either side.

It does become confusing at the destination because council authorities and varying states will have different enforcement rules when it comes to removable and permanent fixtures. If you have a similar project in mind then I advise you to contact the appropriate council prior to commencing any work. They will be able to provide you with the correct procedures specific to your case. In this case I am required to apply for a planning permit along with a building permit due to the ideas I have in mind.

For a project like this I have simply contracted an architect that specialises in AutoCad drawings to design some sketches to submit with my planning application. I can recommend some great contractors on sites like ODesk.com and Freelancer.com to complete similar work rather than paying a premium price for a local draftsman.

I will continue to post photos and my architectural drawings as the project moves along and, if you have any questions or queries, please feel free to contact me.

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