5 Most Frustrating Mistakes in House Construction

Building without a project, not taking into account soil characteristics, and buying construction materials of questionable quality just to save money – our expert and director of construction at company "Master", Bogdan Fedorchenko, lists the key mistakes that can be made when building a country house.

Bogdan Fedorchenko is an expert and director of construction at company "Master", specializing in building private homes. 1. Building Without a Project People often refuse to develop project documentation just to save money, and literally draw the plan of their future house in a notebook. Then they hire a crew, build – and then wonder why cracks appear in walls, the house is hard to heat up, and problems arise during construction that increase both time and costs.
2. Leaving Builders Unsupervised Put yourself in the shoes of a builder. On one side, you must do everything strictly according to project documentation and construction technology. On the other – do everything as quickly and cheaply as possible.

In general, if you don't supervise workers, the budget will double, and there may not even be rebar in the foundation. The foreman here is not a helper – he is also an executor. Only an independent supervisor – an engineering inspector – can guarantee quality.

3. Building According to Someone Else's Project The structural solutions for a building's foundation are determined by soil type. Sandy or peat, rocky or silty-clay – all these types of soil have different load-bearing capacities. If not taken into account, your house will shift or, in the worst case, you'll have to rebuild it entirely.

4. Making Size Mistakes

Project plans usually specify building dimensions along axes. Axes run through the center of walls, so overall dimensions are larger than axis measurements. Inexperienced crews often confuse these, resulting in foundations and walls being slightly smaller than needed, which causes many issues and misalignments during subsequent work.

5. Falling Victim to Counterfeits The market for fake construction materials grows annually by 18–20 percent. Therefore, when purchasing materials – especially for electrical installations and internal engineering systems – one must be attentive. Low-quality materials are the main cause of leaks and fires in homes. Our advice: prefer large suppliers with a history and reputation, and always verify that materials have certificates. Read also:

• Myths about design spread by builders
  
• A cottage in the Pyrenees: modern addition to an old foundation
  
• Which house is better to build: 10 projects