G.J. Gardner Homes

Couldn't ask for a better builder for our first home.I was given everything I was promised. quality workmanship,excellent customer service.SPECIAL THANKS to new home consultant kayla Smith and our supervisor daniel carrol for looking after us.communication with daniel was excellent.very satisfied . we'll definitely go with iian harris if we decided to build another home in future.. Thank you gj gardner homes ..

The process of building with GJ Gardner Wodonga was fantastic from start to finish. The quality of service throughout from Sales with Bruce and right through the build under Supervisor Grant was exceptional. The end product is even better than we imagined and we are thrilled with the quality of the build. We highly recommend building with Gj Gardner Wodonga and can't thank them enough for all they have done.

Very happy with new house from GJ Gardner Wodonga. They had a large number of plans to choose from. They came recommended and didn’t disappoint. There is a quality finish throughout. For someone who hadn’t built a new house before they made the whole process from start to finish very easy. I was kept informed each week as to what was happening. I changed a few items along the way and there was never a problem doing so. Would recommended them to other people looking to build.

From the very beginning in getting our ideas down in a plan and right through to the final finished home, GJ Gardner Swan Hill have made building our dream home very easy. Emily, Bronwyn and Darren have all been amazing in helping create the design we wanted, with colours that suited and excellent communication and updates throughout the whole build. We would highly recommend GJ Gardner to any of our friends and family who are looking to build a quality built home.

From start to finish the workmanship was brilliant. We were always kept informed at each stage, any queries they met with us on site and dealt with straight away. Customer service and follow up was excellent. There were no major faults just very minor ones Congratulations to Andrew Womersley and his great team of subcontractors and office staff of Warrnambool Victoria. Would highly recommend them to anyone considering building in the future.

We are very happy with our house from GJ Gardner Homes Swan Hill, it was a very quick build, no fuss with any questions, exceptionally helpful throughout the process and just a quality finish that we were after! We will be building again with Darren and Bronwyn at GJ Gardner Swan Hill and look forward to another smooth process like this one!

We were brand new to the house building experience, so relied on online research and hours upon hours with builders and display homes. We chose GJ Gardner South West after meeting with Lance and and realising they could customise the design exactly as we wanted. We also loved the complete package they were able to offer us. While other builders leave out items like flooring, blinds, landscaping, Lance gave us a complete package and on moving day, the house was completely finished. Together we worked out the details of the build and now, after completing the whole experience, I can say they delivered what they promised - a quality build. The whole team there were so easy to communicate with, always available and willing to work things out.
Sure there were a few hiccups along the way, but the team kept communicating through them. After we moved in, we had a couple of small issues we picked up. Lance sent someone around within 24 hours and it was fixed! We are happy to now be living in a beautiful house that suits our family perfectly.

Starting from the beginning with GJ Finance with Rachel was an absolute pleasure. As first home buyers the whole process becomes very daunting and looking to spend soo much money Rachel made us feel comfortable from the get go. Once all that was done we found ourselves sitting with Kayla. What else can we say about Kayla other than absolutely amazing service and always had our best interests and made the whole process a breeze. Kayla went above and beyond to help us redesign the rosewood 225 into our dream home. from moving the laundry from one end to another to adding our own flair.
Once the building started we again felt instantly comfortable with Carl our SS. Carl understood where we were at and finding out your going to have a baby the same time the house starts puts a lot of stress on everyone. Carl always kept up us to date and was always honest.
Can't thank the GJ team from Springfield/Ripley enough for making our first home a dream come true!!

My husband and I have been so pleased to have GJ Gardner as our builders. They helped us navigate through the many road blocks we experienced at Council and Grant was instrumental in helping us through these difficulties. We were able to move into our home one month earlier than expected, which was such a bonus for us as we were 70 year old couch surfers!
Daisy, Tyler, Grant and Marc (in no particular order) were wonderful, guiding us through various stages of the build and advising us on our many options such as where to place shower fittings etc.
We felt so special on the day of handover where Horst and the team greeted us with a big red bow on the door and the many various gifts for us to enjoy. Now being in our home for nearly 3 weeks, we have found the workmanship to be of very high standard and whilst we had some minor issues after we moved in, we gave Tyler a call and she was fantastic in resolving it within days. We would not hesitate in recommending GJ Gardner Homes in Brookvale to friends and family. We can now retire in our new home in the street we’ve always loved.

I am very please to say that I had an ideal building experience with G. J. Gardner homes North and Bayside. From the sales person, Tony Lockland at North Lakes display village, to Amy Hage, the administration guru, Zac our payment and other contact person in the office, to Kevin Burrows the site supervisor, they all treated a single female building for the first time, with respect and made my experience a very personable one. Never did I ever feel that I wasn't their number one priority. They listened to my requests for some changes in the build, discussed options for these changes and carried out the work with perfection and courtesy. Kevin was amazing as the Site Supervisor and always made himself available should I need clarification or a walk through during the build. I believe with all businesses, whether they are building houses, cars, computers etc it comes down to the people within the business, and from my experience I can honestly say that the team I worked with at G. J. Gardner Homes Northside have delivered as promised. I would highly recommend anybody considering building a new home to contact Tony Lockland.

Being our first home, we did a lot of research for a building company, and we found GJ Gardner to have the best reviews. Our experience with GJ Gardner has been exceptional from the beginning. They kept us up to date and informed throughout the build and even accommodated some additional requests. Renee was fantastic and made the administration a breeze, and gave some great help and advice when it came to choosing our finishes. Any questions we had were always answered promptly. Our sight manager, Chris, was extremely knowledgeable and manged our build meticulously, allowing us to move into our new home well before the scheduled finish date, even with our additional requests. He communicated with us regularly and ensured the standard of work was high quality. We are very happy with our new house and a very big thank you to Renee, Chris and Matt. We will definitely recommend GJ Gardner!!

As a first home owner/builder and single-income earner/parent, the team at GJ Gardners Ballarat enabled my dream to come true. Overall, I am extremely satisfied by the entire building process provided by GJ Gardners Ballarat. Right from the start, the team at Gj Gardners Ballarat carefully explained each step, responded and accommodated by non-negotiables, and provided exceptional support.

In particular, Gina, Lisa, Sarah, Brianna, and Matt were exceptional with the support and advice they provided. Gina is the perfect first point-of-call of the team. She is warm and welcoming and with knowledge of the build process, listens and responds effectively to blue-sky-mining discussions. Lisa is a wonderful front-on-house person, and face of the team. She always greeted me with a smile and provided specialised guidance. Sarah and Brianna seamlessly handled all financial components of the build. Matt is a skilled site manager, who was considerate and consistent with progress reports and negotiated in a timely manner any issues that arose. I am very pleased with the whole experience provided by the team.

I was recommended Gj Gardners Ballarat by a friend who built a custom home and we constantly talk about how exceptional the building process has been. The standard inclusions are far above minimum standard, they are stylish and fit with any model of home. A few minor additions and upgrades topped off the look and functionality of my home. The upgraded goose neck mixer, raised ceiling heights, and crome trim for tiles are talking points, so are the standard flooring, arcs and skirts, and layout of the home (modified Stonehaven).

If you are thinking of building, I would strongly recommend you give the team at GJ Gardners Ballarat a call.

Not many positives from this experience. What went right is a much shorter list.

"Painting" not completed to any type of satisfactory level, Yet told to my face that there was "Nothing wrong with the painting" by the franchisee... You can see where the Cornices and skirting have been "Cut in". The entire roof you can see patches where the painting has not been done correctly. Even the head painter told me when he came to fix it that "Anyone" could see the job was not done properly
Plaster from patching left on the walls, and painted over without being sanded back to being flush, Yet told "nothing wrong with that".
Eves have only been given 1 coat of paint. Down pipes only "Half" painted.
25-30mm gaps under all doors (Ontop of floor coverings), told this is within "Tolerance".
Doors Warping to a point where it cannot be closed, without slamming and excessive force being used, again this we were told "would not be fixed, as it was within tolerance".
Holes left in the concrete slab, and not filled.
We were told by the "Franchisee" that a 3rd party building Defect report cannot be taken seriously....
The 3rd party doing the defect had not seen a house "completed" so poorly before.
Shower installed on an angle, was not square.
Bath tub chipped to pieces Franchisee did not want to replace, despite being told that it was damaged far too much to be repaired for a second time (by the glazing company).
Air-conditioning unit installed without external rubber boot to cover the hole in the wall where the pipes enter the house. Caused a rodent problem, that is now being ignored by the builder..

This is a real "Display House" of the quality work that GJ Gardner ACT produce.
I tell everyone that asks, who we built with, and they also get a walk through, to see the "quality" for themselves. Alot of people who had GJ Gardner on the list to build with, have been turned off by this.

Even your new trades who are coming to do the repairs, that should have been rectified prior to handover, are surprised at the poor quality and "workmanship" with this house.

A written contract does not seem to be important to the ACT Office. Despite verbal instructions and the contract specifically stating that "All excess soil removed from site cut MUST be stockpiled on site for later use or removal by the owner" Excess dirt was removed without my consultation and visibly seeing what was being taken away. I was later charges $2000 for this and told "Bad luck". = Not sure how this is legit? and trying to get an answer from Headoffice about this is like extracting teeth.

Under all vanities were left with gaps, where they should have been filled in with silicone = Self rectification.
Insulation thrown everywhere by aircon installers, and not reinstalled correctly.

I think it says something when this office has gone through 4admin staff and a foreman in a year and half.

Would not recommend GJ Garnder Homes ACT to anyone!

GJ Gardner took the hard work out of building a house for us!
They managed the build efficiently. Their wisdom and expertise meant the build progressed smoothly and quickly.
From beginning to end they were accommodating, friendly and happy to help. We felt included in the process every step of the way and now we have a beautiful home to enjoy with our ever-growing family.
Thanks GJ Gardner (Northern Beaches)

I honestly have no words to express my happiness and satisfaction with my build with GJ gardners! From the point of choosing design with Ros, then signing contract, choosing colours with Carla and then getting best of the bests Scott as our site supervisor! It just sounded like a wish come true! Ros did all of her best to cater design which suited our lifestyle the best!
Scott is not just a site supervisor, he worked with us like a person who understood how important every little step was, he has always been there, whenever needed.
Thank you so much everyone who has done everything behind the scenes to build our first home.
I recommend GJ Gardner homes to each and everyone out there. You can trust them with your closed eyes.

As a single female, the thought of building a new home on my own was a daunting thought.
I initially engaged a different medium sized building company, but due to inconsistent contact with them over countless weeks, ended my experience.
A good friend of mine recommended that I call G J Gardner Homes North and Redlands as they had previously had a great experience building with them. I spoke to the Sales Manager Martin Donovan who put me in touch with Tony Lockland, a new Home Sales Consultant at their Northlakes display home. Tony spent a number of weeks working through my requirements in a very professional and seamless manor. He always had a smile and nothing was too much trouble.
At contract signing I met Amy Hage, the administrator assigned to me. She went above and beyond for me during council approval and all my consultations, ensuring I was happy at every stage.
From the first meeting I had with my site supervisor, Kevin Burrows, I knew I was in good hands. He was informative, detailed and professional at all times. During the build we had a few minor speed bumps but Kevin handled them swiftly and effortlessly.
In summary I would highly recommend G J Gardners North & Redlands to any of my friends and family. The complete process has been an enjoyable experience.

GJ Gardner Ballarat have close to a floorless building system and back up what they promise. The quality of the build is very good and overall workmanship of a high quality. The Supervisor (Adrian) was great to deal with and nothing was too difficult. All staff displayed superior customer service skills and back up support. Would highly recommend GJ Garnder, Ballarat to anyone looking to build.

I never built a house before and i had been living in high rise buildings so building a house was something i had no idea of. I am glad i found GJ, which was actually recommended by my colleague. There were some hiccup due to weather and other unforesseable issues so my house was a tiny bit delayed. But what impressed me the most was the aftersale service. They are very accountable, and rectify problems very quickly if there is any. Director Ludek himself is awesome, he takes care of a lot of things himself, he would come after hours to check on the problems, and he responds quickly to save me from worrying from anything. They do not wash their hands off after they handed me the keys, i feel that they actually care about my house as much as i do. Every staff has been really nice, and has been really looking after me. Its been more than 5 months since i got the keys and i can still always ask them if there is any question or problem and they always help me!

From the very start of our journey to build a new home GJ Gardner’s service was second to none.
We had a very tight time line to work with and the fantastic management of our project from the GJ team meant that we able take the keys with a couple of days to spare.
Throughout the build GJ were able to ensure a very high standard form all the contractors involved. We had a couple of minor issues after completion and GJ were more than helpful and followed up on every detail

I would recommend to any to build with GJ Gardner homes

We built with GJ Gardner homes Geelong in 2016. Should have realised there would be problems from the start as the draftsman continually made errors and the sales staff were required to continuously amend the plans by hand. The window specifications and locations were incorrect and constantly being changed. This led to us having to download the A&L Product Catalogue and amend the window specifications accordingly with the assistance of the sales staff. Through the initial design process we opted for hydronic slab heating and louvre windows to maximise energy efficiency with heating and cooling. This is where the fun really began. The day before the house slab was to be poured we had noticed the hydronic heating manifold was in the wrong location and had to rectified before the concrete was poured. Once the house frame was erected I visited the site to inspect the progress and noticed two walls had been erected in the wrong location. The carpenter advised me this was an easy fix and it was, but we had a "Do not mark or damage clause" in relation to the slab as we were to have an exposed concrete floor. This resulted in large holes in the floor surface as a result of the nails being pulled from the floor to enable the walls to be relocated to the correct locations. Further to this, had this not been detected, it would have caused major issues later on to the entry linen cupboard, study, kitchen and laundry. The windows in the minor bedrooms and bathroom wing of the house were fixed at a height of 2100mm whilst all other windows and doors throughout the house were at 2340mm height. We were then hit with a variation fee and labour costs for a carpenter to rectify this issue. The A&L windows where delivered to site with all but three being damaged from scratches in the powder coat finish to gouges and dents in the framework and badly dented timber reveals. I noticed on delivery of the windows that they had all been stacked flat on top of each other on a flat bed truck and not on a truck with an A frame designed for window deliveries. When this was pointed out to GJ Gardner and I later received a call from management of A&L windows and found myself being interrogated and had to prove that the windows were delivered incorrectly and had to justify myself. I felt I was being accused of lying. This created a 6 week delay in the build. A&L Windows had offered to repair some of the windows by touching up the paint finish by brush/hand. I refused this option as being in a coastal area I believe the powder coating was comprised and touching them up by hand would not suffice. All but 3 windows had to be either replaced or repaired. As our house was a custom build it consisted of a combination of light weight cladding products consisting of James Hardie Axon cladding, Scyon Weather Boards and brick veneer. We have a combination of large fixed panel windows, louvre windows and standard awning windows. GJ Gardner and the draftsman failed to accommodate the various building products and windows throughout the planning and design process. Window reveals to be fitted into external walls utilising light weight construction materials such as James Hardie products require a smaller reveal, whilst windows fitted into brick veneer walls have larger reveals. This then led to further delays as GJ Gardner were unsure as to how to fit the louvre windows into the walls utilising the light weight cladding. It was up to us to come up with a solution and after considerable consultation, these windows were boxed/framed utilising Structural Primed Radiata Pine. GJ Gardner decided to rip down the remaining windows. Prior to installing these windows, the carpenter ripped the reveals down using a circular saw. This has left a poor finish on the window reveals with steps on the corners as they weren't cut true and square. Once the windows fittedwere to the frame, the brickwork commenced. A parraparap wall was constructed above the garage roller door and I noticed that it was extremely low. When questioning the brick layers, I was advised that it was a standard 2100mm high as per our house plans. This was very odd as the front door was at 2340mm high and made the front façade look out of proportion. I also noticed there were two gutter overflows on the front feature wall of our house. One being in the fixed rain head and the other being a hole drilled through the brick work. I questioned GJ Gardner as to the necessity and requirement for two overflows within 550mm of each other on the front feature wall, near the front door. I was advised this was required to comply with plumbing codes. After much discussions with GJ Gardner the paraparap wall above the garage roller door was pulled down and reconstructed to a height of 2340 to correlate with the front façade, but this was at a cost of $2000 to me. During this process the brick layer had removed the overflow from the brick work, only to be instructed it was to be replaced. When this brick was replaced it was ill fitting and an eyesore. The mortar joints were required to be flush with the brick work, but when the brick was relaced, it appeared as though the mortar around this brick had been raked out with a finger ant the actual brick protruded forward of the surrounding bricks. It was replaced twice and still remains that way today. Once the house got to lock up stage we noticed numerous large stains on the bedroom floor. The brick layers had been using the master bedroom as their lunch room and we observed empty tuna cans, a sandwich maker and other rubbish on the floor. We have been left with an exposed concrete floor with large stains that we are unable to remove and are extremely unsightly. This was brought to the attention of GJ Gardner and we were advised the brick layers had been spoken to about this exact situation on previous job sites, but no action was taken or offered to rectify the matter. Just prior to completion of the build we noticed that one of the main hydronic heating pipes was exposed under the laundry door, the brick work had been removed from this area and one of the main hydronic pipes was exposed on the outer edge of the house slab. We were advised the pipe had been ruptured and it was now rerouted up the external wall from the boiler unit, through the ceiling and down an internal wall back to the manifold. This has now left the fitting of the external boiler unit as an unsightly mess as there is PVC capping fixed to the brick wall, leading up into the eaves and into the roof cavity. Inside were the pipe was cut from the slab the concrete had to be filled. Once the James Hardie Axon cladding had been installed we then noticed that an unsightly base board with metal capping had been installed. We questioned why it was used as we were building a modern and contemporary home only to be rudely advised that it was to meet building codes as the cladding had to be 50mm from any ground surface. We have inspected numerous other houses built in our area by other major builders that use James Hardie Axon cladding and none have used a base board. We believe this is an old fashion building system that was utilised in days of weatherboard homes. Prior to final inspection of the property we observed numerous faults. The front door was not double glazed and tinted and laundry door was not double glazed as per the building plans. We then had further conflict with A&L windows, being advised the front door could not support double glazing because of it's size. This then led to an onsite meeting where A&L Windows denied any such statement. This issue was eventually rectified with the replacement of correct glazing. We also notice that there were large bows in the entry hall walls. During the build process, we had several on site meetings with the construction manager to address issues. At one time, I believe it was during the A&L Windows issue, I advised this needed to be rectified ASAP as it was causing us financial hardship, paying high rent prices and a mortgage at the same time. I was bluntly reminded that the contract allowed them a further 4 months until completion and that they could use every minute of that time. I felt I was threatened by this remark and through other remarks and statements I was virtually advised to back off. Had he followed through with this threat, I may not have been able to see the build through to its completion as it had placed additional costs of $1,000's to an already stretched budget. On the 13th of May, 2016 I received the keys to our new house. I had a meeting at the Geelong GJ Gardener Office with the construction Manager and felt like I had walked into a school yard fight. He was aggressive and rude towards me. He called me into his office told me to sit in a chair. He then sat on the opposite side of the desk with his arms folded in an aggressive manner and stated "Have you got something to say to me". I had the Australian Building Standards thrown across the desk towards me. During the unpleasant meeting, I was told had I not kept such a close eye on the build that the issues would have been rectified prior to completion. I questioned, "How can you fix a heating manifold in the wrong location and walls in the wrong location after the build is completed?" To rectify the heating manifold they would have had to jack hammer the slab and completely relocate the manifold, so I believe they were lucky that I had been observant. The windows and garage doors being at the wrong height would have required extensive demolishing and rebuilding and more than likely, I would have burdened the costs. After this humiliating meeting and taking possession of our keys we finally moved in only to find many more faults. Moving into our new house was not a joyous occasion as you would expect. The entire build process was frustrating and unpleasant. We have built new homes in the past and never experienced anything like this. On our first night in our new home we noticed all downpipes fitted on the cladding walls were making a loud dripping sound. After investigation it was revealed that the downpipes were constructed with a bend in the lower section to facilitate the protruding baseboard causing the rain or even dew to make this constant dripping sound. This took considerable negotiations for action to be taken which led to a less than a satisfactory resolution. The down pipes have been removed so many times which has resulted in multiple fixing holes, some of which are no longer capable of supporting the fixings. We also noticed that two of our large fixed panel windows where not tinted as per the building plans. There were also faults with the front door. The door is fitted with a Multiple Locking System which allows for an additional Dead Bolt at top and bottom to be engaged when the door is locked. This is activated by lifting the handle once the door is locked. However, due to the door being misaligned and poorly fitted, to activate this Multiple Locking System, you need to push hard on the lower frame of the door with your foot, whilst pushing on the upper frame with your hand and then trying to push hard and inwards on the door handle whislt trying to turn it in an upwards direction. There was also an imperfection in the glass of the door. There was a visible mark at about eye height, between the double glazing and as a result unable to be cleaned. During a lengthy period of lodging complaints and extreme frustration I was advised that "if I had ordered an paid for tinted double glazed windows, I would have received them". It took approximately 9 months for someone to acknowledge that the windows where not in fact tinted and they were finally replaced. The front door glazing was also relaced. During the installation of the replacement glazing, I heard the installers questioning each other as to how the windows were to be correctly fitted. After the installation of the replacement glazing, the glass was left very unclean. When the front door was cleaned, we noticed the replacement glazing had about 5-6 marks and scratches on both the inside and outside of the glass. This glazing was again replaced, however the locking system remains unsatisfactory and the fitment of the glazing has left internal frame work exposed to the outside of the door. Since the replacement of the glazing to the large fixed panel windows we have noticed extreme temperatures radiating through the glass. The glass is extremely hot on mild temperature days on the inside, but cool on the outside, yet an adjacent window only about 900 mm from this window is cool to the touch. This window is of the same construction, being tinted and double glazed. We have investigated this situation and made enquries with other window manufacturers. As a result, we believe the windows have been incorrectly installed. This was brought to the attention of GJ Gardner only to find the response being, the Australian Glazing Standards forwarded to me. This issue continues to this date. I have also noticed that the mortar on the brick work is very soft and crumbly. I can run my finger tip along the mortar joints and find the mortar falls out. On the east side of the house it is extremely poor. On the lower 2-3 rows of bricks, the mortar appears to swell, then crumble and fall out, The original mortar was a flush finish, however some areas has the mortar joint about 10-15 mm deep. There appears to be constant moisture in the ground along this side of the house, even throughout the summer period. This issue was brought to the attention of GJ Gardener and after much negotiations they offered to seal the mortar and brick work to prevent further deterioration. It has taken until February 2018 for the brick layer to make contact in order to address this issue. In the short time in my new home, I have also noticed the James Hardie Axon cladding has been pulling away from the walls, nails protruding and joints pulling apart. This was also brought to the attention of GJ Gardner. I was advised that it was my fault as I had painted the cladding in a dark colour on the west side of the house, yet this cladding is also fitted to the east side and is showing the same faults. I contacted James Hardie in relation to this matter and was advised this form of cladding was suitable for painting in either a dark or light colour. This issue continues to be unsolved. As we had moved into our new house in May during the cooler period, the hydronic heating was utilised only to be overwhelmed with excessive gas bills. My gas bills varied between $600-$700 per 2 month period. In fact my first gas bill was for a 3 week period and in excess of $300. I questioned this bill with the gas supplier and confirmed the gas meter readings. I was advised I needed to have a gas plumber inspect all the gas fittings as I must have a gas leak to use this amount of gas. I brought this to the attention of GJ Gardner and all gas fittings were inspected and found to be correct. I was then provided with various excuses from, Hydronic Heating is expensive to run, I had the temperature set too high, I was loosing heat through the exposed concrete slab. I had noticed hot and cold spots in the floor and had issues with the boiler unit shutting down and displaying error messages. I then had to contact Bosch directly the address the boiler unit issues. It got to the point that I had to almost shut down the hydronic heating unit and have the family wrap themselves in blankets at night to keep warm. After spending approximately $9,500 on what I believed to be one of the most efficient forms of heating, we were left feeling devastated. After almost 12 months of arguing and begging, the boiler unit was addressed with parts being replaced, one of the thermostats were relocated and portions of the heating zones were rezoned. This then led to a dramatic reduction in my gas bills, but was only after we incurred further $1,000's of unnecessary costs in gas bills. I still believe my gas bills are excessive as the only gas appliances fitted to the house are the hydronic heater and infinity hot water service. I believe this is due to one of the main hydronic pipes being rerouted through the roof cavity and walls. This pipe is now exposed in the roof cavity and not running through the slab where it would been insulated in the concrete, assuring a more constant temperature. As a result the exposed pipe allows the water to cool during the circulation process, causing the boiler unit to work harder to maintain the slab temperature. We also discovered the free standing bath was not secured or siliconed to the floor. When leaning on the bath to clean the tiles, the entire bath tipped up lifting one entire side off the floor, almost causing me personal injury. The vanity basins were also only partially siliconed in, not provided an adequate wet seal. During the colder months, there is excessive condensation and moisture, mainly on the windows to the south side of the house. This has led to us having to constantly clean and treat black mould from the window sills and fly screens. When this was raised with GJ Gardner, we were advised it was the building materials drying out??? We have found the aluminium doors to the front entry and laundry have poorly designed treads. They are not actual treads, but a protrusion in the walk way and are a tripping hazard as many people have discovered. The treads are approximately 50mm high by 100mm wide and there is a narrow raised centre section about 30mm wide, not designed tonstand on or be used as a tread/step. It is like having a piece of 4x2 sitting across the door. It almost appears as though these treads should have been recessed into the slab. I have inspected many other new homes fitted with aluminium external doors and they all have a low profile tread, similar to that of a timber construction. We feel the A&L Windows are of poor and substandard quality. Further to the hydronic slab heating, there are obvious faults that will never be rectified. There is insufficient heating in the ensuite floor. On a cold morning or evening, you have to stand about 400mm back from the vanity as any closer the floor is ice cold. It is obvious the heating coil was not situated near the base of the vanity. We also appear to have constant moisture along the east side of the house. We have become so frustrated and annoyed with the lack of cooperation and inaction by GJ Gardner, that we have had to resort to employing the services of an independent building inspector, again at further cost to us. Upon inspection of our home he has concurred with the faults described. We have been advised not to have the mortar sealed until a written guarantee can be provided. Proof of the fixing method for the Axon cladding was requested. It was also noted that the clad walls were on the border line for being within tolerances as the cladding bowed in and out at the joints. A glazing report was also requested as it was obvious the windows are not fitted correctly. He also questioned the reasoning for the use of base boards under the Axon cladding as he felt it could promote termites/ white ants. The Building Inspection Report was forwarded to GJ Gardner for attention, and surprise, surprise, I have not had a satisfactory response. I forwarded the report directly to the GJ Gardner Manager, got no response. I contacted the Geelong Office and spoke the receptionist. She unable to confirm whether or not the report was received and I was unable to speak to the manager, so I then forwarded a copy directly to her for transmission to the manager. A week later I still hadn't received any reply or acknowledgement, so I again contacted GJ Gardner. I again was unable to speak to the manager, so I left a message and was advised he would contact me. Several days later, the receptionist contacts me and advises the manager has received the report and would contact me after he has had a meeting with the construction manager. Weeks have passed and still I await any official contact or acknowledgement and no closer to achieving any results. This house build has cost me $1,000's and $1,000's more than it should have and I still appear to be no closer to resolving these issues. It has caused us extreme hardships, not only financially, but emotionally and psychologically. We have thought back so many times wishing we had chosen a different builder. Whilst waiting for a response from GJ Gardner, we have had some warmer weather so I decided to investigate the glazing issues further. I obtained a thermometer and recorded some temperature readings. The first day was a mild day, expected top temperature of 22 degrees. I took a screen shot of my weather zone app, showing the current temperature to be 20.9 degrees. At this same time the temperature recorded on the inside of the dining room window was approx. 33 degrees. I then recorded the temperature of the adjacent fixed panel window positioned about 900mm to the left of the large window and found it to be approx. 24.5 degrees. I then recorded the temperature of the louvre windows which are directly adjacent the first large window, fixed within the same frame to the right, and it was approx 24 degrees. I then recorded the temperature on the outside of the large fixed panel window and observed it to be approx. 25.5 degrees in the direct sunlight. These readings clearly indicate that there is something very wrong with these windows. There is one clear and obvious item that stands out. The water marks on the large window are on the lower left corners and on the other windows they are on the lower right corners. It is clear that the large fixed panel window has been fitted incorrectly causing the double glazing to work opposite to what it was designed for. Another sad thing to point out is that the louvre windows recorded a lower temperature than the other fixed panel window. The louvre windows appear to have a better energy efficiency, yet we lost energy rating points on our house build for having them. Several days later I decided to take further temperature readings from other windows, this time from the theatre room window on the east side and the master bedroom on the north side. It was around lunch time and the sun was shining directly on both these windows. A screen shot of my weather zone app showed the expected top temperature to be 27 degrees, with current temperature being 24.6 degrees. I recorded the temperature of the theatre room window to be 24 degrees. This window is a large fixed panel being double glazed, but of clear glass, not tinted. I then recorded the temperature of the master bedroom window and observed it to be 34 degrees. Again there was an obvious difference with the clear glass appearing to be for more efficient than the tinted glass. Again the one noticeable difference is the water markings being on the lower left corner as per the dining window and opposite to all other windows. To a normal person this would appear to be an obvious fix, but unfortunately it doesn't seem to be the case with GJ Gardner's we cannot speak to anyone, let alone convince them. It is apparent that the materials, goods and workmanship in our home is of poor quality and substandard. I have read some of the other GJ Gardner reviews from other offices and states where people are extremely happy with the build quality and support that they had received. I so wish I could have been one of these people, but unfortunately I am not and appear destined to have to continue my fight. We put so much thought and planning into our build and our home as we thought this was going to be our forever home, but now we don't know if it can be. I know I am only one person that appears to be very disgruntled and I have only posted this review after much consideration and thought as all other avenues have been fruitless at this time. For all those that have been satisfied with your build with GJ Gardner, I am happy for you and congratulate you on your success. For those contemplating building with GJ Gardner or any other builder, please take note of my tale and be aware of any early warnings signs as we should have. It is always easier to change builders than it is to spend years of your life fighting for what you believe is right and entitled to.