A construction diary is often seen as a "necessary evil" and bureaucracy. In reality, it is the most important document of the entire construction. When the facade starts peeling in two years or you're settling disputes with contractors, the construction diary will be the only evidence you have.

In this article, we'll look at how to keep it correctly, efficiently, and without unnecessary stress.

Why is the diary so important?

Many builders think the diary is just for the authorities. That's a misconception. The diary protects you and your money.

Legal requirement: According to building regulations, a diary must be kept on every construction that requires a permit or notification.
Claims: If a contractor doesn't follow the correct procedure (e.g. bricklaying in frost), a diary entry with temperature and date is your ace in court.
Billing: Thanks to the diary, you can easily check whether the company invoices for days they actually spent on site.

What must a diary entry contain?

You don't need to write novels. Facts matter. A proper entry should include these four pillars:

Weather and temperature: Absolutely crucial. Temperature affects concrete curing, adhesives, and plaster. (In the Dovizor app, this is filled in automatically).
People on site: Who worked that day? Was the construction supervisor present?
Work performed: A brief but clear description. E.g. "Pouring foundation strips, 15 m³ of C20/25 concrete used."
Material deliveries: What was delivered that day and in what quantity.

Tip: Don't hesitate to attach photos to entries. One photo of reinforcement before pouring concrete is worth more than three pages of text.

Paper, Excel, or an App?

There used to be only one option – a notebook with carbon copies. Today you have choices:

1. Paper diary

A classic favoured by old-school craftsmen. But it has downsides: it gets damaged on site, soaked, hard to search, and you can't stick photos in it.

2. Excel / Word

Better than paper, but impractical on mobile. You have to sit down at the computer in the evening and copy notes and download photos from your phone.

3. Smart app (Dovizor)

A modern solution for 2026. Right on site, you photograph the completed work and artificial intelligence (AI) writes the technical text for you.

Photos are saved and linked to the date.
Weather is fetched automatically.
Everything is backed up in the cloud.

How often should you write entries?

The law is clear: Entries are made every day that work is done on site.

In practice, self-builders often catch up retrospectively for the whole week (or month), which is risky – you forget details. With an app on your phone, an entry takes about 30 seconds, so you can do it right when leaving the site.

Conclusion

Whether you choose paper or an app, be consistent. The construction diary is the "black box" of your house. The better you keep it, the easier you'll sleep.

Want to make diary-keeping easier? Try Dovizor for free and let AI write for you.