You're listening to the Resident Built Up podcast with Peter Wolfcamp from US Talks at b.
Well.
I woke up Sunday morning with no weight to hold. My hands didn't hurt, and the beer I had for breakfast wasn't bad, so I had one more for dessert. Then I fumbled through my closet for my clothes and found my cleanest dirty shirt, and I shaved my face and combed my hair and stumbled down the stairs to meet the day. I'd smoked my brain the night before, long cigarettes and songs that i'd been picking. But I lit my first and watched a small kid cussing that
a can that he was kicking. Then I crossed the empty street caught the Sunday smount of someone frying chicken, and it took me back to something that I'd lost somehow, somewhere along the way on the Sunday morningside of.
Wishing Lock, I was stolen.
But there's something near a Sunday makes a buddy feeler, And there's nothing shortie have this ansome as the sound.
On the sleeping sit side.
Sunday moll coming down.
Well, A very good morning, and welcome along to the Resident Builder on a Sunday slightly different song. This morning, I thought we should mark the passing of Chris Christofferson, who passed away I think about age eighty eight during the week, and at one stage I did entertain the thought of using that as an introduction song that was all about Sunday mornings. But I listened a little bit more closely to the lyrics, not maybe not radio good morning, Welcome, Welcome.
My name's Pete wolf Camp, still with a slightly husky voice. My apologies for that. It's one of those weeks we sort of you know, got a battle on a little bit with feeling a bit off color. But anyway, we're back into it and enjoying the enjoying being with you this morning, so looking forward to talking all things building and construction. We are aware that there has been a reasonably sizable and certainly widely felt earthquake in Wellington this
morning just after five or just at five eight. Geannette reports it now as a five point seven shake about twenty five kilometers to the west of Wellington, CBD, at a depth of around thirty kilometers, but certainly plenty of people in the region were awokened. The reporter that we listened to in our bulletin there at six o'clock was talking about the building that they were in, the flat
that they were moving around reasonably significantly. Certainly, if there's any update on that, or if there is any report of damage, or are there are any notices about, you know, buildings that might be closed that sort of thing, we will bring that to you and we'll try and get in touch with someone in Wellington as well. And if you've got a question of a building nature, well the lines are open to you. We're going to talk all things building this morning. We have a couple of guests
joining us as well. One thing that I wanted to focus on specifically today talking with some of our experts from Metro Performance Glass was around safety and I don't know if you've ever had that experience, either of I'll tell you a story about why we've got safety glass now and why it wasn't around the nineteen eighties when I was at school, and what happened as a result of that, but also increasingly as part of final inspections for buildings, you know, certain types of glazing has to
specifically be safety glass. So what is it? Why do we have it? What are the general rules around it. We'll be talking about safety, glass and then the other thing. And I feel I'm in a kind of privilege, lucky. I don't know. I'm in a position where I spent a bit of time catching up with people who are doing new and exciting things. If not in the construction sector, then in sort of the waste area as it happens. But it construction contributes an enormous amount to the waste stream,
so the too often overlap. And I was at the miter Ten Expo and for their exit or for their suppliers, and also that I went along to the gala a couple of months ago, which was delightful, and as well as tootling around the exhibition center, there was a gentleman there in a fetching kind of slightly pink maybe a Semoni colored suit that seemed to be cut out of a fabric that I'd never seen before. Turns out that, in fact, the fabric such that it was was completely
out of recycled fabric. So if you take textiles in for recycling, this is the company that will do it, or one of the companies that will do it. So Tim from Retex is going to join me just after eight o'clock to talk about this, because it's all about waste minimization, right about diverting material from landfill. We all know in the sort of waste minimization field that it's reused then recycle. But we've also got to be practical
and say not everything can be We can't. In some cases, it's hard to reduce materials that we use in business, whether that's construction or any other part of business. Sometimes it's not possible to reuse those items. So if you've got you know, in this case, I was talking to them, and they take, for example, old overalls from construction sites, old hybrid vests and those sorts of things, and then
they will repurpose it into various products. And that's a way of ensuring that it doesn't simply go into waste. It doesn't go straight to landfill. It can be given another life by being recycled. Anyway, I found it fascinating and given that I kind of spent a bit of time in that space, I'm a board member of a trust that administers a recycling center or a resource recovery center.
It is a very very important issue for us all to deal with to be just an aside for this and we've got some calls lined up and I'm looking forward to chatting with you. I was staggered that there wasn't more conversation around recycling and the closure of the paper recycling plant in Auckland that slated to happen before Christmas. There's many hundreds of jobs that are going to disappear
from that factory. It is also the plant that processes, as I understand it, all of the paper recycling for Auckland. So given that you know, we've all hopefully in Auckland anyway got into the habit of putting our cardboard in our newspapers and now envelopes and anything over a four into our recycling bins, where's that material going to go?
Now?
I'm just staggered that it didn't get more reporting, to be blunt, oh, eight hundred and eighty ten eighty. So if you've got a building project, if you've got something that underway, you're thinking about getting it underway, you're looking ahead. It's been a tough old weather week obviously in Dunedin. We've had fair share of wet weather here in Auckland again as well. Certainly duned, and my sympathies to those people who are impacted by that, either by a couple
of reasonably significant landslides there or by the flooding. Good response to the flooding, you'd have to say, in terms of council response, government response, the Minister going straight there before the event actually happened, knowing that it was going to be reasonably severe, and there seems that though it has resulted in a number of houses being red stickered at this stage, which means that people are not able to go back into their houses after a weather event
like that. So you certainly have my sympathy if you've been caught in that. Right, Let's talk all things building construction. If you've got a call, if you've got a question and you would like to call, the number is eight hundred and eighty ten eighty. If you'd like to text, and you're more than welcome to do that, it is nine to nine two from your mobile phone or ZEDBZB and by all means flip me an email if you wish.
It's peaked at newstalksb dot co dot NZ. I mentioned on the program last week too that I'd had a particularly busy week the week before and that I hadn't got around to sending out some plans for olboxes. This has become a bit of a thing on the show. You might have noticed. I got asked in the supermarket yesterday how I'm going with the l boxes. So I did reply to a whole bunch of emails, actually only yesterday to be fair, and sent out a heap of
plans to people that want albox details. So thank you for your patience and good luck making them. Please let me know if OL's happen to move in to their new house that you've made for them. Oh, eight hundred eighty ten eighty is the number to call. And if you want to give us a call and give us a bit of an update from Wellington, you're more than welcome to do that as well. It is sixteen minutes after six paul A, very good wanting to you you, good morning to you for people.
And let's let's pray that there's nothing no damage down to Warrington.
Certainly no reports at the stage.
Yeah, that's great. I've got we've got a rental property and we we've got recommended a tiler to come and do some tiling tile of bathroom that flows into the kitchen right, and the tilt was a nightmare. He used the brand new kitchen sink as is mixing for mixing his grouse and whatnot, and instead of grouting the grout gaps, he ended up placing ground all over the tiles. So the tiles have been grouted as well as the ground and it's pretty dusty, awful, and to be honest, a
paper guy don't want to see him back again. You know, just a nightmare. Can you imagine? I've got a click try and turn the sink back into a brand new kitchen sink which we've set set up. You know, we've we've done the line share of it. Now we've get some metal cleaner to clean the rest of it. But what a nightmare of a of an individual?
Can I just ask? Because you know, I mean, I have these conversations with people a fair amount right where where they contract a trades person who turns out to be basically useless. Yeah, so you know, like, why did you choose that person? And did you get any sense that maybe they weren't up to the job before they started.
I've got no sense whatsoever that he wasn't up to the job. He was an experienced tyler that knew what he was doing.
But how did you get in touch with him?
I'm just curious through a friend recommended by a friend, and they who've been to see the job yesterday and was absolutely mortified. The sink had about two or three centimeters. Yeah, we're talking a.
Nightmare, you know, right, Yeah, okay, and.
You can imagine why I just don't even want to go back on the site. And to be honest, the tiling job was so poorly done. I'm glad it's just a rental property. If it was my home and auto you rip the whole lot up and start again.
Right, Okay, so we're too from here.
What I'm my question for you? How do I clean those tiles?
Right?
Scenic product or do I use tubs or no?
No, no, stay away from turps. Look, I would gosh, if there happens to be like a bag of the grouse or something like that left, or if you happen to see what there is, I would take that down to a tile shop, go tile Space for example, and just say, look, this is my situation. What's the recommended tile cleaner for this? And they will have very very specific products for that and use only products recommended by someone like tile space, you know, a quality tile store, and then go back
and start doing the cleanup from there. You know, yeah, yeah, pretty much, pretty much. And the other thing I guess to be conscious of is that you want to make sure that they haven't grouted let's say, you know, ninety degree corners where there should be flexible selant. If they have done that, ideally you'd get someone either do it yourself or get someone to go through rake that out
and make sure that the sealant goes in. There is any of the tiling in critical spaces like a wet area inside a shower enclosure.
No, it's not, it's box, okay, all right?
And the tiling did they do the floor or just the walls?
Just the floor fortunately, okay?
And is the floor onto a concrete slab or is it on a it's onto a concrete slab, okay, all right. So you know, realistically speaking, I'm just thinking about potential water damage water ingress in the future, given that it's it's not in a shower, it's really just on a splash stone and it's on aunt concrete slab. If they haven't done a great job, the risk of further damage is minimal.
Yeah, it's just cleaner.
Yeah.
Yeah, that's the nightmare. So yeah, so go to you.
Go to the tiles space. They've they've got.
Specified some type that I can apply.
And to be fair, you know, if you, if you, you'll find that people there this is not the first time they've heard of something like this, so they will know exactly the right product to use.
I've got photogram yeah.
Right, Ah, and your mate must feel terrible.
He feels like he should rip it up and pay for it the replacement himself. He just feels awful. Yeah, and he's a good mate too.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, I know. And look, I've been completely honest with you. You know, like every obviously I know a bunch of tradees and people will ring and they'll go, hey, can you recommend such and such? And I was going to say nine times, maybe eight times out of ten the recommendation goes, well, but every now and then, and we all have bad days, right.
And what I reckon I might have been on something, because you don't you don't grout the tile, you grout the whole, you grab the game.
I think what it probably was is they were rushing to do the job. They threw the grout and you know, pushed it into the gaps. Didn't bother cleaning the tiles, because cleaning the toiles is quite a process, right, you need two buckets of water, you need sponge, and you know you spend time cleaning the excess off, washing the sponge, cleaning it down. Absolutely, you know it's it's quite the process.
But man, give a process. After the fact, the grouts now said the grouted said, yeah, look.
Good luck with the clean up. Hopefully it goes all right for you all the very you take care. Then it is just its mate. I've got an enormous I've got an enormous amount of sympathy for Paul because he's now faced with having to clean the job, but also for the mate that recommends someone and then they do
such a rubbish job. And it's very very rare, and I'm talking over a very long period of time, but every now and then I'll recommend someone and they'll over the not recently and not for a while, and not very frequently, but every now and then someone will just have an off day. Someone will come back and go, okay, you recommend it this guy for whatever task but gee, I wasn't actually that happy with the job here. I've
kind of almost stopped. Ah, No, I haven't. There are guys that I recommend to never let anyone down, but every now and then we all have a bad day, and that's the nature of actually building something, you know. The only people that don't make mistakes are those people who make nothing. Is always my motto. I wait, hundred and done, plenty of mistakes myself. I eight hundred eighty
ten eighty is the number to call. We'll come back and talk to Mary straight after the break right he Oh, just wrapping up to some of the comments with regard to Paul and the issue of having He's got a couple of issues there. One is that Tyler did a poor job and has left a lot of the grout on the surface of the tile, so that needs to
be cleaned off. Also, Tyler seemed to use the sink as somewhere to either mix up or clean up grout, which has left a lot of residue inside the sink and a texture has come through and said, hey, look, it's also highly likely that the sink or the drainage is going to be blocked or close to being so thank you. That's a very very good point that you make. So I suspect that, and you know, I'm just thinking about drain un blockers, right, which work on organic material
that's not going to work on grout. So I would probably say to Paul, if you can, I would undo the p trap that's underneath the sink and just have a look at that and make sure that's not going to cause you issues in a couple of months as well. So Crik, it just goes on and on, I mean,
and also it's such bad practice. And this is an issue you know when we're cleaning up on site, particularly with regard to paint, but certainly with regard to other materials, including sementitious materials like grouts, is that you should never never direct those down, certainly not storm water. The impact
on stormwater is devastating. You know that even very small amounts of semontitious material going into storm water can cause significant damage to particularly you know, if stormwater is going into local streams, the impact there is enormous, Like please don't underestimate it. And it explains why counsels in particular
are so hot on chasing up contractors. You know that wash off cement and that sort of thing into stormwater, and the fines are fairly significant, and they'll come along and test catch pits and areas and that sort of thing, and to be fair, it drives me nuts. I've seen it a couple of times and gone up to people and just kind of look, I'm really sorry, but this is completely unacceptable, you know, washing down. It's very rare that you see it from like large professional companies, but
individual contractors from time to time. And it's a challenge. Right, you've finished doing concrete, You've got the left remnants, let's say, in your wheelbarrow. You've cleaned all your trowels and bits and pieces, and then you've got this highly alkaline material in sludgy water inside your wheelbarrow. Where do you tip it? Well, you certainly don't tip it into the curb or onto the drive and rinse it down into the drains and
the same. I mean, I'm just thinking about Paul, with this contractor working in his house using the sink to clean it up, and that has terrible consequences. So you just have to find an area where you can tip it either onto the ground or into in an area that you've prepared where it's not going to inadvertently end up in either wastewater or storm water. Really really important. Oh eight one hundred and eighty ten eighty is that number to call Mary? A very good morning to you.
Hi, good morning, Pete. I've got a question. I was thinking of doing wall insulation, but I was looking at removing getting the passport and moved and paper and ye
insulation put in the wall. I wanted to know, PLN you sort of do you have to do every wall in the house or can you do in sections and get consent for sections, Because in the bathroom it means you've got to rip the shower keebicle out and you've got to take you you've got to take the toilet out, yes, and then reinstall it all all for a little area of or it's about just over about a meter by meter that's actually visible.
Yeah.
Do I just wonder if there's anywhere getting consents like you know, to do a bedroom, lounge and things like that, the same as in the kitchen you've got to take all the kitchen cabinets, yes, and then reinstall the kitchen. I just wondered if there's a way of doing it that way.
Do you intend to do the work sort of you know, consistently, like over a period of one or two years, or do you think I'm going to do something. I may not do anything for a couple more years and then I'll do another piece.
I was thinking of. Perhaps you like the bathroom is not doing it at all?
Right, okay, this the bathroom doesn't need.
But I just wondered if there's a way.
Of doing it.
Yeah, I mean you can.
Get a part like a park consent, or whether you have it has to be all or nothing.
I mean, look what you're saying, while it seems like a really simple question, is in fact like, well, not a nightmare. It just gets quite complicated quite quickly. First up, good on you for for appreciating the fact that, in fact this type of work does require a building consent. Right, so you know, removing lining, adding insulation to existing exterior walls, and replacing the lining is still work that requires a
building consent. Now, as an aside to that, I have argued for a number of years that that work should
be potentially exempt from having a building consent. It should be the sort of work that could be done under Schedule one of the Act, which is work that sets out or a legislation that sets out what type of work could be done without necessarily requiring a building consent, and that it's the sort of work that, you know, if supervised by an LBP or by an architectural designer, an architect or an engineer, can be done to the code without necessarily requiring a building consent, given how much
how important it is and how much of this work needs to happen, I suppose, but that's not the rules right now. So the rules are that you need to get a consent. Then it becomes an issue of you know, can you have or can you work with your counsel in a collaborative sense, where a council surely would look at this and go, look, it's fairly low risk. We're not going to demand a full set of plans. We're simply going to get, you know, a couple of page document that says this is what I intend to do.
I'm going to remove the line, I'm going to add this type of insulation. If it's got what's it got on the outside is clanning, whether boards or brick.
It's Britain stucco.
Brick and stucco okay. So you know, if it's got building paper around the outside of the timber frames, then it's relatively straightforward.
Right.
You add insulation, you replace the lining, and the low risk approach is to say, I'm going to fix all of my interior lining off as a brace as a GS one black brace, right, and chances are it's got as much bracing as it used to have. So you've addressed issues around Worcester ingress and around the stability of the building and you should be able to do that with very little intervention from the council, but technically it
does require. The other option is that you go or you get someone to make a submission on your behalf and go for an exemption from a building consent. Right, So you're informing council that you're going to do some work, but given that it's relatively low risk, it's in an existing building, et cetera, et cetera. Ccait, you can get an exemption. Then you've got something on paper to say I've asked for approval but in this instance I don't need it here and here's evidence that I comply with
the building code. Right, Or you're going to end up having to submit for a building consent and again, hopefully you know council is realistic and practical and go we don't need massive amounts of specification, We don't need a whole lot of information. We just need a brief description of what it is that you're doing and go from there. So, yeah,
I think that's the process. And then the reason I asked, do you intend to sort of sequence the work, let's say, doing something every twelve months, is potentially you could get a building consent for everything that you intend and then just keep informing counsel that you'd like to extend the building consent given the nature of it, rather than having to get several building consents.
Yeah, because I was quite surprised, I did get somebody to come and do a quote for me and to get like blown into those should put in your consents sort of something like around three hundred dollars to get a different consent.
It's yeah, it could be two grande.
Tiny little place is what.
It's got three external walls and it's less than sixty square meters.
The whole thing look like I can picture it.
Nearly too grand to start within. Everything else on top is going to just make it to do and looks.
I mean, yours is a fantastic example of something that I've been advocating for for a long time that it given the pretty desperate need we have to finish insulating houses that are uninsulated. You know that that putting the barrier of a building consent there. I have no problem with building consents, right, They're essential in terms of ensuring safety.
But in something like this that is so low risk, right, I mean, your building has stood up for as long as it's stood up, it's probably got little to know bracing from the plaster board anyway. So if you were to remove that lining, install insulation, which is a tremendous benefit for the building, and then redo the plaster board with modern plaster board, fix it off as a GS one brace, which is the most basic type of bracing, you will probably end up with. You know, it's a
much better building. You've you've helped the environment, You've you've helped our road to carbon zero, all of these sorts of things, and it shouldn't be a burden on you to do that work. And having to get a consent I think in this instance is such a burden on people. But that doesn't change the reality of it, which is that.
It doesn't or do you hang out?
Yeah, I mean I was going to say, you know, the other option is that you do look at some of the blow and you know injected systems, which because they're a proprietary system, they've they've got a methodology for achieving a building consent, right, and so if it's been brands appraised or if it's got code mark that sort
of thing, they can submit it to counsel. It's kind of like a pro former type of building consent where counsel looks at it goes, oh, yeah, we know what we're doing, what they're doing, we understand the system, They take care of the whole thing. They issue a statement at the end, we'll give you a building consent. And I've done that on one particular job. But I suppose it's maybe worth looking at for you because it's going to be more straightforward than having to go for your
own building consent and so on. But you know, there might be other advantages in terms of for you, removing the lining, upgrading that upgrading switches and that sort of thing, and adding insulation and being able to see exactly where the insulation goes. I think you've got a great handle
on it. I don't know that I can offer you anything more than that, other than to say I will continue to advocate to anyone in authority that's cares to listen that we should ed this type of work to to shoot you one of the building it okay, nice.
I'm sorry for your poor chap his tiling. I had a problem. I had a problem and the house previous the one I had where Chap said that he was accredited installer of the waterproofing, and I asked for the consent and he said, oh, you get it from the manufacturers. And I got in touch with the manufacturers and noted and he was remanded by a tile shop.
Oh that's not good.
I was new to New Zealand, I didn't know anybody, and they recommended him. When I want to tell I had to write a letter yes, saying as far as I knew, it was all done to done how it should be, and put that with the details when I sold the place, and hope that it was all right.
Yep.
No, I understand with the plumber as well.
I couldn't get the consent off of him, so to write a letter, so I thought he had. Yeah, he's done most of the sinks and stuff. Yeah, properly, but one think the cotton cold were.
On opposite side, right, Yeah, and he.
Dropped a tape measure down the toilet when he took it out instead of blocking it off, it finds out halfway under the slab. Yeah, so it wasn't best please knowing any not knowing any trades in music, Yeah, it's hard, went by people's recommendations and doesn't always get you anyway.
Hey, looked lovely to check with your mirror. All the very best you take care, take care bothering. It is six forty here at New Stalks. He'd be we are beck with Ellen in just a moment. You and he'd be people resident build up with you this morning. Taking your calls quick text as well. Hey mate, we are looking to build deck out from our patio which will be overhanging our front lawn and probably three meters off the ground. It's a split level property. Do we approach
a builder or an engineer or an architect? Just not sure where to start as it's not a simple job. Many thanks from Steve. You're absolutely right, Steve, it is not a simple job, so you probably going to end up engaging with all three because at three meters off the ground, it definitely definitely requires a building consent. In order to get a building consent, it will need a set of plans, which might be drawn by an architect
or an architectural designer or a design LBP. Given the complexity of it, they will probably want to consult with an engineer and then ultimately you're going to need a builder to build it. So in this case it's the trifector buddy. You get all of them, but you definitely need a building consent for that type of work. Alan a very good morning.
Well hello. I mean I've originally moved to a place that was built in the Landing forties in western Wellington. I was going to ask about windows, but there's been a very considerable earthquake here and I'm concerned that there's a massive chimney. There's a wood burner. The chimney seems to be about eight times bigger than what my parents had to their house, right they had to open fire. And the biggest earthquake hazard in this whole place is this huge chimney. It looks like it's like five or
six feet high and three feet wide. Now, I was wondering, I don't know why it's such a massive structure. Is it feasible to reduce it to a smaller structure or use pumice or some lightweight material.
Obviously you want to keep a wood burner.
Well, well, at the moments, well I'm not expecting to stay here all that long, so so mainly just yeah, I'll keep it for the meantime here.
Right, Look, I think you know christ Church and any number of earthquakes have taught us that there is significant hazards or hazard or risk associated with having chimneys, right that when the ground starts to move and that starts to oscillate, they tend to fall over, and when they do fall over, they end up crashing through the roofs and into the rooms below and around them. Right, So, look, would it be a sensible precaution to remove it? Yes,
it probably would. Could you then upgrade the firebox and put in something that has less emissions and perhaps has a steel flu which has less risk if you could do you have to know, there's no requirement to do it. But if it's something and I can hear it in your voice, it's a genuine concern. I would probably look at that. I don't know that there's any great benefit from a practical point of view of trying to reduce
the scale of it or anything like that. I've seen a number of houses where they've taken if the chimney's not in use, they'll take it down to below the roofline, you know, so that it prevents that part. Often sometimes they shear off at that junction and then tumble through the roof. So that's one approach to take. I have to go and check again. I wonder whether they're removed in some cases, Removing a chimney may require a building
consent in some cases or almost in all cases. When these houses were built, the chimney was built quite early on, and then sometimes part of the roof framing is actually attached to the chimney. And certainly I've seen floor joists attached to chimneys that are built from the ground up, through the floor up, through the building, through the ceiling and so on.
Okay, it was certainly it's like a sort of democles in this place. I mean, there's this huge structure. It's just like it's just waiting to fall. If there's a strong that birthquake. The other thing I was wondering about is being an old place, it's got sass windows and it's got French doors opening to a deck. Yes, so the problem with them is there's no openable windows in
the rounge wh the French doors are. Is it practical to turn one of those panels, the sixteen panels of grass into a small openable window.
Well, it requires remaking of the sash. So for example, if there's a fixed sash there, you could potentially take that sash out and replace it with some opening ones. It's not a little bit of work, but yeah, it is doable.
What we without the opication was about actual sash windows. I was wondering, is it feasible to Of course, it's just a narrow, rectangular open a window at the top part of the that window, the bit that doesn't go up and down. Regarding these large sash windows and other rooms.
Oh so you've got double hung sashes and you're thinking about changing that to a different type of window.
Yeah, Well, the problem is every window in this place is like a door. The zero security. You can't sort of lead a small window opens as ventilation, right, And I wonder if if you look at a slash window, there's a huge, big sort of square of glass that doesn't move up and down at the top. I was wondering if he segregated off the top narrow rectangle of that glass and made that into an openable section, leaving the sash operation thing in place, would that be feasible a small event.
If it is actually a genuine double hung sash window. I mean, I love them to bits because they do exactly that if you get them working again.
Top one doesn't move up down.
Yeah, But if it is a double hung sash window and it was made as a double hung sash window, theoretically you should be able to loosen that up and get it working again, in which case you can do exactly what you want is lower the top sash down maybe sixty or seventy five.
Sorry, the top one doesn't move.
Okay, Yeah, I'm with you.
Only the low one, yeah, the top one. I just wanted to create a smaller opening when dough because the sash window, if you're in another room, someone can just walk straight through it, you know.
Yeah, I'm with you.
There's no security with it.
Yeah, I mean, look, everything is possible. Sorry, we're getting some really bad refurb so I'll just put you hold for a second. Ele the look everything is possible, but you know, you might find that the process is actually quite intricate and quite expensive. So yes, you could remove a fixed sash, install an opening sash, put in essentially like a fan light into that top space. But it's
just not a simple solution. Unfortunately doable, but a little bit complex, and I think once you delve into it, you might find that it's just not worth the effort. Security stays on regular sash windows might be a more straightforward solution. Good luck with that, all the best and hope everything's all right for you and Wellington O eight one hundred and eighty ten eighty the number of call D A very good morning to you. Hello D. Hello.
I live in christ Church and I'm having a water problem right. I have a small art gallery in my garden and I have a lot of neighbors. I am actually now our house in the middle of a lot of new buildings. Yes, everybody who's bought one of these new buildings thinks the rules are quite different, so they're all making up what do we do next? And the problem for me is that with the help of an age concerned builder.
I have.
Got the inside of my little gallery fixed so that the water doesn't come through. But the water does come through because the outside has been compromised. It's very, very wet, and I think the water is coming through from next door. But that's an issue we've got to chase up through the another avenue. I noticed that somebody else who's building next door is putting up some very thin and it looks like permanent material on the outside of their house.
And I wonder if that sort of stuff, if you could tell me what it's possibly is, would be good on the outside of my gallery to solve the water coming through.
So your gallery, is it a freestanding structure in your backyard?
Yes, it is. It's a tiny little it's about the side of the side of a garage, and the inside is all right at the moment, okay, outside.
I'll tell you what. I've let myself go too long without taking a break, which is my problem, not yours. But can you just wait on the line and then we'll come back to you in just a moment, your new sorts. It'd be if you've got a question of a building nature. Oh eight hundred eighty is that number to call. Just before the break, we were talking with D who had an issue with a little studio in your back garden. D can you just run me through?
So the building's completely self contained, like it's it's its own little structure. When you say you're getting water in it is the water coming up through the ground or is it coming in through the sides of the building.
I think it's coming in through the sides of the building.
Okay.
The building made of breeze blocks.
Yes, okay, yep? Are they painted on the outside? Are the breeze blocks painted on the outside?
Not so sure because it's sort of coming off. It's of the met right, have looked on the outside and actually see holes where where the cracks between the blocks are, So.
Yes, look right, I should put over that.
Yeah, And I mean I don't know that you necessarily, you know, if it's as obvious as what you're describing, then I think having someone come through either with a flexible ceilant or with some adhesive grout or something like that, filling those gaps and then cleaning the outside and putting a decent coat of paint on the outside. For the type of building that it is, is probably going to be enough, right, if it's reasonably elevated, it's not soaking
up moisture from the ground. If it's got a you know, serviceable roof on it, then I think the issues are probably around moisture. It's simply saturating the block, which it will do if it's completely unsealed or partly unsealed. So I think, you know, repairing any of those gaps and cracks and then giving a coat of paint, that's probably your solution, right, it doesn't let's not try and make a really complicated solution where there doesn't need to be able to do.
It myself, at arrange it to be done myself. Yeah, So have you any suggestions to what.
Who you would need to get? I mean you could potentially, well a reasonably competent painter should be able to assess it and then go, okay, look this is what we
can use. Depending on the size of the gaps that might be there, we can go through and do that and then you know, strip off any or sand back or prepare any loose material on the outside, give it a coat of sealant that it needs, a key coat onto the breeze block, and then like I'd go two coats of X two hundred, which is a water proof or water resistant paint and designed for exterior masonry, and
that should give you it. So I think if you can find a reasonably competent painter, I think that'd be the way to go deep.
That's a good idea.
All right, all the very best to you. I hope it all works out. Okay, Oh eight hundred eighty ten eighty is the number to call. Hey Glenn, good morning to you.
You get how are you going today?
Yeah? Good, thanks buddy.
So we want to look, we've just put a swimming pool in and we want to like a like I don't know if it's a poolhouse or just like an area you can chill out. It may like three side three sides and are opening in the front soet you know, you can get away from the sun. Do we need a building consent for that or no?
It's possible that you may not need one. So what I'm thinking is obviously it's going to be you know, somewhere between ten fifteen square meters in size.
So if we like two panels wide, you know, like two fence pannels wide. So we're going to take two out and put it so you can walk into the inside of the pool, yep, into that little area.
Yes, I think that where it would probably trigger a requirement technically for a building consent would be its proximity to the boundary. So if it is more than if it's more than its height away from the boundary, then typically you don't need a building consent for that, right yep. So as long as you can you can do that, just make sure it's far enough away, then no, I don't think it'll need a building consent. And also if it's going to be effectively it's a purglar right right
with some closed in sides. It's not like it's a completely encompassed building.
No, because even if we took the panels out and relocated them to the back, it's still been closed in that rules around the swimming pool.
Yeah, so no, I don't think so. And as long as I suppose, the other thing that you've got to be conscious of is you don't want it to inadvertently mean that your pool's not compliant in terms of the Pool Fencing Act, so that it's not close to the fence and climbable or something like that. So there's a couple of other considerations there.
Oh yeah, okay, that's cool. And that guy was to do the tiling if he's got a stainless saying, your best way is probably to look at like your auto soul and to bring your think out that clishing stuff, because it's quite good.
I think I've seen that around.
Yeah, yeah, sold them like like rip coos and stuff. And yeah, we had the same problem with him to do with a roof when because we relocated a house and after a house fire.
Yes, and it was done with and we it in.
A whole year of a whole lot of help from the day that it burnt down to the day we got back and was in a year. And but we're that with a roof that we paid up a lot of money and the money went and the roofs never went on.
Yeah, yeah, we'll keep out there there unfortunately. Yep.
Yeah, so I know what he's going through. But yeah, town devil, look at that all those so can there from rep and stuff.
Brilliant. Appreciate it, Glenn. All the very best to you. Take care alright, all the best. Eight hundred and eighty ten eight. We're gonna take a break. Then we're going to talk to Jim. If you've got a question, eight hundred eighty ten eighty is the number to call. Also in at around seven thirty this morning, Darren from Metro Performance Glass. We're going to talk safety glass, why it's important, what it is, how to identify it, like you know, if you're unsure as to whether or not you might
need it or it would be good to have. How do you identify safety glass from other glass for example. So we'll be talking about that with Darren from Metro Performance Class around seven thirty this morning. You're you're the new Stalks b Pete wolf Camp resident build up with you this morning if you've got a question, Oh, eight hundred and eighty ten eighty is the number to call.
Get a Jim good I paid just a quick one for you. I've got a hardy plank with a crack and it's the bottom plank. The crackers top to bottom, about a meter in from the corner. It doesn't seem to open or close. It's been there for a year, but it's been a puddle to me for all this time.
I mean, look, sometimes they crack, and it might have cracked because of the way it was installed. All those years ago and it just happens to have moved now. So in typically a small crack like that, you know, it might get a little bit of water in there, but chances are not that much to cause any issues if you're concerned about it standably you are. You know, there's there's not a lot that you can use to actually adhere or bond to it. But if you wanted to,
I would. I would sort of send and prep the area, clean it up, and if you wanted to do do a bead of flexible adhesive sealant. So some seilants have it. Yeah, they have an adhesive element to them as well, so something like fix all right, so yeah, hold fast, fix all that'll work really well. I'd put a bead of
that into it. You know, if you really wanted to, you could sort of make the crack slightly bigger if you want to, with a sharp knife, and they then put a bead of sealant into there and then paint over it. The other approach, and I've done this on a few houses. Was where they had extensive crack, well extensive you know, like twenty or thirty around the entire building. Is I actually just had flashings made up, and I
simply if it's a it's a flat faced weatherboard. I simply we had a flashing made up like a soaker, and I just put so over the top of them.
When you make up a fleshing like that, do you have a return at the bottom edge of it?
And so just tucks it. No, I didn't. It didn't loop around. So it's just like an L shaped right. So it was just a way of putting something over the face of the weather board to diflict. Deflict the water away from that area and it and you know, it just tucks up underneath the other weather board. Doesn't have to be a it doesn't have to have an L a J like, it doesn't have to have a hook at the bottom. It tucks up, just came down and then returned back. And that was a kind of
sensible way of dealing with those. It allowed movement, but it just stopped water entering into that gap.
It's good.
Yes, a couple of options there, yepkay, right, but don't all the best take care okay. By by oh, eight hundred and eighty ten eighty is the number to call if you've got a building question.
Keith, good morning, Yeah, Hi, pete question is we have a old Michelangelo ceiling tiles, yes, in our kitchen dining room, and they suffered water damage. I've had quotes to replace them or to have the ceilings jibbed YEP. One quote is putting batons on and then putting the jib onto the batons over the tile, and the other ones just jipping straight over the tile. And so I'm wondering which is a better option or does it make any difference whether you put the batons up or not.
I suppose that the if they were using, for example, Rondo bettons, which are the metal batons right, which are part of the jib system, then you know, if there's some unevenness in the ceiling, they'd be able to pack them down a little bit. So typically, if you watch guys putting battening systems nowadays, they'll set up a rotary laser.
They'll go round, do their perimeter that'll be spot on dead level around the building, and then you put your batons in and you can adjust them up and down with a clip or a packer and then have the ceiling absolutely flat, and then you fix your plaster board
to that. So I guess by doing that you get the benefit of it hopefully being dead flat, and as long as those clips then have got secure fastening, because typically those clips are attached or those batons are attached by a clip to the underside of the joist unless they're direct fixed right. So the biggest issue with putting a new lining underneath an existing one is making sure
that the fixings are right. So if, for example, the contractor decides just to fix the plaster board to the underside of the existing Michelangelo tiles, typically the Michelangelo tiles are onto like a forty x twenty or a two by one baton, which is fixed to the underside of the joist, so and they run just Typically they run parallel to the longest length of the tile, so the tiles are six hundred by three hundred roughly, so along those every three hundred millimeters there will be a row
of batons that the Mchelangelo tiles are fixed to, so as long as the contractor is able to screw fix into those. The other thing is that if you're direct fixing,
I just lining straight undneath Angelo tiles. You could put some adhesive onto the Michelangelo tiles, but you're only bonding them to something that's not particularly well fixed because those Michelangelo tiles just go on with a staple, right, So what you wouldn't want to do is stick your plasterboard to the underside of the Michelangelo and have the whole thing come down because it's all all the staples out.
So you just got to make sure that they're fixing all the way through into the timber batons beyond.
Okay.
So either way is okay, as long as you know what the risks are with both methodologies. Yes, yeah, for me, all the best take care. It brings back. I was going to say triggering, but that's overused these days. I did a garage one time when I was a very young chippy. Garage downstairs and so, you know, internal access garage that had just been left with the choice, and it didn't have a ceiling in it, and the person said,
we'd like to put a ceiling into it. So and I want to use Michelangelo tiles because they're elsewhere in the house. It's got to be more than thirty years ago. And I got battens tuober one batons and I had to nail them into these joys, which were probably twenty or thirty years old already. And this was before you had nail guns, certainly before you had screw guns and all the rest of it. So I don't know a day of nailing battens up by hand. It was a
learning experience. Let's say, into timber that was certainly getting pretty hard. Anyway, then you do them, and then you go around with the Michlangelo tiles and staple them up. Job. Still there still looks okay to be fair. Oh, eight hundred and eighty ten eighty is the number to call Scott a very good morning to you get a Scott.
Hello, Scott, Hello, Pate.
How are you get a good thank you? In yourself?
God? God, I rang you about a year ago about a house that my father owns in Hamilton. Yes, that's got wooden shingles.
Oh yeah on the roof, yep.
Yeah. And we had a we had an estimate to fix it.
Right.
I couldn't get it. I couldn't get it across the line with the family, which was surprising, but anyway, that was how it was. And then the carpenter ran away because he thought it was too much work. I'm just going revisiting that now because we have to get it done. Yep, it would need a consent because we've got to change the tiling on the road from wooden shingles to ten right or does that sound right to you?
Yes? I would. I would say it triggers the requirement for a building consent because it's not maintenance like for like, No.
That's right. And then so to get a consent, what's the best way to do that for a man that's not into into the building game himself, but we'll want to get.
It done consents. In order to get a consent, you need to set submit a set of plans. You can only plans can only be drawn for building consent by people who are licensed designers, an LBP designer, which might be an architect, might be an architectural designer in some cases people who are just LBP designers. So they'll need to do a drawing. They'll need to show the methodology for it, which I would imagine is going to be that you'll remove the existing shingles back down to the plywood.
Then you're going to have to know.
It's it's done on battons, yes, no, yes, battens with building paper and then and then good rafters, and all the rafters all within the code. But the batons and the battons. There's heaps of battons and it's all pretty pretty, pretty dry and good up in there. Yeah, you said you have to put extra baton in here, a little bit more than there to get to the code.
No, I think what you'll find is that the batons will not meet the requirements of the building Code. So typically pearlins.
You have to put the extra peerlins and then extra bits of what thens can stay there, but you have to beef it all up.
Yeah, that's right, so you basically ignore the existing batons. You do you repearl in the roof, you'll have to redo all of the valleys to allow for you know, yeah, you'll end up read doing the valleys, probably doing all the perlins, which will probably mean that you have to end up right raising the facia and bargeboards around the
building as well. Then you can do your new roofing with a roofing underlay, and you probably end up having to lift up all of your spouting as well, because you'll find that your roof now will be considerably higher than where it was and that the water will just shoot over the top of your spouting. If you don't address the spouting at the same time.
That's why spout all the spout is.
Yeah, it needs to be replaced anywhere.
Yeah yeah, right right round most of the roof that like a a baranda like it flattens out for averend rover. Hang gotcha, Yeah, it's not. It's not a bulldoze. It's not a bull nose one, the flat one and so that that then they talked about they're lifting out the changing there, but that's all it always think get changed anyway back.
Yeah, I mean it's it's going to be a recently significant job. By the time you remove the tiles, adding the new perlins, put the iron on, it'll need to have edge protection or scaffolding all the way around it. You need to have an inspection. Possibly counsel might ask you to look at the fixings of the rafters to the top plate and just ensure that they comply with
the code. The other thing is it is it going to be an opportunity for you to check the insulation that might be in the ceiling space as well, that that possibly has been inaccessible or.
That's beauty of that's the beauty. That's got a huge it's got a huge open ceiling space.
Okay, that's cool.
That's probably twelve foot high. You know, down slopes down obviously, but it's very easy accessible, and it heats up and drives out and does all that sort of stuff. What you've probably put new pink bats and while you're there and get little sort of you Okay, well you a new new new not building payment, but the new type of building paper would god in the tone, wouldn't they?
Yeah, and you could make it much better as well by introducing cavity and ventilation and and so on into the roof space. But I also don't want to make it way more complicated than it needs to be. Although there are some benefits to that, so I'm telling you that there are also some there's some new thinking about how we construct our roofs to make them even more efficient, let's say, And you might want to look at some of that, but look, it's all going to need a consent.
And in order to get a consent, you need to have someone draw you a set of plans.
Yeah, and that's a that's an LBP designer or architect type.
Yes, So typically people who are architects or architectural designers in New Zealand pretty much automatic. We are registered as lbps. There are a small number of people that have LBP design licenses who may not be either an architect or an architectural designer, but either way, the only people that are allowed to submit plans now for a building content are those who have those licenses.
Cool. And then so if you had the plan, if you could find your original plans for the house, that would be great.
Yes, that will save a lot of time.
Would they be sitting in council if you did a LIMB report.
You won't get them for a LIMB report, but you can ask for the property file from council and that will have all of the information that council have. And more and more councils have moved to digitize all of their records so it becomes a slightly more straightforward process. Now it might cost about seventy hour dollars to request that from the council, but it's very worthwhile. Yeah, there's a lot of money when Yeah it does.
Yeah, yeah, absolutely, because my father got the house built like way back, so yes, plans has plans that relate to that house.
So so yeah, and I don't know whether in your own sort of archives you've got the original copies of the building consent. If you do that, it's great, I don't need to eat.
Yeah.
Look, most of the time, chances of finding that not that not that easy.
Often no, but the propertly fathers the high chance that they'll be in there, won't they.
Yes, if it's been submitted for a building consent, then council should have it and hopefully by now they've digitized it. So that's where you go to. Good luck with the process. Thank you very much, mate, all the very best to you. You take care, see Scott you and news Talk said b if you've got a question of a building nature, you can call us right now, oh eight hundred and
eighty ten eighty. In a couple of minutes, we're going to be joined by Darren Valentine from Metro Performance Class from part of the Red Trofit division talking about safety glass in what it is in whits And and so we'll be doing that in just to my first up quick call from you, Mike, how are you.
Hey?
Thanks, I've written down the question. So we're consideringly purchasing a property built in the nineteen sixties, but in nineteen ninety three, a double garage and entry entry way extension including a significant still being it was installed. It's got building consent record on the limb, but it doesn't have the CCC sign off. It seems that wasn't so unusual about the time, because they changed the permits to consents
in ninety two. We've got a recent engineers report that indicates the work appairs to have been completed to the plans and therefore to consent standard, and a final inspection is booked with the council, but they probably won't do it in person until before the action takes place. We do, but we do believe that there are sufficient standards and plates for them to be able to approve of CCC. But this record check won't be done before the option. So how much risk will we be taking with it?
You're the potential purchaser of the property, correct, And it's hard with options because you can't put conditions in. Can you like if it was a you know, by by agreement or by negotiation, you could add in a condition to your sale and purchase agreement whereby the we will proceed with settlement on the basis that the vendor achieves CCC or a CoA Certificate of acceptance, but you can't do that with an option.
Yes, we understand. So the engineer's report indicates the work appears to have conclude the plan sure to standard and he seems to be he's been for a previous inspection, but he'd have to write it all up and all the rest of it. So it's about it's about getting a c CC or equivalency to give yourself to Surety.
Yeah, in recent experience in this area, would would make me cautious, just in terms of feeling confident that if you all of the evidence to counsel or counsel will then issue you with either a CCC, which I think is probably a bit unlikely because that it's going back
a while, they'll have some concerns around it. There's the possibility that the inspector when they finally get to the site will find other things that you may not be aware of that they will then add into you know, they might fail a final inspection because they've seen something else that you haven't identified, in which case you've got more problems to deal with. And also it still might be quite a process in order to achieve either a CCC.
So look, I can't give you specific advice on this, but you can hear in my voice I am quite cautious around these things. Now it is not as straightforward as it used to be, if it ever was.
The biggest implications.
I guess, like you know, lots and lots of properties get sold across the country all of the time without having you know, buildings that don't have CCC right or have have work that hasn't been signed off. The biggest issue becomes sometimes insurance. So if you are open and transparent with your insurer and say to them it doesn't have either a CCC or a CoA, they may have some reluctance to ensure. Reluctance to ensure also means that finances is challenging. So I've heard that those things are
starting to happen and are more commonplace. And also it ends up leaving you in the position of the current vendor, which is, should you put the property back on the market and you haven't resolved all of these issues, you then have you know, there is the reluctance from the next purchaser to purchase your property because of it. So though those tend to be beguition.
So so that makes entire stents and just a really quick followup question, if you decide to rectify or get it to a standard ie expos everything, you know, do some more work or whatever it is in your experience, has that always required going back almost a start state or are there things that you can do kind of trans three between to allow you to get it to a standard by where actually you get the consent or get a consent, do you have to actually go back to start state?
Or when you say start state, isn't like strip all the lining off and all the rest of it. No, that would be really unusual, to be fair, But it does pay in this instance to get some really good advice and have someone argue for you. So, whether that's the engineer that you've engaged, whether it's going to a registered building survey, someone like that who understands the law and can push back sometimes on council. You know, I think that would be money well spent for you if
you're going to argue it. But again, you know what you're talking about now is more risk in the in the purchase and then potentially expenditure that you might not have been expecting going forward all right, Hey, good luck with it all, all right, thank you very much. Yeah, take care. I just wonder whether the issue is actually around having to purchase at auction by negotiation, you could add in a whole bunch of other conditions, interesting one,
fascinating one, fascinating one. Just before we talk to Darren, who's waiting on the line. Pete loved the show, Thank you very much. Curious questions. What's happening to the blockhouses intended for this year's canceled series? Christine, very good point. They will go on the market. I think guys are finishing them fairly soon as it happens. Oh eight, one hundred and eighty ten eighty is the number to call.
We'll take your calls shortly. But right now, it is my great pleasure to welcome to the show for the first time, actually, Darren Valentine from the good people at Metro Performance Glass A very good morning to you, Darren.
How are you hi, Peter, I'm well.
I hope you are too.
Yeah, thank you, and thanks for jumping in so really appreciate it. Love the connection that we have with Metro. And I was going to sort of frame part of this discussion with a memory that doesn't leave me, which was when we were at school, which was back in the eighties, and there was a bunch of us rough
housing and running around and that sort of thing. And one of the guys was chasing another guy and he chased him through the doors to the gym and it was a swinging door and it swung back and he put his hands up and he went straight through the glass right and it chattered into really sharp shards. And then when he freaked out and pulled his arms back, he did quite a bit of damage. And I guess looking at that, and I've always gone back to that whenever people go why do I need safety glass? And
I go, that's why you need safety glass. So tell us a little bit more about what safety glasses and why it's so important.
Yeah, sure, I mean in a residential building in New Zealand, there's two main types of safety glass used. There's tempered or tough and glass. And that glass is put through
a furnace. It's seated up to a very high temperature then suddenly cooled and that process does two things festival and actually makes that glass around about four to five times stronger than the glass that went into the furnace, yes, but most importantly exactly what you were talking about, and those of us of a certain vintage who remember those,
I'm glad you're sort of around that. But when that tough and glass breaks, it breaks into fragments rather than shards and makes a chance of any serious injury.
Very low.
And I don't know again, going back ortage, you dropped an rock cup on the hard surface, it shattered into all these little fragments. That's what you're looking at. Was tempered or tough glass.
Right.
The other one that tip we get used is laminate. Tends to get used of people wanting to cut down on a bit of laminate coming up laminate a bit of you coming through their windows or acoustic and so what that is. That's two bits of glass with a soft interlade they're bonded onto. It still breaks into those shards that you mentioned earlier on but then hold talk together as one panel and again doesn't do the damage that standard glass does.
Right, which might be a little bit more like windscreen glass for example.
Correct.
Yes, So again one of the advantages for that is something goes through your windscreen, then you don't have a whole lot of glass flying in your face.
Now it does make it hard to see though.
Yeah, absolutely so. In terms of like there are a number of requirements within New Zealand standards within building code around where you need safety glass, and it does get reasonably complex for homeowners. What's the best process in terms of understanding where I need it and where do I get advice on where I need it?
It depends on the level of the information you need. Let's you're just wanting someone to actually do it on an auto pilot for you. So if you're doing a retrofit and the lights does, consults can certainly help out there a lot. They know where because that's actable, so they were glass and safety glass needs to go. Also they know bit more sources of information. Yeah, and that's your body, it's wagging and that's a putong. The website that you can go through our answers all sense point
true and it's actually a document's to downlow. So depending on you.
Tweeting Darren, I tell you what can I just ask you to hold for a moment where I'm starting to have some issues in terms of the connection. We're going to just pop you back on hold. We're going to play the break and we'll try and get you back on a new line in just a second. Hold on there, Radio Darren from Metro Performance Glass is with us this morning. Thanks very much for holding on. We just want to try and change something there. Hey, just just going back
to the safety glass. Like for most of us, I think we understand that there's really really important areas where it should be used, for example, shower screens, you know, large panels, indoors. Again going back to my earlier story, those sorts of things. How do we know that we've got safety glass.
Well, safety glass must have a safety stamp on it, so and not a branding stamp. So sometimes you will see that someone puts their brand name on the glass. That that is not a safety stamp. Okay, yeah, so safety stamp and generally what you'll see on that is it needs to have the name of the company or a register, the number of the producer of the glass. Yes, the type of safety glass that's there. For example, our tempered glass is temper float and our laminated glass would
have safe light on it. And then what you're also looking for is the standard that it conforms too, which in New Zealand is as n Z S two two eight. And sometimes you'll also see the grade of the typically there's two grades used in New Zealand. And in your home, you're looking for grade A safety glass on that safety stamp.
Right, And because this is often the sort of thing that inspectors will look forward a final inspection. So if some re in your contract that hasn't installed it, hopefully
it'll get packed up at final inspection. But you know, again, I you know, we often get fixated with the rules and the regulations and I come back to the practicality, which is, you know, the last thing we want is that like that incident that I described or and I've seen it, you know, with young children for example, charging around the house hitting a ranch slider thinking that the door is open when in fact it's closed, and running
into it. You know that those sorts of issues or those sorts of events happen, and that's why we've got safety glass. That's why it's so important. Yes, the other thing I just wanted to chat with you in terms of, like you know, working with glasses is can be hazardous, right, and so the people that you're working with is that's really important that you're confident that they're managing all of
those hazards. So if you're talking about safe people in terms of teams and supervisors, what's the process for you guys.
Sure, Well, the first thing we know is that we're in your home, and your home is your sanctuary, so we've got to operate very safely. The first thing you should do is that there's planning that needs to go into it. You don't just walk up and start replacing glass. So we isolate the workspaces, We plan and work, and communicate with the homeowner and tell them, look, we're going
to be working in that area for this long. We will need that separated off, as they say, specially if there's children around when they first walk up, you want to make sure that when they start working with the glass that they've got proper ppe on it. I send shivers down my spine when I don't see people that are handling glass wearing cut resistant gloves, gauntlets, even shorts. You know, if glass breaks sharp, you really want to protect yourself and that gives you good indicators of the
people that are working there. If they're actually cuttered up properly, then you also want to see how they're behaving in terms of all the rubbers should be removed immediately, especially if there's sharp objects involved or potentially hazardous materials. And then you know, do they actually work clean and tiding so And the final thing is even the equipment they're using. If you're seeing they're pulling out old leads with cuts in them, everything should be test and tag in near
new condition. If they're climbing up on ladders, what the condition of their leaders? Are they rushing that sort of thing. It's the things that you'd normally look for anyway. And the only thing that is then added is that how they actually kick themselves out, because the last thing anyone wants on a site is either one of their loved ones getting hurt or having to deal with an emergency on the site.
And I guess you know this is the difference between let's say smaller or more informal operations in a larger organization that has that training in places those you know, has someone who's looking at what they do, reviewing it, testing it, talking about constant improvement. Those sorts of things are really important.
Yep.
Yeah, Hey, I'm just curious too because people will be listening to this going, yeah, I understand the gloves and da da da da. What's a gauntlet?
Oh?
Sorry?
If fair?
So, it's a piece of equipment that is cut resistant that goes from basically the wrist area where all your arteries are, so it's a really important piece of and it goes up to the elbow. So if the glass unexpectedly breaks quite often the way that you carry glass, the first place one of those shards of glass is going to go is into that nice soft part in
your arm. Well, that gauntlet is a piece of protective equipment that's worn that just keeps it so if you see someone with short sleeves and the bare arm again, and there have been some horrific things even on video where someone's working with it, and that's what that piece of equipment avoids.
Yeah. The other thing too, just in terms of the retrofit space, So if there's a requirement to have safety glass as part of a retro double glazing, that's possible.
Sorry, what was just christ In.
Terms of like you know, we're often we're talking on this show about retrofit double glazing, right, Yes, so if we're doing a retrofit, we've ordered a DG unit, but there's a requirement to have safety glass as part of the standards. That's achievable in retrofit as well, isn't it.
Oh?
Absolutely, And the should form an important part of the conversation and be you know, again, we like to keep the homeowner informed because again it's this invisible threat that's in the home that our objective when we walk away from the job is that the people can enjoy the end result without risk or fear of something not being safe.
Yeah, and that's what ultimately it's all about. Hey, Deren, thank you very much for your time. Really informative and good to get that information. And again, you know, you and I probably have that vintage where we can remember what it was like when there wasn't a lot of safety glass around, and I think we've all got a picture in our head of what happens when it's not there and it ain't pretty.
I can tell you that it's been an absolute pleasure talking to you.
Nice to talk to you too. Take care, all the best, all the best, Darren Darrel see eight hundred eighty ten eighty, will continue taking your calls. And I just on the safety glass and I told that story just the beginning of that that chat with Darren. I remember we were was at school. We're charging around and a guy the door was swinging back. It was an aluminium door with glass panels in it, and he put his arms up to stop the door swinging back because he was intent
on catching the guy that had obviously upset him. Put his his arms up and that just went straight through the panels of the upper you know, there's a lower panel, and then a top panel went straight through shattered or broke into shards. And then I think you know that it was the panic of criky. I've just put my arms through the or and then pulled back, and it was the pulling back that caused the injuries. That's why
we've got safety glass. That's why it's so important, and that's why council inspectors at final inspection where it's required, they should be seeing that stamp on the glass where it's actually laser etched into the glass. You can't remove it. It shouldn't be a sticker. We're going to talk more about buildings straight after the news, sport and weather and recycling fabrics. Well, a very good morning, welcome back to the program. Oh eight hundred and eighty ten eighty will
take building questions right through to eight thirty. Then of course we're into the garden with the inimitable red climb pasted with us from eight thirty this morning, going to be having a chat with Tim from Retext. Check it out online. Actually do that right now, just type in retext r e t ex dot co dot nz Hang and I bought it up as well. This was a company that I bumped into timid an event and then looked at what they do in terms of recycling textiles,
and I was app fascinated. They also end up recycling textiles into like you know, protective layers for builds. So typically if you're doing a build and you've laid a new floor, you'll go and get some card water, you'll get some other bits and pieces. Now you can use recycled textile. Anyway, more on that shortly, but I was fascinated by it, and in terms of, you know, the sort of the space that I'm operating and where I'm doing some work around construction waste and waste minimization and
promoting resource recovery and those sorts of things. To see what happens to textile is really really important because we might put it into a recycling bit and then you wonder what happens to it. Well, I'll tell you all about that in just a moment. Warreick, good morning to you.
Good morning. I've got a bit of a problem with a concrete internal foundation that is showing signs of crumbling away with that quite evervescent stuff around the edge of it, and the concrete just crumbles to a powder yep. And I listened to your program some time ago, and I remember you discussing it with someone and there was a treatment you could use.
If we were talking about moisture in Greece, then there are some treatments that will help resist moisture migrating through the block.
Will it's an internal foundation inside the house and it's supporting. It's under a supporting foundation on the wall for a second level.
Right, do you think that the crumbling is to the extent where it would cause instability.
Well, it's covering. It gone back an area and the foundation of about seven hundred I suppose from a doorway, and it's worked its way back about probably about seven hundred and it hasn't stopped. So it's a slow process, but it is happening.
And when you say it hasn't stopped. It's the presence of the efforescence that you're seeing that white powder on the block on the concrete work. Or is it actually you know it's it's actually crumbling and falling away.
Yeah, it's actually crumbling and falling away.
To what extent, like just the surface or all the way through.
No, this is probably getting onto wood halfway through the foundation itself.
Hm.
And do you think you know, realistically, given what you can see, that there's risk of it becoming unstable and no longer offering up any support like it's intended.
To do well, that that is potentially a problem. Yes, it could if it keeps If it keeps going.
I suppose there's two things. One is what's causing it, because generally these things shouldn't happen right now unless you're getting and typically if you do have a sho is with the durability of concrete, it's around moisture. So is there excessive.
Didn't they mention? Or I think you mean someone mentioned salts in the concrete in the mix.
That relates to the efflorescence, right, So it's salts that are often you know, we use sand, right, and unless the sand is completely and utterly cleansed of any salt that might be there. You might see it appear over time, whether or not it then goes on to cause concrete decay. You'd want to go and talk to an engineer about that. Look, I if you know, it sounds like you've got some
genuine concerns and have good reason for that. I wonder whether approaching a structural engineer to come and determine it, and then getting advice from them as to what remediation. Now, it might be a case of actually sort of cleaning the area, boxing out around it and pouring a foundation around it to offer up some support. It might be that you need to prop part of the building, remove it and replace, but I'd get guidance from a structural engineer on that.
Thank you very much.
All right, all the very best to you. Take care and look, it's quite potentially, you know, it's quite possible that the engineer will look at it and go, Okay, it's happening, but it's unlikely to cause any issues with stability. We'll just leave alone, or we'll just treat it as it is and hope that it stops, in which case it probably will be a treatment to prevent that moisture,
ingress and therefore essence righty Oh. Now, I went out to meet Tim at Retexts a couple of probably a month ago now, and I had to wander around, and to be fair, I saw a whole lot of stuff that I've never ever seen in my life. Tim, thank you very much for joining us this morning on the program.
Thanks thankfully.
I'm true, it's a pleasure. So just just quickly, retext is a manufactured it's a factory where textiles. Now, actually, let's start with the basics. When you say textile, what's a textile that can be recycled?
Okay, so just quickly, if I just go back a se so retext is a brand. Yes, Textile Products is the manufacturer of retext gotcha. So just a little bit of background. Textile Products have been recycling and manufacturing and ZOM for about the past sixty years, basically committed to transforming textile waste, so things like waste wool, wool uniforms, closing,
polyester insulation, acoustic insulation offcuts into valuable, endless recyclable products. Essentially, yeah, to provide sustainable solutions so those products can keep coming back to textile products and get it remade just like retext.
Right, so when people use retext.
They can use it once, twice, three, four, or five times. That has a value proposition, and when they're finished with it, they can return it to where they bought it from. We pick it up, take it back to the factory, back to textile products, and only hunger and remake it into retext or other products.
Yeah, because I'm.
Thinking, you know, if you think about all of the textiles that might be in our lives, and sometimes at the time of manufacture, if you've got a roll of fabric and you're cutting out T shirts, right, you're going to have offcuts and where do they go? So that's it's that, it's carpets, it's it's just it's important.
Yeah, uniforms, carpet, woolen carpets. Yeah, pretty much, anything that doesn't have a chemical kind of element to it, right, we can deal with. I mean, we're just recently we're talking to a film studio about the green and the blue screen carpets, looking at recycling those, yeah, and turning them back into something they could use back on the film set. So yeah, things like that. We do get a lot of uniforms from companies and those will get
process through and made into retext. But we make other products, we make whole esteration. We may remove all blankets under as wadding, geotextiles, so weed matt yes, erosion control, mating, but again all fully recyclable and by it agradable, so you know, not leaching plastics and such like out into the into the environment.
And I'm intrigued by that comment that you make around is endlessly recyclable. Right. So let's say, because one of the things that caught my eye to be fair, was that you do essentially flooring protection, right, which over the years, you know, I've seen a number of products there and typically when we're finished using them, we roll them up and they go in the bin, right, and they go to landfill. So yours is slightly different, that's right.
So with retex, because of the durability of the product, you can use it, as I said, you know, four or five times, and it can be used a side or outside. So that's the value proposition. But when you are finished with it, it does have a home to come back to, so it doesn't need to go into the skit. So what I say to people is look, we'll do our bit by recycling it and providing an
easy access for it to come back to textile products. Yes, the merchants, So the building merchants, you know, we are top sort of four or five building merchants of stocking and have access to retext through our distributed easy access and so you can return it there if you want, and we pick it up. There's no charge to anyone. So we've taken away all the barriers and that comes back to textile products and we remake it back into retext. So if everyone does the advert, then it shouldn't end
up in landfill. And just to give your listeners some context, we process thirty five tons a week of textile waste and turn it into products that people in the building industry other industries use every day. And that's drop in the bucket. There's one hundred and eighty thousand tons of texile waste goes to landfill. And you every year.
In these numbers when you start looking into waste and trying to do something around waste minimization, and you look at the scale of the challenge, you know, and I keep saying to people, you know, what, we've got to realize is that construction in Auckland anyway contributes about fifty percent of the volume of material going to landfill.
Right.
We are a shockingly wasteful industry. So I just look at something an initiative like this and the work that you've been doing for all of these years and go, actually, this is great. And also I think too sometimes we as consumers or as the producers of waste material, we feel that there's not a pathway for it that you know, people talk about greenwashing or they talk about stuff that theoretically goes through recycling, but it doesn't. Actually it just
goes straight to landfall. But you know, this is where I was excited to see what you're doing, which is we're taking this material, we're taking these textiles, and we're making a product that is then infinitely recyclable. That's correct, and we've got a pathway.
So that's that's the key, right. But it's not just the fact that it's going to landfill. It's the carbon footprint.
Of getting it to the landfil yes.
Backwards and forwards, backwards and forwards. So whilst there is some carbon footprint and us picking up textile ways, it's a lot better than it's just steaming up in the dump.
Well, particularly that in what you've set up, you've also got this pathway where people, once you've used the product can return it right, so it's it's not a difficult process to then ensure that you know you're doing the right thing, which is if you're using a recycled product that when you've finished with it, it can be recyclable and here's the pathway for it. That's I think it's exciting to really appreciate you spending a bit of time with us this morning. I would encourage you to go
and check it out. I just found it absolutely fascinating, So have a look at retext dot co dot nz and if you yeah.
Also great work.
Also if the listeners want to get the whole product range and they can't find it on our website, they can go to easy Access yep. So they are our distributors. So they're the premium wholesaler of high access solutions in New Zealand or made in Mango Toroedo like us a
family business. We've partnered that with Easy Access and they've been fantastic managed to get us into those building merchants and that's the key, right because it's getting the reach and the eyeballs on the product and people go oh okay cool, and I can chuck my high vision the bin hair, yeah, clothing, my old uniform, it'll go back to textile. It'll make a product that I'll use on site, whether you're renovating or a new build.
Yeah, yeah, Look, I think it's exciting. Really appreciate your time, Tom, and we'll catch up against all the best mate, take care bothering into him. Oh karaky, troubles arrived, folks. I'd forgotten all about this, to be fair, but when he signed off last week said hey, I'll see you next week, and to be fair, I've completely forgotten. But there he is, lurking on the other side of the glass. It's going to be some fun today. We're going to take a short break. We'll be back in a moment with Gail.
If you'd like to talk to Rude from eight thirty, you can call us on eight hundred and eighty eight. Well, it's going to be lovely having Red in the studio. He's ready to go at eight thirty. But right now, Gail, a very good morning to you.
Good morning, Pete. Hi, there we have a problem around our swimming pool. It got bricktailing certain concrete, but the grouting has sort of load and the edges are quite sharp. We wondered, could we get grouting pushed all over the whole thing and then somehow get it all for bread or there was another way of doing it.
Yeah, I mean if the grout, you know, let's say the grout is settled or it's moved or something like that, then yes, applying a new grout over the top is fine, but you would want to go and where if you get that product from. You'd want to go and talk to them about things like adhesion, Right, So you want to make sure that the new grout, if it's going to be a thin layer over the top of the existing one, is actually going to bond and not just
delaminate and come out later on. So adhesion is the key there, because what you don't necessarily want to do is have to go through and cut all of the old grout out. But no, that should be relatively simple. And then you know, like with grouting tiles, you've got to be a little bit conscious. Especially bricks that are porous, right, they will absorb and get stained by the grout very quickly.
So the person doing the work needs to make sure that that as they're applying the grout, they're cleaning it off, that it's not You can just kind of pour a slurry over the whole thing and then clean it. But you don't want to wait too long. You don't want to let it dry. There's a bit of I suppose it's been a knowledge in getting it right. But yes,
theoretically it's still you can pourse. You can, but then you want to be working quickly to ensure that it doesn't start bonding to the bricks, which is not where you want it.
No, it was, So is that is it better just to individually fill all the grass?
Look, that's probably the approach that I would take. And I go years ago, I did some big six hundred by six hundred pavers and then I grouted them right, and it was quite a big grouted gap in between, and I just worked my way along each individual line, filling it with grout, packing it and cleaning it off and cleaning the surrounding area as I went right and
worked my way across that way. So I would probably take the same approach with the bricks that I would kind of point them almost and apply that and clean off an area and then move on to the next area and keep cleaning as you go. Pointing is if you look at brickwork. When brickwork is being laid, there's mortar in between the bricks, and then the bricklayer will point them by scraping out the joint and making it neat. So if you did a grout that wasn't a really
wet slurry and you essentially pointed it. But again it's that adhesion is the key, because what I don't want to do is say, pour a layer on top and then you find that it delaminates and comes off again.
And who would do that sort of thing?
Would we.
Look?
Probably a tyler would be a good place to start. Someone that's got a bit of experience with that. You might find a bricklayer, I mean, a general contractor may have an inclination. It's just you've got to try and find someone who's got a little bit of a passion for doing it. It's it's work that requires a bit of care and attention to do well. Yes, all the very best, you go, take care and Julie a very good morning to you. Hello, good morning, morning.
Morning, Hello, Hi, I have a large area of what shrawing. It's been part of us. I would like to get it, then send it off and apply what oil. Yep, but I'm having I'm having trouble finding a four floor standard and advocato. Will you have any recommendations? Please?
Look, it depends a little bit on where in the country you are and what type of flooring it is. So what's what type of flooring do you actually have?
It's a I'm in Mangawai area and it's a hard hard wood.
Flooring and it's tongue and groove, or it's it's laid down over the top of a substrate.
I think it's tongue and groove.
I think right, laid down directly over the joists, or is it stuck down onto a concrete slab? Do you know what's underneath it?
No, I think it's tongue and groove.
I think right. I mean the reason I'm asking it question is like sometimes with tongue and groove, it's already been sanded. You may not actually have enough of the material left to sand again. So you've got to be a little bit cautious around that. Depending on the type of material it might depend on how much you can actually sand off, and then some types of timber might not actually respond particularly well to using like a natural oil. It's unlikely, but it's possible. Right, So there's a few
issues there. Look, I tell you what's Stay on the line. I'll give you the number of a guy who is very experienced who might be able to help you out. But it is pretty challenging what you're it seems simple, but it may not be. All right, Okay, just stay on the lines, Julie. I'll be with you in just a moment, righty, oh, let's rip it. I think we'll take a short break. Redkline passed live and in person.
I'm looking forward to this, ladies and gentlemen. We'll be back talking all things gardening and the wonderful world of bugs with rud straight after the break.
For more from the Resident Builder with Peter Wolfcamp, listen live to News Talks 't B on Sunday mornings from six, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.