FAQs - Leaking Homes, Building Services, Components

On the Backflow Prevention (Boundary) section of this website.

Go to the Backflow Prevention section

Electrical and gas work does not normally need a building consent, except for commercial and industrial buildings.

Air conditioning systems in commercial and industrial buildings do need building consents.

Your designer should work through the New Zealand Building Code to determine this.

For most single dwellings, no fire wall is needed if all of the building is one metre or more from the boundary and the gutters are more than 650 mm from the boundary.

Some wall cladding replacement can be carried out without a building consent however this is dependent on meeting the requirements of the exemption which involves a number of factors.

Go to MBIE's website with the schedule 1 guidance

The Building Code acceptable solution G12/AS1 requires the storage water heater control thermostat to be set at no less than 60 degrees Celsius to avoid the growth of Legionella bacteria.

For safety reasons the hot water at personal hygiene outlets (eg, bath, basin and shower) is to be delivered at no

greater than 55ºC maximum except for schools, childcare facilities, old people's homes, institutions for people with

psychiatric or physical disabilities and hospitals where the temperature is to be no greater than 45ºC.

Under the Building Code all new dwellings require smoke alarms. Alterations to existing dwellings will also trigger the requirements for smoke alarms.

View the required location of domestic smoke alarms pdf on MBIE's website

Generally all new buildings will require double glazing. It still may be possible to use single glazing, by using the calculation method as per NZS4218:2004

The calculation method allows the insulation in one part of a building to be traded against the insulation in another part of the house. You should discuss this with your designer as they will be required to provide calculations demonstrating compliance with NZS4218:2004 with Building Consent applications.

Any Fence higher than 2.5 meters will need a building consent.They may also need resource consent check with duty planner.

Second-hand log fires are acceptable for rural properties larger than two Hectares provided the fires are less than three years old and the manufacturers installation instructions are provided.

If the fire is older than three years and has been checked and passed for safety by one of our approved testers

They are permitted.

Second-hand log fires are acceptable for properties smaller than 2 Hectares provided the fires are less than three years old, the manufacturers installation instructions are provided and the fire complies with the Ministry for the Environments approved list.

If the fire is more than three years old it can still be installed if it has been checked and passed for safety by one

of the approved testers and appears on the approved log fire list from the Ministry for the Environment.

This information will need to be supplied at the time of lodgement.

A list of approved log fires can be found on the Ministry for the Environment website.

Go to the list of approved log fires on MFEs website

Having a leaking home can be very distressing. The remedies and legal position with these is complex. First of all, do not ignore the problem; it will only get worse.

See guidance here on MBIE's website

We recommend you check out the Ministry of Business and Innovation (MBIE) website on 'Building Performance Weathertight Services for information on unsafe balconies and/or leaking buildings.

Go to MBIE website detailing this

If you wish to seek advice from an appropriately qualified expert, you should contact one of the following. Look in the yellow pages for numbers.

• A consulting engineer
• A building consultant
• A registered master builder
• An architect
• An architectural designer
• Institute of Building Surveyors

If your house has been flooded then there may be health and safety issues for you and your family.

Guidance on restoring a house after flood damage is available from the Building Research Advisory New Zealand (BRANZ).

The website has very good information to help you with the clean-up, and also guidance about health matters.

Go to the publication 'Restoring a house after flood damage'

The Consumer website provides advice on house maintenance and other matters.

Go to the Consumer home maintenance search on their website

The Building Code requires all water supplies to households to be potable which means that the supply must be fit for

human consumption.

Roof water and bore water may need treatment.

Owners must satisfy Council that water supply is of a potable quality, test results will be required.

Also, a Resource Consent may be required to sink a bore and take water. Further information can be found on the Resource Consent section of this website.

Go to the Resource Consent section