25% of homes making occupants sick

According to an article on the New Zealand Herald website yesterday, a survey of 3,500 households commissioned by “The New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development” says that “a quarter of a million homes are so cold, damp and poorly built they are causing serious health problems.”

The report says it is not just a problem with old homes. “Many new homes and renovated homes lack adequate insulation, heating, ventilation and double glazing.” People responding to the survey stated that “mould and damp had caused their children to be repeatedly admitted to hospital wth respiratory and other health problems.”

According to the 3news.co.nz website “There’s virtually no reward for making homes perform better by putting in more insulation and double glazing.” If developers are putting profit before health, legislation must surely be brought in to protect peoples health? Thank goodness that in the UK Building Regulations now require any new dwellings or extensions to existing properties to have significantly higher standards of insulation and double glazing than in the past.

Many UK homeowners wanting to extend their homes will find that their existing double glazed windows and doors do not conform to the new required minimum standards, so will need to purchase more energy efficient, energy saving double glazed windows and doors for their extension to comply with building regulations. It is therefore a false economy to buy “cheap” double glazing for any extension or new building, as all Local Council Building Inspectors will require any products that do not conform to be ripped out and replaced at the owners own cost with double glazing that meets the new more stringent standards.