Pool of water found under house forcing tenants to flee – Stuff.co.nz

PAUL MITCHELL

Last updated07:32, July 5 2017

MURRAY WILSON/FAIRFAX NZ

Jillian Sinclair is looking for a new home after a pool of water was discovered under her rental property. From left, Kaleb Beaven, 10, Jillian Sinclair, holding Hayden McKinley, 1, and Ethan Beaven, 9.

The rapid growth of mould so prolific thattwo dehumidifiers couldn't keep it at bay tipped off a Palmerston North woman something was wrong with her home.

It would take anotherfew weeks, when contractors came to installunderfloor insulation, to find out what the problem was a 10-centimetre deep pondof stagnant water, pooledunder the house.

Jillian Sinclair, a single mother of three special needs children, said she had been having issues with cold and damp in the rental house, on Russell St, since she moved in a few years ago.

SUPPLIED

The backyard of the property after heavy rain in 2015.

A pair of dehumidifiers had kept anymould issues at bay, until May, when not even they could keep up with it.

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When the contractors arrived, "they couldn't even start the installation because there was a lake under there", she said.

SUPPLIED

Mould growing on the walls of the house.

Professionals, which manages the property, wasn'taware of the issue until contractors found the pool,property manager Bev Fletcher said.

It hadmoved quickly to deal with the problem, clearing the house of mould, pumping out the pond and improving drainage.

By the end of June,a sump and pump system had been installed to stop any future poolingand the situation would be monitored during the next heavy rain. Once it was dry enough, the underfloor insulation would go in, she said.

Palmerston North City Council eco-design adviser NelsonLebo, who inspected the house, said it satbelow street leveland on a slight slope.

He believed the pool, which he thought to be about 10cm deep, formed during a heavy bout of rain in April.

"Standing water under a house is a red flag.

"It contributes to a large level of moisture inside the houseand makes it much more likely to have mould, which leads to bad health effects on the tenants."

Despite the efforts to fix the problem, Sinclair was concerned about the health of her children andfuture damp and mould problems, and is looking for a new home.

Professionals hasagreed to waive her notice period, so she can move as soon as she findsa new home.

Sinclair has also taken her concerns about the home's dampness problems to the Tenancy Tribunal.

Lebo said rising damp and mould was a big problem in Palmerston North.

The city was wet, flat and many neighbourhoods, like the area around Russell St where Sinclair lived, had poor drainage.

Even under normal conditions, when the soil felt dry, 40 litres of moisture a day could get into an unprotected home, causing issues with mould and rotting.

Lebosaid landlords could reduce the risk with a"ground moisture barrier" alayer of polyurethane down over the soil under their houses.

"In the short term, it's good for thetenants' health, and in the long term, it's good forthe landlords and reduces theirmaintenancecosts."

-Stuff

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