Hello
We purchased a 2 story townhouse a year ago that is now nearly 2.5 years old.
We had a building inspection done before we purchased the property which came back largely clear. However, we have had a few issues with the builder that have lead me to realise he may have cut a lot of corners and used a lot of sub-contractors. I have already taken him to consumer affairs over one issue and obtained a result in our favour.
The problem I want to post about here is incredibly loud and frequent bangs, pops and cracks that come largely from the ceiling and walls. The sounds are loud enough to wake you up at night. We do have ducted heating but this is turned off at night. The problem is worse during the winter months, which is obviously due to variations in temperature. However, this does not mean we do not hear it at all during Spring and Summer.
I have mentioned this to the builder, but he has explained that this occurrence is perfectly normal (this is generally his response to everything!). I would like to know then why it has not happened in any of the other houses I have lived in throughout my life (that range from old to new, and single stories to two stories).
Through my research, I am starting to think that we may have a case of 'truss uplift'. I know it is possible for this to happen even if the appropriate building standards have been followed. However, I am concerned that the trusses in the roof were not nailed down correctly. I have been reading some material that explains that blocks should be installed on bracing walls that do not prevent the vertical settlement of trusses, that trusses should not be supported by internal walls and that trusses should not be nailed to the interior walls without clips allowing for movement.
We have already got an issue with excessively creaking floors upstairs that the builder has done cursory fixes on over the last year, only for the issue to return a few hours after he has left (this is a work in progress)! If the builder has not allowed enough expansion space for the floors to stop making loud sounds, then it would not surprise me if he has done this elsewhere.
Does anyone know who the right sort of person is for me to employ to check the above items. I am concerned that building inspectors are too unqualified and ‘general’ and that a structural engineer is not the right sort of person. Should I specifically be contacting a roofing engineer?
I have a copy of AS 1684.4 but I do not have a copy of AS 440, which I am lead to believe covers roofing trusses in more detail.
What I would like to be able to do is come up with a list of things from standards documents that the builder may have breached and give them to someone who can individually check each item.
I have spoken to the building commission ‘hotline’, who unfortunately were more unskilled customer service representatives rather than people with any genuine technical knowledge. They basically advised that the builder would have complied with all standards in order to receive a final building certificate from the council. However, I am sceptical about this. The issuing of certificates is such a routine ‘ticking the box’ type process that I am convinced it is sometimes done in a cursory way. It is also doubtful that inspectors at this point in the process always unearth every area that has been neglected or every corner that has been cut.
Anyone with any ideas, post away…
Cheers!
We purchased a 2 story townhouse a year ago that is now nearly 2.5 years old.
We had a building inspection done before we purchased the property which came back largely clear. However, we have had a few issues with the builder that have lead me to realise he may have cut a lot of corners and used a lot of sub-contractors. I have already taken him to consumer affairs over one issue and obtained a result in our favour.
The problem I want to post about here is incredibly loud and frequent bangs, pops and cracks that come largely from the ceiling and walls. The sounds are loud enough to wake you up at night. We do have ducted heating but this is turned off at night. The problem is worse during the winter months, which is obviously due to variations in temperature. However, this does not mean we do not hear it at all during Spring and Summer.
I have mentioned this to the builder, but he has explained that this occurrence is perfectly normal (this is generally his response to everything!). I would like to know then why it has not happened in any of the other houses I have lived in throughout my life (that range from old to new, and single stories to two stories).
Through my research, I am starting to think that we may have a case of 'truss uplift'. I know it is possible for this to happen even if the appropriate building standards have been followed. However, I am concerned that the trusses in the roof were not nailed down correctly. I have been reading some material that explains that blocks should be installed on bracing walls that do not prevent the vertical settlement of trusses, that trusses should not be supported by internal walls and that trusses should not be nailed to the interior walls without clips allowing for movement.
We have already got an issue with excessively creaking floors upstairs that the builder has done cursory fixes on over the last year, only for the issue to return a few hours after he has left (this is a work in progress)! If the builder has not allowed enough expansion space for the floors to stop making loud sounds, then it would not surprise me if he has done this elsewhere.
Does anyone know who the right sort of person is for me to employ to check the above items. I am concerned that building inspectors are too unqualified and ‘general’ and that a structural engineer is not the right sort of person. Should I specifically be contacting a roofing engineer?
I have a copy of AS 1684.4 but I do not have a copy of AS 440, which I am lead to believe covers roofing trusses in more detail.
What I would like to be able to do is come up with a list of things from standards documents that the builder may have breached and give them to someone who can individually check each item.
I have spoken to the building commission ‘hotline’, who unfortunately were more unskilled customer service representatives rather than people with any genuine technical knowledge. They basically advised that the builder would have complied with all standards in order to receive a final building certificate from the council. However, I am sceptical about this. The issuing of certificates is such a routine ‘ticking the box’ type process that I am convinced it is sometimes done in a cursory way. It is also doubtful that inspectors at this point in the process always unearth every area that has been neglected or every corner that has been cut.
Anyone with any ideas, post away…
Cheers!