Noise control by goodwill

Press, 10 December 1983, Page 16

Noise control by goodwill

Home Line with

Bill Harrison

A question relating to noise control in flats and houses in my last column led to an interesting response from a woman who lives in one of the few blocks of high-rise flats in Christchurch.

Her flat is being invaded by noise from above and below. Living below is a student who. finds loud music either an aid to study or an escape from the city environment. From above comes the noise of the occupant stomping about in a heavy-booted manner.

With the season of goodwill so near, perhaps a simple solution might be a Christmas gift of a pair of earphones for the student and a pair of slippers for the person above. This might ensure their assistance in resolving a problem which they may not realise they are creating. Any other solution would be far more expensive, because dwelling units are more likely to be designed to meet a price than for acoustic excellence. Fortunately, most flat dwellers show a high degree of consideration for the comfort of those around them. The exterior of my weatherboard home was coated some years ago with a textured paint system which I find impossible to remove. Sand-blasters I have contacted say the lead content is too high (I had it tested) for them to remove it. I do not want to overlay it with stone or other

material. Advertising in the newspapers brought no response, so I hope you can help. - “H.C.“ My questioner gives no clue as to why it is necessary to remove that which is immovable. However, I am informed that this particular material was formulated and guaranteed to stay on for 20 years and it would seem that it does just that.

You may have been misinformed about the lead content as my information is that titanium was used in the formula, not lead. Removing the coating could be quite a sticky job, as I can recall a painter telling me of the difficulty he had with a similar problem. When he tried burning it off with his blowlamp the flame caused the material to form a sticky mess that adhered immovably to his tools.

Assuming that this coating was applied over previously painted weatherboards, I would suggest that you try one of the new hot air type paint removers.

This would minimise the fire risk while still applying enough heat to destroy the original paint surface of the weather boards. There will probably be a significant lead content in this original paint, so take care. Check with your insurance company before any burning off is started.

I have had a telephone call from a salesperson who wants to come and give me a quote to re-roof my house. I suppose the roof is a bit untidy now that it is drawn to my attention, but I am concerned about what I am committing myself for if I say they can come and quote. What should I do? — “Unsure”

Telephone selling is something new to most homeowners, especially for building products and services. It is a marketing approach born of the need to stimulate interest and create sales in an area of great potential — home maintenance and improvement. If, now that you think about it, perhaps you would

like to know what a new roof will cost, let the salesperson give you a quote. You will, of course, also get a sales push that will contain inducements such as a discount for an immediate order.

Remember, any quote is simply an offer to supply you with goods and/or services for a certain consideration or price. The offer should be in writing clearly stating all the conditions and your acceptance of the offer should also be written.

The difficulty faced by most people is in deciding whether the quote represents good value or not. We all like to make the best possible deal and this can be done only by evaluating comparable offers. When dealing with the salesperson, do not be hurried into a decision, ask for time to seek other offers or advice, do not sign anything until you are absolutely sure, and do not be afraid to say “no thank you.” The Consumers Institute gave advice on this subject early this year in its magazine “Consumer.” Are we being too fussy? When we question our builder about the quality of materials or workmanship we are usually told that we are too fussy or “I don’t usually do that” or some other similar answer. One part of the job is not in accordance with the plans in our opinion, but the builder says we should take it up with the sub-contrac-tor. Should we do this? We

went to the Building Performance Guarantee Corporation but they were not very interested. We have

very little experience in these matters. Are we being unreasonable? You seem to be in need of some professional assistance in assessing the standard of the work and in dealing with your builder. It is a pity that he is unable to reassure you himself. You should not deal directly with the sub-con-tractors, that is the responsibility of your builder. The Building Performance Guarantee Corporation will not help you to administer your contract; that is not their function. If your builder fails to complete the contract in accordance with the plans and specifications and to your satisfaction, and you can establish a valid claim, the Corporation will take action. In the meantime express your dissatisfaction or questions to your builder in writing. This will be of considerable help in establishing a claim later. I would suggest that you seek the opinion of a building consultant, or an architect, or a clerk of works, any of whom will be able to give you guidance now. If you have a question about home ownership or maintenance, write to “Homeline” c/o The Building Centre, P.O. Box 22143, Christchurch.