Unsolvable Leak in 1yo Apartment

Thenarrator on 17/11/2018 - 19:03
Last edited 17/11/2018 - 19:04

Hi

I own a unit in a 1yo apartment complex (about 4 storeys high) and there has been a seepage leak occuring in the corner of the bedroom floor. The strata's plumber has been called and inspected the area, cut holes in the adjacent gyprock wall (the wall is dry), put cameras through it, dismantled ceiling light, took down the neighbours toilet but still confused. The leak is making the carpet constantly wet, mold is growing and slightly uninhabitable.

The carpet gets wetter when it rains. The plumber believes it is comming from outside balcony and found a little gap between balconies where he thinks water is comming in. Its been going on for months now and hes supposedly fixed it by placing a cap in the gap on Monday but the carpet has still been getting wetter this week (it rained slightly). This back and forth is taking months now (almost 2) and I understand its hard to find a leak when theres other units involved, not necessarily able to inspect all areas of the complex and not as simple as a house. It feels like its unfixable and im thinking the worse possible.

Have I bought a 700k apartment that is unhabitable?? What am I gona do with this huge debt?? I bought a useless piece of space? Is this the end? Really anxious and looking for pointers from anyone who experienced something similar.

Home & Garden

Comments

  • [Deactivated] on 17/11/2018 - 19:06
    +2

    Can the original builder with warranty get a second professional opinion on the source of leak?

    • Thenarrator on 17/11/2018 - 19:11

      I've asked strata multiple times to contact the builder. Everytime they've dismissed it. I'm not sure whether the plumber that the strata sent is already the builder's plumber.

      • Randxyz123 on 17/11/2018 - 21:15
        +1

        Contact the builder yourself. Send a letter of demand to them and tell them that they need to fix it or you'll take further legal action.

        I've asked strata multiple times to contact the builder. Everytime they've dismissed it.

        Dismissed it in what way?

        • Thenarrator on 17/11/2018 - 21:26

          Dismissed it as in ignored it and sent a plumber to look at it. Strata probably think going to builder is futile and a plumber would be faster and easire

          • CheapSticks on 17/11/2018 - 22:26
            +1

            @Thenarrator: Suppose they are right that plumber will be faster and easier but if the issue is not resoled by the plumber then the next recourse will be the builder - so no harm in contacting the builder yourself and setting it out in written. Ultimately this all will be covered by the builder but having it in writing from day 1 will strengthen your case and avoid further delay with builder.

  • Melb69 on 17/11/2018 - 19:17
    +2

    Its the Builders responsibility to fix it. At least they are trying to find it, but it will just take sometime. Just keep a records of who inspects it and what they do. Any damage to property should be covered under you contents insurance.

    Just be patient. Keep calling the body corporate manager if they are coming to fix things. I was just talking about balcony leaks. Its one of the most common issues with these apartments. If the waterproof membrane isn't done properly its going to leak. Movement will cause joints to crack.

    • Thenarrator on 17/11/2018 - 21:35

      Any legalities i can pull up to call the builders onto it?

  • hawkeye on 17/11/2018 - 19:28

    Any pics of the verandah back to the wall. Is there any colorbond flashings noticeable on the outside wall that's inline with the water penetration.
    Pull the carpet back in the wet area and trace it

    • Thenarrator on 17/11/2018 - 21:34

      This is the pic. https://imgur.com/a/LkZDnWU
      The gap is between neighbours and my balcony

      • hawkeye on 17/11/2018 - 22:16
        +1

        So the waters ponding and going through the door entry if that's right? The hydraulic engineer has either made a mistake or the wrong size drainage pipe was used to in accordance to the recommendations.

        Work out the floor area show photos of ponding the drainage size pipe and the shared pipe over the 4 floors would be an easy case to prove volume inadequate if drainage by laws not met. But to fix would a nightmare worse than you started with

        • Thenarrator on 17/11/2018 - 22:57

          I dont think it is ponding. The plumbers think water is tracking down the metal surface and draining to that gap in between 2 balconies which seeps into the slab and then up into the bedroom.

  • tpa on 17/11/2018 - 19:56
    +1

    Leaks can take a while to trace/resolve. Make sure you keep pursuing this within the building warranty period otherwise the owners will have the wear the cost of remediation. The body corporate should not be dismissing your issue. If it is the committee members blocking you, there is no reason why you cannot raise this issue directly with your body corporate manager. If it is worse when it rains, that indicates it is coming from the outside (therefore common property) so your resulting internal damage should be covered by the body corporate. Other places to look would be the guttering and down pipes - if these are not connected properly or if there is a gap not sealed properly, this could cause water to pool/overflow and makes its way into your apartment. If you have pulled back the carpet, I would leave it that way if practical as it still needs to dry out.

    • Thenarrator on 17/11/2018 - 21:37

      I'm part of the exec committee. Would you know how long is the building warranty and what does it cover because its already 1 year.

  • bigticket on 17/11/2018 - 22:14

    Could be leaking from the window. Check the flashing and the gaps.

  • NuclearWessels on 17/11/2018 - 23:20

    At a $700k investment I would potentially even speak to a lawyer about getting a letter drafted

  • skid on 18/11/2018 - 10:44

    Is this apartment in Epping by any chance?

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