Recladding

Many Auckland homes built during the 1990’s up to 2004 suffer from the ‘leaky house’ label. If you find yourself owning one of these homes the option of recladding can literally build the value back into your home making it a marketable and desirable asset once again.

There is no question that recladding your home is a demanding undertaking however, recladding provides an opportunity to create an entirely new look and feel to your home and the opportunity to modernise, upgrade, extend or alter, as well as addressing any and all issues relating to weather tightness. The biggest win is restoring your home to its true value in the Auckland market as well as knowing your home is saleable is worth the effort of recladding.

The process for recladding a house is largely the same as any major renovation. Council rules must be observed and building code standards must be met. Auckland council takes re-clad work very seriously so there are a few extra steps to completing the project successfully.

There are four standard steps which our specialists follow when completing each project. Although no two jobs are the same, the general steps involved are:

1. Protect your home
We ensure your home is protected from the elements by wrapping it to keep the interior dry.

2. Remove existing cladding
We remove the old cladding and dispose of it off-site.

3. Inspect timber framing
Independent building consultants inspect for any damage/rot that has occurred to your structure.

4. Repair and reclad
Any rotten or damaged timber is removed and rebuilt. If there are any renovation or addition requests these will also be completed. Once the build is complete, our team will reclad the area.

The early stage of a re-clad can be nerve-racking as it uncovers the unknown. The removal of the existing cladding, wrap, insulation and joinery reveal the extent of structural repairs needed. Remediation work is identified and instructed by a consulting weather tightness engineer. Building can only continue when the remediation work has passed multiple inspections by both the supervising engineer and the council inspector.

The other worry home owners’ face during the remedial stage are unknown costs. The amount of remedial work remains unknown until cladding is removed and the extent of water damage can be seen. We can take steps toward managing this unknown cost by making an allowance for it based on evidence of water damage showing on the exterior or interior walls.

Some of the things we will look for when determining recladding costs include:

• The complexity of the project (size, level of difficulty, site access)

• How much damage requires repairs and the extent of these repairs

• Any alterations that have been requested (renovations to be made during the project)

• Any redecoration work that must be completed

• How much joinery needs to be installed

At Urban Edge Construction, we are dedicated weather-tight rebuild specialists. We help people with leaky buildings to restore value to their property with industry-leading specialist construction services. We take the hassle out of leaky home and leaky building repairs.