plaster water damage - painting ok or need to be replaced?

hi all,

just after a bit of general advice, we had a bit of a leak in our ceiling, which we only noticed in the last month or so when a yucky smell started emanating from our daughter's room and a grey-ish coloured streak appeared in the corner of her ceiling.

we called the builder who sent his plumber in to investigate, turns out it was a pipe for evaporative cooling (which we don't even have, but turns out we have the provision for, which is nice to know) had not been switched off properly, so it appears it has been slowly leaking up there ever since the house was built nearly 18 months ago, and only now has it been noticed. weird!

anyway, it has now been switched off so it won't leak anymore, but the builder now just wants to come over and paint over the mark in the ceiling. I am not convinced that the plaster, and possibly the roof trusses and ceililng insulation, won't need replacing.

How would I go about finding out what needs to be done to comply with building standards? And what the builder is obligated to do to fix it under warranty? I don't really want to go crawling into the ceiling cavity myself to have a look, but maybe I have to?

any help appreciated.. thanks in advance

Relpacement of the plasterboard is needed. Once wet, it becomes food for mold, which is something you don't want in your house.
It should be covered under the builder warranty, or seek help from your insurer.

thanks so much for your reply eve dweller.

I will definitely suggest this to the builder. i don't want mold growing in my ceiling cavity he should know this too, I don't like the way he tries to get around it

How about the insulation? couldn't that get mouldy too, and therefore start spreading? and do you think the roof trusses will be ok? i don't think i do...

Some ceiling materials can dry out unlike walls (vapour barriers), but issue is with the materials. Many of the sourced plasterboards are cheaper imports with little anti-fungal protection. Once it sets in they live off the paper.

I would also be replacing that sections insulation as well.

It’s normally quite an easy job for a plasterer.

great, ok thanks so much for that, much appreciated about to shoot off an email to builder. good to document these things...

i got a reply back from the builder... i had said in my email to them that I was concerned about mould growing in the roof cavity as I have seen that happen in a wine cellar... their response:

what rubbish. there is NO air flow in our ceiling. there is no whirlybird or holes (I would hope not anyway!!!) and in the winter months , which are like, now, there is no heat!!! it will be freezing up there!

I haven't responded, will talk to him when he gets here I suppose.

when is the last time you stuck your head up in the roof cavity and had a look at it yourself?

there will definitely be airflow up there... also, heat comes from many sources, one being lighting for example..

you're not my builder are you...

just kidding. i haven't actually been up there myself, but whenever my dad goes up there for me he comes back nearly dizzy, poor thing

so, are you saying there probably WOULDN'T be any mould up there, or even if it was there there wouldn't be conditions to let it keep growing?

this is contradictory to what Eve Dweller reckons... who do I believe then?

and why do ppl get whirly birds then, if not to improve airflow in the roof cavity?

sorry to lead you down the path, was just trying to point out that builder does have some valid points (and so does Eve Dweller).

If it were me, I'd be climbing in the roof to assess the situation.. if it needs a cut and shut, fair enough but I wouldn't be cutting up the plaster with only suspicion of mold... confirm it, then cut...

having said that, just noticed the part where you mentioned a stench in the house, not a good sign.

maybe get someone other than your dad as it may get to him... gets pretty stuffy in a roof cavity, combine that with insulation, filthy hehe...

thanks XT4V.... luckily for my dad, he is away for 4 months so he's off the hook

i would really like to go up there and have a look myself. i am sure my DH will have a fit. (he is not good with heights and i think he'd be almost as anxious with me up there as if he was going up himself )

weirdly, the stench has gone maybe it's already dried out?

really only one way to find out....

btw, be careful when climbing around there, make sure you dont put a foot through your ceiling hehe...

Depending on how extensive damage is you can dispute the ceiling can be repaired. But you did not build/bought a new house to have a damaged plasterboard! Just insist on getting ceiling (or its section) replaced.

This definitely is covered by the Hone Warrantee Insurance. For obvious reasons builders do not like to come back and do repairs. They may give some strange explanations and suggest cheep quick-fix to the problem. Just keep insisting on having ceiling replaced.

As a last resource lodge an Insurance climb. This is a big threat to the builder’s business. This usually works like a charm!

It’s always a wise idea to climb to the roof cavity and check the area yourself. A construction is a very common sense thing. You will feel if it’s moist here, can see mould and water damage. At least you will know if builder makes up a story.

thank you very much lesia

I still haven't heard when the builder will be coming out to fix it and I do intend to climb up there myself. soon!