Garage Walls - Water Passes Through

[KatherineParkVictim]

Do your Persimmon garage walls have rainwater soak through them as if they were tissue paper? Does the inside of your garage walls run with water when it rains? Have you had stored possessions water damaged in your garage?

We have all of this – and Persimmon respond to each query about this by stating the single skin walls are ‘as per specification’ and closing the job on their computer, which we then have to remind them about.

Well here is some news if you have any of these problems (i.e., the walls aren’t as per spec – so read on….)

We have continued to suffer from water penetration of the garage walls when it rains since we moved in, in July 2006. The last development in all of this was that we raised the hazardous situation with this when it rains, soaks through the walls, runs down inside (including down and through the 240V switch and double socket fitted inside the garage) to form a big puddle on the latex floor – no way we were going to stand in that puddle and touch the wet electrics in the garage – zap!!!

When the water has built up it runs out across the floor towards the front of the garage. This penetration and pooling happens to whatever wall the rain hits; anything leaning against the wall or sat on the floor gets wet. We have already suffered water damage to possessions stored in the garage, including a freezer that failed due to the heavily damp conditions, and our vehicles in the garage which become so covered with condensation that we park them outside for an airing following inclement weather – what’s the point of having a garage like this then!?!!!!.

What did Persimmon do? Fix the wall problem? Nope – they fitted waterproof electrical sockets and conduit inside! We have never accepted this ridiculous act as a solution to this wet wall problem – no way.

During the recent heavy weather over the weekend of 19th/20th January 2008, we documented and photographed for the final time the soaking of the walls, running water, puddle inside, etc, and can clearly now demonstrate the problem and the point that the walls do not comply with NHBC regulations.

The NHBC regs clearly call in these circumstances for a suitable waterproof coating to be applied to the exterior walls; this we see as Persimmon’s responsibility, and not ours.

We are presenting this to persimmon through Newbuild and have reported everything to NHBC who are due to visit to inspect on 4 March 08.

[Colin Jack]

Have you contacted your local Building Standards Officer?

Persimmon don't care, the NHBC are in the pockets of Persimmon and you are paying for all this incompetence.

[katherineparkvictim2]

We have exactly the same problem! The walls are running with water and we have a flood from the back to the front of the garage. Everything inside is soaked. Persimmon have said the garage is built to 'spec' and advised us to paint a 'Ronseal' type weatherproof coating on the outside. I have asked them today to do something about the electrics at least, as I don't believe it can be safe to have sockets/switches located on walls running with water. Will keep you posted!hmy:

[KatherineParkVictim]

Persimmon reacted to our complaints about the wet electrics specifically by upgrading our garage electrics with 'weather proof' covers and conduit - we never accepted this as any solution, but went ahead and let them complete the works.

They are ignoring the point that it is still possible for me to stand in the rainwater puddle on the floor of the garage and touch live electrics - not something that anyone can claim is 'in spec'.hmy: ZAP!!!hmy:

Through our independents (NewBuild) we have access to the NHBC regs, and it is the fact that the garage wall fails the specs for water penetration that we will be showing to NHBC on 4 Mar in our meeting.

We have everything catalogued, with photographs, etc, to demonstrate the problem. We will also have a sprinkler set up to demonstrate to the inspector how fast the water soaks through and starts running down the inside - QED really.

We want Persimmon to provide and apply this weatherproof coating under NHBC regs as if it doesn't fix the problem, they'll be back.

[KatherineParkVictim3]

Sounds like you are well ahead of us ‘new kids on the block’ with respect to the Persimmon ‘build’ standard. Yet despite you pointing out the inadequacies of their ‘design & build’ wrt the single-skin porous brick wall of their garage construction they continue to chunter on in ignorant bliss with a devil-may-care attitude, building & installing inadequate and potentially dangerous products for us the customer!!

No surprise, we too have the ’indoor water feature’ in our garage. Like you it has been raised with Persimmon (who displayed their now usual enthusiasm – akin to that of a teenager being offered broccoli & swede vice the juicy ¼ pounder with fries). None the less photographic evidence has been acquired for external agency scrutiny.

Lets hope common sense prevails and Persimmon provide a waterproof coating to your garage, our garage and all the others affected ( that'll be the estate then - probably!!).

If not then this and other major issues (affecting numbers of us) may well have to go further afield in order to press home the level of discontent we the customer have with Persimmon.....

[katherineparkvictim2]

Ah, the press! Yes, we too have been approached to go on ITV, but are holding out for solutions to ALL of our Persimmon problems before going public!

Persimmon have said they'll change all the sockets etc in our garage to waterproof ones and also the conduits - hooray!!!

One problem down, just another few hundred to go!