FITZROY BUILDER INSISTS FIST-SIZED HOLE IN ROOF IS "VENTILATION, BRO"
Homeowner points at the sky through her ceiling. Builder calls it a feature.
A Fitzroy homeowner has been told the hole in her roof is not a defect. It's a design choice, according to the bloke who put the roof on eight months ago.
Owner Rhiannon Vaka, 41, said the leak started in June and got worse in July. By August there was what she called "a small indoor weather system" above the hallway. She rang the builder, a Bell Block outfit, and was told the gap was "ventilation, bro. Stops the mould."
"It's the size of my fist," Vaka said. "I've got mould. I've got a bucket. I've got a possum that came in on Tuesday and had a look around. What I don't have is a fucking roof."
The builder, contacted at what he called "smoko, but go on", stood by the work. "Every roof needs to breathe, ay. You block it up, you get rot. Trust me, it's a passive system." Asked whether passive systems usually involved rain landing on the carpet, he said the carpet was "probably synthetic" and hung up.
A neighbour, Doug from two doors down, said the same crew did his carport. It was "mostly alright, apart from the bit that fell off in the wind." He described the head builder as "a good cunt, just allergic to a spirit level."
Vaka is getting a second opinion Tuesday. The builder has also confirmed he'll be there Tuesday to fix it. Neither party specified which Tuesday. The possum is still unaccounted for.
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Reader Letters
★ Garry (Halswell)
Back in my day, roofs were constructed without these absurd holes that they now call "ventilation." A proper roof shouldn't have a design mistake that lets in rain. What happened to standards?
progressive_pete
Mate, 'in our day' is forgetting when fibreglass was a new idea. Progress, yeah?
JoannePetone
Honestly, who hires these Bell Block cowboys? You'd never see issues like this in Petone. Hopefully she finds a proper tradie before the possum brings its mates.
★ Trev_Hornby
She'll be right, it's just munted a bit. Give the bloke a break! Could be worse, he could be a bloody clipboard munter.
SandraM
It's laughable that someone called a fist-sized hole a 'feature.' This is what happens when we allow such low standards in trades nowadays.
roped_Rob
@SandraM obviously hasn't climbed a roof in her life. Shit happens, adapt!
★ Margaret_F
Gerald would never have tolerated such shoddy workmanship. The youth today don't understand the meaning of quality. Back in the 80s, roofs were solid and we all managed without needing designer leaks!
ConcernedTammy
How did this roofer pass any sort of inspection with a vent the size of a fist? Surely that's asking for a possum party.
couchgremlin
Lol, possum quality control!
JokingJim
Possums could be the new auditors for dodgy tradespeople. Just a thought!
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