Insulation the next leaky fiasco?

In his latest newsletter, Auckland property investor and mentor Lee Whiley predicts a new wave of leaky "old" homes.

As people rush to insulate their old homes, filling up the ceilings and walls with fibreglass batts, polyester and so on, they may be eliminating ventilation gaps that have kept buildings dry for years.

"Once water gets into bats etc, it's pretty much forever. And the kauri of North Island homes and rimu of the South Island was never treated. It lasts forever but not long when wet."

Architect David Wingate of Wingate + Farquhar agrees it could be a real problem, if people don't allow air movement in homes when installing insulation.