http://weepa.com.au/knowledge-centre/faulty-guttering-timebomb
Most high front guttering installed with spring clip systems in Australia does not comply with Australian building codes and Australian Standards. This roll formed guttering pushes water back into the cavity under certain conditions, causing rots and damage to wall materials. This is one of the causes of Leaky Building Syndrome in Australia.
The questionable practice of eliminating weep holes has also crept in, associated with the new lightweight panels and watertight finishes. We have reported elsewhere on the insidious destruction, litigation and damages this practice has caused overseas.
Catastrophic failure of internal plastered walls cannot be avoided when you combine cavity flooding from faulty guttering systems with no drainage because weep holes have been eliminated.
We have inspected an impressive beachside home at Waterman in Western Australia built without weep holes. When a faulty box gutter dumped water into the cavity the gyprock internal walls failed, flooding the house and causing severe damage and significant repair costs.
Three of the links below take you to important investigative articles published in the Sydney Morning Herald. Kelly Burke has done a great job exposing the faulty guttering time bomb.
Understanding the NCC, Gutter and Downpipe Provisions for Housing, includes information for building designers, hydraulic consultants, plumbers, builders, and other onsite trades, about the selection and installation of gutters and downpipes, including overflow measures. It features a general representation of the Deemed-to-Satisfy Acceptable Construction Practice (ACP) Provisions referenced in NCC Volume Two.
Performance Requirements
P2.2.1 Surface Water
(a) Surface water, resulting from a storm having an average recurrence interval of 20 years and which is collected or concentrated by a building or sitework, must be disposed of in a way that avoids the likelihood of damage or nuisance to any other property.
(b) Surface water, resulting from a storm having an average recurrence interval of 100 years must not enter the building.
Refer to DOWNLOADS above - Performance Requirements Pages 64 & 65
Table 3.5.2.4 Acceptable Continuous Overflow Measures
Controlled Back Gap
(a) a permanent minimum 10 mm spacer installed between the gutter back and the fascia;
and (b) one spacer per bracket, with the spacer not more than 50 mm wide;
and (c) the back of the gutter installed a minimum of 10 mm below the top of the fascia.
Refer to DOWNLOADS above - Acceptable Overflow Measures Pages 218 - 221.
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