A draft proposal requiring all framing timber in new houses in New Zealand to be treated to H1.2 levels has been condemned by the country’s timber and building industry.
They say the proposal by Standards New Zealand will drive up new house prices, devalue homes built with untreated timber in the past seven years and endanger New Zealand timber exports worth millions of dollars.
The draft standard, which has been put out for public consultation, says all timber frames in houses should be chemically treated to protect them from rot. But opponents say the country’s ‘leaky homes’ problem has been caused by poor design and building methods and not the wood products themselves.
