How Awarua Synergy helped a Southland Family

When Nena bought her home in Otatara, she wasn’t thinking about insulation. Her family was told that there wasn’t any insulation in the ceiling, but all they could think about was having a place of their own.

But once winter fully set in, it was a different story.

We had to do something

At first, Nena simply turned on the heaters throughout the house. But with a large 4-bedroom home to heat, the place never seemed to warm up. That was something the family was willing to deal with… Until it started to affect the X-month old baby.

Nena has a baby monitor that flashes when the temperature drops below 14∞C. With the chilling winter winds battering the uninsulated house, the monitor flashed for days on end, even with all of the panel heaters on max. “It flashed at us all night.” Nena said. “The temperature in her room was only 6 degrees. We had to do something.”

Polite and helpful

After researching the issue, they decided that installing some insulation would be the best option. They called a few companies for an inspection and quote, and several of them were pushy, rude, and insistent. Nena didn’t want to work with someone like that.

Then she called Awarua Synergy and it was like a breath of fresh air. “They were very polite and helpful.” She said, noting how the assessor told them the benefits and let them make their own decision without any pressure. They made an appointment for ceiling insulation shortly after.

The actual installation process went smoothly and was much quicker than Nena expected. “They started around the time I went to work and they were done by lunch.” She said, surprised the crew was so efficient. Her family remarked that they were polite and friendly, and even tossed in a few jokes to lighten the mood.

Not a penny more

One thing that Nena was most pleased about was how the quotes and pricing was done. The upfront quote for her home was approximately $3500, which included materials and labour for her large 4-bedroom home with two lounge suites and dining rooms.

As Nena had experienced working with companies where the quote is a lowball estimate, she was shocked to find out how much Awarua Synergy charged. “It was exactly the same as the quote. Not a penny more.”

Wish I’d done it earlier

As pleasant as Nena’s experience was with Awarua Synergy, she wasn’t about to take any chances when it came to the health of her daughter. After the insulation was installed, she hired an independent inspector to do a quality inspection. They found the work to be flawless.

And Nena noticed that firsthand shortly after. The same night the insulation was put in, she noticed the baby monitor wasn’t flashing. And it hasn’t since. A temperature check showed that the room stayed at 16 degrees. A temperature that is cool, but not risky for the baby.  Nena was ecstatic and very pleased with the results. “It made a huge difference. I wish I’d done it earlier.” She said, adding that winter would have been much easier to endure if she had installation put in sooner.

When asked if she would use Awarua Synergy again, she said “Absolutely. They did a great job.”

Back
Latest articles

The July 2019 changes may affect you!

There isn’t much time left to get your rental house in compliance with the new insulation laws that take effect in July 2019. Remember, insulation is mandatory if you’re planning to rent your property after that date. If your current insulation doesn’t meet the new standard or you refuse to have the property insulated, you’ll be hit with a heavy fine that could be as high as $4000.

Insulation doesn’t need to be installed in every wall of the house. At a minimum, the property must have both ceiling insulation and underfloor insulation.

It’s impossible to insulate my home. How do I avoid the fine?

Fortunately, if your home is built in such a way that it’s impossible to add insulation in the underfloor and ceiling cavity—such as apartment buildings with living quarters both above and below the unit—you don’t have to have insulation in those areas. It must be reasonably practicable to have insulation installed, but you can’t simply claim that installing insulation is too difficult on your own. Several conditions must be met, including:

  • It must be inspected by an experienced company who are professionals in installing insulation.
  • The company must determine that they are unable to install insulation without doing substantial renovations or causing damage to the property.
  • Or the company decides that installing insulation in the property will create a health and safety risk for the inhabitants.

How do I know if my insulation is good enough?

Simply having insulation isn’t enough. It must also meet certain minimum values as defined on the Insulation Regulations page. The entire South Island is considered a Zone 3 area and requires insulation with a minimum R-value of R 3.3 for the ceiling and R 1.3 for the underfloor.

Of course, someone unexperienced with insulation wouldn’t be able to determine the R-value of insulation by simply looking. There are a few things to look for that can help however, including:

  • If you have access to the ceiling and underfloor, check to see if there is any insulation. If not, call us right away for a quote.
  • If you’re able to see the insulation, check to see if there are any obvious holes or tears. These will need to be repaired as soon as possible.
  • You could also check the council building file and see if insulation is noted in the file.

Book your insulation appointment right away!

As July 2019 is quickly approaching, slots are filling up fast. You don’t want to be forced to pay the fine because you waited too long to make an appointment! If you had your insulation done through us and lost your certificate or you’re unsure of your insulation status and need a professional insulation team to take a look, call us today or fill out our insulation compliance form now.

Back
Latest articles