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We know you can’t always judge by appearances, but looks do count. New Zealand homes come in lots of different guises. Advertising will refer to the wide variety of products used on the outside of homes – here are some of them:
Weatherboards
Weatherboard homes are made of timber planks, bevelled at the back to overlay the next and make the cladding weather-tight.
Brick
Brick comes in all colours and sizes. Monier has a wide range of bricks. You will notice some advertising mentions “brick veneer” which describes brick cladding over a timber frame. (It is not brick chips pasted to board). Brick cladding is popular because of its durability and low maintenance, making it ideal for an investment property.
Bricks are durable, low in maintenance and still the preferred cladding for many overseas buyers. Note that homes are not double brick and these would not comply with the earthquake building provisions.
You’ll notice regular openings between bricks near the foundations. This isn’t an oversight, but part of the ventilation system to allow condensation to escape and keep the timber frame dry.
Concrete Block
Concrete blocks (sometimes referred to as breeze blocks overseas) are durable, requiring little maintenance. Building regulations call for damp-proofing between the block wall and the base, otherwise it can be damp and wet on the inside. Check for “do it yourself basements” converted into a living area – these can be easily identified if not done properly, as they’re cold, damp and musty.
Hardiplank
This is a brand name for a durable product made from wood fibre, silica, sand and cement. It is shaped as timber planks, and must be maintained like timber to prevent rotting. Hardi-flex is a similar product.
Linea (weather) board
This is a new type of cladding and from the outside it looks just like perfect timber weatherboards. The manufacturers, James Hardie, say the product has a 50-year life span if properly maintained. It is painted, looks good and lends itself to modern architectural designs. (link to http://www.tvshowhomes.co.nz/Products/Weatherboards/Linea/Default.htm)
Oamaru Stone
Oamaru stone, also known as Totara limestone, is a beautiful, natural sandstone, cut into blocks. It is a light cream/yellow colour, porous and should be sealed with a clear protective spray.
Otago Schist
This is a lovely rock with high durability and strength that lends itself to particular building styles, especially when used with timber and/or aluminium. It is used as a cladding mostly in Otago. It is very appealing but a bit more expensive and needs expert stone-layers to achieve a professional finish. But it’s worth it.
Precast Concrete Walls
Tilt slab walls are manufactured offsite and are used mostly for high-rise buildings because they are cheap and fast to erect, although I have seen some tilt slab walls in modern homes.
Roughcast
It is a plaster system with small stones worked into the cement. It is usually painted. It can be applied over a rigid backing such as timber boards or cement boards or on non-rigid backing such as building paper and wire-netting.
Stucco
This exterior plaster system is usually painted, or has colouring mixed into the plaster, has a grainy texture and is rough to the touch. It was mainly used in the period 1930-1960. It can be applied over the same type of backing as roughcast.
Summerhill Stone
This cladding is a concrete block made in various colours, but usually creamy/white, pink, green, grey or sometimes blue.
Zinkalume
Some houses have a Zinkalume exterior. It looks like painted (or sometimes unpainted) corrugated iron. It has a higher resistance to rust than galvanising but care should be taken when the down pipes and spouting is copper, or have brass or lead in it because of the high corrosion factor. When the building is brand new care should be taken as moist cement may also corrode the Zinkalume.
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