Cas van der Weit is done with it. The kitchen of his home in the Zeeheldenbuurt in Groningen has serious leaks. Dozens of other residents in his neighborhood also suffer from mold, moisture, leakage and rising groundwater.
Cas van der Weit (27) points to a plaster spot at the back of his kitchen on the ground floor on Saturday. “This has already been replaced once,” he says. But the water damage is there again, the plaster is soft. He was forced to drill a hole in the middle of the plate. “Then at least the water only comes down in one place.”
The leakage can be considered extreme, especially during long rain showers and a lot of wind. “Then I have to get up halfway through the night to empty the bucket,” says Van der Weit.
He can only see the fact that his neighbor Marc Wiers (50) sent a letter to the municipality on behalf of the neighborhood as a good thing. In the letter, local residents call on the municipality to investigate the groundwater level, which may fluctuate due to work on the ring road and the renovation of the Black Box. Earthquakes could make the problems worse. Heavy rainfall doesn’t help.
Pump out the basement
The dozens of residents of the houses from the 1940s and flats from the 1960s are struggling with the situation. It costs tons of money and creates unpleasant situations. Above all, they want clarity and a solution.
“Do you know what I did on Christmas night?” Werner opens the door to the cellar. “I spent the entire evening getting water from the cellar.” The walls of the cellar have now been impregnated again. It cost him a pretty penny.
He continues to the fire escape and garage boxes behind the house. There are large puddles of water there. It just doesn’t go away, says Werner. More residents complain about this. “When it freezes, it looks like an ice rink back here.”
At Anita Sportel (53) the water came from above. Looking up from her living room couch, she still sees the ring of water damage, despite attempts to repair it. It must have been a spot of 40 centimeters or more. It’s not the first time. If it rains heavily for a long time, like this winter, things go wrong. “And the upstairs neighbor is not bothered by anything.”
Quotation: 6000 euros
The owners’ association to which Matthijs Vocht’s (44) home belongs is about 6,000 euros lighter, according to the latest quotation. This money must be used to re-examine the balconies, among other things. “It’s the umpteenth time.”
Yellow damp spots are above the conservatory doors, it also leaks there. “Two months ago it was very heavy with so much rainfall.” There were buckets next to the dining table to collect the water. “And we know that many more people are affected by it.” Given the size of the problems and the number of people he affects, he would like the municipality to help with an investigation. “So that we can solve the problem structurally.”
‘Deferred maintenance’
The carpenters Matthijs and André are standing by a van. Matthijs: “The moisture problems? Yes, we have just been working on that here,” says Matthijs. He knows all about it. He is not surprised that residents of the neighborhood suffer from moisture and mold. “It is deferred maintenance.”
With a trained eye he points out one defect after another. “Do you see those pieces of roof tiles in the gutter?” He points to a gutter between two perpendicular roofs. “Those pans don’t belong there, they come from somewhere where they are no longer there. Look, everyone has their own, but I wouldn’t have wanted it.” And this also applies to moss on the roofs, let it sit for too long and it affects the functioning of a roof tile.
Or a rotten gutter. “It could be full of leaves. Just because there isn’t a tree next to it doesn’t mean nothing can blow into it.”
Colleague André: “The pH value of leaves affects zinc in the long term. You have to take it away.”
Matthijs: “But so high on a ladder?”
André: “I don’t like that, just a little bit at a time. And you have to clean the entire gutter, because when it rains the leaves are washed everywhere again.”
Matthijs: “Yes, I would rent an aerial work platform, but that also costs a few hundred euros.”
In any case, the duo has something to comment about the water drainage. “If you look behind the houses, one drain pipe is connected to the other.” Until eventually several pipes from multiple roofs flow into one pipe. And that’s a problem, because all kinds of things come down with it.
Water follows the path of least resistance
Matthijs points to a bucket filled with black goo. Pieces of bitumen sticking out. It’s what he took from one of the roofs. “A bitumen roof really needs maintenance after 20, 25 years, or better: replaced.” That costs a bit, but it is cheaper to prevent damage than to repair it, he says. “What we see here are insulation boards that are soaked with moisture.”
And water follows the path of least resistance, Matthijs knows. The water can, so to speak, leak in at the front and come out the back at another house. Someone who maintains their home well can still experience unpleasant water damage.
“And some homeowners simply do not maintain the houses properly. These are old houses. Some have not been done for some time. Nothing is done about it until people are bothered by it. Then it is too late.”