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Following is a question by the Hon Frederick Fung and a written reply by the Acting Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Yau Shing-mu, in the Legislative Council today (May 19):
Question:
Recently, I have received complaints from public rental housing ("PRH") tenants that humid weather has caused serious mouldy and wet floor conditions in many PRH estates, and bulges and mould are found on painted walls and ceiling plaster inside household units as well as in the joints or cracks of structures. Residents slipping and falling easily on slippery floors in common areas is a very common phenomenon, especially in PRH estates which were newly completed in recent years (e.g. Un Chau Estate Phases 2 and 4, Fu Cheong Estate, Hoi Lai Estate and Shek Kip Mei Estate, etc.). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of similar complaints received by the authorities in the past two years; whether they have proactively investigated the reasons for the aforesaid mouldy conditions; if they have, of the outcome, whether it is related to the quality and standard of materials (e.g. the absence of anti-mould property in paints, etc.) or the defects in the joints between prefabricated building components resulting in easy seepage of water vapour or rain water, etc.;
(b) whether the authorities will consider providing assistance to the affected PRH tenants and taking remedial measures (e.g. refurbishing wall paint and plaster, etc. in the case of mouldy indoor conditions; enhancing clean-up work, providing air blowing or dehumidifying facilities and laying non-slip rugs, etc. in the case of slippery floors in common areas, so as to ensure that the floors of corridors and lobbies are dry); and
(c) whether the authorities will focus on the aforesaid mouldy conditions and setting afresh the standard of materials for PRHs to be built as well as improve the relevant construction procedures and techniques?
Reply:
President,
My reply to the three-part question is as follows:
(a) At present, we do not keep any complaint statistics on mould growth or slippery floors resulting from humid weather. According to site inspections on those mould growth and water dripping cases that are reported to Housing Department (HD) staff, a combination of factors such as humid weather, insufficient ventilation, cold surfaces of walls, floors or water pipes, etc would lead to condensation and cause the problems. The records of Hong Kong Observatory showed that the average relative humidity from February to April 2010 at 85% was a record high in recent years and there were frequent temperature fluctuations, which might lead to more cases of mould growth and water dripping.
In general, we use anti-mould coating/painting systems and anti-slip floor tiles in public rental housing estates. Prefabricated building components are designed with waterproofed joints to prevent penetration of water vapour or rain. However, previous technical studies indicated that even the special anti-condensation paints available in the market could not completely prevent the phenomenon of condensation in severe conditions with high relative humidity.
In the light of the above, we consider that mould growth and water dripping in public rental estates are not related to the quality and standard of the building materials nor is it due to inadequate joints of prefabricated building components.
(b) HD will carry out remedial works if the problems were caused by sub-standard material or workmanship. Generally speaking, since mould growth inside flats was mainly caused by seasonal humid weather and was unrelated to the quality or standard of materials, HD would not arrange in-flat redecoration work. During humid weather, HD will step up ventilation and cleansing, and will provide blower fans, etc, to keep public areas dry and comfortable.
(c) We regularly review our material specifications, installation procedures and techniques taking into account new technologies and materials available in the market. We are now carrying out a consultancy study to enhance the anti-mould property of paints, which involves collecting samples of mould from existing estates for devising a local mould growth resistance paint test.
Ends/Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Issued at HKT 12:40
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