Weather in Christchurch; overall good?

ArtSmart

I'm hearing confusing info obout NZ.

but to concentrate on one place - Christchurch.

how long does the winter last in CC? how bad is it?

is the summer consistently good?

could it be described as close to Melbourne weather (for those who've lived in both...)

do the houses really have no insulation/ radiators/ D glazing as Watna suggested (in another thread)
cos i went through that in Barcelona; coldest winter indoors i ever spent.

This is a weather question. other aspects i'll look at in time.

ArtSmart

bump

kiwipower

Well it kinda depends on what you classify of weather when talking about Chch! Remember that Chch is likely to be experiencing medium size earthquakes for the next couple of years (according to articles on the www.tvnz.co.nz website.)

Im not from Chch so not certain on their local weather patterns, but I understand as kiwi measurements go their summers are fantastic considering the are in the south island, I heard once that Nelson, not far from Chch has the highest average sunshine in NZ, not sure how true that is.

The biggest downer on NZ weather IMO is the wind. I grew up 2 to 2.5 hours away from Wellington so we were fairly windy, in the winter the wind chill factor can be about 15 degrees!

Double glazing is beginning to be used in new builds, along with insulation being better on new builds. No we dont go for radiators in NZ generally there is no need for them. Most houses would have log burning fires (or maybe a few open fires) which are generally all you would need, just keep doors closed, put on a hoody and get an electric blanket! Depending on where you live, you may have piped natural gas heaters through out the house, but they tend to cause more condensation. You can’t bet a good log burner, especially if it has a back burner for the hotwater!

When picking a house try picking one that is bright, plenty of windows, with heavy curtains and preferable NORTH facing (opposite of Ireland due to equator etc.) If you pick an older house (like the Victorian Houses) unless someone has invested in doing up the property it will tend to be cold.

I have heard of a few Irish complaining about kiwi houses being cold, but I have found after 9 years in Ireland that Irish houses tend to be colder and less insulated.

ArtSmart

thanks for that kiwipower

ArtSmart

bump x 2

so, nobody here that actually lives in CC? or has spent 6 months there, esp during the winter?

ArtSmart

ArtSmart wrote: »

I'm hearing confusing info obout NZ.

but to concentrate on one place - Christchurch.

how long does the winter last in CC? how bad is it?

is the summer consistently good?

could it be described as close to Melbourne weather (for those who've lived in both...)

do the houses really have no insulation/ radiators/ D glazing as Watna suggested (in another thread)
cos i went through that in Barcelona; coldest winter indoors i ever spent.

This is a weather question. other aspects i'll look at in time.

oh, yes, plus the smog situation in CC - has it got better or no?

watna

kiwipower wrote: »

[/COLOR]

I have heard of a few Irish complaining about kiwi houses being cold, but I have found after 9 years in Ireland that Irish houses tend to be colder and less insulated.

I completely disagree with this statement. I live in Wellington and my first winter here I used to come home from work and cry because I was so cold in my own home. I used to have to put on three or four fleeces over my work clothes and we had to live in our bedroom (we moved the tv in there and ate all our meals there) because the sitting room was too cold to sit in. My OH had to talk me out of leaving and going home! The lack of central heating is the main thing, never mind insulation which in my experience of all the flats we've lived in here and our friends is basically non-existent. Another of our friends had to throw away half their stuff because it became to covered in mould it was unusable. The spare room in our last flat became very mouldy as well and we had to get rid of a lot of things hangingin the spare wardrobe.

I did a survey for immigration NZ for people who had got permanent residency in the last two years. One of the questions was about what would make you return to your country of origin. One of the option was quality of housing/insulationa and I put a big tick on that. Apprently it was a popular response. I must see can I find the actual results. I have them in my email somewhere.

We've finally found a fully insulated flat and the difference it has made to my quality of life is unbelievable. We're paying through the nose for it but it's worth every cent.

OP - I never realised the value of a house that gets sunshine. I thought it was a bit strange how much it was focussed on when choosing a house here but then I realised that a lot of houses that don't get much soon can be quite damp. Look for a house with insulation (it's often in the ad on trade me) and/or a heat pump. I think the weather in Chch is better than Wellington anyway which is good! Wellington has it's own micro-climate apparently so it's extra wet and windy! I think the quality of housing in Wellington is not as good as some other cities too. I don't want this post to sound too negative, there are a lot of awesome things about Wellington. It's just I wasn't prepared for the lack of heating and double glazing, I didn't find out until I got here so I just want to make sure other people are aware of what to look for when getting a flat here, especially if you are looking in summer. Check out the insulation and heating options as well as what sun it gets and imagine the place in the winter.

ArtSmart

watna wrote: »

I completely disagree with this statement. I live in Wellington and my first winter here I used to come home from work and cry because I was so cold in my own home. I used to have to put on three or four fleeces over my work clothes and we had to live in our bedroom (we moved the tv in there and ate all our meals there) because the sitting room was too cold to sit in. My OH had to talk me out of leaving and going home! The lack of central heating is the main thing, never mind insulation which in my experience of all the flats we've lived in here and our friends is basically non-existent. Another of our friends had to throw away half their stuff because it became to covered in mould it was unusable. The spare room in our last flat became very mouldy as well and we had to get rid of a lot of things hangingin the spare wardrobe.

I did a survey for immigration NZ for people who had got permanent residency in the last two years. One of the questions was about what would make you return to your country of origin. One of the option was quality of housing/insulationa and I put a big tick on that. Apprently it was a popular response. I must see can I find the actual results. I have them in my email somewhere.

We've finally found a fully insulated flat and the difference it has made to my quality of life is unbelievable. We're paying through the nose for it but it's worth every cent.

OP - I never realised the value of a house that gets sunshine. I thought it was a bit strange how much it was focussed on when choosing a house here but then I realised that a lot of houses that don't get much soon can be quite damp. Look for a house with insulation (it's often in the ad on trade me) and/or a heat pump. I think the weather in Chch is better than Wellington anyway which is good! Wellington has it's own micro-climate apparently so it's extra wet and windy! I think the quality of housing in Wellington is not as good as some other cities too. I don't want this post to sound too negative, there are a lot of awesome things about Wellington. It's just I wasn't prepared for the lack of heating and double glazing, I didn't find out until I got here so I just want to make sure other people are aware of what to look for when getting a flat here, especially if you are looking in summer. Check out the insulation and heating options as well as what sun it gets and imagine the place in the winter.

thanks for that Watna.

i have to say such things are vital. and from other research i've done it seems to be a real issue. will have to check it out in more detail. a damp house is a big no no for me.

watna

ArtSmart wrote: »

thanks for that Watna.

i have to say such things are vital. and from other research i've done it seems to be a real issue. will have to check it out in more detail. a damp house is a big no no for me.

Yep, I think it's more important for some people than others but if it is an issue for you I think you'll be ok, you just need to be very careful when flat hunting and make sure you give yourself plenty of time to find somewhere that is going to suit you.

jank

I lived in CHCH for over a year and the weather is very good. Much better than Ireland imo. The winters are cold but dry. Spring is usually the wetest.
Summers are nice and hot but not too hot (33 here in Sydney today!)
Watna is right though. If you are picking a place to live, make sure it comes with a heatpump or some sort of central heating. The more modern the place looks the better insulated it will be. I.E Concreate will be better than wood! This will be a big consideration for your place. I hear that it is getting better all the time and that new houses now have to have good insulation but it will take another 10-20 years to catch up with our standards in europe

TBH the weather wasnt that bad, the winters were cold and frosty but the sky was always blue. CHCH is very dry. Think its the driest city in NZ so mould is not a big issue.

Welly, when I was there was pissing and man that place was depressing when its wet. CHCH rocks though, good little bars and clubs around the place. Loads of out door stuff to do. If you are an outdoor person you will not want to leave at all, especially if you like mountain biking, tramping and skiing.

ArtSmart

thanks for that jank.

I'm assuming a heat pump, pumps heat through rads through the house or something? (ie what's a heatpump anyways...)

just looking at the price of a room in a shared house in CC. average for a decent place is 160nzd per week.

OMFG.

surely, relative to income, the rent in NZ cities is crazy high? (i'm assuming (again) take home pay is around 600 nz dollars a week)

watna

A heatpump is like an air conditioning unit that pumps out warm air too. It's not central heating. Flats usually only have one in the sitting room or hall. I've never seen a house in New Zealand with a radiator. The reason they are good is that they usually have a dehumidifying feature which stops the house getting damp. Most people have a dehumidifier as well that they put on to dry the place out. I recommend getting one of those straight away.

$600 seems about right for take home pay in NZ, maybe a little bit on the low side? (I don't know what other people earn). I find that my rent is a lower proportion of my salary then it was in Dublin (although I left Dublin 3 years ago when the rent was a lot higher). I share a two bedroom flat with my fiance in a fairly nice and central part of Wellington and we pay $400 a week in rent (so $1600 monthly)

brendansmith

Jesus, I remember my time in my Auckland flat before I got a dehumidifier as miserable. We were sick for weeks on end.
During winter you could take 2 litres of water out of the air in an hour.

watna

brendansmith wrote: »

Jesus, I remember my time in my Auckland flat before I got a dehumidifier as miserable. We were sick for weeks on end.
During winter you could take 2 litres of water out of the air in an hour.

Yep - sometimes it's mesmerising how much water it fills up with in an hour. It's crazy. MY OH and cat have asthma so the two of them are bad if we don't dehumidify regularly!

ArtSmart

watna wrote: »

A heatpump is like an air conditioning unit that pumps out warm air too. It's not central heating. Flats usually only have one in the sitting room or hall. I've never seen a house in New Zealand with a radiator. The reason they are good is that they usually have a dehumidifying feature which stops the house getting damp. Most people have a dehumidifier as well that they put on to dry the place out. I recommend getting one of those straight away.

well i suppose the lack of heating systems suggest a good climate...

watna

ArtSmart wrote: »

well i suppose the lack of heating systems suggest a good climate...

that's the spirit!

I learned something interesting about dehumidifiers yesterday too. Apparently the watwe it collects is really good to top up fish tanks because it comes from the air and doesn't have the impurities that tap water has.