Asthmatic students “can’t breathe” in damp and cold flats

Hariklia Nicola, 19, rugged up inside her bedroom of her four person flat on Suva Street.

Stepping into Hariklia Nicola’s four-person flat in the middle of July, is like walking into a chiller.

It’s 4pm and warm outside, yet the Suva Street flat is xx degrees.

Inside, the windows are gaping mould has formed and condensation trickles down the windows..

Nicola, a second-year University of Canterbury student and asthmatic, has been living in these conditions since the beginning of the year, after spending her first year in halls.

She said she used her inhaler up to once a week last year, and now uses it every day.

“I never used to take my blue inhaler, I never refilled my prescriptions and I’ve gone through two this year.”

Graphic A: Asthma and Respiratory Foundation New Zealand estimate that 1 in 8 New Zealanders have Asthma.

According to the most recent New Zealand Health Survey, one in eight New Zealanders have asthma.

The average inhaler use for an asthmatic is less than six puffs a week and two Ventolin inhaler inhalers a year, which are used to relieve shortness of beath. Nicola has gone through two in the past six months.

Her flat is so cold she wears a balaclava to bed but, because it covers her face, she often has asthma attacks.

Her windows also have gaps around the corners and edges - “you can see outside,” she said - letting draughts into her room..

Sarah Eichler, 20, said mould covers most of her flats curtains.

Another second-year student in her first flat after coming out of halls, Sarah Eichler, , said her asthma has worsened because of her flatting conditions.

“I’ve got puddles in my windowsill in the morning from the condensation, then that obviously makes mould.”

“I feel like I’m just breathing it in all the time.”

When approached, her landlord said there was nothing they could do and that the mould was the tenants’ responsibility.

New Zealand Healthy Homes standards don’t currently require homes to have wall insulation or glazing on windows. Only one working heater in the lounge, which often doesn’t heat the whole house.

Eichler’s flat has a heater in the lounge and another heater in the hallway that has been broken since the flatmates moved in. She also has her own heater in her room but still wakes up cold.

Nikita Dahya (left), 19, and Eichler (right), standing next to heater that has been broken since they moved in.

Eichler’s flatmate Nikita Dahya also has asthma, and is using her inhaler every night, which she didn’t have to do in halls.

“When it’s really cold I can tell, and I get really wheezy.”

Because of the cold, she studies on campus, often late.

Nicola does the same. “During study week,[I would] genuinely be on campus at night till 2am so I wouldn’t get sick from my flat.”

Second-year student Emma Gardiner said this winter’s been “rough” and she has had to increase the dosage on her inhaler.

“I’ve just been waking up in the middle of the night with coughing fits, reaching for the inhaler a bit more than I used to.”

Nicola has tried to use a Damp Rid to soak up the moisture, which she said hasn’t made a difference.

All four students use dehumidifiers, single heaters and other tools such as Damp Rids, yet their asthma is getting worse.

Nicola said student flatting conditions were “not ideal at all” given asthma’s prevalence and severity.

“We’re definitely looking for a warmer flat for next year,” said Eichler.

To get help with your tenancy you can either go to tenancy.govt.nz or call 0800 836 262.

To find out what your rights are as a tenant you can also visit tpa.org.nz to reach the Tenants Protection Association right here in Ōtautahi.