The draught stopping standard for NZ rental homes asks for one thing. Block the unreasonable gaps and holes that let a noticeable draught into the house, and close off any open fireplace that isn't meant to be used. The rule itself is easy. The hard part is deciding what counts as a gap, getting it fixed properly, and having proof when a tenant or the Tenancy Tribunal asks for it.
Here's the straight version: where the gaps are, where the line sits, what your tradie should do, and which calls still need you.
What the draught stopping standard actually requires
Under the Healthy Homes Standards, landlords have to block unreasonable gaps or holes in walls, ceilings, windows, skylights, floors and doors that cause noticeable draughts. Open fireplaces that aren't being used have to be closed off, or the chimney blocked, so air stops coming through them.
All private rentals have had to comply since 1 July 2025. So this isn't something you can plan for later. If a property on your book has a gappy back door today, it's out of compliance today.
What counts as an unreasonable gap
Tenancy Services guidance puts the line at gaps or holes wider than 3mm that let air into or out of the home and cause a noticeable draught. You need both parts. A 4mm gap behind a skirting board that's sealed on the other side isn't doing anything. A 4mm gap under the front door in a southerly is.
Gaps that are there on purpose for ventilation aren't the target. Passive vents, the clearance a flue needs and openings that other standards rely on all stay open. Seal a vent to pass draught stopping and you've just created a moisture problem the ventilation standard cares about.
That one catches people. Draught stopping is about the air you didn't plan for. It isn't about making the house airtight.
Where the gaps usually are
After enough site visits you stop guessing and walk the same route every time. These are the spots that come up again and again in older stock:
- Exterior doors: under the door, around the frame, perished seals, old letterbox slots and cat flaps that no longer close.
- Windows: old timber sashes that rattle, putty that's cracked or missing, and latches that don't pull the sash tight.
- Floors: gaps between boards in villas and bungalows over an open subfloor, plus holes around pipes coming up from underneath.
- Ceilings: attic hatches with no seal, holes left by old light fittings, gaps around downlights.
- Walls: holes where pipes, cables or old heat pump lines go through and were never made good.
- Skylights: tired seals, especially on older roof windows.
- Fireplaces: an open fireplace with nothing stopping air coming down the chimney.
One warning on downlights. Don't let anyone stuff filler or insulation around a recessed fitting without an electrician checking what kind of fitting it is. Some fittings need clearance, and "sealing the draught" there can create a fire risk. That's a job for a sparky, not a handyman with a caulking gun.
How to check a property properly
You don't need fancy kit. You do need a method, so that every inspection on your book is done the same way and the records stand up.
- Go on a breezy day if you can. Draughts hide on still days.
- Shut all the windows and exterior doors and turn off the extractor fans first.
- Walk the perimeter of each room with the back of your hand or a lit incense stick near the door frames, window frames, skirtings, hatches and penetrations. Watch the smoke. If it moves sideways, something's coming through.
- Measure anything suspicious. A feeler gauge or a 3mm drill bit held against the gap tells you fast which side of the line you're on.
- Photograph every gap with a tape measure in the shot, and note the room and the exact spot. "Lounge, bottom of the ranch slider, left side" beats "draughty door".
- Mark deliberate ventilation separately, so nobody seals it later.
- Check every fireplace and note whether it's open, blocked or in use under a written agreement.
That list becomes your scope. Hand a tradie "fix the draughts" and you get whatever they feel like doing. Hand them seven located, photographed gaps and you can check every one when they're finished.
What the fix usually looks like
Most draught stopping is cheap, unglamorous work. New weatherstripping on doors and opening windows. A fixed seal or sweep on the bottom of exterior doors. Gaps around frames and pipe penetrations sealed with the right product for the material. Attic hatches given a seal and a proper catch. Open fireplaces closed off with a fitted blocking plate or chimney cap.
What I wouldn't rely on is anything the tenant can move. A draught snake lying against the door is a tenant's choice, not a fix. If the gap is still there when the snake's in the cupboard, the gap's still there.
Sometimes the gap is a symptom. A door that won't close tight because the frame has dropped, or a sash that's rotten at the bottom rail. Weatherstrip over that and you'll be back in six months. That's a repair-or-replace conversation with the owner, not a seal.
What still needs a person's decision
You can systemise the checking. You can't hand off the judgement. These are the calls that sit with you or the owner:
- Whether a gap is unreasonable or deliberate ventilation.
- Whether an open fireplace gets closed off or stays usable. The standard allows a fireplace to stay usable where the tenant has asked in writing and the landlord agrees. Check the current Tenancy Services wording before you rely on that, and keep the written agreement on file.
- Repair versus replace on doors and windows that have failed.
- Approving the quote. Someone with authority signs it off, not the person doing the work.
- Booking access. Under the Residential Tenancies Act you need to give the tenant at least 24 hours' notice to enter for repairs or maintenance, between 8am and 7pm.
Here's the part people hate hearing. The tradie fixes the gap, but you own the compliance. If the photos, the dates and the sign-off aren't on file, then as far as an argument at the Tribunal goes the work didn't happen.
One visit, not four
When I ran a maintenance company in London for housing associations and letting agents, the rule I lived by was simple: never send a van out for one small thing when you know there are three. Different country, different rulebook, same maths. Every separate visit means another access notice, another callout, another chance the tenant isn't home.
Draught stopping is the classic small job. On its own it barely justifies the drive. Bundled with the other Healthy Homes work on the same property it makes sense, for the owner and for the tradie.
Look at what else usually turns up on the same inspection: an extractor fan that doesn't vent outside, a ground moisture barrier missing under the floor, a gap in the ceiling insulation by the hatch. Same house, same access, mostly the same few hours. That's one job.
How Plan@Job handles a bundled Healthy Homes job
Straight answer first: Plan@Job is live in the UK right now. In New Zealand you can join the reserve list on the NZ property managers page, and we'll be in touch when it's open there. Here's how the workflow runs where it's live.
In Plan@Job the contractor running the work (in Plan@Job terms the Operator, meaning the contractor business managing clients, delivery, subbies and its own team) takes your job and splits it into internal stages in the project plan. Each stage has its own scope, dates, status and costs. Some stages go to the contractor's own team and others go out to subbies.
As the client, you see the overall agreed scope and price, plus the evidence that gets shared with you: the before and after photos you need for your compliance file. The internal stage costs and which subbie did what stay on the contractor's side.
If you send a brief that's missing something, like access details or which fireplace is staying open, Sophie Bennett, Plan@Job's AI Enquiries Coordinator, checks the brief and asks for it before the job goes anywhere. Daniel Reed, the AI Operations Manager, follows up quotes and proposed dates. Neither of them awards work or sets prices. A person approves those.
Illustrative example
This is a made-up scenario, not a customer story. A three-bedroom weatherboard villa fails its inspection on a gappy front door, an open fireplace in the lounge and a bathroom fan that vents into the ceiling space. You raise one job. The contractor splits it into three stages: draught stopping by their own team, fireplace close-off, and fan ducting by a subbie electrician. Everything is booked for the same day, so it's one access notice and one evidence pack on your file.
FAQ
Is 3mm the legal line for a gap?
Tenancy Services guidance treats gaps or holes over 3mm that cause noticeable draughts as unreasonable. Both parts matter: the size and the draught. Check the current guide on the Tenancy Services website before you sign off a borderline case, and photograph it with a measure either way.
Does an open fireplace have to be blocked if the tenant wants to use it?
Not always. The standard allows for a tenant asking in writing to use it and the landlord agreeing. Without that written agreement on file, close it off or block the chimney.
What proof should I keep for draught stopping?
Keep the inspection notes with located, measured photos, the quote and approval, the date the work was done, and after photos of each fix. If a fireplace stays usable, keep the written agreement. If it isn't on file, you'll struggle to prove it happened.
The gaps themselves are the easy part. What decides whether you're compliant or arguing about it later is the scope, the bundling and the paper trail. Do one property properly this week and use it as the template for the rest of your book.