Frame made of EDF poles treated with creosote - recourse

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cleglise
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Registration: 27/05/13, 08:50

Frame made of EDF poles treated with creosote - recourse




by cleglise » 27/05/13, 09:14

Hello,

I signed a private sous-seing for the purchase of a house whose main beams of the frame are EDF poles treated with creosote. At the time of signing we did not know that this treatment was toxic and dangerous to health.

We have not yet signed the authentic deed but the withdrawal period has passed.

We wish to request a price reduction to finance the replacement of these beams (about 10 000 €).

What is our recourse, can we ask for a discount or is the owner in his right to refuse any negotiation?

Thank you
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by Christophe » 27/05/13, 10:27

Firstly it is necessary to prove, by an expertise (to your load I think) that it is indeed toxic products (better: to find prohibitions) which were used ...

As for the negotiation, it is up to your notary to answer I think ... it may be legally, comparable to a manufacturing defect? So negotiable?

Tell us what is it.
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Re: Carpentry in EDF poles treated with creosote - recourse




by antigone » 11/05/18, 02:35

Hello
I have just learned from a craftsman who came to my house to do minor work that the beams in my room are forbidden and have very toxic fumes. These are old edf poles, here are 14 years that I sleep under, I am certainly on track for lung cancer. I wonder if there are ways to know what is the actual toxicity? help me please!
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Re: Carpentry in EDF poles treated with creosote - recourse




by Did67 » 11/05/18, 08:13

One thing: old railway ties, which have undergone the same treatment, long used in landscaping (retaining, stairs) are prohibited for this purpose (and any other, I think). Today, when we replace tracks, they are no longer sold, but go to special landfill ...

A downside however, for those who have this: over time (sometimes more than 50 years), the fumes have largely dried up ... Maybe a new chip emits more toxic gas!

For antigone, legally, that seems complicated to me. To check. If there are obligations, for an owner (termite diagnosis, thermal diagnosis, asbestos diagnosis ...), I believe that the texts are restrictive. There is no obligation to report things that are not prohibited. It is up to the buyer to exercise his visiting rights before signing, to be curious, if necessary to negotiate ... [When I bought my house, self-built, it had a metal frame made of " breakdowns "a little particular that I did not know; I commissioned a design office to do the calculations and verify that it would support the worst load; the office confirmed to me that I could fit out the attic and that 1 m of snow could still fall ... So I signed]. You still have the option of bluffing.

first to check nevertheless that this is not forbidden (as I said for the arrangements, the text is perhaps general and forbidden any domestic use - quickly direction the associations of defense of the consumers, which legally are generally pointed). You have to frame this legally. The good feelings, the opinions of everyone here, are useless (unless there is a lawyer!). The right is often crooked!
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Re: Carpentry in EDF poles treated with creosote - recourse




by Remundo » 11/05/18, 08:56

a good article
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cr%C3%A9osote

you would have to measure the creosote rate by m3 of air in your room. It must be 0,2 mg / m3 maximum.

Good luck for the measure. It is the price of the diagnoser that will be dangerous for your health. : Mrgreen:

in my opinion if you ventilate your room without logging the beams, the risk is quite low ...
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Re: Carpentry in EDF poles treated with creosote - recourse




by Grelinette » 13/05/18, 12:33

Hello,

As part of my equestrian activities and welcoming the public, especially children, I had already searched the texts concerning poles EDF and TLCom, and railway sleepers soaked in creosote on the net: we find quite a lot reference on the subject that mention the prohibitions of use of this polluted material. There are even very recent texts (2018): http://www.batiweb.com/actualites/vie-d ... 32456.html

That said, we still see a lot of developments, especially public (ex. Communal kindergartens), which still use posts and railway ties (and asbestos Everit plaques) ... This is France : As long as no one steps up to report non-compliance with the law, all is well and for the best in the best of all possible worlds! (Generally it is the associations which come to remind the obligations, even if it means going to court because it is necessary to have the means and the solid kidneys: "woe to the one by which will happen the scandal"!).

I remember a text which also evoked this "negligence" of France Telecom, EDF and SNCF who got rid of these troublesome materials at a lower cost by selling them at the symbolic price, and by closing their eyes, at pennies - unscrupulous contractors who resell them as materials when they must destroy them with special techniques ... Moreover, they are still for sale on Le BC and at certain materials dealers.

To return to the posts used as beams, another problem is that they are not technically provided for this and that their quality of lift as a beam is very random. I have often seen post-mortar beams flexing under the weight of the roof over time.

Another track that will give you very specific legal returns are building controls BTP organizations. The legal standards are today very strict for this sector.

If you type on a search engine "texts on wood treated with creosote", you will have a lot of precise answers. Perhaps these simple texts are sufficient to argue for a legal proceeding if it is not possible to find an amicable settlement. That said, even with an amicable arrangement with the seller (ex. Discount), the beams will still be there in the house and that only postpones the problem until later! ...

A lawyer specializing in construction (but it costs) can say the constraints and legal consequences of a real estate coffered with creosote wood, the same organizations Control and Technical Building Diagnostics are competent, and ultimately you also have the Independent BTP experts, including judicial experts, who are qualified to make an expert opinion on this subject.
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