It rained heavily in the middle of the night, and the ceiling started dripping again
Everyone who has lived in an old apartment for a long time has probably encountered this kind of thing: the harder it rains outside, the more obvious the water stains in the corners of the ceiling at home. If you go to the tenant upstairs to argue, the other person will send you away with "There is no leakage in our house." To put it bluntly, nine times out of ten this situation is not the problem upstairs, but the aging of the waterproof layer on the top floor. Rainwater seeps down along the shared roof structure. It has nothing to do with the bathroom pipes of the household upstairs. Don't rush to quarrel with your neighbors before you figure out who is responsible.
The key is who owns this wall and this roof
According to the definition in Article 3 of the "Apartment Building Management Regulations", the house is divided into exclusive parts, shared parts and agreed-upon exclusive parts. Paragraph 3 of Article 7 makes it very clear: the roof terrace is a common part used by all residents and cannot be privately agreed to be used exclusively by one household. Since it is a common part, Paragraph 2 of Article 10 stipulates that the responsibility for repairs belongs to the person in charge of management or the management committee, and the cost is paid from the public fund, or shared by all the owners of the district in proportion to their due portions. Unless the water leakage is caused by a specific household, it will be borne by that household alone.
The roof deck is a shared part and is not the exclusive property of the top floor resident, nor is it his sole responsibility.
Exterior walls are more complicated and do not necessarily count as shared.
The identification of exterior walls is a little more troublesome. Both the interpretation of the letter from the Ministry of the Interior and the practical opinions of the court pointed out that exterior walls are not necessarily shared parts - exterior walls attached to private parts such as living rooms and bedrooms are usually considered private parts; exterior walls attached to shared spaces such as stairwells and mechanical and electrical rooms are considered shared parts. In practice, the judgment will be based on whether it is a load-bearing wall. The Civil Judgment No. 802 of the Taipei District Court in 2011 clearly stated that the cost of repairing the roof terrace should be shared by all the owners of the different ownerships, and the top floor residents should not be asked to bear it alone. The Civil Judgment No. 146 of the Hsinchu District Court in Taiwan also adopted a similar view. In other words, when encountering a water seepage dispute on an exterior wall, it is best to first confirm whether the location where the wall is attached is exclusive or shared, rather than directly identifying who owns it
The management committee is dragging its feet and not handling the matter, what can actually be done?
- First report the repair in writing to the person in charge of management or the management committee, and keep the line information and certificated letters, so that there will be evidence for future disputes.
- If the management committee keeps delaying, you can find the manufacturer to repair the leak first, and keep the invoice, photos before and after construction, and the leak detection report.
- After the repair is completed, in accordance with the tort provisions of Article 184 of the Civil Code, request the management committee for the return of repair costs and property damage compensation; if long-term water leakage has seriously affected the living peace, you can also request for spiritual comfort money under Article 195 of the Civil Code.
- If it is an old apartment without a management committee, in accordance with Article 820 of the Civil Code, simple repairs can be carried out by any co-owner alone. However, if it involves "major repairs or improvements" involving a larger amount, a meeting of divided owners must be held to resolve the matter in accordance with Article 11 of the Regulations.
Some of the most common misunderstandings
- "The attic belongs to the attic resident, so if it leaks, of course he will repair it himself" - wrong, the roof terrace is a shared part. Unless otherwise specified in the regulations, the repair cost is shared by all residents.
- "The exterior wall must be a common part" - not necessarily, it depends on whether the attached location is exclusive or shared. In case of dispute, it usually requires appraisal or reference to the regulations.
- "Without a management committee, no one will be responsible" - You can still claim compensation from all the owners of different ownership in accordance with the provisions of the civil law on common property, and you will not have no way to claim compensation just because there is no management committee.
- “If there is water leakage in the attic, you must ask the tenant on the top floor to compensate” - If the aging of the waterproof layer on the roof causes rainwater to flow in, this is a problem of the entire common part, not a man-made damage caused by a specific household.
Leak-proofing and waterproofing should be carried out as soon as possible, and the price should be established first.
After the legal responsibilities are clarified, the actual leak-proofing and waterproofing project still needs to be done by a professional master. The current price of roof waterproofing in Shuangbei varies greatly depending on the construction method: waterproof paint costs about 600 to 1,200 yuan per square meter, PU waterproof layer costs 1,500 to 3,000 yuan per square meter, and waterproof blankets with better weather resistance cost 10,000 to 15,000 yuan per square meter. The top floor of an old apartment of about 30 square meters is fully renovated, and the market price is about 70,000 to 150,000 yuan. The actual quotation must still be subject to on-site inspection by the manufacturer. It is recommended to contact a professional waterproofing and leak detection engineering team as soon as possible to inspect the property and issue a test report. While dealing with the source of water leakage, it is also timely to claim for repair costs.
Conclusion: First clarify the rights and responsibilities, so as not to suffer this boring loss in vain
Top leaks and external wall seepage are common occurrences in the old apartments in Shuangbei. However, the regulations on responsibility are clearly written, and it is not whoever lives on the top floor will be unlucky. When encountering excuses from the management committee, it is much more effective to leave evidence, repair first, and then seek compensation according to law than arguing with neighbors in a group chat.
New knowledge on air-conditioning power consumption and Taiwan climate maintenance regulations in recent years (2025-2026 current situation)
With the high temperatures in summer breaking historical records and the adjustment of electricity price structure in recent years, the latest statistics from the Energy Administration of the Ministry of Economic Affairs show that air-conditioning equipment accounts for more than 47% of residential electricity consumption in summer. Many people mistakenly believe that if the air conditioner is not cold, they only need to "replenish the refrigerant." However, in fact, refrigerant is not naturally consumed during normal operation in a closed circuit. If the refrigerant is insufficient, it means that there are micro leaks in the copper pipes or joints. Simply replenishing the air conditioner will only treat the symptoms but not the root cause. Refrigerant leakage will aggravate the high temperature overload of the compressor and shorten its service life.
According to Taiwan's standard operating specifications for air-conditioning projects, it is recommended that professional technicians with a refrigeration and air-conditioning decoration technician license perform "full machine high-pressure water washing and evaporator deep sterilization" every 1 to 2 years for detached air-conditioning indoor units. Especially in the humid summer in the Shuangbei Basin, the air drum and water collection tray are easy to breed black mold and jelly-like biofilm. This is also the main reason for the sour smell in the air-conditioning outlet and the backflow of the drainage pipe. Regular maintenance can maintain CSPF (Air Conditioning Seasonal Performance Factor) level one energy efficiency level, which can save an average household 15% to 20% of air conditioning electricity bills every year.
Autonomous simple maintenance vs professional maintenance safety red line
- Homeowners can do by themselves: Remove and clean the nylon filter regularly every 2 to 3 weeks (rinse with clean water and dry in a cool place, do not expose it to the sun to avoid deformation and embrittlement); clean the air outlet blades of the indoor unit with a dry cloth; check whether there is any accumulation of debris within 50 cm around the outdoor unit that hinders heat dissipation.
- Professional technicians must be entrusted by law:Refrigerant pressure detection and leakage repair welding, indoor unit air drum and aluminum fin high-pressure cleaning with chemical solution, ceiling buried cold water pipe drainage slope reset, and 220V dedicated power circuit configuration and leakage circuit breaker replacement.
