Selling or getting flatmates are options not possible due to the noise, they say.

“Within the first 30 days of settling in, we began hearing loud banging and knocking noises. It was so unsettling that we genuinely thought someone was outside throwing stones at our home. The noises would happen randomly during the day and night and impact our ability to sleep,” Pack said.

A Fletcher Living spokeswoman said one of the natural properties of aluminium was its high thermal conductivity.

That means the cladding expands and contracts with temperature changes, which can produce sounds similar to what many people may have heard from a home with a metal roof, she said.

These are the sounds Pack is hearing intermittently, she said, but there is nothing wrong with the house.

In response to his concerns, Fletcher Living and the cladding business had conducted many investigations and interventions during the past 18 months, including replacing the existing cladding.

“All findings confirm that the cladding has been installed correctly and is performing as expected,” she said.

Sounds were a known behaviour of the product and not a sign of a defect, she said.

“Sensitivity to sound will always vary from person to person, and it may be that a property with this type of cladding is not well suited to Mr Pack’s personal preference,” she said.

Master Builders did not visit the home but reviewed the material from Pack, the cladder and Fletcher Living, concluding: “From the evidence/reports/information provided, we believe that this is general expansion and contraction of the cladding product and is not deemed to be a defect.”

An executive from the cladding business said in a statement: “Thermal expansion occurs within many components of a structure and are particularly prevalent during a hot, dry summer. My observation is that most owners would not notice these thermal movement noises unless they were specifically pointed out to them.”

But Pack said the couple can only sleep in one bedroom, furthest from the aluminium cladding. That area is clad in a fibrous cement board.

Numerous promises and assurances from Fletcher and the cladding supplier were made that they would resolve this issue.

An independent estimate to replace the cladding was $72,000 minimum.

“We don’t believe it’s fair or right for us to bear this cost, especially given that we purchased what was meant to be a new home,” Pack said.

Fletcher Living disputed noises in a video, questioning whether it had been enhanced. Pack strongly denied that.

He has also refused Fletcher’s offer for acoustic specialists Marshall Day to visit the house and says his only option now is to take legal action.

Anne Gibson has been the Herald‘s property editor for 25 years, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.