Exterior

Structural Inspection – Oct. 2024

I’m Melting! Melting! Well, no, this building isn’t coming to the same fate as the Wicked Witch of the West, but its split-face block wall does have serious issues with water penetration. Split-face block walls absorb a lot of water and it lifts the paint as it tries to escape. The source of the water penetration may be from improper flashing details or even [...]

2024-09-30T20:15:40-07:00October 1st, 2024|Exterior, Framing and Structural, Snaps from the Field|

Stucco Siding January 2024

Most of this house is clad with a traditional 3-coat hardcoat stucco. Stucco siding from this era was almost always installed without a properly doubled underlayment or any provision for draining water that gets behind it. Wall penetrations, wall bases, and wall/roof joints are common locations where water can cause damage. Here, we found areas of missing and rot-damaged trim at the base [...]

2024-02-23T11:04:22-08:00January 1st, 2024|Exterior, Snaps from the Field|

Gutters – August, 2022

Is this a new type of leaf screen?  This gutter may be very effective at separating leaves from the water off the roof, but only at the expense of water running down the side of the house and causing damage. This pattern of deterioration is certainly unusual - I would suspect that it may be corrosion from some type of de-icer chemical/pellets or [...]

2024-02-23T11:13:07-08:00August 1st, 2022|Exterior, Roofs and Gutters, Snaps from the Field|

Chimneys – Mar. 2022

Jiminy Cricket! This wide chimney is missing a cricket. No, not the small, noisy insect. A cricket is a small, peaked roof at the up-slope side of your chimney to deflect water and debris around your chimney. Without a cricket snow and debris can easily build up and lead to water penetration around the chimney. Chimneys that are 30” wide or more should have [...]

2023-11-30T12:05:54-08:00March 2nd, 2022|Exterior, Roofs and Gutters, Snaps from the Field|
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