Report #009

  • Home Value: 280,000
  • Damage Amount: 28,000
  • Damage Percent: 10%
  • Severity:
  • Damage Frequency:
 

Section 1: Summary

The home was constructed in 2003. It is in Marion County. In a phone conversation with the county offices I was told that while a building permit is required, there are no building inspectors and no adopted code to build under. Code is a standard to which builders around the world must comply. There are a few different building codes in the US, but the intent is the same: to bring a standard to building construction that will yield a safe building that performs well. Various material manufacturers write the specifications for their materials to either comply with code minimums or even higher standards. I will refer to a couple of code citations in this report, even though there is
not an adopted code in this county. I use this to point out minimums to which any builder should comply when hired to construct a dwelling that is expected to give a reasonable performance and not have issues with moisture intrusion and excessive damage and rot in its first five years of existence.

Roof:

The roof is shingled with an asphalt composite shingle. There is no underlayment applied to the roof sheathing under the shingles. Ice dam membrane is not applied to the eaves of this home. IRC2003 R905.2.7 Underlayment application. For roof slopes of four units vertical in twelve units horizontal (33 percent slope) or greater, underlayment shall be one layer applied in the following manner. Underlayment shall be applied shingle fashion from the eave and lapped 2 inches, fastened sufficiently to hold in place. End laps shall be offset by 6 feet. IRC2003 R905.2.7.1 Ice protection. In areas where the average daily temperature in January is 25°F or less or when table R301.2(1) criteria so designates, an ice barrier that consists of at least two layers of underlayment cemented together or a self-adhering polymer modified bitumen sheet, shall be used in lieu of normal underlayment and extend from the eave’s edge to a point at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line of the building.

Siding:

The siding on the home is a fiber cement siding I have identified as James Hardie Fiber Cement Board. James Hardie has provided very good documentation as to their requirements for the installation of their products. I have referred to the installation documentation for the period of time in which the home was constructed. The installation of the siding falls short of the requirements put forth by James Hardie in the following areas:
Clearance from the roof line: James Hardie required a one to two inch clearance from the roof line according to the installation specifications in 2003. All of the siding on this home is installed tight to the shingles and caulked. This leads to moisture being trapped behind the siding and the material absorbing this moisture. This moisture expands when frozen and over time fractures and spalls the siding. The siding has a fifty year warranty but will not apply to pieces improperly installed.

James Hardie specifies in its installation instructions “A weather resistant barrier is required.” This note is also in the installation documents: “Some building codes exempt the use of weatherresistive barriers over ‘water repellent panel sheathing’ or exterior panels classified as ‘weatherresistive barriers.’ James Hardie recommends the use of ‘building paper type’ weather-restive barriers with all siding products. James Hardie will assume no responsibility for water infiltration within the wall.”

The butt joints are not properly detailed to resist moisture penetration; many of them have been left alone and butted without any additional detailing. The lack of a WRB in places has left the sheathing at these butts exposed to the weather without protection. There are some areas on this home that are experiencing significant material degradation behind the siding and trim due to the lack of a WRB (weather resistant barrier).

Windows:

The windows on the home are Pella brand windows with a 3.03 date code in the ones I reviewed. Some of the windows are showing rot and degradation at the bottom style on the sash. I recommend consulting with Pella service center to see what your options are. I removed the trim boards from one of the windows to see the details at the nail fin. The window is wrapped with a SAF (self adhering flashing).

Foundation:

The foundation is an ICF: (insulated concrete form). The top foam on the exterior of the ICF does not appear to have been flashed or properly detailed to ensure full protection against the elements. There are areas where mesh material has been left exposed and not covered with the parging finish. The sealant in areas is very sloppy in application and not fully adhering to its substrate.

Entry:

The entry roof is sloped away from the house. It appears to be slopped ¼” in four feet less than the entry slab. A slight fall is desired at an entry to keep moisture draining. ¼” in four feet is desirable for this. If the roof was level the slab would have this fall leading me to the conclusion the footings are sinking. The entry slab has been poured on top of a wood joist system. I consider this to be an unconventional building practice. Concrete weighs from 90# to 140# per cubic foot. The point load on a footing would be heavier than a wood decked structure. In my opinion this should be investigated to ensure the footings are not moving.

The following pages are captioned pictures that describe what I observed and what the installation documents advise. I refer to code in a couple of instances in this report. Code is a minimal standard in a lot of areas and the manufacturers of the various products we use in the assembling of a home either refer to code or go above codes requirements. The lack of a building code in this county does not negate the requirements of the manufacturer.

There are some details of protection lacking in the assembly of this home that are having detrimental effects and need to be addressed without delay to protect the integrity of this structure.

 

Section 2: Windows

The windows measure high in moisture content at the bottom style of most of the sashes. The edges of the sash are incomplete in the finishing process.

This window sash has rotted on the bottom rail of the sash. Many of the windows in this home have a high moisture content reading at this section of the sash. All of the windows need additional inspection by the Pella service center to handle any warranty claims.

Moisture content high 78%. The edges of the sash do not have a protective coat finish applied.

 

 

Section 3: Siding

Siding: too close to roof plane.

Siding: too close to roof plane. This siding is degraded due to moisture absorption and freeze spall. Flashing is to be installed to keep moisture to the outside of the building envelope. Moisture is migrating behind the siding in this area.

Siding: too close to roof plane.

No WRB at gable. No protection at joint. This allows moisture to infiltrate behind the siding, This has the potential to degrade the wall system over time.

NOTE: Some Building Codes exempt the use of weather-resistive barriers over “water-repellent panel sheathing” or exterior panels classified as “weather-resistive barriers”. James Hardie recommends the use of “building paper type” weather-resistive barriers with all siding products. James Hardie will assume no responsibility for water infiltration within the wall.

Sealant detaching from the corner trims. This is due to not properly cleaning and prepping the surfaces to be caulked at the time of applying the sealant. The corner trims are a PVC product , the sealant appears to be a polyurethane.

The front concrete stoop is poured on top of a wood frame. The siding is too close to the concrete.

Siding: too close to the roof plane at entry roof.

Entry stoop 1-1/2” slope in four feet.

Entry roof soffit 1-1-4” slope in four feet. It is assumed the entry roof was framed level but has settled over time. The footings may be inadequate. This should be monitored over time and if it continues will need to be rectified to prevent damage to this structure.

Entry roof 1-1-4” slope in four feet. This is 1/4” less than the entry stoop. It appears the footing have settled into the ground approximately 1-1/4”.

 

Section 4: Installation Errors

This roof has no underlayment layer under the shingles. Best practice installation details call for this layer. There is no ice mat membrane at the eaves which is also a best practice detail and should be extended up the roof to cover a point twenty four inches up from the inside face of the exterior wall. This roof is highly susceptible to ice dam damage without the common protective underlayment. IRC2003 R905.2.7 Requires the use of an underlayment IRC2003 R905.2.7.1 Requires Ice Protection.

Siding fracture; overdriven nail at fracture is probable cause.

Sill of this door lacks full support. Most door manufacturers require full support of sill.

The ICF foundation exterior finish at the top of the form is not finished in all areas and done sloppy in others. This is an area that could allow access to burrowing insects or rodents.

Seal at transition of ICF and framing is sloppy and not complete in its detail.

Siding: too close to balcony floor plane. Recommended clearance is 2” above any stable horizontal surface.

Siding: too close to deck floor plane. Recommended clearance is 2” above any stable horizontal surface.

 

Section 5: Weather-Resistive Barriers

WRB not applied.

NOTE: Some Building Codes exempt the use of weather-resistive barriers over “water-repellent panel sheathing” or exterior panels classified as “weather-resistive barriers”. James Hardie recommends the use of “building paper type” weather-resistive barriers with all siding products. James Hardie will assume no responsibility for water infiltration within the wall.

Siding too close to drive surface. Recommended clearance is 2” above concrete surface. This leaves room for seasonal movement that we experience n the winter due to frost heave. This siding is damaged from absorption of moisture then freeze spall.

Stains at garage door top trim indicate moisture intrusion in wall system above.

OSB wall sheathing over garage door is rotting due to being improperly protected from moisture intrusion. This damage may extend into the bearing member of the door opening and needs immediate correction.

NOTE: Some Building Codes exempt the use of weather-resistive barriers over “water-repellent panel sheathing” or exterior panels classified as “weather-resistive barriers”. James Hardie recommends the use of “building paper type” weather-resistive barriers with all siding products. James Hardie will assume no responsibility for water infiltration within the wall.

Joints not properly detailed. No WRB protection.

NOTE: Some Building Codes exempt the use of weather-resistive barriers over “water-repellent panel sheathing” or exterior panels classified as “weather-resistive barriers”. James Hardie recommends the use of “building paper type” weather-resistive barriers with all siding products. James Hardie will assume no responsibility for water infiltration within the wall.

These pictures are of fiber cement siding. This damage happened to the siding in the 3 to 5 year age range from time of initial application. The product is fragile if not detailed correctly. These are examples of siding installed too close to the roof plane. And lack of properly detailed flashing where the gutter terminates into a sided wall plane.