From APRA's Nov/Dec Newsletter-Wily Nilly Drilling of Holes For Cable Leads to Major Damage

I get APRA's (Association of Professional Reserve Analysts) Monthly Newsletter delivered to my email box every other month.The Nov/Dec newsletter has some important lessons for HOA's on deferred maintenance and the costs that come with it.

Satellite/Cable installers are some of an HOA's worst enemies, whether you know it or not. Cable/sat dish installers get paid the same way many of your vendors employees do,  by "piece work". What's piece work? Well lets say that the cable/dish installer has 5 installs in one day scheduled. He/she gets paid by each dish they install. If they get paid lets say $75.00 per dish, they can make $375.00 that day. If it takes the installer 5 hours to do the job, that breaks out to" $75.00 an hour in wages. If it takes the installer 10 hours to do the jobs, that breaks out to "only' $37.50 an hour.

They are incentivized to slam as many dishes in as possible. Therefore, your HOA is at risk of leaks due to the installer slamming in the dish as easily and as fast as they can. Read this from APRA-


Mysterious Holes. While doing my
weekly property inspection, I noticed
holes in the stucco walls that appeared
to be vandalism. The holes revealed a
mysterious black substance inside the
wood structure. The black substance
turned out to be mold and dryrot. About
the same time, reports were coming in
regarding some of the cantilevered
balconies that had dropped an inch or two.


Engineers Called In. The board
decided to bring in experts to study
both the walls and the balconies to
make recommendations for repair and
to write the specifications so bids could
be obtained. At this point, the health
and safety of those affected residents was of great concern.

Bids were obtained from four different
engineering companies and a contract
was awarded to the low bidder at
$56,000. Arrangements were made for
the engineers to have access to all
second and third story balconies for
inspection purposes. A detailed
description of the condition of each
balcony was noted, including a rating
system to determine the priority in
which these balconies would be
repaired. As a result of the inspection, a
dozen balconies were immediately
closed off due to unsafe conditions.
The study revealed dryrot and mold
behind the walls where the small holes
had been made. It was thought that the
water came from roof leaks and poor
drainage. The holes in the walls were
created by the cable company
installing cable to individual units. The
exterior walls were coated with an
elastomeric paint which did not allow
water to evaporate when it got behind
stucco.
Termites. All of the dampness had
attracted termites. A termite specialist
was brought in and the treatment of all buildings cost $100,000.

Dryrot on plywood under dish from leaks through stucco

Wires run on top of wall nailed through creates a path for water intrusion

Open holes in stucco are waiting to funnel water into the wall.

 READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE AND FIND OUT THE COSTS OF DEFERRED MAINTENANCE AT APRA BY CLICKING HERE

Euphemisms for leaks-From Architect Jody Brown's Blog

Please feel free to contribute to this post...
This is kind of the You Might Be a Redneck If...lists. Read on through, click to read the rest and fill in your own leak scenario...

I’ve been drawing waterproofing details all week, and it might be affecting me. So, I’ll let you in on a secret. There are certain things that Architects may say or do that are clear warning signs of future water infiltration problems. I think the kids are calling them “leaks” these days. If you happen to be reviewing the drawings with your Architect and you’re drifting off to sleep as he waxes and wanes and waves his arms around, try to perk up a little if you hear him say one of these things. These are just euphemisms for leaks. So, beware, and, begin the process of lining up expert witnesses.
 

 If your Architect has endeavored to dissolve the barrier between inside and out – you might have a leak

If your Architect has flooded the interior spaces with natural light – you might have a leak (yes, they will actually use the word “flooded”)

If your Architect has written a specification – you might have a leak. If your Architect has not written a specification – you might have a leak. If you Architect does not know what a specification is – you might have a leak.

If your Architect uses the term “innovative” – you might have a leak.

If your Architect drives a Porsche Cayman – you might have a leak (seriously, they might as well where a sandwich board sign that says “the end is near” on one side and “I can’t afford a 911” on the other.)

If your Architect has “streamlined the process” – you might have a leak.

If your Architect has designed the building to be “one with nature” – you might have a leak.

If your Architect has developed custom software to facilitate the design and fabrication of the elaborate titanium undulating forms representing the unrest of our current economic climate – you might have a leak (that’s right, I’m looking at you Frank Gehry)

If your Architect misspells the word “Bituminous” on his drawings – you might have a leak (actually, that’s not fair, no one can spell that)

READ ALL OF THE LEAK EUPHEMISMS BY CLICKING HERE

From Duarbility & Design-Building-Envelope 101’s Simple Lesson No 1: ‘Think Like a Raindrop’

Saw this on Durability & Design's daily newsletter...To read the whole article you'll need to register-it's free so go ahead...

“Think like a raindrop.”

Ray Wetherholt

That’s advice for design professionals from Washington State-based building-envelope consultant Ray Wetherholt, PE, RRC, RWC, of Wetherholt and Associates, Kirkland and Olympia. Since founding his business in 1984, Ray has made a specialty of helping to create building envelopes that resist water intrusion, and fixing those that don’t.

Water is good at getting into walls, he says. When it does, depending on the way the building envelope is constructed, nasty problems can result.

Mold, and the litigation it brings, is one of the most widely known problems. Water also can warp, decay and rust building-envelope components; delaminate paint; and deposit ugly stains on interior and exterior walls.

But if you look at water intrusion from water’s point of view, Ray says, it will help you navigate a building-envelope landscape that is constantly changing and evolving.

Since water follows gravity, it’s wise to employ water-shedding designs that let water do what it wants to do—flow downhill. Don’t depend on laps that buck water or interrupt the water flow. Don’t build flat shelves, or try to catch water flowing down a wall.  CLICK HERE TO REGISTER AND READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE AT DURABILITY & DESIGN

Chicago Home Inspectors Seeing Big Problems With Split Block Walls Leaking

  Google Alerts Found This Story On Split Block Walls Causing Major Problems For Houses....

 

Cheryl Burton
More: Bio, News Team

November 22, 2010 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- Some home inspectors say a building material in many brand new homes all over Chicago may be putting homeowners at serious risk this winter.

It's called split face block, a type of concrete used for exterior walls.
More than a dozen homeowners dealing with split face block problems contacted by ABC 7 for this report refused to talk on camera because they say talking about this hot button issue might hurt their home values.
"It's embarrassing, you know, you spent all this money on a home and look at it, look what's happening," said one homeowner.
It's the topic so taboo for Chicago homeowners that many won't talk about it. One West Side resident wanted to remain anonymous.
"We weren't sure exactly where the water was coming from," he said. "You start seeing the drywall starting to peel, you know, it's disappointing .. You'd actually see the nails and the two by fours, you wouldn't need a stud finder, you'd see them right through the drywall.
Home inspectors say the problem is split face block, a concrete building material used all over Chicago in brand new homes built during the latest building boom.
"I'm very scared," said home inspector William Decker.
Decker has been dealing with the problem for years.
"For the last four or five years, the major problem we saw was water coming in, and mold, and stained walls," said Decker.
But now, he says, during his inspections he's seeing a much bigger, more dangerous problem.
READ ABOUT THIS DANGEROUS PROBLEM BY CLICKING HERE

Condo Association Maintenance Staff Work Fails, Causes Flood Into Lower Unit, Association Won't Pay To Fix The damage

BOTHELL, Wash. -- It wasn't a storm, but a stranger's mistake that left Kyle Dickenson's condo in ruins.

Late last month, water leaked into Dickenson's place in Cambria Hills from an outside source, causing massive damage. And now he's left wondering if anyone will help.

In what's left of his home, furniture and personal items are in complete disarray. The first-floor condo unit suffered water damage.

"I have no bathroom to use. There's dry wall dust all over the place. There's exposed carpet nails. They're exposed electrical wires throughout the walls," he said.

Dickenson says the leak came after some building maintenance was performed upstairs. He was told the news when he got home that night.

"The maintenance manager informed me that when they were hooking up the hose to the washer outlet on the third floor, it wasn't hooked up properly, which caused a flood," he said.

According to the Cambria Hills Condo Association, three units suffered damage. And while Dickenson doesn't have home owners insurance, he wonders why he should pay for something that's not his fault.
READ THE REST BY CLICKING HERE

Connecticut Condo Owners Learn the Hard Way That Contractors Without Proper Insurance Can Screw Them Over

You've Been Warned...Read This and Learn...

...The roofing contractor working on the building in October lacked the proper insurance, so owners of all 100 units in the Twin Oaks complex -- not just the 20 in building 106 -- are on the hook for the repair bill. A special $400-plus monthly charge was imposed by the condo association in January to raise $200,000 for emergency roof work, utility safety tests and repairs.

This saddled owners with the added burden of the special assessment on top of mortgage payments and the $300 monthly common fees, without having relief from rental income in 106 Oakwood to defray costs.
Two of the owners in 106 are now in court, facing foreclosure.
The special assessment is an added burden for owners in all five Twin Oaks buildings.
""People were barely making it before," an elderly owner on a unit in neighboring 102 Oakwood Ave. said Friday. "Mother Nature did the damage, but the innocent have to pay the bill."

'It Was Bad'

Contractor KLS LLC of Wethersfield lacked proper insurance for roofing work being done at the time of the storms, though that wasn't determined until after the deluge. The company had coverage for snowplowing and landscaping but not for roofing work, according to the Newington insurance agency, Connecticut Insurance Exchange, listed on the KLS permit applications on file with the West Hartford building department.

Glenn Terk, the contractor's attorney, said Friday that he advised his client not to discuss the issue publicly because of the "potential for litigation." Terk noted that no civil actions have been filed against his client, who had done roofing work in the past for Twin Oaks.

But someone is to blame, Pastor said, and not the tenants, who were just living their lives.

"The contractor was chosen by somebody," he said. "Is this whole thing an issue of building management, of the roof not being properly maintained and so it needed repairs? Is it the condo association? Is it the roofer, for obvious reasons? Everybody is going to blame everybody, but how complicated is it?"

READ THE WHOLE STORY AT THE HARTFORD COURANT BY CLICKING HERE

IN New Zealand, Leaky Home Problems Estimated to Cost 11.3 BILLION Dollars to Fix!

I was reading this article on New Zealands problems with leaky moldy homes...in it they estimated the costs to repair are at 11.3 billion dollars. The gov't is entering into a program to help out Homeowners with assistance equal to 50% of the costs of repairs, with the HO paying the other 50%.

Read the article by clicking here...it will take you down under, so you might feel light headed when you flip over ;)

Five Days Of Rain = The Ultimate Water Testing!

Well California is drying out a bit after 5 days of rain...I'd call that the ultimate water test for decks, walls, windows and doors...

How did your decks do?

Call Bill at Central Coast Waterproofing if your decks aren't performing up to par! 805-545-8300

HOA IN FLORIDA SUES-DECKS FALLING OFF THE BUILDING< LEAKY WINDOWS...and the list goes on. See the Video too

* Video
* Photo

HOA sues home builder

Regular Photo Size
HOA suing builder

Updated: Thursday, 10 Sep 2009, 1:51 AM EDT
Published : Thursday, 10 Sep 2009, 1:51 AM EDT

* MELISSA DIPANE | FOX 35 News

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Moldy roofs, missing stucco and porches completely removed. It doesn't look like home sweet home but for many residents in the Phillips Bay condo community it will have to do.

Brock Shields is the former homeowners association president for Phillips Bay and says the construction woes are never ending.

"It's been happening since 2001. There have been issues we thought it could be patched and fixed but overtime its just systematic through the whole entire place," said Shields.

Shields has a leaky roof and windows that soak the inside of his home when it rains. He says he got it lucky.

About a year ago, residents were told to remove furniture from their balconies and patios because if they didn't they would be in danger of collapse. Now, many have plywood covering the bottom half of their sliding glass doors and second floor patios have been removed.

One resident's patio has been condemned after water seeped through the roof and rotted the wood.

Stucco has been ripped off the buildings in spots so contractors can check on proper placing of hurricane straps. Something Ulysses Roman says caused massive cracks and leaks in his home.

However leaks weren't the last of Romans problems. He found slits through many of the studs in his bathroom walls.

"There's a slit that goes probably 90 percent of the stud, said Roman. My problem is that okay if you have one that's fine but we had numerous ones just in the shower hop alone."


READ THE REST BY CLICKING HERE

YouTube Video of Door/Deck Leaks in Taipei

Here's a video I found on YouTube; it shows that it's not only in America that there are door to deck flashing and leak problems...this apartment in Taipei has major problems!

Maybe a lack of door pans and head flashings? Without destructive testing we won't know...

Watch and pity this poor bugger who has these leak problems!

From Los Angeles Based Commercial Real Estate Inspector Bob Pace Comes His Article "Don't Overlook the Exterior of a Building"

I found an interesting read at this website (click our headline to read all of it) from a commercial building inspector, he basically affirms my statements about decks, leaks, drains/scuppers and railings...

Exterior doors vary from the usual metal frame and glass entry doors to metal roll up doors for loading and unloading and metal pedestrian fire escape/exit doors. In my experience, exterior door thresholds, that portion on the flooring that you step across when you walk through a door, are the main source of water intrusion at doors.

A problem with thresholds usually occurs when they are level with the exterior. This is often a source of moisture intrusion. The industry standard is that the threshold is to be above the exterior level by at least 1.5 inches. This is to allow for a proper moisture barrier. Rarely is this the case.

Exterior decks can be of many types. Tile, stone, waterproof material, concrete and metal are the most common for a commercial building. My biggest issue with decks is the waterproofing, especially if it is over occupied space. I look very closely at the transitions such as connections to the building and railings with special attention to the door thresholds. These areas usually require regular maintenance such as resealing the waterproof decking surface every 3 to 5 years depending on the material and foot traffic. In a very heavy traffic area this may need to be done more often.

Another area I pay particular attention to is the drainage. This can be an issue with enclosed decks with surface drains. Enclosed decks are the decks with solid walls for railings. The only place water can get out is through surface drains. If any leaves or debris get on these drains this can create a dam in a very short time during a heavy rain. These drains can clog up very easily and the deck can quickly become a tub. I really try to make sure the interested parties understand how important it is to keep these drains free flowing and to maintain them. I speak here from hard won experience.

In my experience, railings around decks generally have two main areas of concern. One is the height. Some of the very old deck rails dont feel safe specifically, any railing type or style that is less than 36 inches tall. The other is spacing. The City of Los Angeles recommends that the spacing between rails be no wider than 4 inches. The other possible issues are rusted, damaged or loose railings.

See their website at http://www.commercialrealestateinspectors.com

From New Zealand Comes This Headline-LEAKY BUILDINGS AND LAWYERS. Hmm, I think I've heard that one before...

This sounds familiar, except for their proposed solution. Read on through some excepts, then click the headline to go to the webpage...


Leaky Buildings and Lawyers

It is reported that nearly 80,000 homes in New Zealand are affected by this crisis - and that is only the ones we know about. For every person affected, there is the ripple effect on his or her families and extended families.

Let’s looks at what happened in New Zealand that contributed to this crisis.

We decided that Mediterranean architecture looked cool and new homebuyers all wanted one. (Consumer demand). We failed to remember that NZ is not Mediterranean. It rains here quite a lot.

We started thinking about housing as a fashion statement and status symbol, rather than a need to be functionally satisfied.

It is not just the owners that are affected. It is the people who built these homes - usually in good faith. It is the architects who designed them to appeal to their customers. It is the public not yet affected who may become so by purchasing one of these properties. And, alternatively, there those who have homes that look like they might leak, but don’t, and so can’t sell them.

All these people are now facing at least inconvenience or at worst ruin. And in reality we are all as a society to blame, each and every one of us, including those who have never bought a leaky home, owned one and passed it on knowingly or unknowingly.

So while a growing avalanche of problems is emerging, who is profiting? Lawyers of course, plus the support expert witnesses.

You should all read Ben Elton’s book, The Other Eden. In this book a chapter describes a concept of “LFS” - Litigation Frenzy Syndrome. Elton describes a disaster in which those who were needed to save the people and solve the problem could not get to the site as lawyers seeking to get instructions from affected clients blocked the roads.

Sound familiar?

But have no fear, the lawyers will - like sharks - move on when the food runs out. Elton also described the first law of legal dynamics: “All litigation expands exponentially to consume the amount of money available.” The corollary being that all litigation stops when the money runs out.

Read the rest by clicking the headline...

Interesting Powerpoint Presentation on finding leaks

On the Roof Consultants Institute website on their resource page comes this excellent presentation by Donald Kilpatrick.

Check it out and maybe you'll learn something. I did!

From www.contractorsfromhell.com comes this story about deck leaks and more

From a great website, named appropriately, contractors from hell comes this not so funny story...beware the idiots out there and do your homework first.

Late February, we got the scratch and brown coat. Shortly thereafter, it rained. We leaked just as before but now it was spreading itself out. We told this new supervisor that we needed to address this now - he says he'll talk to the contractor. He called back, and the contractor had just left out of town for the weekend and when he got back, he’d speak with him. He gets back in town and says he'll send the Pro Deck guy out. Deck guy doesn't show up-says it's not the deck, probably the drains. We ask the contractor to open a section of the wall/ceiling so we can do a water test to determine the source-he says we have to wait until drywall. We argue....

It’s now April and this started New Years Eve-actually, in mid-October when it first rained. With camera in hand to document, we cut out a 4 x 4 opening in the ceiling, exposing the drains and immediately see some mold. Then we performed the water test on the deck, expecting the drains to fail-nothing.

Ten-fifteen seconds pass and suddenly the ceiling begins to leak-we see it coming from the deck. So it was the deck that had failed. Yet we endured so much unnecessary water damage and stress because of his refusal to open the ceiling and do a simple water test.

The substrate put down was incompatible with the decking material that was applied over it. Now the Pro Deck guy knew it, but still went ahead with it. The contractor should have ordered plywood for the flooring system, not OSB, which is flake board and basically much more porous.

So we lost carpeting, ceilings and walls damaged as a result of both their negligence and shoddy workmanship. The workers report back to the contractor and now he and the ProDeck guy go at it.

We call the contractor and tell him that he needs to get over to the house today-no more putting us off. We demanded that he gets one of his workers over to open the ceiling to do a water test and get those damn French doors installed...

We were overwhelmed-how many more screw-ups does it take before it's over? I felt like I was smack in the middle of a Three Stooges movie. A worker showed up the next day to open the ceiling.

A few days go by, the Pro Deck guy shows up and inspects the deck and says, "I told him not to use that OSB board, it's cheap and not right for this application.. .there goes my reputation." Your reputation! What about all the damage we've sustained?? I asked him why he went ahead and put the material down even though he could clearly see it was the incorrect substrate? Just shakes his head and says something about contractors' insurance paying for the damages and gets on the phone. This is around the 12th of April 2000.

I talked to the contractor and he stated that the Pro Deck guy would be coming back when there was a break in the rains for at least several days. But he needed to get his workers over to the house first to tear out the floor and replace it with the correct substrate He promised that the plans for the exterior stairs were being done by the engineer as well as the footing issue (still from the previous year and unresolved) but will be ready for his supervisor to pick up at the City the following day.

Oh, and by the way, he's talking to me on his way to the airport for yet another vacation-two weeks. Gee, I'd like to take even a week's vacation but I have to run this project while the contractor either screws up, does a no-show or takes a vacation.

I drilled him on what he has and has not done-promises (yeah right) that he's given his supervisor very specific instructions on handling the engineer and getting the plans over to the City. How many times have I heard this now?

It had been nearly a month that any work has been performed with the exception of taking care of leaks. The contractor was lying on a sunny beach in Cabo and we were mopping up water in the house-and freezing...

READ THE WHOLE STORY AND FIND OUT HOW IT ALL ENDS AT
WWW.CONTRACTORSFROMHELL.COM

Coalition of Leaky Condo Owners Home Page

Coalition of Leaky Condo Owners Home Page

Our Canadian neighbors to the north aren't exempt from leaky condo's; here's a great Blog from the Great White North!