downspout discharge: Can An All Brick House Leak Through The Walls?
- 12/23/16 03:51 AM
Can an all brick house leak through the walls?
The answer, in short, is YES!
Water has to be controlled. Around the roof, and house, water can be effectively controlled by gutters and downspouts. If they are not situated properly, or if roof water is not drained properly from the roof to the gutters, back ups and overflows will occur.
A case in point. Just pulling up to this house I predicted the disaster that was to follow.
For quite some time the gutter from the upper roof had been inundating and overflowing the gutter below because the downspout was missing an elbow and there … (45 comments)
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downspout discharge: This Is What Happens When A Downspout Splash Block Is Not Used
- 09/28/16 08:30 PM
This is what happens when a downspout splash block is not used.
The downspout splash block is intended to divert water from the roof away from the house.
It protects the foundation, the ground around the house, and water is diverted onto graded soil and into the local water drainage.
They are necessary around most homes.
Beside this house, for some reason, all of the splash blocks had been removed from every downspout.
The associated damage was evident.
Large, gouged, eroded areas decorated the bottoms of each downspout ground pipe.
This was one of the two at the front of the house, beside the front porch.
This particular hole … (10 comments)
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downspout discharge: Can Water Crack A Driveway?
- 08/09/16 07:31 PM
So, really, can water crack a driveway?
Yes. And water can create the Grand Canyon. Both of those things are true if the same thing happens over and over for long enough.
This is the driveway in question.
I saw the problem as soon as I pulled up to the house.
Why is the driveway cracking only on one side, and toward the garage and house?
The short answer - water.
But from where?
Why would water cause settlement to happen in only one area?
Looking at the entire house the answer comes alive.
The downspout on the front corner of the house had been altered. By whom I don't … (10 comments)
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downspout discharge: A Year Later And There Is No "Toxic Mold..."
- 08/08/16 09:32 PM
A year later and there is no "toxic mold..."
A little over year ago new neighbors moved in next door. We had the initial greetings and are friendly, as neighbors should be. They have three children who are always happy to see me and I tease regularly.
A few weeks later they decided to finish their basement.
During the framing work, but just before the drywall was installed, we had a huge storm which dumped a couple of inches of rain.
The downspout indicated by the yellow arrow was angled such that it dropped its water directly into the corner on the ground.
The soil at that … (70 comments)
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downspout discharge: Be Sure Downspout Water Is Discharged AWAY From The House!
- 08/05/16 09:14 PM
Be sure downspout water is discharged AWAY from the house!
Houses don't make very effective boats. They don't like to sit in water. When this house was built, in 1965, foundation drainage and sump pumps were not used.
Today virtually every newly-built house has such drainage and a sump pump, at least around here.
This downspout drains right at the front corner of the house, and discharges about half of the water from the roof above, some 700 square feet.
By my calculation, during a single 1" rain storm, that would represent about 225 gallons of water.
Recognizing water intrusion into the basement wall, this homeowner … (10 comments)
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downspout discharge: What Two Downspouts Had To Say - Inspecting In The Rain
- 05/15/16 07:24 PM
What two downspouts had to say - inspecting in the rain.
We have had many days of rain this May. I like doing inspections in the rain because I can see and know things that otherwise would not be known.
This new construction inspection had a large front roof that drained to two downspouts.
Both drained in front of a window and onto a front porch. While discharging downspouts in this fashion is not recommended, that is not the issue here.
Although it was not raining hard, still water could be seen and flow could be determined.
Looking out the front window onto the porch water … (5 comments)
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downspout discharge: A Flawed Gutter Design Can Damage The House
- 04/01/16 09:16 PM
Simply put, a flawed gutter design can damage the house.
Remember the axiom -
WATER IS THE KILLER OF HOUSES.
It is self evident. It is true. It is and it will always be. And inside and out.
Notice the arrows.
Problem 1 has a red arrow.
Problem 2 has yellow arrows.
Dealing with Problem 1 first, it looks like the whole roof is sinking to the left.
It is!
What can't be seen from this photo is the siding on the left is rotting above and below the roof.
The roof decking is rotting.
But why?
See the two downspouts above the red arrow?
Together they discharge 100% of the roof's rain water … (9 comments)
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downspout discharge: Poor Gutter And Downspout Design
- 01/04/15 06:21 PM
It would be a fair statement to say that I often see poor gutter and downspout design.
Who am I to think this, you ask?
To quote Descartes, "I think, therefore I am." So there.
And when I see new, and old, construction, I often think about and evaluate the gutter and downspout design and discharge. This is brand new construction.
And I see a problem here. Do you see it? Look carefully.
What is going on here that would be of poor design?
Look at what's going on.
Before you do, you have to remember a little 8th grade lab … (10 comments)
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downspout discharge: Siding And A Wall Overwhelmed By Water
- 09/18/14 08:31 PM
This is the case of siding and a wall overwhelmed by water. When a client calls with a problem to investigate, even someone I know, like Margaret Woda, I am always excited by the prospect.
She sent me a photograph of a spot outside a house that not only showed moisture but damage. Pretty sure I had it diagnosed from the photo, but I needed to see it to determine if what I thought was the cause.
The house next door, the one to the right in this photo, has all of its rear roof rain water collected and then drained … (36 comments)
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downspout discharge: If You Want To Slap Up A Deck, At Least Redirect The Downspout Water!
- 06/19/13 07:19 PM
Coming around to the back of the house and seeing a mish mash of porch and deck, I saw what the downspout is doing to the deck stairs and thought that if you want to slap up a deck, at least redirect the downspout water!
Downspout water hitting anything over a long period of time will damage it.
Not much wants water draining on it all the time!
Water damages inside and out. Getting water away from the house and its outdoor structures is crucial, crucial, crucial.
WATER IS THE KILLER OF HOUSES!
I don't know how old this deck … (26 comments)
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downspout discharge: It Wasn't Only The Obvious - Roof Questions Are Always Difficult
- 11/21/12 07:39 PM
A client contacted me for a home inspection, asking me also about an obvious problem out front. Yep, that was a problem, but there was a roof problem as well. So, in this case, it wasn't only the obvious - roof questions are always difficult.
The first stair on both sides of the front sidewalk, not really attached to the front porch stoop, was settling and separating. Only water causes that.
But, looking the house up on line, I was able to diagnose why the stairs were settling just by seeing a photo of the front of the house.
The photo … (8 comments)
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downspout discharge: Cracking Under The Pressure
- 07/15/12 10:15 PM
Cracking under the pressure. You hear that story all the time.
We all have our cracking point. No matter the context, and no matter how strong we are, there is always a breaking point. And we feel badly!
This house demonstrates an architectural, or other design, flaw.
This photo looks at half of the rear roof. Look carefully. Virtually all of the rain water (that's a LOT of water) for that half is directed to one little gutter and one downspout.
See it now?
That gutter is about 5' long!
And it is the narrower 5" gutter and smaller downspout.
You … (36 comments)
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downspout discharge: "You Know There's An Odor, But You Don't Know Why"
- 03/18/12 08:22 PM
I was called by a couple to evaluate what might be causing a problem with their condo. Over the phone I heard, "You know there's an odor, but you don't know why."
Everyone notices it. There is no mold in the house. There are no stains. It is persistent. We notice it as soon as we walk inside.
I heard this over and over during the conversation.
It had rained just a bit over night.
Getting there is the morning the first thing I did was look at the outside.
I noticed three things.
First, a lot of square footage of … (108 comments)
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downspout discharge: All Downspouts MUST Discharge Water Away From The Foundation Wall
- 03/02/12 06:25 PM
All downspouts MUST discharge water away from the foundation wall. As they say, denial isn't just a river in Egypt.
Anything else simply sets the house up for disaster over time.
This is the downspout on the front corner of the house.
This house is situated on a hill, with the front foundation wall completely buried.
This has been discharging against the foundation for some time.
Someone even put a plastic cap on the end, apparently to dress it up!
And a cute piece of slate to "divert" the water downward.
Cute...
Notice the hole being dug into the soil. Somewhat … (65 comments)
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downspout discharge: Adding Always Gets To A Sum Total
- 10/29/11 09:29 PM
There are times when you pull up to a house and know there will be problems. And the problems can be predicted in advance of seeing everything. It's easy to begin because adding always gets to a sum total.
One half of a roof surface PLUS
One little downspout, come apart, draining at the front corner PLUS
A conveniently, eroded hole, about the middle of the house EQUALS
A REALLY, REALLY SMELLY, WET … (24 comments)
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Can an all brick house leak through the walls?
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