Water And The Bath Tub

Of all the natural forces on this Earth, water is the most pervasive. Is there really any where on this blue planet that is not or was not at one time touch by water? When it comes to our homes it is said water is the enemy. Homes and really all buildings are designed to accomplish one major purpose, to repel water from entering the dwelling.

Yet no matter how well a home is built, water will insidiously wear away at the structure. Of course when a home is poorly constructed or maintained water easily finds a weakness and exploits it, seeping into the structure to begin returning the home back to where it came, the earth.

During a home inspection here in Connecticut on an antique home, I found great examples of the power of water and nature.

And poor maintenance and repair.

Grading and drainage is the first line of defense against water entering a house. Soil that is pitched toward the home or worse piled up to or above the framing will surely cause major problems to occur. Not all of these problems are in your face apparent, like water seeping into the basement. It's what you don't notice or slowly begin to detect that can be an indicator of far worse problems.

The owner of this home had begun to notice that the bath tub and the wall were having some separation issues. He would repair the growing cracks, only to see them open up again after a few months.

Can you guess where the tub was located relative to the house? Yep, right where the soil was piled up to the foundation. Right above the bathroom was a bedroom.

The windows tell the story.

What I found under the bath tub in the basement was wood decay to the original sill plate. The rot was so severe the sill was compressed in to the foundation wall.  Some of the floor joists are twisting as the wood under them is slowing rotting away.

Old repairs or modifications to the structure that had been done to quell the water issues were not at all adequate. Of one thing I am certain looking over the damage, it had been occurring for a very long time. Well before the current owner purchased the home. In fact they may have been occurring with varying degrees of severity since the home was built some time in the 1800s.

Water will eventually win the battle we wage against it with respect to our homes. If we are diligent in our maintenance the best we can hope for is the war is not won on our watch.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
2010 - 2011 SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

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