Defect / Water Leak Remediation

What begins as a relatively simple project installing a new client-supplied window on this contemporary house up in the west hills…

…explodes into a substantial water remediation project when we discover damage below and above the window we were to remove. Soon, we were replacing wall studs that took us through to the interior walls…

…of the bathroom where the new window was to be installed. If the “DURING” photo looks weird, it’s because we tried to stitch three photos together that show the extent of the water damage, and the “stitching” didn’t go so well. Although we suspect you get the idea.

Many of the structural wall components had to be replaced. Sean Miller is shown installing the new insulation, after which the new drywall was applied.

Back to the exterior, we find the damage extensive. For a slightly closer view, you might try clicking on the photo to enlarge it. And the damage extends all the way down…

…to the deck…

…and on up to the top floor where the water was getting into the wall.

Here is a shot of a flashing piece that is supposed to separate the top floor moisture-barrier from that which is below. Can you discern here one of the problems we discovered with this wall? The moisture barrier is not overlapping the flashing, rendering it utterly ineffective.

This wall and this house have numerous more such issues, as we attempted to communicate to our client.
Most of us can relate to having something other than unlimited resources and the need to defer certain expenses.

But the risky aspect of “out and out denial” as it relates to this particular type of repair, is that ongoing neglect easily translates into the need for more extensive repairs and thousands of dollars more down the road. Rot is a living organism that never sleeps.