More water, different windows

[Brenda]

I posted a couple of months ago about water seeping in underneath a window in the home we were in the process of building. I was concerned that it was because we had no aluminum drip edge back then, but now am thinking differently. I got quite a bit of help and suggestions, which I greatly appreciated. Here's the original thread in case anyone wanted to look it up
http://www.nachi.org/forum/f16/lack-aluminum-drip-edge-5224/

We moved in a little over 2 weeks ago. I'm thinking of calling it hellhouse though The night that we moved in at 10:30pm we noticed a bubble in the drywall ceiling of our dining room, full of water when we drained it with a poke in the drywall. Long story short, but the trim carpenter had put trim nails into the copper water line behind the toilet in the upstairs bathroom, which had been spraying water for a good week and a half, which climaxed of course the very moment when we were ready to find some mattresses to collapse on during moving day. The hardwood floor ended up buckling under the dining room because the OSB sheathing under the floor had gotten wet by all the water running down the walls from upstairs. That was fixed, dried out for 2 weeks and just last night was made pretty again by our trim carpenter.

But, the mysterious disappearing and reappearing water leak under the windows just today took a dramatic turn for the worse If you remember, it was one window in our office on the North side of the house that had 2 or 3 times leaked a decent amount. Of course that is all we knew not having been AT the house during many of the storms in the past 9 months. Our roofer came out and looked at it all and inspected and then suspected the windows. He did put some trim pieces over that exposed area on the back of the roof of the front porch (which we now believe the soffit/fascia/siding guy had knocked or missed something and that is why it was exposed) We double caulked every window we could and especially the leaking office area.

Upstairs we have a large palladium window that is over 2 regular double hung 3' windows in the center of the house above the front door. That was the one that poured water just earlier today, which prior to this had never leaked. They are Quaker windows. We cannot find any weep holes in the windows at all, not sure if they were supposed to be drilled in after installation or what. This window was leaking from the bottom of the palladium/top of the double hung, especially on one side. The water was going down to the main front door on the main floor, and getting the exterior wood frame of the door fairly wet, (none visibly coming inSIDE the house at the main front door, although it was very much INSIDE the house upstairs), then running down to the basement and dribbling down the concrete wall.
We have an unfinished cold storage on the front of the house as well (same direction as the other leak) and after inspecting the rest of the windows we could see water coming in at the floorboard under that window today as well at the same time, but could NOT feel it on the OSB wall sheathing???? I wondered if maybe the water was going directly behind the stud under the window and that is why the inside of the exterior sheathing didn't really feel wet??

So now we have had water coming in near windows that are surrounded by siding on the North side of the house, and more recently under or around the windows that are on the West side of the house and that is a stone front (Eldorado stone). I looked at the Quaker window website and their warranty states that if the inside wood is not stained within one MONTH or invoicing, their warranty is void!!! Obviously we did not stain within 30 days of installation. For crying out loud, we didn't even have our rough plumbing or electrical done 30 days after the windows went in. I have called the company we bought the windows from and they will have a rep from Quaker get with us.

But now I am seriously worried. First, what if they see that my inside windows are not stained and tell me to go scratch? Second, what if it somehow isn't the windows? They told me to be prepared that they will ask how they were installed, but our framing carpenter did that and I wasn't here when they went in. Third, what if it is a question that our stone wasn't properly installed? There are no weep holes in the stone (can't tell from Eldorado's site whether or not that is required or recommended) and I can't actually find weep holes in the foundation either now. But if it was the stone, why did we have leakage around the office window months ago when that has no stone on that side of the house, only siding...

I'm just sick about this. I'm wishing we had never built this house in the first place. Yes, we were the general contractors, and my brother and father have built their own homes before so we had plenty of advice/help. I wouldn't do it again if I had the chance, but the fact remains that here we are with an enormous mortgage with a house with more problems than I ever imagined. In 10 years in our tiny little old house we never had a fraction of the problems we are having here Huh, and we thought that was our low-grade starter home.

Please, any help or advice is really really needed. I can provide any number of pictures, just let me know. Thanks very much.
Brenda

[Paul Pendley]

I would suggest hiring a NACHI inspector in your area to inspect the home. When the inspection is completed you should have a general idea of any defects found during the inspection. With that you should be able to use that information to hire out qualified licensed contractors to complete repairs.

Paul Pendley
Premier Property Inspections

[Carl A. Brown]

Brenda

Where are you located in indiana?

[Dale Duffy]

Carl A. Brown vbmenu_register("postmenu_58315", true);
Carl Brown Inspections
NACHI Member
User Name: cbrown1
Location: Kansas City, KS
Posts: 469


Re: Lack of aluminum drip edge
When the faux stone was put on did they put on another layer of moisture barrier?

It looks like the flashing at the roof,wall intersection is over the housewrap.


Kind of what I thought also.

[Brenda]

Crown Point. I would have to call the people who installed the stone to find out if they put on additional moisture barrier. We would be in serious trouble if THAT was the problem, wouldn't we?

[Carl A. Brown]

Yes! IMO with the way your windows and house wrap were installed.

Brenda
You are more then welcome to register at badstucco and see what the guys think of your installation and problems. Most who post there are in the trades. And a few good Home Inspectors!


http://www.badstucco.com/phpbb/

[Dale Duffy]

Originally Posted by cbrown1

Yes! IMO with the way your windows and house wrap were installed.

It looks like the nail-fins are exposed from the distant photo.

If they didn't wrap Over the nail-fins before installing the stone, that is probably your problem.

[Dale Duffy]

Carl,

Doesn't it look like the nail-fins are exposed in the photo?

[Carl A. Brown]

Dale,

It does to me. And the roof flashing looks like it is over the wrap.

Page 2 first paragraph. Step 1
http://www.bouldercreekstone.com/Lit...ion.pdf#search=

[Dale Duffy]

Originally Posted by cbrown1

Dale,

It does to me. And the roof flashing looks like it is over the wrap.

Page 2 first paragraph. Step 1
http://www.bouldercreekstone.com/Lit...on.pdf#search=

Can't beat two layers of grade D.

[Brenda]

Okay, trying to follow all the points you have all made. What are nailfins? I am looking at the construction pictures now in a different light and see that the only moisture barrier was the original tyvek that was put on the OSB early on. It looks like the lath and scratch coat were put directly on top of the tyvek, and that's not right is it?

But the goofiest thing is that today we had TWO very hard rainstorms. The second one may have been harder than the first. The first one is what produced the major leaks all over the darn place and the 2nd harder storm didn't appear to produce any leaks. Course that doesn't mean there aren't leaks where I can't see them.

So tell me, how hard will whatever this is be to fix?

[Carl A. Brown]

Brenda
Check your private messages.

how hard will whatever this is be to fix? Not real hard just costly! And the sooner the better.

What are nailfins? They are the flimsy outer edge of the window where the nails go to help hold the windows in. They are not a flashing at the head of the window they are a flange. Although some window companys would like the public to think they are, some window mfgrs. are putting a flashing at the heads it is a solid piece with no holes for nails.

[bssyang]

There are many beautiful stone pictures on the site:
http://www.chinamarble.com
http://www.fireplace-carving.com