Advice insight on building envelope scan for latent moisture

Any insight on how long it might take to do a building envelope scan for two buildings primarily focusing on latent moisture. One building is 3 stories and has a foot print of approx. 5,225 sq ft the other building is 2 stories and had a foot print of approx 2,250 sq ft. The client is primarily interested in deciding if they should be listening to contractors who recommend a full siding job or if failure areas are more isolated.

I would provide thermograms, daylight pictures and written description of the exceptions found.

Never priced this type of job. Open to ballpark time and dollar ideas.
Thank you.

Work out the scope of what you plan to do (e.g., interior surfaces of exterior walls only, full interior, interior and exterior, etc.). How is the building laid out. Will you have to enter offices, stores, etc. Need accompaniment have to coordinate with residents for scheduling, access, to clear walls, etc. or will you have open spaces and be able to blast through unencumbered. Will you do this during business hours, after sunset, non-business hours, etc. Will you report exceptions only, non exceptions too, full facility???

All of these will figure into your logistics as much as raw size.

What are the steps your going to take if you do find moisture? That can add a lot of time.

The client is seeking to get my opinion as an unbiased 3rd party to help them determined if the siding is failed in isolated areas or the vast majority. Contractors have been giving them conflicting opinions as some sections have readily apparent issues.

I would plan to do an exterior only scan after sun down following a dry sunny day. I would report on exceptions only. I believe this could be constructive in helping them determine the extent of the repair needed. Am I making this sound to straight forward in my head this would take A couple of hours…

“I would plan to do an exterior only scan”…

3 stories high?

Kyle:

Based upon your description, it should only take one evening to conduct an infrared inspection from the exerior of this building from ground level. You may wish to have a helper along to take notes or mark drawings (see below) while you are imaging. If you plan on taking daylight photos that correspond to your thermal images, you will need to factor in your time for a second site visit subsequent to your infrared inspection.

To make the most sense of your findings, I would request elevation drawings in advance of your inspection in order that you may note the size and location of any thermal anomalies detected. Such drawings may be included in your final report with along with notations of the thermograms to which they correspond.

Lastly, you will also need to factor in your report time. This could add several hours to your inspection time particularly if you capture a lot of thermal images for inclusion in your report.

It’s good to see that you are getting inquires such as this one. I wish you the best of luck with your proposal and you are welcome to call me directly if you have any questions.

The client has concerns with the siding. I believe I should be able to do an adequate inspection of the siding from ground level at the exterior. I’m open to learning if you have other thoughts though.

Thank you for the thoughtful response. We all benefit from you generously sharing your knowledge. I have considered arriving a couple hours before sunset to establish my inspection route and gather daylight pictures at that time. If I do the same routine it may save a second trip. We shall see. The proposals have been submitted for consideration.

The infraspection proposal templates helped tremendously.