All Forum Posts by: Kathryn Schauer

@Kathryn Schauer It depends on how long the inconvenience occurred and how high the rent rate. I might have delayed the move in date a week. $80? Have something in mind but ask the tenant to speak first. They often ask for less than I expected. 

Hi Kathryn, one thing to keep in mind is to confirm if your exterior siding was built correctly and you have the right waterproofing parts in place as it transitions to the foundation (underlainment, flashing, etc). If flashing was installed, you should be able to see it at the bottom of the exterior wall and it’s main use is to help route water away and prevent water from getting trapped within your wall and making its way inside. I hope that when the contractor who built that concrete berm did not conflict with your flashing, etc and may cause further water damage over time.  

@John Banaski French drains are great, and if it is the water level rising around the house, it will work. It will not, however, stop any of the water that lands on the slab that extends past the siding.

@Kathryn Schauer I can't zoom on on the pic, but it looks like the concrete is past the siding by a foot or so. This will be very difficult, if not impossible to stop. Water hits the siding, runs down wall, hits the concrete, and gravity takes it inside. Gutters will help a lot, but not all of it. Somehow you need a flashing that goes behind the siding, with a pitch that takes water away from the house and past the concrete. If you want more info, let me know. There is no magic bullet. Water flows downhill.

Can't you change the drainage of the yard, so it doesn't slope to the house?  The problem is you don't want the water pooling there.  A drain might help, but again you want to prevent most of the water from going in that direction to begin with.

If it is coming from the roof due to lack of gutters, put gutters on and make sure they have a downspout extension of at least 4-5 feet-again you don't want all that water coming off the roof and next to your house.

@Kathryn Schauer

In Florida we deal with a lot of rain from our thunderstorms. As far as I know, there are not requirements for gutter systems on any residential construction.

Options I’ve used to prevent water intrusion as you have described is to seal the outside wall with a product from SealKrete. This is similar to paint you apply to the outside of the building which creates a moisture barrier. Adding gutters then can collect the rain water. Feed your downspouts into a French drain (channel dug into soil leading away from structure filled with gravel, a perforated pipe and covered). The water will travel in the pipe and percolate into your soil away from the building.

Hope this is helpful.

Chris