Older building with through the wall A/C units and a new building going up, next door. What is a builder to do? Easement issue? Are the compressors crossing the property line? You would think that the Architect and/or Surveyor whould have seen this and, maybe, changed the building width by a few inches.
Answer: “Modify” the exterior block (8" split faced concrete).
Plus, no flashing above the balcony ledger. Hey kids, It’s efflorescence time!
Silly A/C compressor placement. Also note the efflorescence and try to determine its source of water intrusion.
The 2nd and third picture has the compressor installed on the parapet wall, with through bolting. Water leaks inside and below. (Hat tip to Jeff Merrit for these two pictures).
That is a good one John, but you have to think outside the box like the Architect.
When you lift the towels off the bar, everything comes on, and when you drop the towel back on the bar, everything gets shut off.
Will, still having fun with your split faced and split rib block buildings I see.
Back in 1975, I was a masonry foreman for the Company now, and that is all that was used for schools, which is what we were building mostly back then.
Talk about sh$t block. Without a block water repellent sealant, they are nothing but one big water spong.
Most of Maine stopped using it and the ones that do are coating it with waterproofing elastermeric coating that I have used in the past, but would have to call someone to find out the product name. All I know is that with that coating, it is proving alright.
As to the elastomeric paint, we found that out. All the Public Storage facilities do that.
Did you see my latest article? See Here:
Poor owner, bought the 20 year old single family three months before this. Is it common to grout the trusses into the block pockets like this? The poor guy is now having the entire top floor gutted, including the roof trusses.
BTW: We are starting to see structural collapses of the roof trusses. Wait until the snow load starts.
Glad I found this for the guy before he had a collapse, but sad that he has to pay for all this. Kinda like telling someone they have cancer.
Wow! Will, that is incredible. Never seen roof trusses installed like that before and what the concequences were, but now I see why it was never done that way.
Hard to believe that was all from water intrusion through the block, had to be leaking from somewhere to cause that extent of damage.
I would rather write up these types of defects than deal with Insurance writers and “Prepared Insurance Companies”. At least I don’t have to scrape windows anymore.
Parapet wall coping is flat stone with no flashing.
Can lights not sealed.
Vapor barrier (10 mill poly) installed just behind the drywall.
I have measured, when exterior temps are 26 F, in the ceiling / roof cavity, 62 F with an 84 RH. Water condensing on everything. And, of course, the homeowner hed their temp set at 74 F and their humidifer set at 50%.
Think stack effect with the can lights not sealed and no roof ventilation.
I am recommending closed cell foam on the block walls and open cell foam on the underside of the roof decking.
Pluss, Chicago is NOT a cold climate, it is a mixed climate. We are humid (> 45% RH) three seasons out of four.
Proper understanding of building science is the key, as well as proper selection of materials appropriate to the climate and proper installation of those materials.
WTF is ANYONE doing grouting wooden trusses to masonry? That is HI 101, NEVER have wood in contact with masonry.
And every contractor around here should learn basic flashing.
Sorry if I seem to rant. I am just fed up, sick and tired of my clients (noth pre-purchase and consultations) finding out that they are screwed and have to fork over big bucks for fixes for problems that should never have to even exist if the builder was even halfway compitant.