A six year old home... Past is Prologue
Before you jump to any conclusions about who the Central Ohio builder is .... who did a bad job in installing the trim on this 6 year old home realize these home inspector photos are from out of state.
This is not a Central Ohio home. It could be.
Past is Prologue is a Re-Blog of a post from Jay Markanich in Virginia.
Jay inspected this home when the present owners bought it four years ago. Jay writes: "This was something my client was told four years ago that he needed to handle immediately."
If you bought a house in Central Ohio in the last year or four or five and the inspector told you to take care of some things... did you? Dig out the report now... Past is Prologue...
An interesting email came the other day. It was from a former client, for whom I had done an inspection four years ago. His house at that time was only two years old. All the window trim on the house was beginning to rot.
My comment at that time was that this was a lot of rot developing in only two years, and that it would get worse. I also suggested that since it was on nearly window that the problem was likely due to improper installation. At that time I was unable to see what could have caused it, but thought it to be the usual suspects. On my way home the next day this house was along the way, so I stopped by to have a peek.
I could have posted many more photos. So, what are the common characteristics?
1. Caulking is not meant to be wider than about 1/4". This is much wider than that!
2. Interior nails (or brads) were used. As they rust, they rot the wood with them!
3. The wood was not primed. Even if it was primed on the outside facing the weather, and I could see on some peeling windows that it was not, wood has 6 sides! All 6 sides need to be primed PRIOR to installation or it will not last.
4. The trim was just jammed into place, with large gaps. The miters and joints are not tight and merely filled with caulking.
ANYTHING NEW HERE? No, not at all. I see this every day. It is 7-11 construction at its worst (or best, depending on your angle...). It is a slap-up job by inexperienced people, working with little oversight.
Here's the big issue! ALL of the houses nearby are experiencing the exact same problem. I had noticed that 4 years ago, but the other houses weren't my focus then. Now we have a demonstrable pattern throughout the neighborhood.
The pattern, in my opinion? Improper product, improper installation. Of course, if contacted, the builder would claim lax homeowner maintenance.
But everyone has let this go and now the rot is migrating into the framing structure around the windows. This was something my client was told four years ago that he needed to handle immediately. It has been let go. By everyone. Now it has gotten dramatically worse.
I don't know where it will go from here. But I would recommend replacing the wood!
My recommendation: Sometimes home inspectors will point out conditions and suggest repairs that prevent future, more difficult, repairs. It is best to pay attention...
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This post provided by Maureen McCabe of Real Living HER
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Information is deemed to be accurate but should be verified to your satisfaction. Information provided herein is supplied by several sources and is subject to change without notice. Opinions expressed are solely those of Maureen McCabe.
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Maureen, good info. Jay is an excellent inspector.
I love Jay's posts....
Thanks again for the reblog Maureen!
Thank you Maureen-that is an exellent post and I sure do hold my inspectors in high regard, too. Good photos from inspectors really help tremendously to get the point accross-invaluable tool.
THANK YOU Jay!
Barbara did you just add Middleton Wisconsin Realtor to your ActiveRain comment signature? I am a UW graduate. I recognize you but do not think I knew you were WI. I am sure that woulda jumped out at me before.
Jay's home inspection posts are great and they translate fine for mid-western readers...