Taylor-Elliott Residence

The home’s exterior walls are clad with drain-vented stucco and wood claddings.

Highly-elevated embedded moisture levels indicated a probability of concealed decay.

Removal of the home’s original stucco cladding confirmed widespread decay of underlying wood framing.

Built-in stainless steel flashings were used where such flashings could not be replaced if corroded.

Seattle, Washington
Client: Taylor-Elliott Family
Dates of Service:  2009-2010

Project Summary:  Although no issues were disclosed by the home inspector during this home’s re-sale, the new owners became aware of various apparent water-infiltration symptoms shortly following their purchase.

PL:BECS Services:  PL:BECS was retained to provide services in three phases.

The first consisted of an evaluation of the existing home’s exterior envelope integrity.  This revealed widespread and serious infiltration affecting many of the enclosure elements, including its stucco cladding, low-slope modified bitumen roofs, waterproof decks, and windows.  The severity and extent of the construction flaws and resultant degradation required complete replacement of all exterior envelope elements. This investigation also found that these deficiencies had been actively concealed by the previous sellers, who left the country immediately following the home’s sale.  This evaluation also concluded that the home inspector should have detected the many readily-apparent construction flaws in the home’s exterior assemblies.

In the second phase, PL:BECS prepared specific corrective recommendations for new stucco and wood wall claddings, window systems, roof and deck waterproofing, and related assemblies, as well as specific detailing for these new enclosure systems.

In the third phase, PL:BECS worked closely with the general contractor, Dyna Contracting, to assure that all new exterior elements were properly installed.  Services included site visits to examine in-progress installation of the various exterior elements, preparation of reports, mock-up installations of windows, exterior penetrations, and typical flashings, assistance with specific product selections, and similar tasks.