THIS POST provides clear evidence that water is getting through the wall from outside, and that the stem wall is getting overly wet in even more places that have structural implications.
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| December 1st — baseline for comparison (As usual, click/tap on a photo to enlarge it.) |
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| December 1st — exposed base of post — baseline for comparison |
The Exposed Pilaster Base
The recent rains have not been kind to the exposed pilaster base. (It’s unfortunate that for several reasons we had to halt the repair work temporarily.) The following photos show clear evidence of water getting through the wall. The post (which holds up the roof) and the sill plate are both getting soaked.
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| January 6th — rainwater intrusion, stained brown from rust |
Here is the view after removing the drywall cover…
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| The dark stain at the bottom of the post is moisture. |
During the break in the rain this past weekend, I attempted to cover the outside with a plastic sheet. We’ll soon see whether it holds, and how much it helps.
Other Pilaster Bases
Meanwhile, the stucco on two other pilaster bases is separating from the concrete, and cracking in a similar pattern to the worst one. Both of these changes suggest that the stem wall is getting too wet. They also suggest that the rebar is corroding inside the base.
This westernmost pilaster base has been inaccessible for viewing until just recently, due to our neighbor’s tenants having piled up construction materials in front of it.
This third cracking base is in the middle of the long south wall.
The only good thing to be said is that the pending engineering load calculations for determining the safety of the first pilaster base ought to apply to these other two bases, as well.
Taken together, however, this situation is so sad! The longer we wait to waterproof the wall, the worse that these problems will get — and the more expensive they will become to address properly. 😧
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