Another rim joist question?

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librarysue
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Aug 06, 2019 2:40 pm

I didn't have the patience to read through that whole rim joist repair thread but it seems similar.

My home doesn't have gutters so the rain poured right down on to the back porch and rotted out the sill and frame of the back door. Contractor pulled off the porch deck boards and replaced the facia board and the sill under that portion of the house. Cost me about $1500 thus far.

Today while I was on the ground staining the rebuilt porch steps, i realized that I was looking at a gap between the concrete foundation and the wall of the house farther down from the porch. I poked a stick in there and sure enough it went right through. I didn't dare poke farther to see how long this gap was, but I'm guessing it runs the remaining length of the house (another 20 feet or so). Some of the flashing is nailed down so I couldn't see what it is nailed to.

Am I correct in thinking there is supposed to be SOMETHING filling that gap, most likely a board that has been properly flashed so it doesn't rot?

And if so, was the engineer who inspected this house at the insistence of the mortgage company supposed to notice this? All he said that needed doing was additional supports on the porch roof which the seller did and he signed off on and they are purely fake, they don't actually support anything.

And if so, what is his (or his company's) responsibility to me or to the mortgage company? (which no longer owns my mortgage). because I'm frosted. If this is going to cost me another $1000 I would have preferred to know this up front so I could have told the homeowner I was not going to pay what I paid for it.

How much more rot are we going to find? There is a squishy spot in my living room floor that makes me want to cry every time I step on it.
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Greg
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Joined: Wed Feb 28, 2007 8:01 pm
Location: Weedsport, NY

The inspector SHOULD have caught a rotted sill if he actually did an inspection. I am not sure what recourse you have against the inspector or how you go about it. You may want to contact a lawyer or possibly small claims court.

Read "buying a used mobile home" iby Yanita in the sticky section on this forum. It contains lots of things to look for before you buy ( a little late now) but it may give an idea of things to look at.

Greg
"If I can't fix it, I can screw it up so bad no one else can either."
mdnagel
Posts: 187
Joined: Thu Jan 06, 2011 12:39 am

Can you provide pictures?

With regards to the squishy spot in your living room floor, it could either be that there are loose floor joists, OR, there is missing supports or supports that need some adjustments.

No way of knowing for sure how much existing rot there is without opening things up and or thoroughly checking/poking. Yeah, sometimes you don't want to know, but in the end you're going to have to find out, so...

As Greg mentioned, perhaps it's best to contact an attorney. Keep in mind that this could become a lengthy affair, and possibly costly (to you- if you do not win any claim). Regardless, an actual professional will be needed to assess the real damage. Maybe do this upfront so that you have kind of an idea of which path makes the most sense to take: 1) Just proceed with having repairs done; 2) Hire an attorney and try to seek appropriate relief. Oh, check the inspector's accreditations; IF he/she seems to have failed to meet the professional standards then you might have a little leverage from contacting them: I'd think that this would be something that a competent attorney would look to do.

Sadly, "home ownership" means that we end up "owning" the sins (neglect and or commissioning of shoddy work) of past owners. There is always maintenance due: "rust never sleeps."

I'm nearing completion of a rim joist repair (inspector failed to note: 1) front and rear decks attached to structure and NO flashing; 2) existing damage from #1 [poking with an awl would likely have disclosed]):

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Mark440
Posts: 279
Joined: Tue Feb 26, 2008 8:33 am
Location: Anna, Tx

Hate to say it - but I really don't have a very high opinion of "inspectors". I financed via VA - and VA required the inspection. The only thing the "inspector" noted was my tie-downs were not cemented into the ground. The closing was postponed until the owner had some goofball come out with a claw hammer and a bag of cement. He clawed a shallow circle around the tie down stake, filled it with dry cement, and left. Inspector never came back.

Of course - the more important aspect is that at least 2 of the tie down straps were not even connected. They had rusted in half.

There may well be some good inspectors out there in the big, big world - but none that i have met.
Opportunity has a shelf life.
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