A client we are working with on a balcony inspection proposal walked us through their underground garage to get to the other side of the building so we could count the decks. As we walked through the garage I mentioned that that were a lot of leak areas and I saw that there was some crumbling concrete as well.
They said oh we are getting the leaks fixed, we have two bids and we are going to hire X company to do the waterproofing on the podium deck above. I said that’s good because you have some problems here… What are they doing? It was then they showed me the two scopes of work that the contractors had proposed to do.
This scope of work mentions nothing about using any particular brand or specific material. It is poorly written and leaves out many important steps that this job requires. Poorly written as well, this scope of work is ambiguous and like the first scope, has no mention of any brand names or warranty.
We initiated a conversation with the client and discussed these proposals and corresponding scopes of work. The client believed that the work they were ready to award to a contractor was going to fix their problems. Several issues they had were a failing coating on the podium deck, leaks into the building and severe degradation of the structural concrete deck.
Under the podium deck is significant deterioration. If you see these symptoms in your concrete, you have 99 problems but a waterproof deck ain’t one. Hidden behind a pan on the ceiling to catch water, hidden structural damage.Up above on the deck, failing coatings are dangerous to bare feet and they leak into the deck below.Failing coating at the pool deck coping. A very clogged up downspout is causing water to back up and causing leaking into the building.
We gave the Association a proposal to consult and perform non destructive percussion testing of their concrete deck and the coating on top. The engineer we partner with and I inspected the deck and as seen above, found some serious damage to the concrete and rebar inside. We found that nearly all of the coating on the top of the deck was delaminated and failing. We found that there was stress on the walls that the pool was set into.
As a balcony inspector performing #SB326 inspections on condos in California, I often hear the complaints about costs of these inspections. Stage 1 visual inspections are costly, and if the Structural Engineer determines that further Stage 2 destructive testing is necessary, it can get very expensive very quickly.
However, Stage 2 inspections are very important. When I’m doing my inspection of the waterproofing elements, I often find signs of water intrusion into the framing. My engineer and I confer and I explain what I’m seeing, what I think is the cause and we generally agree that a Stage 2 inspection ( destructive testing inspection) is necessary.
Recently we performed Stage 1 inspections in a condo building near Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. We determined that there was evidence of water intrusion into the framing and called for a Stage 2 inspection. Working with a team from Whitestone Construction, we had Whitestone remove stucco and masonite siding on 5 decks that are on the 3rd floor of the building. These decks are covered with 1″+ of concrete on them, and after the crew from Whitestone removed stucco and masonite siding, we discovered significant structural damage that was so alarming we immediately closed the decks to use.
The concrete decking and stucco siding hid serious damage that presented immediate life safety concerns to us. This meant the decks were unsafe to be occupied until repairs are made.
While looking at the damage, the Berkeley balcony tragedy came to mind. Here, as in Berkeley, students used the decks to hang out on, perhaps leaning on the railings to talk to friends below. A person in these balconies could have fallen from a railing giving way because the framing it was secured to was so rotted out wouldn’t hold.
The horrors of Berkeley can never happen again. Thirteen students in Berkeley fell 40′ to a concrete sidewalk. Seven died and six are left with serious life long debilitating injuries and the mental pain of that terrible evening.
Berkeley is why we inspect, and Berkeley is why I have become a warrior in the battle against bad contractors doing bad work that gets people killed. SB 326 needs some fine tuning, but overall it is saving lives. My peers in the industry and I stand up for keeping buildings and decks safe.
Independent inspectors, free from conflicts of interest, are your Associations best defense against another Berkeley tragedy from happening again. Yes inspections aren’t cheap, but a lifetime of being haunted by nightmares of people dying in a fall from a balcony and the costs of a lawsuit for negligence will quickly outrun the costs of doing inspections.
Reach out today to get started on your balcony inspections and get your association compliant now. Don’t delay thinking the deadline will be extended ( it might be) and even if it is, dry-rot is working on weakening your decks, putting people’s lives at risk.
Don’t delay your balcony inspection! The life you save could be your own.
We are pleased to announce that we have been retained to investigate leaks on a new addition on an Avila Beach residence by the owners of the property.
The owners of the property had hired a local contractor, who with a team of subcontractors built a dining room with a deck above to expand the living space and take advantage of the views that they have. The contractor completed the project shortly before last winter’s rains started up and the owners quickly realized that there were leak problems in several areas of the new construction.
We have performed visual inspections as well as rudimentary water testing that has found several areas of concern that will need to be further investigated via destructive testing.
Water testing a window in the search for leaks
If you’re building is leaking reach out to us today for assistance in investigating the cause and devising a solution to repair the problem. The longer you wait the worse the damage can become with water intrusion issues into structural elements.
Watch out for monsters that are disguised as “Deck Inspectors” but are really contractors out to steal your HOAs money.
It’s almost Halloween and soon children will be out ringing doorbells for candy by saying trick or treat… And we’ll smile and admire their costumes and fill their bags with some treats and send them on their way.
HOAs are at risk every day of the year however from “trick or treaters” that are disguised as deck inspectors but are really contractors looking to empty your bank account. We’ve seen an uptick in complaints from several HOA managers and HOAs that the deck inspector they retained is now giving them a contract to repair the decks and it seems very high in price and has clauses in it that are onerous and very one sided.
How can you weed out these characters from your bid list and protect your HOAs from being fleeced? While nothing is guaranteed, there are ways to stop these hoodlums in their tracks. To start with, ask your bidders if they have any ownership or other interest in a construction or waterproofing company (we don’t). Ask that they sign a no conflicts of interest guarantee ( we do) and if they do have an ownership or other interest in a contracting company, decline to accept their bid.
Bidding on work after doing an inspection is a gross conflict of interest in our opinion and managers agree with us. Tell your CLAC representative that SB326 needs to be amended to eliminate the loopholes in the current bill. Tell them to ban inspectors from providing bids.
If we find work is needed at your Association, we assist you with writing scopes of work, qualifying 3 contractors to bid and ensure that you are receiving apples to apples bids.
We are open and upfront, if your deck inspector sends to be cagey or avoids answering your questions, you may be getting set up by a contractor.
Have questions? Send us an email with the contact box to the left and we’ll get started on giving you a free EEE evaluation and proposal for your deck inspections. Don’t wait, the deadline is fast approaching.
We love getting positive feedback, I mean who doesn’t?
We don’t ask our clients to review us or praise us, we think that’s kinda cheesy. However we love unsolicited emails like this one that came in today.
“Hello Bill, Thanks again for the work done with ABC HOA. I’ve received high praise from the Board that they really respect your findings and knowledge of the inspection process.” Kevin HOA Manager
See the difference between William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC vs our competition and get in touch with us for a free EEE evaluation and proposal.
Guaranteed no conflicts of interest, competitive costs, award winning structural engineer and an expert ex Waterproofing contractor. Can they say that?
Contest us via the contact box to the left to get started.
On Monday we were in Pasadena looking at an association for the purpose of counting how many decks stairs walkways they have so we could bid to perform a SB 326 inspection job. The property is in an older established area that has Magnesite decking in the stairs and decks.
One stairway caught my eye with the long large crack in the Magnesite rubbing down the stair stringer. This critical piece of framing behind the Magnesite has, in my opinion, been infiltrated with water, has swollen and caused the Magnesite to crack and is likely dry-rotted as well, creating a life safety concern should it fail with people in the stairs.
We alerted the Board of Directors and their HOA manager to have the stairs shored up until repairs can be made. We would be remiss if we did not.
An EEE evaluation is not an inspection of the decks and stairs, but it is important to do in person to see the actual site conditions… And who knows, maybe we’ll catch a potential life safety issue at your association while we’re at it.
This is why we inspect, to protect life/safety and preserve your Associations property. Feel free to reach out to us for your free proposal for an SB 326 Inspection.
We were recently asked by a client a really good question about wording in the balcony bill, SB 326 regarding our interpretation of the section where it states “This section shall only apply to buildings containing three or more multifamily units ” The client’s buildings have only 2 units per building.
We aren’t attorneys, but we did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night… Sorry that’s a joke… We aren’t able to give legal advice even though we think we know the answer…
Being that we aren’t attorneys we turned to one of the preeminent authorities in the business, Mr Adrian Adams of Adams Stirling PC who runs Davis-Stirling.com and asked Adrian.
Invasive inspections can help save lives.
SMALL BUILDING BALCONY INSPECTIONS
QUESTION:
SB 326 states that “This section shall only apply to buildings containing three or more multifamily dwelling units.” Our association has twenty buildings, with only two condos per building. Does that mean we don’t need to inspect our balconies? -Bill
ANSWER: Even though you have 40 balconies (20 buildings times 2), a strict reading of the statute exempts your association from the requirements of invasive inspections. (Civ. Code § 5551(l).) Even though you are exempted, you still need to make visual inspections every three years for your reserve study requirements.
The problem with external visual inspections is that they are external. They can’t detect dry rot and termite damage to a balcony’s structural elements. If any of your balconies collapse causing injuries or deaths, it is almost guaranteed your association will be sued.
Plaintiffs will seek a jury trial and allege the board was negligent in their maintenance obligations and their failure to properly inspect balconies when every other association in the state was performing invasive inspections. A jury would likely agree with plaintiff’s counsel and award substantial damages to the victims. The litigation will negatively impact property values, the buying and selling of units, and insurance premiums. Moreover, the failure of one balcony means all balconies will need to be inspected either during or after the litigation.
RECOMMENDATION: It is less expensive to conduct a § 5551 inspection of your elevated structures than to defend against a wrongful death action. If the inspection finds problems, you can address them and avoid potential harm to residents. If the inspection determines your balconies are in good shape, it provides a layer of protection for the association (and directors) in the event one were to collapse. In addition to inspections, you should institute a regular plan of preventive maintenance and balcony repairs.
The above information is copyrighted. Reprinted from Davis-Stirling.com by Adams|Stirling PLC
We completely concur with Adrian… My answer back to the client was in the form of a question… Are you willing to find out in a court of law if a jury thinks those balconies are exempt? I think your insurance company is just going to ask how many zeros do there need to be on the check that they write for a wrongful death suit?
It’s not worth the risk to try to avoid an inspection when the stakes are so high. Get in touch with us today about your balcony inspection needs and let us help guide you through the process. We guarantee in writing that a structural engineer performs the inspection in person and that we have no conflicts of interest. Our only interest is you, our client.
We are pleased to announce that we have been selected to perform the SB326 balcony inspection for a large community in Camarillo. With 48 decks and 90+ stairs and landings, the Board of Directors vetted three firm’s qualifications before choosing us as the best qualified inspection firm for the job.
Cantilevered decks like this need to be inspected under SB326 Although the stairs are concrete, these stairs are supported by wood and therefore must be inspected.
“We are pleased to be selected as the best qualified inspection company in Ventura County.” Our reputation as an ethical firm, with guarantees that our structural engineer is performing the inspection of the structural elements and not just robosigning a report assures our clients that they are getting the best value for their money.” said Bill Leys, president of William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC.
We invite your Association to put the expertise of William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC team of waterproofing experts and structural engineers to work on your balcony inspection project. Contact us today using the contact form on the right or call Bill Leys directly at 805-801-2380.
Today marks the 8th year since the balcony at Library Gardens literally fell off the building with 13 young adults standing on it to take a birthday photograph Seven people died as a result of a near 40 foot fall to the concrete sidewalk below. Ashley Donohoe, Olivia Burke, Eoghan Culligan, Nick Schuster, Lorcan Miller died at the scene and Aoife Beary passed away on January 2, 2022. The survivors were left with lifetime suffering and pain from grievous injuries.
I contributed to several newspaper articles with my opinion, I reviewed plans, photographs and other information sent to me by journalists for the LA Times and Mercury News Group. There is no doubt in my mind that the defect that caused the deaths and injuries to these kids was set into motion the day a carpenter took a saw to the laminated veneer lumber beams and cut them to provide slope on the deck without then sealing up the open exposed wood/glue to prevent water from getting into the material. With the addition of OSB/oriented strand board, and all of that crap wood being soaked for months during a rainy winter set into motion the demise of that balcony.
The builder didn’t protect the deck from moisture the carpenter didn’t protect it from moisture nobody protected it from moisture and as a result of carelessness neglect whatever they want to call it the blood on that sidewalk may be washed away but it’s still there… That sidewalk is holy ground. I make a sign of the cross when I’m on that sidewalk.
There is no doubt in my mind that a balcony inspection should have found problems and that deck would have been. People had reported that the deck had unusual slope… Which seems to indicate that the deep beams were slowly failing. It is also reported that they were mushrooms on the ceiling below that was simply scraped away, which should have been a huge warning sign of moisture intrusion. It certainly would have set alarm bells off in my head.
The Berkeley deck collapse is on my mind every time I perform a balcony inspection. I think what if that was my daughter or son lying on that sidewalk? I think about the parents and families who lost their child and I renew my vow each time in insisting that I do the best inspection possible, that when our engineer signs your report that your balconies are safe, that I won’t wake up one morning to the news of a deck collapse on a property we’ve inspected. This is that important to me.
Contact us today via text or calling 805-801-2380, email us using the contact box to the left …
SB 326 Deck Inspections & Building Envelope / Waterproofing Experts
SB 326 Deck Inspection Specialists * Building Waterproofing Consultants * Construction Defect Investigations By Bill Leys The Deck Expert 