Tag Archives: Santa Barbara home inspection

William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC Becomes a Member of the North American Building Compliance Testing Association (NABCTA) !

We’re the Central Coast’s Solution for Building Envelope Compliance Testing!

William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC is proud to announce that we have become members of the North American Building Compliance Testing Association (NABCTA) !

We’re constantly seeking to improve our skills, increase our knowledge and bring the Central Coast of California local expertise and professionalism.

If you need building envelope leak testing, litigation support on waterproofing defect claims or building envelope consulting, please reach out today! We provide ASTM E 1105 testing and full compliance reporting.

After a cyclic test, this recently repaired stucco wall was found to be leaking.
Another wall, another test proves that the stucco wall was improperly reassembled resulting in water intrusion into the building.
A spray rack is set up to test the walls and windows on a recently built medical building in Templeton CA

What is E 1105 you ask?

How the Testing Works

Water Spray: A calibrated outdoor spray rack applies water uniformly at a rate of 5.0 gallons per hour per square foot.Air Pressure: An interior or exterior chamber creates a controlled air-pressure difference to simulate wind pushing rain against the building.Observation: Inspectors watch the interior side of the test specimen to see if any water penetrates past the building envelope.

Testing Procedures

Procedure A (Uniform Static Pressure): Applies a steady, constant air pressure difference, usually for a 15-minute test period.

Procedure B (Cyclic Static Pressure): Cycles the air pressure on and off (e.g., 5 minutes on, 1 minute off) for multiple cycles to mimic gusting wind.

Why It Is Used

Quality Assurance: Verifies that field installation, flashing, and sealants were done correctly right after construction.

Forensic Investigation: Helps locate the source of active water leaks in existing buildings.

Quality assurance inspections can also help ensure that the building envelope is being installed correctly. We offer QA inspections for building owners during construction. Catch problems before the building is closed in.

If you are building new construction, get your windows and doors tested before closing in the building. Call today 805-801-2380

Notice to HOAs in Need of an SB 326 Inspection

“California does not issue or require a credential called a ‘Certified Deck Inspector’ for SB 326 inspections. Private organizations may issue their own certificates, but consumers should determine who issued the credential, whether the certifying organization is independent of the inspection company, and whether the credential actually qualifies the individual to perform the inspection required by the applicable California statute.”

If you see the term “certified” in any advertising, website or stated orally by a salesperson, owner or company representative, all we can say is “Caveat Emptor” or in plain English, buyer beware.

Just because they say you inspection is “certified”, doesn’t mean it is. This website as shown above in this screenshot may mislead consumers into believing that this firm is more qualified to do EEE Inspections than others who don’t advertise as being “certified”.

Great inspection firms don’t need to puff themselves up with dubious certifications no one has ever heard of. We don’t claim that our reports are “certified” because there’s no such thing. Certified by whom? A private entity? A recognized non profit building & construction group such as NADRA or IIBEC? Don’t be fooled by the term certified as thrown about on some inspection companies websites. If someone claims their report is certified, ask them by whom is it certified and under what standards and can I see those standards? If you dig, you may find that the claim of “certified reports” is self serving.

Continue reading Notice to HOAs in Need of an SB 326 Inspection →

A Recent Home Inspection Shows Why a Seller Provided Home Inspection Report is Essentially Worthless

The other home inspector missed this “little” issue

A recent inspection we performed for a prospective buyer of a condominium in San Luis Obispo demonstrates perfectly, why you as a buyer need to have your own inspections done at your own cost. This particular inspection found many issues that were glossed over as simply needing patching and painting rather than complete replacement of major components such as windows, doors, decks and subflooring under a shower.

The seller had a pre sale inspection done at their expense and provided that report to the prospective buyer. He had questions and doubts about the report and reached out to us after searching for a waterproofing and building consultant.

Our inspection found that many items the other inspector glossed over in his report as needing “patching and painting” or minor repairs were far from the real situation which was that all the doors and windows were past their useable lifespan and needed to be completely replaced. We found dry-rotted framing on decks, open and exposed framing on columns, dry-rot in the substrate below a shower floor which requires the substrate to be replaced due to fungus infestations.

Continue reading A Recent Home Inspection Shows Why a Seller Provided Home Inspection Report is Essentially Worthless →

Bill Leys Discusses SB 326

Watch this video where Bill Leys discusses some if the problems SB326 has and how Associations can protect themselves from the loopholes in the bill.

One of the first things to do when qualifying your balcony inspector is to ask if they own or are employed by any contractor, Waterproofing or general contractor… And if they answer yes… Well Bill has some advice for you and you’ll just have to watch to see what to do.

See what Bill has to say!

Santa Barbara HOA Selects William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC For Their SB 326 Balcony Inspections

We are pleased to announce that we have been selected by an HOA in Santa Barbara to perform their SB 326 Balcony Inspections. The 29 + EEEs, including decks stairs and walkways will be inspected by our licensed structural engineer and Bill Leys, a qualified waterproofing consultant who has been inspecting decks since 2007.

This job marks the 6th contract we’ve signed with the management companies HOA clients. They know when their clients contract with William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC that they are getting a company that has great references, no conflicts of interest and a commitment to our industry and HOA clients to do what’s right.

Contact us today for your free EEE evaluation and proposal. I walk every job before we bid, we know your property and we know how to do your job efficiently. There’s a reason we are becoming the deck inspection company to rely on. Contact Bill Leys today and get started on working with a company that has your interests first.

Deck Inspections For Real Estate Transactions-Ethics and The Law

  1. SLO & Santa Barbara Realtors-Do you know William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC inspects wood and waterproof decks for buyers (and sellers)? We are the only company that does deck inspections where our duty and interest is only to the client, we do not bid for repairs! Why is this important? Because it’s the law. Contractors performing inspections for real estate transactions may not bid on work found to be needed. “Free” inspections predicated on doing the repair work is included. B&P Code section 7195 imposes certain duties and constraints, including prohibitions on repairing properties on which an inspection was performed in the last 12 months, accepting kickbacks and payments of referral fees to agents. Beyond that, it’s simply not ethical. We work for your client; that’s it. If your client, after getting our inspection, wishes to verify that the repairs to the deck or buildings weather resistant barriers are being installed correctly, they have the option of retaining us to perform quality assurance visits to observe and record a contractors repair procedures, materials used and following the plans and manufacturer’s specifications. Learn more about our services here in our website.
Careful checking if the integrity of the woods found this problem at a post connection.