Building Exterior Archives - National Building Expert

Gutter Garden

First you have a new roof and new gutters. Then over time, the small granules on the asphalt roofing shingles start to wear and come loose. During time of wind and rain, the loose granules end up collecting in the gutter.

Birds and wind contribute to seeds and other plant materials growing in the gutter. Soon you have a gutter garden. Maybe if you grow herbs, it may help. The gutter is filled with debris and water does not drain properly. The gutter starts crowded and leaks. But at least your gutter garden herbs are doing fine.

Word of advice – inspect your gutters every quarter and make sure it is free of debris and in good condition.

Missing Roof Shingles

This photo shows a roof with old asphalt shingles. On the left side, some shingles blew off the roof and were not replaced. On the right, shingles also blew off, but instead of installing new shingles, a handyman decided to repair with roofing paper.

Roofing paper is supposed to be installed under the shingles and not used instead of shingles. Maybe the shingles are on order. Maybe not. It’s not a surprise that this roof leaks.

Outlet in Window

On a high rise condo inspection, I discovered an electrical outlet fixed onto a wooden jalousie slat of a jalousie window. This window was in a bedroom facing the outside balcony walkway to the front door entry. The jalousie window actually worked, causing the outlet to move whenever the window was opened or closed. On the inside of the bedroom, the wires were exposed at the outlet.

It appears that the wall was full of windows, so there was nowhere to mount the outlet except on the window. I have never seen a moveable electrical outlet, so this was a first. I guess if the outlet got too hot, you could open the window and let it cool down.

Getting to the Root of the Problem

Trees are nice and have always contributed to the “Go Green” concept for years. Trees provide nice landscaping, color, and shade.

Sometimes trees could cause problems. Specially tree roots can cause damage to underground drain piping and can cause concrete walkways and foundations to crack. Conditions caused by tree roots should be inspected and addressed. There are occasions where the wrong type of tree was planted in the wrong location. Walk around your property and check all your walkways. If some concrete walkways have cracked and lifted, due to aggressive tree roots, this condition is a safety trip hazard. Concrete walkways should not have different elevations at the cracks. The general solution would be to remove the tree root, install a root barrier and repair the concrete. In some extreme cases, the tree may need to be removed.