Garage wall standards – opinions/ideas?
Hello to All,
First time poster to this forum, long time reader of the magazine…. very impressed with the quality of advice that seems to be present here. I put myself through school doing interior trim work, but I’m coming up short on ideas with a shoddy framing/siding job on my house that I inherited from a prior owner.
The problem is related to water wicking up into a garage wall and seepage, where the front garage wall meets the concrete slab/apron, on either side of the front door.
For whatever reason, there is no space between the apron at the end of the garage slab and the clapboards (or the sheathing and stud wall behind), so when it rains, I’m getting water inside the garage as the wood contacts the concrete at those points. Neighbor’s homes all have a short concrete stub-wall to carry that portion of their walls, but no luck on my side. Short of ripping out the low sections, supporting the 2X LVL header, and having concrete poured and a full reconstruction done to this section of the garage, does anyone have any suggestions? Basically, the front garage walls are framed and sheathed right to the slab, and water enters at will.
Lastly, the grade of my driveway and land does not help things here, especially in the winter, where ice and snow could collect and compond the problem. I’m installing a channel drain between the apron and driveway joint, but I don’t think I should have wood in contact with the slab at all. I thought that 6-8″ clearance between the foundation and siding/sheathing was the norm?? I’ve also checked that I’m not getting any additional water from the gable end or garage roof – that is draining away as it should; most of this is wind-driven rain.
Thanks very much in advance to anyone who would care to respond. (also, not sure if this is appropriate in this forum, but if anyone has references or could take a job like this, I’d be ready to write a check)
Steve Brownell – South Shore, Massachusetts
Replies
How big is the garage--is it possible to jack it up and put one row (course) of concrete blocks under it, then let it down (putting in anchor bolts, of course)?
You can try what I did for a similar section on my house where the front entrance stoop is up against the sheathing:
-- Remove the siding up several courses, and remove the sheathing.
-- Install a moisture barrier over the exposed studs. (Rubber membrane would be ideal, but I used plastic.)
-- Cut a piece of cement board the same size and thickness as the removed sheathing, and install it in place of the sheathing. Just hold it in place with nails at a couple-three of places 2-3 inches from the bottom. If the concrete was poured right against the sheathing then "excavate" the sheathing below the surface of the concrete and work the edge of the cement board down into this slot.
-- Use thinset mortar to build a "fillet" (slightly concave triangle of mortar) maybe 1" x 1" (or a little larger) along the bottom seam between cement board and concrete. (Did I remember to tell you to clean the edge of the concrete well?)
-- Reinstall siding, using as few fasteners through the cement board as you can get away with. Hold the bottom edge of the siding up about 2" above the concrete. (The reason for minimizing fasteners is to place the minimum strain possible on the fillet joint.)
Note that this scheme won't work too well if the apron tends to rise and fall (relative to the garage) with the weather. In that case it would be better to cut the apron back about 2-3 inches away from the structure first, and leave it unattached to the cement board.
From the outside, Remove a couple of courses of claps. Wedge braked (8"x1/2") metal flashing into the gap between sole plate and slab. Turn the flashing up against the studs and nail top edge of metal into studs. Caulk along slab/flashing seam. Seal seams in sections of flashing w solder or cement. Apply self-healing WP membrane counterflashing over the turned-up metal flashing. Re-side w fiber-cement siding. The trench drain is a good idea. Have it run a foot wider than the width of the garage.
mike