I have a recently completed home. Although it is not common, we do have some rain in Arizona. When it rains, water pools on the sill between the floors. There are decks surrounding the top story. I pulled off the some decking boards and found that there wasn’t any flashing between the stucco and the deck ledger (which is attached directly to the OSB underlayment). An 1/8- to 1/4-inch gap is present. The stucco portion terminates with a J-like metal edging. It has weep holes in the bottom. I suspect the real fix would be to demolish the stucco and put in proper flashing. Short of doing this, can I caulk this opening without fear of future problems? Do the weep holes in the J-like edging serve any real purpose once the house envelope is complete? Your opinions would be appreciated.
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Replies
HI,
I'd be tempted to take a trip down to your local cities building dept., especially since you say it's new.
Most cities/counties will have pre approved simple plans for additions like decks and patio covers. Not dimensioned but the hardware and acceptable spans etc... You could easily dertermine what they want and if the builder needs to get in there and fix it.
Forget caulk, unless you want to do it every 4-5 years even with the 40 year stuff. You need mechanical water proofing-proper flashing/paper/metal.
I typically wouldn't leave any OSB exposed to any weather
I don't think you'll be forced to demolish the stucco. If you can get the boards off and fit some flashing up underneath you maybe ok.
Also check out Rob Thallons Graphic Guide To Frame Construction which has details similar to what your describing.
If you can post some photos-worth 1000 words and all that jazz.
HTH
N