Design Challenge Causes Long-Term Leak

In our line of work we come across difficult construction details on an almost daily basis. Whether it’s a DIY job gone bad or a design professional who overlooked a detail, there’s never a shortage of difficult repair jobs and we seem to have knack for finding them all. This particular job had several issues. The first issue was a downspout that drained through the inside of a foyer ceiling. The ceiling leaked for years and even after several attempted repairs the water didn’t stop coming in. The next issue came from above, the second story box gutters had settled and were no longer pitched towards the drains. The box gutter directly above the small foyer roof constantly overflowed, sending a cascade of water to the roof down below. To exacerbate the issue, the foyer roof lacked a gutter and years of water run-off caused deterioration to the masonry wall. The client had a variety of contractors come out to review the issues but there was a struggle pinpointing an appropriate fix and executing the precise sheet metal work required. Our worker, Victor, did an excellent job preserving the integrity of the existing roofs while making alterations that would provide a long-term solution. We closed off the penetration that drained through the small foyer roof and seamed a new panel into the copper standing seam roof. On the second story, we added a downspout at the low point in the box gutter to help control overflow. Lastly, we added a new gutter to the small foyer roof and tied everything together with new downspouts. This is a good example of how an experienced estimator and a skilled technician can work together to solve a difficult issue. It’s note worthy to mention that this repair was performed at a fraction of the cost of many of the other estimates this client received.