I have a hard figuring out there the leak shows up on the inside.

Everything looks like it is significantly above the patio elevation. I would suspect a possible poor installation of the sliding door and the water accumulates at floor level and shows up there. Leakage around openings is very common because most doors are not installed properly. Vinyl siding is in no way waterproof.

Dick

 

Water has to be going over the foundation somehow. Replacing the patio door would help?

 

I guess you never mentioned that the rec room is in the basement.

From what I have seen the water problems usually (75%) come from poor installation and not from the door. Don't rule out the installation unless you are absolutely sure the slab does not drain properly AND the basement wall waterproofing is inadequate.

There probably is no drain tile if you are in Pewaukee, since it is not required or normal. Is there any sign of water running down the face of the basement walls inside?

Even if the patio drains properly within comfort/usability limits, wind can easily push the water against the foundation.

Dick

 

We do have drain tile actually. It is a finished rec room so we have no idea if there is water running down the face.

Look at the pics and you will notice the wooden step has no siding above it or below it. Should I replace it with a waterproofed step, insulate behind and add siding?

 

From looking at the pics, it sure appears that the wall wasn't prepped correctly and the patio was poured too high to start with. Hard to tell if it pitches adequately w/o a picture of a level on it. I can't think of one good reason to pour directly against vinyl siding either.




Dick, how do you know what state the poster's in??

 

what would you suggest?

 

jomama45 -

Just a guess and a little detective work. The link to picasa contained "pewaukee", which is a rather unique name/term. I assumed it was somewhere near Milwaukee, Zilwaukee or some of the other "waukees". I know it is not on the 1 block long Milwaukee Street in Minneapolis, but could be near the Milwaukee line RR. I think it is south and west of Luxembourg, WI where my great-grandfather lived.

I do not use road map in WI since I am Scandinavian and German and comfortable as long as I am with 50 miles of Highways 8, 10, 29, 41, 53 or 70 or I94, or anywhere near a concrete block or precast plant.

Dick

 

LOL, yea, it's certainly South & West of Luxembourg, by about 120 miles or so. Funny story about Lux. is that the original settler's there are mostly from Belgium, which is just North of me, and subsequently full of Luxembourger's. Seems the names were accidentally switched by the state when they were being founded in the late 1800's.

And BTW, the odds are this house does indeed have both interior & exterior draintile along with bleeders & a sump crock. It's been code for at least as I've been alive.



PS, does Bend Inds. or Van Der Vaart ring a bell???

what would you suggest?

Can you access the skirt/floor joists directly behind the patio from the basement, or is the ceiling drywalled??
If you can, you're likely to see water damage as well as an obvious path.

When we pour against any part of the home that isn't concrete or masonry, we always flash the wood substrate first with I&W or the like.

 

Do you have any kind of evidence that the water is coming from above and running down the interior of the foundation wall?? Can you see some evidence of water streaking or something?

 

I really don't have any evidence. The sump pump works fine. I don't know what else it could be. The drywall in the rec room isnt wet but the poured concrete wall behind it may be. No way I can check it though.

 

Then all we can do is speculate. Considering the wood skirt looks OK, I would lean towards a high water table issue, like a blocked draintile, etc...

 

I understand. I just wish I knew because of mold issues, etc....

 

Had a contractor come by today and tell me that they can mudjack the slab for me for $396, is this what I should do?

 

The picture link doesn't work anymore, and my memory sucks, so I don't know what to tell you. If the patio is shedding water to the house, then mudjacking certainly can be a viable option.

 

Sealing the actual concrete surface with a topical sealer? No, won't make a bit of difference.

But if you mean sealing of the control joints, it certainly would be a good idea.

I work closely with a local mudjacker here, and one of the things I'm always impresed about him is that he offers a 5 year warranty on his work. That's certainly something I would ask about.

What do you mean by control joints? Our patio slab is flush against our home so they want us to remove a few pieces of siding. They said they don't caulk, homeowner has to do it. The other thing that concerns is they won't work around my schedule. I told them I want to be there. They said I live far away and when they call they will come on two days if I'm there or not.

 

What do you mean by control joints?

Control joints are the lines you see placed in the concrete to control random cracking.

Our patio slab is flush against our home so they want us to remove a few pieces of siding. They said they don't caulk, homeowner has to do it.

It sounds like they want to seal the surface, which, as I said above, won't be helpful at all for your situation.

The other thing that concerns is they won't work around my schedule. I told them I want to be there. They said I live far away and when they call they will come on two days if I'm there or not.

Sorry, but thats between you and them. Sounds like you need to take 2 days off of work, or just trust they know what they're doing.

 

Sorry, but thats between you and them. Sounds like you need to take 2 days off of work, or just trust they know what they're doing.

To be honest I just won't go with them. What do you mean by control joints?