Thread: leaky deck
View Single Post
  #10   Report Post  
Posted to alt.home.repair
BobK207 BobK207 is offline
external usenet poster
  
Posts: 929
Default leaky deck

wrote:
I have a small (stone tile) deck off of a second-story master bedroom.
It leaks (into the kitchen below) when it rains. I've called about ten
different people to try to get it fixed. No one wants to do it. I
think I am going to have to fix it myself.

I am not handy.

The various repair people who have come to the house are split: Half
say I need to retile. Half say it needs to be waterproofed.

How does one go about waterproofing a leaky deck?

thanks in advance for any wisdom you have on this.

I started this reply first thing this morning but got busy on other
things...........


IMO the reason no one wants to do it is.....they touch (try to fix
it)....the own it when the fix doesn't work

With so much other (easier) work to do why take on a problem?

The good news is that since you're in SoCal (IE) you really don't have
all that much rain to deal with.

The problem is really "designed in"......I've got a small deck that is
partially above a downstairs room.

It's a wooden deck with a membrane roof below the deck boards, over
the years (~10) dirt & dust has filtered through the deck boards such
that now I have enough debris in there that the water is slow to clear.
As long as water clears ok......no leaks. If the rain is heavy or
slow to clear I get an occasional leak into the ceiling below (twice in
the last 5 years).

I cannot convince my wife that I need to un-screw the deck boards to
clean out the debris & check the condition of the membrane roof. I
guess I'll have to wait until I get a major leak into the downstairs

In your situation it could be....bad substruture slope (do you have any
pooling of water?) , a failure (or lack) of the water proofing
membrane.

IMO the only way to guarantee success is to (if possible) take it back
down to the framing elements & re-build it from there.

An outdoor "waterproof" tiled deck is kinda like the floor of a shower
stall; you need a waterproofing membrane, a "wear surface" & a "drain"
a place / direction for the water to go.

Cheers
Bob

Reply With QuoteReply With Quote