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Home Improvement

2012-03-22 15:29:22

Home exterior deterioration

Q: What can I do to ensure the exterior of my home is ready to withstand the harsh Kansas spring weather?

A: Spring is here and now is the time to ensure the exterior structures of your home are in good condition with a detailed exterior home inspection. Several key areas to inspect on the exterior are the siding, brick or stone, windows and guttering. A thorough inspection may identify problem areas of your home. A little preventative maintenance may help protect your home from further damage and costly repairs. The guttering on your home is a very important part of protecting your investment. On average, there are thousands of gallons of rain water that are carried off of the roof of your home in Kansas every year. The guttering system channels this water from your roof and into the downspouts and away from your siding and homes foundation. If this is clogged, it can back up and cause damage to your fascia, soffits, wall framing and cause damage to your foundation and possible basement leaks. You may want to hire a professional to inspect the guttering for debris and possible cleaning. This will ensure the gutter system is draining properly. Inspect the inside and outside corners for cracks in the sealer and apply new if necessary. Make sure the downspouts are connected properly and drain into a splash block, downspout extension and solid surface if possible. The water needs to be carried away from the foundation if possible. Inspect the siding for cracks in the caulking and caulk as necessary. Look for deteriorated areas in the siding. This typically happens in areas around windows, doors, roof and siding intersections and areas that are low to the ground. Repair with a suitable wood filer if possible or replace the damaged panels if possible. Prime and repaint the repaired areas with a good quality color matched paint. Inspect the exterior paint for cracking, peeling or flaking. If these problems exist, you can try to scrape the affected areas, and touch up with primer and paint. If this is widespread around the home, you may have to consider a whole house paint project. Brick or stone is a very durable and maintenance free product for the exterior. Inspect the mortar for cracks and missing mortar. You can apply new mortar to the areas where the mortar is missing and mortar caulk to the cracks. Aluminum and vinyl siding needs to be inspected for cracked and missing caulking. You can apply new caulking as necessary. Clean the siding with an approved house wash using a pump sprayer to apply the house wash and following up with a pressure hose. If surface mold is on the siding, typically in shaded areas, add a little bleach to the house wash in the pump sprayer. Windows will require an interior and exterior inspection. Make sure the windows are operating correctly, and that all the proper weather stripping is in place. Look for deteriorated wood with the windows open, this will reveal areas on the windows that you cannot see from the exterior and an area that are susceptible to wood decay. Inspect the exterior of the windows for missing or cracked caulking, glazing putty that is missing or cracked. If they are wood, inspect the paint for cracks, flaking or peeling. Look for wood decay and soft spots. Apply new caulking to cracked or missing areas, including glazing putty that is cracked or missing. Some wood decay can be repaired with new wood, if the damage is extensive, a new window may be required. Apply primer and color matched paint to repaired areas. Look for broken or cracked glass. If this is all that is wrong with the window, a glazing company can replace the damaged glass without replacing the window.