‘Boring’ solution for water under house may not be best approach
Q: The home I’m buying has a drainage problem under the building. Whenever we have heavy rains, there is standing water several inches deep in the crawlspace. The seller said this can be fixed by drilling holes in the foundation wall at the downhill side of the building. To me, this sounds like an amateur solution to a serious problem. Do you think drain holes in the foundation are a good idea? — Robert A: Your concerns are well-founded. Drain holes in the foundation wall, as suggested by the seller, may be an adequate drainage solution in some situations, but this approach does not provide a full remedy in every case. Some site drainage problems have complexities that require more than mere evacuation of surface water from the crawlspace. Rather than attempting an assumed solution, evaluation of the problem by a drainage specialist, such as a geotechnical engineer, is advised to ensure that the totality of the problem is adequately addressed.
If you drill drain holes in the foundation, as suggested by the seller, three assumptions are being made:
It is assumed that all groundwater in the subarea will flow to the drain holes and that there are no low areas under the house where standing water could remain.
If you simply drain the ground water from beneath the house, it is assumed that water flow under the building is not causing soil erosion at the piers and foundations. Ongoing erosion can lead to eventual undermining of the structure. Therefore, a prime consideration is prevention of further water intrusion, not merely evacuation of surface water.
If you pay exclusive attention to the drainage and ground conditions, potential moisture damage to the building itself could be overlooked. For example, excessive ground moisture could cause condensation on wood framing members and hardware, resulting in fungus damage to joists, blocking, and subfloor, as well as rusted metal fasteners. Therefore, the need for preventive measures such as increased ventilation of the subarea and/or a vapor barrier on the ground should also be considered.
This is why a comprehensive evaluation of the situation, under and around the building, by a licensed geotechnical engineer is advised. A determination should be made as to the source of groundwater entry.
A drainage system outside the building may be needed to prevent water entry, rather than merely trying to expel groundwater after it has entered the crawlspace. If expulsion of groundwater under the building is necessary, a sump pump may be needed, rather than or in addition to drain holes in the foundation. Only a drainage specialist is qualified to determine which methods of correction are appropriate.
Once the sub-area has been cleared of excess ground water, have the subfloor and wood framing thoroughly reviewed by a licensed pest control operator (termite inspector) and by an experienced home inspector. Then you will know whether past moisture conditions have caused any damage to the building. Q: We finally found buyers for our home, and everything was going smoothly until we were invaded by their home inspector. Now they’re hitting me with a radical repair list. They want paint touchups on doors, new baseboards in the hallway, a quieter vent fan in the bathroom, and further evaluation of the heating system by a licensed HVAC contractor. How is a seller supposed to respond to all of this nitpicking? — Anthony A: Unless you agreed in your purchase contract to repair any defects found by the home inspector, you are not under obligation to meet the buyer’s demands. At the same time, you should understand that repair requests after a home inspection are typical in most transactions. If the buyers are saying “repair everything on this list or else,” that would be unreasonable. At the same time, if you say “take it ‘as is,’ or else,” you could be throwing away a sale over some minor repair requests. The middle ground in these situations is to recognize that this is the beginning of a negotiation process. Instead of feeling as though you’ve been hit in the head, take a deep breath, evaluate the repair list, discuss it with your agent or whomever you trust, and come up with a balanced, give-and-take response to the buyers.
Let’s look at the four items requested. Two are cosmetic issues involving paint on doors and replacement of some trim boards. Though you may not be obligated to make these repairs under the purchase contract, there’s more than one way to view all of this. You can see it as an outrageous demand and conclude that the buyers have a lot of nerve, whereupon you can risk the sale of your home as a matter of principal; or you can decide that it’s not wise to throw away a sale over a low-cost repair request.
The next item on the list is a noisy vent fan in the bathroom. Actually, many bathroom fans are noisy, not because they are defective, but simply because that’s the way so many of them are made. For some people, this is a positive feature because it keeps people outside the bathroom from hearing what’s going on inside the bathroom. Be that as it may, unless the fan noise is due to an actual defect, there is no reason to insist that it be replaced.
The final request is for further evaluation of the heating system by a licensed HVAC contractor. Home inspectors typically make this request when there is an actual problem affecting the safety or functionality of the system. However, there are some home inspectors who routinely recommend further evaluation of every heating system in order to limit their own liability for undiscovered defects. If the heating system has an actual fault, that would be an important discovery, and that type of repair is usually paid by sellers. On the other hand, you don’t want to pay for a contractor’s evaluation if nothing is actually wrong. So here’s a practical approach: Tell the buyers that you will pay for the evaluation if an actual defect is discovered by the HVAC contractor. However, if the contractor finds the system to be safe and functional, the buyers should pay for the evaluation as part of their inspection costs.
The main thing to keep in mind is that repair lists arising from home inspections should be viewed as requests rather than demands. Except for repairs and upgrades required by law or specified in the purchase contract, all property defects are matters to be negotiated between buyers and sellers. All that is necessary is for all parties to be fair and reasonable in their considerations.