Water leaking below front door into basement
I recently bought a house and discovered water has been entering my basement below my front door with a brick stoop. I’m trying to figure out how extensive the water damage might be.
The door has jamb rot (and evidence of past replacement) and no corner pads, and when it rains, the wood trim around the interior base of the door starts to become saturated.
After removing the trim on the back of the sill to get a better look, a windy rain resulted in a small puddle of water seeping onto the interior tile floor.
In our basement, I pulled back the insulation on our foundation under the front door to find water stains at the top of concrete that look to be coming from under the mudsill. The stains are only a couple inches tall but spread out laterally on either side of the front door and brick stoop.
After spraying water onto the exterior door sill, a moisture meter found that the stained concrete was wet but none of the surrounding wood framing.
The front of the house is brick veneer that I suspect extends down to the footer of the foundation. I’ve dug down and found no brick ledge. I also see no weep holes or evidence of base flashing in a brick course near the top of the foundation, though I know masons sometimes hide this.
I cut out part of the rotten jamb to see that the framing elements behind it are mostly unflashed, and it looks like water could have easily entered the wall cavity and even dripped behind the housewrap.
The soil was also graded above the top of the foundation on the side of the front door with this rotten jamb. That area had a clogged downspout flooding a patio that prevented drainage from the house, but this has now been remedied.
Overall, I am concerned that water was trapped in the wall with no way to escape, eventually seeping into the basement. Does this sound most probable? And if so, how do I find out (in the least invasive way) whether anything below the front steps has been damaged?
I don’t want to replace and seal up the jambs without knowing whether structural elements have rot I can’t see.
Any advice would be appreciated.
I’ve got more photos of the situation here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1UUFCiwSE85BsHA149VhMGYfHhbkV7iVr?usp=drive_link
Replies
Can you step back and take a picture of the entire front entry?
Are you expecting or willing to get and install a new door and sidelight unit?
Do you think you could remove the existing unit, install a sill pan properly flash and reinstall the existing unit?
I've added a few photos of the entry from farther back. I'm not sure whether FHB allows links, but I've got more photos of the situation here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1UUFCiwSE85BsHA149VhMGYfHhbkV7iVr?usp=drive_link
I definitely want to remove and reinstall the existing fiberglass door/sidelite unit (which I think is in overall good shape) to add a sill pan and flash the opening right. Ideally I'd like to do this with my husband after summer and replace the jamb now to help keep rain out, but if that would trap moisture or if structural repairs are needed sooner, I'll need professional help most likely.
Just trying to figure out if there's a way to assess the extent of damage and potential repairs before opening up my house. Can I safely drill / probe / sample the wood in the basement to test for decay? Would you expect to see more rot signs in the visible wood if they had major issues or not necessarily?
Good job on the fb photos!
Do you think that the front stoop as it is now was original? Could the brick have been added later?
While there is damage to the door unit and/or it’s framing below, I think it possible that the separation between the house and stoop is where there is entry……
Nothing like being there and taking measurements and accurately locating what’s above, below and to either side…..
This house isnt in NW Ohio by any chance?
The detailing you intend on doing with resetting, flashing etc of the door unit is right on. However, further thought needs to address that stoop/house foundation junction.
Thanks so much for the reply, Calvin. Unfortunately, I'm not in northwest Ohio! I do know this is the original stoop and brick, and I'm with you in suspecting that the water's main entry point was between the house and the stoop.
I bought a small inspection camera that I stuck into the wall cavity on the side of the metal sill. From what I can see anyway, there appears to be very limited water damage, and it appears to have entered on the side of the sill due to the gaps caused by the rotting jamb. It looks to be limited to the edges of the unflashed opening nearby. The builders did fold the housewrap under the subsill onto the plywood floor sheathing, so that was at least some protection, though a small gap at the corner of that fold may have allowed some moisture between the housewrap and sheathing.
For now I'm going to spray a Bora-Care with Mold-Care into the cavity to try to kill any rot fungus. I'm also going to replace the jamb bottoms with PVC and add some corner flashing on the outside over the jamb-sill seam at the sidelites to help prevent any more water entering the wall until I can reinstall the door and flash everything correctly.
Really appreciate your help thinking this through.
You’re welcome! This sight has been here since the late 90’s. On occasion some of the advice has helped people out. I know I learned and troubleshot a lot of problems through here.
You get and you give back.
I’ve met a lot of friends here. And even tho in the trade for over 50 yrs, there’s always something new or updated to latch onto.
For that stoop, that “liquid” caulk I mentioned in your last thread. The stuff that seeks its path through any crack. Damn up wherever it can come out and have at it. It’ll seal that crack you bet!
See you around!
The door has jamb rot (and evidence of past replacement) and no corner pads, and when it rains, the wood trim around the interior base of the door starts to become saturated.