Will waterproofing fix this outdoor stairs issue?
alanrudy
| Posted in Construction Techniques on
Hello,
I have a house built above a garage and a small living area. I have a problem with 4 of the outdoor stairs leaking into a downstairs living area and I am getting conflicting reports from two contractors. One contractor, who I thought I could trust more, is saying if he waterproofs the stairs, the issue will be fixed and I should never have this issue again. Another wants to do a quick fix with some kind of concrete mix and says the same issue can/will come up in a few years because the stairs are built separate than the foundation of the house (which is true) and because of that and what he sees, the stairs will continue to move and cause the cracks that are causing the leaking. Attached are pictures of the stairs with cracks and underneath the stairs. What do you guys think? Also, is there any work that should be done to the underside of the stairs or does everything look good there besides cleaning the mold? Also, I don’t know if this is completely out of the question, but is there anything else that I could put on the stairs, like a thin rubber pad, that would solve the water problem as well as make it quieter when someone is walking up the stairs for people living in the area on the first floor? Thanks so much in advance for any help on this issue.
Replies
Wood stairs like that are never going to be permanently leak-free. Your best bet is probably to fix the problems below, where water somehow gets from below the stairs (ie, from the outside) into the living quarters. The design should not be relying on the stairs to keep water out.
You could coat the stairs with an "elastomeric" coating similar to what's used for roofing, but it wouldn't wear well. (Though the coating followed by installation of rubber treads would probably do a little better, if snow/ice isn't a big problem.)
No coating is going to stop the leaks for more than a short period of time. Stairs have way too many joints for any kind of coating or covering to work. Trying to waterproof from the inside isn't going to work either. I'd say your best bet is a roof over the stairs and if that doesn't work you may have to tear them out, build a waterproof structure underneath then rebuild the stairs.
Thanks so much for the quick responses. Yes, it is in California in an area with no snow/ice and it doesn't rain that much either, but it looks like when it does, this will continue to be a problem. Would something like this be a permanent solution...
http://www.lowes.com/pd_206242-33674-3655000P001_0__?productId=3020732&Ntt=outdoor+rubber+stairs+tread&Ns=p_product_price|0&pl=1¤tURL=%2Fpl__0__s%3FNs%3Dp_product_price%7C0%26Ntt%3Doutdoor%2Brubber%2Bstairs%2Btread%26page%3D2&facetInfo=
Or would cracks in the stairs still cause problems with the rubber? Thank again.
You need to learn about tinyurl.com .
Will it work............
Doubtful.
Having a rubber tread cover with the leaking still prevalent means the same as you have now. Good if water doesn't get under it. Bad if water does, and that is your weak link.
Imagine the problems many have diverting water from a dormer. You've got a bunch of those type of flashing nightmares. If you could use rubber roofing and continually lap and seal all of those nooks and crannies..............you might make it work.
I think the best idea is isolating those stairs above a well waterproofed roof/sidewall/whatever below. Then you could use open tread metal and let the weather go right on by.
Best of luck.
Thanks again for the help and the tiny url link. Calvin, what would cause water to still get under these rubber stair treads if they are installed correctly to each stair. I'm not sure how water would get under it, but if anything it should be a small amount which seems unlikely to cause any problems, but I could definitely be wrong. Really the main area of concern with leaking are where these cracks are which would be covered by this product. I could be wrong, but it seems it should do the trick, and it would also decrease the noise to the downstairs living area.
alan
In the first and third picture, I see cracks in the paint or whatever coating is on those stairs. In the second there's a rather large crack along the top of the skirtboard. All these could allow moisture and water to enter.
In one of those pictures, there appear bubbles in the coating where the tread meets the riser. This looks like it would allow even more water to enter.
I don't think rubber tread covers will solve this problem. You'd have to secure them (penetration unless you glue them down) and seal all the edges to keep water from getting underneath.
There's a picture of dead growth and some decomposed wood. Where is that shot taken?