Photos/correspondence from homeowner re: problems with bldg/bldr

Home Browse Search

Julie M.Wilson Lake Minnetonka Woods Fair,Isaac and Company,Inc. 3704 Livingston Ave 4295 Lexington Ave N � Orono,MN 55391 St.Paul,MN 55126 (952)471-3631 (651)486-1849 Thursday,May 24,2001 Eagle Crest Northwest,Inc. P.O.Box 47333 Minneapolis,MN 55446 (763)553-2726 (763)553-9953(fax) To whomever it may concem: Bill Gleason was out to my townhome yesterday afternooq and I am writing to give a brief synopsis of the points and observations he made while there. First,Bill aoted that the slope of the backyazd,from the sidewalk througln the mailching and to the edge of the foundation,is in the direction of toward the house(or towards the south). His explanation was that,no matter how many ia�lementations aze made to the structure of the window well or the interior of the basement wall along the foundation,the water is still collecting at the foundation of the house due to the inappropriate grade of the backyard and inadequate drainage away from the house. This high pressure of water against the concrete foundation,w}uch was not expected when the plans for the foundation were developed,will lead to lealdng,as we have seen. Bill's proposed solution was to redirect the water away&om the foundation so as to eliminate the pressure on the concrete and thus,hopefully,eliminate the leaking. His plan towards this end,not excluding other necessary steps, was stated as such:a)pull out the sidewalks,as they are sloping towards the house;b)add dirt and/or re-grade the backyard so that it slopes towards the north and away from the house;c)add a drainage system,a French drain, mm�ing east-west that will redirect the water that soaks into the ground away&om the foundatioq landscaping and house,in general;d)re-pour the sidewalks so that t�iey siope away from the house;and e)replace the landscaping. Bill commented that he would have someone out this week to begin this process. Let it be noted that the above stated is one possible solution to the foundation lealdng ground water. As I am not aware that Bill is an engineer,and nor am I,this solution is not necessarily the final solution to the problem,and more discovery need be done in order to assess whether there exists cracks in the foundation or any other such shuctural problem that could be leading to the lealdug. If other such problems do indeed exist concurrently with the improper grade of the land and inadequate drainags system,the leaking is likely to contiaue even when the land is properly graded and an appropriate drainage system installed. Second,Bill stated that more severe measures than have been suggested in the recent past will need to be taken in reference to the repair of the basement area that was damaged as a result of the above lealdng. It has been explained to me verbally that Jerry is currently tending to the problems as such:a)pulling back the carpet;b) removing the wet and/or molded drywall,wood trim,and catpet pad;c)letting the azea dry out;d)painting the framing wood with a sealant;e)adding new drywall,trim,and carpet pad to the azeas removed;and fl replacing the catpet to its original position. While these steps account for most of the problems,the following azeas still need to be addressed:a)the insulation is damp,and therefore not providing the warmth as intended;b)additional azeas of mold aze growing up the walls,despite the prior existing azeas being removed;and c)the carpet,which was saturated with ground water for,at the minimum,two weeks,needs to be checked for mold and replaced if necessary. Third,Bill noticed that there was no water in the sump. He said that this was not as he expected,with the degree of saturation of the ground with water. He stated that this was likely a problem and that he would look into it.