Consulting Engineering for Condominium and HOA

It's well known that the climatic conditions of New England make strong demands on our buildings and sites. Our job, as we see it, is to provide management with the technical support they need to make the kind of informed economic decisions that preserve the market value of their properties. We see it as a form of value engineering.

What makes this kind of client support unique, of course, is that the work product needs to be presented with a level of clarity that will make it defensible before the membership.

Water is easily the number one enemy of buildings. Given the opportunity, it will find its way into places it does not belong. Defeating it is the challenge and has been the subject of a good amount of recent development in building technology.

Common Issues: Moisture movement into the exterior wall cavity; rotted structure in the exterior walls; mold and mildew in living spaces; poor indoor air quality; peeling paint film; perennial replacing of siding and trim; rotting structure within crawl spaces; condensation on the roof underside; buckled roof surfaces.

One Solution: A condition survey and analysis of the client’s buildings concluded that the contractor did not follow specific industry accepted standards for installing vinyl siding. Flashing around windows was improper or missing. Water intrusion had damaged the interiors of several units. We advised the client that if the siding remained in place as installed, there was the potential for failure of the structure in the wall cavity plus increased water entry leading to more damage accompanied by poor indoor air quality. Replacement of all the vinyl siding was recommended along with installation of a rain screen system to facilitate drainage behind the new siding.

Common Issues: Flooding of low lying areas; erosion/failure of embankments; water entry into basements; saturated soils; failure of paved surfaces; icing of walkways and parking lots; surcharging of storm drain systems.

One Solution: The drainage portion of a Developer-to-Board Transition Study demonstrated that runoff from a steep embankment then ponding at the rear of several buildings was the source of significant water entry into their basements. Low impact techniques for on-site disposal of runoff was coupled with a design of grading of the site that diverted runoff to existing storm drains.

Common Issues: Without a preventive maintenance program, pavements can develop cracks leading to settlement or buckling. Failure modes invariably follow water penetration into the sub-grade causing the pavement to lose its structural stability. Rideability deteriorates noticeably well before these symptoms. Milling out and replacement of the entire pavement along with its sub-grade becomes necessary.

One Solution: The runoff from an adjacent parking lot was undermining the roadway shoulder triggering cracking and loss of pavement. The softness of the shoulder made driving hazardous. Runoff was re-directed to an expanded shoulder swale where velocity was reduced and an opportunity for pollutant dispersal was provided. The swale flow was directed to the newly designed storm drain system.

“Pavements that have treatments applied when severely distressed received little benefit. However, treatments applied to pavements with light to moderate distress provide substantial benefit by extending service life."

Larry Galehouse, P.E., L.S. Michigan Department of Transportation

Common Issues:

Premature curling of shingles; loss of grit between shingle tabs (grit shows up in gutters); water penetration and damage to interior; ice dams; “tired” surfaces that reduce perceived value; bubbling and uplift of membrane coverage

One Solution:

The roof shingles were curled over a cathedral ceiling after being in place for only a short time. Water and mildew stains appeared first followed by water entry in the form of droplets from the ceiling. An inspection revealed either collapsed or no rafter vents in the ceiling bays. We collaborated with the client in the design of a venting arrangement for the rafter bays. Specifications and bid documents were prepared for removal and replacement of the deteriorated structure and replacement with the design.

We show here a sampling of the common maintenance issues that typically present themselves to owners of common interest communities. We see them every day so we call them "Common Issues". Accompanying them are some examples of how we went about resolving them for one particular client, or - "One Solution".