Hello group,
I am trying to resolve a particularly stressful situation and would appreciate any thoughts. Last fall we had a vinyl all season room built on the back of our cedar sided house, underneath a second story deck. Some might call it a patio room or sun room, etc. Since it was finished the roof has leaked during heavy rains. Apparently the builder assumed that the house was water tight when he built it. Consequently, the roof header of the all season room, or where the roof system joins the existing cedar siding on the house, was not flashed. It was simply screwed to the outside of the cedar siding, and caulked along the top seam. Somewhere above the roof of the patio room water is getting behind the cedar siding and coming out inside the all season room in three locations. This was probably happening before the all season room was built but not noticed. The builder has been out twice to caulk seams in the roof, but now the builder is starting to take the position that it's my problem to deal with, and that they are done with the situation. Was I wrong to expect that when I signed the construction contract that I would be given a water tight room? Was I wrong to expect that the builder would take care to analyze the situation, anticipate possible problems, and take appropriate measures? When I asked the salesman on two or three separate locations, what happens if the room were to leak, I was told they would take care of it until it was fixed. I did NOT ask specifically how the room would be flashed, waterproofed, etc. My thoughts are this: Not flashing the roof header was a bad idea. Also, I realize that the problem is likely originating somewhere outside of the scope of the builder's immediate control. But shouldn't he be involved in the effort here to make this room water tight? I would love to hear any opinions on this matter. Thanks for your time, Jason