Brick wet under window on new home...what is problem?

Question

Brick home is only 18 months old and the brick under the front window stays wet after a good rain. We can't figure out if the water is going through the brick sill or the window itself is defective and somehow the water is going behind the brick from the window. Even though the builder acknowledges there is a problem from day one, he will not take responsilbility. Of course, now that the one year warranty is over, he doesn't care. What are our options? Should we get estimates and fix ourselves or should we file a complaint against with the NC licensing board? Is this a common problem with brick?

Answer 1

A new home has more then a 1 year warranty with it. The builder must repair and fix any problems with bad craftsmen ship for 7 years after the home was built. see a lawyer ASAP and get someone else in to look over the whole house.
As far as the window problem most likely the there was no flashing installed when the window was put in or the flashing was put in wrong.

Answer 2

IS THIS THE ONLY WINDOW THAT HAS THAT PROBLEM?
IS IT LOCATED ON THE NORTH OR EAST SIDE OF THE HOUSE?
IF YES IS THE ANSWER TO EITHER OR BOTH OF THESE QUESTIONS, THEN DONT SWEAT.
THE NORTH AND EAST SIDE WILL TAKE LONGER TO DRY BECAUSE OF NO SUN EXPOSURE
THE BRICK SILL IS ASORBING MOISTURE BECAUSE THE SILL IS FLAT AND HAS A TENDENCY TO DO SO.
CAULK AROUND THE WINDOW FRAME WITH A QUALITY WINDOW CAULK, THEN GET SOME THOMPSON WATER SEAL FOR BRICK AND CONCRETE AND APPLY WITH A THROWAWAY PUMP SPRAYER TO THE SILL AND BRICK AREA. BY THE NEXT RAIN U SHOULD SEE A DIFFERENCE.
I AM GUESSING BUT IF THE CONTRACTOR HAS ACKNOWLEDGED PROBLEM SINCE DAY ONE AND U HAVE DOCUMENTATION THEN THE ONE YEAR WARRANY DOESNT MEAN ANYTHING OTHER THAN HE HAS NOT FIXED IT SO IT IS VALID AND U COULD PROABLY GET YOUR COST BACK THROUGH THE CONTRACTOR AND OR JUDICIAL SYSTEM. CHECK WITH THE BBB IF OTHER CLAIMS ARE AGAINST THE BUILDER OR IF THIS IS JUST A ISOLATED CASE.
BY THE WAY NOT ALL BRICK ARE LIKE THIS PROBLEM BUT THE QUALITY OF THE BRICK MAY HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH IT. HARDER FIRED BRICK ARE BETTER.
I HAVE USED THOMPSON ON A CHIMNEY BRICK PROBLEM THREE YEARS AGO AND NO PROBLEM SINCE. GOOD LUCK

Answer 3

is it concrete brick ? Concrete bricks stay wet for longer time than clay bricks, and the colour difference between wet concrete bricks and dry ones is a huge difference. If it were clay brick, you might not even noticee if its wet.
My guess is that its going through the brick sill,
I don't think its a defective window.
Sills should have flashing underneath, so water doesn't go through to the lower courses. The sill should also stick out a bit, overhang, so water can drain off and drip away from the wall. Just the same issue, the sill should not be sloped towards the window, but slightly away from the window, in order to shed water away.
Awnings can help a lot, in case you're worried about any water damage.

Answer 4

first contact your local building inspector and verify if there is actually a problem or if it is a inherent problem with brick in the area. sometime structures meet code compliance but not necessarily a look sort of thing. he might be able to give you a hint as to possible fixes. remember that when you approach him that it possible that it was compliant when inspected and modified after wards.

Answer 5

this could be due to water entering thru window frame and wall widen the crack and apply silicone or you can even apply epoxy mastic so that it wont craack up again and water enter it even after treating like this u may find wetness for some time and it will slolwy dry

Answer 6

agreed, if the builder aknowledges that there was a problem from day 1, then they ought to take responsibility for their work. Bad press will certianly not be the builder's friend.

Answer 7

Call one of the local troubleshooters on the news... Even with our housing market here in NC going strong, builders hate bad publicity.