ᐅ Moisture is seeping through the floor-to-ceiling windows in the new build.
Created on: 18 Jan 2021 10:41
H
HansHack
Hello everyone,
We are currently building our single-family house, and so far everything has gone well.
However, after installing the floor-to-ceiling windows on the ground floor, we noticed that moisture is penetrating through the masonry barrier into the interior of the house through all three windows. The ground floor windows were installed on the masonry barrier, whereas on the upper floor this is not the case. There, the windows were mounted on the concrete slab.
Inside the ground floor, the floor-to-ceiling windows were sealed with a sealing tape. On the outside, such a sealing tape has not yet been applied (although it has been used on all the other “standard” windows).
The window installer will come back to the site soon, and I plan to address this issue with them then. However, I wanted to get some opinions beforehand so I might have some arguments ready.
Thank you very much!
We are currently building our single-family house, and so far everything has gone well.
However, after installing the floor-to-ceiling windows on the ground floor, we noticed that moisture is penetrating through the masonry barrier into the interior of the house through all three windows. The ground floor windows were installed on the masonry barrier, whereas on the upper floor this is not the case. There, the windows were mounted on the concrete slab.
Inside the ground floor, the floor-to-ceiling windows were sealed with a sealing tape. On the outside, such a sealing tape has not yet been applied (although it has been used on all the other “standard” windows).
The window installer will come back to the site soon, and I plan to address this issue with them then. However, I wanted to get some opinions beforehand so I might have some arguments ready.
Thank you very much!
I separately sealed the perimeter area after the installation of the windows. The window installer refused responsibility, saying it’s not part of his scope of work.
Keep in mind, if moisture ever penetrates there like today, you will never notice it since it’s underneath the screed insulation.
Keep in mind, if moisture ever penetrates there like today, you will never notice it since it’s underneath the screed insulation.
HansHack schrieb:
it has fully absorbed moisture...Hello HansHack,As you correctly noticed, the water is running onto the damp-proof course, passing below the window, and entering the interior. The damp-proof course should be cut and the window sealed from the outside to prevent water ingress.
What caught my attention in your photo: what kind of material is being used as the base layer? There are some quite large stones in it. This is neither crushed stone nor RCL (Recycled Crushed Limestone). I would not want to build a terrace like this. It looks like some kind of dirt or rubble has been dumped there. Or did you intend it this way?
Steven
Hello
I took a closer look at the picture. Apparently, some terrace slab extends all the way up to the window. This is indicated by the guide rail of the roller shutter. OK, then the approach would be: terrace slab up to the window and seal with silicone. But applying silicone to the window and the moisture barrier would also be a good idea. That way, moisture won’t penetrate anymore.
Steven
I took a closer look at the picture. Apparently, some terrace slab extends all the way up to the window. This is indicated by the guide rail of the roller shutter. OK, then the approach would be: terrace slab up to the window and seal with silicone. But applying silicone to the window and the moisture barrier would also be a good idea. That way, moisture won’t penetrate anymore.
Steven
Steven schrieb:
Hello HansHack,
As you correctly noticed, the water runs onto the damp-proof course, passes under the window, and into the interior. The damp-proof course should be cut off, and the window sealed from the outside to prevent water ingress.
What caught my attention in your picture: What kind of material is that used as the base layer? There are really large stones in it. That is neither gravel nor recycled crushed limestone. I wouldn’t want to build a terrace on something like that. It looks like some kind of dirt was dumped there. Or did you intend it that way?
StevenHello, thank you very much for the information. The photo was taken from an unfavorable angle. The base layer is still about 20-30 cm (8-12 inches) below the slab/floor of the basement ceiling. Only filler material was used here to fill up along the basement walls, and it will be properly filled with suitable material later.
Shouldn't the final level of the ground/terrace be set lower exactly for this purpose?
See https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/bodentiefe-fenster-Abdichtung-nach-aussen.33380/post-436119
See https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/bodentiefe-fenster-Abdichtung-nach-aussen.33380/post-436119
Steven schrieb:
Hello HansHack,
As you have correctly noticed, the water runs onto the damp-proof course, passes under the window, and into the interior. The damp-proof course should be cut off, and the window sealed from the outside to prevent water ingress.
What caught my eye in your photo: What is that material used as the base layer? There are quite large stones in it. It’s neither gravel nor recycled crushed limestone. I wouldn’t want to build a terrace on that. It looks like some kind of debris has been dumped there. Or did you intend it that way?
StevenSince we don’t know how the terrace is supposed to be constructed eventually, this is just speculation.
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