Exterior, Siding & Windows
10 articles · A–Z master index
Decks & Porches
- Deck Ledger Boards: The Connection That Fails — Why most deck collapses start at the ledger: the lag-versus-nail history, the flashing that decides the rim joist's fate, the inspection checklist from fasteners to rot, and the lateral-load story.
Garage
- Garage Door Safety: Sensors, Reversal, and Springs — The two federally required safety systems on every opener, the monthly photo-eye and reversal tests, the torsion spring rule that keeps hands attached, and the maintenance short list.
Masonry
- Brick Veneer and Weep Holes: How the Wall Drains — Why modern brick is a rain screen, not a barrier: the cavity, flashing, and weep holes that drain it, the sins of caulked and mortared-shut weeps, and what efflorescence and spalling report.
Paint & Trim
- Exterior Paint Peeling: Causes by Pattern — Reading paint failure as evidence: moisture-driven peeling to bare wood, intercoat peeling from bad prep, alligatoring on paint museums, blistering in sun, and the lead rule for pre-1978 houses.
Siding
- Stucco Moisture Problems: Cracks, Staining, and Trapped Water — Traditional three-coat stucco versus EIFS, the crack taxonomy from hairline to structural, the staining and soft-spot evidence of trapped water, and why kick-out flashing decides so many stucco walls.
- Vinyl Siding Problems: Buckling, Cracking, and Moisture — How vinyl siding is supposed to hang loose and why nailing it tight causes the buckling, the cold-crack and melt problems, what lives behind the panels, and the repair basics.
Trim & Wood
- Caulk Types: What to Use Where — The residential caulk taxonomy, acrylic latex, silicone, polyurethane, and the hybrids, matched to their joints, the joints that should never be caulked, and the tooling that makes any of them last.
- Wood Rot: Identifying and Repairing — Brown rot versus white rot versus the dry rot myth, the probe and moisture-meter inspection, where exterior rot starts, epoxy repair versus replacement, and the moisture fix that decides which lasts.
Windows & Doors
- Failed Window Seals: Fog Between Panes — Why insulated glass units fog from the inside, the seal-failure mechanism and its timeline, what is lost besides the view, and the repair menu from defogging to glass-unit replacement.
- Window Flashing and Wall Leaks — Why windows are holes in the drainage plane and how flashing seals them: the sill-pan-first shingle sequence, the caulk-only installs that fail, the stain evidence at heads and corners, and repair realities.