Second floor balcony leak in San Diego

by Anthony
(San Diego)

I am repairing my second floor wood balcony where there is a sliding glass door. The wood is about 25 years old and rotted.

When it rains water leaks down to first floor room below balcony where it meets house and sliding glass door. I am changing out all the wood but I want to make sure the leak is stopped.

There is also the original metal flashing that sits below the sliding glass door and runs the length of balcony along stucco.

Not sure if the water was coming in because the wood was rotted and caulking at base of sliding glass door was bad or there was issue with flashing or a combination of all.

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Editor's Comments

You definitely need a full inspection and some repair work. This is an El Nino year, in fact I heard it is a rare super El Nino which for California and the pacific northwest, that means lots of rain.

I could try to pretend to diagnose your situation from afar but I don't think it would really help. My friend Bill Leys, who has written great technical articles for us here at DecksGo on deck waterproofing and repair issues before, is the guy you really should speak with first.

Bill Leys - California Waterproof Expert

Bill is a friend of ours and is one of the foremost deck waterproofing experts in California and the country. He has also been a guest editor and written a number of great articles here at Decksgo.

Here is an introduction to Bill and his background. You can also visit Bill at www.centralwaterproofing.com