Page 10 - Chicago Cooperator Spring 2019

EXTERIOR MAINTENANCE 10 THE CHICAGOLAND COOPERATOR — SPRING 2019 CHICAGOCOOPERATOR.COM W hether it’s a balcony, terrace, component in modern construction. patio or roof deck, outdoor space is many an apartment dewyn Gaynor Architects, adds that one was injured—or worse. owner’s dream. Desirable – and valuable “snow melts, and the salt greatly reduces – as they are, these spaces do present spe- cific maintenance considerations for in- dividual owners, co-op corporations, and adds that salt can be the biggest issue, incident in which a condominium owner condo associations, however. Oftentimes, because it’s corrosive enough to rot steel placed a hot tub on a balcony. Nice idea, these considerations are complicated by over time. “Amenities like balconies and but once the tub was filled with hundreds the fact that without specific knowledge terraces are vulnerable to weather and of gallons of water, it was far too heavy of engineering and construction, the signs wind,” he says. “They don’t get used con- of potential problems in these spaces are tinually, so the problem can go unnoticed sociation notified the resident in writing too easily missed. The Main Culprit Perhaps unsurprisingly, when struc- tural issues afflict outdoor spaces in balconies, terraces, and roof decks can be be a subtler threat. The downstairs neigh- modern buildings, the main culprit is wa- ter —and culprit 1A is water mixed with to have them. The biggest and most mine’ who raises the alarm when some- salt. Water causes rust and salt can ac- celerate the process. Whether in a cold overloading. Too much weight can, in by water infiltrating the floor of a ter- or warm climate, these two basic building the extreme, cause the balcony or terrace race, or by excessive weight, may be more blocks of life can combine to erode struc- tures. Alan Gaynor, Founding Principal moderate to average loads,” says Bod- at Boddewyn Gaynor Architects in New dewyn. “We are familiar with a situation roof decks, the question may be even York City, explains: “If water gets between where a contractor was storing build- concrete and brick and the structure is ing materials on a balcony. Their weight whether the deck was part of the original not flashed properly, it will rust out the greatly exceeded what was intended for design of the property or added later. reinforcement bars,” which are a critical the balcony, and began to cause a prob- Michele Boddewyn, President of Bod- the freezing temperature of water, so the AKAM On-Site, a property management water can do additional damage.” Gaynor firm in southeast Florida, describes an for a long time.” Man-Made Problems In addition to weather, spaces such as damaged by the very people lucky enough bor may in fact be the ‘canary in the coal dangerous of these man-made issues is thing is amiss overhead. Damage caused to collapse. “Balconies are designed for noticeable on the ceiling of a downstairs lem.” The contractor had to remove the items immediately, and fortunately no Marcy Kravit, Managing Director with for the structure. The attorney for the as- that the hot tub had to be removed im- mediately. In terms of terraces, weight issues can neighbor than on the terrace itself. With more complicated and may depend on “The big difference between a building designed with the intention of including a roof deck, or a building where one is add- ed later, is that most roofs are designed for a certain amount of snow load based on building code relative to your climate zone,” says Boddewyn. “The first big question is to determine what the original weight capacity for the roof was, because it’s very easy to exceed the load capacity when you’re adding pavers, planters with large bushes or trees, furniture and peo- ple. Are you working within the build- ing’s physical capacity?” According to Marc Zuccaro, Owner of Care Roofing in Brookfield, Illinois: “A very important factor is that water- proofing be done when a building is con- structed, before doors are put in. It has to go up and over the door threshold before the doors themselves are installed.” Same goes for maintenance or replacement as the building ages; the new waterproofing materials should be installed before the new doors are put in or the old doors re- turned to their frames. Monitoring for Safety To maintain the integrity of exterior spaces, inspections should be made on a regular basis. “Once a year in the spring is the best option,” says Boddewyn. “This gives you the summer to make any nec- essary repairs.” Gaynor urges that, “in- spections should be done by professionals – untrained owners might not know what to look for. Most buildings have a build- ing architect, and they should do the in- spection. If not, hire a building envelope consultant to do the job.” Building enve- lope consultants are engineers who are experts in all the elements of a building shell that keep the structure dry, heated or cooled, and maintain and facilitate a building’s climate control. “We also do periodic inspections for rules compliance for storage issues,” Kravit says. She explains that most as- sociations in Florida have very specific and strict rules relative to what can and can’t be placed on balconies and terraces, particularly when it comes to hurricane season. Generally, when a hurricane is predicted, only patio furniture can be left on balconies, terraces, decks and patios; everything else must be brought inside, Maintaining Exterior Spaces Safety, Longevity, and Aesthetics BY A J SIDRANSKY continued on page 14 ISTOCKPHOTO.COM