Craig W. Allender, P.E., is a senior staff II in the Building Technology group of national engineering firm Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc. He can be contacted at cwallender@sgh.com.
When a building leaks, the design, workmanship and material of the building envelope are all suspect. The exterior walls, roofing, windows, doors, balcony decks and below-grade waterproofing are all potential culprits. Oftentimes, however, a leak cannot be attributed to just one building envelope component.