Obed
Elite Member
Westvols,
That's a very nice looking deck you have there.
I agree with the others that you need to do some grading along the backside of the house. Our county uses the IRC 2003 code book. It states that the framing needs to be at least 6 inches above grade. The grade should slope away from the house for at least 10 feet and drop at least 6" in the first 10 feet.
You have a boxblade so grading the yard should be doable for you. The biggest hassle will be having to replant grass. If you go by the code book, your grade will start 6" below the door, then slope down at least 6 more inches to the lowest spot. Thus, the ground 10 feet away from the house should be at least 12" below the bottom of the door. You can then gradually slope the yard from the lowest point upward to transition to the rest of the yard. Do the grading, replace the door and threshold, and keep your gutters clean and your problems should be over. I would wait to replace the threshold and door until the grading is done.
For a quick temporary improvement, you could always lower the grade immediately below the door and throw some gravel there for convenience. You wouldn't want to keep it this way for long because you would be encouraging water next to your foundation.
Good luck on this project. Please post some pictures of you project.
Obed
That's a very nice looking deck you have there.
I agree with the others that you need to do some grading along the backside of the house. Our county uses the IRC 2003 code book. It states that the framing needs to be at least 6 inches above grade. The grade should slope away from the house for at least 10 feet and drop at least 6" in the first 10 feet.
You have a boxblade so grading the yard should be doable for you. The biggest hassle will be having to replant grass. If you go by the code book, your grade will start 6" below the door, then slope down at least 6 more inches to the lowest spot. Thus, the ground 10 feet away from the house should be at least 12" below the bottom of the door. You can then gradually slope the yard from the lowest point upward to transition to the rest of the yard. Do the grading, replace the door and threshold, and keep your gutters clean and your problems should be over. I would wait to replace the threshold and door until the grading is done.
For a quick temporary improvement, you could always lower the grade immediately below the door and throw some gravel there for convenience. You wouldn't want to keep it this way for long because you would be encouraging water next to your foundation.
Good luck on this project. Please post some pictures of you project.
Obed