Contractor / Construction Mags- What is Wrong with this Drywall?

[tuco]

That doesn't look structural to me. Your d-wall just got a little wet and swelled up, then it dried and reshrunk. Those 'raised' spots are the fasteners.

[::: :::]

Pastiche

emphasis on the “imitation” part, meaning poorly executed

[Kevo]

No attic. Vaulted ceiling

Yep

[tuco]

Is there any visible damage @ the base of the wall or directly below that in the basement?

[ötzi]

You gotta see what's in there, and what's more the owner needs to see what's in there now that it's a known issue. Time to cut into the drywall.

[tuco]

Fuck that!
Fix known issues and watch like hawk! Go from there.
Water works in mysterious ways(wicking, capillary action)and can be a bitch to track.

[easyrdr]

Definitely a water issue. Won't know how bad the damage is until you see behind the drywall. Either the owner addresses it our they discount the price accordingly
.

[Rhyno]

My 2 cents. The cause is from condensation when the stove is running and cold out and/or snow on the roof. There is most likely a vapor barrier on the top side of the drywall. The water is probably running down the vapor barrier because of the vaulted ceiling and getting to the drywall where it meets the wall. The drywall is only getting wet on one side and hot on the other from the wood stove which would cause it to cup. You probably won't see anything till it gets cold and fire up the stove again.

[Djongo Unchained]

Here is an exterior view. Roof valley in question is to the right of the vaulted ceiling room. https://photos.zillowstatic.com/p_h/...1000000000.jpg

Ok, I stand by my initial assessment.

And now I'll bet $37 that you gots a water intrusion at that flashing area. Easy money.

That roofline is gonna load and slide down from above vaulted room on the left, and it will hang up on the little dormer on the right.
At some point, it's gonna hang up back in there, maybe get an ice dam going for a month or two...
It may have only happened once or twice. Nothing saying it's chronic.
That house looks sweet, and if it seems well taken care of, I wouldn't balk at that sheetrock issue.
And you know how to keep it from happening? get a roofrake and pull it down before it sets up. Most of us deal with heavy snowloads here. Some roofs work with you. some against.

And if ya just can't fucking deal with it, then just cut out a chunk.

But not before you scope it.

Is that all river cobble around the base of the deck? That shit gets obnoxious to walk on.

[glademaster]

The other complicating factor is that this issue was discovered inadvertently by my agent after the inspection contingency window while he was picking up some paperwork from the house showing other inspection items had been taken care of (previous owner moved across town and wasn't there). Ugh.

How in the hell did this go completely unnoticed by anyone until now? That's literally the first thing I would have noticed when I walked into that room.

[Svengali]

Rooflines: steep enough to shed or flat enough to shovel without falling/sliding off and no f'n roof glaciers. imho

[Kevo]

Ok, I stand by my initial assessment.

And now I'll bet $37 that you gots a water intrusion at that flashing area. Easy money.

That roofline is gonna load and slide down from above vaulted room on the left, and it will hang up on the little dormer on the right.
At some point, it's gonna hang up back in there, maybe get an ice dam going for a month or two...
It may have only happened once or twice. Nothing saying it's chronic.
That house looks sweet, and if it seems well taken care of, I wouldn't balk at that sheetrock issue.
And you know how to keep it from happening? get a roofrake and pull it down before it sets up. Most of us deal with heavy snowloads here. Some roofs work with you. some against.

And if ya just can't fucking deal with it, then just cut out a chunk.

But not before you scope it.

Is that all river cobble around the base of the deck? That shit gets obnoxious to walk on.

Thanks Djongo. Very helpful. Sounds like it'll be pretty easy to fix and that it's likely not a major issue.

Yep, I believe bit is river cobble. What's the deal? Unstable/ painful to walk on with bare feet?

How in the hell did this go completely unnoticed by anyone until now? That's literally the first thing I would have noticed when I walked into that room.

It's honestly not very noticeable in many light conditions. The inspector seemed very, very meticulous and dialed. If it was easy to see when he was there he would have noted it for sure.

[old goat]

Most of the HOA's around here won't allow a simple box, you have to "break up the roofline" as the design guidelines like to say.

breaking up the roofline is what happens when you don't properly calculate for the snow load. (400 psf here).

[east or bust]

You gotta see what's in there, and what's more the owner needs to see what's in there now that it's a known issue. Time to cut into the drywall.

This. Not difficult.

[fastfred]

How in the hell did this go completely unnoticed by anyone until now? That's literally the first thing I would have noticed when I walked into that room.

its called paint and patch the problem is they hired someone cheap to buy wal mart paint and do just a good enough job to sell the house
they sold the house and then then the paint and patching started to fail suprise suprise
alittle water leak isn't a big deal I would just ignore it

[bluespark]

I looked at a few places around Targhee. Lots of complicated roofs with valleys. Lots of ice damming. I would look at your roof style. May be a little more complicated than the flashing.

Local TV, east ID phenomenon known as "Mormantecture". Large over complicated designs with some kind of odd masonry accent somewhere on the exterior.

I'd hire Fred to suss out the issue

[liv2ski]

a little water leak isn't a big deal I would just ignore it

I would not ignore it. Get Fred out there to fix it.

[warthog]

Cut it out cleanly with a multi tool. If the drywall shows signs of previous moisture, replace it with a new chunk.
If not, put it back and patch it up. I would add better moisture barrier while in there, as long as it doesn't just migrate the problem somewhere else.

Just keep an eye on it. The best news is that it is in one place, and it really seems directly related to the heat source and flashing. Really seems like the new roof solved the problem. Once you cut it out and inspect, I bet it will show very old signs of water intrusion. Maybe wait till winter to cut it out, so you can really see what's up.

[waxman]

Aside from the advice posted here already may I ask if that stove/chimney detail is common? That is an abomination to my eye.

[ötzi]

Right? I wondered about that. Why doesn't it just go straight up and out?

[glademaster]

The chimney cap has to be 2 feet higher than any part of the roof within a 10 foot radius. Interior stovepipe is a hell of a lot cheaper per foot than class A chimney, so my guess is they went with the install that would maximize the ratio of stove pipe to class A as a cost cutting measure.

Also, they likely would have needed to brace a section of class A that long, which would have meant more penetrations in the roof and one more thing to hold snow on the roof and/or be damaged by sliding snow.

Of course, they also could have put the stove in a different spot.

[Timberridge]

I once dated a girl with saggy joists.

[::: :::]

I once dated a girl with saggy joists.

how did you deal with them?

[RootSkier]

Just add support underneath.

[tuco]

I bet that stove has 0% to do with that damage. My bet is ice damming. 2 steep roofs over living space emptying onto less steep roof deck that extends past living space and freezing/damming. That eave looks to be in about the same place the damage occured. Roof was replaced for a reason. Kevo, what year was the house built?