# Water wicking into shed



## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

Over the last year, I built an 8' x 10' shed as a chicken coop. The plans came from a book I had and I followed them pretty closely. I've put a lot of time and effort into building this. With the rain over the last few days I have noticed water wicking up the side walls on the inside. The walls are T-111. I stained the outside and made sure to stain the bottom of the T-111. The base of the of the coop is 4" x 6" ground contact lumber. The T-111 overlaps the 4" x 6" by about 1.5". The 4"x6" are set on 1" concrete blocks so they are not touching the ground. 

Please see the pics. There's a few of the coop and a couple of the water on the floor and walls. So what can I do to fix this? This was so much work and money, I need to come up with a fix for this. 

Should I add gutters?
Should I remove grass from around the outside and put pea gravel down?
Should I add a bead of caulk around the edges at the base?





































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## Huntahalic (Feb 9, 2010)

Gutters and downspouts should fix your problem. Looks to me the watershed is hitting and bouncing back up on the siding. I would also recommend keeping the tall grass off the siding. Green grass holds moisture and will not allow good airflow to the bottom of the sheeting. I would not recommend putting caulk or silicone on the bottom edge of the sheeting. Doing so would trap any moisture that finds a way in. I'm quite positive gutters and downspouts will fix your problems.

Nice looking coupe by the way.....


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## wpmisport (Feb 9, 2010)

A couple of drain pipes going to lower land may also be a good idea.


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## brushbuster (Nov 9, 2009)

Extend the eaes and overhangs, and raise the shed up at least 8. Inches above the ground and install gutters on the eves. Your t1-11 won' last much longer than 5 years if it keeps getting exposed to water. You Could also cut 2 feet off the bottom and put wolmanized ply wood up.


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## Waif (Oct 27, 2013)

The big coop I built before was raised high enough on blocks to allow chickens to use the space below it.
Kept it dry at bottom. And dry is good for chickens...


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Had a 24" overhang on my house and the plywood was a foot up from the grade. Still had the same issue with it getting wet and rotting. Gutters were the ultimate answer.


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## brushbuster (Nov 9, 2009)

Gutters might solve the issue on the eves, but snow will still pile up and with no over hangs on the gables and the shed sitting low to the ground he will still have rot. I would build shed roofs and bring out the over hangs at lest 5 feet or remove the t111 and replace with wolmanized. I get very little water splash with 2 foot over hangs and shed roofs and no gutter replacement due to ice and heavy snows


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## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

Huntahalic said:


> Gutters and downspouts should fix your problem. Looks to me the watershed is hitting and bouncing back up on the siding. I would also recommend keeping the tall grass off the siding. Green grass holds moisture and will not allow good airflow to the bottom of the sheeting. I would not recommend putting caulk or silicone on the bottom edge of the sheeting. Doing so would trap any moisture that finds a way in. I'm quite positive gutters and downspouts will fix your problems.
> 
> Nice looking coupe by the way.....


Thanks.

I will start with gutters and downspouts to see if that fixes the problem.

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## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

brushbuster said:


> Gutters might solve the issue on the eves, but snow will still pile up and with no over hangs on the gables and the shed sitting low to the ground he will still have rot. I would build shed roofs and bring out the over hangs at lest 5 feet or remove the t111 and replace with wolmanized. I get very little water splash with 2 foot over hangs and shed roofs and no gutter replacement due to ice and heavy snows
> View attachment 395775


I wish we got snow like that, but I live between Saginaw and Flint. The most snow build up we get lasts for a day at the most. It either melts or blows away (live in farm country).

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## ESOX (Nov 20, 2000)

I'd cut the T111 up 5.5" install a synthetic 1x6 along the base, install a Z flashing from behind the T111, across the bottom of the T111, and over the top edge of the 1X. Bed the T111 side in 100% silicone.


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## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

ESOX said:


> I'd cut the T111 up 5.5" install a synthetic 1x6 along the base, install a Z flashing from behind the T111, across the bottom of the T111, and over the top edge of the 1X. Bed the T111 side in 100% silicone.


I like this approach a lot. It will be some work, but with how much time and effort I put into this, I want to make sure it lasts.

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## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

Just wanted to provide an update.

Yesterday, I removed the screws on the bottom edge along the T111 and the trim boards. First I placed a strip of asphalt paper between the siding and the treated 4x6. This was to keep the flashing from contacting the treated lumber. Then I slid the z flashing onto the bottom of the T111 using silicone sealant to fill any gaps. Everything was screwed back in place and then I screwed 2 1/4" PVC molding snug to the bottom of the z flashing. Finally, I filled the gap between the mouldings and flashing with more sealant. If I get a chance, I will take some pics.

Let's hope that this stops the water from getting in. Next time it rains, I will report back.

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## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

tom_the_chemist said:


> Let's hope that this stops the water from getting in. Next time it rains, I will report back.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


Update: With the southwest wind and sideways rain we have gotten today, the south wall still has water coming up along the base.

Pretty bummed this hasn't fix the issur. Going to need to think through my next move.

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## Firefighter (Feb 14, 2007)

Raise the whole thing off the ground as Brushbuster said.


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## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

Firefighter said:


> Raise the whole thing off the ground as Brushbuster said.


This is a serious question but it may not sound like it so dont take it the wrong way. How will that help? The water is not coming up from the foundation and now the treated 4x6 is completely covered by the PVC mouldings. The mouldings overhangs the cement blocks the coop is sitting on. If it is raised up a couple feet the siding would still have water running down the side.

It appears that the most likely problem is that the water droplets are getting to the bottom of the board where most drop off but some must be pulled back inside the coop due to hydrodynamic forces.

Another thought is that where the paneling is screwed into the siding could be a point for water ingress. Should I put a dab of sealant over the screw holes?

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