Brownstone Home Inspection LLC
Parapet Wall Inspections Per NYC Code RCNY 103-15
As of January 1, 2024, New York City requires building owners to have a parapet wall inspection performed annually on all such walls fronting the public sidewalk or right-of-way. this inspection must be performed by someone experienced in such work. Such inspection shall include an observation made of the condition of the wall and any nearby appurtenances such as the cornice, fire escape, and telecommunications equipment.
Steve Cymbalsky of Brownstone Home Inspection has spent decades inspecting the condition of masonry parapet walls and related assemblies on historic buildings in New York City and has managed the rebuilding of mass masonry parapet walls on commercial buildings. He currently performs parapet wall inspections when carrying out buyer's home inspections and as part of flat roof inspections.
If you call Brownstone Home Inspection, you will get a parapet wall inspection as well as a low rise (flat or commercial) roof inspection as part of a package deal. Please see the section on roof inspections.
Steve's Building Envelope Related Qualifications
Building Envelope Sciences Institute
Water Intrusion Certified
CertainTeed
Master Low Slope Roof Installer
Haag Engineering
Low Slope (Commercial) Roof Inspector
International Association of Certified Home Inspectors
Certified Stucco and EIFS Inspector
Certified Roof Inspector
THESE ARE PHOTOS FROM ACTUAL ROOF INSPECTIONS PERFORMED BY STEVE
The roofing membrane has detached from the parapet wall. This will have to be dealt with right away as water can pass between the roof and membrane and their is light staining on the ceiling in the apt below.
The real estate agent told us the roof on this house had been "done" in 2018. I told the buyer "the roof might have been painted in 2018 but the open seams and blisters suggest the roof is older than five years".
This misinformation is the fault of both the real estate agent and the seller. What happens is, the agent asks the seller "when was the roof done?" They do not ask "when was a new me
Open seam on a roof. In this case, i believe the plywood decking is delaminating. This will have to corrected soon and the roof will have to be cut back and lifted to replace the deck. the entire roof does not have to be changed.
The mortar cap on the chimney is separating from the top of the chimney. This can allow water to seep into the mortar and once inside, it can freeze and expand and dislodge bricks.
One of my favorites. This photo is looking down the flue of the chimney to a neighbor's house. When Steve performs roof inspections, he looks at the parapet walls and chimneys for the neighboring houses. This is because, what ever is along a party wall will become your problem if is is not addressed. In this case, the terra cotta flue in the chimney is missing and the bricks have become di
Capstone with cracks in it. It is important to maintain the joints in the capstones to protect the party walls. In this case, the capstone is cracked. It appears that at least one of these cracks goes right through to the bricks underneath. If this is not maintained with flashing cement, water can enter and freeze and dislodge bricks.
This open seem was found on an "owner's" post purchase inspection. The seam had in fact been missed by the "buyer's" inspection done about four months previous by one of the biggest and most well known inspection companies serving New York City.
Leaves in the gutter on an end of winter owner's inspection. This mess had been there so long that some of it had fully decayed. This mess was not noted on the pre-sale buyers inspection done mid winter by a large home inspection company. Steve got down on his hands and knees and cleaned this out for the homeowner.
Capstone with cracks in it. It is important to maintain the joints in the capstones to protect the party walls. In this case, the capstone is cracked. It appears that at least one of these cracks goes right through to the bricks underneath. If this is not maintained with flashing cement, water can enter and freeze and dislodge bricks.