Siding Assessment

In January 2015, Del Valle Consulting was hired to perform an in-depth assessment of the status of the siding, estimated remaining useful life, a recommended schedule for replacement and an estimated cost.  A draft report was delivered to the Board in May, discussed at the May Board meeting, and Del Valle was asked to include an estimated cost for simultaneous replacement of front decks (from the ground up) and rear decks (infill panels, their support posts and railings only) as well as an estimated cost for replacement of the rear deck infill panels, their support posts and railings if done separately, before the siding replacement project.  (Note: structural work was done several years ago for all rear decks.)  Del Valle delivered their final report in January 2016.  This can be found on the Documents page.

The Del Valle report identified a number of issues with the siding including delamination, unflashed horizontal seams, inadequate nailing density and blocking, buckling, no moisture barrier in many of the locations opened. Del Valle recommended the HOA begin making plans for replacement of the siding within the next 3-6 years. 

The report was reviewed and discussed at the September 2015 Annual meeting, and discussed further at the October 2015 Board meeting, where it was decided to retain a second consultant to assess options and cost estimates for extending the useful life of the siding through repair and maintenance.  A committee of several owners and Board Vice President Bryan Miller was formed to select an appropriate firm for this work and oversee the activity.  On December 15, the Board approved a proposal from Posard Broek and Associates (PB&A) for this work.

PB&A completed their siding evaluation and report in August 2016.  They concluded that our siding has reached the end of its useful life.  They found conditions had deteriorated further over the year since the Del Valle report was prepared.  In addition to the conditions identified by Del Valle, they found water intrusion within exterior walls and instances of biological growth (i.e. mold) on the backside of interior sheetrock.  They recommended that the HOA remove and replace all siding.  Their report recommended using fiber cement siding.  It provided only one other replacement option, which was to replace with the existing T1-11 and rough sawn siding.  It also provided a "limited repair" option, and did not recommend this option. 

PB&A presented their findings and recommendations to owners on August 19, 2016, at Blackhawk Country Club in Danville, CA.  This presentation was also broadcast via a webinar to allow owners to attend remotely.  The presentation was repeated at the Annual Owners Meeting on September 3, 2016.  This second presentation was also broadcast via a webinar.

Links to sections of the PB&A report, including numerous photos of existing conditions, are on the Docs page.

During an Executive Board session on March 3, 2017 that included PB&A and the HOA attorney, it was discussed that PB&A had considered some siding replacement alternatives that were not documented in their report because in their professional opinion those were not recommended options for the HOA to consider.  The HOA attorney advised the Board that HOA members should be presented with all viable options including pros/cons and cost estimates. The Board then decided to commission an additional evaluation of siding conditions and maintenance/repair/replacement alternatives. 

In Executive Session on July 7, 2017, the Board approved a proposal from Bert L. Howe & Associates to perform another analysis of our siding and to provide a report.  The final report was delivered to the Board on September 28, 2017.  A link to the report is on the Docs page.  A Board meeting has been scheduled for October 28, 2017, to provide owners with information on the Howe report as well as the earlier reports and to make decisions on next steps. ​