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I bought a house last year and when I was buying it, I did not register the fact that on the back side of the house the siding is in contact with the ground/stone patio.

Siding in contact with patio, picture 1 Siding in contact with patio, picture 2 Siding in contact with patio, picture 3 Corner of house, picture 1

Because of the slope of the back yard, during rainfall about an inch of water pools where the patio and siding meet (the water drains quite quickly once it is done raining). My questions are:

  1. Is this not up to general code, and if not, what is code?
  2. If not, what can I do to remedy the situation?
  3. If I don't do anything about this for another year, what potential water damage issues (if any) will I be risking?
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Codes vary, but generally speaking wood and related exterior products must be 6" or so above the ground. I'm not sure whether a concrete slab is treated the same as the ground in this case. It's probably moot in your case as you're now beyond the point where you'll ask the seller to deal with it.

There isn't a whole lot you can do assuming that you have typical wall sheathing behind the siding. Replacing the siding with something more durable (white or painted vinyl planking, for example) will prevent visible decay, but doesn't help with rot behind.

To offer further suggestions I'd need to know what the wall looks like behind the siding.

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  • I suppose I am asking if it is worth "lowering" the patio six or so inches in order to avoid 1) the siding being in contact with the ground, and 2) avoid water being in contact with the siding when it does rain. Is the thought that the 2-by-4 that lays on the concrete slab behind the siding is rotted out? – derNincompoop Sep 9 '16 at 22:29
  • I agree with isherwood, but what kind of siding is it if hardy plank cement board it won't be damaged by the water but you don't want standing water there, pulling up some of the stones and creating a drain field or French drain to get the water away from the house is the biggest concern I would have. On some of the homes I sold that had slabs within 6" it was not a problem it was within earth, so depending on local code you may need to get rid of the water. – Ed Beal Nov 30 '17 at 23:50

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