Take out the chewing gum from all those rectangular notches! They are the weeping holes are are designed to channel any water that enters the sliding door tracks to drain to the outside (away from your home). The joints between the bottom tracks of the door and the side rails should be caulked so that water that arrives in the track by means of, say, a driving rain, will not enter the home at the joints but instead drain out of the weeping holes.
In your case, I suspect the bottom rail is not level so all the water in the track flows to the corner and inters the home though the joint described above. If the door works ok, there is no need to worry about an out of level door. However, you must evsure that the weepers are unobstructed all the way through to the exterior of the bottom door track. To this end, ensure there is no caulking blocking the weepers on the exterior side of the bottom door frame member.
Hope this helps.
bycanoe
Quote:
Originally Posted by DIY-Jake
I have a leaking patio door - so what else in new. However, I haven't seen any posts that describe a problem quite like this one.
I have water damage at the bottom corners of my sliding patio door. I removed the inside side trim and peeled back the linoleum floor to see the extent of the damage. The ply at the corners is pretty shot but the studs above seem to be pristine. That indicated to me that the door/flashing/J-channel is not leaking around the top or sides. That maybe was not a correct conclusion, but it led me to do the following:
On the sliding-door-side (opposed to the fixed-door-side), I plugged the drain hole with chewing gum and poured about half a cup of water in the bottom track. In about a minute, the water slowly drained down the corner where the track meets the side. Ah ha! Although the floor eventually got damp under that corner, most of the water came out on the floor on the opposite side. Hmm. (See attached pictures.)
Bottom line, is the door defective and a manufacturing issue (the seal has failed at the sides)? Or is there supposed to be an underneath sill/flashing to capture that water and direct it outside (installed incorrectly)? Caulking the corners seems to be a temporary fix that will eventually fail. Am I even on the right track?
Additional info that may or may not be important: The door is a Therma-Tru and my home was built by Ryan Homes 6 years ago. I installed a deck 5 years ago and flashed up underneath the door and over the deck ledger board. Deck is 2 inches below sill of door. The flashing also extends up under the side J-channels about 2 inches. (I am worried that I somehow caused this, but not sure how.) No deck or roof above door.
I would appreciate any help or insight.
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