The tenant moves out next month, and the deck still hangs off the house on a few rusty lags with lattice under the rail. The 1950s were Monroeville's peak decade for new houses, and the occupancy inspector looks hard at what they've become outside. We rebuild what fails the checklist and leave it sturdy for whoever comes next.
Monroeville Repairs
Four planned neighborhoods, among them Garden City and Penn View, were platted in the mid-1950s, and 76% of local homes predate 1980. A new occupant means a municipal inspection, so plenty of our calls here begin with the inspector's list.
The municipal checklist asks for through-bolted deck connections and won't accept lags or carriage bolts. Many older decks went up on lags, which owners learn the day the report arrives.
We take the deck boards up along the house, check the band joist behind the ledger for rot, and flash the wall. Then the ledger goes back with through-bolts at the spacing the code sets, so the deck is tied to the house, not hung from it.
Beams, posts and headersLattice and wide-set balusters were a common way to finish a railing. The checklist calls for guards on anything more than 30 inches up, with no gap a 4-inch ball can pass, and says plainly that lattice isn't permitted.
We pull the lattice and loose pickets and build a guard with balusters spaced under 4 inches, posts fastened into the framing, and a cap rail you can lean on. Stair runs with four steps or more get a handrail as well.
Porch and stair structureThe inspector looks for exterior damage that lets in weather or rodents. On a seventy-year-old house, that might be a split clapboard, a gap where trim has shrunk, or a hole by a dryer vent where the siding rotted back.
We cut out the damaged siding and sheathing, replace soft trim, and close the gaps with flashing, sealant and new boards. Vents and pipe openings get proper trim blocks so the wall stays sealed after the paint goes on.
Siding repairSelling a house here takes a sewer certificate from the municipal authority, with the request due 30 days ahead, and its tests may put dye down the downspouts and area drains. Sellers ask what to do about a downspout that disappears into the ground.
We find where it goes, then send the downspout to a splash block or a buried line that surfaces well clear of the house. With the gutters off, any rotted fascia and soffit gets replaced at the same visit.
Monroeville sewer certificationSome Monroeville lots fall in a landslide-prone overlay, and there, digging, filling or clearing waits on a registered professional's site study before the zoning permit. Owners rebuilding deck or porch footings ask whether that applies.
Before digging, we ask Building & Engineering whether your lot is mapped in it. If so, the study happens first and the footings follow what it finds. Either way, a plot plan or survey goes in with the application.
Monroeville slope rulesThe state maps confirmed mining beneath roughly 25% of the municipality, much of it near Monroeville Mall and along Route 22. A floor that leans could be a worn beam or the ground itself, and the cause matters before anyone spends money.
In the basement, we inspect the girder, columns and floor joists and put a level on the slope. Weak framing is doubled up or given fresh posts and footings, and anything that looks like ground movement is documented for your insurance company.
Sagging floors and joistsHousing ages: Census ACS 2020–2024 for the municipality. The four fifties plans: its 2005 comprehensive plan. Inspection items: the occupancy checklist (July 2021 edition).
The rest of the job
How it runs, what it costs and who builds it are on our main exterior restoration & structural repairs page.
Repairs in Monroeville
In Monroeville, an outside repair is shaped by the inspection each new occupant triggers, by zoning overlays on the steepest ground, and by mine workings under the busiest part of town.
No latticeOn guards, per the checklist
A home is inspected each time it changes occupants. Outside, the checklist covers through-bolted deck ledgers, guards with no 4-inch gaps, handrails at four steps, sound siding and 4-inch address numbers by the door. The Monroeville windows page covers the indoor side of the list.
Monroeville occupancy checklist25%+Slopes in the steep slope overlay
Two zoning overlays cover Monroeville's hillsides: one for steep slopes of 25% or more, another for ground prone to landslides, where a professional's site study comes before any digging. Our Monroeville additions page goes through both.
Monroeville slope rulesAbout 25%Of Monroeville over confirmed mining
DEP's layer shows old workings below about a fourth of Monroeville, clustered by the mall and the stretch of Route 22. A normal homeowners policy excludes subsidence. The Monroeville hub page has the map link.
Coal under MonroevilleRepair Questions
Owners and landlords ask these while we read through the inspector's notes together. How a full job unfolds is on our repair service page.
Ask a QuestionIt's priced after the damage is open and we've reached solid wood. Re-bolting a ledger or swapping a guard is modest; a deck rebuilt on new footings, or a sagging girder and its columns, is the larger end. The figure is written out before any work.
Repair price rangesEvery Building & Engineering application must include a plot plan or survey, so it can see setbacks and any overlay. A survey from your closing may already do the job. If you can't find one, we ask the department what it will accept before we apply.
Monroeville permitsWithin limits. An open porch can extend as much as 12 feet into a front or back yard at 15 feet tall or less, and a side stoop may sit up to 4 feet inside the side setback. We take measurements off your property lines so the plan fits before it's built.
Monroeville setbacksIf it meets the list, yes. That means guards on anything over 30 inches, no opening a 4-inch sphere fits through, no lattice, and a handrail on steps four high or taller. We build to those numbers and send you photos to share.
Porch and stair structureNot under a standard homeowners policy. Pennsylvania's mine subsidence program sells separate coverage, and it only helps if bought ahead of trouble. Near the mall or Route 22, a quick address search on the state map is worthwhile.
Coal under MonroevilleOther Services
Kitchens, baths, attic conversions, basement rooms, additions and new windows round out our Monroeville work, each linked below.
Kitchen RemodelingNew layouts, new cabinets, new counters: framed, built, and installed by the same crew.View Service
Bathroom RemodelingFull gut renovations with proper waterproofing, new framing, and tile set by hand.View Service
Attic FinishingUnused attics framed into bedrooms and offices: subfloor, insulation, drywall, and a proper stair.View Service
Basement FinishingUnfinished basements turned into real rooms: framed, insulated, drywalled, and finished by our crew.View Service
Additions & ADUsAdditions and accessory dwelling units (ADUs), framed from the ground up and tied in clean.View Service
Windows & Exterior DoorsWindows and exterior doors set, flashed, and trimmed so water stays out of the wall.View Service
Decks & Covered PatiosDecks, covered patios and three-season rooms, flashed to the house and built for Westmoreland winters.View ServiceVerified Google Reviews
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Written by the homeowners we've worked for across Westmoreland County. Every one verified on Google, every one pulled from the real feed.
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Trafford, PA 15085
