Anyone have an experience like this? Worth pursuing in court?
I live in a condo in the mountains build in 1984. It is very cold in the winter. The bottom floor of the 2 story condo stays very cold in the winter even though the heater works great and the fire is roaring. The problem is there is a 10 foot crawl space with ventilation beneath the bottom floor. Cold air permeates thru the floor. You can really feel it.
I have had my heater inspected (its working good), covered my windows with thermal plastic, and re-sealed my front door. I also had a thermal analysis done with pictures and you can see the cold air coming thru the floor.
Further, I found the only entrance to the crawl space was in the closet of my unit. I went down to take a look. I found R-19 batted insulation.
Notes:
1. Local code says floor joists require R-19.
2. The walls of a crawl space require R-19. However, the walls are not currently covered.
3. At least one renovation was done prior to me buying the unit. A pipe broke and no one was home. Flooded the floor.
The HOA provided the covenants at closing that said these key statements:
1. They are responsible for things beyond the finished surface.
2. Floor joist insulation must be blown to meet R-30
3. No declaration was given that the insulation in the crawl space did not meet their own regulations.
The Rub: They say they are not responsible for upgrade. Further, their attorney provided a general statement saying they cannot be held responsible because I had the opportunity to inspect it and status of limitations is 6yrs.
I had a certified inspection done. My inspection was up to the finished surfaces. I have no need to inspect areas that are beyond the finished surfaces. They are are not my responsibility.