Five Signs Your Carport Needs Replacing

It’s a great idea, the carport. It gives a degree of shelter and protection while only really being a floor, a roof and an extra wall: minimal construction costs and maintenance requirements. It has many of the attributes of a garage but is a lot cheaper.

As with any structure though, it will eventually reach the stage where it needs replacing. Here are the key signs that something major needs to be done.

Rot and Decay

If there is wood involved in the structure, sooner or later it will deteriorate. Unfortunately, so can concrete, particularly if water gets into it. Melbourne’s climate throws all sorts at a building, cooking it in the sun and dowsing it with rain, which can eventually break down many materials.

If the roof is made of some kind of corrugated substance, particularly iron, with the delicate coating of zinc that makes it galvanised but gives only short-lived protection against rust, you will want to replace it even before it starts leaking. Whoever constructed the carport for you should have given you a rough timeline for it. 

PVC is artificial but will also need replaced after a certain number of years, and you may decide that you should tackle the whole structure while you’re at it.

Subsidence

There is no accounting for nature and her movements. While sinkholes are a relatively rare occurrence, simple natural subsidence is much more common and if the earth settles beneath your carport, it may not have the strength to cope with it. 

The main building may have the foundations to make it immune to a little movement, but a carport is a less substantial structure, so it may be vulnerable. If you find cracks in the floor or it seems to slope when it should be absolutely horizontal, something is happening down there that needs to be dealt with.

It is Pulling Away From the House

The whole idea of the carport is that it is essentially a lean-to taking advantage of an existing wall. The join needs to be tight and waterproof to prevent damage, so you should check the seal from time to time and if there is even slight movement, get it repaired. If the gap is more substantial, you may have to replace the whole thing. 

Damage by Termites

These pests have no respect for a building, and while you may be more concerned about keeping them away from the actual house, if they start on your car port, they are too close for comfort. Look for the telltale signs of termites: dust, hollowed-out wood and uneven surfaces.

When Maintenance Exceeds the Cost of Building a New One

Maintenance is good for all buildings, so it’s best to be out there cleaning, painting and applying sealant once a year. But when it gets to the stage where you’re spending serious amounts at the hardware store, it may be time to call it a day and get the thing rebuilt.

The message really is that a carport performs a good service – as long as it is structurally sound. When that integrity is compromised, your car’s little safe zone should be treated with the same seriousness as the rest of the property. After all, the fact that they are relatively cheap to construct means it’s something you can deal with more easily than other parts of the property. Reach out to Outdoor Indesign today!