new construction

[CC]

My home is 1 year old. There was a storm about a month ago and the power was out for several hours. I woke up to a flooded basement. The floor was flooded all around the inside perimiter of my basement floor, while the middle was dry, with the exception of a couple cracks in the middle of the floor that were wet on both sides of the cracks. Two days later we had more rain, when I checked the basement I saw water running over the top of the foundation under a bay window. I was told it was impossible for water to be coming over the top of the foundation.
I had the siding guy take off the siding by the bay to discover the foundation was mispoured the wall was angled, so the sill plate was adjusted to try to make the bay square, but there was no sill sealer in the bay area and in a couple of other spotted areas around the house, but the majority does have the sealer (also the lumbar in the wall of the bay had to be angled to fit properly, since it was off). The poured concrete walls on the inside foundation of the bay does have some cracks. The joists in that area are proped up with a makeshift lumber block so that they touch the ceiling (1st level floor), although there is still a gap it doesn't quite meet, you can run a card through the gap without touching the ceiling or the top of the support beams (if you sit on the couch on the main level, and someone walks by you could feel the movement on the couch- I was told the floor should have an allowance for movement).
Are these problems major? Can the area's without sill sealing be taken care of with caulk alone or is there a better fix.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Chris

[Rich]

First off.. unless you have 8" or more standing water you should not get water running over the top of the foundation. Nothing you do at this point is going to be more than just a patch. All the caulk in the world will not protect the rim joist from being hit by water. Which eventually will deteriorate because of it. In many areas it's code to have the top of the foundation no less than 6" above final grade.
I hate to be the doomsayer.. but this is just my diagnosis without actually seeing the foundation and knowing where the grade actually is. There could be other issues with no perimeter drain or waterproofing of the foundation.. etc..etc.

[CC]

I measured from the top of the soil to the top of the foundation by the bay and it measures 4.5" - 5". I have 4 days left until I am here 1 year. Would there be anything I could ask the builder to do that would be covered under a warranty. What if the height of the foundation above the soil is not to code? Is sill sealer code? Is there anything else I should do. What signs do I look for that there would be damage to the rim joist and how long would it take to be visible? Is a rim joist the same as a floor joist? Wouldn't the inspector notice the missing sill sealer? If they caulk the inside and outside where the sealer is missing how would the rim joist get wet? I apologize for all the questions but I am not familiar with construction, but seriously need a crash course. Is there a way to test the perimeter drain (I was told if there is a power outage and the sump pump is not working, water will come through the inside perimeter floor because the sump pump wouldn't drain the water, and the water would sit in the drain tiles, is this true? I believe that was the case with the flooding, because the water I saw coming over the top of the foundation could not have flowed around and settled at the inside floor walls. I think they are 2 seperate problems. The foundation I was told was damp proofed. I apreciate the help!
Chris

[CC]

The village super of building inspection (the one who told me it was impossible for water to come over the top of the foundation) had told me that if I ever see water coming over the top again that I should call him and he would come over, he would like to see it. So I called him to let him know about the mispour - angled wall, off centered sill plate, and the missing sill sealer, and that this could be the reason for the water coming in over the top. I explained that the builder wanted to caulk the inside and outside where the sealer was missing, and asked him if he thought this was ok. His response was that the sill sealer is not needed, it is only for air quality, and that caulk would be fine and I was getting more than most people would get. Wow did his tune change. Today is marks the 1yr for the home warranty, I did go to the construction trailer and have them print me out the issues that are still open, I wasn't even surprised to find out they didn't know what I was talking about when I pointed out these issues were not documented. I wrote them down, had her make a photocopy for me so I knew they were aware of them, and got her name.
I have had soooo many problems with this house I wish I had never moved. I would have done better investing my money in the stock market. If anyone has any advice I could really use it.
Chris

[Rich]

You've done the first step (although it would've been better a year ago) and that's get some documentation that you've made them aware of it.
Did they sign the piece of paper stating they received it?
Now take your list of issues and put a date next to each of them with a signature block.. essentially a schedule of when you will allow them back in your home to fix the problems. Make it professional with an opening paragraph such as "Dear Sirs: Please find attached a list of the most recent warranty items that have not been completed. Behind each item is a date when my home will be available for you to enter and fix the issue. When completed please sign and date each item and fax/mail/hand to me." etc..etc.