Case Study · SB 326 · CSLB #1060736
Wood-to-Composite Balcony Decking Replacement for an HOA Community — Morgan Hill
32 balconies moved from painted wood to capped composite decking after SB 326 findings — with the framing under the new boards protected, because composite ends surface upkeep but does not keep water off the joists.
Balcony RepairProject facts
- Location
- Morgan Hill, CA
- Service
- Balcony Repair & Restoration
- Property
- Hillside HOA townhome community, two- and three-story buildings
- Units
- 32
- Client
- HOA board
- Scope
- 32 balconies re-decked in composite · joist protection · door sills re-flashed · composite fascia on outer edges · existing railings reinstalled
- Timeline
- 7 weeks · residents in place
- Completed
- Q3 2026
- Budget range
- $260k–$330k
01 The situation
The challenge
The association’s SB 326 report flagged the balconies for decayed decking in two specific places. The first was along the sliding-door sills: rain ran down the glass and collected against the wall, and the board ends there had split and gone soft. The second was the outer edge: the paint had peeled off the wood trim in strips, and the wood underneath was splintering around the bases of the railing posts. The open middle of each deck was weathered but much less damaged.
The board also had a cost goal. Repainting and resealing the wood decks every few years had become a recurring line in the budget, and they wanted a surface that would not need it. Composite decking does that for the surface. It does not protect the framing: water still drains between the boards onto the joists. Laying new boards without fixing the joists, the sills and the outer edge would have left the damage the report flagged in place under a new surface.
02 Execution
What we did
We changed the surface and corrected the two places where water was getting into the wood:
Removed the wood decking on each balcony and replaced or sistered every joist that was water-damaged
Covered the top of every joist with butyl joist-protection tape, so the water that drains between composite boards does not soak into the framing
Re-flashed each sliding-door sill with a pan that laps over the deck, and set the first board with a gap from the wall so water drains away from the door
Installed capped composite decking at the joist spacing the manufacturer requires, wrapped the outer edge in composite fascia, and reinstalled the existing aluminum railings on solid blocking — they were in good condition and match the community’s approved design
03 Outcome
The result
Every balcony now has a composite surface that does not need repainting or sealing, on framing that is protected from the water that drains through it. The door sills and outer edges — the two places the report flagged — were corrected so water leaves the balcony instead of collecting there. The balcony findings were closed with photo documentation for the association’s SB 326 file, and keeping the existing railings held down cost and kept every building on the same design.
Results at a glance
- 32 balconies re-decked with capped composite
- Decayed joists replaced or sistered, every joist covered with protection tape
- Door sills re-flashed and outer edges rebuilt in composite fascia
- Existing railings reinstalled — no new railing cost
What the client received
- Repair documentation for the association's SB 326 file
- Photo record of joist, sill and edge conditions on every balcony
- Composite manufacturer's warranty plus our workmanship warranty
- One decking color and trim detail approved for the whole community
Transformation
Before & After
Door sill
Outer edge
“We wanted to stop repainting the balconies every few years. They also fixed the joists and the door sills, which new boards alone would not have done.”
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