The Fact About Roofs
You can't have too many roofing systems in your inventory without dealing with leaks. If you rehab, you anticipate to find ceiling spots, the tell tale indication of a leaking roofing system, in practically every project. I discover tasks without signs of past or present leakages the exception to the norm!
Sometimes shingles are simply going to require replaced. There is no navigating it. Curled shingles, and various leakages are a pretty good indicator that it would be less expensive to replace the roof rather than repair work. Simply factor that into the repair Fix-It Right Plumbing work and accept it. It's something you won't have to worry about if you are keeping the property, and it ups the value whether you keep it or offer it on the retail market after the rehabilitation.
If the shingles still have some life on them, however there is some leak to fix, finding the real source of the issue can take several tries. It can get quite aggravating as you in some cases attempt and fail to fix a leaking roof. Naturally, you wish to try to repair this without calling out a costly expert roofing contractor. Often you can, often you can't. Here are some ideas for detecting roofing leaks.
-- I find that in the course of a rehab, it's always "excellent" to have an extended duration of heavy rains. That way, any and all leaks become evident. If you have a home that is not inhabited, or that is not being actively rehabbed after a duration of prolonged rains, go see and look for indications of leakages. If you can visit while it's still drizzling, that's the number one, best time to investigate leaks from inside the attic.
-- Get a mini flashlight that goes into a small belt holster and make that part of your typical clothes. You will use it all the timefor more than searching in attics! It's great for pipes, under cabinets, and so on. Make it part of the "uniform."
-- The garden hose-- a rehabber's pal. In a recent task of mine, the roofing system was fairly new yet I had a ceiling stain in the kitchen. We 'd believed it was all looked after in 2 tries, so we patched the ceiling, used stain block, and textured over the area. Then came the rains, and the circular and symmetrical area was back! I 'd had just about enough so I climbed up onto the roof, garden hose pipe in hand, and stationed my handyman in the attic. In less than a minute of hosing down the roofing we discovered the extremely tiny hole that was the culprit. A dab of tar below and above the shingle and viola! Problem fixed. The small hole was triggering water to drip straight onto the ceiling drywall, hence the Fix-It Right Plumbing reviews circular stain.
-- Expect stain patterns. The pattern can use you hints. When you stumble upon a circular ceiling stain, there's a good chance the leak is dripping directly onto the ceiling dry wall from above. Put a nail in the center of the stain and get into the attic and look straight above the nail and you may just find the issue. If you do this in intense daylight, a spec of light may be noticeable, which would make the repair work a little easier. Even if you find a hole, I still advise the garden hose trick to see if there are other issues to fix.
If the stain is small and circular, it generally implies the quantity of water is smalllucky you. If the stain area is bigger, it might still be a simple fix especially if it is a single hole. If there suffices rain making onto the ceiling drywall, it will pool and take in. This will make it look like a massive leakage, when it may be a one-shingle repair (plus some new ceiling drywall). The garden pipe technique will quickly inform you if the issue is a single hole, or your roofing system resembles Swiss cheese.
Stains that appear along a line might show that water is draining along a rafter or truss. Check that rafter beginning with the leading looking for indications of water. The source might be a single hole that is sending out thin down the rafter making several discolorations show up in a line.
-- Isolating the leakage. Be aware of the ridgeline. When you are inspecting a residential or commercial property, understand the direction the roof ridgeline runs as you check the interior. If you encounter a ceiling stain towards the middle of your home near where the ridgeline is above you, the source of the water is much easier to isolate. Water doesn't stream up! So, the suspect location extends from approximately the stain location, up to the ridgeline. In many cases, that's a lot less roof to investigate.
-- Valleys are frequently the culprit when it concerns leaky roofs. I especially find this in property that has actually been disregarded or vacant for long periods of time. Really often the problem is triggered since leaves have collected in the valley. These leaves hold moisture which rots the shingles and underlying ply with time. Depending on the degree of the rot, the repair work can vary from changing ply and shingles to wiping the leaves and letting it dry. Understand your roof valleys and keep them clear!
With roofing system leakages, there are no short cuts. It's simpler and less expensive in the long run to aggressively diagnose the leakage issue and seek surprise leaks that just haven't soaked through the ceiling drywall yet. Don't assume that once you discover one hole in the roofing, or a split shingle that the problem is repaired. Get that hose pipe out and verify it! There is something about climbing up in an attic and on a roof that isn't fun to re-do.