roof leak after days of rain

[Sam Seagate]

I live in the Northeast and we've just had several days of almost continuous rain. Unfortunately, when I went into the laundry room of the house today, I happened to notice some water on top of the paper towel package I keep there. It wasn't much considering all the rain we've had, probably 1/10 of an ounce if I were to label it, but I do see the area of the roof that was stained with water. There is no attic in the laundry room, so I can look right up at the roofing rafters. The area is quite small and already dry. I quick peak at the area on the roof itself and I don't see anything suspect, no broken or damaged shingles that I can see.

This roof is 10 years old and hasn't leaked so far, but I am a bit concerned, especially since there doesn't appear to be anything obvious. I'd appreciate any tips as to what I should check and look for. Once the weather clears, I'll try and post a photo of the area but the weather is still inclement at this time.

Thanks for any help, Sam

[Don Y]

In NE, chances are you've a (steeply) peaked roof. Note that the leak will be somewhere *above* the point where the water "dripped" down. It is seldom *exactly* at that location. If the drip is on the "left" side of the roof peak, then your leak will be on the left of the peak -- but closer to the peak (by some amount).

Do you have a ridge vent? Driving rain can exploit this "hole" (slot) in your roof.

If you had high winds/driving rain, remember that water can flow

*up*, under the shingles. Most asphalt shingles are designed with a dab of tar to seal them to the course beneath. Over time, (and temperature, brittleness, etc.) this "tackiness" isn't always enough.

In any case, you will probably want it resolved before winter and ice starts lifting shingles and "growing" defects.

[Ken]

In addition to the advice others have given, look at the boots around stack vents. I had a leak that only showed up during excessive rain due to the stack vent having dropped slightly in the attic. That caused a dimple to form around the stack vent boot and it caused water to accumulate in that dimple. It was easy to understand once it was found, but not at all obvious while searching for it.

[Don Y]

Each year, I examine our roof for "problem areas". We have:

- vent stacks for kitchen and two bathrooms

- exhaust fans for kitchen and bathrooms

- water heater and furnace exhaust

- water heater and furnace combustion reliefs

- several "wire entries" (CATV to interior walls)

- downdraft cooler air inlet

- water line for swamp cooler

- 220VAC supply for cooler plus "signal control"

- a few skylights

- 6 or 8 large "roof vents" on the high side (flat roof) of the roof

I.e., we have lots of places where the roof has been intentionally perforated. Each of these represents an opportunity for a leak to develop.

Many years ago, after watching problems neighbors were FREQUENTLY having (often being conned into replacing their entire roofs!), I learned that *removing* much of the old "patch"/sealant in each of these places BEFORE applying "new" leads to greater roof integrity.

But, it's a fair bit of work -- the "patch" compound isn't designed to come *off* easily! :-/

[micky]

I bought my house in May when it was 4 years old, and woke up Thanksgiving morning to see water dripping from the bedroom ceiling.

Rain was coming in around the metal fireplace chimney. The previous owner had tried to caulk (with silicone) from the inside, into a deep cone, and there's no chance that's going to work. I went on the roof and caulked from the outside with some black roofing caulk, and everything was fine until I got a new roof 20 years later.

By then I'd noticed that the metal drip collar that goes around a round metal chimney was missing entirely from that chimney, though the furnace chimney had one. A couple of my townhouse neighbors were mssing one also.

Boy, was it hard to buy one. I forget where all I looked -- hardware stores -- but ended up 20 miles north of here at a fireplace store in Westminster. Especially strange since there's only one model that fits all diameters (if you cut the main part as narrow as the leading tab for chimneys my size. Allow an hour or two to do that if your compulsively precise. ) I'm sure it works as well as fixed diameter ones, it's just a two inch skirt to get the water to fall on the roof away from chimney.

I know there's no special reason to suspect your chimney, but since I found this catalog, here it is,

Even this place doesn't have it!!!!! It has storm collars 3, 4, 5, 6,

7, and 8" diameter, but I think my chimney's a lot bigger, and also these have to slide on from the top. On old work, you'd have to remove the cap. What I wanted wrapped around like a belt and then bent back to fasten.

It's not like they don't make it. Why is it so hard to find?

Years earlier, when the metal chimney cap broke off and wouldn't stay on anymore, others had the same problem and no one sold the original cap, w which was attractive. The new one is less wide and looks funny, in comparison.

Take a look at the unusual saw on page 37,

13 amps.

[Sam Seagate]

Thanks. I read the others posts here along with yours. There is not a chimney or commode vent pipe above the area, but a ridge vent was made when the roof was reapplied ten years ago. Previous to that, there was no roof vent. Chances are, it may have come from that. In addition to the rain, we've also been having lots of gusty winds so it could be that the wind drove the rain in/thru the venting.

[Don Y]

Exactly. A neighbor had "evidence" of a leak just inside the *exterior* wall of his home. Water had, in fact, been driven into the ridge vent and traveled down the rafters until it got to the outside wall -- where it could go no further and decided to manifest.

Of course, you may have a leak around a nail hole, etc. But, don't rule out the vent as a "non leak" source of problem.

[Sam Seagate]

I was going to mention that. Somewhat near the area, perhaps a little above, I did notice an exposed nail. I'm not sure whether or not I should be seeing any because I thought nails were only underneath of the shingles.

[Don Y]

Nails should be covered by the course above. Typically (third cut asphalt shingles), you drive a *roofing* nail (verify!) in on each end of the shingle (a couple of inches in from each end and about an inch above the highest point of the "slot" that separates each of the three tabs). Then, two more nails, one above each of those slots.

As the lower edge of the course above should come down to the tops of those slots, these nails will be covered by that course (unless the shingles start to "curl" with age and "creep up" to expose the nail heads). There's usually a blob of tar on the shingle to cause the two courses to adhere to each other to encourage the tabs to stick to the course below.

My experience with water have left me thinking it is *sneaky* and often does things that *seem* impossible!

[DerbyDad03]

Before I had my roof replaced, I had trouble with "nail pops" causing leaks. Occasionally, a roofing nail would work its way out and would eventually cut right through the shingle that used to cover it. It wasn't the curling of the tab that exposed the head, it was the nail head itself ripping right through the shingle.

To repair it, I'd lift the tab, remove the loose nail and put roofing tar under the tab so that it oozed up through the hole that the nail had made, sealing it. I did this a couple of times a year until I finally decided it was time for a new roof and gutters, plus soffit vents, a ridge vent, insulation baffles, etc. It was a big expense, but it was done right and now my attic is cooler in the summer so I'm not cooking the new roof from underneath.

[Tekkie®]

Uncle Monster posted for all of us...

About 6" of weatherstrip adhesive will do the trick.