Leaking Roof

[happy2bretired]

My roof sprung a leak last night. I've called three places for an estimate and seems like all the roofers in town are very busy with all the rains that we have had lately. One said they were not taking any more business right now and to just keep calling roofers in the area.

Can anyone give me their opinions on how I should proceed with this little problem.

1. This isn't the first time this has happened. My husband tried to "fix" this leak (coming in at the bathroom exhaust vent on the roof) by using some foam stuff in a can. He also placed a piece of plastic in the attic to catch the water. Loved my husband, bless his heart, but he was not the best handyman.

2. I can't climb into the attic to see this myself so I don't know if the plastic is holding a gallon or two of water. Caught about a quart of water in a bowl last night so hard telling what's in that plastic.

3. The exhaust fan and the dry wall around the fan is wet.

4. I'm afraid of mold and the attic has loose insulation so, I keep imagining all this black stuff growing in my wet ceiling and attic. I do have an active imagination.

5. Should I involve the insurance company? I have no idea how much this would cost to have repaired so don't know if I should call the insurance company or not. The roof is only 9 years old.

Eventually I will have to have someone repair the ceiling and paint it but right now, I'm just not sure how to proceed with my wet ceiling and attic.

 

[Texas Proud]

First.... you have to get up on the roof to see what is the problem...

I had a leak... and it was because the, oh, what is the name... the flange or whatever had broken and was missing... so the pipe just shot out of the roof.... a nice hole for the water to pour...

If the flange is there... there, it should be UNDER the shingles that are above it and over the ones below.... so think how water flows and make sure that it goes from shingle to the flange to shingle... and nothing to pour into the house...

If you are missing shingle.... get some and a lot of tar.... you can tar down a shingle or two to do a temp fix... or just tar the heck out of the whole area...


How old is the roof? It could be that you actually have a problem at a different location and the water is just coming into the house at the hole in the wood....

You are right on some of your concerns.... but my sister had a leak for YEARS (BIL did not want to do anything about it).... she had the roof replaced earlier this year and no mold... some wood was rotten, but not as bad as I had thought...

 

[calmloki]

My roof sprung a leak last night. I've called three places for an estimate and seems like all the roofers in town are very busy with all the rains that we have had lately. One said they were not taking any more business right now and to just keep calling roofers in the area.

Can anyone give me their opinions on how I should proceed with this little problem.

1. This isn't the first time this has happened. My husband tried to "fix" this leak (coming in at the bathroom exhaust vent on the roof) by using some foam stuff in a can. He also placed a piece of plastic in the attic to catch the water. Loved my husband, bless his heart, but he was not the best handyman.

2. I can't climb into the attic to see this myself so I don't know if the plastic is holding a gallon or two of water. Caught about a quart of water in a bowl last night so hard telling what's in that plastic.

3. The exhaust fan and the dry wall around the fan is wet.

4. I'm afraid of mold and the attic has loose insulation so, I keep imagining all this black stuff growing in my wet ceiling and attic. I do have an active imagination.

5. Should I involve the insurance company? I have no idea how much this would cost to have repaired so don't know if I should call the insurance company or not. The roof is only 9 years old.

Eventually I will have to have someone repair the ceiling and paint it but right now, I'm just not sure how to proceed with my wet ceiling and attic.

DO NOT involve your insurance agency. Do not call them, do not think about them. Insurance agencies are very very sensitive about mold these days - (thanks California - thanks Katrina). You are liable to find that your policy excludes mold and that you get your policy canceled.
1. find the leak. eyes in the attic, 2nd person takes a hose up onto the roof and starting at the bottom, slowwwwwly floods the roof while moving up the roof toward the peak.
2. Fix leak. I'm a big fan of a product called Vulkem.
3. Put air and heat to the wet ceiling. If you do see black mold starting, dab it with bleach.
4. Curb your imagination.

 

[travelover]

If it is indeed the exhaust fan vent, this is relatively easy to replace - it is a standard part that you can buy at the big box stores. Don't get sold a whole new roof over a little cracked flashing.

 

[Walt34]

Talk to relatives, neighbors, friends and ask for a roofer recommendation for a permanent fix or handyman to do a temporary fix. If the roof is only 9 years old this is probably not going to need a whole roof replacement. Make sure they have insurance for their employees.

What is potentially more serious is how long this leak has been going on and where the water has been going, and the only way to find out is get up in there and look. Depending on where you are attics usually get pretty hot, and therefore dry, at least half the year so mold probably won't have much of a start. More likely is that some wood has rotted and will need replacement. This does not mean you'll have to have the entire roof structure replaced... trying to curb imagination there... more likely fewer than half a dozen wood parts.

I gather from context that you getting up in there is not an option so you'll have to trust somebody.

Don't call the insurance company. This is probably not covered anyway since it is normal maintenance.

 

[happy2bretired]

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your replies.

No, I haven't called the insurance company...glad I didn't now. It does get hot in the attic so maybe that's a good thing with this problem.

I'm going to print out these replies and have them handy when I get someone to come take a look at it. I have a fan blowing on the dry wall now.

I really need to work on my imagination tho...it does tend to get away from me sometimes.

Thank you so much!

 

[Moemg]

Happy 2bretired , It's scarey when you first start to deal with all the problems by yourself. Find a good handyman . It's like having a husband that you don't have to cook or clean for and sex is optional .

 

[happy2bretired]

Happy 2bretired , It's scarey when you first start to deal with all the problems by yourself. Find a good handyman . It's like having a husband that you don't have to cook or clean for and sex is optional .

Yeah...it is. You can feel pretty lost sometimes dealing with things that the husband always handled. It's a whole new area for me. My yard guy is really good doing extra things for me, but right now he is pretty tied down with yard work so I don't want to bother him with this.

I'm glad the sex is optional.

 

[Moemg]

.

I'm glad the sex is optional.

If he looks like this I'd go for it !

 

[FreeAtLast]

Roof

I had some roof tile damage(so I thought) during huricane Wilma in Florida. I had a roof repair company replace broken tiles and glue down the other loose problems. Problem Solved.....until the summer rains came.

Other neighbors were all getting new roofs which made me feel a bit uneasy about my decision. Finally the summer rains came and the leaks started in several rooms. I called the insurance company, they got the expert opinion of a roofer and told me I needed a new roof. The new roof was about 40k. I ended up paying my deductable of $500. The also paid for interior damage and the first repairs that I did to try to fix the roof.

 

[FreeAtLast]

I fogot to mention, my insurance company had already canceled my policy because they were reducing their risk in Florida after Katrina so I did not have to worry about insurance getting cancelled. I did the initial repair myself to avoid being cancelled just after a hurricane. They canceled me anyway so I figured might as well file the claim.

 

[happy2bretired]

Moemg!! Actually, he does a little. But, he's my niece's hubby!!!

I was hoping that during some of our many storms this spring that we would get a good hail storm. I would have involved my insurance for sure with a good hail storm. I wouldn't want my skylight to break tho. Wow, I hope my roof doesn't cost any $40K when it comes time to replace it. I know it won't since I have such a small uncomplicated roof line.

I called two places today and they are supposed to be calling me back. We'll see if they call tomorrow.

 

[happy2bretired]

Update on my leaking roof....

I called two companies in the yellow pages yesterday. One company had a full page ad with the BBB, bonded, fully insured and had been in business since 1963. That was the company that called me this morning.

Very friendly guy came by and he even knew how to use sign language...I don't tho.... Anyway, he found a hole close to the vent and patched it. I asked about the wood and he said it was a little soft but should be ok. I asked how long it would be before I needed a new roof and he said probably about 10 years.

When he was done, he handed me his business card with a phone number and told me to call if it started to leak again. If it did, he would crawl into my attic and do more.

Now the really good part. I asked him how much.... He said...."nothing it's free". I said..."why?" he said "why not?".... Oh, the good 'ol midwest.

Hope it works (supposed to be getting more bad weather today) but, if not, I have a roofing company now.

 

[Walt34]

If he looks like this I'd go for it !

How did my picture get here?

 

[Nords]

Now the really good part. I asked him how much.... He said...."nothing it's free". I said..."why?" he said "why not?".... Oh, the good 'ol midwest.
Hope it works (supposed to be getting more bad weather today) but, if not, I have a roofing company now.

He must be getting paid from the marketing budget-- which seems to be getting its money's worth!

 

[happy2bretired]

He must be getting paid from the marketing budget-- which seems to be getting its money's worth!

Yep...maybe...he really caught a customer this morning. Hope they are still in business in another 10 years.

 

[haha]

I'm glad the sex is optional.

I knew a woman who lived a posh life in Beverly Hills, married to a RE developer/state assemblyman. She fell for her Jamaican yard man and they started an affair. Her hubby was too busy to notice, but eventually the lovers wanted the blessings of matrimony for their life together, and she filed for divorce. DH outed them during the run-up to the divorce settlement, and she got very little.

He was a super guy, and their marriage lasted quite a while. But there were strains, interestingly the main one didn't seem to be her new down-market lifestyle, but rather her growing interest in New Agey Space Cadet ways of looking at life. Given DH's beliefs and experiences in Santeria this kind of freaked him out. Basically, he didn't want her calling in any evil spirits which he considered to be a real risk with her religious practices.

They ultimately parted, but remained good friends and very respectful of one another.

So I guess anything can happen, and it sometimes it may even be for the best.

Ha

 

[happy2bretired]

I knew a woman who lived a posh life in Beverly Hills, married to a RE developer/state assemblyman. She fell for her Jamaican yard man and they started an affair. Her hubby was too busy to notice, but eventually the lovers wanted the blessings of matrimony for their life together, and she filed for divorce. DH outed them during the run-up to the divorce settlement, and she got very little.

He was a super guy, and their marriage lasted quite a while. But there were strains, interestingly the main one didn't seem to be her new down-market lifestyle, but rather her growing interest in New Agey Space Cadet ways of looking at life. Given DH's beliefs and experiences in Santeria this kind of freaked him out. Basically, he didn't want her calling in any evil spirits which he considered to be a real risk with her religious practices.

They ultimately parted, but remained good friends and very respectful of one another.

So I guess anything can happen, and it sometimes it may even be for the best.

Ha

I love the stories that people tell on this board. People have such a varied life from what I have. Hmmm, maybe my niece's husband will stop doing yard work and I'll have to find me someone else who looks like Walt34. Still glad the sex is optional tho.

 

[Texas Proud]

Great update!!!!

Seems kind of like Discount Tire patching holes in tires for free... even if you did not buy them there.... makes you feel like you owe them something when the BIG $$$s come up... and guess what... I usually do buy from them as long as they are not way off price... and they usually are not...