How to Locate a Roof Leak
If there is a leak in your house, you will know. And, if on the slight chance you don’t know if you have a leak, this blog will help you to not only locate the leaks, but also find solutions to them. The trick with leaks is that they are often small. However, even the smallest hole can cause damage to your home, your roof, and cause outbreaks of mold. Mold is a serious problem for homeowners here in Edmonton, where roof repairs can go neglected, leading to a growing (literally) problem!
Where There Is a Leak, There Is Mold
The easiest way to locate a leak is by checking for mold spots; where there is mold, there is moisture. Now, this moisture can come from a manner of different scenarios. Regardless of how the mold got into your house — either from a leak, poor ventilation, or even just high humidity levels — no matter what the reason for the mold, you must attend to it immediately. The good news is, once you find mold, you can begin to test your roof to prove whether or not the culprit is a leak or something else entirely.
Hose Down Your Roof
If you are looking for a leak, the best way is to hose down your roof. But, wait. If you have a leak, why does it make sense to put more water on your roof? Well, actually, the best way to detect a leak is to put water on your roof and see if it has any leaks. Sounds silly, but this way you will be able to see where the leak is and how much water is seeping through the roof. If you have an idea where a leak might be, going on your roof with a garden hose is still a sound plan. When dousing your roof, you will want to soak the area just above where the leak appears in the house. The most common areas for leaks are in the corners of your chimney, also known as flashing. So, the best course of action would be to let your hose run downward beside the chimney. You also will want to soak all areas of the chimney, such as the front, back, and sides. The best way to do this test is by staying on the roof and watching where the water is soaking into the roof. You then need a helper to stay inside the house and watch for leaks. If your “spotter” doesn’t see any other leaks, you may have to try different methods of finding the leak. Just because it is not a leak in the areas around the chimney, does not mean there isn’t a leak. You will just have to try other methods to test for a leak.
Water Stains
If you have water stains that are extended from your ceilings to your walls, you probably have a leaking roof. Roof leak repair is a lot simpler once the leak has been located. However, looking for the leak and only having stains to go by is difficult. The good news is stains can be easier to track if you have the proper knowledge. For one, if you live in a cold climate and only get leaks on the warmer or sunnier days of the winter, you most likely have ice dams. Ice dams form at the edge of a roof and prevent snow from draining off the roof once it has melted. Because of this added build-up of water, the water has nowhere to drain and seeps into your home, specifically into the ceiling and walls.
If you have checked your drains and there are no dams, you will want to inspect the stains themselves. To find the location of the leak from the roof, you will have to look for the stains “uphill” on the roof. That means you will need to be higher on the roof when you are trying to locate where the leak is causing the stains.
Penetrations
If you cannot find the leak after looking at the stains and soaking your roof. The next best course of action is by looking for penetrations in the roof. It is very rare that a leak would occur when the shingles have not been disturbed. Normally, leaks will happen when there is a man-made hole in the shingles themselves. This can be from, “plumbing and roof vents, chimneys, dormers or anything else that projects through the roof.” Also, penetrations can vary to non-protective items as well. Branches, rocks, and other foreign items can cause damage to your roof. Anything with the power to puncture your roof and its shingles can cause a leak.
Sargeant’s Roofing Services
At Sargeant’s Roofing Services, we give residents here in our hometown of Edmonton the very best in roof leak repair. If you are currently battling to find the location of a leak, we can help you find it. If you have found where the water is seeping in, contact us today. Whether you have a cedar or asphalt roof, our technicians are here to help!