Uh oh! Leaky roof?

Just the other day, I noticed a 12″ spot on the ceiling that indicated to me that there is a leak in my roof. It’s not damp, but it’s discolored. I had no problems last year and this year up until recently. The roof is 5 years old, and was in good shape when I had it inspected in June of 2007.

I bought a roof rake and cleared the area off yesterday ( can’t visibly see an ice dam) and plan on climbing into the attic this weekend (if I can fit through the hole). What should I look for and more importantly, what should I do?

Ralph;
Stickboy doesn’t live that far from you. I would give him a call direct.

Where is the spot in relation to your chimney?? That is usually the spot that will give you trouble, especially if the roof is only 5 yrs old. Water can come in around a chimney, vent or vent pipe and run down a rafter and drop off below the actual leak. Just something to look for.

Check insulation in the roof area. Often times ice dams are caused by warm air getting out, melting a spot of snow, and then refreezing when it gets farther down the roof slope. Adding insulation will help.

It’s no where near a chimney. It’s right on the edge of an outside wall.

Thanks, guys.

Sometimes it’s not your roof leaking but a frost line. What happens is when we get a real long cold spell you will have frost build up where warm and cold air may meet and it forms a frost line, when temps warm up a little than it melts and appears as a leak. If you don’t find tracks from a roof leak look for weak spot in your insulation where air and humidity can frost up during real long cold spell.

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Sometimes it’s not your roof leaking but a frost line. What happens is when we get a real long cold spell you will have frost build up where warm and cold air may meet and it forms a frost line, when temps warm up a little than it melts and appears as a leak. If you don’t find tracks from a roof leak look for weak spot in your insulation where air and humidity can frost up during real long cold spell.

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I would suspect the same or something similiar. This year in particular there have been more condensation issues too.
If you didn’t have an all out ice dam than I don’t worry about that too much, especially if the roof was done in the last 10 years or so. Protective measures should be in place to eliminate all but the worst of ice dam intrusion.
Get in the attic and look for a trail, if none is apparent, than its most likely a frost line issue or condensation. With the extended period of cold weather we had, warm air and moisture intrude the attic space. Thats normal, but with anything but the best ventilation for that extended period of time, it can freeze to the underside of the roof deck and build up alot without a thaw. When we get these warm days they melt off and if there was alot it will find its way into the interior.

So, as far as the ceiling goes, is it as simple as a prime & paint to cover it up? The spot’s not mushy at all.

We had something similar last weekend when it warmed up for a day. The wife noticed some moisture on the floor. It was along the wall but actually water dripping through our sliding glass door trim. I pulled the trim. Water stopped dripping and dried out. No damage. I will an inspect when it warms up a little more.

If your ceiling is not mushy, then you can repaint. You will need a special primer to cover the water spot. The brand is Zinsner(sp?). Go to an actual paint store and ask about this. Over the years, I’ve seen a lot of these spots that were not primed properly and they always show up again.

Kilnz too? as primer

if you use Kilz dont use the water based stuff its junk use the odorless Kilz

the other stuff is Zinsser 123 and that also works good, but it dose stink a little

Just got out of the attic. I don’t really know what to look for, but I didn’t see any obvious leaks. There were some frost spots with condensation, though.

I’ll keep an eye on it and go from there.

PS–a 45 year old attic is a bit nasty

Frost spots = add insulation.

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Frost spots = add insulation.

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I was actually surprised that there is a ton of insulation up there.

Is the insulation even in thickness? Also, Kilz does not work like Zisnser. Look to the outer edges of the walls and be sure the insulation is as thick as possible. Otherwise, this is where the heat loss is occurring.

Everything that has been said so far is accurate with the exeption of needing to add insulation (possibly). When you find frost “spots” in an attic, rather than large frosted areas, it usually means you have warm air leaks into the attic. I noticed you said the house is 45 years old. Very likely, items like vent fans, light openings, recess lights were never cauked to air seal them. Most people never know how much energy is lost as well as how much condensation takes place in the attic where hot air escapes.

Most of the roof leaks our warranty department responds to is only condensation. Once you get over an R-50 in an attic, adding more doesn’t give you much in the way of returns. Plus, the dew point will will be at some level in the insulation. The key to not have condensation at the dew point is to not have air transfer through it.

If you do have a leak or condensation on the underneath side of the roof sheathing, it will appear discolored and obvious.

As for painting the discolored spot, make sure it is completely dry before applying Zinser product!

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Just got out of the attic. I don’t really know what to look for, but I didn’t see any obvious leaks. There were some frost spots with condensation, though.

I’ll keep an eye on it and go from there.

PS–a 45 year old attic is a bit nasty

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If condensation is present than you need to address the ventilation of the attic. A correct amount of intake and exhaust.
Yes there may be a infiltration issue, ie, heat loss into attic, but the best way to combat that is to get that moist air out of the attic quickly. Do you think the attic is ventilatilated properly? Most of the time there is enough exhaust vents but not enough or plugged/blocked intake in the soffits.
Typically this is not as big of an issue as it has been this year with all of the sub freezing temps.

I agree with ER…I would make sure there are plenty of soffit & roof vents to allow airflow in attic to exhaust. This will help in the summer too and if vented properly your roof will last longer.

I’ve seen some homes that are so full of insulation that they had blown insulation over the soffit vents and created a problem with moisture buildup in attic. They have to be able to breathe.

I would recommend 1sf of vent per 150-200sf of attic floor space. You can go to some shingle manufacturer websites and find their recommendations also.

good luck

Iknew a roof guy would post for use new young home owners! Thanks guys. I learn somethjing new on here daily!

Ive done my fair share of inspecting and repairing those moisture problems and ventilation is probably the problem. When people blow cellulose into an attic they don’t put in the vent chutes that go in between the rafters. It’s very important to have ventilation so any exhaust fans that vent into the attic propper ventilation then takes care of the excess moisture. Alot of people when they insulate with cellulose blow the cellulose right into the soffits or lay batted insulation to close to the top plates of the walls and thats closes off any intake draft from the vents in the soffit. In order for the warm moist air to exit a roof vent there has to be a good source of intake air; vents in the soffits. Warm air rises and will exit the attic with roof vents and with vents in the soffits, there has to be vents in the soffits or in the outside walls just above the insulation for proper air circulation. I know a guy who owns a roofing company and he got a call in the middle of winter about what the owners thought was a roof leak. He went into the attic and the bathroom and kitchen exhaust fan were exiting thier moisture into the attic instead of outside through the roof or walls like they should have been. He said he got into the attic and it was just like an ice cave with a couple inches of frost in some spots and most of the attic had frost on everything. He put vents in the soffits and it was dry by spring. Its very important to have intake air coming from various spots in the soffits. When it comes to the stain on the ceiling try you wifes can of hairspray to seal the surface if its not a bad stain. If that dosent work Kilz oilbase or Sizner alcohol base, they seal 95% of the stains I’ve worked on. Just spray it on or buy a pint and brush it on. The latex sealers work for lighter stains but not for darker stains.

With all the snow this year, any roof vents could easily be covered and restricting air flow. Mine were, so after some serious snow I always check and clear as needed.