How To Find A Water Leak In Your Roof

Projections or penetrations such as vents dormers and chimneys are frequent places for leaks.

How to find a water leak in your roof.

Sure it s easy enough to spot water stains on the ceiling or mold growth sure signs of a leak. The other person goes inside the attic with a bucket and a strong light. Learning how to find a roof leak is easy but accomplishing the task can be frustrating. If you can t find the cause of a leak from the attic or by visual inspection on the roof surface wait for dry weather and ask a friend to help you do a water test.

A lot of times it s simply locating the problem. The source of a leak often isn t obvious on the roof itself and it can be hard to pinpoint since the water may run down the roof decking and rafters before dripping onto the ceiling below. Roof leaks follow the path of least resistance which makes them difficult to find when you don t know where to look. Water frequently enters the house near things that go through the roof.

Find a friend to help with the roof leak test. Looking for roof leaks on the outside of your house. Here s how it works. Again practice safety first.

Run the water over the place where you think the leak might be located. One person will be outside the house with a garden hose running water over the roof. Be sure to start small. If you notice that eaves or downspouts are clogged remove the clogging material pine needles leaves etc and restore the flow of water.

If you don t want to wait for rain to look for the leak try bringing the garden hose up on the roof. Excess rainwater or snowmelt with no downspout to flow through will eventually seep through your roof and walls resulting in leaks. Don t go crazy with the water. Have a helper stationed in the attic with a flashlight.

The hardest part of fixing a roof leak. The other person will be inside the attic watching the area for water leaks. To do this one person goes onto the roof with a garden hose. Some roof leaks are tough to locate.

Sometimes the water shows up at a ceiling spot distant from the leak. Roof leaks can be cause by missing shingles gaps in the metal flashing around chimneys and vent pipes or small holes in the roofing. Water testing for roof leaks. The structure of an asphalt shingle roof makes it even more difficult because.