One of the most essential and vital parts of your house is its roof. It protects your house from the various natural elements, such as wind, rain, etc. Thus, in case your roof gets damaged and suffers from leak, it can considerably damage the structure of your house as well. Though the initial signs of leakage are visible as damp patches on the ceiling, sometimes you won’t be able to detect a leak in the roof, unless water flows down through it and becomes manifest in the entire home. The spot from where water is dripping should be repaired immediately and taken care of, so that you do not face the aforementioned serious consequence. We are here to help you with some tips on how to find a leak in a roof and prevent leaking as well.
Tips to Find a Leak in a Roof
- For finding leakage, check your attic thoroughly, both during dry weather and in case of a heavy rainfall. This will let you know if there is change in the surface.
- Another thing to do is to check for standing water, water spots, mold, or cone-shaped designs on fiber glass. You can compare these spots when it's dry in the attic to the ones you find when it's raining. This will clearly give you indications of leaky spots in your roof.
- If you have a suspected leaky area, wipe it with a dry paper towel. If the towel becomes damp, follow the spot to check out which portion of the roof is it. Mark the area and inspect the spot during rain.
- Another way of locating a leak is by finding out any signs of damage on the roof. This can include warped, cracked or damaged shingles. This can be a probable cause of leak.
- If your house has tiled ceiling, finding a leak in the roof will be a bit tricky, as compared to the Plaster of Paris ceiling. This is because the source of the leak in the roof may be at some distance away from where the water is dripping into the home, from the wet ceiling tiles. In this case, you need to trace the leak backwards, to its source on the roof.
How to Prevent Leak in The Roof
- The best bet for preventing possible leaks in the roof would be to get it inspected from time to time. Have the roof inspected after every heavy rain or heavy snowfall, to know whether the weather conditions have caused a leak or not.
- Get your roof inspected immediately after hurricanes, hailstorms or similar weather conditions.
- Clean the gutters and downspouts on a regular basis, because they can also be the sources of a leak in the roof.
- Ensure that the pipes coming through the roof structure are regularly caulked with a polymer sealant.
- Ventilation system affects the life of a roof indirectly and prevents leaks in it too. Therefore, you need to get the ventilation system of your home inspected on a regular basis.