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knolly
Nov 22, 2008, 11:46 AM
Hello,

Our bathroom fan was dripping and we figured it was just because of condensation in the vent pipe. I think that was definitely part of it but then we switched it to a much shorter vent pipe that was being used to vent above the stove. Then we covered the end of the longer vent pipe with plastic and left it just to check and see if there was water coming into the long pipe from outside. Went up into the attic a week later and the plastic has half a foot of water in it. So it seems that there is indeed water coming down the pipe from outside.

Our roof is very hard to get at, we can't even see that part of it as we don't have access to the back garden, and it would be best to figure this out without getting in a roofer or something. Any guesses as to how water is getting in? Is it possible that the hole in the roof is not covered properly or something? Or can air from outside cause condensation in the pipe as well? And if so what can we do about it?

Thanks for any help!

ballengerb1
Nov 22, 2008, 03:39 PM
Has it been raining to possible cause a poorly flashed pipe to leak? This sounds like too much water to be condensation.

knolly
Nov 23, 2008, 05:12 AM
Hi, thanks for your reply.

Yes it could be something like that. Is there a way I can check that from inside?

Thanks!

KBC
Nov 23, 2008, 07:01 AM
Unless you can see daylight,probably not going to find the real problem from the inside.

As a roofer for the past 20 years,I have diagnosed maybe 3 spots from the inside.

A shingle roof doesn't leak,mostly is is the projections from the roof that cause the problems.

An old pipe boot will crack and the mastic which was used will too.Due to the movement of the decking,a fixed pipe or chimney verses a moving roofline will do this,that's why we use flexible boots and the flashing can move separately from the deck.

You might have to get a handyman to get up there and inspect.

Visually inspected from the top will tell you a lot more than anything you can see from the inside.

KBC

knolly
Dec 1, 2008, 02:56 AM
Hey well that's not exactly what I wanted to hear but thanks very much for the information. I will have to get someone in I guess

Thanks!

ballengerb1
Dec 1, 2008, 05:44 PM
I agree with KBC, most leaks appear on the inside many feet from whether they started to penetrate the outer roofing material. Have you roofer pay extra attention to the boot jack around the fan vent pipe as it exits the roof.