Roof leak - best way to find it?

House Repair Talk

Help Support House Repair Talk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

cp254100

New Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2015
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Hi Everyone,

I am a condo owner in New Jersey and own the top floor unit with a flat roof above (with roof deck), recently the ceiling in my condo has been leaking off an on around a ceiling vent, and we suspect a roof leak. (hopefully not the fire sprinklers)

What is the best way to find the leak? The roof is covered with snap-in decking tiles, so they can be removed, but the furniture, planters and other things on the roof make it challenging to inspect for a leak.

We had a roofer out to inspect, but that was pretty useless as he pulled up a few tiles and threw down some tar.

Do infrared inspections work?

Thank you!
 
Infrared works well, you will need to remove all obstructions in the area and scan the roof in the evening when the suns thermal signature is removed from the roof.
 
Thank you both.

@olddognewtrick can they test in the condo, or is it necessary to test on the roof?

@beachguy005 it is a heating/cooling vent and it appears the water is making its way along the sheetrock and out the vent.

The whole leak is odd, as we've had water staining/dripping from the ceiling 3x, not during the snow melt, not during heavy rain, but only when there is light sprinkling.
 
depending on what you have for duct work, it could be condensation dripping off the duct.
 
Someone also mentioned that to me. How do you figure out if this could be happening and who would I call - HVAC instead of a roofer?

Thanks for your help, as you can probably tell I'm confused :confused: about who to call to figure out the issue so it can be fixed.
 
This you can do yourself. If you have access to a garden hose, start running water on the roof and see if you can recreate the leak.
 
If you are the owner of the condo, let me forewarn you not to dig too much up on the roof because they might accuse you of doing the damage. Your association is responsible for the roof repairs, correct?
 
Back
Top