Moisture and Stain Near Chimney

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pslim940

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Hi,

Hoping somebody can help as we've tried quite a bit to fix this. For a few years we've had some staining on the ceiling and in some select spots on the walls near our chimney, in the room right below the attic. Originally, I checked the attic, thought there might be a leak, called a sweep and got new flashing. Since then, have been capped, repointed, waterproofed, flashed again etc.... Also, there was no liner in it until just a few months ago, with an old furnace and water heater venting into it. I've spent quite a bit on these repairs and the ceiling and wall in the area are still quite moist. I have a moisturemeter reading at about 15 to 25% in the area. I have tried to be more vigilant in observing the attic during rain, and have seen no evidence of water coming in.

So, at this point, I'm not sure what the problem is. It's been about 2 months since the last chimney reflash and repair, plus the installation of the liner, shoudn't the ceiling be drying out by now? I should also mention there isn't a lot of venting in the attic, I try to open the attic hatch and blow a fan up there when I can, also put one of those big moisture absorber buckets you can buy at Walmart up there, but again moisture levels are staying the same for the most part, not drying out much at all.

Any help would be appreciated, either ideas what else could be causing the moisture, and/or who else we could call besides a chimney sweep.

Thanks!
 
First off, :welcome: to House Repair Talk!

Sorry to hear about your moisture issue. I have a bunch of questions:

Did the chimney sweep flash the chimney?

What was the chimney sealed with?

What type of cap on the crown of the chimney?

Has anyone checked the roof for missing or damaged shingles?

Is there any plumbing soil stacks near by?

Is there a wall/dormer near by?

Have you had a roofer check the roof and flashing?

Is this a true masonry fireplace or a pre-fab unit?

Can you post a pic of the attic area and a pic of the chimney fro the outside?

Have you seen any moisture in the firebox?
 
First off, :welcome: to House Repair Talk!

Sorry to hear about your moisture issue. I have a bunch of questions:

Did the chimney sweep flash the chimney?

What was the chimney sealed with?

What type of cap on the crown of the chimney?

Has anyone checked the roof for missing or damaged shingles?

Is there any plumbing soil stacks near by?

Is there a wall/dormer near by?

Have you had a roofer check the roof and flashing?

Is this a true masonry fireplace or a pre-fab unit?

Can you post a pic of the attic area and a pic of the chimney fro the outside?

Have you seen any moisture in the firebox?

Thanks for the welcome.

1) Yes, the original sweep put in flashing, but not step. The one a couple of months ago put in step flashing.

2 & 3) Not completely sure, but the invoice says Home Saver Crown Repair and Protection, as well as Chimney Saver Water Protection. The crown is sealed with cement across the top, just the top of the liner comes through. Metal cap on top of that.

4) Shingles are fine, checked in the spring, roof is only a few years old.

5) No plumbing.

6) No dormer or wall.

7) Roof was checked in the spring, but not since the step flashing was put in. But as I stated before I see no water coming in during rain.

8) Chimney must be from a true masonry fireplace, house is 150+ years old. No fireplace presently though. Just the furnace and water tank vented through the liner in the chimney, but the liner just got put in 2 months ago.

9) Pictures to follow.

10) No moisture in the firebox that I can see.

Thanks for the quick response!
 
Here are a few pictures. You can see that there have been some obvious problems with water getting in at one point. So far since this last sweep came though a couple of months ago, everything up there seems to be sealed up tight and dry.

20150704_140108.jpg

20150704_140123.jpg

20150704_140160.jpg
 
And here's one more with the relevant section of the ceiling below the attic, right next to the chimney. We'd like to get this repaired, but want to make sure the source is taken care of, right now I'm not convinced.

20150704_144017.jpg
 
Likely suspect area is the step out of the brick near the top, the metal cap looks suspicious and there's a lot of fluff of the flashing and shingles at the bottom. Call a roofer and have them check out the step and counter flashing and the top and bottom flashing pan of the chimney.
 
Looks like the chimney steps in at the top, creating the opposite of a drip edge. Any flat surface up there collects water. Do you know if there is mortar sloping away on each of those "shelves".
I might take a chance and seal the bricks again too. Could be they were especially thirsty.
The lack of a cricket is suspicious too.
 
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You do need to figure out venting for the attic and blowing air from the house into a closed cavity will do nothing and if it did you would be moving moist air from the house to where you don't want it.
 
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